Phantasy Star Online: Episode I en II is voorlopig de enige online game op de GameCube en is een MMORPG. Binnenkort komt in Amerika het vervolg uit, Phantasy Star Online: Episode 3: Card Revolution. In tegenstelling tot de vorige Phantasy Star Online zal de offline mode belangrijker worden en zul je online kunnen spelen tegen andere mensen.
Cube IGN had een interview met Yojira Ogawa, een van de bazen bij het Sonic Team. Deze developer in dienst van Sega heeft naast Phantasy Star ook al Nights, Sonic en Samba de Amigo.
Spijtig genoeg blijkt uit het interview dat er voorlopig geen vervolg zal komen op Phantasy Star Online Episode 3 en over de andere projecten van Sonic Team wil hij ook niet veel zeggen.
Is there any particular reason why Phantasy Star Online Episode III is currently only appearing on GameCube? Is it because you like the hardware or do you think GameCube has the largest PSO fan base? Are there any plans to port it to the Xbox, PC, or PS2?
We have not announced plans to bring the PS series to other platforms, but I can't tell what will happen in the future. Certainly it is easy to create a title for GameCube, but Xbox also has the same level of hardware performance and has made it easy to create content for, too. Perhaps we should port Episode I&II to PS2 if we ever decide to do so. Not that we are planning that!
Why did you decide to make this the last game in the Ragol 2/ Phantasy Star Online saga? If this is the last episode, why did you decide now was the time to change the gameplay mechanics instead of saving the card battle for its own saga? Do you plan to continue making Phantasy Star Online games?
From the viewpoint of the PSO world, I don't regard it necessary for an episode to be an action RPG in order to tell a story. The fact that the third title is out of the pattern can be thought of as the tradition of the original Phantasy Star series. (Ha, ha.) A sequel to PSO..., we have no plan so far and I don't know about the future.
IGN: What is Sonic Team's next project? Is a Nights sequel in the works?
Very good question that is becoming common among game enthusiasts. We are advancing on various projects now, but unfortunately, I am in no position to talk about them, so please try and ask Naka-san, the president. (smiling)
Why do you continue to support GameCube online when no one else does? How do you think PSO Episode III will perform online in the United States compared to Japan since the broadband adapter isn't widely available here?
There are users who purchased the broadband adapter just for Episode I&II, so it would become a waste if we don't release at least one more sequel in order for them to take advantage of it. (smiling) It is truly sad that broadband adapter is not more readily available. Although we created the game so that it can also be enjoyed in the offline mode, I believe players will feel a bit of culture shock to see the amount of online events and the number of human opponents they can challenge online if they jump onto the network. I want players to get their hands on a broadband adapter anyway they can and go onto the net. I am optimistic that Episode III will sell well because Episode I & II still continues to sell in the US and I continue to receive information that additional broadband adapter units will become available in the US.
Now that there is a fully fleshed out single player mode and the online mode is focused solely around competition, do you find that gamers will be content to play offline? Do you feel that the card battle tournaments have been compelling enough to get gamers to play online? Are you seeing similar usage numbers in Episode III compared to I & II?
I believe that players will get the most out of the game by playing online. In the online mode, there are tournaments that are automatically distributed, and now users themselves hold tournaments in Japan and get excited. Also, we are organizing official tournaments regularly. The other day, at an exhibition match, we had battles among magazine writers and the Sonic Team development staff members within view of 240 users (this is the maximum number of viewers in the View Battle mode). I have no idea if the number of users of Episode III will ultimately grow up to be the same as Episode I&II's, but I certainly hope so.
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