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is a compilation of the ''
Phantasy Star is a series of console role-playing video games and other supplementary media created by Sega. The series debuted in 1987 on the Master System with ''Phantasy Star'', and continues into the present with ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' and other ext ...
''
video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
s. When released for the
Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
in Japan in 1998, it featured the first four games in the series, whereas the
Game Boy Advance The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, 2 ...
version, released four years later in North America and five in Europe, features the first three. The North American and European versions were produced by
Digital Eclipse Digital Eclipse is an American video game developer based in Emeryville, California. Founded by Andrew Ayre in 1992, the company found success developing commercial emulations of arcade games for Game Boy Color. In 2003, the company merged wit ...
. The Saturn version was later ported to the
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
(as ''Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol. 32: Phantasy Star Complete Collection'') in Japan with more games added. The compilation features
ports A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
of the original ''Phantasy Star'' games. They are virtually identical to their original versions, as opposed to
enhanced remake A video game remake is a video game closely adapted from an earlier title, usually for the purpose of modernizing a game with updated graphics for newer hardware and gameplay for contemporary audiences. Typically, a remake of such game software sh ...
s. Gameplay has not been altered in each of the collections, but additional options in the Saturn and PlayStation 2 versions can alter the pace and difficulty of the games significantly.


Gameplay

Each game features
overworld An overworld (sometimes referred to as a hub world) is, in a broad sense, commonly an area within a video game that interconnects all its levels or locations. They are mostly common in role-playing games, though this does not exclude other vide ...
maps and separate dungeon areas, both with
random encounter A random encounter is a feature commonly used in various role-playing games whereby combat encounters with non-player character (NPC) enemies or other dangers occur sporadically and at random, usually without the enemy being physically detected b ...
s. Players control parties of characters, battling enemies and earning
experience points An experience point (often abbreviated as exp or XP) is a unit of measurement used in some tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's life experience and progression through the game. Experien ...
to grow stronger. Certain characters can use different magic spells and techniques during and outside of battle. '' Phantasy Star's'' dungeons differ from the rest because they are in first-person, while the rest of the games use a
top-down Top-down may refer to: Arts and entertainment * " Top Down", a 2007 song by Swizz Beatz * "Top Down", a song by Lil Yachty from ''Lil Boat 3'' * "Top Down", a song by Fifth Harmony from ''Reflection'' Science * Top-down reading, is a part of ...
style.


Plot

Although each game in the collections feature different characters and stories, they take place in the Algol planetary system, specifically on the planets Palma, Motavia, and Dezolis. In the four games, there exists a Dark Force, a common antagonist that threatens the solar system. The games also make small references to each other, such as the idolation of Alis in ''
Phantasy Star IV is a role-playing video game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis. It was released in Japan in 1993 and Europe and North America in 1995. It is the fourth and final game in the original ''Phantasy Star'' series, concluding the st ...
''.


Development

Its first incarnation was released in 1998 on the
Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
, as part of Sega's ''
Sega Ages is a series of video game Porting, ports, Video game remake, remakes, and compilations published by Sega. It consists of Sega arcade games and Home video game console, home console games, typically those for the Sega Genesis and Master System. Th ...
'' series of classics that included ''
Space Harrier is a third-person arcade rail shooter game developed by Sega and released in 1985. It was originally conceived as a realistic military-themed game played in the third-person perspective and featuring a player-controlled fighter jet, but techni ...
'', ''
Out Run (also stylized as ''OutRun'') is an arcade driving video game released by Sega in September 1986. It is known for its pioneering hardware and graphics, nonlinear gameplay, a selectable soundtrack with music composed by Hiroshi Kawaguchi (comp ...
'', ''
After Burner is an Arcade video game, arcade vehicular combat game developed and released by Sega in 1987. The player assumes control of an American Grumman F-14 Tomcat, F-14 Tomcat fighter jet, and must clear each of the game's eighteen unique stages by des ...
'', and ''
Fantasy Zone is a 1986 arcade game by Sega, and the first game in the ''Fantasy Zone'' series. It was later ported to a wide variety of consoles, including the Master System. The player controls a sentient spaceship named Opa-Opa who fights an enemy inv ...
''. Although the first three games listed emerged in the West as a single compilation, ''Phantasy Star Collection'' was developed after publisher support for the Saturn had virtually disappeared, and remains a Japan only title. It includes what are considered the main entries in the series, with select enhancements such as the option of playing the games in
katakana is a Japanese syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with hiragana, kanji and in some cases the Latin script (known as rōmaji). The word ''katakana'' means "fragmentary kana", as the katakana characters are derived fr ...
or
hiragana is a Japanese syllabary, part of the Japanese writing system, along with ''katakana'' as well as ''kanji''. It is a phonetic lettering system. The word ''hiragana'' literally means "flowing" or "simple" kana ("simple" originally as contrast ...
in the first entry of the series (they originally were katakana only), an optional walking speed increase in ''
Phantasy Star II ''Phantasy Star II'' (Japanese: ファンタシースターII 還らざる時の終わりに, "Phantasy Star II: At the End of the Restoration") is a science fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis. It ...
'' and ''
Phantasy Star III is a role-playing video game developed and published by Sega. It was released for the Sega Genesis in Japan in April 1990 and worldwide the following year. It is the third game in the original ''Phantasy Star'' series, and is a distant sequel t ...
'', and four save slots for ''Phantasy Star III'' (enabling players to have a slot for each of the four possible third generation protagonists). Due to the native resolution of the Mark III, the original ''
Phantasy Star is a series of console role-playing video games and other supplementary media created by Sega. The series debuted in 1987 on the Master System with ''Phantasy Star'', and continues into the present with ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' and other ext ...
'' is played in a frame. The game also has bonus content in the form of exclusive arranged music, art galleries, and video clips of the
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese commercials for the original games. The
Game Boy Advance The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, 2 ...
version, produced by
Digital Eclipse Digital Eclipse is an American video game developer based in Emeryville, California. Founded by Andrew Ayre in 1992, the company found success developing commercial emulations of arcade games for Game Boy Color. In 2003, the company merged wit ...
, emerged in 2002. Unlike the
Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
release, ''Phantasy Star IV: The End of the Millennium'' is not included. The video games themselves were also altered in order to function adequately on the Game Boy Advance's resolution. The GBA version has a reduced number of save slots available for ''Phantasy Star'' and ''Phantasy Star II'', and does not include any extras. The
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
version, part of Sega's PS2 line of ''
Sega Ages is a series of video game Porting, ports, Video game remake, remakes, and compilations published by Sega. It consists of Sega arcade games and Home video game console, home console games, typically those for the Sega Genesis and Master System. Th ...
'' titles, is significantly different from the Sega Saturn version. Renamed ''Phantasy Star Complete Collection'', this version includes the '' Phantasy Star II Text Adventures'' series, released exclusively to the
Sega Meganet Sega Meganet, also known as the Net Work System, was an online service for the Mega Drive in Japan and later Brazil. Utilizing dial-up Internet access, Meganet was Sega's first online multiplayer gaming service, and functioned on a pay to play ...
network, with the first of the eight games (the one following the adventures of Rolf) available to be played without unlocking. It also includes the two
Game Gear The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console released by Sega on October 6, 1990, in Japan, in April 1991 throughout North America and Europe, and during 1992 in Australia. The Game Gear primarily competed with Nintendo's Game Boy, ...
titles of the series, ''
Phantasy Star Gaiden is a series of console role-playing video games and other supplementary media created by Sega. The series debuted in 1987 on the Master System with ''Phantasy Star'', and continues into the present with ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' and other e ...
'' and ''
Phantasy Star Adventure is a series of console role-playing video games and other supplementary media created by Sega. The series debuted in 1987 on the Master System with ''Phantasy Star'', and continues into the present with ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' and other ext ...
''. Unlike the GBA version, it includes all four titles of the original series. While, unlike the Sega Ages titles ''
Phantasy Star Generation 1 is a role-playing video game (RPG) developed by Sega and released for the Master System in 1987. One of the earliest Japanese RPGs for consoles, ''Phantasy Star'' tells the story of Alis on her journey to defeat the evil ruler of her star syst ...
'' and ''
Phantasy Star Generation 2 ''Phantasy Star II'' (Japanese: ファンタシースターII 還らざる時の終わりに, "Phantasy Star II: At the End of the Restoration") is a science fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis. It ...
'', the games are mainly untouched, several options that are not available in the Sega Saturn version are included. These options can drastically alter the games, both visually (with graphical options ranging from changing resolution, interlacing, smoothness and scanlines) and in gameplay. The changes in gameplay can alter the speed of the characters (much like the option available for ''
Phantasy Star II ''Phantasy Star II'' (Japanese: ファンタシースターII 還らざる時の終わりに, "Phantasy Star II: At the End of the Restoration") is a science fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis. It ...
'' and ''
Phantasy Star III is a role-playing video game developed and published by Sega. It was released for the Sega Genesis in Japan in April 1990 and worldwide the following year. It is the third game in the original ''Phantasy Star'' series, and is a distant sequel t ...
'' in the Saturn version, but available to all games) and also the difficulty, by changing how much money and experience the player gets from fights, which can drastically reduce the time necessary to complete the games. There are also options to change the type of machine and localization of the games, making it possible to play them in their Japanese version as well as their English localized counterparts. This compilation was released on
PlayStation Network PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartp ...
for the
PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...
in 2012.


Reception

The Game Boy Advance version received "generally favorable reviews" according to the
review aggregation A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
website
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
. Critics noted that although said handheld version was outdated, it still held up with its innovations to the genre. They praised its uniqueness upon their original release as well as the fact that all three games come on one cartridge. Tim Tracy of
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
noted that "Longtime fans of the series will definitely be pleased with the results, and it's worth mentioning that all three of these games originally retailed for about $70 each." It was a runner-up for ''GameSpot''s annual "Best Role-Playing Game on Game Boy Advance" award, which went to '' Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis''. Tracy criticized the omission of ''Phantasy Star IV'', calling it possibly the best out of them, or "better than III". Adam Tierney of
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
complained that Digital Eclipse did not do anything for the ports, mentioning the "tinny" music, "grammatical errors", and "huge crash bugs".


Notes


References


External links

* {{Sega Retro Compilations 1998 video games Infogrames games Fiction set around Algol Game Boy Advance games Phantasy Star video games Role-playing video games Sega video game compilations THQ games Sega Saturn games PlayStation 2 games PlayStation Network games Video games developed in Japan Video games developed in the United States