I don’t have a ton of experience with Phantasy Star Online 2. From what I have played, it feels more like the Phantasy Star Universe series. It’s fast paced and has a focus on flashy photon arts. Techniques and ranged attacks make use of free look, so at times it can even play like a gimped third person shooter.
Sure the basic foundation of Phantasy Star Online still exists within it, but it’s been stretched so far that it feels like a different game. I’m not complaining though. Change is good. I don’t like it when a franchise gets weighed down by series expectations.
Even so, I am fascinated by Phantasy Star 0, which feels like a true “Phantasy Star Online 2.” It’s built-off the same slow and steady pace from the original with the fundamental three hit combo system serving as the basis of its combat.
Special photon arts and skills from Phantasy Star Universe exist, but they have to be charged. This, in addition to a chain system, which discourages players from spamming them. Instead, you have to think carefully about when and where to charge arts. Am I vulnerable to damage? Will the time it takes to charge the skill reduce my damage output? This slight change significantly alters how you approach combat.
Compared to other online Phantasy Star games, it’s a bit short on weapon variety and was limited by the Nintendo DS’ networking capabilities. However, I would say the overall content feels like an improvement over Phantasy Star Online.
The biggest problem with Phantasy Star 0 is its end game. A lot of the best drops come from the Eternal Tower, a single player only dungeon that has 100 floors to clear. If you quit the game, you lose any progress in the tower, so you have to complete it in one go. On the bright side, you can put your DS in sleep mode. But even at a steady pace, it takes me about a week to get through all 100 floors.
If you want to continue to playing other DS games alongside doing tower runs, you basically need to dedicate a second Nintendo DS for Phantasy Star 0. I’ve ran the tower probably a dozen times and have yet to get a single decent item drop.
I must be a masochist though since, despite my poor luck with drops, I can’t help but love Phantasy Star 0. I wouldn’t say it’s better than the Phantasy Star Universe series or Phantay Star Online 2, but it’s interesting to see an alternate path the franchise could have taken. It almost feels like a remake of Phantasy Star Online, but with modern mechanics implemented to improve the overall gameplay.
