PSO: EP1+2

i am a massive fan of Sega's Sonic Team. Their creativity and style displayed in the videogames they design have me captivated. Of their games, Phantasy Star Online has by far absorbed too many hours. And i will admit, i'll happily play more.

Phantasy Star Online began a cult following on the Sega Dreamcast console, before continuing on PC, Ninetendo Gamecube, Microsoft Xbox, and with three further episodes. i created a website noting what i found along the way for episodes 1 and 2. Open my PSO Ep1+2 fansite in a new window to see. Episode 3 had a major game mechanic change, so is not covered in this same fansite. Episode 4, titled Blue Burst, was only ever released on PC and required a subscription for play.

From the outset, i structured the site to easily incorporate new content. It was created to give confidence to some close friends, who were daunted initially. More than a playguide, it is also a log of our finds and achievements in the game. This hints at the community nature of PSO very prominent even with a quick exploration of the cult-like following. Most of my initial support came from online players back on my Sega Dreamcast when the game first launched in 2000.

Other sites have more statistical information from PSO, which i provide links. Sometimes i restructured their information for easier reading and comparison. Sources are referenced on these occasions.

This led to me producing a small program with Macromedia Director 8.5 called the Rare ID Finder. By searching an internal database, it produces lists about particular items that characters can find, with direct comparison to others.

Screenshots have been captured from direct-feed video, straight from gaming consoles. Credit is still honoured to Sonic Team and the console manufacturers for creating the visuals. On a few occasions crops of screenshots sourced by other sites have been used, and these have been noted on those pages.

The site was held on a free server for some time, where automatic inclusion of banner advertising destroyed the site. So it was translated into a table structure instead of frames. Now back on a good server, it has been translated back to frames for better viewing. View my PSO Ep1+2 fansite in a new window now.

Launched February 2003. Last major update June 2005, with some minor updates since.