Do I need to play all of the Phantasy Star games just to play PS IV?

[c0ldb33r]

So I've got a hankering to play a phantasy star game. I've tried to get into the first Phantasy Star a dozen times (I don't have the original, I've got the GBA remake) - but I can't stand it. I haven't really played PS II, III or IV because I know the series is continuous and I didn't want to play them out of order.

I've read that PS IV is the best of the bunch - can I just play that one? I don't want to have to bother with PS I or PS III, and I'd rather play II over IV since IV seems better.

Any advice on the topic?

[Natty Bumppo]

PSI is totally different than the others - most of it is first person dungeon exploration. Fine if you like that sort of game, but if you don't have the inclination they are pretty boring.

2,3 and 4 are all overhead exploration types (which I prefer).

3 is probably the weakest of the three - the multigeneration approach was a good idea that just didn't pan out for me in terms of satisfying game play.

I liked 2 more than 4 but part of that was probably because 2 was one of the first RPGs I played so it was instantly addicting. The main drawback with 2 was that the dungeons were so repetitive. Enough overhead pipes to fill out all the sets of the movie "Brazil." @_@ But you wouldn't go wrong with playing 4 instead of 2.

And you don't need to have played any of them to play the others. They each work perfectly well as stand alones.

[Gabriel]

So I've got a hankering to play a phantasy star game. I've tried to get into the first Phantasy Star a dozen times (I don't have the original, I've got the GBA remake) - but I can't stand it. I haven't really played PS II, III or IV because I know the series is continuous and I didn't want to play them out of order.

I've read that PS IV is the best of the bunch - can I just play that one? I don't want to have to bother with PS I or PS III, and I'd rather play II over IV since IV seems better.

Any advice on the topic?

There were allegedly a lot of "in jokes/fan service" in PS4, however the translators botched it so badly that none of them are apparrent other than the ones painted with the broadest and most meaningless strokes.

I played PS4 after only having played PS3 previously. It was a decent, if pedestrian, RPG. Sadly, that did place it in the upper tier of the genre for the Genesis. Most fans of the series tend to think it's pretty good, but it can't begin to compare to it's SNES counterpart/competition, Final Fantasy VI.

My advice is to go ahead and play it. It's enjoyable enough, and I really doubt you'd miss anything by having not played the others.

[Blitzwing256]

4 does a very nice job of tying up some loose ends from the previous games, although you aren't going to be totally lost or anything by playing 4 first, i'd highly recomend playing 2 and 3 first as they are both excelllent and fun games just like 4. `1 is admitedly very hard to get into and has a very very high dificulty curve, (then the dungeons in 2 were pretty tough as well).

[gepeto]

I believe the sega genesis collection has like 3 of them and sword of vermillion for 20 bucks not bad.

[c0ldb33r]

I believe the sega genesis collection has like 3 of them and sword of vermillion for 20 bucks not bad.
Yes I know I've got the genesis collection for both psp ans ps2 - I really wish that you could share save files with both -I'll have to stick with the PSP version.

[Soviet Conscript]

4 is one of my favorite RPG's. you can play it fine by itself as a stand alone game but i don't think i would of appriciated it nearly as much as i did if i hadn't played the other games in the series.

if you don't want to play the other games but still want to have a better grasp on the story as a whole i would suggest going to a fan site and just browseing over the story of what happened in the older games

[108Stars]

No, you don´t need to. Personally I own all 4 parts, but I hated parts 2 and 3, so I gave up on them long before the end. There are a few jokes you will miss, but really, it does not hurt the game.

Part 2 is extremely oldschool; super-hard battles, not much dialogue to tell the story, and minimalistic graphics. If you play the Genny Collection you can at least save in dungeons, that helps. But be prepared to get lost in them, as they are pretty maze-like and can get very tedious. Too bad the player´s guide does not come with the collection.

So, IF you decide to play PS II, be prepared that it plays much more like an 8-Bit-generation RPG than like a later 16-Bit-RPG.

[rbudrick]

Dammit, why can't you answer the poor guy honestly? When he asked if he should play the others, the answer is YES.

Don't forget the 2 Gamegear games and the Sega CD can games. ;)

-Rob

[j_factor]

You can just play PS4 by itself. It is directly connected to the first two, but it does a decent enough job of "filling you in" when necessary. However, you would appreciate it more if you knew the previous stories already.

http://www.phantasy-star.net/

If you just want the back story to set up Phantasy Star IV (which is by far the best in the series), the next best thing to playing the first two games is reading them. At that fansite, you can read the game scripts in full. They have a plot synopsis for the first one but not the second. You don't really need to worry about Phantasy Star III at all -- PS4 only makes one big reference to it, and PS3's plot is only related (as opposed to connected) to the rest of the series.

[c0ldb33r]

You don't really need to worry about Phantasy Star III at all -- PS4 only makes one big reference to it, and PS3's plot is only related (as opposed to connected) to the rest of the series.
I heard PS III is crap anyway - true?

[Soviet Conscript]

i feel PS III relates to the whole phantasy star story more then some people here think. at least indirectly.

but yhea....its not regarded very highly in the series. i kinda enjoyed it though, at the time i felt the concept was pretty origional. not just the generations system but also the setting (or what you find out the setting really is)

[j_factor]

I liked Phantasy Star III, but not as much as the rest of the series. But next to PS4, it doesn't even compare!!!!!!

[FrakAttack]

Don't know why III gets such a bad rap. I enjoyed each Genesis version more than its predecessor.

[Sudo]

I finished IV without beating any of the others, and it didn't lessen my enjoyment at all. Great game, IMO. I'll go back and finish the first three games eventually, but I have too many others I need to play at the moment.

[Kitsune Sniper]

I kinda liked PS1, PS2 gave me a headache with its stupid flashy screens when any attack happened, I never played PS3, and I beat the FUCK out of PS4. One hell of an RPG.

Play PS4, maybe play PS1, ignore PS2 and 3.

[zektor]

I would highly suggest to play through the very first (Sega Master System) game first. Give it a chance, as it is an absolutely fantastic title. This is the game that made me a fan of the series, is quite vast, and has a pretty cool ending for an 8-bit title. Do up this one, and then move on to the rest :)

[Cloud121]

Play them all in order, just as I did. You will enjoy Phantasy Star IV much more that way. Sure it will take quite awhile. Phantasy Star took me almost two months to beat, though it was off and on for the most part. Phantasy Star II took me five months. I started over about two weeks in, then took a month off after a couple months (I played very little in April). January 2003 - May 2003 (Memorial Day to be exact). I then took a month off, and started Phantasy Star IV. To say all the hard work put into PS and PSII was worth would be an understatement. Basically, (very minor spoiler), Phantasy Star IV would have just about never happened, if it weren't for the events of Phantasy Star II. PSII is easily the most important game in the series to play. Both for it's overall plotline and relation to PSIV, but also the overall message it's trying to tell the player.

Whatever you do, DO NOT play Phantasy Star IV until you play Phantasy Star II.

[Volcanon]

PS1 is one of the most damn difficult 8-bit RPGs ever. Until you get to level 3 or so Alis can get mauled by even the weakest monsters when she's at full health. The dungeons are pretty hard to navigate if you dont make maps and there are a few dead-end dungeons you can't get out of without the "Exit" spell if you fall in a pit.

PS2 on genesis is really hard too, though its better in every other way. The dungeons are hard mostly because of the really high encounter rate plus slow walking plus overhead pipe/fog effects.

PS3 isn't worth wasting your time on. The only thing you will get out of PS3 is knowing more background about a 3 minute segment in PS4. The game was rushed to completion very badly - so it's buggy, the maps are bland, and monsters are ugly, and the sprites are horrible. PS always had cool animated monsters and PS3's monsters often just had two frames and often something lame like a giant monster wiggling his finger equals the attack. The magic system is dumb and the story is pretty awful even if the concept is good. The ending is turbo-lame too, all four of them are a quad-turbo-lame.

PS4 is IMO the best RPG on Genesis and almost as good as FF6 and DQ6. Vastly better graphics, vastly better story, vastly better balance, and so forth. Best in the series IMO. It's got a fair number of side-quests too, I just wish the Motavia worldmap matched closer to the PS2 worldmap (old capital became a hamlet in the middle of the ocean instead of the middle of the continent in 1000 years even with environmental upheaval?)

I would recommend just playing PS4 and reading a story synopsis of PS2, unless you have a Playstation 2 and can play the Sega Ages remake, which generally made the game better in every way, including high res graphics and stuff. You can also have Nei not die if you are willing to spend hours and hours and hours doing stuff.

There's also a PhanStar1 remake I'd recommend too, but I've only played the remake of 2 since I passed 1 ages ago on emulator.

[rpepper9]

Short answer - YES!

[Volcanon]

ok FINE

Short Answer - Play 1 and 2 if you can get the remakes, otherwise read a synopsis, then play 4.

[c0ldb33r]

Okay - I've decided to just play PS IV. I may play 1 and 2 eventually, but for now I just want to try 4.

I've got the following options to play it:
1) PSP - Genesis Collection
2) PS2 - Genesis Collection
3) Genesis cartridge (I have both Genesis and Nomad)

Which would be best?

EDIT: I actually started a new thread just so I could post an actual poll. The thread is here (http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=114631). Please post your answer there.

Thanks! :)

[GaijinPunch]

Why not play the upcoming PS2 Collection? All 4 games, both langauges, and even difficulty settings to speed up the processes (recommended for PSII...way too much grinding to enjoy)

http://www.gamengai.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=14290#14290

[rbudrick]

Where can I buy the DX (with music album and "can" patches) version? Play-asia has already sold out even though it hasn't been released yet.

I found one place selling it for $120, but since it sells for $68 or so in Japan, that seems like a huge ripoff.

-Rob

[Soviet Conscript]

Why not play the upcoming PS2 Collection? All 4 games, both langauges, and even difficulty settings to speed up the processes (recommended for PSII...way too much grinding to enjoy)

http://www.gamengai.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=14290#14290

is this acually being released in the US or just a JP only game with an english option? also is PS I and II the remakes or just ports of the origional?

[James8BitStar]

I heard PS III is crap anyway - true?

Depends on who you ask. Personally I didn't dislike it.

Most of these people have no taste in RPGs (errr, wait, I thought we all agreed to call them S&E games now) anyway ;)