Phantasy Star Portable 2 Coming to PSP

The popular (at least in Japan) Phantasy Star Portable is getting a sequel on the PSP. While many recognize Phantasy Star as being a multiplayer experience, the long-running franchise actually got its start as a traditional role-playing game. The original Phantasy Star was released over 20 years ago in 1987 for the Sega Master System and localized for North America in 1988. The next three sequels would be released on the Sega Genesis. Phantasy Star II was released for North America in 1990 followed by Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom in 1991 andPhantasy Star IV: The End of the Millennium in 1994.

After the released of the fourth main title, the series went into hibernation until emerging again in 2001. Phantasy Star Online marked a new beginning for the franchise. Instead of a single-player experience, the new Phantasy Star is all about cooperating with other players. Thanks to its addicting online gameplay (which was revolutionary at that time) Phantasy Star Online became a hit on the Sega Dreamcast. It was so successful that Sega released several ports and expansion packs for the game.

Five years later, Sega decided to create a successor to Phantasy Star Online called Phantasy Star Universe on the PC, Playstation 2 and Xbox 360. However, many fans were left disappointed with the sequel as they felt that it changed too much for the worse from Phantasy Star Online.

In early 2009 (late 2008 in Japan), a handheld version was released for Phantasy Star Universe. Phantasy Star Portable on the PSP made several changes that streamline the game for handheld players. Furthermore, Sega also included several elements to make Phantasy Star Portable more like Phantasy Star Online.

Phantasy Star Portable became a big hit in Japan as it was one of the best-selling games of 2008 in that specific region. Sega took advantage of the PSP market in Japan, which was exponentially expanded by Monster Hunter, a game similar to Phantasy Star Portable. Although Sega did not include any online gameplay for the handheld version, many PSP gamers in Japan did not mind the omission since they can still play wirelessly at close proximity.

Thanks to its success, Sega is now working on Phantasy Star Portable 2 for the PSP. It would be interesting to see if the sequel is just another port or a brand new title that is built specifically for the PSP. Whatever it is, Phantasy Star Portable 2 will most likely end up being one of the more popular games on the handheld system in Japan.