Phatasy Star Online 2 (PSO2) - Review

Platform – PC and PS Vita

Here is another action packed MMO straight out of Japan, and one of the most demanded titles to come to the West. PSO2 has an amazing amount of customization, and a pretty nice variety of races to pick from, customization of your chosen character’s appearance and skills, such as Photon Arts (physical striking martial arts), Bullet Arts (bullets with fancy effects ranging from elemental typing to aliment inducing), and Techniques (magic in other words):

Human - The well rounded.

CAST - Extremely high in physical power and accuracy, and have the highest HP count. However, they have the lowest affinity for using techniques, and lowest defense against them.

Newman - Low defense and HP, but excels at using techniques.

Duman (pronounced Dew men) – Low defense and HP, but excel in both ranged and close quarters combat.

PSO2 has an awesome variety of classes to offer, and the best part is (and personally my favorite) you can switch between classes to experiment and see what your favorite play style is. Each class has its own play style; it isn’t so much that they are unique, but all MMO's have a role for each class:

Hunter – High in both in HP and defense. This class focuses on Great Swords, Wired Lances (mix of close-midrange type weapon that has grappling), and Partizans (spears). (Pretty much a tank with hefty damage)

Fighter – Excelling in high speed, in your face combat with average defense. This class mostly focuses on twin daggers, knuckles (fancy brass knuckles), and twin sabers (two swords connected at the hilt). (Think of a rogue)

Force – THE MAGIC CLASS! Low defenses and HP, but hey, that magic damage is through the roof!

Techer – THE HEALER! Low defenses, low HP, magic damage is about average.

Ranger – Big guns... like assault rifles and launchers.

Gunner – Higher mobility Ranger; instead of launchers they can use twin machine guns (I wonder why this is a separate class)

Braver – This is just a Samurai class, katanas and bows are their main weapons, nice close to mid-range fighting skills. Very HIGH crit rate.

Bouncer – This class is just a weird combination of Techniques and Photon Arts. They use jets boots (swords around the ankles that can shoot out fireballs and other magic) and dual blades (sword in each hand).

It is difficult to follow along with the story. There are story missions at the mission counters, along with a chart called a “Matter Board”, which tells you what to do and can help you earn items, but the board is a very poorly organized, so you don't really know what order to do the missions in.

Alright, on to the actual game play. Aside from the story and customization, the game itself is gorgeous on both the PC and Vita. The maps themselves are set on different planets, and each one has their own weather patterns. Both are amazing to look at, hell even the player lobbies look fantastic. The second player lobby (the shopping area), cycles between seasonal events, and with each one the lobby will change. One of the cool things which happens every few hours or so, is the “Emergency Quest” which is a public event that spawns rare monsters and other goodies.

LOOK RAIN!

This one is my favorite

Shopping Area

Gotta pose for a good beach picture, right?

Every game has its downsides and this one suffers from some big ones. First, it’s a Japanese release only, so finding and keeping up with the English patches becomes a nightmare fast. Secondly, it’s an MMO, so the grind gets old fast. Next is the combat system, yeah it’s pretty fun the first few hours, but it becomes repetitive fast once you find your proper weapon set and attack combos.

Final Standing on Phantasy Star Online 2

Would I Recommend: No, because it becomes a hassle with the English patches. Next it is a free-mium game, meaning its free only up to a certain point and using an American bank account can put you at risk for getting your account banned. I am to the point of the game where my equipment needs to be replaced with stronger, more powerful weapons, but I can't replace them because you need a “Weapon Pass” to purchase 10 star rarity and above gear. These “Weapon Passes” are ONLY obtainable by spending real money, to have a “Premium” status on your account (games gotta make money somehow). Don't know fluent Japanese? Well, enjoy playing by yourself for a while until you find another English speaker.

Graphics: 4/5 stars, just a slight loss because of graphical clipping here and there, but hey, bugs are bugs.

Game Play: 3.5/5 stars

Overall Impression: 4.5/5 Stars

-Ronin

P.S. I LOVE how advertising is done in this game!

Ads on in-game jumbotron!