Phantasy Star Fan Blog

Phantasy Star Portable 2 site updated with some new information regarding the battle, field, and enemy aspects. Shougai PSO also updated and this post will change to reflect what’s stated there.

 

New Fields! New Enemies!

Phantasy Star Portable 2 will feature brand new original fields as well as others from the previous games. The field shown in the screenshot is called, “Seabed Relics.”

This new area contains a brand new enemy known as “Svaltia”, as well as Phantasy Star Online’s “Evil Shark“.

 

Remixed Versions of Old Fields!

Phantasy Star Portable 2 will feature old fields from the previous games with a new twist! There will be differences towards the  length of the mission as well as the the enemy spawns.

You would not expect to see a Goldova appear right before the boss!?

Be prepared for changes to all your favorite missions. You might even see a new enemy appear out of nowhere!

 

Urgent Evasion

Urgent Evasion has your character swiftly rolling on the ground to avoid enemy attacks. You will consume Photon Points each time you roll!

 

Shield

Note how the shield has it’s own icon on the right hand slot.

The shield is now a new weapon category. The shield takes up the left arms slot which is normally used by guns or mags. You can use the shield by pressing the R button.

While the shield is in use you will not be able to attack, your PP will be consumed , and the damage you receive will be greatly reduced. 

 

Fortunately, you can attack an enemy by using your shield at the right moment. This is known as the “Just Guard“. If you successfully pull off a “Just Guard”, the damage you receive will be reduced to zero and your Photon Points will not be consumed.

Guarding is also possible with two handed weapons (ex. the spear), however, you can not guard with the rod.

 

Photon Points

Sorry time attackers… You can’t spam Photon Arts anymore.

Photon Points (PP) have changed considerably since PSU. Now, PP are attached to your character and not your weapons. To increase strategy, Sega has removed photon charges from the game. This is to prevent us from relying too heavily on Photon Arts. Sega wants players to mix up their attacks instead. (Note: We are unsure how this will apply to Forces.)

• In order to regain PP, you can do either of the following:
  • Wait for natural regeneration of Photon Points.
  • Use normal attacks against an enemy.

As a side note, we do not know if PP Cubes will return before each boss at this time. Although it has not been confirmed for this game, in Phantasy Star Universe, you can regenerate a larger amount of Photon Points by performing “Just Attacks”, (where you time the button presses of each normal attack.)

 

Charge Shots

Note the gigantic sparkle!

Charge shots is a new feature for ranged weapons, it allows you to shoot a more powerful bullet. Charge Shots will use a considerable amount of PP, so it’s best not to use it over and over. This action will also change the shooting animation as you can see in the screenshot above. The player tends to jump backwards from the recoil.

[via pspo:2]

The official site updated with a beautiful teaser image of the box art. We finally know the official spelling of the main character names, Emilia and Yuto. Also we learn that Yuto is actually a newman! The site opened up some new details about the story and the functions of the internet multi-mode. We can see how these changes are almost mirroring Phantasy Star Zero in design.

Yuto : I’ll defend everyone in the village!

Emilia: What? We are partners…??

Clad 6: Space Resort

Clad 6 Central

Instead of the Guardians Colony, the game takes place on Clad 6, a space resort colony where anyone can go to chill and relax. Clad 6 is described as a beautiful colony with  its big screen TVs and other gorgeous electrical spectaculars! Even in dark space, this colony shines particularly bright.

 

Little Wing

Within Clad 6, is a private military group known as “Little Wing”.  It was formed by it’s parent company, “Sky Clad“.  Sky Clad was a general trading company that focused on  clothing and the resort business. Up until now, the company had no involvement with military affairs.

“Little Wing” was formed as an unexpected business expansion. It very quickly became a heated topic within the main headquarters of Sky Clad. Apparently, one of the more powerful executives strongly pushed for Little Wing’s existence.

You could say, working as a member of Little Wing is not so much different than that of a “handyman”. They will accept any type of  work whenever it is available. Sometimes amongst the confusion, they could accept a job that could be considered a crime. Though, the accuracy of their work is not so bad, and at least their reputation is rising…

 

Internet Multi Mode

One of the major complaints with Phantasy Star Portable is how each planet was set up as a 2D map, as you click on which area you want to go to. In Phantasy Star Portable 2, “ Little Wing Control Center” is your 3D city, (or lobby) and will act as a replacement for all 2D maps. Little Wing can only accommodate up to 4 players. It appears you will be doing all your shopping throughout Clad 6, whereas mission selection will take place conveniently at one counter.

Another change compared to Phantasy Star Universe, the character you create in story mode can also participate in multi mode and internet multi mode.

• Some tidbits about multi mode
  • Mission selection at one counter.
  • You can chat during battle and in the lobby.
  • You can type with an integrated simple keyboard within the game.
  • Chat Shortcuts are now available to save time.
  • Lobby Actions can be done within the city.
  • You can perform a limited amount of lobby actions within a mission.

New Screenshots

GameWatch has posted their own article with some new screenshots. It pretty much sums up everything that was said in the Famitsu article.

Sonic is using Charge Shot against ubakrada (aka annoying boat.)

 

In PSU we normally see the Goldolva during Fire SEED contamination.

 

[via pspo:2]

Famitsu added a whole slew of new screenshots in a very clear format. What’s surprising of these screenshots is how it confirms two very familiar (but annoying) PSU cast members will be included in Story Mode.

Story

It’s been 3 years since the SEED invaded Gurhal. Now that all four races defeated and sealed off the SEED, a new issue takes center stage. The resources in Gurhal are quickly diminishing. Because of this, a “Sub-space sailing theory” was set in place, where Gurhalians migrate to outer space. The player will participate in a private military group known as “Little Wing” on Clad 6, a space colony resort.

Emilia Percival is described to be innocent but somewhat lazy. There isn’t much talk at all about her past and no record of it has been kept either.

Yuto, a newman, lives in a very protected and cultured area on Moatoob. He is from the Kersch/Karsh? family. He seems to excel in utilizing the mysterious “photon” energy. Since he was secluded from civilized society, he lacks a bit of common sense. He will share duties with Amelia.

These main characters will act as the center stage for the story. Your character will develop the story around their adventure.

 

Notable Screenshots

Tonnio and Liina Sukaya appears in story mode. Tonnio is the dark skinned beast with the orange hair. Liina is the white beast in pig tails. They may look like teenagers but they are actually adults. By now, Liina is 25 years old and Tonnio is 29 years old.

 

This is a very notable screenshot, why? Well, remember when PSO had an enemy called the Evil Shark in the “Caves” sections?

 

Lobby actions again! As you can see, all characters are sitting down and showing off their new chat symbols. Chat shortcuts are back once again! Take a closer look at the icons underneath each of the players’ names. Notice how it changes to from a lock to a sword when they are currently in a mission.

 

The space colony, Clad 6, has 5 rooms encircling a larger center room. The center appears to contain a teleporter, but where does it teleport to? This room looks strikingly similar to the one in Phantasy Star Zero.

 

In this new Relics area, Sonic is wielding the PSO weapon, Last Survivor.

[thanks to yeongene and touka]

Phantasy Star Portable 2 boxart is now on Amazon.co.jp. Amazon also added a few official screenshots so you can have a clearer look at the new lobby, emoticons in chat, shields, and a new photon art known as Infinite Storm.

Emelia Percival looks pissed.

 

You can’t have a Phantasy Star Universe game without the De Ragan.
Note the PP is based on character not weapons!

 

Emoticons in the lobby! Amy is showing her delicious cake emoticon.
Players seem to have a different icon in the lobby.

 

Sonic has his new photon art Infinite Storm!
Note the shield icon on the R trigger.
The enemy is called Dakamazri.

 

The cast girl on the right seems to be Maya’s spiritual replacement.
Story Mode will also include choices similar to the first game.

 

Yuto looks quite odd as a main character.
He’s a Newman from Moatoob.

 

Chain attack, a concept from Phantasy Star Zero!
A level 30 Svaltia.

[More Screenshots]

Phantasy Star Portable 2 Official Site

 

The Game

Shougai PSO added some information to their site. We have updated according to the information stated there.  The game takes place on a brand new “resort” colony named Clad 6. Your character will be a part of a private military group known as “Little Wing”. It  takes place 3 years after the PSU Episode 3′s story, so you’ll be sure to see some familiar faces.

Every character has been redesigned from the ground up. As you will soon see in the scans below, each default character has a unique and stylish look. The game will up the ante by bringing in twice as much story and voice work. The game will increase the challenge for solo players by including new types of traps. Let’s hope it doesn’t end up as difficult as “catching the beast boy” on Episode 2: Chapter 9 in PSU.

 

Main Characters

Yoot Yun Yunkaas  ユート・ユン・ユンカース (VA: Miyuki Sawashiro) Yoot is 15 years old and hails from Moatoob. He is described to lack common sense due to his environment.

 

Amelia Percival. エミリア・パーシバル (VA: Chiwa Saitō). Amelia is 16 years old. She is a human and belongs to the private military group “Little Wing”.

 

Races

Default Human Male

 

Default Cast Male

 

Default Newman Female

 

Default Beast Male

 

Lobby Action and Chat

Yuri Lowell and Estelle err I mean..

Players can perform lobby actions and chat online! You can play the game either through Infrastructure mode which uses your internet, or through Ad-hoc mode which uses the PSP as the server, however other players need to be within your vicinity to play with you. Similar to PSU, you can also exchange partner cards. You may also search for other party members to play with while online.

 

Aside from entering text in Japanese, players can now insert symbols in chats. These small emoticons will appear in your text bubble. This is something that I would have loved to see in PSU. The picture above shows that you can insert any elemental symbol, smileys, and even some miscellaneous icons.

 

New Battle Actions!

The Urgent Evasion has your player somersaulting to avoid attacks. This function was first introduced in Phantasy Star Zero. I’m sure fans requested this action since there are Casts in Phantasy Star Universe who would annoyingly somersault to dodge your attacks. Well now we can stick it to them!

 

Charge Shots lets you shoot a more powerful bullet by charging your gun. In this case the player will use a new animation while shooting the bullet. You can see this animation at the top of this screenshot.

Your shield can now block enemy attacks. If you use your shield at the right moment, you can damage your enemy through a Just Guard attack. This is reminiscent of the Just Counter in PSU, you would immediately counter attack if you press the attack button as soon as you block. You can use your shield as the left hand equipment or include it as an extra slot when you have both hands full.

 

The chain system from Phantasy Star Zero will return in PSPo:2.

 

Redesigned HUD

The HUD is redesigned to fit more appropriately on the PSP. A huge change is how Photon Points are now based on character stats and not weapons. Players will have a sword icon while in a mission. If they are in a lobby the icon changes to something else we are unsure of at this time.

 

Game Details

Game: Phantasy Star Portable 2
Console: Sony Playstation Portable
Cost: 5040 Yen
Release Date: December 3rd, 2009 (Japan)
Developer: Alfa System
Network: Infrastructure Mode and Ad-Hoc Mode

[via scan 1 and scan 2]