Japanese RPGs were a relatively new genre in the mid 80s. It all began with the original Dragon Quest which was an instant hit. Then came Final Fantasy which proved almost as popular. Unfortunately both of these games were on the Nintendo, and this drove Sega to make one of their own. In typical fashion Sega likes to put their own spin on things by taking the genre out of its medieval roots with their sci-fi fantasy RPG Phantasy Star. It was a big hit and resonated with fans of the genre instantly. It’s remembered fondly by most even today. I have no nostalgia for this title so let’s take a look at the adventure with fresh eyes. Let’s jump right in!
The game takes place in a fictional planetary system called Algol. It’s a futuristic fantasy world where people use guns and space travel is possible, but there are dragons and other mythical beasts. The story begins as a young rebel named Nero is killed at the hands of robot cops led by an oppressive leader Lassic. With his last breath he begs his sister Alis to bring an end to Lassic’s reign of terror, and this sets into motion her grand adventure across all three planets in this system. What really sets Phantasy Star apart is its setting. Nothing quite feels like the world of Phantasy Star. The adventure is full of intrigue and unique settings. I couldn’t wait to see what was around every corner.
At the start of the game you begin with just Alis. You can explore towns, dungeons, and a vast world map like in most other RPGs, but there are a few twists to the standard formula here. For starters the dungeons are 3D. Within these you view the action from a first person viewpoint and can move forward, back, and turn left/right. What also sets Phantasy Star apart is that there are not one, but three different planets to explore each with their own towns and dungeons. This was a very ambitious game for its time. The area you can explore is about the same size as the world map in the original Final Fantasy overall, but the change in scenery makes it feel more vast here.
The battle system is pretty standard as far as 8-bit RPGs go; it’s very similar to that of your typical Dragon Quest game. Encounters occur at random, and take place on a separate screen wherein you see the enemies in front of you but your characters are out of view. This system is strictly turn based as you select commands for each person in your party from a menu. After inputting these the action starts as your characters exchange hits with the enemies. You win by draining all HP from your opponents, and lose when everyone in your party is wiped out. It’s pretty basic, but the system suffers a few issues.
The first of these is the fact that you cannot target individual enemies. Opponents of the same kind are grouped together, and you can only target the groups. The AI decides at random where your attacks land, and this often makes battles last longer than they should. Another problem is that the encounter rate is very high. This is especially true while traversing dungeons; sometimes you can only take a few steps before engaging in another battle. Generally enemy encounters aren’t too difficult, but some of the dungeons are long and they whittle away at you over time which makes the game tough. Some monsters you’ll encounter are cheap and appear far too often which is annoying.
This problem is made worse because the dungeons are so difficult to navigate. Because of the limited hardware every corridor looks almost the same, and there’s no in-game map to help you out. This makes navigation confusing, and it’s made worse by the fact that there are so many dead ends and loops. It’s far too easy to get lost. Thankfully you can find detailed maps online, and you will need them because the dungeons are simply too confusing. Even with them it’s possible to get completely turned around. Sega should have done something about the repeating graphics because navigation is so much more difficult without landmarks.
On the bright side I really like the character variety here. While you begin with only Alis eventually three other people join your cause. Odin uses guns and knives and is the strongest fighter in the group but cannot use magic, Mieu is a cat that is faster than the others but has weak attack and magic, and Noah is weak physically but can learn a significant amount of spells. I never felt like I was at an unfair advantage in battle, and each party member plays a well defined role.
Thanks to the Master System’s color palette this game looks significantly better than any RPG on the NES. Enemies animate in battle which was almost unheard of back then, and it’s still impressive to this day. The best part of the graphic engine is the 3D viewpoint in dungeons. As you move the scenery scrolls surprisingly smoothly. I felt that it was a little slow, but this wasn’t a big problem. The soundtrack is extremely memorable with fantastic compositions for the world map and dungeons. The only problem is that the sound effects are jarring. Loud bleeps and blips that don’t really fit, and in my opinion the game would have been better had they been completely omitted.
Phantasy Star has better graphics and general presentation than the NES Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest games, but the gameplay feels a little more aged here. The dungeons are simply too confusing to navigate. The fact that you can’t select individual targets from groups in battle is also annoying. These are pretty big issues, but it’s still one of the greatest RPGs of all time. The lore, setting, and style push Phantasy Star to incredible heights. Any serious fan of the genre needs to play this one.
