Summary of Second Phantasy Star Online 2 Media Briefing

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Summary of Second Phantasy Star Online 2 Media Briefing

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Summary of Second Phantasy Star Online 2 Media Briefing

PSO2

By Ryna at 03/26/2012 - 5:11am

The second Phantasy Star Online 2 media briefing was held today and broadcast on nicovideo. For people that cannot view nicovideo version, you can view the video here:

You Tube

Here are some of the major highlights of the media briefing:

Free to Play and Cash Shop - Access to the game and executable will be free on all platforms. The game will be supported by an in-game item transaction shop.
iOS and Android Versions - Phantasy Star Online 2 will be released on iOS and Android platforms. These versions will use the same data as the PC and PlayStation Vita versions. However, they will be single player only.
Symbol Chat - Symbol Chat will return in Phantasy Star Online 2.
Character Creator Demo - A character creation demo will be released on April 5th.
PC Release Date - The Japanese PC version of Phantasy Star Online 2 is scheduled to be released during the Summer of 2012.
Japanese PC Beta Test - A beta test for the Japanese PC version is scheduled for late April. To sign up for the beta, visit the Japanese Phantasy Star Online 2 website and click on the golden beta button.

Credit goes to Mike for bringing us this news. You can discuss this news in our Phantasy Star Online 2 forum.

by Aki_Yoruno on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 6:37am

Free is good. Also, since it's coming out for iOS, I might not need to upgrade to Vita when that comes out. Dunno about controls on iOS, though... Won't know until I try. Edit: Oops, after checking the forum, I shoulda known it was too good to be true... Of course, controls would be really difficult or impossible for such a complex game on a tiny touch screen. MAYBE iPad would be better than iPhone, but that's still pushing it. I'll be getting a Vita eventually, but at least I don't have to buy the game.

by Indignation Judgment on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 5:39am

>but at least I don't have to buy the game.
I really doubt Sega follows this logic, even if it's supossed to be F2P.

by goldbrease on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 11:52pm

i dought it will be free for everything. you will likely have to buy the cartridge/chip thing for the vita.

by Mike on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 12:20am

The PC version, Vita version, and smart phone version will be free to download.

by Aki_Yoruno on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 6:43am

Well said, Mikerest. I indeed won't have to buy the game, but everyone knows there will be temptations up the wahzoo which WON'T be free in-game. Like with every game I've played up until now, though, I won't spend any money in it unless I need it to progress. Of course this means I will purchase any expansions and quests/missions. But as far as DLC goes with weapons/costumes, not a chance.

by Nexoz on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 7:14am

Wow, I never would have thought Sega would make PSO2 a F2P title and I didn't expect there be iOS and Android versions of the game. Sega are going all out with this game. o.o !

by Griffin on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 10:20am

This is definitely a shocker, but I find it to be a reasonable decision as it is quite fitting for the way Sega runs their online PS titles.

by 60Hz on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 9:40am

Samuria & Dragons (a PSV from SEGA) game is not only free to play, it's FREE... the social gaming world has pushed these new business models on to the console world... i'm sure we'll see more of these strange (but easy on the wallet) ideas coming about. My question is how obtrusive will the micro-transactions be. Can i grind my way through to great items or will i have to purchase them... this seems to be the tough balancing act SEGA has to make... as a consumer of course i want everything free, but that is not sustainable at all for a company...

by goldbrease on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 11:55pm

um if the prices are anything like what i saw listed for the psu buyables its not cheap.

by Tripike on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 7:55am

Exactly how popular are Android and iOS in Japan? It was my impression that Japanese cellphone technology was vastly superior to ours, could this be an inclination of a Western release?

by Elevator Doors on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 8:03am

Noo not F2P. Damn it they absorbed the korean style. Means a ton of minor updates that hinder gaming flow, cash shops galore, and hackers 24/7. I mean all this on different platforms means multiple ways for people to destroy your hard work. Man i was totally willing to pay monthly for this. Now im up and down...

by AOI_Tifa_Lockhart on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 8:45am

How exactly will being F2P mean there'll be lot's of hacking? If you're judging this on Korean MMO's, none of which were made by Sega how can you compare this in any way to PSO2?

by Elevator Doors on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 4:50am

Its just less consequences for hackers on something thats free. Ive had it when i lost my Guild Wars account and about 5 different email accounts. Nexon said they would get to it and it took 3 months for them to respond. At best they just went into my account and emailed me a reset password. Lost everything i worked for and i just stopped playing. Yeah it was a purchased game but the free monthly just made it scream a challenge for hackers. Im not saying sega might not be like this but on the long run thats how f2p games become. Its fact unless you cough up enough money at the cash shop. WoW had the same problems but i got my account back a few hours later with everything from a previous update.

by Merumeru on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 9:42am

So, free-to-play, oh wow, maybe that is the business model they need to go with X3 actually, I'm REALLY sure that it will make a huge difference, and probably for the better. Can't wait! XD

by SELENNA on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 11:18am

That media briefing was awesome, and I don't understand a word of Japanese

by Overlord Zenon on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 11:27am

free 2 player, well i did hear a while ago, Sega and perfect world were teaming up to make a game, i wonder if PSO2 is it

by Kevin PSO on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 12:19pm

It's F2P ay. Well... now I'm really hoping it comes to console. I wouldn't want to be forced to create a windows partition on my mac through bootcamp just to play PSO2.

by Dandac on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 1:17pm

Am I alone or is anyone else looking for/wanting a console annoucement? I would like to play PSO2 on my Xbox360 using my turtle beach headset and touchpad keyboard lol. I know its not really needed as you can set up your pc with an controller if desired, but I would like to see a multi-platform release that would include the likes of Xbox, PS3, WiiU ect. I think if it was not to much of a burdan to do so, they would be able to hit all the markets to get the biggest user base possible. The online series started on a console (Dreamcast) and I guess I kinda feel im not the only fan who would enjoy seeing another console release next to the pc one.

by HyperShot-X- on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 2:19pm

English PC version release announcement should come 1st if it follows their initial plan of "Global Support"... besides, next gen consoles(Xbox720?) are supposedly in the making for release 2013 or so, also if it ever comes that time for console port release in the next year or two, it'd probably be modified version of pso2 specifically for console market as you cannot put Free-2-Play pc port as is on retail shelves for console.

by Pyro8562 on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 4:51pm

They'll probably release it on the PS3 if any console since it's already on the Vita, and the PS3 already has a major F2P MMO(DC Universe Online) as well as the F2P FPS tie in to EVE Online, which will communicate with the EVE Online PC clients. Also we could totally get an announcement about a console version before the English PC version announcement because they still could put it on Japanese consoles before throwing it into the rest of the world.

by HyperShot-X- on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:47pm

Vita won't happen til 2013 and no logical reason to hold back a possible PS3 port announcement now if it was any earlier than that, and DCUO is only possible as 1st party title by S.O.E. to go F2Download/F2P on their own console and even that wasn't the perfect pc port as told, as for EVE Online console port or the like, that doesn't even exit in my knowledge base. I wouldn't be so sure about what will come next but I sure don't want to see history repeat again as it did with PSU on PS2, arguably the biggest mistake ever in franchise history.

by Overlord Zenon on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 5:42pm

I want it on a console aside vita (handhelds arnt the same) ive played many of hours of PSO on gamecube with my friends, it was like crack, we didnt stop playing for hours on end and that was offline mode, lol

by OpheliaInfinity on Mon, 03/26/2012 - 4:33pm

I'll agree with most others that free is good, but I can't help but think a monthly price tag would be better. PSU's demo was full of hackers, scammers, and ...vulgar little kids... >.> It seemed the monthly price tag of PSU:AOTI was the barrier protecting true players from the masses of those kinds of people. Sure, there were still quite a few of those mentioned above in the full game, but significantly less. ...Just my thoughts, I'm not going to make a big deal about it and I'm definitely not going to take this f2p system for granted. ^^ Free is good, free is good, free is good...

by AOI_Tifa_Lockhart on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 1:35am

If you want a barrier from annoying kids play it on the JP server, then you won't understand most of the people and the English speaking players if more of a tight knit community and more mature.

by OpheliaInfinity on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 4:00pm

Noted. Though it shouldn't really be a problem this time around that's a good plan to fall back to should 'they' uprise. c;

by 60Hz on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 9:44am

i would assume with this model focusing strongly on micro-transaction that the security will be fort knox level - being able to hack items would destroy their finances, especially if the pc version is free download... security should be top priority.

by OpheliaInfinity on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 4:03pm

Another good point... we should expect SEGA to have ways to deal with them. Thanks for reassuring. :>

by XeoΩ on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 6:53am

Character Creator Demo - A character creation demo will be released on April 5th. I am defiently excited for this! For the free to play, I'm sure they will handle this accordingly. Being free or not will not stop hackers. They are in every online game reguardless. I really can't wait for this to come over seas!

by Gun96 on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 11:11am

Lets not complain that its not on consoles or that its f2p. Lets see if the game even comes to western countries first then we can say something

by Overlord Zenon on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 2:18pm

well its not a matter of if, its a matter of when, sega at least tries to please its fans to some degree (unlike you capcom) and they've brought over all the other onlines, cept infinity, but psp wasnt a good market for an MMO to begin with. but all im saying if sega wants to continue making money off Phantasy Star, it will also have to be relesed in english as well

by Indignation Judgment on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 5:32am

Well, well. While Cash Shop is generally a BS feature, and sega reaches nowhere Nexon does, the announcement that it wil lbe F2P on all platforms calms my heart. Buying the system, buying the game, and subsecuently paying the monthly fee while paying the 3gs costs? HEARTACHE!

by C0ldChaos on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 4:50pm

Being F2P is nice but that cash shop..*cough cough* item mall feature is on almost every F2P mmo I ever see now and sometimes it can be quite game breaking. They encourage a little money goes a long way with the hours of grinding and end game features offered in most F2P mmos. Also all you people wanting console announcements... Think about it, we dont want another PSU experience. PC only means updates and patches to drastically improve the experience. Console (If cross platform with PC) means no patches worth a damn, terrible events, more PSU related nonsense. Hell I wouldn't be surprised if they make a pso2 ver.2 P2P if this one takes off.

by Gun96 on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 5:17pm

And i really dont get why the cash shop would be a bad thing if you dont want the stuff dont it buy simple as that

by HyperShot-X- on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 10:03pm

if things were so simple like that, all the problems in the world would've been solved, unfortunately they like to design the system so that the rate of making progress in game is controlled by how much cash you spend on cash shop and it'd pressure you to buy stuffs like drop rate boost item for ex. just to keep up with the level playing field. But that wouldn't be a problem if you are one of those who got hundreds of extra cash laying around to burn or had free time to play for 24/7...

by C0ldChaos on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 5:11am

It's more a psychological thing regarding the cash shop not a how much extra money you have thing. Play alot of F2P games and see how everything revolves around the system then put it into perspective for a HUGE title that has the potential to be what the fans want it to be. I am not trying to prove a point just open minds to the direction sega is going for with the cash shop. Many F2P games were P2P but lost major fanbase then went Cash shop to get whatever they could. Who really pays for it is the community(not talking money) and that will all depend on many decisions that to my knowledge have not been made yet by sega.

by Mekimaru on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 4:43am

Well why not spend the same ammount of money you would have spent if it was going to be a P2P game , stuff like extra xp and cool items? think of it as a choice. You pay for items (prob wont cost as much as if there was a subscription) that can help you . make the game easier and have sliiightly cooler looking stuff. Or (mainly for ppl who couldnt afford the monthly fee) Dont buy anything= maybe Make the game a little harder, and a bit longer to get to the Lvl cap and not have as much cool stuff... making it F2p is obv going to open the game to alot more players and for the ppl who would have paid the (more then likely expensive ) monthly fee would get bonuses. I would rather sega say , "insted of making the game pay2play, lets make it free and award players who would have paid for the game " = cash shop.

by Gun96 on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 5:33am

Ive played many F2P's and only About 2 or 3 that ive played had cash shops but i rarely bought anything from them and i was still at a steady leveling pace. I mean look at the previous phantasy stars. The portable ones did not have cash shops and leveling was fine for me. Same thing with pso. Didnt have a cash shop but everyone still lvled up fine. Not making a point also but its just common sense. Like that one guy said above. Its more of a choice if you decide to buy it or not.

by Nommy on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 4:55am

I don't like it. I've never played a F2P game that didn't feel, at least, noticeably watered down from what should have therwise been an amazing game, just like PSO. Don't get me wrong. I loved PSO and still do. I put several hours into that game and I did so thoroughly enjoy it. Although it was about as good as it could be for it's time (granted... even then, there was room for improvement), there were a lot of things that PSO could have done better, and I'm sure after the luster wears off of PSO2, people will start finding things to gripe about... but, making it F2P makes me wary that there will be much to gripe about... Possibly, too much. I hope I'm wrong. I really do... I've been waiting for PSO2 since PSU. Also, I hope the stuff you can buy isn't limited to useless cosmetics and the sorts. I'll still buy the cosmetics, because I genuinely want to support PSO2, but, I hope they have something worthwhile to sell to their gamers. I wouldn't mind paying a monthly subscription fee if it meant getter priority connection status, or other advantages, like having more characters per account, or more single/multiplayer content. I just want this game to be interesting. I don't ask any more than that of any of my games... but PSO2 has too much potential for it to be anything less than interesting, so I'm hoping it'll be a game that's as addictive as the original was.

by yaku297 on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 1:01pm

phantasy star online data system if the game system 2 core intel. pc beta version. sonic team

by HyperShot-X- on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 9:53pm

I wouldn't mind if there would be like a premium level service you could purchase at cash shop for $10 per month or so and get access to exclusive premium contents in game such as more mission areas/items, exp/drop rate boost etc., hopefully they find their way to balance it just right so that it won't be over used or exploited, like making certain items acct-bound if necessary, and not let it break the game completely and segregate free players from cash shop users or premium members. It's easier said than done I know, and it could get quite complicated with many decisions for them to make to please everyone, but that's to be expected with SEGA's decision to go with F2P model, they must have some plan to make it work and encourage co-op for all players. Also, make premium level members and above to be easily identifiable in lobby for obvious purpose. Lastly, something must be done about lobby chat system for those annoying spammers, it doesn't matter whether they're AFK or not, free players or cash shop supporters, they can get quite annoying at times and ruin others' experience, so there really should be a limit on how many times the same exact mssg one can spam in any given minute, say less than 5 times or so, in addition to both 'mute' function and b-list option.

by R315r4z0r on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 11:34pm

Oh boy... it looks like we're at that point in the game's development where all the hype for the game is going to dramatically decline little by little after each announcement they make. Free to play? Seriously? That decision right there is almost enough to change my mind about getting this game. This game was easily my most anticipated game. I hadn't been as excited about a game in a really long time. But now my joy and hopes are killed. I don't understand how people can LIKE F2P games... sure they are free.. to start.. but you're basically restricted in anything you do and if you want to be able to do things then you have to pay for it. You end up paying $300 for what adds up to be half the amount of content you get in most $60 games... RPGs are fun because you get to customize and level your characters up with drops and things that happen over time with probability. It isn't about who can pay the most money to get the nicest stuff... I really hope I'm wrong about this and the game does turn out great. I just don't want such an awesome looking game to get shafted because of some lame tacked-on money making scheme.

by Ail on Fri, 04/06/2012 - 1:35pm

what to say.. i feel exactly the same :/

by shinigamiefa on Fri, 03/30/2012 - 9:58am

In my opinion there are some few F2P games that are successful in satisfying everyone, even to those that don't get to experience all the content. For example, some games offer you three options: (A) Download the F2P and hope the initial or some future free content is enough to satisfy you. (B) Download the F2P game and only pay for specific content that interests which will most likely be overpriced. (C) Download the F2P game but paying a membership that allows you to experience the full content of the game and in the long run you save more money than buying individual stuff constantly if not a member. The problem mostly is the result of an unbalanced of the game where Members > Individual buyer > Non payer. Other implications are the quick inflation of the player economy with overpriced items in auction houses or player stores but, this related to the drop rate placed on items and how much cash(meseta) you can make by selling items in NPC stores. Some game developers take suggestions from forums and find ways to try to keep the game decently balanced (like making separate servers for members and non members) but, that is not always the case. The idea is that we should have a choice in the F2P model and understand its consequences.

by Gun96 on Fri, 03/30/2012 - 1:22pm

And once again i still dont understand why going f2p is bad. They way some of you are explaining things its like you want to give your money away. Especially since the gaming industry is doing kinda poorly nowadays and that just makes no sense to me

by BWS-1 on Fri, 03/30/2012 - 5:32pm

My concern about the F2P plan is that... if it's to mimic the way things work in Spiral Knights (made by Three Rings, a company recently acquired by SEGA), it'll be down-right crap. Imagine playing a PSO game where, say, every items up to 20 is FREE, than you need to BUY mats to get to create or find the others, or have to BUY access to 'Hard' and 'Very Hard' runs every time with ''energy'' (which could be purchased in-game). Would suck, wouldn't it? Well I guess if it's FAR FROM THAT model, the F2P idea isn't bad. It's just that my Spiral Knight experienced pretty much tarnished all hopes of seeing anything positive coming out of it.

by shinigamiefa on Fri, 03/30/2012 - 5:37pm

I actually am happy to see its going to be F2P but worried in how the are going to implement the model. Thing is my experiences with F2P games has not been very good except maybe one or two games. My PSO ep1 in Dreamcast experience was "magical" and I hope we get that same satisfaction as we played on each episode.

by BWS-1 on Fri, 03/30/2012 - 6:03pm

I'm not sure if the PSO ep1 on Dreamcast could account for a F2P 'model'. It was a game where you could play online... and that was free. All the content was there. Like all games on console back in the day. Now the world has changed compared to over 10 years ago and when you're in a financial 'low' like SEGA and plan a F2P 'model', it likely means 'a model where there are intricate ways to charge the player while still allowing him/her to play freely... at the expense of swift/normal progress and/or content'. Then again, I can't get Spiral Knights out of my head. And possibly Diablo 3. I don't wanna go there though, ain't out yet but... that's another thing I don't have too much hopes up for. But yeeah, I want to feel that ''magical'' experience again too :x

by HyperShot-X- on Sat, 03/31/2012 - 12:00am

^@Gun96, sounds like you are one of those free loaders with the mentality of 'why pay when I can play a whole bunch of these f2p mmo for free?' with no plan of paying for anything ever on cash shop, (maybe that's part of the reason why gaming industry isn't generating enough profit with such mentality sweeping across gaming population like an epidemic..), such people would not/may never understand what's it like being a fan to support a franchise who are willing to pay, upto a point, for that quality content to be delivered and fully experienced with much anticipation, that's far from your term 'giving away money', instead it's an investment for future development and service, *excluding select few that their cash shop addiction has taken over and ends up spending hundreds which I see none so far here btw.

by HyperShot-X- on Sat, 03/31/2012 - 12:02am

Again, going F2P could be bad if cash shop system isn't carefully designed and balanced, and fails to satisfy the fan base who are willing to pay and support the game, b/c millions of free user base such as above practically won't generate any profit directly, and not enough profit generated ==> less content updates/poor quality service gradually. Now that made sense, it's just unsettling at this point with so much uncertainty and unclear on how to interpret this move, by going F2P they seem to be overlooking the traditional 'buy to play, either free online or sub based' model, well, they must feel pretty confident that their cash shop system will generate enough profit to compete in f2p market or maybe they felt that there isn't enough content to make it as a full priced game and just accepted f2p as the only chance at success.. either way their choice is made, awaiting consequences.

by Gun96 on Sat, 03/31/2012 - 3:03pm

@HyperShot no im not just a freeloader who wants to play every single game for free. I payed for universe because i actually wanted to support sega since they weren't doing so hot at the time. I mean i have no problems with cash shops and supporting companies, it's just that people aren't really making sense (to me at least) when they explain why they wish mmo's or games in general want to be p2p. Not trying to cause an argument, but yeah.

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