Concept art for the default RAnewm costume was posted today on the official Phantasy Star Online 2 blog. Be sure to click on the image below to view larger version of the concept art!

RAnewm

Credit goes to Mike for bringing us this news. You can discuss this concept art in this forum thread.

PSO-World staff member HUnwearl_Meira had the chance to participate in the recent Alpha 2 testing for Phantasy Star Online 2. He has written up a detailed report on the latest Phantasy Star Online 2 build. Be sure to click on the "Read More" link to read his report!

HUnewearl_Meira's Report

The first two sessions of the second Alpha Test for Phantasy Star Online 2 have come and gone, as I am writing this. I’m not accustomed to waking up in the late afternoon, but I have no regrets concerning the sleep depravation I incurred over the last couple of days. The Alpha test’s schedule is well-planned for a Japanese audience, I think-- or at least, the times looked pretty damned reasonable, if they’d been for a local time zone. California is 17 hours behind Japan, however, which means that a well-placed Friday-evening session in Japan is a late-starting Thursday-night session here. I told myself that I can sleep when I’m dead, and pressed on ahead.

The first impression of the game came early on, long before the servers went live. As soon as the client was installed, naturally I fired it up, knowing I couldn’t play. The introduction video started with a HUmar strolling down a futuristic metal hallway (we’ll know we’ve reached the future when all of our buildings are made of exposed metal-- cartoons and science fiction have made this abundantly clear). His stroll eventually terminated upon his arrival at what initially appears to be a very cold private pool, which he proceeds to jump into with an unnecessarily elaborate leap. He crystallized as he entered the depths, which seems like something to be concerned about, but he clearly expected it. This was the teleporter technology featured in the game.

The HUmar shot down to the planet below, and in a very energetic sequence of running through the woods and fighting monsters, he’s very soon joined by a FOnewearl, a HUnewearl and a RAcast. It’s all very exciting, but like any good introduction video, its ultimate fate was to get skipped over, in favor of getting into the game which its meant to hype up.

The short statement to make, is that the game is good. It’s incomplete, and all of the menus may as well have been labeled with squiggly lines for all the Japanese I understand, but the game is good, nevertheless. The game holds tight to the conventions we’ve expected from online Phantasy Star titles. Our races include Humans, Newmans and Casts, and our classes are Hunter, Ranger and Force. This time, there are no limitations concerning who can have what class, but then, we all knew this long before this Alpha test came about.

It took a while to figure out how to get down to the planet. I was a little disappointed that one cannot simply port down and start killing things, as we all got used to in the original. You need first, to visit the Quest Counter to accept a quest. With this done, you may then use the warp to get to the vestibule containing the warp pool seen in the introduction video.

Using the original PSO as a reference point, it’s very much as though the lobbies have absorbed much of the space and functionality that was once on Pioneer 2’s Hunter’s Deck. Shops and quest counters are found in the lobby, in addition to other service desks specific to this game. The vestibule also contains something like a vending machine, as well as a device which functions as some sort of a lightweight quest counter, and a third giving you access to your bank. When your party has collected and you’re ready to grind, you just jump into the pool and you’ll be whisked away to your destination.

The most striking thing I noticed, is how energetic the gameplay is, compared to previous games. PSO and PSU were Action RPGs, but they were relatively slow-paced. PSO2 really focuses on the Action part of that genre, not settling for merely being an RPG with real-time, two-dimensional combat. For the first time, we can jump, but also significantly, we can dash as well. Where a Booma from PSO might pop up out of the ground, lazily think, “Well, I guess I should slap this guy,” and groggily shuffle toward you, the monsters in PSO2 will chase you down, and try to out-flank you. In combat, you’ll find it’s a good idea to keep moving, as a stationary target will be pummeled soundly.

There are no Boomas to be found, but we’ve got some kind of wolf to deal with, again. Their behavior isn’t unfamiliar, but they won’t circle you, as they once did. Another common foe, is some kind of a giant, four-legged spider, which makes me think of Starcraft’s Zerg, or the bugs from Starship Troopers. The new Booma seems to be derived from PSO Episode 2’s Gibbons. Whatever they’re called, the smaller apes like to jump-kick you from a hand-stand, the larger apes will tear boulders out of the ground to hit you with. Your best defensive tool will be your dash, dive-roll or teleport (depending on whether you’re a Hunter, Ranger or Force, respectively), and I found it interesting to note that if you’re quick, you can shoot a flung rock out of the air.

Overall, PSO2’s gameplay seems like a pretty natural evolution of what we’ve seen before. Most of us who played PSO were rather disappointed with PSU’s gameplay, despite the inclusion of some pretty neat features in the game. Sega seems to have learned their lessons there (as though PSP2 left us with any doubt in this regard), and I think they’ve improved things. In the past, one class was very much like another, differing chiefly in the type of weapon used. In PSO2, while the fundamentals remain consistent, each class has its own paradigm. The addition of a Third Person Shooter mode makes Rangering rather more satisfying, but Hunters will find fighting in that mode to be rather cumbersome. A Force may also be inclined toward the TPS mode if they use Foie an awful lot, but I suspect that the differing mechanics of each Technique will mean that Forces will be hopping modes with some considerable frequency. The practical result is that each class is almost like a different game, entirely.

I created three characters, who should all be easily recognizable to those who’ve followed my work: Meira, Mota Storm and Crankshaft. The level of customization is as incredible as we’ve previously been lead to believe. I’m not satisfied with what I worked out for Meira, though that’s a failing of my own haste to get into the meat and potatoes of the game, rather than a limit of the system. I’m hoping for some more alternatives for costumes as well, as I’ve never really pictured Meira as the kind of girl to run around with both ass cheeks exposed. Crankshaft came out rather good, as creating a character with a perpetually goofy expression turned out to be much easier than I first anticipated. Finally, I was happiest with Mota Storm, as my criteria for him was simplest. He came out big, bulky, and in the colors of Desert camouflage.

The largest character creation issue seems to be in costuming. There’s a bit more mix-and-match for the Casts, but the fact remains that there’s really only a handful of options. Fortunately, a costume shop exists in the lobby, though the door is shut for the alpha test. This of course, means that we won’t really be able to tell one class from another by uniform, but I imagine that many of us won’t regard that as any sort of a big deal.

I’ll note that Mags are absent from this Alpha test, but they’ve got a spot reserved right in the middle of the main, in-game menu. I look forward to seeing how that feature works out. We’ve been a long time without our floaty companions, and it’ll be nice to see them make a return.

It could be that it’s just still new and shiny, but I’m pretty satisfied with the game. I think most of us will be. I don’t know that PSO2 will usher in a new age where PSO brushes on the popular and the mainstream, as it did ten years ago-- I think that largely relies on how Sega handles its marketing. What I do know, is that there’s a lot of potential for something fantastic, here. Any Phanatic should be able to find something he likes out of this game.

That’s what I think on the subject. I’d invite anyone with something to say on the matter to join us in our PSO2 General forum, and speak their mind.

Thanks to PSOW member Jonathan_F, we have recordings of the recent PSO2 presentations that took place at the Akihabara PC Game Festival. These presentations were broadcast on Ustream last night. Both feature producer Satoshi Sakai along with a guest for each.

The first presentation's guest is sound director Hideaki Kobayashi. Key moments include the game's opening movie at 8:45 and a new trailer at 23:20. Follow this link for the opening by itself.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKDH5I_cF5Q[/ame]

The second presentation's guest is game director Yuya Kimura. This one features much more game footage. It shows off player rooms, shops, weapon upgrading, and new character customization features. Naturally, many of the changes to the game's UI are also shown in this one.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5CtTQtuxPw[/ame]

The second alpha test will feature some of the recently shown additions. My Room and Item Lab will be available, however Mags and certain new areas will not.

For more discussion of these presentations, head over to this forum thread.

In today's Official Phantasy Star Blog update, concept art for several weapon classes was posted. Also, it was announced that the Phantasy Star Online 2 Mailing List is accepting new signups. Mike posted the following details:

"Other news in today's blog is that anybody who wants to can now sign up for the PSO2 mailing list. You can sign up here if you don't have a SEGA ID. Or you can sign up here if you already do. Everyone who signs up for the mailing list will automatically be given a chance to participate in the second alpha test. It looks like there will be another drawing for participants so just signing up doesn't mean you will get to participate. You will get entered in to a drawing to pick new participants. (from the PSO2 twitter account) Previous testers are guaranteed a spot in the second test though."

Now on to the weapon concept art. Be sure to click on the images below to view larger versions of the concept art!

Sword

Saber

Wired Lance

Rifle

Rod

Credit goes to Mike for bringing us this news. You can discuss this news in this forum thread.

The following video contains an interview with one of our former PSU GMs talking about the Japanese PSO2 Alpha as well as the series in general. While there is not yet a Western announcement, Sega isn't remaining silent about the game here either.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BATo38UoTg4[/ame]

Editor's note: Thanks to Aaron Webber/RubyEclipse for the shout out! PSOW has seen some good collaboration with Sega in the past and we look forward to seeing more from them in the future. That said, I will admit that the amount of news on PSO2 has slowed these past few weeks (particularly on our own news feed). This is for two reasons. The first is that the amount of official news has been very light since the announcement of the second Alpha Test and final release delay. The second is that for one reason or another the news that does exist has not been hitting our front page with the proper speed or coverage that would be appropriate to expect. For this I apologize and will try to rectify the situation. If you ever feel the need to get a jump on recent developments, many of our news items are first posted by the apt members of our PSO2 forum. Anyone who wishes to submit a news item can also contact me directly. As time goes on, we will assuredly be posting much more on this exciting release!

Earlier today, the official Phantasy Star Online blog was launched. As part of the first entry, it was announced that Mags will be coming to Phantasy Star Online 2! In previous Phantasy Star games, Mags gave characters stat boosts and provided useful special abilities. According to the blog, Mags are currently still under development for Phantasy Star Online 2 and screenshots will be forthcoming. However, it was mentioned that the color of the mag will change depending on who equips it.

Basic Mag

Credit goes to Mike for bringing us this news. You can discuss this news in this forum thread.

Concept art for the HUmarl, HUcast, and FOcaseal was posted today on the official Phantasy Star Online 2 Facebook page. Be sure to click on the images below to view larger versions of the concept art!

HUmarl

HUcast

FOcaseal

Credit goes to Rukyius for bringing us this news. You can discuss this concept art in this forum thread.

The official site for Phantasy Star Online 2 in Japan was updated today with slew of information, including news that the game will be delayed until 2012 and that a second Alpha Test will take place sometime early next year. The reason given for the delay was that the developers wanted to make Phantasy Star Online 2 a better game. There also appear to be a number of user-submitted changes that will be implemented in PSO2, thanks to feedback from its first Alpha Test. The entire list of user suggestions and dev responses (in bold) can be found below. A big thanks to Mike for compiling the translated information in our PSO2 forum, be sure to drop by and join in on the discussion that is already underway.

Combat Related

I want to be able to perform just attacks with ranged weapons and techs.
We'll make it so you can do this.

I want to be hold the attack button to auto attack.
Ok, but you won't be able to perform Just Attacks using this method.

The hunter's step and ranger's dodge-roll are too powerful and they ruin the balance of the game. Fix it!
We are adjusting the time spent invincible and the time spent unable to move after dodging. We are also slightly quickening the change from walking to running.

There's no reason to use the hunter's guard.
We are adjusting the timing so that attacks are cancelled quicker by guarding than dodging. This will allow guarding to be more affective against sudden attacks.

The reduced movement speed while charging techs sucks. Do something.
Charging will no longer reduce movement speed but you won't be able to perform the mirage dash.

I want to charge techs in the subpallete too.
You will be able to do that.

Uncharged techs are too weak.
The power of uncharged techs will be raised and there will be an appropriate difference between charged and uncharged techs.

Resta's range is too short and I can't heal my buddies.
Resta's range is now longer.

The screen shakes too much and makes me wanna puke.
We have reduced the instances of screen shaking events and even these can be turned off in the options.

It'd be nice if there was a walking animation for when you only push the stick on a controller weakly.
Your characters now walk in this situation but only when their weapons are sheathed.

Some enemy's damage-animation cancelling attacks are ridiculous.
We'll change it so that all enemies, except large ones, will always complete their damage animation when attack with a just attack.

Make it so we don't accidentally waste mates when our HPs are full.
Done

Don't let us lock on to other players.
Done

Make the lock-on work like PSU.
We'll change it so the defaults are click for the keyboard & mouse users and hold for the game pad users. These can be changed in the options. When there are no targets around, this will recenter the camera

User Interface & Controls

The menus are harder to navigate with a controller than PSU!
We've fixed the user interface so it works well with all control methods.

It's hard to tell the difference between all the icons.
We've rethought the direction we were taking icons in and have redone them all.

It's hard to tell what items are locked or equipped by looking at the icon.
We've made the locked/equipped signifiers more visible.

Buying and selling items is clunky and hard to control.
We've gotten rid of the shopping cart system and made it easy to quickly buy and sell items.

I want to be able to deposit more than one item at a time at the storage box.
We've made it possible to select and move multiple items at the same time.

I want to buy and sell from storage.
Done.

I want to store meseta in storage.
We're working to see that happen.

In order to get a sense of when to heal, I want the HPs of other parties displayed in multi-party areas.
The HPs of players in other parties will be displayed above their heads.

I don't want the map to change from full display to local display when I change areas.
It won't.

The local radar map is too small. Make it bigger.
It will be made bigger.

I'd like party members to show up on the map so I know where they are if we get split up.
Party members will show up on the map.

I want disks to show their level when they drop so I know whether to pick them up or not.
Done.

It's hard to see when you've locked on to an enemy.
We'll make it easier to see when you've locked on to an enemy.

Communication

I want to type just by typing on the keyboard.
We'll add a mode that let's you do that when using a game pad.

Press "C" to chat feels weird.
You can press "C" or "Enter" to chat.

I don't want to have to use the chat key to do lobby actions or cut-in chat. Give them their own key.
They'll have there own key.

I want to be able to meet my friends right away.
We'll add a function that will allow you to travel to the block your friends are in when you log in.

I don't know if I'm using party chat or public chat! Also, make it easier to switch between the two.
We'll add another window that let's you switch between the chats. Party and public chats will also have different balloons.

Character Creation

I want to be able to change clothes at a whim. Lose the clothing defense attributes.
Costumes will lose their stats making units the primary source of defense.

I want to be able to decided if units are visible are not.
You will be able to turn the visibility of units on or off.

I want my character's eyebrows to match their hair color.
You'll be able to do that.

I want to be able to make characters bigger and smaller than the current limits.
You'll be able to make both bigger and smaller characters, but only slightly.

I want to be able to change my cast character's body using a morphing slider like the fleshies.
You'll be able to do that.

I want to change my cast's face like the other races.
There will be faces that can be changed like the other race's faces in the character creator.

I want my cast to run instead of hover. Or make it dependent on the type of leg parts.
You'll be able to choose between hovering or walking, no matter what the parts.

Quests

I want a input box to allow me to input my party name when I create the party to let other players know what kind of player I am.
Done. You'll also be able to select a playstyle along with using party comments and passwords.

There's not much information when selecting a party to join and it makes it hard to pick one.
You'll be able to see the party information like playstyle and time elapsed when you go to join a party now.

I want to be able to set a way to only allow certain players in to a multi-party area.
You'll be able to set a password for a multi-party area when you create an entirely new party.

I want the camp ship to have the abilities of the quest counter so we don't have to go back to the ship after each quest.
The camp ship will now act as a quest counter.

I want to go down to the planet without having to take a quest.
You'll be able to accept free quests without going to the quest counter and just going straight to the camp ship.

Shops in the camp ship please.
There will be shops in the camp ship.

I want to be able to teleport to areas already visited by party members.
You will be able to do that.

It'd be nice if interrupt events happened during free quests too.
Interupt events will now occur during free quests.

I want free quests to actually have a clear end point.
Free quests will have a boss and defeating that boss will end the quest but the area before the boss will be playable forever. (As in monsters will continue to respawn)

Having to unlock quests by waiting for a random event to happen sucks.
Quests will no longer be unlocked by random events.

I want boss areas like PSO and PSU.
Certain maps will have these areas. Certain maps will not.

I ran out of item space!
There were too many drops at a single point in time so we will be cutting down on unneeded drops.

Not being able to accept and losing a reward after an interrupt event because my inventory was full is ridiculous.
When this happens, the reward item will be sent to your storage.

A detailed alpha report has popped up on the PSO2 homepage. Many more graphs are provided than the ones featured in the earlier Tokyo Game Show presentations.

You can find additional information on this topic inside Spellbinder's thread on the forums.