Phantasy Star Online 2

Phantasy Star Online 2
Series:	Phantasy Star Online 2
Original Release:	July 4, 2012 Spring 2020
Platform(s):	PC
	PlayStation Vita
	PlayStation 4
	Nintendo Switch
Other Games in Series:	Phantasy Star Online 2 es
	Phantasy Star Nova
	Idola: Phantasy Star Saga

Phantasy Star Online 2 (Japanese: ファンタシースターオンライン2) is a free-to-play online multiplayer game for PC, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. It was originally released to the Japanese market on July 4, 2012. During the same year at PAX 2012, Sega of America announced that they would bring the game to the west, however, they would not reveal any further information about the project until Microsoft's 2019 E3 conference, wherein the game is now expected to release in English in Spring 2020 on Xbox One and PC.

A mobile "sister game" called Phantasy Star Online 2 es is available for iOS and Android.

Release History

Phantasy Star Online 2 was originally due to be released in late 2011 but was postponed for updates until 2012. Servers for use with the Japanese PC version opened July 4, 2012. A SEGA ID must be registered and activated to be able to access the game servers.

An English-language version for South-East Asia region (SEA) was released in 2014, while versions for the United States and European markets have been postponed indefinitely. The SEA English version was closed in May 27, 2017.

According to SEGA, over one million SEGA IDs have been activated for the game. The milestone was reached on October 1, 2012, about three months after the game's launch. In 2018, over five million SEGA IDs have been activated, which is celebrated through a special campaign.

Episodes

The game is updated through an episodic model. Each episode brings in new things to the game, ranging from quests to Classes, as well as continuing the ongoing storyline. Code: EPISODE 2 was released on 2013; Mission: EPISODE 3 was released on 2014; Reincarnation: EPISODE 4 was released on 2016; Heroes: EPISODE 5 was released on 2017.

Recommended Specs

The following system specifications are recommended by Sega to play Phantasy Star Online 2:

Software

• OS: Windows XP SP3 (32 bit), Windows Vista or Windows 7 (32 or 64 bit)
• API: DirectX 9.0c or better

Hardware

• CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 or better
• RAM: 1.5GB (Windows XP), 2GB (Windows Vista, Windows 7) or more
• HDD: 8GB or more free
• Monitor: 1280x720 or higher resolution
• GPU: NVIDIA GeForce 7800GT or equivalent or better
• SPU: DirectX 9.0c compatible or better
• Network: Broadband Internet access

Payment Model

No purchase or recurring subscription fee is required to play the game. Subscriptions (in the form of "Premium Service") include access to additional game features, such as trading items with other players. Both subscribers and non-subscribers can make microtransaction purchases through ARKS Cash (AC). Another purchasable currency, the Star Gem, was added with the Episode 4 update. Unlike ARKS Cash however, Star Gems can also be earned normally in-game.

Plot

Phantasy Star Online 2 takes a departure from its predecessor by having its own continuity. Additionally, the story doesn't take place in a single planet or solar system; new planets to explore are added during the updates.

The plot of PSO2 concerns of a colony fleet called Oracle that travels the space in search of habitable planet. The odyssey is handled by a large explorer organization called ARKS (Not to be confused with the organization Arkz from the previous game). The player is a new recruit in the organization, when they became tangled in a situation that would later decide the fate of Oracle and the universe itself.

• Episode 1: During their qualification exam in planet Naberius, the player and fellow ARKS trainee Afin were attacked by vile organisms known as Darkers. This is followed by the two discovering a mysterious girl who lost most of her memories, and the truth regarding Naberius and the recent spike of Darker activities.

• Episode 2: After the events at the end of Episode 2, the timeline was altered with the creation of a new race called the Dewman. The plot follows the player and Matoi as they try to unravel a dark conspiracy regarding the origin and purpose of ARKS.

• Episode 3: The discovery of the planet Harukotan brought a new quest into the fray, as the peace between the Shironian and Kuronites that dwell in the planet is disturbed by the Kuronites' sudden attack. The newly-reformed ARKS is tasked to investigate the reason behind it all, and it seems like the truth is more complicated and horrifying than expected...

• Episode 4: Two years after the end of the previous episode, the player character finally wakes up from their cold sleep. ARKS has undergone an administrative overhaul, with the player and Matoi sitting on a special position called the Guardian. Additionally, ARKS has discovered a planet that resides in another dimension, which is none other than Earth. However, this discovery brought new cases into the table, such as the sudden influx of new ARKS members and the sudden appearances of enigmatic creatures known as Phantoms in the planet.

• Episode 5: This episode takes place several months after the end of Episode 4. The player character, Matoi, Xiao and the others have an idea on how to rescue Persona: by imbuing the player character's weapon with Ether and changing its trait to be just like Hitsugi's Embodied Weapon. However, their rescue attempt goes awry, and the player character finds themselves in another universe...

Gameplay

The title screen

Mechanics

New features in PSO2 that were not in PSO include the ability to jump over short obstacles and attack in mid-air, to take evasive maneuvers such as dashing and teleporting, and to hold buttons to charge up stronger versions of attacks and techniques (although this game mechanic was introduced in Phantasy Star Zero). Players are able to create their own combo attacks by chaining different Photon Arts and Techniques.

Quests and Instances

Gameplay is online and quest-based, with quests taking place in instances on a planet and in an area determined by the quest. Most instances are single-party and accommodate 4 players, but a few are multi-party and accommodate up to 12. The party matchup system allows players to search for and join parties running the same quest.

Each quest has its own objective, but some quest instances also contain "Emergency Code" events; short tasks with special clearance conditions and bonus rewards upon success. Unless stated otherwise, Emergency Codes are optional.

A party cannot return to the ARKS Lobby while a quest is underway. Instead, a small, private space called a Campship serves as a party's base of operations during a quest.

Client Orders provide additional rewards for undertaking various challenges on quests, such as defeating enemies with a certain weapon type, completing a quest within a time limit, or procuring enemy drops in a "fetch quest" style task.

Open-world instances are also available. These allow many parties to travel the same map and can potentially have a much higher player population than other quest instances. Enemies and Emergency Codes respawn in these open world instances, which is helpful for Client Orders.

Races

Phantasy Star Online 2: Code: Episode 2's box art

Race and gender affect a character's appearance, voice, and stat growth, although unlike the original Phantasy Star Online and Phantasy Star Universe, the differences are not drastic. All race and gender combinations can access all of the available Classes. Former racial abilities, such as setting traps or casting Techniques, are now Class abilities.

Originally, there were only three races to choose from: Human, Newman, and CAST. On July 17, 2013, the Dewman became available in the new expansion, Phantasy Star Online 2: Code: Episode 2.

Classes

In PSO2, Classes determine the weapons a player can equip, as well as their overall playstyle. A player can freely change their Class at the ARKS Lobby's Class Counter. Experience, stats, and skills for each Class are tallied separately. It is possible for a single character to reach the maximum Level in every Class, but only the stats and abilities of the currently selected Class will count.

Nine classes are available to choose from: Hunter, Ranger, Force, Braver, Bouncer, Summoner, Fighter, Gunner, and Techer; the first six are immediately available from the Character Creation phase, while the last three are formerly unlockables, but later update makes them available immediately from the Class Counter after finishing the prologue.

Characters may also complete a Client Order for a Subclass license, which allows a character to set a Subclass and change it at will, as with the main Class. Setting a Subclass adds a portion of the Subclass' base stats, all the Subclass' skills, and the ability to use Techniques, if the subclass is Tech-based.

Starting from the Episode 5 update, Advanced Classes are introduced. Advanced Classes require mastering (reaching the maximum level) of some of the initial Classes to be unlocked. As of Episode 5, Hero is the only available Advanced Class.

Trophies

The PlayStation Vita version of Phantasy Star Online 2 was released with winnable bronze trophies. Most of the achievements revolve around killing a certain boss in a single party area, levelling up different classes, and weapon grinding.

Icon	Name	Description	Reward
	The Never-Ending Adventure Starts Now!	Proof that you have cleared a quest in multiplayer.
	PSE BURST!	Proof that a PSE Burst had occurred.
	Can I Come Again?	Made a +10 enhancement to any weapon or accessory in the grinding counter.
	I Have Decided to Help You	Proof that you have activated a photon blast.
	You Are Not Alone	Entered your team's room for the first time.
	Super! Exciting!!	Proof that you got a high score in Trick Darts.
	Vol Dragon: The Champion of Purgatory	Proof that you have defeated the Vol Dragon. *Limited to a single party area
	Quartz Dragon: The Ruler of the Blue Sky	Proof that you have defeated the Quartz Dragon. *Limited to a single party area
	Fang Banther: The Assassin of the Jungle	Proof that you have defeated the Fang Banther. *Limited to a single party area
	Big Vardha: The Dreadnought Battleship	Proof that you have destroyed the Big Vardha. *Limited to a single party area
	Dark Ragne: The Predator of the Abyss	Proof that you have defeated the Dark Ragne. *Limited to a single party area
	Became "The Strongest Warrior"	Have a Level 30+ Hunter as your main class.
	Became "The Explosive Flame Shooter"	Have a Level 30+ Ranger as your main class.
	Became "The Creator of All Things"	Have a level 30+ Force as your main class.
	Became "The Zero-Distance Fracture"	Have a level 30+ Fighter as your main class.
	Became "The Meteor-clad Musketeer"	Have a level 30+ Gunner as your main class.
	Became "The One Who Dominated the World"	Have a level 30+ Techer as your main class.
	Brightly! Intensely Vivid!!	Proof that you have cleared a quest with Quna.
	Falz Hunar: The Raven of Guidance	Proof that you have defeated Falz Hunar. *Limited to a single party area
	Chrome Dragon: The Mad Tyrant of Food	Proof that you have defeated the Chrome Dragon. *Limited to a single party area
	Maybe Your Luck Isn't Wonderful	Failed to strengthen the item.

DLC Achievements

Icon	Name	Description	Reward
	Prevaded Mag	Triggered the Ilios type Photon Blast for the first time
	Bal Rodos: The Torrent of Domination	Proof that you have defeated Bal Rodos. *Limited to a single party area
	Became "The Learning Machine Guru"	Have a Level 30+ Braver as your main class.
	I've Found a Lilipan!	Found the hidden Lilipan sticker in the Casino area
	Gigur Gunnegam: The History of Absolute Frost	Proof that you have defeated Gigur Gunnegam. *Limited to a single party area
	Became "The Guardian Who Cannot Fly"	Have a Level 30+ Bouncer as your main class.

Costumes

Main article: Costumes in Phantasy Star Online 2

There are many different types of costumes in Phantasy Star Online 2.

Ratings

Phantasy Star Online 2 received a CERO C (15 and up) rating due to sexual content. Sexual content for the purpose of CERO ratings can include swimwear or other revealing costumes.

Gallery

The Phantasy Star wiki has an extensive image & video gallery for this video game.

External links

• Official English site
• Official Japanese site
• Taiwan regional site
• South East Asia regional site
• PSUBlog - Unofficial English news site
• PSO-World - Unofficial English community site

Phantasy Star Online 2
Playable Races	Human - Newman - CAST - Deuman
Playable Classes	Hunter - Fighter - Ranger - Gunner - Force - Techter - Braver - Bouncer - Summoner - Hero - Phantom - Étoile - Luster
Equipment
Weapons	Sword - Wired Lance - Partisan - Twin Daggers - Double Saber - Knuckles - Katana - Soaring Blades - Gunblade Assault Rifle - Launcher - Twin Machine Guns - Bow Rod - Talis - Wand - Jet Boots - Harmonizer
Armors	Rear - Arm - Leg - Sub - Ring
Others	Auxiliary - Mag - Pet - Weapon Camo - Weapon Form
Important Characters
Guardian	Protagonist - Matoi
Council of Six	Regius - Maria - Casra I - Casra II - Atossa - Zeno - Klariskrays - Klariskrays II - Iris - Wolf - Huey - Quna
ARKS/Oracle	Afin - Aika - Aki - Azanami - Cofy - Echo - Euclyta - Filia - Fourie - Gettemhult - Io - Katori - Kyokuya Ludmila - Lukot - Marlu - Melfonseana - Melrandia - Oza - Pati - Pietro - Risa - Rojio - Saga - Sarah - Stratos Theodor - Tia - Ulku - Wright - Xiao - Xiera - Xion - Zig
Allies from Other Planets	Ro'Kamiz - Ko'Rela - Ko'Riu - Cabracan - Sukunahime - Kotoshiro
Earth Guide	Ardem Sacrid - Enga Yasaka
Earth's Other Inhabitants	Al - Hitsugi Yasaka - Itsuki Tachibana - Kohri Washinomiya - Phaleg Ives - Rina Izumi
Denizens of Omega	Alis Landale - Clarissa Maintainer - Florent Arlequin d'Ys Artia - Gettemhult Gwinner - Hariette Renata Reina Cuento Luther Lars Rey Cuento - Lutz Cero Rey Cuento - Margareta - Melfonseana Riesfeldt - Schreger Weyland - Varuna Lashiec
Antagonist
The Profound Darkness	Dark Falz (Apprentice - Elder - Gemini - Luther - Persona) - Elmir Weyland - Falspawn
Mother Corps	Aratron Tolstoy - Bethor Zelazny - Hagito "Hagith" Anie - Mother - Och Millar - Ophiel Herbert - Phul Janice Lasswitz
Photoners	Mitra - Shiva - Varuna
Locations
Planets	Naverius - Amduskia - Lillipa - Wopal - Harukotan - Earth - Omega
Locals	ARKS Ship (Casino) - City Area - Falspawn Den - Oracle Mothership - Forest - Tundra - Ruins - Volcanic Caves Floating Continent - Dragon Altar - Desert - Underground Shafts - Abandoned Mine - Coast - Seabed - Floating Facility Daybreak Province - Nightfall Province - Gemini's Inner Universe - Tokyo - Las Vegas - Bewitched Woods
Miscellaneous
Terms	Client Order - Partner Card (Friendship Level) - Story Progression (Divergence Matrix - Story Board - Story Quest) Cosmogenic Arm - Avatar Arm