Phantasy Star II

Phantasy Star II, released in Japan as Phantasy Star II: Kaerazaru Toki no Owari ni (ファンタシースターII 還らざる時の終わりに), is a console role-playing video game developed by Sega AM7 for the Mega Drive/Genesis, which was released in Japan in 1989 and in Europe and North America in 1990. It was later ported to a variety of different platforms. An updated remake, Phantasy Star Generation 2, was released for the PlayStation 2 in 2005 in Japan.

Phantasy Star II is the second installment in Sega's acclaimed Phantasy Star series and serves as a sequel to the original Phantasy Star for the Master System. Phantasy Star II takes place 1,000 years after the events of its predecessor and follows the journey of a government agent named Rolf and his friends, who are on a mission to discover why the protector of the planet Mota, Mother Brain, has started malfunctioning.

Phantasy Star II was the first video game to use a 6 mega-bit cartridge, making it the biggest video game on a console at the time. Since its release Phantasy Star II has been the subject of critical acclaim.

Phantasy Star

Phantasy Star (ファンタシースター, Fantashī Sutā) is a series of console role-playing video games and other supplementary media created by Sega. The series debuted in 1987 on the Sega Master System with Phantasy Star, and continues into the present with Phantasy Star Online 2 and other extensions of the Phantasy Star Online sub-series. Each of the games in the series features a science fantasy setting featuring a cross-genre combination of magic and technology.

The first four games in the series are set in or related to the fictional planetary system of Algol, and are single-player RPGs. Later titles bearing the Phantasy Star name are for the most part massively multiplayer online games. Phantasy Star Online and Phantasy Star Universe are set in other galaxies, sharing minor canonical links with the original series, mostly in the recurrence of common themes and antagonists.

Original series

The original series takes place in the Algol Solar System, which consists of four planets: Palma, a fertile agricultural world; Motavia, a desert planet; Dezoris, an ice planet; and the mysterious Rykros, whose elongated orbit brings it within visible range only once every thousand years. Players travel to all four planets throughout the series, interacting with each unique set of inhabitants and discovering the secrets to the solar system's genesis, which is irrevocably tied to an ancient conflict.

Phantasy Star 0

Phantasy Star 0 (ファンタジースターZERO), also known in Australia and Europe as Phantasy Star: ZERO and sometimes in North America as Phantasy Star Ø, is a Nintendo DS game in the Phantasy Star series, developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega. The game was released in Japan on December 25, 2008 and in North America on November 10, 2009, and has been released in Europe on February 12, 2010. Though the official US release date was the 10th, the game was not available in stores until November 11, 2009. The official website incorrectly lists the release date as November 12, 2009, because SEGA could not guarantee the game would be available nationwide the day before. The game expands on the gameplay mechanics of Phantasy Star Online, partly by borrowing some elements from fellow online Phantasy Star title Phantasy Star Universe, such as a fully realized story mode for offline play.

Character generation and archetypes

Phantasy Star Zero continues the character creation mechanics from Phantasy Star Online. The player first chooses a race, each with their own strengths: versatile Humans; powerful, hulking androids called CASTs; or nimble but fragile genetically engineered Newmans. The choice affects the character's perspective on the story and what order in which the first three zones are tackled, but ultimately all three end identically. The player then chooses the character's gender and archetype. Males tend to favor physical strength and durability; females tend to favor accuracy, evasion and techniques, Phantasy Star's equivalent to magic.

Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom

Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom, released in Japan as Toki no Keishōsha: Phantasy Star III (時の継承者 ファンタシースターIII), is a traditional console role-playing game that was released for the Sega Mega Drive (Sega Genesis) in Japan in April 1990 and in western countries in 1991. It was also released in three different compilations known as The Phantasy Star Collection for the Sega Saturn and Game Boy Advance, and The Sega Genesis Collection for the PlayStation 2 and PSP, and later re-released on the Virtual Console. It was featured in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Phantasy Star III is a sequel to the previous game in the series, Phantasy Star II, although the connections to other games in the Phantasy Star series are not immediately evident. Gameplay is similar to the games before it in the series, with combat still being turn-based and battles randomly occurring. Players must explore both overworld maps and dungeons in order to progress through the game.