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/vr/ - Retro Games

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File: 77 KB, 474x679, phanasy star ii.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
10533843 No.10533843 [Reply] [Original]

Phantasy Star II people legitmately thought this was the best console RPG ever back when it came out

>> No.10533852

Never played but looked up the release date and its only a few years after Dragon Quest 1 and 2 after Final Fantasy 1. Was a different time even if game was bad it might have been the standards of then or novelty. JRPGs were still very new

>> No.10533891

>>10533843
It was so far ahead of other JRPGs are the time it's fucking ridiculous. A decade later and Final Fantasy was still lifting things from it.

>> No.10534271

>>10533843
It was, for many in the West who had no prior experience of either anime or JRPGs. I was there, and as a kid it was mind-blowing to get such a massive adventure (complete with thick, weighty hint book) with such a perfect aesthetic.

>> No.10534317

>>10533843
>back when it came out

in 1989 to 1990, sure...

>> No.10534319

>>10533843
No they didn't. This game is complete shit and easily one of the worst JRPGs ever made. It has nice music and that's the only thing it does well.

>> No.10534386

I love this game so much

>> No.10534395

>>10534386
>I love this game so much

I did play the original Phantasy Star on a real Master System, and I always loved that game. I remember being a little disappointed by Phantasy Star II when it released. It lacked the 3D dungeons, and went for more traditional 2D dungeons. Maybe it was for the better? The enemies weren't as well animated. I liked Phantasy Star II a lot more on replays.

>> No.10534639

>>10534319
And damn is it some great music. It's not a super-engaging RPG. It's like, you get a cool intro but when the story plays out in game it feels like it's not actually happening. I don't know how to better put it into words, but there's a plot twist early on and my only reaction to it was :|

>> No.10534908
File: 172 KB, 800x800, 1703251143957.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
10534908

>>10533843
>text adventure

>> No.10535058

>>10534908
PSII had text adventure releases for eight of its characters separate from the RPG proper. They've all been fan-translated, I think.

>> No.10535398

>>10534639
It's story pacing, it's as padded out and slow as can possibly be.

You get to the commander for the first mission and he's all "Biomonsters are running amok! Go to the Biosystems Lab and get the recorder!". You get all hyped up and think cool shit is going to happen but no, you have to go through Shure, the Tower of Nido, and then finally Biosystems Lab. There's a battle every five steps, battles take forever, and the dungeon layouts are way too complex.

Then to get to Neifirst you have to clear another two dungeons, Roron, Maruera Cave, and then finally Climatrol. Most of your time has been spent shitting around dungeons trying to find the plot key.

Cool premise but it aged like shit. PS4 was so much better.

>> No.10535418

it came out before the first final fantasy even reached america.

>> No.10535614

>>10534319
>worst JRPGs ever made
Somebody hasn't played true dreck before. Like the Conception games or Star Ocean 3

>> No.10536024
File: 1.23 MB, 3162x2012, PSII Cover.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
10536024

>>10534908
For some reason OP used a fancover of one of the Phantasy Star II Text Adventure games instead of either of the actual covers. I really like how the JP cover looks.
>>10533843
I enjoyed it, even though the story bits were sparse, each event had a lot of impact to the story and the world it takes place in.

>> No.10536142

>>10533843
beat it last year. PS2 might not be the best game ever, but it became special to me.
it's nothing you haven't seen before; but it just gives you straight up gameplay, no bullshit. it's got the most hardcore dungeon labyrinths you will see in a JRPG. it's a game where every stat matters. your amount of money is critical, your MP is very important, the number of life up items you carry is essential, your equipment is important, and your party composition determines everything. yet it is, despite its brutal premise, quite fair and balanced.
I think it's a nice middle ground between a streamlined JRPG and brutal old computer dungeon crawlers. it has challenge and maze-like dungeons, but never descends into being cryptic, clunky, convoluted or unfair.
lastly, I just love the music and its look. it encapsulates the early Genesis look and sound just right.

>> No.10536603

>>10536024
looks so much cooler than the US cover

>> No.10536620

>>10533852
>bad
Ok zoomie revisionist contrarian etc.

>> No.10536626

>>10533843
I am sick of "Good/great game bad" posts. Everything you like sucks.

>> No.10536647
File: 2.11 MB, 318x238, giphy.gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
10536647

>>10533843
>legitmately

>> No.10536658

OP though this was a good excuse for shitposting, but his thread failed and is pure garbage

>> No.10536776

>>10536620
Poor reading comp, I said I hadn't played the game. I played like, a little bit of the 4th game? You should be replying to OP
>if game was bad it

>> No.10536778

>>10536626
I just don't like never explaining why they thought game was bad in post

>> No.10537369

It should have had first person dungeons like PS1. Then it would be perfect

>> No.10537371

>>10536142
Perfect encapsulation of why I love PS1 and 2, and prefer them to 4

>> No.10537541

>>10536778
They don't know, they didn't play the game. They saw a youtube video of somebody praising it, got mad because it wasn't gamecube or something and came here to throw a passive aggressive tantrum in form of a shitpost thread

>> No.10537836

>>10536626

people post bait because they're lonely

>> No.10538180

>>10533843
Pretty much transational rpg between 8 and 16 bit.
Is it good? It is great. OFC it is not GOAT like PS1 and PS4 but still great, definitely the most serious game of the series and darker one.

>> No.10538464

>>10535398
you're expecting a focus on story from a game that came out before DQ4 and was rushed. it was good for the time, but it's no DQ5 let alone FF7.
and btw, PS4 starts well with its story, but absolutely gives up after the first half. they rehash PS1 and PS2 one time too many—"turn off the computer, get a new vehicle, fight the Dark Force", rinse wash repeat. the ending is the most generic RPG ending ever, just with a pretense for epic scale. they even rehashed the PS2 towers, but it's a pale shadow of those. they don't even pretend Rika and Wren got any story, Chaz's backstory is never revealed and his development is barely there. Rune just forgets talking shit and thats all. found magic sword, you're the chosen one, go kill big bad, everyone's happy, the end.

>> No.10538519

What's the best Phantasy Star game?
I played the first one a decade ago and stopped after a couple of hours because I didn't like the dungeons.
I also played the hell out of Phantasy Star Online on the Dreamcast, back when it was released.

>> No.10538567

>>10538519
IV easily

>> No.10538724

>>10538567
Thanks, I'll try it out.

>> No.10539179

>>10538567
IV is just chasing the same low-friction cinematic shit as Final Fantasy. PSII is for true connoisseurs who appriciate Sega's uniqueness and trailblazing.

>> No.10539207

>>10533843
FF7 before FF7 did "that".

>> No.10539215

>>10536647
C'MON AND ZOOM
C'MON AND ZOOM
C'MON AND ZOOM
C'MON AND ZOOM
C'MON AND ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM-BA
ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM

>> No.10539320

Some guy I know who's a big PSI fan thought PSII was a downgrade, since it had no battle backgrounds and dungeons were no longer 3D (novel concept at the time).

>> No.10539409

which port is the best way to play

>> No.10539415

>>10533852
>Bad
Fucking end yourself

>> No.10539702

>>10539320
the "3d" dungeons is why the 1st is bad

>> No.10539713

>>10539320
I agree with your friend. I still like PSII but the overhead dungeons really don't add much besides making it more like other games. They are still arranged in the same way as dungeons from a 1st person dungeon crawler, might as well have kept the unique look.

>> No.10539724

>>10533843
It came out a few months after the dragon quest 1 localization

>> No.10539936

>>10533843
>people
name 10

>> No.10540058

>>10538567
>>10539179
Please make up your mind.

>> No.10540268

>>10534386
>I love this game so much

It’s really great and the simplicity of its gameplay, beautiful and obviously-anime-style-because-Japan graphics, wonderful storyline, colorful characters, and how I didn’t know you can equip TWO weapons for mostly everyone make it awesome.

Remember when cat girl just steals shit and then people in town hate you? Fukn bitch! Quit it!

Or how you get to the top of the tower and that dude says, “would you like some cake?”

Say yes, and you get poisoned. Say no, and nothing happens. Like, wtf? That kind of goofy shit is so memorable.

I love the cover for the US version too. It looks like classic art. And that’s what PS2 is…classic!

>> No.10540342

>>10538519

Phantasy Star 1 is the "best" given the system it ran on and the year it was released. It has animated battle scenes, interesting game art, wistful music, 3D first person mazes, puzzles, vehicle travel, three planets to explore, a good core plot... but it's also very slow, obtuse, and grindy. It was a miracle when it arrived on the 8-bit master system but a chore to play now unless you are very patient.

Phantasy Star 2 is the "best" because of it's massive size, wonderful late 80s anime aesthetic, soundtrack and hardcore dungeon crawling gameplay. Unlike ANY of the other Phantasy Star games, you have meaningful choices in how you configure your party membership and equipment. However, the story is delivered in tiny doses and this is one of the most pure grind 16bit RPGs ever made, if not THE most. Also, in terms of innovation it's a massive step backward from its 8bit predecessor.

Phantasy Star 4 is "the best" because it's the funnest, fastest paced, best graphics, tonnes of story in lovely manga panel cut scenes, humour, lore, storyline, emotional content... grinding is minimised, there's always something to do, it keeps you moving and satisfied. there's vehicular combat, secrets, even side quests like a modern RPG. Its also a game clearly made with LOVE and you will appreciate it more if you have played the previous games. However:
>>10538464
this is partly true, the game peaks when you fight a certain midgame boss and doesn't capture the awe of the previous game.

phantasy star 3 has uh good music

phantasy star online ep. 2 is fantastic but not really a PS game, - though the aesthetic and mood is very close to PS2

there are some phantasy star universe games. Do not play them. not ever.

phantasy star zero on NDS is like a mini PSO and is suprisingly OK

>> No.10540510

>>10538519
PS4 is the normalfag's choice. great graphics and music, incredibly accessible, story told with manga panels, little to no grinding and bullshit mazes. but it plays itself and most of the depth is absent in it. pick if you prefer games like FF6 and CT.
PS2 is the deepest one of them all. but it's mazes: the game—expect having to draw maps past the 2nd half and crawl through dungeons for hours. also it's an old game with focus on good gameplay, not really story. pick if you like megaten and DQ1-3.
pick PS1 you want 3D dungeons with good animations above all. the mazes are straight up bullshit though past the first few ones. as an RPG it also barely holds up with a duct tape, expect getting killed because you ran into something too powerful.

>> No.10541031

>>10540268
Shir was a cat girl?

>> No.10541129

>>10539415
You people are so shit at reading

>> No.10542061
File: 1.02 MB, 2000x2000, NAM372.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
10542061

>>10533891
Because it was the first well known sci-fi JRPG

>> No.10542386

>>10540510
Apologize to me for blasters

>> No.10543562

>>10533843
This thread only exists because I made a thread a week or so prior asking what the best way to play Phantasy Star 1 is.

>> No.10544158

>>10538519
>I also played the hell out of Phantasy Star Online on the Dreamcast,
Nice. Do you like how PSO2 turned out?

>> No.10544164

>>10539320
>dungeons were no longer 3D (novel concept at the time).
PSII had a different novel concept for dungeons: parallax scrolling. Don't ask me why they chose an RPG to represent it.

>> No.10544168

>>10540342
>hardcore dungeon crawling
Inb4 someone posts THAT dungeon.

>> No.10544191

>>10533843
And they were right. There was nothing better in 1989

>> No.10544237

>>10542386
you mean for guns? they were actually cool, the only issue is that they make Rudo almost mandatory

>> No.10544771

The funny thing is back in the day people thought PSIV was a disappointment compared to II.

>> No.10545206

why is PS2 so ugly? the first one on the master system looks nicer, for fucks sake

>> No.10545431

>>10544237
No, for blasters
If you don't know what blaster is referring to in the context of PS2 I am going to have to declare you a poser

>> No.10545790

>>10545206
Consider that there hadn't been a 16-bit game before it. For its time it was the best thing ever.

>> No.10545850

>>10545431
Ah, you mean those. You meet them like once in the whole game, compared to Ikuto they're a minor annoyance

>> No.10545936

>>10544771
I think so today
Yes, it's far closer to CT or FF6 in terms of presentation. But the gameplay is just one huge letdown
>dungeons are piss easy compared to PS2
>because they're so short, there's almost no difficulty and saving MP and healing items like in PS2
>turn order is nearly random and makes no sense
>enemies will almost certainly deal lots of damage to you, but they have little health, so they die in 2 turns too
>because of that, there's no point to any strategizing, just end a fight quick and heal, dungeon will be over in 10 minutes anyway
>all buff/debuff spells are useless
>the retarded amount of skills makes every main character play almost same, even Rune who is a mage
>choice boils down to 1 big attack / multi hit attack / instakill
>Wren is supposed to be this weird unorthodox character, yet still plays same as everyone
>actually interesting characters like Raja vanish after a couple of dungeons
>Hahn is a joke
>Kyra is there for mere minutes
>of course, not being able to pick your party makes all this even worse
>you almost always want to have only the most recent set of equipment, absolutely unlike PS2 where you had many options
>items that cast spells like Storm Gear from PS2 are virtually gone too (they're technically there, but they're too weak in an already easy game)
>elemental weaknesses add a little bit of depth, but with how situational they are and with how only 1-2 out of 5 chars can use those on occasion, they never really get to shine, especially since said Raja and Seth vanish so quickly
>overall, the game feels very much rail-like: at a given time you always are gonna have about same level, equipment, same party, and use same attacks, and it's virtually impossible to get ahead; neither any strategy will allow you to clear enemies faster
>lastly, side quests are a joke, the game even treats them this way

>> No.10546020

>>10545936
This is all true and PS2 is better than PS4 because of it... However... PS4 is still a wonderful game with wonderful music, wonderful story and wonderful graphics, and is an extremely satisfying final installment of the series

>> No.10546064

PS2 has such an "ethereal" feel to it that I don't think any other game has done. PS4 is peak kino, but PS2 just did something to my reptile brain

>> No.10546629

>>10546020
>wonderful music
yes
>wonderful graphics
yes
>wonderful story
1st half? yes, easily one of the best 16 bit stories. it's kind of cliche anime plot, but it's still impressive in a video game.
2nd half though?… no. the moment you kill Zio, it turns out the devs ran out of ideas. like I said above in >>10538464, it boils down to:
>this place has a catastrophe
>let's go there with a new ship / vehicle
>need to turn off the computer
>uh oh it was a dark force
>kill it
>rinse wash repeat
yes, they do throw a couple curveballs at you, like Seth or Rune's secret. but otherwise, it's just filler until the ending. they just recycle PS1/PS2 plot points wholesale. fighting Dark Force was supposed to be a climactic moment, much like turning off the computer in PS2; now you do it so many times, the whole experience becomes diluted. hell, there's even a pointless reprise of PS1 air castle. it's not bad, but why is it there?…
character development stops after Zio. Chaz is just not interesting. Rika has no plot. Wren is just a robot. even Rune stops being an asshole. at least Raja brings something, though he's lame. Alys is just forgotten. there's no interesting villain—Dark Force has interesting origins, but otherwise, it's literally devoid of personality or anything.
the ending is, again, just a most generic, cliched one, I said this in >>10538464. "chosen one finds magic sword and kills the big bad" is about as unoriginal as game endings go. and they just had to rehash the PS2 towers and all. all you get is seeing Rika running to Chaz… after literally zero development, while both barely have any backstory or personality.
I was barely touched by it—I just didn't care for the characters, though I tried. I think even PS2, being basically a dungeon crawler, had a more interesting ending, however compromised and weird it was. even games like Earthbound or Lufia 2 had plot that made you feel something at the end, to say nothing about the bigger games of the era.

>> No.10548234

>>10546629
>a pointless reprise of PS1 air castle
It's like poetry, it rhymes. PSIV to Phantasy Star is like FFIX to Final Fantasy.

>> No.10548586

>>10533852
>JRPGs were still very new
japs stole everything from ultima and wizardry. fuck them

>> No.10548602

>>10548586
To quote my friend Emiya Shirou, there's no rule that says a fake cannot surpass the original.

>> No.10548689

>>10548234
it doesn't "rhyme", it just copypastes and rehashes PS1/2 things without rhyme or reason. I think after PS3 backlash they went all out with "see, it's CONNECTED to PS1/2!!!", and they overdid it.
I want to stress a huge distinction though: there's difference between "continuing the story of an old thing" and "lol just copypaste it". PS4 has remarkably excellent premise that takes post-mother brain world of PS2, where climate control is now ancient forgotten technology, and shows us what happened to it. that was great—we take an old thing, but in a new era, developing its story, establishing a strong "bond" between games. same with Zio, who is now some cultist in a new world. this is all good story writing.
but then the game abandons all of this, stops trying and just copypastes and references things without even adding anything new. yeah, let's just bring same enemies as PS1, vehicles as PS1, you fight Dark Force 3 times, you turn off some computer N times, Alis is namedropped left and right. honestly, this starts resembling those "nostalgic pandering" games that just bring all old characters and stuff without rhyme or reason (despite PS4 released only 6 years after PS1).
you can tell the writing just goes to shit. the world just stops being interesting. there's virtually no interesting NPCs, the towns have almost no identity and are rehashed PS1/PS2 concepts anyway.

>> No.10548713

>>10548689
>developing the cosmology is rehashing
>slavery is freedom

>> No.10548824

>>10548713
>cosmology
Please. They fleshed out Dark Force's origins which is good, yes. But that's about the only thing the 2nd half of the game added to the plot. The rest is "uh oh, there's a cataclysm on planet X, let's go to another cookie cutter location while the story takes a big break". And in the end, it all boils down to galactic evil vs galactic good. It's ok, but they never did anything with it in the end. The only depth in there is what you imagine (or what PS5 would have added).

>> No.10548843

>>10548824
>uh oh, there's a cataclysm on planet X, let's go to another cookie cutter location while the story takes a big break
That arc is literally two dungeons long and one of them features the rerturn of based Air Castle, so you shouldn't complain.

>> No.10550672

>>10533843
And it still is.

>> No.10550745

I'm waiting for this board to be bored of talking about how much Sega always sucked, but it's taking forever...

>> No.10552346

I feel like you need to put yourself in a mindset to enjoy Phantasy Star. You can't be expecting Chrono Trigger