History VideoGame / PhantasyStarOnline2

* ''Stars: EPISODE 6'': Closing the black hole has inadvertently given rise to a new threat: Shiva, the Last Goddess, who seeks to reclaim what the universe took from her. Facing a threat unlike any other before, the Guardians must now join forces with allies both old and new to seek a way to stop the universe's impending destruction once more. Introduces the Phantom Class, a stylish Successor Class that combines the powers of the Katana, Assault Rifle, and Rod.

* ''Heroes: EPISODE 5'': Taking place shortly after ''EPISODE 4'', the ARKS are alerted to a black hole that has appeared where the planet [[spoiler:Xion]] was once located and discover it leads to a parallel universe known as "Omega": a wartorn DreamWorld of [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy knights, magic and monsters]], created from the fragmented pieces of the AkashicRecords. Guided by the spirit of Alma, who resembles the legendary "Klarisklaes I", the ARKS must investigate the mysterious "Bloomless Flowers" whose demonic magicks are fuelling the endless wars and stop the black hole before it consumes the real world. Introduces the Hero class, an Advanced Class which combines melee, ranged and technic combat.

Developed alongside ''Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity'' for the [[MilestoneCelebration 10th anniversary]] of ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' is a free-to-play {{MMORPG}} from {{Creator/SEGA}}'s ''Franchise/PhantasyStar'' series, and SpiritualSuccessor to the original ''Phantasy Star Online''. Using all of what they learned from the ''[[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Universe]]'' series, Sega has built the game in a style much like ''Online'''s, but incorporating features and aesthetics from ''Universe''. After several alpha tests and a few beta tests, the game was released for PC on July 4th, 2012. A UsefulNotes/PSVita version was also released on February 28th, 2013, and a UsefulNotes/Playstation4 version was released on April 20th, 2016, both supporting cross-play capabilities with its PC title. In addition, a cloud gaming service version known as ''Phantasy Star Online 2 Cloud'' was released for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch on April 4th, 2018.

Developed alongside ''Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity'' for the [[MilestoneCelebration 10th anniversary]] of ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' is a free-to-play {{MMORPG}} from {{Creator/SEGA}}'s ''Franchise/PhantasyStar'' series, and SpiritualSuccessor to the original ''Phantasy Star Online''. Using all of what they learned from the ''[[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Universe]]'' series, Sega has built the game in a style much like ''Online'''s, but incorporating features and aesthetics from ''Universe''. After several alpha tests and a few beta tests, the game was released for PC on July 4th, 2012. A UsefulNotes/PSVita version was also released on February 28th, 2013, and a UsefulNotes/Playstation4 version was released on April 20th, 2016, both supporting cross-play capabilities with its PC title. In addition, a cloud gaming service version known as ''Phantasy Star Online 2 Cloud'' will be released for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch in 2018.

* ''Phantasy Star Online 2 Trading Card Game'': A CollectableCardGame based on the game.

Developed alongside ''Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity'' for the [[MilestoneCelebration 10th anniversary]] of ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' is a free-to-play {{MMORPG}} from {{Creator/SEGA}}'s ''Franchise/PhantasyStar'' series, and SpiritualSuccessor to the original ''Phantasy Star Online''. Using all of what they learned from the ''[[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Universe]]'' series, Sega has built the game in a style much like ''Online'''s, but incorporating features and aesthetics from ''Universe''. After several alpha tests and a few beta tests, the game was released for PC on July 4th, 2012. A UsefulNotes/PSVita version was also released on February 28th, 2013, and a UsefulNotes/Playstation4 version was released on April 20th, 2016, both supporting cross-play capabilities with its PC title.

* ''Manga/PhantasyStarOnline2EPISODE0'': Manga that gives an alternate retelling of part of the game's events, starring Klariskrays II and the [[DeathByCanon now-deceased]] Melphonsina.

* ''Manga/PhantasyStarOnline2EPISODE0'': Prequel spinoff manga starring Klariskrays II.

* ''Phantasy Star Online 2 -ON STAGE-'': ScreenToStageAdaptation.

Developed alongside ''Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity'' for the [[MilestoneCelebration 10th anniversary]] of ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' is a free-to-play {{MMORPG}} from {{Creator/SEGA}}'s ''Franchise/PhantasyStar'' series, and SpiritualSuccessor to the original ''Phantasy Star Online''. Using all of what they learned from the ''[[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Universe]]'' series, Sega has built the game in a style much like ''Online'''s, but incorporating features and aesthetics from ''Universe''. After several alpha tests and a few beta tests, the game was released for PC on July 4th, 2012. A UsefulNotes/PSVita version was also released on February 28th, 2013, and a UsefulNotes/Playstation4 version was released on April 20th, 2016, both supporting cross-play capabilities with its PC title. While the game was due for a Western release, [[{{Vaporware}} it has since up and vanished]], although a [[BadExportForYou somewhat altered]] English version was published in Southeast Asia regions by [=AsiaSoft=].

Notably, while the Western version of the game remains in indefinite development limbo, an independent team of dedicated ''Phantasy Star'' fans have started their own English fan translation of the game. Note that playing overseas violates the Terms of Service, but [[http://www.pso-world.com/forums/showthread.php?198137-Interview-with-Satoshi-Sakai-regarding-PSO2-future-and-US-version according to Phantasy Star Crew]], they don't really mind either way.

* ''Heroes: EPISODE 5'': Taking place shortly after ''EPISODE 4'', the ARKS are alerted to a black hole that has appeared where the planet [[spoiler:Xion]] was once located and discover it leads to a parallel universe known as "Omega": a wartorn world of [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy knights, magic and monsters]], created from the fragmented pieces of the AkashicRecords. Guided by the spirit of Alma, who resembles the legendary "Klarisklaes I", the ARKS must investigate the mysterious "Bloomless Flowers" whose demonic magicks are fuelling the endless wars. Introduces the Hero class, an Advanced Class which combines melee, ranged and technic combat.

* ''Heroes: EPISODE 5'': Taking place shortly after ''EPISODE 4'', the ARKS are alerted to a black hole that has appeared where the planet [[spoiler:Xion]] was once located and discover it leads to a parallel universe known as "Omega": a wartorn world of [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy knights, magic and monsters]] created from the fragmented pieces of the AkashicRecords. Guided by the spirit of Alma, who resembles the legendary "Klarisklaes I", the ARKS must investigate the mysterious "Bloomless Flowers" whose demonic magicks are fuelling the war effort. Introduces the Hero class, an Advanced Class which combines melee, ranged and technic combat.

* ''Heroes: EPISODE 5'': Taking place shortly after ''EPISODE 4'', the ARKS are alerted to a black hole that has appeared where the planet [[spoiler:Xion]] was once located and discover it leads to a parallel universe known as "Omega", a wartorn world of [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy knights, magic and monsters]]. Guided by the spirit of Alma, who resembles the legendary "Klarisklaes I", the ARKS must investigate the mysterious "Bloomless Flowers" whose demonic magicks are fuelling the war effort. Introduces the Hero class, an Advanced Class which combines melee, ranged and technic combat.

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Tropes A-D]]
* AbandonedLaboratory: The Ascended Facility field on planet Vopal was where Luther conducted some of his questionable research in genetic manipulation. Mutant Oceanids, land-walking Bal Rodoses, and the occasional pirates abound.
* AbnormalAmmo: The "Kamikaze Arrow" Photon Art lets you aim and fire a multi-hit arrow at an enemy, with ''you'' as the "arrow". A few (usually JokeWeapon or LethalJokeWeapon) Ranger and Gunner weapons also use non-standard ammunition, like a barrel that fires (fake?) Rappies, or water guns that [[CaptainObvious shoot water]], or a set of machine guns that fire meseta! (Don't worry, it's not actually CastFromMoney.)
* AbortedArc: The plot thread that was set up ''EPISODE 3'' Chapter EX is seemingly abandoned in ''EPISODE 4''; they're only tangentially related via [[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2TheAnimation the anime]], and a loose connection at best. Interestingly, Chapter EX was played up as being a lead-in into ''EPISODE 4'', but then the game decided to take a different direction.
* AchievementSystem: The game features Titles, which reward you for performing well in-game via handouts such as weapons, Units, booster tickets and so forth. Some rewards are only available through this system, such as the [[spoiler:Coat Doublis.]]
** The Playstation versions also use the Trophy system for non-Title related achievements.
* AchillesHeel: In addition to their [[AttackItsWeakPoint standard weak points]], many enemies and even bosses have less-obvious weaknesses that make them much easier to deal with. [[spoiler:Falz Arms and Dark Falz Elder]] collapse and expose their weak points when shocked, Quartz Dragon and Dragon Ex take much more damage when poisoned, Vol Dragon can have his feet frozen to the ground, and so on.
* ActionBomb:
** Sparzyles from the Lilipan Tunnels will set off its fuse when hostile, and will explode after a set time, whether it's KO'd or not.
** Goldrahdas and [[UndergroundMonkey variants thereof.]] They're bigger than you, wield one of three varieties of weapons, and if you let them sit long enough or if you don't destroy the red weak spot on their back before they die, they'll explode in your face. In the case of Mining Bases, they'll also detonate at the end of a Wave and can deal considerable damage to Mining Bases.
** When defeated, a Maxwell's Demon will start blinking red and approach you, then explode after a set time. However, if it crosses paths with a Laplace's Demon, it will explode and destroy Laplace's barrier instead, enabling you to attack Laplace's Demon directly.
* ActionGirl: Almost every female NPC you converse with, including Echo, Lisa, Marlu, Io, Azanami, [[spoiler:Matoi/2nd Gen Claris Claes]], the list goes on.
* ActionRPG: Real-time battles are still the norm.
* AdvancingWallOfDoom: Emergency Code: ''Explosion'' involves outpacing a stream of random explosions blowing up the surrounding area. You can get caught in it and not die, though the blasts will deal significant damage. The explosions can only be stopped by defeating a boss somewhere in the area.
* AerithAndBob: Some names are quite unique, such as Melphonsina, Ulc, and Afin. Then we have particularly normal-sounding ones like Barbara, Theodore, and Lisa.
** Hitsugi tries invoking this by giving the boy who appeared in her room some wildly exotic names from literature and legend, all of which he adamantly refuses to be called. She eventually subverts it by calling him "Al", which he takes a shine to.
* AIIsACrapshoot: What kickstarts ''Phantasy Star Online 2 -ON STAGE-'''s plot is that Takuya and his team's [=PSO2=] characters start going ballistic, so Takuya has to get involved and fix it.
* AlienAbduction: [[spoiler:The Darkers do this to you randomly whenever you're about to begin a Time Trial on Very Hard. See BonusLevelOfHell below.]]
** [[spoiler:One also occurs as per the plot in Episode 2 Chapter EX.]]
* AllThereInTheManual:
** The OST features BossSubtitles for all the bosses in their background music titles. ''Sturdy Gladiator'' for Dragon Ex, ''Fleet Fencer'' for Blu Ringahda, [[spoiler:''Inevitable Fate'' for Hadred]], to name a few.
** The ''Materials Collection'' books contains a vast treasure trove of information never expounded upon in-game, such as background information behind the Genesis Weapons, the names of [[spoiler:Matoi Viel's]] weapons, and design tidbits normally unnoticeable in normal gameplay.
* AlternativeCalendar: The story starts in A.P. 238/2/20. [[AllThereInTheManual The A.P. stands for "After Photon".]]
** Averted with Earth, which takes place in the year 2028 A.D.
* AlternateUniverse:
** As with all new continuities in the franchise, none of the series' previous systems return.
** Episode 4 reaffirms it's alternate universe status in a unique, for the franchise, way. [[spoiler: The fact the game is now installed as standard on all computers in Japan means the Darkers, as well as ARKS operatives, can pass between our world and the alternate universe of the 'game'.]]
** There's even another alternate universe within the story itself, as Omega is host to medieval fantasy counterparts of various Oracle residents, such as Xierra.
* TheAlternet: The Ethernet, which is virtually identical to real life internet, except powered by [[AppliedPhlebotinum Ether particles]].
* AlwaysAccurateAttack: Grants, Rafoie, Namegid, and Ilbarta will always connect with their target.
* AmazingTechnicolorBattlefield: The [[AnotherDimension Parallel Worlds]] are dazzling lands consisting of floating islands and ruins backed by a brilliant aurora-filled sky. The exception to this, of course, is [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV Urth's Fount]].
* AndIMustScream: See that watery pool surrounding every solid platform in the Oracle Mothership? [[spoiler:That's what's left of the Photoners.]]
* AndNowForSomeoneCompletelyDifferent: The ''Phantasy Star Online 2 Side Stories'' light novel, which features several of the game's [=NPCs=] as main characters.
* AndYourRewardIsInteriorDecorating: Enemies sometimes drop room items. Some are even related to the enemy in question, like a bust of a Rockbear or Vol Dragon's head on a mantle.
* TheAnimeOfTheGame: ''Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2TheAnimation''.
* AntiFrustrationFeatures:
** The Telepipe given to you after completing a mission will follow you around, in case you need to backtrack and pick up something you missed.
** Some Story Quests from Episode 2 onward subvert CheckpointStarvation and mark certain parts of the Quest when you pass them, so if you fall in combat, you can retry from the last checkpoint instead of starting over. This mostly happens with {{Marathon Level}}s, though, so tough luck on the smaller stuff.
** Episode 3 added the "My Set" feature for class changing. You can save your current equipment and their assigned Artes, your class combination, name them, and you instantly change to that very load-out with a few button presses. No more fumbling with reassigning your weapons!
** As of November 2014, incapacitated players are marked with a red icon on the minimap. This avoids the old problem of other players not reviving you due to not noticing that you're knocked out.
** 13★ weapons have much more lax Grind odds than that of the notorious 12★ gear, comparable to that of 10★ weapons. This is to account for the absolutely ''enormous'' amount of resources you have to pour into it, including rare, hard-to-obtain Lambda Grinders and 196,000 Meseta ''per attempt.''
** In Ultimate Naberius and Ultimate Lillipa, if there is already a substantial amount of players partaking in the Quest on the field, you will be given the option to drop at the spot closest to the largest group of players instead of at the standard start point.
** If you are interrupted while Gathering, you will not lose Stamina if you did not receive your reward.
** If you disconnect while playing Arkuma Slots, the game will cash out the accumulated pot for you so you leave with some coins, regardless if there's a net gain or loss.
** Train Ghidoran can be quite a tough boss due to its unusual mechanics and a rather nasty attack it has (see its entry for That One Attack.) Fortunately, it is faced in one of the few boss-slaying quests in which the mission does not end if the player dies.
** Unwanted AC Scratch items and SG Scratch items can be exchanged for AC Recycle Badges and SG Recycle Badges, respectively. These function identically to the original items for the purposes of being traded in for other items, but can be stacked. This significantly frees up inventory space by allowing you to get rid of things you don't want while being able to use the replacement currency for things you ''do'' want.
** Story Quests in ''EPISODE 4'' don't run your Boost Ticket timers even if you forgot to turn them off in the Drink Shop.
** ''EPISODE 4'' added an option to auto-pickup items of 13★ Rarity or higher[[note]]This actually just sends the item to Storage instead of having it drop[[/note]], preventing cases where a 13★+ item drops but you can't find it or your Party Leader starts a new Quest or abandons party, for whatever reason.
* AntiGravityClothing: The Hero/Wild Muffler seems to have a mind of its own at times... in fact, certain accessories such as the White/Pink Cherry Bracelets qualify for this due to the way they're positioned on the player.
* AntiGrinding: Ultimate Quests typically have low EXP pay to force players to focus on ItemFarming. That being said, you can still rake in substantial EXP if you kill enemies or bosses at Infection Level 4.
* AntiPoopSocking: Gathering is limited by Stamina, of which you have 100 of. Each character has separate Mining and Fishing Gauges, and performing any sort of action involving those costs 10 Stamina of the applicable gauge. The Stamina restores very slowly over time, but can be recharged instantly using Stamina Drinks, which can be acquired from events or [[BribingYourWayToVictory bought with real money.]]
* ApatheticCitizens: Averted. While in the Mines, if a battle takes place near a Lillipan, they ''will'' cower in fear and possibly [[CryCute cry]] until combat ends.
* AppliedPhlebotinum:
** Photons, a miraculous source of both light and energy that was discovered by man in the distant past. Once used as a source of light for interstellar navigation, its uses have expanded to standard and advanced technological features, such as empowering engines, energy shields, and weapons. The first ARKS were developed with the capability to harness photons in mind; as the Human race were discovered to be the most capable of races to harness this new energy, races that came after, including Newmans, Deumans, and CAST, were all based on Humans. Due to their wide range of applications throughout the story, a minor fandom joke involves pinning anything unnatural to "because photons".
** Ether particles, a mysterious type of particle discovered on Earth in the year 2016 AD. Even in the modern day, it is still unknown what Ether is or how it works, but it is capable of high-speed data transmission, which is used for the Ethernet, an advanced form of TheInternet that utilizes Ether to achieve lightning-fast wireless communication anywhere on the globe. This service is maintained by ESC-A Towers, which are large, glowing spires built in numerous places across Earth for the purposes of dispersing Ether. [[spoiler:It's eventually revealed that Ether is simply a parallel evolution of Photons.]]
* ArbitraryHeadcountLimit: Multi-Party Areas are limited to 12 players and partner cards total.
** The Vita version can only have up to four players total onscreen for {{Team Shot}}s due to system limitations. Gameplay is otherwise unaffected, however.
* ArbitraryMaximumRange: All ranged weapons and projectile-like Technics are limited in how far they can shoot before their projectiles simply cease to exist. Oddly, the ''bows'' of all things are the ones with the longest range.
* ArcWords: "10 years ago" tends to show up unusually often. [[spoiler:It marks a major Darker offensive against the ARKS that became the turning point for a lot of characters. You get to see exactly why when you gain the ability to [[TimeTravel travel back to that date]]]].
* AreaOfEffect: When Apprentice spawns in ''Demise'', she covers the outer ring of the field with a black-red miasma that damages players that wander into it. This is to dissuade players from wandering outside of the area of focus, but this area is also where crystals start spawning more frequently.
* ArmedLegs: Jet Boots aren't exactly boots in structure. Rather, they're a bladed attachment to your own footwear.
* [[ArtificialHuman Artificial Humanoid]]: The Deumans this time, according to Io, as the result of questionably inhumane experimentation.
* ArtShift: When Sukuna-hime and Kotoshiro explain the history of Harukotan, the story is illustrated with a shadow play.
* ArtificialStupidity: The AI used by NPC allies you can bring with you is incredibly stupid. They miss a lot of things like healing you (or themselves) with the healing spell Resta when they need it (while they DO use it, they don't do it often enough) or treating the support spell Megiverse as an offensive move. They also assume the sword photon art Rising Edge has a horizontal range (which it doesn't; it's a vertical attack) and often use short-range photon arts/techniques at long-medium range. An update secretly improved their AI a bit, but it mostly extends to teaching them how to switch weapons.
** Also, some Photon Blasts seem to have a horrible time determining what to target or which direction is forward. Those blasts in question would be: Helix Proi, Helix Nifta, Ajax Proi, Ajax Imera, Cetus Imera and Julius Imera.
* AscendedExtra: Franka the chef was finally recognized in Episode 4 with her own official area bearing her name, Franka's Cafe.
* AscendedMeme:
** Dudu gets a lot of hate as being the go-to guy for Weapon/Unit Grinding (see LuckBasedMission). This didn't go unnoticed by Sega, and in August 2014 they added a Dudu Sandbag Room Item you can punch.
** Klotho has been famous for years for being the go-to source of free Meseta in-game. When ''EPISODE 3'' finally gave him a Partner Card, he was given an exclusive weapon, the Klotho [=M238=], a pair of golden Meseta-themed revolvers that [[AbnormalAmmo shoot Meseta]] and make Meseta-like sounds on impact. The usable version released to players also has a max R-ATK stat of [[LuckySeven 777]] when fully Grinded and its Potential boosts Meseta gain by up to +15%.
* AttackItsWeakPoint:
** Almost all enemies and bosses have areas that, when hit, will make them take more damage than usual. Sometimes they are obvious, sometimes not. Additionally, the darkness seed embedded on the heads of boosted enemies also acts as a weakpoint for them.
** Dragonkin bosses have crystals on their tails that are just begging to be hit. Breaking it momentarily stuns the boss and exposes the flesh underneath as a weakpoint. The boss will reform the crystal after waking up, however.
** Rangers are able to take the BoomHeadshot option for extra damage, whether it's that specific enemy's weakpoint or not.
** Rangers have the skill Weak Bullet for assault rifles, which turns the part of the enemy you shoot into a weak point (via an orange mark, amplifying damage done to that point). Weak Bulleting an already-existing weak point is a common tactic.
** Some Stage Orders in Extreme Quests ask you to do this to kill an enemy.
** One objective in the boss fight against Magatsu is to use ballistae armed with binding arrows to attack designated weakpoints on its body. Hitting these weakpoints enough times will temporarily pin Magatsu down.
* AugmentedReality: One of the features exclusive to the Vita is an AR camera that allows you to superimpose images of ''[=PSO2=]'' characters onto real life using the Vita's camera, then take pictures. The feature is surprisingly robust; you can load any saved Character Creator data, set up props using any of your character's in-game weapons, set different poses via owned Lobby Actions (including the ability to use frame-by-frame advance to get the right pose), and superimpose chat bubbles as well. You can even use [=NPCs=] as characters, provided you obtained the proper Partner Card in-game.
* AuthorityEqualsAssKicking: The Council of Six, who are the most senior members of ARKS.
* AutobotsRockOut: The local ThemeMusicPowerUp for The Profound Darkness, ''The whole new world -Code: SINEN-'' takes the regular theme tune and injects it with ''awesome electric guitar riffs'', among other things.
* AwardBaitSong: Episode 2's "Living on like stars" and Episode 3's "Hello".
* AwesomeButImpractical:
** Gunslashes are one of the most stylish weapons in the game in terms of combat, but lack in stats and raw power compared to class-specific weapons. That being said, they're still respectable weapons.
** Ilfoie. [[RuleOfCool Giant]] [[ColonyDrop falling meteors]] that [[MadeOfExplodium explode?]] ''Cool.'' Sky-high PP costs, long charge time[[note]]Although if you invest in Flame S Charge, the charge time goes down to respectable numbers[[/note]], and inability to move while charging? Not so cool.
** Namegid zigzags this. It's the single most expensive Tech at base 60 PP, and has the single longest charge time of any Tech; executing it at any point before full charge is wholly inefficient for damage dealing. It also has the single highest potency of any Tech in the game, and can easily burst down Dark weak bosses and then some given the right setup.
** Crafting Zonde to its Type-0 variant turns it into a nuking art for Lightning Techs, with the highest potency of any Tech in its category. However, it suffers from the same issues as Ilfoie, and doesn't have an S Charge skill to back it up. In addition, it also has a bad case of HitboxDissonance, causing it to miss targets that it appears to hit, like Vardha Soma.
** Kazan-Nadeshiko, at least its base variant. Essentially [[{{BFS}} Over]] [[HardLight End]] for Bravers with the added benefit of boosting the Gear Gauge during Katana Gear, except with (again) a really long charge time that involves a lengthy and pointless startup animation, along with immobility. None of this applies to its Type-0 variant, changing it into a ChargedAttack that gets stronger the longer it's held, super armor to negate chances of interruption, and most importantly, no cripplingly long startup.
** Meteor Fist for Fighters. It's a RandomizedDamageAttack where you punch into the air, and a gold fist [[DeathFromAbove falls from the sky]] and hits your target. There are three results: a weak, single small fist, a [[DeathOfAThousandCuts rain of lots of small fists]], and an incredibly powerful giant fist. Uncharged, you can't get the giant fist, but charged, you can get the giant fist while being unable to get the weak fist. As one would expect, the fact that it relies on RNG makes it too unreliable to be consistent damage. However, there exists a Knuckle whose sole purpose is to boost the rate at which you get the giant fist.
** Jet Boots for Bouncers. Their high-flying style of combat certainly looks impressive, but it is one of the more complicated classes to master (their Weapon Action button has multiple functions depending on when it is used), suffers from an awkward build path (no subclass supports both T-Atk and melee engagement) and [[MagicKnight sacrifices raw damage output for the versatility of a support mage]]. This is why most Bouncers prefer Twin Blades, which is straightforward DPS compatible with any S-Atk build or subclass.
** Kestral Rampage. Highest DPS art for Dual Blades and has amazing Gear accumulation rate. Problem is, it's super clunky; it's rather slow, you can't exactly maneuver this thing due to its awful turn speed, and you don't go very far, limiting its range to "directly in front of you". The Photon Blade fountain at the end will also probably miss if the enemy isn't stunlocked and decides to walk one meter in any direction. The Type-0 craft significantly improves Kestrel, but that version comes with its own snag in requiring Lv. 3 Gear for maximum damage output.
** Torim Spiral straddles the line. It's a close range PA that requires a very long charge time to be fully effective. The problem with this is that Torim can't move while charging, which means mobile bosses will avoid it, and [[GlassCannon he can't take much punishment anyways.]] However, at max charge, it nukes harder than '''Vinto Gigue''', and is one of the highest raw damage attacks in the game.
** Over End itself slowly fell into this due to PowerCreep. When it first came out, it was the best AreaOfEffect art for Swords and the easiest crowd control option, given its gigantic LaserBlade properties and extremely powerful final hit. However, its slow execution began to weigh down on it over time, rendering it ''only'' usable for crowd control and very situational as a means of actual damage dealing. Then Sacrifice Bite Type-0 released, which all but rendered Over End useless for anything other than looking flashy.
** Nabarta Type-0 is possibly one of the most useless Customizations. You gain the power to generate a shield that blocks attacks, but the active PP consumption drains your reserves at such a ridiculously fast rate that most Forces can barely sustain its upkeep for more than three seconds. It also does pretty garbage damage on block.
* BackgroundMusicOverride:
** Usually, when a quest is cleared, a special theme signifying its end plays.
** A high-tension tune replaces the lobby music in the lead-up to and during the Dark Falz and Magatsu emergency quests.
** In the Emergency Mission "Arks Ship Inferno", the theme to ''VideoGame/BurningRangers'' will replace the City music, and continue to play past clearing the quest until you return to the Campship.
** The Valentine's Day and White Day emergency quests replace the background themes from the Volcano and F. Continent fields with themes from ''Feel The Magic: XY/XX'', "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiO8a9ErCBg I Would Die For You]]" and "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rV2MRp4KfR8 Where Do Babies Come From?]]", respectively.
** The "Wild Easter" emergency quest replaces the BGM with "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvERHiTfx9w E.G.G.M.A.N.]]" from ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2''.
** In the Chaotic Beguiler Level Up Quest, different Nyau variations summon different BGM to go with it. For example, Sonic Nyau causes [[VideoGame/SonicAdventure2 Live and Learn]] to play, while Sakura Nyau plays E.G.G.M.A.N.
** Whenever specific [=NPCs=] appear as part of a Trial, theme songs may override the current theme. All ''Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2TheAnimation'' characters replace the song with one of the BGM from the show, depending on the pair of characters. [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Ethan Waber and Karen Erra]] replace the music with "Save This World", and so forth.
** In the White Day 2017 Emergency Quest, the final Code is always a Duel with Itsuki as the Partner. Whenever this occurs, the background music is automatically overridden by the anime's theme song.
* BadassInANiceSuit:
** The game has plenty of formal wear that lets characters of both genders be this trope.
** This is the standard uniform for the Earth Guides.
* BadassLongcoat: The Crouch/Kraz Repca costume. There's also the Heretic Lord/Queen outfit (Gettemhart's clothes), the Punish Jacket, and the Oletgill Parka, to name a few.
* BalanceOfPower: Within the Council of Six, the Even Numbers[[note]]Maria and Huey, who are #2 and #6 respectively[[/note]] are designed to balance the Odd Numbers[[note]]The Three Heroes, Regius, Casra, and Claris Claes, who are #1, #3, and #5 respectively[[/note]]. The #4 position is conspicuously empty. [[spoiler:Zeno eventually fills the missing slot.]]
* {{Balloonacy}}: In the casino, players can take one of the balloons from the stand to float up to the ceiling.
* BarrierChangeBoss: Anga Fandarge is a Mythical Beast that shows up in Ultimate Quests. Along with [[CombatMedic being able to boost other enemies and heal them,]] it also periodically changes weapon and elemental resistances every so often based on how the attacking party fights, forcing players to shuffle tactics and weapons according to Fandarge's changes.
** It also gets the most wondrous honor of getting its own Emergency Code: ''[[OhCrap Disaster]]''.
* BatmanCanBreatheInSpace:
** Quests that pit the players against Dark Falz Elder take place on a destroyed ARKS Ship, with only its rubble remaining and completely exposed to the vastness of deep space. Breathing out here is a complete non-issue.
** ''Averted'', surprisingly, for the ''EPISODE 2'' climax. ARKS Ships are apparently outfitted with a mechanism that allows for the recycling of breathable air. [[spoiler:Luther, in all of his rage, tries to kill ARKS by ''turning it off''. Commence a brief state of panic before Xiao jumps in at the last minute and usurps control to avoid a mass space-induced death by suffocation.]]
* BattleAura:
** When initiating a stance-type (Fury, Guard, Brave, or Wise Stance to name a few) skill, one appears for just a short moment. Countering with a Katana with full gear also invokes this, engulfing the player in a purple aura.
** Sacrifice Bite envelops your Sword with a blue power aura whose size is based on how many absorptions were executed. The Type-0 craft instead always gives a massive blue aura that doubles as a LaserBlade extension of your Sword.
* BattleshipRaid: Played literally; the Unleashed Prestige Emergency Quest pits the ARKS against ''the'' quintessential Japanese battleship, the ''Yamato'', in [[CoolVersusAwesome battleship-to-mecha combat.]]
* BearsAreBadNews:
** Rockbears, one of the first bosses you encounter in the game.
** Polar Bears and Grizzly Bears are among the Phantoms encountered on Earth. They can bite you, attack you with bear claws, or [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers expose their inner flesh and fire orbs of lightning at you.]]
* TheBeastmaster: The Summoner class, introduced in Episode 4, uses a Baton to direct a variety of Pets in battle.
* {{BFG}}: Launchers in general. Some of the Rifles you can find are also pretty huge.
* {{BFS}}: As usual, Sword-type weapons are various magnitudes larger than their users. Users of Over End swing a HardLight blade that's about ''double'' the length of your sword. If you acquire Sacrifice Bite Type-0, you can have a LaserBlade for three minutes at a time.
* BigBadEnsemble:
** The [[spoiler:Dark Falzes]] that spawn and control the Darkers.
** [[spoiler:Luther]] acts as a more traditional BigBad in Episode 2.
* BigCreepyCrawlies: Krahdas, Dagans, Breeahdas, Gwanahdas, Dark Ragne, El Ahdas... most Darkers on the first three areas have an insect-like appearance.
* BigEater[=/=]ExtremeOmnivore: Chrome Dragon, who 1) consumes ''[[EldritchAbomination Darkers]]'' on a regular basis, and 2) can even eat Darker '''bosses''' whole in the matter of seconds.
** PowerUpFood: The reason it consumes said Darkers is for MegaManning; it gains new body parts - and by extension, new attacks - depending on how many it eats in one feast.
* BizarreSexualDimorphism: Male Harukotanese resemble massive hulking oni demons, while female Harukotanese more closely resemble dewmans.
* BlackAndGreyMorality: Dark Falz (as usual) versus the ARKS. While Dark Falz is the usual universe-ending EldritchAbomination as he's been for the past several games, the ARKS themselves isn't above doing morally questionable things behind the scenes, including human (and otherwise) experimentation, making people "disappear" just to shut them up, or [[spoiler:branding you as the enemy of all humanity and brainwashing the entire organization to kill you]]. The player, however, is completely exempt from this, if only due to the fact that they're guided by a third party.
** ARKS is moving away from this, now that [[spoiler:Luther]] is out of the picture (he's partly responsible for all the mess), and [[spoiler:Quna went and exposed all of ARKS' confidential material, bringing all of its shady work to light.]] As of Episode 3, ARKS has effectively been reborn with a clean slate, topped with a reformation of the staff by Episode 4.
* BlockingStopsAllDamage: Pressing the Guard button (provided the weapon allows it) right when an attack connects initiates a Just Guard, which negates damage. You can even receive additional beneficial effects with the right skills learned.
** As a Hunter Main Class, you can block attacks from ''any'' direction with All Guard. If you have Charge Parrying, you can additionally block with any charging-type Hunter Photon Arts.
** If you have Tech C Parrying, you can block with your ''Technics.''
** Certain Photon Arts grant Just Guard frames at the start of their animations, such as Dead Approach and Deadly Circle Type-0.
** As a Braver Main Class with a Katana, triggering a Just Guard can initiate a CounterAttack that can potentially hit for 500% damage of your normal attack damage, along with a significant damage buff for a lengthy period if you charged up your Katana Gear, provided you invested in the right skills.
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: Standing on an erupting fire pillar in the Volcanos of Amduscia tends to have this effect, much to the hilarity of onlookers watching your body fly around, hit walls, and launch into the sky.
* BodySurf: [[spoiler:The Dark Falzes are capable of this, being incorporeal lifeforms made of corrupted photons. Dark Falz Elder fully possesses Gettemhart after it is released from confinement. Dark Falz Apprentice ''tries'' to possess Eucreta, but never really gets to do so as she's consumed before anything significant happens, which results in some Darker-based abilities being imparted to Eucreta, but she otherwise never actually becomes possessed]].
* BonusLevel: Bonus Quests, special Quests that can only be accessed by paying special Keys obtained from Recommended Quest Presents, Scratch Bonus, or the Meseta Treasure Shop. They come in several different varieties, each with its own rewards and gimmicks.
** Tokyo: A Bonus Quest occurring on the Tokyo map. Phantoms and Tagamikazuchi appear and dispense enormous amounts of EXP. In the Gold version, additional enemies are added, including an Empe Rappy. Rewards include rare Kageseo stones and Tokyo drops.
** Magatsu: A Bonus Quest based on the Annihilator's Apparation Emergency Quest. Players board A.I.S. and tackle waves of Kuronians with boosted EXP payout. The fight culminates in a battle against Magatsu or Magatsu Sai, depending on whether you're playing on Silver or Gold level. Rewards include Star Gems, various Stones, Lambda Grinders, and a pool of Magatsu drops.
** Rappy Fever: A Bonus Quest that takes place in the Rappy Nest map. All enemies consist of numerous varieties of Rappy and several Empe Rappies. Rewards include NT weapons affixed with Empe Embrace and assorted rare Gathering materials.
* BonusLevelOfHell: [[spoiler:Darkers Den, where you're taken after a [[AlienAbduction Darker Abduction]]. The entire place is filled with highly-toxic water, Lv. 50 Darkers including ''all'' of the Darker bosses - three of which you're ''forced'' to fight - and Emergency Code: Destruction's that will spell doom for you if you fail at them. At the end you fight Falz Hunar and an [[EvilKnockoff Arks Clone]] [[MirrorMatch of yourself and all of your player party members.]] Many players attest that Darker Den is incredibly challenging and will require actual teamwork and planning to complete. Also, after a successful clear, it can't be done again until 72 hours later so that the Clones you've [[DemonicSpider just unleashed on your Ship]] can expire.]]
** [[spoiler:Now even more hellish with the Super Hard incarnation, which changes the layout and progression dramatically, as well as introducing Episode 2 Darkers and throwing waves upon waves of Level 70 enemies at you to suffer over.]]
* BoringButPractical:
** Most Assault Rifle Photon Arts involve simply loading the gun with special rounds before shooting it, a far cry from the flashy moves some other weapons have. That said, there's little question as to their effectiveness.
** Zondeel, a Technic that creates an electric field that pulls enemies in. That's it, nothing incredibly [[IncrediblyLamePun shocking]]. Yet, it finds its way into being a popular Technic, especially for Techers, solely for the fact that it gathers enemies into one place and ''holds them down'', allowing you or other players to slay the entire crowd in one go. Although, using another electric Technic within the field is another story.
** Kanran-Kikyou, a common Katana Photon Art. Simple area-of-effect attack that damages enemies at a wide radius. Prior to Guren Tessen, this was the de-facto crowd control Katana Art.
** Photon Blade Fever, which doubles the number of Photon Blades you fire for a limited time. On paper it sounds boring; until you realise that landing a full volley of Photon Blade Fever will rack up enough hits to completely refill your Gear Gauge. In practical terms, this means that you can machine-gun Photon Blades for the ''entire duration'' of the effect.
** Cetus Proi is the only non-offensive Photon Blast. In lieu of any spectacular, super powerful attack, it merely increases your PP regeneration... to be ''ridiculously'' fast, so you can spam your strongest techniques with impunity. Compounded with a Force's Charge PP Revival[[note]]Allows PP regeneration even while holding a charge.[[/note]], techniques will be flying virtually nonstop.
** Vinto Gigue's Branched Attack is... a kick. No spinning Zanverse, no GroundPound Shifta, no Deband backflips, but a kick. As it turns out, it's also an '''''absurdly powerful''''' kick, and is easily one of the strongest attacks in the game in terms of raw damage. It's not hard to turn even an EliteMook to a pile of dust with a Vinto Gigue to the face.
** Sacrifice Bite Type-0 massively buffs normal attacks to one of the strongest tools in a Sword's arsenal. Once you use it and get the buff going, combat will mostly consist of hitting the Attack button a lot and ignoring your Arts. But it's ''ridiculously good.''
** Katana has Guren Tessen. Dash through a target, then slice. Press a directional key to execute powerful, wide-ranged slash. Simple in execution, but has found its way to being the most spammed Katana Art due to its cost-to-DPS efficiency, chasing potential and stupid levels of power.
** Due to the way Time Attack Client Orders are set up as of 2017, many people doing [=TACOs=] just take the orders for Naberius Basic[[note]]Formerly Naberius II[[/note]], Harukotan, and the universal "beat X number of Time Attacks" and "beat a Super Hard Time Attack" orders. Reason being that both Time Attacks are very easy and take a very short amount of time due to both Quests being entirely "kill enemies as fast as possible", and most players aren't bothered enough to take the other [=TACOs=] due to the payout only being 60,000 Meseta per individual Time Attack Quest. Modern TACO runs consist of doing Nab II on Super Hard once, then going to Harukotan and cycling Very Hard difficulty for four rounds straight. This is rather dull in practice, but is very efficient for getting fast money.
** Eternal Psycho Drive is the only 14★ that doesn't have an effect that directly impacts gameplay, merely boosting the power of Element Conversion by 50% for on-element and 200% for off-element and reducing the PP cost of Techniques by 3 PP. This causes the effect of Element Conversion to give 75% of the weapon's Element value as a damage bonus... to all Techniques. This subverts the need to build any other Tech weapon besides perhaps a Light Talis, which vastly reduces the cost needed to build a Force properly. The only problem is that [[RareRandomDrop it's elusively rare.]]
* BossBonanza:
** ''Mining Base Defense'' Quests are fans of throwing two to three bosses at the party simultaneously at later waves, which will go through Base HP very quickly if left unchecked.
** The Solo Extreme Quest will chuck multiple bosses simultaneously at you. Can you survive three Caterdra'an and a Vol Dragon all at once?
* BossOnlyLevel:
** Big Vardha's Emergency Quest is this, with its power ramped up to handle 12 players as opposed to 4 in the Tunnel Free Field.
** [[spoiler:Any Dark Falz Emergency Quest and the quests that precede them.]]
* BossRush:
** The end of Episode 2 Chapter 5 features [[spoiler:Blu Ringahda ([[SkippableBoss which you can just walk past and skip]]), [[FaceHeelTurn Theodore]], Luther, and [[OneWingedAngel Falz Angel]] all one after the other.]] Though, there is a checkpoint between the second battle and the rest.
** July 2015 includes an Emergency Quest that involves fighting both Dark Falz Elder and Dark Falz Loser one after the other.
** The Solo Extreme Quest occasionally sets you up against waves that are simply multiple consecutive bosses.
** The February 2017 Limited Quest sets you up against every Ultimate Quest boss in the game in back-to-back fashion.
** The 2017 "ARKS Battle Chronicle" Limited Quest series is composed primarily of fighting bosses with some mooks in between. There are five iterations of the Quest; the first four feature bosses and enemies from a particular Episode, while the fifth, known as "All Episode", features bosses and enemies from Episodes 1 through 4.
* BossSubtitles: While not quite naming the boss, the Odin boss fight carries over the "Black Shroud, Urth's Fount" text from VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV that appears during his boss cutscene.
* BossWarningSiren: Emergency! Code: Duel!
** If, at any time, you see a red border appear accompanied by a low humming noise, that means a boss is going to drop in on your position in a minute or two.
* BottomlessMagazines: A rather odd example. Only Rifles and Launchers have reload animations, but their ammo is still infinite like Twin Machineguns. The Bullet Bow quivers have an infinite amount of arrows too.
* BowAndSwordInAccord: The Braver class wields [[KatanasAreJustBetter katanas]] and bullet bows.
* BraggingRightsReward:
** The Whitill Wing. Title Reward for obtaining 500 Titles, and it looks cool... but it's a solo unit, so it doesn't pair with anything, and while great as an individual unit, lack of a Set Effect hurts its viability a lot. Remedied with the upgraded versions introduced at 800, 900, and 1000 Titles, which ''does'' come in a set, of [[InfinityPlusOneSword 12★ Units that provides a spectacular PP boost.]]
** Ace of (Class). Exclusive Sticker that may [[RareRandomDrop rarely]] be dropped by Profound Darkness after clearing "VR Training: Heaven and Hell". Thing is, [[AndYourRewardIsClothes it's just a Sticker.]]
** Zigzagged with the Effort Symbol Rings. Effort Symbol is a series of Right Rings that can be crafted by obtaining a [=(Class)material=] as a RareRandomDrop in "VR Training: Ultimate Border". These Rings can be equipped by any class and display a neat visual effect on your character during Quests or in certain areas. They also provide +1% damage, +10% Critical Hit Rate, and 5% damage reduction. Depending on your options, this can be useless for you, [[NotCompletelyUseless unless you main Fighter]], in which case Effort Symbol is the only Ring available that boosts Crit Rate, which is necessary for achieving natural 100% Crit Rate outside of Bouncer's Critical Field buff.
* BreadEggsBreadedEggs:
** You have a Support Partner, and a Mag, and amusingly there's ''Support Partners with Mags''.
** Then there's Darkers, enemies infected by Darkers, and... ''infected Darkers''???
* BreakableWeapons: Not for the players, thankfully, but you can bust the weapons of certain bosses to nerf them. There are some drops that can only be obtained in this fashion, notably, the Elder Pain, an incredibly rare 10★ Sword that [[RareRandomDrop may]] drop when you break [[spoiler:Falz Hunar's sword.]]
* BribingYourWayToVictory: A very weird zigzagged example. On one hand, the AC shop is mainly boosters, asthetic changes, and Premium Service bonuses that does nothing to hamper the free players. On the other hand, Premium Service the ability to buy 10★, 11★, and even 12★ weaponry skews the richest players to be strongest. Yet, with the missions dropping said rares so often, it almost seems a waste to buy it from another player since it's very possible to obtain the weapon you just bought.
** Starting from September 2015, players with a Linked Character can receive two 15000 EXP Tickets every day just for logging into ''es''. These Tickets can be redeemed in ''[=PSO2=]'' to skip early-game level grinding for low-level classes. If you have a Premium Set active, you can get ''four'' tickets per day, which can make the process even faster.
** The SEA version introduced the Costume Affix system, which grants Costumes a semi-random set of Abilities upon being obtained from an AC Scratch. While this averts AndYourRewardIsClothes, this necessitates both acquiring your own costume and potentially looking out for good costumes on the market that can cost millions of Meseta due to good Abilities that you can grant to the costume of your choice. Or you can just pay for all of it with cash.
* BriefcaseFullOfMoney: A Weapon Camo for Talises is this, and the money is the Talis.
* BrownNote: Empe Rappies sing like regular Rappies. The main difference being that the musical notes they emit are big and heavy; so heavy, in fact, that they fall to the ground and shatter, damaging players they hit.
* BulletTime:
** Anyone wielding Twin Machineguns undergoes this when they use Stylish Roll three times in a row. Strangely enough, it is ''only the gunner'' that slows down; everything else flows like normal. Fortunately, the slow-motion dodge grants plenty of invincibility frames.
** Gleefully invoked with the Gunner photon art "Messiah Time", where the player character performs a slow-motion lunge and spin ripped directly from ''Film/TheMatrix'', firing all the while, complete with slow-motion ''bullets'' that leave soundwave trails. As with the triple dodge, the user is invincible for a fair portion of the move.
** One Lobby Action allows players to perform the ''exact'' same slow-motion fall as in ''Film/TheMatrix''.
* ButtMonkey: [[Manga/YuruYuri Akari]], ButtMonkey in her home series, ButtMonkey in Phantasy Star. She isn't even pictured alongside the main cast during the Yuttari Recreation Scratch announcement (instead being a separate picture stuffed in the corner) and the "Akarin" Lobby Action has the user [[ShoutOut turning invisible.]]
* ButtonMashing:
** Aside from the SmashingSurvival example as seen below, a handful of Photon Arts will let you mash the cast button for additional effects and/or damage, such as extra gunshots for Messiah Time and Infinity Fire, or extended duration and pulses from Nazonde.
** In concerts with a RhythmGame gimmick, you will occasionally see the target surrounded by a massive wave of rings, which indicates that you should hammer the button as fast as possible for best results.
* TheCameo:
** Toro and Kuro, the Sony Computer Entertainment Japan mascots, appear in the UsefulNotes/PSVita version of the game and hand out Client Orders in the Lobby. They also got their own [=MAGs=] for an [[MilestoneCelebration anniversary event]], and their own Costumes and Weapon Camos for the ''Doko Demo Issyo!'' collaboration event.
** Hatsune Miku and Megurine Luka made a stage appearance, performing a cover of Living Universe, the opening of ''Phantasy Star Portable 2''.
** Some ''Phantasy Star'' characters make appearances as guest characters, such as the cast of ''Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2TheAnimation'', [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline Red Ring Rico, Flowen Heathcliff]], [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Nagisa, Ethan Weber, Karen Erra, Lumia Weber, Laia Martinez and Vivienne]].[[note]]These last ones are made even more awesome by the fact over half of them are [[TemporaryOnlineContent no longer available]] on ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse'' itself due to being Chapter 3 content!![[/note]]
* CallBack:
** The July 2015 update adds costumes based on the original ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'' in addition to a Team Room that replicates the Pioneer 2 HubCity.
** At the very beginning of the game, once you find Matoi, you can partake in Client Orders to gather Naberius flowers for Matoi. [[spoiler:At the conclusion of Episode 3, Sara and Claris Claes each present Matoi with a bouquet of Naberius flowers.]]
** An odd form of call back happens in Episode 4. [[spoiler: You see Hitsugi in her school uniform with her computer on it's desktop. As a bonus, The desktop wallpaper is the default of the ESC-A system from the anime.]]
** The core of the Moon Base is deliberately designed to appear identical to the interior of the Oracle Mothership; in fact, it's pretty much the Mothership, but everything is blue due to Ether. Even the central room where [[spoiler:Xion was located on the Mothership in Episode 2, Chapter 6]] is identical. This is also referenced with a minor cutscene leading into the boss room: [[spoiler:when Hitsugi and Enga approach the back wall, they stare at it and look confused for a little. The player, having already seen that wall and recognizing it as a gate, nonchalantly walks straight into it like the gate leading to Xion in the Mothership.]]
* {{Cap}}: The displayed cap for most numbers is 999,999, but this is purely visual, as any value that can hit 999,999 is actually ''higher'' than that value, be it damage or EXP. Played straight with Deus ESC-A and the Phaleg BonusBoss, who have a hard cap of 999,999 damage implemented. This was done to counter the [[GameBreaker Chain Maron]] meta, which had yet to be addressed in full in ''EPISODE 4''.
* CasinoPark: Played with in Las Vegas. While it aesthetically looks like the quintessential "Casino Park" level, especially at night, there is no form of "casino-type" gameplay.
* CastFromMoney: In an aesthetic form. Klotho has a reputation for being the go-to guy for quick cash. So what do SEGA do when they decide to make him show up in Emergency Codes? [[AscendedMeme Why, give him special Twin Machineguns that shoot Meseta, of course!]]
* CelebrityParadox: Played with spectacularly. ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' exists in-universe as a wildly popular MMORPG in future Japan, except it and Earth exists in an alternate dimension where Oracle doesn't exist. [[spoiler:However, characters of ''[=PSO2=]'' players become real in the ARKS' dimension, and since they act like video game characters with the associated mechanics, this has caused a rather strange problem between the original ARKS and the video game players. It's only when the PlayerCharacter uses ''[=PSO2=]'' as an inter-dimensional gateway that this trope kicks in full force.]]
** Yes, ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' is a fictional MMORPG within ''Phantasy Star Online 2''. [[LogicalFallacy Do not try to work out the logistics of that.]]
* CensorSuds: ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarNova'''s "Shampoo Style" outfit can be obtained for those who earn Scratch Bonuses for the [[VideoGame/NierAutomata "Automata Replica"]] AC Scratch.
* ChainLightning: Gizonde.
* ChainsawGood: The Chain Sawd, a returning weapon from ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', is basically a gigantic two-handed chainsaw sword.
* CharacterCustomization: An ''insane'' level of it. Users don't just use a few randomly labelled sliders, nearly ''every'' aspect of the player's body can be changed by way of a grid-based system. [[MaleGaze Yes, including the chest.]] Episode 3 adds the ability to re-position accessories via an X-Y-Z plane. No more awkward clipping! Episode 4 expands it even ''further'' with additional customization options (including the long-awaited butt slider), resizable accessories, and even the ability to dictate [[SticksToTheBack where exactly your weapons stick to when they're not drawn]].
* CharacterPortrait:
** Small windows featuring other characters can be utilized along with chat text.
** The Vita version has [[AchievementSystem Trophies]]. If you obtain a group of Trophies together in the order as described in the Trophies app, the Trophy icons will form one of these of the game's poster girls when viewed from the top down. The Episode 2 and Episode 3 expansions add three new Trophies each, both sets forming a picture of that Episode's poster girl as well.
* ChargedAttack: Of both varieties.
** All techniques are of the "hold-to-charge" variety, ranging from extra pulses from Resta, a bigger fireball from Foie, etc. Nabarta is the sole exception to this, where holding the technique just simply prolongs it.
** Some Photon Arts also charge the same way as techniques, but swords in particular take magnitudes longer to power fully without the aid of Sword Gear. Katanas, on the other hand, require you to time the release for the boosted damage.
** Partizan and Wire Lance Gear use the "Collect" type, in the form of a three segment meter. Using Artes will spend the meter for added power. Dual Blades Gear is similar, except that instead of powering up [=PAs=], more meter equals [[FlechetteStorm more photon blades]].
** Launcher's Rodeo Drive Type-0 is unique in the sense that it requires you to charge the finishing blow while attacking. As you fly, the rocket flames on your Launcher steadily grow until it hits max growth, at which point it will start emitting a whistling sound. Releasing the PA button at this point will maximize the final dunk's damage.
* ChekhovsGun:
** Done in a weird sort of way. An update added Support Partners, customizable, personal versions of Friend Partners. [[spoiler:When you go back in time to save Theodore's girlfriend Ulc as part of Episode 2 Chapter 5, Xiao takes over one of your Support Partners to assist you.]] Of course, [[NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished he gets caught in the act, but no one knows until it's too late.]]
** Throughout Episode 2 Elder and Loser complain about the player character draining their energy while fighting them. [[spoiler: Then in Episode 2 Chapter 6 it is revealed that Matoi/Claris Claes II absorbs the energy from Darkers she kills, and by the time Persona stabs her she has so much Darker energy stored up that the trauma causes that energy to go out of control and nearly turns her into the Profound Darkness. Then by the time of Episode 3 Chapter 6 the player character has about as much Darker energy stored up as Matoi, and when the two confront Double they are both nearly turned into the Profound Darkness ([[HeroicSacrifice until Matoi ultimately takes both sets of energy and becomes the Profound Darkness herself]]).]]
** Episode 3 [[spoiler:explains that the Profound Darkness was originally a failed copy of Xion created by the Photoners and offhandedly mentions that other failed copies exist but were cast out into subspace.]] Episode 4 [[spoiler:reveals that Mother is one of those other copies and has a grudge against the Photoners for throwing her away.]]
** Kohri's handheld device that she plays ''[=PSO2=]'' on is shown off as early as Chapter 2, and is never brought up again [[spoiler:until the very end, when the player and Mother use it as their exit gate from Oracle to Earth to intercept Deus Hunas before he can kill Hitsugi.]]
* CloseRangeCombatant: Fighters are [[LightningBruiser fast, powerful, and not too fragile]], but need to get up close and personal with their foes.
* CollisionDamage: During the first phase of Racing the Phantom Mother, any solid object or laser you run into with your Rideroid deals a ton of damage to yourself. Unfortunately, the Rideroid isn't a particularly sturdy contraption, so learning how to control it is vital to not dying a whole lot during the first phase.
* ColorCodedElements: Going by the Technic's icons, [[FireIceLightning Foie is red, Barta is blue, Zonde is yellow]], [[WindIsGreen Zan is green]], Grants is white, and [[PurpleIsTheNewBlack Megid is purple]].
* {{Combos}}: The combat system has been expanded to feature more fluid and dynamic combos.
** Rods and Talises (Talii?) store up to three techniques, and can also be used for physical attacks. Techniques can be assigned to sub-palettes to further expand attack options.
** You can mix Photon Arts with regular attacks within a three-input combo. Tech-Arts Just Attack Bonus encourages this.
** Gunners have Chain Trigger, a skill that allows them to rack up combos by hitting a particular part of an enemy's body multiple times. Once the combo is finished by hitting the target with a Photon Art, the damage inflicted will be based on how many hits the combo has racked up.
** Jet Boots get Branched Attacks, a unique mechanic that allows them to chain Photon Arts into follow-up attacks that automatically cast support Technics.
* ColossusClimb: The [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4qnsy-JnZ4 fight against the Big Vardha]] is one alright. The first segment of the fight consists of destroying the many turrets of the sides that prevent you from climbing to the deck. And then, you have to climb onto the core mecha's WaveMotionGun to AttackItsWeakpoint.
** Gigur Gunnegam, a gigantic samurai-like boss on Harukotan. You don't climb his body though; he just [[TacticalSuicideBoss makes it so you can]].
** Magatsu, the Sealed Titan, is an absolutely massive Kuronian boss that appears in the White Territory and is multitudes larger than Gigur Gunnegam. Players must scale walls, bring him down with the Binding Arrow turrets, or reach new heights with Sukuna-hime's Divine Protection to take him out.
* CombatParkour: [[RocketBoots Jet Boots]] are all into this, attacking enemies and casting Technics with inverted spins, midair slides, leg splits, and more.
* CombatStilettos: Quite a good chunk of the female outfits feature heels (Crazy Kitten, Stoa Colette, Party Santa Dress, to name a few), and the girls who run in them aren't any slower than those with more practical footwear.
** Even the guys aren't immune. Some male outfits, like Einzam and Heretic Lord, have high heels.
* CombinationAttack: Emergency Code: ''Unite'' invokes this, as clearing it requires you to perform them with [=NPCs=] to kill enemies. This was eventually removed and replaced with a more normal "kill enemies" version.
* ComebackMechanic: If a team is losing in Battle Arena, there's a chance for an Emblem Fever will occur, during which all Rainbow Emblems will despawn from their typical spawn zone and instead spawn near the losing team's respawn area at an accelerated rate where they can easily grab extra Emblems to quickly rack up more points to bounce back from a potential loss. Of course, if the winning team decides to intrude and mow down their opponents...
* CompetitiveBalance: According to WordOfGod, during testing for Battle Arena, it was discovered that the Assault Rifle's One Point PA was too overpowered, so it got the axe.
* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard:
** Inverted for any enemy that can use Mirage Escape. For players, Mirage Escape has total invulnerability all the way through. The computer gets none of that, which makes you wonder why they use it in the first place. Zigzagged for [[spoiler:Theodore]], who also suffers from this, but can also use Mirage Escape to fly much farther distances than any player can travel with it.
** Bosses don't explicitly adhere to the same boundaries you do. When bosses are found outside of their normal boss areas, it's common for parts of bosses to clip through walls, making it significantly harder to hit that particular spot. This can be especially frustrating if the boss's weak spot is out of sight.
* ConfusedQuestionMark: The Lobby Action "Head Tilt" pops this with the aforementioned head tilt.
* ConsoleCameo:
** Toro Kuro Nyau wears a PS Vita around his neck.
** You can transform your MAG into a Dreamcast. No, not [[Anime/HiScooolSeHaGirls the character]], but an actual, miniature SEGA Dreamcast.
** You can acquire a ''[[VideoGame/HatsuneMikuProjectDIVA Project DIVA Arcade]]'' machine and several variants of the ''VideoGame/MaiMai'' machine as Jukebox reskins.
* ContractualBossImmunity: If it's a major boss, expect it to be immune to all of your StandardStatusEffects except for [[ElementalRockPaperScissors the one inflicted by its primary elemental weakness.]]
* CoolVersusAwesome: If you succeed at phase one of the Magatsu battle, you will unlock phase two, where you and eleven others get to face off against ''several Magatsus at once'' '''''in an A.I.S.'''''
** Thought fighting a 50-meter titan of darkness in MiniMecha was cool? How about fighting '''''the Yamato''''' in MiniMecha?
* [[spoiler:CosmicHorrorStory: [[BigBad Dark Falz]] not being able to be truly defeated? That's normal for the PhantasyStar series. Having '''[[OhCrap several different Dark Falz]]''' (Falzes?) at once? [[{{Understatement}} Now we have a problem.]]]]
* {{Cosplay}}: Thanks to numerous collaboration outfits and what-not, you can dress your character up as a variety of popular anime and video game characters. Your party may consist of a {{Music/Vocaloid}}, [[Manga/AttackOnTitan a member of the Survey Corps.]], [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight a legendary warrior summoned to do battle for the Holy Grail]], and [[{{VideoGame/Neptunia}} a CPU]], and that's just scratching the surface.
* CrateExpectations: You can find lots of containers scattered around the area for you to break. They generally contain healing items or common weapons, but sometimes you can find rare weapons from a Red Container. They may also contain Darker Bombs that fire up once the container is broken, and blow up seconds afterwards.
* CreepyCrows: Darkers on Vopal have a bird theme to them, and they're black and evil all over.
* CripplingOverspecialization:
** The vast array of unique weapons, armor units and skills can sometimes lead to this, usually due to workarounds to equip certain things. One example is the Elysion wand that requires S-ATK to equip rather than T-ATK; another is a whole armor set that greatly boosts attacking stats and most defense stats, but has exactly ''zero'' base S-DEF.
** The Gigur weapons, extremely powerful 11★ weapons only dropped by Gigur Gunnegam on Super Hard. They require ''R-DEF'' to equip, and none of them are Ranged weapons.
** After the [[SuperpowerLottery power gamble]] that was the 1st Generation ARKS, Oracle's advancement's in Photon research in relation to lifeforms led to the 2nd Generation of ARKS post-[[GreatOffscreenWar Elder War]], which attempted to solve the problem by having specialized photon affinities. What this meant was that many ARKS had ''one'' class they were good at, but sucked at anything else. This is prevalent in characters such as Zeno, who is weaker as a Hunter than as a Ranger, and Echo, who is outright incompetent as a Hunter.
** Each Unit in the 12★ Whitill series gives a whopping ''20 PP'' as part of its hidden stat; put together, all three Units combined give a total of '''60 PP''' innate, which is even higher than a Crafted Saiki set. The tradeoff? [[GlassCannon The set's DEF stats]] ''[[GlassCannon suck.]]''
* CriticalHit: Unlike typical RPG Criticals, ''[=PSO2=]'' Criticals function as a damage variance bypass, enabling you to always hit maximum damage. Due to Rare weapons[[note]]Red Weapons, Invade Weapons, and Crafted Weapons excluded[[/note]] typically have a variance limiter that keeps damage inflicted within a 90% - 100% range, Crits are generally a DumpStat. However, some weapons boost the damage of Criticals, usually by a high percentage, making them worthwhile if you spec for them.
* {{Crossover}}: With its main competitor ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'', starring a ''[=PSO2=]'' version of the Trial "Urth's Fount" versus the Elder Primal Odin. Outfits featuring the [[CatGirl Miqo'te]] as well as ''XIV'''s Relic Weapons were also brought into the game.
* CrutchCharacter: The Summoner class. Prior to endgame, Pets are stupidly overpowered and have no restrictions as to equip requirements, allowing a Level 1 Summoner to wield 13★ Pets and completely roll over all of the content in the game without giving it a second thought. However, endgame is where other classes start to outpace Summoner, which forces a Summoner to start focusing intensely on Candy Box improvement and Units to keep pace with everyone else.
* CounterAttack:
** Bravers can learn Counter Edge, which allows Katana wielders to respond to a Just-Guarded attack with an extremely powerful, wide-ranged slice. If your timing is spot-on, you can even counter multiple consecutive attacks for enormous damage.
** The Sword Photon Art Ignite Parrying isn't innately a CounterAttack in itself, but if the user hits the Guard button just when an attack is about to connect, the user [[BlockingStopsAllDamage negates the damage]] without stopping and the Art's remaining slashes increase in power.
* CustomUniform: Klaris Krays, Huey, and Casra have slightly modified versions of the basic outfits, all of which are in the "Heroes Summer Beach" scratch. ''Episode 4'' gives Huey a further-modified version.
* CutAndPasteEnvironments: The game is much better about averting this compared to its [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline predecessor]], with several different locales each with their own gimmicks and particular level designs.
* CutsceneIncompetence[=/=]CutscenePowerToTheMax: Because showing characters actually fighting mooks in cutscenes is boring, many cutscenes with mooks will feature one or both of the following: 1) [[CutsceneIncompetence minor characters dying in one hit to the average mook]], or 2) [[OneHitKill major characters killing mooks in one hit]]. This goes UpToEleven where you're concerned, since you're almost never shown with a weapon, so you wind up ''punching out everything in one hit.''
* {{Cyborg}}:
** In the lore, most [=CASTs=] aren't 100% robot, since they all have some organic component to them. This organic component usually holds their DNA and enables them to reproduce, although in a "test tube baby" sort of way. It is also possible to transform an organic lifeform into a CAST; this can be seen with Regius and Maria, whose Photon capabilities were so immensely powerful that their natural bodies couldn't handle it. Although the conversion process can potentially have some [[AxCrazy unusual side effects...]]
** In a more cosmetic sense. The Non-Casts can obtain Cast "Looks" to dress up as them, and there are several costume options that the Casts can wear to masquerade as a humanoid.
* DamageSpongeBoss: For a cute little feline, Nyau is surprisingly resilient. Most attacks will only inflict one or two digits worth of damage, and you'll be hard-pressed to defeat him with brute force. It ''is'' possible to defeat him that way, but bring a friend to help whittle him down. About 10 more of them for good measure.
* DamnYouMuscleMemory:
** Jumping into Super Hard difficulty straight away after finishing up on Very Hard can throw new players for a loop due to the revamped enemy AI.
** The Jet Boots' double jump is very useful for hopping up cliffs you'd normally have to use a platform to get to. Naturally, a player switching to a weapon that isn't Jet Boots may find themselves hitting the Jump key again while forgetting he/she can't double jump anymore.
** Averted on [=PS4=]; ''[=PSO2=]'' is one of those very rare titles that fully supports external keyboard and mouse. Plug in your peripherals, and it'll play exactly like the PC version.
** In Necky's Challenge and Base Defense Training: VR, crystals spawn in the back, where the enemies spawn, instead of the sides. Players who are used to the Mining Base: Invasion map may have to adjust to this change first.
* DarkReprise: [[spoiler:The BadEnding of Episode 3, Chapter 7 features one of Episode 2's ending theme, "Living on like stars".]]
* DeadAllAlong: [[spoiler:'''Every single Kuronian.''' Double had gone and consumed them all way in advance; the Kuronians you're fighting are mere facsimiles of the original Kuronians.]]
* DeathFromAbove:
** The Technic Ilfoie lets you drop [[RuleOfCool giant exploding meteors]] from the sky onto foes.
** Meteor Fist, a long-ranged Knuckle Photon Art, drops a giant gold fist(s) onto foes. It also happens to be a RandomizedDamageAttack.
* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist:
** Falling in battle and returning to the Campship merely lowers the grade ''you'' get for the mission, not the entire party, resulting in a lower bonus for you. Unless you are solo and you die while fighting a boss in a non-RandomEvent, and even then you can just retry the mission immediately.
** Not so with Extreme Quests, as they consume rare and expensive Extreme Passes every time you want to give them a go. Fall in battle and have no way to revive? Have fun spending more Extreme Passes! Made even more painful if a whole party falls, as someone/everyone has to repay the fee for reentering.
** In Quests where you have unlimited use of the AIS, getting killed makes little difference beyond a five-second respawn period. Ditto for the Rideroid in Racing the Phantom Mother, although if you are killed more than 5 times while in the Rideroid, your Rank drops.
* DefaceOfTheMoon: If ESC-A Falz Mother wasn't bad enough, Deus ESC-A Zephyros ''fires a SwordBeam'' into the Moon, shattering it from below to kick off the final phase.
* DeflectorShields:
** When performing Guard or Just Guard with the Sword/Wired Lances, a round energy shield appears in front of you, representing the impact while nullifying the damage. Partisans would also count if their "shield" weren't of the SpinToDeflectStuff variety.
** Twin Daggers can also do this by either having the attack connect at the moment you make a slash motion with a Photon Art. [[DifficultButAwesome Difficult to pull off, but mastering it lets you simultaneously attack and defend at the same time.]]
** Laplace's Demon is guarded by an impenetrable barrier. However, defeating one of the [[ActionBomb Maxwell's Demons]] it spawns and luring it to Laplace will destroy the barrier.
* DemonicPossession: [[spoiler:Dark Falz's ''modus operandi'', naturally.]]
* DemotedToExtra: ''Everyone'' who isn't a new character but appears in ''EPISODE 4'' gets shafted. Even Matoi, who is ''the former heroine'', has a significantly downgraded role.
* DesperationAttack: Some, mostly Fighter, Skill Tree abilities apply a boost to certain stats if you go below a specified threshold or HP or PP. [[AwesomeButImpractical Unfortunately, they're usually stuffed into the ends of the Skill Tree and are generally ignored in favor of better skills.]]
** Some Potentials have a similar effect. Most notably, the Potential "Black Heart" grants a ''+400'' boost to S-ATK and R-ATK when your PP drops below 50%.
* DevelopersForesight:
** The [[AchievementSystem Trophy List]] for the Vita version is upgraded with every new episode as expected. However, The Episode 4 release added [=PS4=] support, several months before the [=PS4=] version even got out of beta, due to the fact it still uses the same servers.
** RINA and SORO's Partner Cards can't be used simultaneously because they're played by the same person.
* DifficultButAwesome:
** Chain Banish, a non-bugged version of a strategy created back during Magatsu's release that involved the use of a GoodBadBug. This requires a Braver/Gunner with Chain Trigger wielding Edel Arrow and Rapid Boost, accompanied by players that can use Twin Machineguns, Weak Bullet, and a Techer's Zanverse. The idea is for the BR/GU to start a Chain on the target's weak point, then Weak Bullet is applied and all players work together to rack up Chain at a rapid pace; when the counter approaches 100, the Braver initiates Rapid Boost and tags the spot with Banish Arrow, then starts dumping the hardest hitting Bow [=PAs=] at 100 Chain as quickly as possible while under the effect of Zanverse. If done correctly, the Chain-boosted Arts will inflict 999,999+ damage several times while being Techer Zanverse boosted for even more damage, which is stored in Banish Arrow; when Banish Arrow then detonates, it will inflict then reapply the entire payload at once, which is then boosted again by Zanverse, to utterly annihilate the target. This strategy is ''very'' difficult to execute properly, but can make extremely quick work of '''raid bosses.'''
** The Sword Art "Ignition Parrying", which causes the user to slash six times in rapid succession. Its damage output is fairly lackluster even for Sword, and can only be powered up if you block an attack with it. The block timing is also tighter than Guard; an enemy has to hit you while your aura is active or else the block will whiff. However, if you nail the block correctly, Ignition becomes ''extremely'' potent, boasting one of the highest DPS options in Sword's arsenal.
** Backhand Smash is one of the strongest non-Pet Photon Arts in the entire game, but the range of the move is so horrendous that it requires you to literally stand in the enemy's face to hit. Not to mention trying to get Tech Arts off to combo into Backhand can be a bit of a challenge if the target is active, which is why Backhand is best used to punish downed enemies.
** Jet Boots, mainly for their highly unorthodox play style. If one were to carefully understand their quirks and build accordingly, you'll have close combat in one hand, Technics in another, all while zooming from point A to point B in a blink.
** Crafted Weapons are hard to use because, in spite of their high stats, they don't have the damage variance limiter that Rare weapons typically have, making them largely inconsistent for higher levels of play. It's possible to work around this by speccing for Criticals, although this requires a dedicated build.
** Forces require a lot of investment to get the ball rolling, including figuring out the best Subclass to use, grabbing a rainbow palette[[note]]Six weapons of different elements[[/note]], Grinding and adding Potentials all of them, grabbing Compound Technics, deciding what Element to specialize in, and whatnot. In short, it's a massive time and resource sink compared to other classes that are significantly more straightforward. However, once all the pieces are in place, it ''will'' pay off.
** Battle Arena has Bullet Bows. Their Photon Art, Last Nemesis, is very hard to land consistently due to requiring the target to almost literally stay in place, and the execution takes so long that if an enemy sees you, you're as good as dead. However, Last Nemesis can OneHitKill any player in the game, and if mastered with Third Person camera, you can snipe targets from across the map and wreak havoc.
* DifficultySpike:
** Episode 2 Chapter 5 suddenly ramps up in difficulty, due to the sheer amount of enemies you have to fight, consisting of [[spoiler:brainwashed ARKS and Claris Claes clones]] and several boss fights containing enemies like [[spoiler:Lisa, Ohza, Marlu, Fourier, Claris Claes, Regius, Casra, Theodore, Luther, and Falz Angel]]. The level of the fights scale, but they can potentially be at '''Level 60''' by the time you take it on. While you have to do it by yourself, [[AntiFrustrationFeatures the game is generous enough to save your progress at the occasional checkpoint in case you screw up and die, as opposed to other Story Quests that make you start over.]]
** The SEA version suffers from an awful case of this; due to the addition of exclusive mechanics and many Photon Arts and Techniques being reworked to match Episode 3 standards far earlier than expected, enemies on Very Hard have stats scaled to '''Super Hard''' difficulty seen on the Japanese version, while retaining the same level requirements. It's not uncommon to get steamrolled by regular {{Mooks}} upon first arriving on VH.
* DiscOneNuke:
** Literally. Some of the Photon Art discs you would normally only find on Very Hard difficulty are sold by generous (or greedy) people via the Player Shop. Only discs Lv. 10 and below can be put up for sale though, anything higher you must find yourself.
** If you purchase the ''EPISODE 4 Deluxe Package'', you get a 10★ Rappy Egg, based on [[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2 Aika Suzuki's Rappy,]] that hatches into a Rappy Pet for the Summoner Class. This can easily carry you through much of early and mid game until you get other 10★+ Pets from mid to late game.
* DistinguishingMark: Dragon Ex has a very distinctive scar on its wing. Its rare counterpart, Noire Draal, has a different, more elaborate scar.
* DistressedDude[=/=]DamselInDistress: Played with in Emergency Code: ''Rescue''. Your teammate gets kidnapped, and you have to to save him/her from a Darker barrier. Your teammate can break themselves out, though, if they can deal good damage and have lots of patience.
** Other types of ''Rescue'' feature the classic variant, including saving an innocent Oceanid from a trap or protecting a Lillipan while his friend tries to help him escape from a volatile Gilnas Body. [[FakeDifficulty Needless to say, the latter is also prone to friendly fire, which makes finishing it way harder than it should be.]]
* DittoFighter: ESC-A Falz Mother's gimmick is that the majority of her attacks are all based on other Dark Falz. While the attacks she uses aren't exactly the same, they're clearly related to them, such as the use of sword attacks for the Loser Arm and punching strikes for the Elder Arm.
* DoABarrelRoll: Unique to the ESC-A Falz Mother EQ, the Rideroid's dismounting ability is replaced with a barrel roll action. However, unlike typical barrel rolls, this roll is used to ''attack''; use it in close proximity to a weak spot, and you'll deal a lot of damage.
* DoWellButNotPerfect: In Extreme Quests with Chrome Dragon involved, some Stage Orders require you to break parts. However, he only has two breakable parts to begin with, and Stage Orders generally ask for three or four. The only way to get more breaks is to let him summon Darkers and consume them before heading in for the kill; offing him too soon won't get you anything.
* DontTouchItYouIdiot:
** Unless you're trying to inflict Shock, do ''not'' attack [[spoiler:Dark Falz Elder]]'s lower arms (the ones he guarded his chest with) - they aren't breakable because [[GameplayAndStorySegregation he needs them for his attack animations]], and he has barely enough HP to fully break all his parts without hitting the wrong thing. If you can't cast Sazonde and think you might do too much damage trying to shock him, its best to just let the Forces and Techers to their job and give you access to a part you ''can'' break.
** "Zondeel detonators" are despised by the community for ruining Zondeel-based strategies by casting Lightning Techs on Zondeel. The only reason anyone has to set off a Zondeel field is to inflict Shock.
* DoomMagnet:
** For some bizarre reason, something bad happens right after Quna's live performances. It ranges from the Third Mining Base being invaded or [[spoiler:Dark Falz Elder]] showing up to crash the party. [[spoiler:The reason is simple: Quna is an agent of the Council of Six, and puts on performances when there is a large impending attack in order to draw a large number of ARKS to one place]].
** A badly executed War Cry can easily swamp you with more than what you can chew.
** Zanverse creates an area of effect that causes damage inflicted within that area to be re-dealt to the same target at 20% potency. Thing is, all of that damage is attributed to the caster for the purposes of Hate Accumulation (read: aggro). If a lot of players are inflicting a lot of damage at once, an unlucky SquishyWizard may find themselves being hounded by the very boss they were just beating the crap out of ten seconds ago.
* DoubleJump: Jet Boots enable the wearer to perform one.
* DownerEnding: If you choose to [[spoiler:MercyKill Matoi]] in the finale of Episode 3, you trigger a DownerEnding that [[spoiler:reveals how this action (and your acceptance of Matoi's wish to die so that you and the rest of the universe can live) turns you into Dark Falz Persona]].
* DragonsUpTheYinYang: Planet Harukotan is divided into two nations, white and black-colored and currently in war. Where's the ''taijitu'' on planet Harukotan? ''[[http://www.bumped.org/psublog/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Planet-Harukotan.jpg The planet itself]]'' is one!
* DualBoss:
** The Snow Banther and Snow Banshee at the end of the Tundra free-field, as well as their Forest emergency mission counterparts Fang Banther and Fang Banshee. Banshee starts the battle off on its own, while Banther hops in to assist once Banshee has sustained enough damage.
** The minor bosses can also do this if you have other players (not Friend Partners) in your party - up to three in one battle. Usually you'll only see two and have to wait on the third, but if you have a full multi-party area and all twelve players and running together, you can spawn three at once.
** It's theoretically possible to have up to ''[[OhCrap nine]]'' bosses in the area at once, if by some MillionToOneChance you get three minor boss Emergency Codes at the same time with a full multi-party scouring the map.
** Nepto Casadora and Leo Madulard team up against the players for a boss fight in the Ascended Facility. The former generates toxic oil puddles that the latter can ignite with fire attacks, creating some particularly nasty damage combos if they're within close proximity to each other. In parties of two or more, splitting them up is a good idea.
** Falz Daran/Darill act as a pair of individuals initially, but once one of them gets beaten up enough, they'll fuse together into the more dangerous Falz Darumble.
* DualWielding:
** Twin Daggers involve wielding two short swords.
** Dual Blades, obviously. They fight with a style reminiscent of [[UsefulNotes/{{Kendo}} nito-ryu]].
* {{Dualvertisement}}: Many types of collaborations are done with the game, typically as a form of cross-promotion for recently released products. These include:
** ''Music/{{Vocaloid}}''
** ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog''
** ''VideoGame/BorderBreak''
** ''VideoGame/ValkyriaChronicles''
** ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo''
** ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter''
** ''VideoGame/SeventhDragon'' (2020, 2020-II, III: Code VFD)
** ''VideoGame/BurningRangers''
** ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica''
** ''Fate'' series ([[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Stay Night]], [[Manga/FateKaleidLinerPrismaIllya Prisma Illya]], [[VisualNovel/FateHollowAtaraxia Hollow Ataraxia]], [[Anime/FateStayNightUnlimitedBladeWorks Unlimited Blade Works]])
** 7-Eleven
** ''Manga/AttackOnTitan''
** ''VideoGame/SpaceChannel5''
** ''VideoGame/{{Yakuza}}''
** ''Franchise/ShiningSeries'' (Hearts, Blade, Ark, Force Cross Exlesia, Resonance)
** ''VideoGame/VirtualON''
** ''LightNovel/TheIrregularAtMagicHighSchool''
** ''Anime/SpaceBattleshipYamato2199''
** ''Manga/YuruYuri''
** ''Anime/HisCooolSeHaGirls''
** ''Doko Demo Issyo!''
** ''VideoGame/FreedomWars''
** ''VideoGame/TalesOfZestiria''
** ''VideoGame/SonicRunners''
** ''Franchise/MikaguraSchoolSuite''
** ''{{VideoGame/Blazblue}} Chronophantasma''
** ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear Xrd''
** ''Sweets Paradise'', a Japanese restaurant chain whose main highlight is an all-you-can-eat cake bar.
** ''[[{{Franchise/Neptunia}} Hyperdimension Neptunia]]''
** ''Manga/FairyTail''
** ''[[LightNovel/AriaTheScarletAmmo Aria the Scarlet Ammo Double AA]]''
** ''[[VideoGame/KisekiSeries The Legend of Heroes:]] [[VideoGame/SenNoKiseki Sen no Kiseki II]]''
** ''[[{{VideoGame/Disgaea5}} Disgaea 5]]''
** ''Franchise/HelloKitty''
** ''The World End Eclipse'', a FreeToPlay strategy RPG from SEGA.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV''
** ''{{Franchise/Godzilla}}''
** ''Million Arthur''
** ''VideoGame/Persona5''
** ''VideoGame/GravityRush2''
** ''VideoGame/NierAutomata''
** ''Frame Arms/Frame Arms Girl''
* DubNameChange: The SEA version edited numerous terms, such as turning "Force" into "Wizard", "Techniques" to "Photon Magic", "Emergency Code: Attack" into "Emergency Code: Assault", and "Lisa" (the generally accepted translation) into "Risa" (the official translation). Needless to say, many of these changes highly irritated both fans of the game and older ''Phantasy Star'' fans.
* DuelBoss: Technically. The game calls any boss encounter as Emergency Code: ''Duel''. This trope is played straight if going alone; otherwise averted with teammates. The Naberius II Time Attack Quest also forces this type of battle.
* DumpStat: Dexterity/Aptitude. Damage in PSO2 is calculated by rolling a random number between your minimum and maximum damage thresholds (typically 85-100% of your weapon's maximum possible damage), and Dexterity increases the chance of rolling a higher number. While this does even out your numbers somewhat, it does nothing to raise the upper level of damage you can do and is the least efficient way of increasing your DPS.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tropes E-G]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: Dark Vibrace Yuga was the very first Darker Aberration enemy, first introduced in Base Defense: Despair. Turns out Aberrations are the Ultimate Quest versions of regular enemies, and with the release of Ultimate Quests a few months later came Aberrant versions of other enemies.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Minor example; the ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' collaboration outfits, one of the first few collab outfits released, chained the hairstyle to the costume, causing the player's hairstyle to be overridden when the costume was worn. Every collab outfit since has kept the outfit and the hairstyle separate.
* EasterEgg: If you somehow manage to acquire all of the Instruments, and two Microphones, and have them all activated by individual players at once, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pjdeMvnLJI you can hear a special, duet version of Our Fighting.]] [[CrackIsCheaper Good luck buying them all, though.]]
* EasyEXP:
** Averted in that you need to be in-range of enemies to earn party EXP... But in multi-party areas you don't have to be part of the party that killed the enemy to get credit (and loot) for it.
** The "in-range" part is at least ignored during Mining Base Defense, and considering how much EXP those quests dispense, it truly does become easy EXP.
** Franka the chef's {{Fetch Quest}}s. Most of the materials can be flat-out bought from the Player Shops, allowing you to quickly rack up EXP simply by buying a ton of materials for dirt cheap and turning them in.
* EasyModeMockery: The January 2017 update added an Easy difficulty exclusively for Story Quests. This vastly reduces the maximum level cap for enemies to basically nothing, so people who are having trouble passing the Quest, or those who want to only see the story, can get through them. However, Easy difficulty bars you from earning any Titles related to that Quest.
* EenieMeenieMinyMoai: Following the defeat of Deus ESC-A Zephyros, the multi-party winds up on Easter Island to pick up the loot.
* EiffelTowerEffect:
** If the scenery and schools didn't already tip you off, the Tokyo Tower can be seen in the distance while on the Tokyo Field.
** Averted in Las Vegas; the iconic Stratosphere hotel is replaced by an ESC-A Tower. Other LawyerFriendlyCameo versions of popular Vegas landmarks appear in the field itself, however.
* ElegantGothicLolita: [[http://www.bumped.org/psublog/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Lorette-Beldia.jpg Lorette Beldia]] from the Halloween Night Masquerade AC Scratch. May not necessarily be gothic, due to having a light pink color variant.
* ElementalPowers: Techniques are divided into six elements: [[PlayingWithFire Fire]], [[AnIcePerson Ice]], [[BlowYouAway Wind]], [[ShockAndAwe Electricity]], [[LightEmUp Light]], and [[CastingAShadow Darkness]]. Weapons, likewise, can be imbued with an element.
** The Weapon Gear for Jet Boots allows it to change the primary element of its attacks into that of the last charged Technic cast.
** The Technic Zandion has the player fusing their wind and lightning powers to dash around while hitting enemies with wind attacks and dropping lightning bolts on them. Likewise, Fomelgion has the player fusing fire and darkness powers to create a dual-element WaveMotionGun. Lastly, Barantsion creates a pair of light-infused blades of ice that are wielded for a furious slashing combo.
* EldritchAbomination: It wouldn't be a Phantasy Star game without Dark Falz, though this time, it has the aid of its minions, the Darkers. [[spoiler:It later turns out that there's actually at least five separate incarnations of Dark Falz, each possessing a title and their own group of Darkers to control. And if that weren't enough, there's also The Profound Darkness to contend with.]]
* EldritchLocation:
** The Darkers' Den, which among other weirdness, contains the devastated remnants of an ARKS Ship on its ceiling, that being comprised of a former City. [[spoiler:It was also where Luther was able to conduct his experiments on cloning in secret.]]
** The PocketDimension within [[spoiler: Dark Falz Double]] is a vast red void filled with floating debris (Including what appears to be the remnants of an entire planet at its center) and creatures from around the universe, along with some random bits of colorful toy-like architecture. It's made more unsettling by the fact that the only ambiance there is the sound of children laughing.
* EliteTweak: With the variety of equipment, abilities and skillsets, this is entirely possible to do.
* EnemyMine: In Episode 3, [[spoiler:Double's actions force Elder to step in and help the heroes.]]
* EnemySummoner: By himself, Nyau, an adorable, klutzy, [[BuffySpeak feline-ish]] creature with a sword, isn't very strong, and will probably go down without too much effort. He also has the defining quality of occasionally making bosses appear after he vanishes.
* {{Engrish}}: "REALIZE" and "Borderless" are sung by a non-native English speaker, so the lyrics can come off as weird and somewhat nonsensical. That doesn't take away from how awesome they are, though.
* EpicFail: Standing in a Zanverse field while using Maron Strike at point-blank range? Congratulations, you just '''killed yourself.'''
* EquippableAlly: Aurora reveals that there is a group of Photoners known as the "Seven Gods and Thirteen Goddesses" that is comprised of Photoners who transformed into Genesis Weapons. There are seven known members, five of which appear in the game: [[spoiler:Aurora (Aurora)]], Mai (Mai), Labyu (Labrys), Flora (Flowenberk), and Nanaki (Nanaki). In addition, there are two members, Roto and Tam, that have gone missing. [[spoiler:[[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2es They were turned into Weaponoids.]]]]
* EscortMission:
** Some Story Quests ask you to bring a certain non-combatant, who joins your party, from point A to point B. It has none of the implications, however, as the escortee is treated the same way as a Partner and is thus protected by the GameplayAllyImmortality described below.
** The goal of Code: Escort is to protect an NPC while it digs up random items and meseta, or if it's a change over from Code: Protect, the NPC will try to find its' friend. You can still heal and buff it though.
* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: Earth has a ''Tyrannosaurus Rex'' as an enemy.
* EverythingsBetterWithRainbows:
** Items of rarity 13★ or higher are denoted by a glowing rainbow field model, as opposed to a regular red. In addition, untekked Weapons have glowing rainbow item boxes, and appear as rainbow when in the Tekking menu. The icons of 13★+ Weapons are also backed by checkerboard rainbow.
** Rainbows are a possible weather condition in any field that supports weather. When a rainbow appears, the odds of getting a PSE boost from killing an enemy rises significantly.
** The Hyper Rainbow and Hyper Sunlight Jet Boots leave rainbow trails when kicked.
* EverythingsBetterWithSamurai: The Braver class is known as "Samurai" in the SEA version.
* EvilIsBigger: Almost everything evil is going to be bigger than you. Dark Falz, Magatsu, the Profound Darkness, Yamato, you name it. The only exceptions are the [[spoiler:Falz clones that Dark Falz Double produces regularly]], Falz Hunar, who is just somewhat taller than the average player, and Persona, who is almost always roughly the same size as players, give or take. [[spoiler:The "evil" can be argued in the latter case, since Persona is really a WellIntentionedExtremist AntiVillain version of the PlayerCharacter who just wants the best for the universe and Matoi.]]
* EvilKnockoff: Emergency Code: Clone pits players against cloned versions of other players that have cleared [[spoiler:[[BonusLevelOfHell Darker Den]]]]; this can include [[MirrorMatch your own clone]] if you've accomplished this yourself. They function exactly like Friend Partners, getting all the original's weapons and all but one of their stats; you won't find [[InfinityPlusOneSword Infinity Plus One Photon Art]] [[GameBreaker Shunka-Shunran]] to be so fun when it's used on ''[[WhosLaughingNow you]]''.
** TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: The one stat they don't copy? HP, which they have quite a bit more of. Better get out the poison![[note]]And pray they're not swimming in Poison Resistance.[[/note]]
* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: Certain specific Story Quests lock you into the bad route the first time, forcing you to watch the bad outcome. Alternate options are only unlocked by completing the stage and [[NewGamePlus playing it over again.]]
* FanserviceCostumes: Way, ''way'', '''way''' too many to list. There could be an entire page on this for this game. If the trope exists, there's probably an outfit in the game that qualifies.
* FashionableAsymmetry: Cry Savior features a large shoulder pad on the left, and a cape draping on the right. [[spoiler:This is what Zeno wears once he joins the Council of Six.]]
* FeatheredFiend: The avian Darkers, who all bear a resemblance to [[CreepyCrows crows]].
* FieldOfBlades:
** The May 2015 update included a Scenery Pass for players that allows their [=MyRoom=] to overlook the TropeNamer [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight itself]].
** When you go fight [[spoiler:Matoi Viel]], the battlefield inexplicably has numerous weapons scattered around, giving off a downplayed version of this. [[spoiler:One of them is a Coat Edge, which you use to kill Matoi]].
* FightingSpirit: Ilios-type Photon Blasts function like this: upon being summoned, Ilios will float around you and attack enemies you target.
* FinalBoss: Each Episode has one.
** Episode 1: [[spoiler:Hadred, a plot-relevant Chrome Dragon. Dark Falz Elder is the Episode's ClimaxBoss, however.]]
** Episode 2: [[spoiler:Persona caps off the Episode. Dark Falz Loser is the ClimaxBoss.]]
** Episode 3: [[spoiler:Viel Hunar, and by extension, The Profound Darkness. Anga Fundarge serves as a PostFinalBoss in the EX Chapter.]]
* FireBreathingWeapon: Launchers have Flame Bullet, a Photon Art that works by eating up PP in exchange for a constant stream of fire. Weirdly enough, it does not deal Fire-elemental damage; the flames count as regular Ranged damage.
* FishPeople: Planet Vopal is home to a new type of native enemy, dubbed "Neptunians"/"Oceanids".
* FissionMailed: The first time you run the finale of Episode 3, [[spoiler:you are forced into the DownerEnding where you MercyKill Matoi and shown the ending credits. This is purely so that the StableTimeLoop which creates Persona can come to pass, since Persona plays a critical role in the true ending]].
* FlechetteStorm: The Dual Blades' special action consumes the user's gear gauge to send a flurry of small "photon blades" flying at the enemy. The Photon Blade Fever skill brings it straight into the territory of this trope by ''doubling'' the number of blades per salvo; since the gear charges with each hit, it's entirely possible to keep a near-constant stream of projectiles going for the duration of the effect. On top of that, most of the weapon's Photon Arts utilize these blades in various ways as well.
* FloatingContinent: Planet Amduscia's [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Floating Continent]] consists of small islands floating in the air, visible from the Campship.
* FlunkyBoss: Some of the bosses have reinforcements, should you bring along a couple of friends. Actual players specifically, [=NPCs=] don't count.
* FragileSpeedster: Jet Boots in Battle Arena. They're extremely mobile and have strong Photon Arts, but always have base 300 HP and will die immediately to most attacks, especially when Lv. 3 weapons open.
* FrickinLaserBeams: Present in a wide variety of forms.
** Ragrants fires a beam of light. It doesn't stretch too far, but everything is better with lasers, right?
** One of the Photon Blasts, Cetus Imera, fires a much larger beam. Scroll down to WaveMotionGun.
** A fair number of bosses enjoy them some lasers, such as Big Vardha, Quartz Dragon, [[spoiler:Dark Falz Elder]], and so forth.
** Photon Particle Cannons in Mining Base Defense fire chargeable lasers. While they ''are'' expensive and [[EleventhHourSuperpower you won't usually get them until the final round]], these particular turrets hit like a freight train and can take down Dark Vibrace in short order.
*** The enemy version, Darker Particle Cannons, appear when Darkers infect one of your Defense Sockets in Mining Base Defense: Despair and can be used against your Mining Bases like the Photon Particle Cannons can be used against Darkers. They have to charge up for a while upon spawning, but if you leave them alone for too long, '''''they hurt.'''''
*** Also in Mining Base: Despair? The [[MiniMecha AIS]], which is equipped with its own Photon Particle Cannon that's so powerful, it makes the cannon turrets that preceded it look like battery-powered fans, in comparison.
** The Launcher photon art Sphere Eraser functions like a miniature version of the AIS's Photon Particle Cannon, firing a concentrated beam of energy that can maintained for as long as you have the PP to spare.
** The Satellite Cannon photon art for rifles have these, courtesy of a KillSat.
* FoeTossingCharge:
** A handful of photon arts, like the Partisan's "Assault Buster" (a flying stab) or the Twin Machineguns' "Dead Approach" (a shoulder tackle) allow players to perform this.
** Naturally, several enemies and bosses can pull this off too. The Quartz Dragon in particular has several jet-powered lunging attacks that can punt players a fair distance.
* ForWantOfANail: Part of the reason why Luther's plan's and Elder's resurrection were unfathomable by Xion? [[spoiler:You killed Hadred. This allowed his body tissue to be sent to the past somewhere down the line, resulting in the creation of the Deuman race and vastly diverting the future.]]
* ForcedLevelGrinding: Very early in the game's lifespan, unlocking new Quests followed the "classic" ''PSO'' model, where you would need to be a certain level before you could unlock the next set of Quests. However, this was far before balance patches reduced the amount of EXP needed to get through the first 30 levels, which meant cycling through Forest, Desert, and Volcanoes constantly before you could hit Level 30 and unlock Tundra. A patch on September 12th, 2012 fixed this by giving all Quests Normal difficulty and reducing the level requirements for Hard.
** Successive patches have since attempted to avert this without making it too easy to achieve the level cap too soon, such as chopping down the EXP required for early and mid-game, turning Advance Quests into ideal LevelGrinding zones with a permanent +100% EXP buff, and introducing 15000 EXP Tickets that [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin give you 15000 EXP instantly]] upon consumption. This is still prevalent late-game, however, although this is also around the time where you have access to Super Hard Emergency Quests, which dispense ample EXP.
* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** In Episode 1 Chapter 3: Sadist In The Sands, Gettemhart describes you as "Oh, the one with the mask". He was talking about your first meeting, when he interrupted Persona, so one could consider this a flaw in grammar. Then you learn WHO Persona really is...
** If you look closely, the symbol that appears on the Phantoms' weak points when exposed is [[spoiler:the ESC-A logo]]. This is the same brand that [[spoiler:publishes the choice OS of modern-day Japan, [[AllThereInTheManual as described by Rina Izumi]] in ''[[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2 Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation]]''.]]
* FriendlyFire: If you let Melon or Maron sit at maximum charge, they'll eventually self-destruct on their own. If you happen to be standing near them while they do so, you'll also take the brunt of it. It can't kill you, but it can bring you to 1 HP.
* FunWithAcronyms: The ARKS logo has it written in small letters that it stands for '''A'''rtificial '''R'''elict [[GratuitousEnglish to ]]'''[[GratuitousEnglish K]]'''[[GratuitousEnglish eep]] '''[[GratuitousEnglish S]]'''[[GratuitousEnglish pecies]].
* FusionDance: Fusion Technics work like this, where the user smashes together elemental orbs to create a new, powerful Technic, like Zandion and Fomelgion.
* GagSub: The people behind the English patch have had some fun translating the game, and it shows in one of Kressida's client orders being titled "[[SonicTheHedgehog Gotta Go Fast!]]", a seasonal quest from Xie referencing the "doge" meme ("Such Love, So Popular"), and the description for TheScrappy weapon, the Mace of Adaman, ending with "Better luck next time. :(".
* GameWithinAGame: ''Phantasy Star Online 2 Episode 4'' has ''[[CelebrityParadox Phantasy Star Online 2]]''. ItMakesSenseInContext.
* TheGameComeToLife: In ''-ON STAGE-'', Milla, a dewman NPC, ends up awakening in Takuya's reality. Unfortunately, Dark Falz also finds a way into the real world, as well.
** Episode 4 begins with characters and phantoms leaping out of the game and into Tokyo. [[spoiler:Subverted: according to [[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2 the anime]], [=PSO2=]'s world is real and only presented as a game to earthlings.]]
* GameplayAllyImmortality:
** You can summon [=NPCs=] and AI-controlled clones of your friends to aid you in battle. They have considerably lowered stats compared to your actual friend, HP notwithstanding, and die a lot. Of course, they get up after a while and keep going, but they're also [[ArtificialStupidity incredibly dumb.]] The AI-controlled clones can still be given specific tactics by the one who registered them as AI partners, but it doesn't help all that much, especially if you're not in contact with whoever registered them.
** Any Pets that faint in battle are recalled and revived after a period of time. This can happen indefinitely, but since Pets are also your only method of attack outside of All Class Weapons, it's not recommended to let them bite the dust.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: When you move on past Episode 1, Quna and Matoi are seen, in Quna's case, overlooking the stage area from the highest point of the Shop Area, and, in Matoi's case, next to the medical facility. However, when you start Episode 4, they both vanish until you encounter them again, whereupon they reappear in the same spots.
** Also, the people in the ARKS Ship Bridge increase [[spoiler:and decrease]] as you progress through the story, and earn more allies. Notably, this does NOT include [[spoiler: Zelsius]] Quna or Matoi, who appear as above, since you can interact with both liberally throughout the story.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation:
** [[spoiler:In Episode 2 Chapter 6, right when Matoi is about to let brainwashed ARKS kill her]], you jump in and [[BigDamnHeroes save her at the last second]] wielding a Coat Edge D, regardless of whatever weapon you actually had. [[spoiler:Subverted, since it isn't really ''you'' you, but another you who became Persona and traveled into your timeline. It's complicated.]]
** The story is weird about when it considers characters as "dead" or "incapacitated". More often than not, any ARKS member [[CutsceneIncompetence will be defeated instantly upon taking damage]], unless they're [[PlotArmor major characters]]. And more often than not, they usually die on the spot, be it from a Dagan [[spoiler:or from being attacked by their own ally.]] Except in certain cases, when they get hit and get teleported back to the Campship as opposed to dying, for reasons unknown.
** In gameplay during the climactic battles, you have entire parties of other players with you. Storywise however, these party members are usually the named ARKS characters, such as the trainers and more notably [[spoiler:Matoi, whose gigantic kill count as Claris Claes II and helping defeat Elder and Loser is a ''big'' reason why she becomes the Profound Darkness]].
* GameplayGrading: You're ranked at the end of every Quest based on several deciding factors. For most Quests, this involves Enemy Extermination Rate (how many enemies were defeated) and Revives (how many times did you get sent back to the Campship upon KO). Certain Quests use different factors instead; Time Attacks run solely on Time Elapsed, Mining Base Defense also grades on Mining Base HP, and most Story Quests grade on Damage Taken. This system is also used to deliver a certain sort of PlayerPunch later in the Story; [[spoiler:in Episode 3, Chapter 7, "Saved Matoi" counts for 100 Points]].
* GameBreakingBug:
** The update on 5th December 2012 included a revamp to the physics engine and a few other things so that it can be compatible for PS Vita and PC user co-op play. Cue people getting stuck in the loading screen, stuck in boss room teleporters, applying strange textures to random models, model animations spazzing out (which, hilariously, includes people in Rappy Suits standing sideways with half their body into the ground and rotating anti clockwise at high speeds), buttons not appearing (rendering a certain quest incompletable). It rendered the game either nigh unplayable or an extremely annoying experience. Of course, an emergency maintenance fixed most of it.
** The September 4 update induced a ''computer'' breaking patch, in which the updater wiped system files (and hilariously, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' files) from countless computers.
** Quna's "Cosmic twinkle star/Where the Light Ends" concert experienced major hiccups on launch for PC users due to the game being forced to render so many assets at the same time, which included anything from Quna rendering incorrectly (such as missing her entire head) to just outright forcing the game to crash. The maintenance a week after launch fixed the bugs.
** Hitsugi encounters one in the story, after a mysterious shadow attempts to take control of her character. This has some unintended side effects...
* GameFavoredGender: A sort of meta example; on one hand, the gachas tend to release more clothes for female characters, leaving the males with less clothing options. On the other hand, due to the large population of female characters, their clothes tend to be priced higher in the market, meaning the males can get the clothes they want earlier than the females.
* GenderNeutralWriting: Due to the fact that you can quite literally be anyone you design, the game tries to uphold this throughout all story context. However, this is simultaneously played straight and averted due to discrepancies between voiced dialogue and text dialogue; almost all characters refer to your character with gender-neutral pronouns when in voice, but the text version has some characters clearly referring to you as male.
* GetBackHereBoss:
** When encountered in a multi-party area, bosses who can dig, such as Vol Dragon can go across the map instead of popping up near where it spawned.
** A very unusual take with Dark Falz Double. It itself usually stays within close proximity of the players, but its weak spot, the only place where it's vulnerable, has a tendency to move around a lot, forcing players to chase after it.
** Yamato isn't a fan of staying in one spot for long. It will dive into the ocean every few seconds and resurface elsewhere on the field, then open a barrage of laser attacks on players. Players will need to chase it using the High Boost skill to quickly move across the field.
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: There's no known way for the game to scan whatever's being displayed on Symbol Art. Unless other players have a problem and report the offenders, it's possible to get away with displaying very raunchy images.
* GiantEnemyCrab: Krabahdas, and since Seabed was introduced, Falcabones are literally this. The English patch named one of Hans' Client Orders this, but it's [[GagSub not what it translates to]]. The quest actually named "Birth of Dark Fog".
* GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere: ''Happens all the freaking time''. Boss enemies won't always wait for you to get to them; during Free Field, Arks Missions or (should the quest take place there) Emergency Quests, they can ambush you in their locale. Some don't even need to be in the same area, just on the same planet (i.e. Lillipa Tunnels boss Tranmizer can appear in Lillipa Desert). It's not uncommon for a boss to spawn after or even ''during'' an Emergency Code. Worse yet, randomly encountered bosses can have have double their regular HP - this is denoted by their name having a prefix, like "Hollow Shell" for Dark Ragne and "Primal Shell" for Wolgahda and Zeshrayda. Darker-type bosses are notoriously repeat offenders of this. [[spoiler:Falz Arm is ''not'' an exception to this if you're playing on Super Hard. Have fun!]]
** Chrome Dragon is an interesting case because [[SlidingScaleOfGameplayAndStoryIntegration being the only Dragon boss that isn't a Dragonkin]], he tends to function like a Darker and show up wherever.
** BossBonanza: Most Emergency Quests and Limited Quests are built around this mechanic to send one boss after another at you, with increased chances of encountering their rare versions.
** Some bosses that are introduced in Limited Quests stay in the game even after the quest leaves, but only appear in this fashion, like [[VideoGame/BorderBreak Cougar NX]] and [[{{Franchise/ShiningSeries}} Knight Gear]].
*** In fact with all the bosses in the game, it's faster to list which ones ''don't'' ambush you due to their unique boss mechanics; these are [[spoiler:[[BaseOnWheels Big Vardha]][[note]][[http://youtu.be/W8kABY0yf3c Although there is a rarely-seen area in the Lillipa Desert that is just one big plot of sand with the boss sitting there, waiting for the player(s).]][[/note]], [[ChaseFight Bal Rodos]], [[HoldTheLine Dark Vibrace]] and [[DiscOneFinalBoss Dark Falz Elder]]]].
*** And even then, [[spoiler: Dark Falz Elder's ''arms'']] can ambush you now, as well as [[spoiler: Bal Rodos in the Ascended Facility]] surprising you on the borders.
*** As Episode 2 Chapter 6 proves, it's technically entirely possible to get ambushed by a [[spoiler:Dark Vibrace]].
** [[MirrorMatch Arks Clones]] also have a tendency to show up whenever they want, one for each non-NPC player in your party; four maximum, as they can't appear in multiparty areas.
* GlassCannon:
** In the early days of the game, Katana Combat. Sure, [[NotQuiteFlight you could basically fly across the battlefield]] and gained an insane power boost topped off by a ridiculous AOE finisher, but it was hard to use any of it when you still died to an enemy in four strikes. A later update granted Combat Escape, a Katana Combat augmentation that grants it invincibility, allowing them to go ham on bosses without fear of retaliation.
** Forces and Techers could qualify for this department; they are both {{Squishy Wizard}}s, but they can pack a punch [[DifficultButAwesome if built correctly.]]
** Toggling Limit Break cuts a Fighter's maximum HP to 1/4 in exchange for a enormous 20% boost to Striking damage. Fighters under Limit Break have some of the best damage output in the entire game, but have an effective lifespan of one to two hits.
** Against a properly geared player, everything in Solo XQ dies if you so much as punch it once. The problem being that those very same monsters can and will drop you just as easily.
** Torim is one of the most fragile Summoner Pets, possessing rather low HP values and dying easily if not properly maintained. However, he also packs a huge punch with his Photon Arts, and is a formidable threat to foes on the battlefield.
** Redran is even more extreme than Torim. His HP value is so low that on the highest difficulty Quests, it typically dies in two to three hits. However, it's the only Pet that always stays with you, and it has ''absurdly'' strong projectile-based Photon Arts, including the highly lethal Redran Burst.
** The Bonus Quest version of Magatsu Sai dies to a single Weak Bulleted Photon Particle Cannon to the chest. However, his AI from the original EQ is retained, which means he hits really damn hard and is hyper aggressive like crazy.
** In Battle Arena, Jet Boots are highly mobile and can deal quite a bit of damage with their Arts, but they have even ''less'' HP than Rods.
* GlobalCurrencyException: The game has several alternative currencies that can be used to buy things that you can't buy with Meseta.
** ARKS Cash, the [[{{Microtransactions}} premium currency]] of the game. It can be used to play AC Scratch and buy things from the AC Shop and other places that, while unnecessary to fully enjoy the game, help out somewhat.
** Star Gems, another "premium" currency that can also be bought with {{Microtransactions}}, but are also handed out by the game. These can be used to play SG Scratch and purchase items from the Treasure Shop, as well as time-saver functions like recharging Stamina and buying Extra Tree Change Passes.
** FUN Points, which are earned over time by simply playing the game. They can be used at the FUN Shop for goods, or used to play FUN Scratch.
** Netcafe Points, which can be earned by racking up hours playing the game at a supported Japanese netcafe. These can be used at the Netcafe Shop to purchase rare items.
** Casino Coins, which are used to play Casino games in the Casino Area. When you're not gambling with them, you can use them at the Casino Coin Shop to purchase special items, including Rare Enemy Triggers.
** Challenge Miles, which can be earned from playing Challenge Quest. Miles can be spent at the Challenge Shop for rare goodies, including the Ideal series weapons and Units, as well as Photon Boosters used to unlock Hidden Potentials.
** Battle Coins, which are gained from playing Battle Arena. BC can be exchanged at the Battle Coin Shop for exclusive cosmetics and Units, among other things.
** While not officially deemed a type of currency, Excubes gained from Level Cap Bonus and exchanging rare weapons can be turned in at the Excube Exchange Shop for items like Lv. 17 Discs, Rare Drop Rate +250% tickets and Units affixed with the ability Lucky Rise I.
** Photon Drops, Crystals, and Spheres can be turned in at the Photon Exchange Shop for prizes.
** That's not even getting into the other shops that wheel and deal in non-standard items, like the Badge Shop, which only accepts Badges and Ragol Memories, and several limited-time stores like the Chip Fragment Exchange Shop and Gavas Ticket Exchange.
* GoKartingWithBowser: Nyau, the [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter adorable]] cat-like rare enemy, hosts and is the dealer for the Black Nyack Casino game.
* GoodColorsEvilColors:
** Episodes 1-3 have the [=ARKS=] (mainly their weapons and technology) represented by bright blue and various grays. The Darkers are generally represented by black, red, purple, and occasionally pink.
** In Episode 2, the avian Darkers and Dark Falz Loser add gold into the mix.
** Episode 3:
*** The toy Darkers mix rather visceral-looking blacks and reds with [[BrightIsNotGood bright pastel colors]].
*** The Profound Darkness, Dio Hunar, and Anga Fundarge zigzag this trope. They mix the traditional Darker color palette with uncannily pretty-looking white, lavender, and gold hues.
** Zigzagged in two cases in Episode 4:
*** The Phantoms and the [=ARKS=] are both represented by cool blues, but the members of Mother Cluster wear all white.
*** The climax's BigBad, Deus [=ESCA=]/[[spoiler: Ardem]], mixes [[GoldAndWhiteAreDivine white and gold]] with some earthy browns and greens that are quite uncommon for villains.
* GratuitousEnglish:
** Aside from the ARKS acronym, there's "STATE OF EMERGENCY/RAID/STRATEGY" [[spoiler:when Falz attacks the ship]], and even {{Engrish}} voice tickets for players to use. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RbiukdjZv8 It's as funny as it sounds.]]
** Some fans have noticed that [[FreezeFrameBonus if you pause at just the right time]] during the scene where [[spoiler:Hitsugi opens the menu and logs out of ''[=PSO2=]'']], it can be seen that the Main Menu is in English for no good reason, even though [[spoiler:Hitsugi is Japanese and is playing from Tokyo]].
* GravitySucks:
** The Gravity Bomb, a Trap Skill for Rangers, creates a miniature gravity well that pulls enemies in.
** Bullet Bows have access to Gravity Shot. It detonates into a mini black hole a second after it makes its impact, be it enemy or ground.
** Redran has a Photon Art called "Redran Gravity" where it fires a bullet that turns into a gravity well when it makes contact with a target.
* GreatOffscreenWar: The Elder War, a massive counteroffensive instigated by the 1st Generation ARKS against Dark Falz Elder. It occurred 40 years before the start of the plot, and is often referred to by other characters. It was here that Regius, Casra I, and Klariskrays I became the Three Heroes and [[spoiler:sealed Dark Falz Elder within Naberius.]]
* GreenHillZone: Naberius Forest, natch.
* GrievousHarmWithABody:
** Any Photon Art that grabs the enemy, and a few that launch the enemy, are capable of this. Wired Lances excel at it.
** Barbarillipans may draw a Gilnas mech from their backpack, which they will smack you with.
* GuestStarPartyMember: Certain chapters add exclusive party members to your team for a while, and you can't get them as Partner Cards[[note]]Or at least not for the time, anyway.[[/note]]. However, since they're still [[ArtificialStupidity Partners]], [[ItsUpToYou it's still all up to you.]]
* GuideDangIt:
** You'd be pretty hard-pressed to figure out by yourself that getting the true end of Chapter 4 requires not only unlocking it on the Matter Board, but [[spoiler:also killing every enemy in the first area of the quest, aside from any runners at the end of an e-trial]]. And even if you do get it, you might not be sure how you did it.
** Averted in the english patched version where paying close attention to Aki's dialogue helps immensely.
** The unlockable shortcuts for some of the Time Attack Quests, especially Naberius I and Lillipa, can be really obtuse. If you haven't learned them, better hope you have a teammate that did.
** Nowhere in the game alludes to the fact that GameplayGrading affects drop rates.
* GroinAttack: Some humanoid darkers have unfortunately placed cores. They usually come equipped with jock strap armor that you can break, which is surely a [[KickTheDog ''very'' heroic]] thing to do.
* GoryDiscretionShot: The camera cuts to black right before [[spoiler:Persona impales Matoi with his/her sword.]] Subverted when you arrive on the scene of the crime ten seconds later and see [[spoiler:Matoi horribly bleeding to death.]]
* [[spoiler:GovernmentConspiracy: The Arks higher-ups told everyone that Dark Falz had been defeated for good 40 years ago. Any person well-versed in the ''Franchise/PhantasyStar'' series will tell you that this is [[BlatantLies baloney]], and rightfully so: Falz was only sealed away, and the Arks have gone so far as to kill anyone ''including those in their own ranks'' who try to uncover that fact.]]
** [[spoiler:LawfulStupid: Not that their motivations aren't understandable, but it gets a little ridiculous when you try to assassinate a ''research student'' who is merely curious, instead of the '''considerably''' more AxCrazy BloodKnight who actually ''wants'' to find and resurrect Dark Falz.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tropes H-L]]
* HailfirePeaks: Naberius has a lush Forest area slapped right next to an eternally-snowy Tundra area. Unlike most examples of this trope, this is noted in-game to not be a natural occurrence, and Rogio does some research into the phenomenon in ''EPISODE 1'' [[spoiler:that very nearly gets him assassinated by ARKS.]] The reason why this occurs is that [[spoiler:the influence of Elder's essence sealed within Naberius has caused half the planet to freeze over.]]
* HappyEndingOverride: Episode 4 quickly reveals that [[spoiler:thanks to inheriting TimeTravel from its host, the Profound Darkness was simply able to come back by bringing forward a version of itself that existed in the past. During the last two years you were asleep, ARKS was ''still'' fighting the Profound Darkness to the present day. Xiao has disappeared to find a way to prevent it from returning for good.]]
* HarderThanHard:
** Super Hard difficulty. Aside from the general stat and level boosts, bosses and mooks also get revised AI that makes them tougher to deal with, as well as souped-up infection cores that can also fight back against players, such as sniping players with projectiles and giving the enemy the ability to LifeDrain on hit. In addition, [[spoiler:Falz Arms]] can show up as a random encounter. [[spoiler:[[OhCrap Yes, even in the Raging Dark Arms Emergency Quest.]]]]
** Going past Super Hard is Extra Hard, a difficulty that usually appears in Emergency Quests and in most newer content. XH content can be accessed from Lv. 70 onwards, and generally features enemies between Lv. 75 and Lv. 80. Some enemies and bosses even get drastic changes that mix up how they're fought, such as Loser's clock shield.
* HarmlessFreezing: The Freeze status traps you in a body-sized ice crystal. It's not harmful itself, but it can certainly set you up for some harm.
* HeadlessHorseman: The Phantom "Dullahan Rider" is a play on this; it's a headless ''biker''.
* HealingFactor:
** Hunters and Gunners have Automate Halfline and Automate Deadline respecitvely, which will make the least powerful -mate item in their inventory activate when their HP goes below a certain point - 50% for Halfline, 25% for Deadline. It has a 100% chance to work when maxed out on the skill tree, and all three levels of Mates are a common drop from boxes.
** Summoners get HP Restorate, which naturally begins restoring HP at set intervals when the player's HP becomes low. At Lv. 10, the skill will automatically start healing you the moment you take any damage.
** Certain weapons can restore the player's (or other players') HP gradually. For example, 4★ Sword Claymore can heal 10% of your HP every 5 seconds, the Seiga Sword heals you to max HP every 40 seconds, and the Zeinesis series weapons, given that you acquired the Blessing of Life Potential, heals all players in the party for 10% of their HP every 10 seconds.
* HellishPupils: Deumans have access to a rather strange vortex-like eye pattern. [=NPCs=] of the race tend to have one eye like this, colored more brightly than their other, "normal" eye.
* HellIsThatNoise: Baizes make a hellish noise of agony when attacked. ''[[MostAnnoyingSound Every]]'' time they're attacked.
* HelpfulMook:
** Mr. Umblla, a rare miniboss. If he hits you with his cane, you get a +100% Rare Drop Rate Bonus for 5 minutes.
** Mr. Bowan is a very rare spawn that appears in the "Joker" Code. If you can fill up the gauge at the side of the screen by damaging him enough, he'll bestow a massive +300% Rare Drop Rate Bonus for 5 minutes.
** Empe Rappies have an "attack" where they try and hug you. If they manage to grab you, they'll cuddle you while healing your HP.
* HighSchool: Hitsugi and Kouri attend Tensei Academy, a boarding school in Japan. It is located near its sister school, [[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2 Seiga Academy]], accessible via bus. [[spoiler:You get to take a visit when you pop out of Hitsugi's PC to save her from a Phantom attack.]]
* HitSoHardTheCalendarFeltIt: Oracle went through a calendar reset when the ARKS was formed to counteract the Darker threat; the current calendar is referred to as "A.P.", or "After Photon".
* HitboxDissonance: Wands reach farther than you'd expect. This is a particularly invoked case for balance; the weapon itself was slow and its reach was ''dismal'' when it was first released.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Clones of player characters can use all the Photon Arts and Technics the original character knows. This includes, among other things, [[OhCrap Over End, Il Foie, Shunka-Shunran, Backhand Smash, Weak Bullet]]...
* HoldTheLine: Magatsu's ultimate objective is to break all the gates in the area, so the players must protect the gates and defeat him before he breaks them all.
* HolidayMode: The game frequently celebrates many holidays, international and Japanese alike. When a holiday rolls around, the the game is updated to match, including a new outfit for Xie, a holiday-specific Quest, a themed Lobby redesign, holiday outfits and accessories up for grabs, and a holiday-specific Rappy (and/or Nyau) variant emerging.
** The SEA version also tosses in alternate events in place of Japanese holidays, such as a Singapore/Malaysia Independence Day event in August and a Lunar New Year event in Winter.
* HumanAliens: As far as Earth is concerned, Human ARKS, who ''are'' human, but aren't from Earth. Newmans and Deumans could almost classify as this, if they weren't SpaceElves and {{Horned Humanoid}}s respectively.
* HumanPopsicle: Cold Sleep Capsules, introduced in ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarNova'', are designed to cryonically preserve ARKS members and citizens for long-term travel, such as during planet scouting.
* [[FighterMageThief Hunter, Force, Ranger]]: Players may choose between the classic three, though they have all been loosened up since ''Online''. Each character has a different level for each class and can switch classes freely.
** Each class has its own skill tree, which unlocks new skills and abilities.
** In addition, [= CASTs =] can again be Forces as in Universe, and are actually competent at it this time.
** Each class has a different form of dodging:
*** Hunters side-step and block.
*** Rangers do an UnnecessaryCombatRoll.
*** Forces phase-dash.
** On September 12, each class was given a branch Class that used to be an unlocked class at level 30: Fighters for Hunters, Gunners for Rangers, and Techers for Forces.
** Episode 2 introduced the Braver class. They wield [[BowAndSwordInAccord Bullet Bows and Katanas]].
** Episode 3 introduced another new class, "Bouncer", who wields [[DualWielding Dual Blades]] and [[RocketBoots Jet Boots]]. Their array of skills pitches them as a cross between MagicKnight and ThePaladin.
** The Reborn update brings about the Summoner class, who use batons to control powerful creatures that attack enemies and cast Techniques.
* HypocriticalHumor: In one map of Episode 1 Chapter 6, you have to jump a series of pillars to reach an inconveniently placed switch. Zeno complains on why it's placed up there, and Echo answers that it's in such a place to make it harder to reach. On the second, ''higher'' one, Echo complains about the exact same thing, with Zeno calling her out.
* IAmNotLeftHanded: The Council of Six members (bar Claris Claes [[spoiler:and Zeno]]) are generally content with using their standard weapons, but when the going gets tough, they aren't afraid to show power strong enough to give ''[[spoiler:the Dark Falzes]]'' a run for their money.
* IdolSinger: Quna (voiced by Creator/EriKitamura). Have a listen to ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MpQ0QFsCdo Our]]'' ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gna9qS-sA6g Fighting]]'', ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjN-g2XGLkQ Everlasting Encore]]'', and ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvu2WF_uXr0 Neverending Story]]''.
** Everyone's favorite [[VirtualCelebrity virtual idols]], Hatsune Miku and Megurine Luka, are also getting a day in the limelight performing [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Phantasy Star Portable 2]]'s theme song, ''Living Universe''.
* [[IDontLikeTheSoundOfThatPlace I Don't Like the Sound of that Quest]]: Mining Base Defense: '''Despair'''. See NintendoHard.
* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: Pulled on Dark Falz Apprentice by Afin ''repeatedly''. [[spoiler:It eventually works]].
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: A Photon Art for Swords named Cruel Throw, which runs your target through with your sword and then lifts them up and tosses them aside while still on the blade. Needless to say, it works on clones, so you may find yourselves running your "friends" through with your sword. The clones can, however, do this to YOU as well.
* ImmediateSequel: Aika's meeting with Hitsugi takes place literal days after [[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2TheAnimation the anime's]] epilogue, [[spoiler:where an ARKS Ship materializes just outside the Moon, which also occurs in Episode 4 Chapter 2.]]
* ImpossiblyCoolClothes: Let's face it, trying to replicate many of the outfits in this game and make them practical is hell in itself. And let's not get started with trying to figure out whatever the hell the clothes are made of in the first place. Heck, it's a wonder how Oval Load stays up despite being one bow away from a wardrobe malfunction.
* InASingleBound: Attack a Bikkuda Rabitta from afar, and no matter how far you're standing from it, it will take a massive leap and pound you into the ground in one swift motion.
* InfinityMinusOneSword: Austere, Astra, and Gix series are the strongest 13s the game has to offer.
* InfinityPlusOneSword:
** And above those three is the ''14★'' weapons, which have even higher stats than 13★ and automatically drop with ''70 Element'' and +30 NT Grind Level, and are stacked with '''horribly''' overpowered Hidden Potentials, such as Spread Needle granting ''double damage'' at close range and Eternal Psycho Drive changing the multiplier for off-element Elemental Conversion to '''+200%.'''
** Storywise, these are the Genesis Weapons: weapons that carry such a high photon output that only the ARKS Council of Six are capable of wielding them. In the lore of the story, every weapon in the ARKS armoury is a reverse-engineered version of a Genesis Weapon, downgraded for general use.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha: The A.I.S. (ARKS Interception Silhouette), a 10-meter tall HumongousMecha that players can summon and jump into a la ''{{Videogame/Titanfall}}'' and run around mass murdering Darkers and Magatsus with a [[{{BFS}} Photon Saber]] and a [[MixAndMatchWeapon Solid Vulcan]] capable of [[MoreDakka heavy supressing fire]], [[MacrossMissileMassacre missile spam]], and [[WaveMotionGun spewing a Photon Particle laser]], among other things. While initially introduced in ''Mining Base Defense: Despair'', their overwhelming popularity lead to their inclusion in several other Quests, such as the Magatsu EQ and ''Mining Base Defense: Demise''.
* InsurmountableWaistHeightFence: Most of them are to prevent your characters falling to their death, presumably.
** Every slope in the Gate/Shop area is of the Frictionless Hill Variant.
* InterspeciesRomance: Due to all races being based off of the Human race, it's possible for two people of different races to copulate and reproduce. Yes, even '''[=CASTs=]''' are eligible.
* InventoryManagementPuzzle: The Summoner's Candy Box is essentially this. The Box takes the form of an 8x8 grid divvied up into smaller areas by way of various 1x1 colored blocks located semi-randomly across the Box. Candies you can acquire have a Size, and to boost a Pet's stats, the Candies must be sorted into the Box ''Tetris''-style. To expand Box space, the player may acquire items to remove certain color blocks such as Caramels, although steel blocks cannot be removed. Additionally, to reduce the amount of space a specific Candy takes up in the Box, [[LuckBasedMission you can Grind it]], which shrinks its size. However, rarer Candies have a higher scaling Grind Risk, and the smaller the Candy, the higher the Grind Risk.
* InvincibleMinorMinion: The [[NightmareFuelStationAttendant Gel Wulff]] appears during a randomly-triggered Emergency Code: Avoid. You cannot kill it, and [[TheAIIsACheatingBastard it can fly through walls to hunt you down]]. The only thing you can do against it is to run from it until time runs out, and hope everyone else is on their toes. Though they later became much easier to avoid...
** Subverted in a specific variant of Emergency Code: Destruction that involves using special cannons to destroy them, although you can still choose to avoid them until the timer runs out.
* {{Invocation}}: The Council of Six's special weapons work like this.
--> '''[[spoiler:Zeno]]''': Sword of Commandment, '''Nanaki'''! ''*Weapon reverses colors*''
* ItemCrafting:
** The January 15, 2014 update adds a crafting system to improve weapons, units, and Technics. Among the things that can be improved are Attack and Defense stats, HP and PP values, and even what classes can equip a weapon.
** The March 8, 2016 update adds an item-gathering system and a new shop that utilizes items gathered in Free Fields. Minerals can be used to craft Skill Rings, while fish, produce, and meat can be used to make PowerUpFood.
* ItOnlyWorksOnce: Due to the cooldown of an A.I.S. Photon Particle Cannon (2 minutes), you can only use it once per piloting session (also 2 minutes).
* JigglePhysics: Used for clothes, hair, some weapons, and predictably, chests. It's actually fairly realistic in the last case, though some lobby actions seem to exist primarily to show it off. There are some oddities however - taking a screenshot tends to cause long hair to quiver, and female chests seem to awkwardly jiggle from a default position into a resting position whenever a character model is suddenly loaded (such as changing clothes in the salon, or browsing players on the Mining Base Defense results screen).
* JobSystem: Classes can be freely switched between and independently leveled.
* JokeItem: There's a handful of silly weapons that often don't surpass the power of the more serious ones. They've got brooms, fish, kendamas, surfboards, umbrellas, flower bouquets, [[NerfArm bubble guns]]...
** LethalJokeItem: On the other hand, some of these ridiculous weapons are at least 10★ weapons. Umbrellas, paper fans, surf boards, lollipops, the list goes on. You can even fight with only your bare [[GoodOldFisticuffs fists]]. They're obviously rather weak and only get one Photon Art (the Knuckles' Ducking Blow), but they're also quite fast and both their guard animation and Photon Art have a healthy amount of invincibility frames.
* JumpPhysics: Fights and dungeons are now more three-dimensional with the addition of jumping.
** Milked to all that it's worth in [[{{Wutai}} Harukotan]], which features a vast number of buildings that players can jump on the roofs of.
** Twin Mechgun users (particularly Gunners, who have access to the relevant [=PAs=]) can augment their jumps with midair side- and backflips, letting them stay airborne almost indefinitely.
* KaizoTrap:
** As is Phantasy Star [[MythologyGag tradition]], Dragons (and this time, Fang/Snow Banshee/Banther) will hurt you if they fall on you during their death animation. Being landed on deals a surprisingly substantial amount of damage, meaning that on higher difficulties, this ''can'' kill you.
** Defeated Big Vardha? '''GET OFF AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.''' The ship is going explode and can potentially blow you up if you just stand there.
** Breaking Nyau's weapon[[note]]This counts as defeating Nyau[[/note]] causes Nyau to fly into a rage and assault the player with a flurry of punches, after which it'll make a desperate cry for help and vanish. Like the "landing" event above, [[DeathOfAThousandCuts it's entirely possible to die from this on harder difficulties.]] [[spoiler:Stay on your guard through. A boss might actually answer its cry for help. Doesn't help that some of the boss entrances can and will flatten you if you're not paying attention.]]
* KillItWithFire: [[PlayingWithFire Foie-type spells all use fire]]. In addition, the Launcher PA "Flame Bullet" will allow you to use the weapon like a [[FireBreathingWeapon flamethrower]].
* KillSat: The Assault Rifle Photon Art "Satellite Cannon".
* KnockbackEvasion: Named "Just Reversal", pressing jump (Spacebar by default) the moment your body hits the ground will allow you to flip back on your feet. If you're wearing the Ring "L/Air Reversal", you can right yourself while being tossed into the air.
* KrakenAndLeviathan: Bal Rodos is of the Sea Serpent variation. Notable in that it's twice or maybe even ''thrice'' the size of De Rol Le and Barba Ray from the [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline first game]], and is every bit as powerful as it is intimidating.
* LateArrivalSpoiler:
** At this stage they don't even try hiding Dark Falz, much less [[spoiler:the existence of the other Dark Falzes.]]
** Many, many people and in-game accessories have put out there that [[spoiler:the mysterious blue-haired, twin-tailed girl with the Twin Daggers is Quna, the pop idol.]]
** The existence of [[spoiler:Quna, Deuman Theodore, Melphonsina, Council of Six Zeno, and Episode 3 Matoi partner cards doesn't help either. Talk about a literal WalkingSpoiler.]]
** Minor example; an obtainable outfit is of [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica Homura sporting Madoka's hair ribbons]], a style she only uses [[spoiler:after Madoka CosmicRetcon'd the universe at the end of the series.]] This also applies to the Homura's Bow camo for Bullet Bows. [[spoiler: Homura doesn't get a Bow until post-CosmicRetcon.]]
** A lot of the content of the story quests is a little awkwardly paced, which are somewhat handwaved by the [[spoiler:time travel elements]] of the story. For example, pretty much every player who isn't playing the story content the moment each chapter releases is going to fight a major story-relevant boss such as [[spoiler:Dark Falz Hunar]] during an Emergency Quest or random encounter long before they actually play the boss in the climactic fashion the story presents it in. Likewise, most players will fight one of the major, Emergency Quest-exclusive Dark Falz battles before they witness the events that reveal how that boss came to be. On a slightly lesser level, the start of most story quests shows a sweeping vista and introductory title card for the area you're about to embark exploration upon, despite the fact that you will have needed to visit that area several times in regular quests to complete Matter Board objectives beforehand.
* LargeHam:
** [[EvilIsHammy Dark Falz]] [[spoiler: Elder]] is no slouch in this department, either. When he unveils his gigantic true form, his ham levels increase in size proportionately.
* LastChanceHitPoint:
** The Hunter Skill "Iron Will" gives you a chance to eat a fatal hit without dying, instead leaving you at 1 HP. The maximum value is 75%, but it won't activate if you're already at 1 HP. If it activates, it also gives you a few seconds of MercyInvincibility, and if you invest in the Skill below it, Never Give Up, you can extend that invincibility to up to 15 seconds and gain a temporary S-ATK bonus.
** A few Potentials also give you a chance to survive a fatal blow, but the odds are much lower than Iron Will.
* LastSecondEndingChoice: In the true route of Episode 3 Chapter 7, [[spoiler:you're still given the choice to kill Matoi, despite it being illogical to do so since you had already seen the outcome the first time you played the Chapter. Doing so instantly gives you the BadEnding of the Chapter despite having taken the "good" route.]]
* LawOfChromaticSuperiority:
** The red and blue versions of base weapons (Red Sword, Red Rifle, Red Talis, Blue Rod just to name a few) are quite powerful. In addition, all rare drops are colored red when on the field.
** When a 7★ to 9★ item drops on the field, the "Rare Drop!" notification is colored white. When a 10★ to 12★ item drops, the notification flashes rainbow. When a 13★ weapon drops, the Rare Item Box in the notification as well as the item on the ground also flashes rainbow.
* LawyerFriendlyCameo: A strange aversion to ConsoleCameo; many Japanese youth are seen playing ''[=PSO2=]'' on handheld game systems that look suspiciously like the PS Vita, except the screen is larger and the buttons are different.
* LegacyBossBattle: Gal Gryphon from ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', who makes his appearance in a special Limited Quest. His moves (as well as the arena and music!) are completely intact, and is still pretty nasty, if not nastier.
* {{Leitmotif}}: Each of the Dark Falz bosses save for Apprentice have a particularly recognizable musical element associated with them.
** Elder generally features some sort of synth.
** Loser has a lot of OminousLatinChanting.
** Double gets violins.
* LethalJokeWeapon: Innocent Appearance combinations can turn uncharged Techniques, which are typically useless, into ''very'' deadly sources of damage, depending on the Techs used. One popular one was with Nabarta in ''EPISODE 2'', which was powerful enough to warrant nerfing both Innocent Appearance and Nabarta Crafts.
* LethalLavaLand: The volcanoes of planet Amduscia. Good for the players that in [=PSO2=], LavaIsBoilingKoolaid.
* LifeDrain:
** The Megiverse technic is a variation. When a player does damage to an enemy while inside a Megiverse energy field, 25% of that damage comes back to them as recovered HP.
** The 10★ sword "Elder Pain" has Vampiric Blade as a Weapon Potential that is this. The recovery isn't as drastic as Megiverse's buff, but as a Potential this is a ''permament'' gimmick affixed to the sword... ''if'' you can [[LuckBasedMission get it to +10 to even unlock the Potential.]] [[RareRandomDrop Or even acquire it to begin with.]]
** There is also the 11★ Twin Machineguns called Guld Milla, which have a Potential called "Celestial Bullet" that also does this. Again, good luck grinding it, much less acquiring it.
** On Super Hard or higher, enemies with certain Infection Cores can recover HP when they attack a player.
** The Fornis weapons have a Potential that enables the player to restore 1% of the damage they deal as HP, up to 50 HP per hit, if they strike an enemy whose elemental weakness matches either the two Elements specified in the weapon's Potential or the innate Element of the weapon itself.
* LightIsNotGood:
** In Super Hard and above, the Infection Cores become bright and sparkly. Some even fire beams of light at the player.
** Anga Fundarge is basically the EvilCounterpart of a Photon Blast. It has a white and gold body and all sorts of shiny techniques to wipe you out with.
* LightningBruiser: Il Zonde does this quite literally, charging the player with electricity then making zip forward to damage enemies.
* LikeCannotCutLike: Downplayed; AIS Exoda in ''Demise'' greatly resists damage from other AIS, making it inefficient to take them down with one. Meanwhile, it's ''weak'' to damage from non-AIS sources, such as players on foot.
* LimitBreak:
** Photon Blasts. Unlike the previous game, however, [=MAGs=] are limited to one blast type.
** Compound Technics. They are dual element "super" Technics that must be charged by attacking enemies with Technics, and can only be used by Forces or Techers wielding the appropriate weapons. There are:
*** Zandion: A Wind/Lightning Tech. The user sprouts wings made of wind energy and flies around, dealing damage and dropping lightning bolts in his/her wake.
*** Fomelgion: A Fire/Dark Tech. The user annihilates foes with a [[WaveMotionGun gigantic beam]] made of fire and dark energy.
*** Baranstion: An Ice/Light Tech. The user forms blades of ice, then approaches a target and assaults them with a flurry of slashes.
** A Fighter skill, literally called ''Limit Break'', is a CastFromHitpoints type Skill that trades max HP for a massive S-ATK boost. [[AllYourPowersCombined It also happens to trigger literally every other skill on the tree, which combine for an obscene stat bonus.]]
** Bravers with katanas also get Katana Gear, which temporarily boosts their power (complete with a power-up aura) after Perfect Guarding, and the skill Katana Combat, which makes them attack super fast and fly around at ridiculously high speed.
* LipLock: A minor example in that most lip movements follow the same patterns with no regard for the actual words being spoken. [[IdolSinger Quna]] averts this during her live performances, however.
* LogicalWeakness: Darker cores are susceptible to damage because [[AllThereInTheManual the EPISODE 1&2 Materials Collection]] shows that Darker particles form around a central core to form a Darker.
* LogoJoke: All voice tickets have a clip of them shouting "Sega!" like the modern Sega title card. Except the Lillipan voice, which says "Lili~!" to the tune of the old Sega title card. The Rappy Pet has a voice clip where it says "kyu kyu~" in a SEGA jingle tone, much like the Lillipan voice ticket.
* LongSongShortScene: [[spoiler:Luther/Double Saber Persona's boss theme.]] It's very possible to stomp them before you hear much of the track.
* LoopholeAbuse: In ARKS League, if multiple players have the same score at the end of the League period, all players within that score threshold will receive the same reward. By making it so that all players tie for first, ''every'' player in the same grouping will receive the reward for first place. Depending on your grouping, your opponents may call for an unspoken truce so that everyone gets the max reward. Unfortunately, most players ignore this and simply gun for the highest score.
* LuckBasedMission:
** Having [[{{Troll}} Dudu]] or [[CuteClumsyGirl Monica]] improve your weapons and units by adding grind levels and abilities to them. In typical [=MMO=] fashion, this isn't always a sure thing; sometimes you could get a weapon to grind level +10 without any trouble, other times they'll happily drop it down by six several times over. Bonus points if you're going for the weapon's Latent Potential, which comes at the cost of your +10 grind level, meaning you have to do it ''all over again''. Chances also worsen with rarer equipment, and Potentials have three levels to unlock. It doesn't stop there. These two also handle affixing special Abilities such as extra stat points, chance to inflict a status, and so on. If you're smart, there is a way to help influence the chance of success, but you'll still be praying to the RandomNumberGod for a good result. At the very least, Dudu and Monica are a lot more merciful than other [=MMO=] weapon grinders however, like those from [[{{VideoGame/DungeonFighterOnline}} Dungeon Fighter Online]] and [[{{VideoGame/DragonNest}} Dragon Nest]] who can ''destroy'' your weapon if you fail at too high of a grind level. Hope you have a fat wallet for all of this though.
** Of course, the drop tables. You can boost it by activating Rare Drop Rate Boost bonuses, but the player must be wary of Drop Rate Boost bonuses, which are ''not'' the same thing; due to the way drop mechanics work, having a Drop Rate Boost over a Rare Drop Rate Boost can actually '''lower''' the odds of getting a RareRandomDrop!
** If you don't play ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2es'', unlocking Weaponoid Potentials. They require a material known as Weaponoid Boosters, and if you don't play the aforementioned spin-off, they can only drop as an E-Trial reward that involves ''[=PSO2es=]'' character Jeane. Needless to say, the chances of getting it to drop, much less getting a Code with Jeane at all, are very, ''very'' slim.
** Arkuma Slots was pitched as being a "high risk, high reward" Casino game that cost 500 CC to play, but had extremely high potential winnings compared to every other Casino game. What this actually means is that half the "game" consists of a guessing match where you have between a 1/4 and ''50-50'' chance to lose everything you've earned, and if you don't hit the fail chance, your stock gets multiplied by a percent value. Potential earning can vary from the low 10,000s to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HGSPv_IOI0 this]] or even higher, but even getting there is almost entirely RNG. The March 2017 update remedied the amount of luck required to actually earn a profit by adjusting the slot odds.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tropes M-P]]
* MacrossMissileMassacre:
** Big Vardha comes packed with a total of ''fourteen'' missile launchers, and it's not afraid to rain missiles down on your parade. You can destroy said missile launchers to remove the threat, however.
** In the ESC-A Falz Mother EQ, the Rideroid is armed with a Skill that allows you to fire a huge missile salvo at your crosshairs that can inflict huge DPS if all missiles land. The skill has a fairly minimal recharge time of 15 seconds, so you're encouraged to spam it repeatedly to whittle down ESC-A Falz Mother's HP.
* MadeOfIron:
** Trying to beat Nyau by actually attacking him is the equivalent of trying to break bricks with a teddy bear. His weapon doesn't follow the same rules, though.
** If a Hunter has [[HealingFactor Automate Halfline]] and/or a [[TheMedic Mag crammed full of healing Trigger Actions]] to accompany [[LastChanceHitPoint Iron Will]], their HP will be restored right back up due to Automate Halfline and the Trigger Action's behavior. Maining or subclassing a Hunter skill tree like this means that as long as you keep picking up Mates and the RandomNumberGod doesn't roll that 25% failure rate, you are immortal. For extra insurance, Ely Sion's (not to be confused with the Elysion, a wand) Weapon Potential that can further increase the success rate.
* MagicGenetics: WordOfGod states that [[MindControl Abyss/Absolute Order]] works on the genetic level. This prevents civilian non-ARKS from being affected by it.
* MagicSkirt: Despite all the crazy action, none of the skirts seem to flip up completely. Not even jumping up and down or doing a handstand. That doesn't stop the players from skewing the camera for {{Panty Shot}}s.
* MagikarpPower: The Rappy Pet only comes in two rarities: 10★ and 13★. 10★ is a CrutchCharacter if you're playing Summoner for the first time and happened to buy the Deluxe Package. 13★, on the other hand, is this; while 10★ has pretty lackluster stats at Lv. 85, upon passing Lv. 100, its stat growth ''explodes''.
* ManaBurn: An extremely rare type of attack deals PP Damage (appears in violet numbers), sapping the PP of all who make contact. A handful of the avian Darkers and [[spoiler:Falz Angel]] can use it.
* MarathonLevel
** Mining Base Defense: Despair. Be prepared to sit at your screen for at least twenty minutes to over half an hour while blasting Darkers intent on busting your Mining Bases.
** Unleashed Prestige: Be prepared for a mad-dash through large crowds of mobs for twenty minutes, followed by another ten to twenty minutes battling the Phantom Warship ''Yamato''.
** ''EPISODE 2'', Chapter 5 is notorious for being one of the longest Story Quests. This is partly because of the higher-than-normal cutscene density, but also because there's ''a lot'' of battles. Later Story Quests made a point of either including more generous checkpoints and being shorter in general so levels don't forever.
** ''EPISODE 4'', Chapter 8. If you don't skip any cutscenes, the entire Story Quest can take upwards of an hour, if not more. Doesn't help that it's one of the hardest Story Quests in the game, with the Extra Hard level scaling and annoying bosses.
* MasterOfAll: 3rd Generation ARKS are this. Because of advancements in Photon compatibility with lifeforms, 3rd Gen ARKS have a high competency for any Class. This is a longshot from 2nd Gen and 1st Gen ARKS, the former [[CripplingOverspecialization tend to be specialized and poorly suited for Classes not of their own]], while the latter [[SuperpowerLottery simply tended to be all over the place;]] you were either extremely capable or barely capable.
* MesACrowd: Signo Beats can create holographic projections of themselves. The fakes look exactly like the real one, have the same HP, and can still deal damage, but when defeated, they simply fade away without giving EXP. Crowd control works especially well when you have to deal with the projections.
* MeaningfulName:
** Like Algol, Naberius is named after the fictional demon, Amduscia is likewise named after the demon King Amdusias, Lilipa is named after Lilliput, a fictional location from ''Literature/GulliversTravels''[[note]]The native Lilipans are likewise named after the Lilliputians[[/note]] Vopar/[[SpellMyNameWithAnS Vopal]] was most likely either named after the Vorpal Sword from media related to Alice in Wonderland or the demon Vepar.
** Dark Falz Elder is the oldest Dark Falz aside from the Profound Darkness, Apprentice is Elder's apprentice, Double has two hosts [[spoiler:and possesses copying powers]], Loser was created when [[spoiler: Luther lost control of the Arks after losing to the player]] and Persona [[spoiler: is an alternate timeline's version of the PlayerCharacter]].
** Like Rag Rappies, which can only be found on '''Rag'''ol, Nab Rappies can only be found on '''Nab'''erius.
* MeatMoss: The Darker Nest seems to be made of flesh and metal.
* MechaMooks: Robotic enemies appear one planet Lillipa.
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Summoners. Not only are they relatively non-combative compared to other classes, the introduction of Pets brings up a whole new slew of mechanics associated with them, to the point where Pets have ''their own facility'' dedicated to them, the Pet Laboratory.
* MegaTwintails: Straight Large Tails, Intake Large Tails and Casual Large Tails are past waist-length, and HUGE.
* MeleeATrois: Happens whenever the Arks ({{Player Character}}s), the native fauna of the planets they explore and the Darkers meet in the same place.
* MercyInvincibility: You cannot be hit while on the ground or while getting up. However, you ''can'' still be hit while you're sailing through the air after taking a hard hit, which can lead to some unfortunate deaths if a fairly weak attack tosses you into something much more deadly, or you just get hit by a combo.
* MetalSlime: In several different varieties, mind.
** Rappies, of course. In addition to being rather uncommon and non-combative, they can drop some neat stuff if defeated. However, they tend to be rather flighty.
** A step up from Rappy is the Empe Rappy, a large, obese Rappy with an ornate crown. Unlike regular ones, this one ''does'' fight, [[LethalJokeCharacter and you won't be adoring it so much when it rolls over you.]] However, Empe Rappies can drop NT weapons affixed with the ability Empe Embrace, which gives an EXP bonus when used in NT Grinding.
** Tagamikazuchi drops ''enormous'' amounts of EXP if you can kill it. They're also very rare and tend to not show up for the most part except in Bonus Quest: Tokyo, where they're guaranteed spawns.
** Izanekazuchi to a lesser extent, which is a golden PaletteSwap of Tagamikazuchi. While still rare, it's somewhat more common, especially in Emergency Quests, and it doesn't really drop more EXP than most other targets. However, it can drop crystals that can be sold as high-priced VendorTrash, and if you're lucky, it may drop one of its powerful 12★ Units.
** Mesetan is a non-combative creature hiding in an oversized Meseta crystal. Not only does it constantly spawn Meseta while it lives, if defeated, it'll start chucking out '''massive''' amounts of Meseta. It's not uncommon to earn at least a few hundred thousand Meseta from a single Mesetan encounter.
** Mr. Umblla is a big... thing that can randomly appear from the sky. If you let it hit you with its cane, it will be satisfied, and leave behind rare prizes, including the rare Umblla Stick. However, it doesn't like it if you attack it...
** Mr. Bowan is a genie living in a bottle. If you inflict enough damage on the bottle before time runs out, it can bestow upon you a massive '''+300%''' Rare Drop Rate bonus!
* {{Microtransactions}}:
** In the form of ARKS Cash, or AC for short. AC can be used for paid, although unnecessary, functions such as buying Premium Sets, special MAG Devices, expanding your inventory, or trying your luck on the Scratch Cards for a shot at the exclusive outfits and usable items.
** Episode 4 introduced Star Gems, a pseudo-replacement for AC that can be bought with AC and used in similar fashions, except that it can be earned for free in-game, albeit at very slow rates. The functions it provides are merely convenience features, such as recharging Stamina for Gathering and number of times a Pet can be fed. The June 2016 update introduced the Treasure Shop, a shop that wheels and deals in Star Gems primarily. This shop enables players to purchase Emergency Quest Triggers and tries at SG Scratch, a Scratch played with SG and functions similarly to AC Scratch.
* MightyGlacier: Launchers attack as slow as a truck. They also hit as hard as one, too.
* MillionToOneChance: It is possible to get a Falz Arms Emergency Trial ''during Raging Dark Arms'', but the odds of this happening are '''phenomenally''' low.
* MindControlEyes: [[spoiler:As Regius demonstrates, Arks that are issued an Abyssal Order (which is a mind-controlled ''ultimatum'') have their eyes glow red.]]
* MiniGame: Casino Area aside, there's also ARKS Ball, a soccer/football game in the Lobby where teams of players compete to score ten points, and ARKS Dance Festival, a concert where players can dance along by inputting timed commands in a rhythm game-esque fashion.
* MinigameZone: Episode 3's Casino Lobby has slot machines and shooting galleries to [[SidetrackedByTheGoldenSaucer blow away all your time on.]]
* MiniMecha:
** The ARKS Interception Silhouette, or AIS, which can be piloted in Quests such as Despair, Demise, and Yamato.
** In Las Vegas, you can board the Rideroid, a small jet-equipped vehicle on two legs that can be used to traverse the city.
* MirrorMatch: If you get abducted and taken to the Darker Den, you will be forced to fight a clone of yourself. For the next 72 hours after completing the stage, it is possible to encounter and fight your clone again. Not only that, but the rewards for killing your own clone are greater than killing other clones.
* MismatchedEyes: Deuman typically have heterochromia, noted in that there's two color palettes for the left and right eye when attempting to edit the feature.
* MixAndMatchWeapon:
** All classes get access to Gunslashes from ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarZero''.
** Depending on the photon arts learned, Rifles combine the functionality of assault rifles with shotguns, grenade launchers, sniper rifles, or KillSat targeting markers.
** On that note, Launchers can vary in function from the typical grenade launcher, to [[RecursiveAmmo s-mine launchers]], to [[ActuallyADoombot decoy launchers]], to [[KillItWithFire flamethrowers]], to [[WaveMotionGun Wave Motion Guns]], to ''[[BlownAcrossTheRoom golf clubs]]''.
** [[AllThereInTheManual According to supplemental material,]] the AIS has extra space in its arms that can be refitted with additional gear, allowing ARKS to change its functionality depending on the situation.
** Big Vardha's core can function as a WaveMotionGun, a shockwave generator, a giant suction turbine, or a [[MookMaker drone launcher]].
* MonsterOfTheWeek: [[spoiler:While downplayed, the different Dark Falzes effectively function like this.]]
** [[spoiler:Dark Falz Elder takes the spotlight for the climax of Episode 1, after which his role is reduced to a bonus chapter in Episode 2.]]
** [[spoiler:Apprentice, after appearing in Episode 1's [[TheStinger stinger]], gets most of the screen time for Episode 2, [[MakeWayForTheNewVillains until Luther hijacks her position by becoming Dark Falz Loser.]]]]
** [[spoiler:Dark Falz Double, who first made a cameo in Episode 1 Chapter 8's [[TheStinger stinger]] and appeared as the next major antagonist in Episode 2 Chapter 5's [[TheStinger stinger]], is the BigBad for Episode 3.]]
** [[spoiler:Persona is the only Dark Falz that doesn't follow this pattern, being a minor antagonist in every Episode by far.]]
* MoreDakka: Million Storm manages to accomplish this for a ''Bow''. Using it fires an endless stream of photon-based arrows to rip apart your enemies; the longer you hold the button, the more arrows you can push out.
* MostGamersAreMale: Part of the reason why ARKS seems so saturated with women and females are the GameFavoredGender.
** Many players called on [[{{Stripperific}} Bluesy Rhapsody and Yamigarasu]] winning the [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2es Weaponoid General Election]] poll based solely on this trope. Needless to say, the results weren't surprising in the least.
* MundaneUtility:
** In the distant past, Oracle originally used Photons as a source of illumination due to its omnipresence across the universe. It eventually came into other uses as more research was performed.
** Spread Needle, the 14★ Assault Rifle, is the only Ranged-type weapon that can cut grass.
* MusicalNod:
** The complete version of Phantasy Star Online 2's rendition of ''The whole new world'' samples ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'''s opening theme, also called ''The whole new world''.
** Not only is the title screen music named "A Lyric for Everlasting Story", a reference to the name of ''PSO''[='=]s title screen theme, "A Song for Eternal Story", it's also intentionally made to sound similar to its predecessor.
** The opening riffs of the fourth version of the Falz Arms' battle theme are taken from Dark Falz's final battle theme in the original ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline''.
** Part of Dark Falz [[spoiler: Loser]]'s theme while time is sped up incorporates some riffs from Olga Flow's first battle theme, also from the original game. His theme, as well as one of the more dramatic cut-scene pieces, also contains the opening notes from Phantasy Star Online: Episode III's main theme.
** Shironia's background music contains a very obvious throwback to a riff from "Mizuraki C.D." from Phantasy Star Universe, which can be heard very early on in the original track. A more subtle reference in [=PSO2=]'s field music comes in the form of a very small section of [=PSO=]'s Seabed theme, "Abysmal Ball" appearing in Skyscape's music, though it is easier to hear on the soundtrack version of the song, due to rarely appearing in the dynamic selection of music sections heard in-game.
** The fight against [[spoiler:The Profound Darkness]] skips the "new song with sample from old song" formula altogether and flat-out remakes ''Ooze'' and ''IDOLA the strange fruits'' from ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarIV'' and ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'' respectively. The post-quest theme is also an updated version of "Rose Confession" from ''Phantasy Star Online''.
** The Moon Base's theme is a vocal rearrangement of ''Phantasy Star Online'''s "Moonlight Sonata".
** ESC-A Falz Mother is given an updated remix of "Death Place" from ''Phantasy Star II''.
* MyLittlePanzer: Darkers on Harukotan all have a toy theme to them, following the insect theme and bird theme that the previous Darkers had.
* MythologyGag: There's quite a few snippets here and there that touch upon its predecessor or even ''Phantasy Star Universe''.
** A good number of weapons are from past games. Especially the 14★ weapons, which include Eternal Psycho Drive[[labelnote:*]]Originally a 15★ in ''Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity''[[/labelnote]], Spread Needle[[labelnote:*]]Rifle in the original ''Phantasy Star Online''[[/labelnote]], Kazami-no-Tachi[[labelnote:*]]Originally appeared under the name "Kasami Bracer" in the original ''PSO''[[/labelnote]], and Lavis Cannon[[labelnote:*]]An 11★ Saber in ''PSO''[[/labelnote]].
** In addition to the above, many of the 14★ that are from older games bring back the weapons' special abilities from ''Phantasy Star Online'' as Potentials. For example, Spread Needle has a chance to inflict Stun on hit, and Lavis Cannon fires a shockwave when performing a basic combo finisher.
** The Vol Dragon mirrors its predecessor, the Dragon, by being a fire-breathing dragon that is the first major boss in the game. But this one isn't quite as much of a pushover as its predecessor...
** Sato, the fox-like Mag from PSO, returns as a Mag Evolution Device.
** What's a PSO game without Rappies? They're cudlier than ever and come with holiday versions! Lantern Rappies, Saint Rappies, Love and Lovey Rappies, oh my!
** [[spoiler:The second Dark Falz Elder-centric Emergency Mission's title translates into "Followers of Profound Darkness" or "Profound Darkness's Kin". Not only is this a reference to the BiggerBad of ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarIV'', it also cleverly foreshadowed the existence of the Profound Darkness ''two years'' in advance.]]
** The Naura Cake Sisters are one in and of itself, but there's also a very rare variant of the Emergency Trial that involves [[EscortMission finding and protecting the lost Youngest Sister as she tries to make her way back to the Shop van]], a reference to a sidequest in ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarZero'' where the Youngest Sister goes missing and the player is tasked with finding her.
** In early versions of the game, there was a limited-time Emergency Quest that was themed around ''VideoGame/BurningRangers'', continuing a tradition among the online games to feature such a Quest. The Quest is even called "ARKS Ship Fire Swirl" as a reference to the original ''Online''[='=]s ''Burning Rangers'' Quest, which was titled "Central Dome Fire Swirl".
** Two classic weapons inspired by ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' have also returned: the Egg Blaster (twin machine guns) and Sonic Knuckle (weapon camo for knuckles).
** Photon Chairs made their return, and anyone can utilize any color as they wish, provided they have enough FUN points to purchase them. The text command to use them even uses their associated color-coded section ID from the first game[[labelnote:*]]The command, for example, is "/la chair_whitill" when you want to sit in a white chair.[[/labelnote]].
** Bal Rodos is fought very similarly to De Rol Le and Barba Ray from the [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline first game]], from the platform to its attack maneuvers. The only difference being the [[MoreDakka myraid of gun turrets]] located on the platform to make the fight significantly easier, and you use a laser harpoon to drag it down to the platform.
** Episode 3 added the Casino, allowing you to win exclusive items with Casino Coins.
** Dark Falz battles still continue the "IDOLA" naming tradition with their themes.
** One rare boss, Nyau, resembles ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarI'''s Myau, except as a biped wielding a sword.
** The November 5, 2014 update adds Cast Parts based on Renvolt Magashi and Lou from ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse'', along with voice tickets based on them. The Zestiria Collection AC Scratch also contains ensembles that of Chelsea from Phantasy Star Portable 2, and Hyuga Ryght (based on his Infinity appearance).
** The Techer Skill "Reverser Field", which has an effect similar to, and whose name is a reference to, the Reverser Technic from past iterations.
** ''Phantasy Star Online 2es'' has a [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarIV King Rappy]].
** Ultimate Lillipa contain a lot of new machine aberrations. The new Signo variant can remind one of Sinow Blues and Reds from PSO-1's ultimate mines. One of the unique bosses, Zeta Guranz, is none other than an upgrade of the CCS area's Epsilon, complete with four shields, laser spin, and now ''legs''. It even inherits some traits of the Garanz enemy from ''Phantasy Star Online'', such as its missile-launching attacks.
** Ultimate Naberius' replacements for Za Oodans are called Gibbloodans. Their design takes some cues from Gibbles, a mini-boss from PSO-1.
** When teleporting to the boss battle against ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'''s Odin, there is a transitionary cutscene with the name of the area (The Black Shroud: Urth's Fount) displayed. Odin's stronger attacks also have telegraphed AOE indicators before they are executed, a holdover from battles in FFXIV.
** Some Weaponoid Potentials borrow their names directly from the names of the Weaponoid's relevant ability featured in ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2es''.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Gel Wulff, again. And quite literally you '''have''' to run away from them! (At least in the earlier areas.)
* NearVictoryFanfare: A lot of major raid bosses get a version of ''The whole new world'' [[BackgroundMusicOverride replacing the boss theme]] when their health gets down to 25%.
** Elder gets the standard version.
** Loser gets a remix with OminousLatinChanting.
** Magatsu actually gets the third opening theme as the fanfare. Magatsu Sai gets the theme song instead, with an oriental-themed version.
** The Profound Darkness gets an AutobotsRockOut version.
** Apprentice changes to Vibrace's theme when it's low on health.
** ESC-A Falz Mother gets a similar AutobotsRockOut version to the Profound Darkness, albeit much more subdued.
* NecessaryDrawback: For obvious reasons, charge time reduction effects and Charge Escape don't work on Namegid.
* {{Nerf}}:
** Shunka-Shunran, the Photon Art that single-handedly made Bravers popular, received very significant damage nerfs, cutting its original damage output to less than half of what it used to do. That being said, it's still good at dealing damage, it just doesn't steamroll everything like it used to.
** Clones were nerfed very badly to the point of being borderline non-threats. As they are now, they hit for a fraction of the damage they used to hit and die far faster than they used to.
** Even more was thrown all over the place by Episode 3; Gunners got hit with the brunt of it, Fury Stance isn't as strong, and some overpowered Technics or Artes got slammed with the nerf bat.
** Generally, SEGA will more or less nerf aspects that result in overpowered strategies that everyone relies on. For example, the Nabarta/Elysion combo was badly hit by nerfing both Crafted Nabartas and Innocent Appearance. The aforementioned Gunner nerf was made in response to players not playing the class how it was intended ({{Combo}} oriented), and [[GoneHorriblyWrong it didn't pan out as expected]]; Gunners went from being one of the most popular classes to being one of the ''least'' popular classes almost literally overnight.
** Deus ESC-A Zephyros was nerfed within a week of being released, dropping his HP by 20,000,000 for the fight proper and dropping it by 10,000,000 for the DPS check while reducing his ATK in all forms. According to the developers, this was done with such haste because the failure rate pre-nerf was much higher than expected; the clear rate difference between regular Extra Hard Blocks and Expert Blocks[[note]]Requires clearing Heaven and Hell Stages 1-5 and having a +35 Weapon/Lv. 120 Pet[[/note]] was a whopping '''''4x'''''.
** The Battle Arena Skill "Protection" had its usage limit cut to 1 (down from 2) in mid-May 2017. This is the result of most people taking Protection whenever it shows up and using it to hold down the Rainbow Emblem spawn zone during the last 1:20 to secure a victory.
** ''EPISODE 5'' hit a lot of the GameBreaker stuff '''really''' hard. Special mention to Weak Bullet, which got cut down to a measly 1.2x multiplier, Chain Finish, which got turned into a Main Class Only skill, Compound Techniques, which got iced with a two minute cooldown timer, Zanverse, which no longer receives the effects of Skills and Potentials, and Maron, which got nerfed at Level 2 charge and requires more hits to reach Level 3 charge.
* NeglectfulPrecursors: It's noted that the Photoners were as lazy as hell; [[spoiler:this created the Profound Darkness because their laziness allowed their man-made Xion replica to become corrupted with negative Photons.]]
* NewMediaAreEvil: A literal, and rather unique, twist to the concept. [[spoiler:For some reason, the same AppliedPhlebotinum that makes TheAlternet of 2028 run also happens to power the Phantoms, hostile constructs that threaten Earthlings and ARKS alike.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: It happens a lot. In Episode 2, stopping [[spoiler:Luther]] saves the lives of everyone onboard Oracle, but [[spoiler:creates a new Dark Falz]].
** In Episode 3, [[spoiler:Persona's HeroicSacrifice saves the life of Matoi, but inadvertently gives the power of TimeTravel to The Profound Darkness, allowing it to infinitely revive from defeat. What's more, the creation of The Profound Darkness tears such a wound in space-time that it affects the parallel world of Earth, paving the way for the creation of Mother Cluster and the Phantoms]].
* NiceJobFixingItVillain:
** In gameplay, Barbarillipans dig stuff out of their backpack to attack you with. However, they have a chance of throwing Recovery Pods at you, which restore your health.
** [[spoiler:Ardem kills and absorbs Mother in ''EPISODE 4'', Chapter 7]], an action that ultimately proves to be his undoing.
* NinjaPirateZombieRobot: Blu Ringahda is a badass[[note]]complete with BadassArmFold[[/note]] avian [[OurCentaursAreDifferent centaur darker]]. Even by this series' standards, this one is [[OurMonstersAreWeird just plain weird]]...
** The Phantom-type enemies in Tokyo [[UpToEleven are stranger still]]: their ranks include zombies with blades and machine guns hidden in their torsos, tanks that can summon missile launchers of varying shapes and sizes, polar bears that can split their heads in half to project larger hidden mouths, Tyrannosauruses Rex that can stick their skulls out of their stomachs to use as a WaveMotionGun, and for the field's boss, bullet trains fusing together into a three-headed dragon ala King Ghidora.
* NintendoHard:
** Plan on fighting [[spoiler:Dark Falz Loser]] on Super Hard? Better bring all the healing items you can carry and some friends to revive you when (yes, ''when'') you get KO'd. Extra Hard then goes and gives him even faster attacks, a shield that appears over his main weak point, and new moves (including [[spoiler: ''a double time stop!'']]) Have fun!
** ''Mining Base Defense: Despair''. Not only are [[BossBonanza bossess]] and {{Elite Mook}}s far more plentiful than in previous iterations, but the field is wider and there are far greater elements in place that single-handedly threaten entire runs with their presence, including Darker Particle Cannons, which OneHitKill Mining Bases if left unchecked, infected Campships, which kill players as fast as you can say "OhCrap", and [[spoiler:the addition of new Waves with Falz bosses and greater enemy numbers than ever before]]. You get the [[PurposelyOverpowered A.I.S.]] on your side for this mission, but if you're not careful with how you use them, you can still throw an entire run down the drain with one slip.
** Upon release, it was basically impossible to get a net gain out of playing Mesetan Shooter without bringing friends. An update lowered its difficulty, but it's still difficult to acquire more Casino Coins than you paid for without at least one extra player. The March 2017 update further boosted potential payout by adding a Rainbow Coin that adds +20 CC, which is double up from the Gold Coin, which is only worth 10 CC.
** Extreme Quests can get fairly nasty even for parties towards the end stages. The Solo Extreme Quest deserves special mention, which pits one player against nigh-insurmountable odds, AKA [[BossBonanza heaps upon heaps of ridiculous Level 80 boss fights.]]
* NoArcInArchery: Averted. Your basic Bullet Bow shots will be subjected to arc gravity. Charging your shots, however, can mitigate this for more accuracy.
* NoSell: The Weapon Potential "Wings of Fortune", found on the [[JokeWeapon Rappy weapons]], has a chance to negate damage when the player is attacked.
* NonIndicativeName: The Council of Six has a total of seven members. In numerical order, starting from [[spoiler:#0]]: [[spoiler:Quna]], Regius, Maria, Casra, [[spoiler:Zeno]], Claris Claes, and Huey.
* NonUniformUniform: Karin does not wear an ARKS Trainee Uniform. No one seems to know why.
* NostalgiaLevel:
** Gal Gryphon's arena was basically ripped straight out of ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'' and given updated textures. Gal Gryphon even makes its appearance the same way!
** The Episode 4, Chapter 7 Story Quest is essentially a reskinned Mothership level from Episode 2, Chapter 6, but with a blue PaletteSwap. The final two rooms are even identical to the real thing.
* NotCompletelyUseless:
** While the majority of Partners are only good for being meat shields and drawing Hate from enemies you aren't fighting, some are actually decent to have around. For example, Echo ([=EP3=]) knows War Cry [[ViolationOfCommonSense in spite of being a Force]], allowing her to distract enemies for you. Ranger Partners also know Weak Bullet most of the time, although they treat it the same as a normal attack and won't necessarily fire it where you want it. Friend Partners with optimized builds can also deal actually respectable damage if their normal damage output is high enough.
** Nabarta Type-0, otherwise considered PP-inefficient, does have its uses; namely, tanking multi-hit attacks, which cannot otherwise be negated with Just Guard. Nabarta Type-0 has a niche of having always-active Just Guard, so it can break through multi-hit attacks with ease. [[BonusBoss Demon Phaleg]] after she TurnsRed is especially notable in this case, as all of her attacks hit one to three times per hit, allowing Nabarta Type-0 to deal a ridiculous amount of damage with an Ice-specialized Force tree.
* NotTheIntendedUse:
** Prior to Episode 3's running speed buff, many players often used their dash action repeatedly to double-dash (or perhaps triple, with the aid of something like Assault Buster) to get from point A to B faster than just running on foot.
** Many Forces and Techers who wield Ilzonde utilize it more as a sort of dash or [[NotQuiteFlight faux-flying]] than as an actual attack.
** Some players may keep a Rod, Talis, or Wand around on their Weapon Palette even if they have zero offensive use for it, because holding one gives the user Mirage Escape. Mirage Escape is the game's longest evasion maneuver, and thus gives the most invulnerability, which makes escaping sticky situations much easier than if one used Step/Dive Roll/Stylish Roll/Mirage Step.
** In boss fights where OneHitKill attacks are involved, many players don't bother using their Photon Blasts for actually attacking; rather, they save them for when said OneHitKill attacks occur, so they can survive them by abusing the Photon Blast's ten-second invincibility window.
** Techers were introduced as a class that specialized in support techniques, with Wand Gear providing some melee ability to distinguish them from the long-range Forces. Yet the sheer burst damage of a fully-charged Wand Gear combined with the enemy-gathering power of the Zondeel technic is so ridiculously effective at clearing large groups of mobs that "melee Techers" are by far the most popular build.
** Jet Boots in a nutshell. They were designed to be melee weapons that used T-ATK to determine damage, which would let them be {{Magic Knight}}s. The Switch Strike skill lets them change to S-ATK, presumably so that S-ATK Bouncers (specialising in Dual Blades) could also use Jet Boots. However, because there is no subclass that supports both melee combat ''and'' T-ATK, the most dominant Jet Boots builds are based around S-ATK.
** Both Guren Tessen and Rodeo Drive Type-0 are also used as methods of fast travel in addition to being powerful attacks.
** Some players may put items on their Player Shop for overtly exorbitant prices when the item in question isn't worth a fraction as much. Why? Because it frees up inventory space.
** Many Rangers take Gravity Bomb and Level 5 Tactics Trap. While they do this partly because Gravity Bomb is useful for mob situations, it's mostly used because the two skills enable a Ranger to instantly recover 20% of their PP on demand.
* NoticeThis:
** Matter Board related items and events will have a gold sparkle when they appear.
** You're also bluntly notified when a RareRandomDrop has appeared. The screen will display '''RARE DROP!''' in big letters, and it becomes rainbow colored if it's a 10★+ item. If you can't find them, they teleport to you after 60 seconds or so.
** When someone in the vicinity uses [[ArmorPiercingAttack Weak Bullet]] on something else in the vicinity, a large, orange reticle makes sure everyone knows what just got shot. [[BeatThemAtTheirOwnGame This also applies if a player/partner gets hit with an attack that inflicts Weak Bullet.]]
** Sometimes in Single-Party Areas or after completing a mission on Very Hard or higher, you'll hear a short, cheery, [[BuffySpeak ping-pongy]] tune unlike any other jingle in the game. This means that a rare Parallel World teleporter has appeared in the area. Beyond it are a gaggle of rare enemies: it will either a bunch of Rappies (either the best thing ever or a {{Zonk}}, depending on if you're looking for Rappies or not), or a rare boss with a bunch of rare mooks.
** In Battle Arena, the top three players on each team are marked by an emblem above their heads. The problem being that this enables all players to roughly gauge their position at all times, so being within the top three essentially paints a target on your back; not only does it tell the opposition that you're worth more points for being killed, it also tells them if you're trying to attempt a sneak attack, so attempting to backstab your enemies while being within the top three is generally a no-no.
* NotSoAboveItAll: Amusingly, for some reason, [[spoiler:Dark Falz Elder]] shows up 30 mintues after Quna's live performances start without fail. It's now a fandom joke that he's (literally) her biggest fan. [[spoiler: Subverted when the real reason for Quna's live performances (to get as many Arks in one place as possible to prepare for an oncoming threat) is revealed.]]
* OddballInTheSeries: It's easy to tell when Odin decides to say hello; instead of getting an Emergency Code, the "FATE Joined" message from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' appears.
* OhCrap: Just when you think you're through with Wave 6 on Mining Base Despair, the 7th wave reads "Wave 7 Start: '''EXTREME DANGER'''". You also hear Melitta freaking out over [[spoiler:the Falz Arms showing up]]. On Wave 8 though... [[spoiler:You hear the opening rift of Falz Hunar's theme, as well as a sudden visit from the Falz Hunar himself]].
* OminousLatinChanting: [[spoiler: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C8cy3oyakA Dark Falz Elder's theme]]]]
** Even more prevalent in the battle themes for [[spoiler: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-y-No93OTE Falz Angel]]]] and [[spoiler: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiF-I5hSrks Dark Falz Loser]]]]
* OlderThanTheyLook: A lot of characters are ''much'' older than they appear to be. For example, Zeno is actually almost as old as ''Huey'', Matoi is 18, and most [=CASTs=] have crazy ages; Regius is ''73 years old''. It's justified in the last-most case, since [=CASTs=] are also robots and look the same consistently. Though as Regius himself has proven, [=CASTs=] are not immune to looking rustier over the years.
* OneHitKill:
** Guar Zigmorde's so-called "instant death" attack, where she attacks with an area-wide slash that causes a wisp to appear over the heads of those affected. If you wait too long, she will follow up with a second attack that will one-shot all affected players instantly.
** Dark Falz Apprentice's WaveMotionGun has an extremely high chance to one-shot most players not protected by invulnerability or Iron Will/Automate/Dear Master. It also one-shots AIS and Mining Bases.
** Odin's Shin-Zantetsuken, as is ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' tradition. Once he starts it up, the battle becomes a fight to the finish; failing to kill Odin before it goes off results in the death of the ''entire'' Multi-Party, no questions asked.
** In Battle Arena's VR Volcano, falling into the lava results in instant death. The enemy team also gets 10% of your points, but as they're attributed to no one, you can't kill a specific target to get them back.
* OneHitPolykill:
** Gunslash's Penetrating Bullet is a ChargedAttack that fires a moderately-powerful bullet at enemies. It's one of the few attacks in Gunslash's arsenal that has no Striking component to it, and it goes through enemies to hit groups.
** Piercing Shell for Assault Rifles. It doesn't do a lot, but it goes straight through enemies, allowing you to hit multiple enemies in one attack.
** End Attract seems like it would be this, but it stops at a single enemy. Instead, it penetrates '''through''' an enemy, dealing continuous damage throughout. Against boss monsters, one fully charged bullet burns through health faster than the lava of Amduscia.
** Last Nemesis for Bullet Bow takes the cake. Single piercing arrow that hits for astounding damage, and with enough R-ATK and damage multipliers, you can mow down a line of enemies in one blow.
* OneWingedAngel:
** Most Dark Falzes have this, the specifics of which are difficult to describe.
** Averted with Dark Falz Apprentice Gia; while it ''is'' a Falz form, it isn't complete, as it requires the essence (read:host body with Apprentice) of Dark Falz Apprentice to become complete. [[spoiler:[[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2TheAnimation Guess where it decides to look?]]]]
** The Chrome Dragon is a minor example. It's already an enormous monster, but as the fight goes on it starts eating the Darkers it summons. This causes it to sprout wings, a bloated, glowing torso and an array of claws and spikes. These additions substantially boost its abilities (and grant new ones) until destroyed.
* OneSteveLimit: Subverted; The game doesn't enforce this limit when naming characters, but is defined via Player ID and its assigned ID number. There may be multiple Alice's wandering around the lobby, but the ID number and Player ID assigned to each of them are unique.
* OnlyTheKnowledgableMayPass: Meta example. To play the game, you are required to possess a Japanese SEGA ID. Since this is usually the only game of interest to foreign players that requires it, many potential players are subject to the account creation process. This comes with a standard-issue captcha, which wouldn't be so bad... if it wasn't Hiragana based. This requires a rudimentary knowledge of the Japanese kana alphabet; if one does not know anything about Japanese kana, they can expect to either have their recognition skills tested or ask a friend who does.
* OurDragonsAreDifferent:
** The natives of Planet Amduscia are all dragonkin of one form or another. Full-sized dragons (typically based on the western variety) are a recurring theme in boss fights; [[KillItWithFire Vol Dragon]], [[LightEmUp Quartz]] [[FoeTossingCharge Dragon]], [[CastingAShadow Chrome Dragon]], [[FatBastard Goron]][[EnemySummoner zoran]] and [[MightyGlacier Dragon Ex]] all present a new spin on the concept.
** The boss of the Tokyo Free Field, Train Ghidoran, is a hydra-esque dragon formed out of multiple sentient trains.
* OurGiantsAreDifferent: Male Harukotanese tower over the players [[BizarreSexualDimorphism and the females of their race]], with Kuronians being slightly larger than Shironians. Gigur Gunnegam, the boss of the Shironia field (along with its rare counterpart) is even larger than standard Kuronians, and Magatsu, the boss introduced in an Emergency Quest in the December 2014 update, is even bigger still: it features prominently in the game's fourth opening as ARKS members fight it in a sequence that wouldn't be out of place in ''Manga/AttackOnTitan''.
* OverlyLongFightingAnimation: The animation for Kazan-Nadeshiko involves the wielder performing a slow, circular motion with the Katana before creating a LaserBlade and bringing it down on their foes. The elapsed time for the windup is around three seconds, which is more than enough time for whatever you're fighting to either run away or body you. The Type-0 craft removes the animation and converts it into a ChargedAttack.
* PaintingTheMedium: When Hitsugi travels into ''[=PSO2=]'' for the first time, the process of being transferred is depicted as her "loading" into the game, replete with interactable loading screen.
* PaletteSwap:
** The rare versions of certain enemies are of a different color. Rare Darkers are a bright red, Burn Draal is gold, King Vardha is blue, just to name a few. Some of the monsters starting from Episode 2 also gain physical differences on top of the color change, such as Org Keratos' bigger, spikier horns when compared to Org Blan.
** There's also the color variations for clothing that cannot be dyed with a Recolor Ticket, roughly four to six versions.
*** Mikoto Cluster, the outfit Matoi wears, however, has ''nine'' different colors, plus a special tenth. [[spoiler:It's in Dark Falz colors.]]
** Unusually, Cyleion, an NPC in Franka's Cafe, is a copy of [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarNova Hyperion]], but with orange tertiary colors instead of green.
** The Sigma series of weapons are just Rig weapons, but black/green instead of gold/red.
** The Arion weapons are just recolored Nox weapons.
* PalmtreePanic: Vopal's Coastline field.
* PantyShot: Barring the ability to invoke ProperTightsWithASkirt or ModestyShorts, the Rideroid in general is very guilty of this. The stance your character makes when you're using it involves a very bent-over pose, your feet planted on the vehicle while your body is hunched over nearly 90 degrees holding onto the handles; as a result, anyone with a miniskirt will ''always'' flash their panties at the camera.
* PeninsulaOfPowerLeveling: You can powerlevel classes rather quickly if you link your character to ''es'' and play that instead, which overall earns EXP significantly faster outside of main-game Emergency Quests and Advance Quests.
* PercentDamageAttack: The damage-over-time effect that Apprentice Gia spreads when she spawns in Demise deals a percentage of the player's maximum HP in damage every few seconds. This is done to dissuade AIS from wandering into it, since it will go through AIS health extremely quick if stood in too long.
* PileBunker: ''EPISODE 5''[='=]s Buster Quests feature a weapon called the "Buster Pile", a giant, cannon-mounted lance that has the power to destroy large structures that otherwise wouldn't be able to be destroyed. [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarNova Two guesses as to where this weapon comes from.]]
* PinataEnemy: The Mesetan, who not only spawns Meseta by simply existing, but drops a '''ton''' of it upon defeat. Carrying tickets that boost Meseta drops is a common practice in case a Mesetan shows up.
* PixelHunt: Somewhere in the casino, there's a Lilipan sticker that you can find. It does nothing significant, but it's a rather small object to find on a 3D environment, not to mention that the sticker's location is randomized. This is really just a fun little thing for most players, unless you're trying to get HundredPercentCompletion on the PS Vita, in which case it's a [[AchievementSystem Trophy]].
* PlayEveryDay: The game encourages this by granting you FUN Points in increasing values for every consecutive login, starting with 100 FUN on the first day and up to 500 FUN on the fifth day.[[note]]These values are doubled with an active [[RevenueEnhancingDevices Premium Set]].[[/note]] You can also get Login Stamps, which granted a neat present for every five days you logged in. There are also a variety of things that run on a 22-to-24-hour clock, including Daily Orders, Extreme and Casino Coin Passes, and certain Client Orders.
** An update overhauled the Login Stamp system by gifting you an item ''every'' day and sweetening the pot, such as granting Este Passes and Grind Skips.
* PlayerVersusPlayer: There are two systems in place: ARKS League and Battle Arena.
** In ARKS League, players are randomly grouped together and must compete with each other in completing a particular task. The highest scoring players can win lots of Star Gems.
** Battle Arena plays like a real PVP mode, in which 12 players are split into groups of six and battle each other for the most points on a confined playing field. To do so, players must Mine weapons from points on the map and use the gear they dig up to stop the opposition cold while gathering emblems for themselves. By playing in Battle Arena, you can earn Battle Coins that can be used as a currency in the Battle Coin Shop to purchase exclusive prizes, such as special Boosters required to unlock Hidden Potentials on certain 13★ weapons. In addition, players who participate in the Arena can play the Battle Scratch at the end of a match, which allows players to earn special prizes such as exclusive Weapon Camos and the rare Grind Cap +1 item that can be used in New Type grinding to increase the target weapon's Overgrind Cap by 1 without the need to sacrifice another copy of that weapon.
* PlayingPossum: (Nab) Rappies fake their death. After a few moments they'll get up and make a run for it, in which the players can hit them again to make them drop an item.
* ThePointsMeanNothing: Played with. In Mining Base, you gain points from killing enemies or collecting Crystals. While the points from killing enemies are completely arbitrary, the points from collecting Crystals are not, as they help fund important tools such as Base Recovery and AIS. However, both systems count toward a "total" score, and at the end of each Wave and at the end of the Quest, every player in the current Quest is ranked based on how many points are collected that round. This system is also completely arbitrary and exists purely for bragging rights.
* PokemonSpeak: Lillipans only ever say "Li!". Fourier tries to learn their language, and against all odds, [[SpeaksFluentAnimal successfully does so to a degree.]]
* PowerFloats:
** When Jet Boots are brandished, the wielder hovers in the air.
** When using Sphere Eraser or Final Nemesis from the ground, the user floats into the air before executing the attack.
** Charging Fusion Technics makes the caster glide as movement.
** Prolonged usage of Nazonde in the air keeps you suspended mid-air until you drop the attack.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: In the final battle against [[spoiler:The Profound Darkness]], the players who clear the boss fastest contribute towards a massive HP/PP buff for the players who are still fighting, making things easier for them. This buff is appropriately called, "ARKS".
* PowerGivesYouWings: While using Zandion, wings made of wind energy appear behind the caster.
* PowerPalms:
** PlayedWith. The Signobraver gunslash is built from the arm of a robotic enemy, and fires/creates a LaserBlade from its palm.
** And now there's the Elder Rifle which is [[spoiler:Dark Falz Elder]]'s arm which shoots bullets out of it.
** Il Megid takes this trope quite literally by launching a hand made of darkness that flies into enemies palm-first to deal damage.
* PowerUpFood:
** The Naura sisters' cakes provide stat buffs.
** The March 8, 2016 update adds a restaurant that can make stat-boosting food from fish and produce gathered in free fields and meat from defeated monsters.
* PowerUpLetdown: The 14★ Wand Lavis Cannon is largely considered a sidegrade at best; this is because of the 13★ Wand Form Scythe, whose shockwave-shooting Potential is incredibly potent for Techer and has higher mobbing potential and DPS than Lavis Cannon, despite Lavis Cannon having higher stats and giving an attack speed buff and its own shockwave attack.
* PressXToNotDie: X on the default keyboard setting is your Dash key. Since most things can easily kill you if you are not a tank, the preferred way to stay alive is to dodge every attack.
* PreviouslyOn: After Episode 3 was introduced, players could access a lengthy video summarizing the plot (narrated by Xion) up to that point, [[LateArrivalSpoiler even if the player hadn't completed up to that point or even started the story.]] Justified, as the update also allowed all players to begin Episode 3 without having finished Episodes 1 or 2, and they wouldn't be caught up on the plot otherwise.
* PunchedAcrossTheRoom: The Knuckles have a Photon Art called [[MegatonPunch Backhand Smash]] that can cause this. While [[NoRangeLikePointBlankRange you have to be right in the enemy's face to hit with it]] (or at least moreso than all of the other Knuckles [=PAs=]), it hits '''hard'''; aside from doing a crap-ton of damage, anything that isn't a boss or otherwise defending itself ''will'' be sent flying straight backward. Bonus points if the enemy in question flies into a wall, in which case they bounce off of it and ''into the sky'' before crashing back down a few seconds later.
** To a lesser extent, Rangers can get a Photon Art for their Launcher called "Crazy Smash" which is essentially using the Launcher as a [[ImprobableUseOfAWeapon golf club]]. Not as drastic as Backhand Smash, but still enough to knock some of the heavier enemies on their ass.
* PurpleIsPowerful: With the Katana Gear, Bravers can envelope themselves in a [[BattleAura fiery violet aura]] that boosts their critical rate.
* PurposelyOverpowered:
** The A.I.S. (ARKS Intercept Silhouette) (See InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha.) It comes equipped with a portable Photon Particle Cannon, and will make mincemeat of pretty much everything. However, it comes with a strict time limit; over-use makes it vulnerable to Darker infection and possession. Thus it is only used sparingly, such as [[NintendoHard Mining Base Defense: Despair/Demise]], [[BossBonanza Gold Magatsu and Phantom Yamato]].
** As noted under InfinityPlusOneSword, the 14★ weapons have extremely powerful GameBreaker Potentials that put 13★s to shame. However, they haven't had any noticeable effect on the metagame; this is because [[RareRandomDrop they're so exceedingly rare]][[note]]WordOfGod estimated the drop rate to be ''once per Ship per week''; the actual rate is slightly higher than that, but it's still rare enough that less than 1000 14★s exist on a Ship at any given instance[[/note]] that 13★ weapons are still the go-to; having a 14★ makes you extremely overpowered, sure, but it's more of a sign of having god-like RNG than anything else.
* PutOnABus:
** Everyone who wasn't popular to at least some degree got shafted in ''EPISODE 4''. This includes effectively all of the minor side characters, including Aki, Light, Fourier, Rogio, Afin, and Eucreta, and even some of the more story-relevant ones including Echo and Zeno. Half the Council is also missing, including Regius and Maria, although it is commonly believed that [[RealLifeWritesThePlot it has to do with the voice actor's schedules.]]
** Matoi also gets the bus in ''EPISODE 4'' for the first few chapters [[spoiler:as the result of purifying Aika of the Apprentice essence she absorbed in [[Anime/PhantasyStarOnline2TheAnimation the last episode of the anime]], which sent her into Cold Sleep.]] She comes back later on to reunite with the player.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tropes R-T]]
* RainOfArrows: The Bullet Bow PA "Torrential Arrow" is a textbook example.
* RainbowPimpGear: Can be invoked by players who ignore everything about Unit Sets and slap on a trio of mismatching Units with tons of affixes, giving them awesome boosts but making them look a bit ridiculous. Can be averted by equipping a Unit Set or just [[InformedEquipment hiding your Units]].
* RandomDrop: Decided on a character-by-character basis to avoid LootDrama... though it may be inevitable if it was a RareRandomDrop, as the rares you get are displayed for every player in your party to see.
* RandomEvent: Randomly-occurring "Emergency Trials" happen every so often in Quests, and can be anything from defeating a group of enemies or even a boss to collecting a bunch of items and returning them to a designated point. There's no penalty for ignoring them, with the exception of a rare few that block your progress until completed.
* RankInflation: At the end of a Quest, you're given a grade based on a variety of factors, and grades can range from C through S.
* RazorWind: Double Sabers' Gear ability allows them to summon a whirlwind that deals damage to enemies in close proximity for a brief period of time. There is also a Skill Ring called "L/DS Kamaitachi" that gives Double Saber a chance to automatically summon their whirlwind when using a Photon Art, up to 100% chance at +20.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver:
** The Darkers' default color scheme. Rare variants go for lots of red instead. [[spoiler:Dark Falzes like a more varied palette, though.]]
** The rare version of Chrome Dragon, Haze Draal, is black-and-red instead of white-and-red, which happens to make it look quite a lot like the Darkers it summons and devours.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: [[HumongousMecha Knight Gear/Magiknight Gear]] flashes these during his pre-battle cutscene in Border-Piercing Blade.
** [[spoiler:The ARKS members also flash them after receiving the [[BrainwashedAndCrazy Absolute Order.]]]]
* RedSkyTakeWarning: A weather effect in Mining Base Defense turns the sky a deep shade of red and boosts enemy stats. Bonus points for being accompanied by the word "WARNING" at the beginning of the wave.
** Waves 7 and 8 in Despair get "EXTREME WARNING" with their darkened red sky. [[NintendoHard They're]] [[BossBonanza not lying.]]
** Inverted on one occasion: The sky turning a light purple signifies the arrival of the swift, deadly Anga Fundarge.
* RegeneratingHealth:
** In Battle Arena, you will regenerate 10% of your maximum HP regularly as long as you're not being attacked.
** Players with the Skill or Skill Ring "HP Restorate" automatically start restoring their own HP when it dips below a certain level.
* RegionalBonus: The SEA/Taiwanese version does have a few things exclusive to their version, such as regional holidays to replace Japanese ones, such as Malaysia Independence Day and Chinese New Year, special holiday Rappies to go with them, such as the dragon-themed Drag Rappies, and some exclusive Costumes and Accessories.
* RelationshipValues: Every NPC has a friendship level that gauges how friendly they are to you. Their friendship level can be raised by doing their Client Orders, and/or going on Quests with their Partner Cards if applicable. The system is mostly negligible, though, as it only affects how they talk to you, though there are some Titles, and [=NPCs=] may give you presents, which range from VendorTrash, to cool, to actually useful.
** Your Support Partner also uses this friendship system, though it's a lot more applied, since it also affects their Nature and how many Client Orders they can take at any one time.
* {{Retconjuration}}: This is the Matter Board's actual ability; by collecting "Matter" via nodes, the player is able to edit the past and create possibilities not foreseen by the Akashic Record.
* RetroUpgrade: The Fighter, Gunner, and Techer classes were once used by ARKS in the distant past, but were eventually retired due to being rendered obsolete by the Hunter, Ranger, and Force classes. However, the Fighter, Gunner, and Techer classes were subsequently revived in A.P. 238 due to advancements in technology and outfitted with everything new to make them bright and shiny classes again.
* RevenueEnhancingDevices: The revenue model for the game uses a currency called ''Arks Cash''. Premium status and the various knick-knacks in the AC shop are certainly convenient, but in no way necessary to enjoy the game.
* RidiculouslyCuteCritter: Rappies! They even come in different flavors depending on the current promotion, season, or holiday [=PSO2=] is running. Even the realistic-looking Nab Rappies are adorable.
** The Lillipa species are a species of large, brown-furred critters sporting rabbit ears and are often taken as such.
** Nyau is an adorable feline-like creature who carries a sword as big as his body, and seems to be a cocky kid out to fight ARKS. If you break said sword, [[WhatTheHellPlayer he'll break down into tears.]] [[OhCrap And possibly summon a boss in the process.]] Like Rappies, he also gets the seasonal change treatment, with him changing outfits and weapons by the occasion.
* RobotBuddy: Mags are back. They can be fed weapons and armor like ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarZero'', use Photon Blasts and can perform auxiliary functions like in ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', and higher-level mags can also assist in combat like R-Mags and Tech Mags in ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse''.
** Episode 2 added Support Partners, reminiscent of PSU's Partner Machines. They have just as much customization as the player characters, in FunSize!
* RockBeatsLaser: In the 5th opening, the Battleship ''Yamato'' and a fleet of World War II-era biplanes are seen ''trouncing'' a ZergRush of [[MiniMecha A.I.S.]] The ARKS still manage to gain the upper hand through sheer numbers and a special weapon.
* [[RocketRide Rocket Launcher Ride]]: The photon art Rodeo Drive has you mount your own Launcher with the barrel pointing backwards. Amusingly this is also a decently quick method of travel[[note]]It's just barely faster than running[[/note]], assuming you have ways to recover your PP fast enough to continuously use it.
* RocketTagGameplay: Battle Arena's gameplay primarily consists of 12 players being armed with weapons that can kill everyone else in one or two attacks and letting them loose on each other in a team deathmatch. The average life tends to last no more than 30 seconds.
* SadBattleMusic: Combined with LonelyPianoPiece for the battle against [[spoiler: Matoi Viel.]]
* SceneryGorn:
** The emergency city missions takes place in a city devastated by the Darkers.
** [[spoiler: The battle against Falz Elder takes place among the wreckage of several Oracle Fleet ships.]]
** [[spoiler:The PocketDimension Double holds all it consumes in is a barren wasteland littered with fragments of various iconic scenery from previously-visited fields, such as remnants of pagodas from Shironia, and building rubble from the City. Naturally, practically every enemy type in the game appears here as well.]]
* SceneryPorn:
** Vopal Coastline is a very scenic beach, complete with a sunrise and sunset sequence.
** The rare, otherworldy Parallel Worlds look quite stunning. Better take some screenshots!
** The Black Territory/Kuron may be one of the most aesthetically fantastic areas yet.
** Thanks to the Stage 6 graphics setting, ''All'' of the areas fall into this. See for yourself with the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=85&v=cyKFnrKGslk Tokyo Game Show 2015 Trailer.]]
* SchizophrenicDifficulty: Story Quests tend to "reset" their difficulty at the start of an Episode, leading to this effect when transitioning directly between Episodes.
* SchrodingersGun: Overlaps with SchrodingersPlayerCharacter, oddly enough. [[spoiler:Persona's gender, appearance, and battle voice are based on you.]]
* ScreenToStageAdaptation: ''Phantasy Star Online 2 -ON STAGE-'', which takes place in a separate continuity where ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' is actually a video game, and the main characters are players. HilariousinHindsight when you move onto the 4th Episode and anime.
* [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney Screw The Rules, I Have Absolute Authority]]: At the end of Chapter 2. Quna uses that she is [[spoiler: the head of the Council Of Seven, and defacto leader of ARKS]], to release all the corrupt dealings Luther and his cronies did behind her back.
* SecretLevel:
** The early Episodes had additional Matter Boards after you completed the chapter, allowing you to explore a side story of that arc, also allowing you to earn rare partner cards.
** Parallel Worlds. Sometimes when you wander around a mission, you might find a rainbow-colored telepipe that leads to a very otherworldly land. What lies in it? Oodles of rare spawns, rare bosses included. The warp to the area disappears once you get in, so you only have one shot at clearing the area.
** Extreme Quests sometimes have "hidden" stages that replace normal levels. Their details are typically obscured in the stage overview screen until you reach that stage. The contents of the stage can vary, between just being a normal stage, being a stage with lots of rare enemies, being a stage with lots of Rappies, or [[spoiler:fighting Falz Arms or Dark Falz Elder.]]
* ShieldBearingMook: The Guwonda and Gawonda are twin enemies, sporting a large shield [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe that deflects all attacks.]] Unlike the usual ShieldBearingMook strategy, the best way to take them down is to bumrush them the moment you see one, as they can turn around surprisingly quickly, but take some time to notice you.
** [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Sil Dinians and Sil Sadinians]] wield shields that they sometimes raise. Hitting their shield makes your attack bounce right off and the enemy will perform a CounterAttack.
** [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Quartz Dragon and Crys Draal]] both sport large shields on the sides of their arms. Attempting to attack these severely nerfs the resulting damage. [[ElementalRockPaperScissors Poison]] [[StandardStatusEffects helps]] with that, though.
* ShiftingSandLand: The Desert field of Lillipa. The Quarry, from the same planet, is a subdued version of this, having pieces of Lillipan technology around, along with the occasional oasis.
* ShockAndAwe:
** The Zonde series of Techniques, of course.
** Some Mechs are capable of lightning-based attacks.
** Tagamikazuchi and Izanekazuchi fight with storms of electric attacks.
** [[LegacyBossBattle Gal Gryphon]] uses lightning strikes and stomps alongside tornadoes.
* ShootTheHostage: One cutscene involves Apprentice chokeholding Afin and putting a Twin Dagger to his throat while she tosses his Gunslash, preventing him from fighting back. You pick up the Gunslash and charge a Penetrating Bullet, and [[ButThouMust whether you want to or not,]] you shoot them both, knocking them out. [[spoiler:They're both okay, since Photon wielders are FriendlyFireproof... including Apprentice. This ultimately helps Afin prove that she isn't a Dark Falz.]]
* ShootingGallery: The Mesetan Shooter minigame.
* ShootTheShaggyDog: Not the player thankfully, but a couple of [=NPCs=] are hit rather hard by this. In one of the sub-plots, you converse with Theodore, an unmotivated Arks Force who hates fighting, and Ulc, his (girl?)friend who is trying to join the Arks but has no combat skills. It takes some doing, but she eventually gets a job as a staff member before the Chapter 7 story mission. [[spoiler:[[BusCrash She's then killed offscreen in said story mission]], because [[RedShirt even staff members had to fight in emergencies]], and Ulc ''knew'' what she was getting into despite that. Worse yet, come Episode 2, Theodore has all but ''snapped'' as a result...]]
* ShortRangeShotgun:
** Diffuse Shell for Assault Rifles. It has pitiful range, and will probably hit about three meters in front of you. However, it packs a huge punch and knocks down instantly, and if you happen to [[BoomHeadshot peg a monster in the face]], with the right skills you can be almost guaranteed to OneHitKill regular {{Mooks}}.
** Nazan is the Technic version of this. The effective range is absolutely horrendous, but it deals gigantic damage to whatever's in front of you, and on smaller enemies, it also deals absurd {{Knockback}}. You can [[BlownAcrossTheRoom throw enemies quite a ways]], and even make them bounce off walls.
* ShoutOut:
** There's a Talis named [[Franchise/YuGiOh Duel Gaze]], which looks like a Duel Disk. Its description even claims that it's a remodeled card game device. For emphasis, it's latent ability is called "Trap Activation", which increases the damage of Traps.
** The planet Lillipa is named after a continent of little people in Jonathan Swift's novel Literature/GulliversTravels, the novel which also made mention of a floating city named Laputa, of which there are robot enemies on Lillipa that have a [[Anime/CastleInTheSky certain Miyazaki feel]] to them.
** Played with with the Egg Blasters. The weapon was originally from ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', but was a Rifle. In ''Online 2'', it's been reclassed as Twin Machineguns as a reference to ''VideoGame/SonicRiders''.
** Most likely unintentional, but Chrome Dragon looks disturbingly similar to an [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion Evangelion]].
** The entire [[AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever Magatsu]] fight is a shameless love letter to ''Manga/AttackOnTitan''. You're fighting in a walled-off city that the boss bashes its way into, facing off against a ''massive'', vaguely-humanoid monster that towers over ''everything'' and looks like it could crush you flat with a single step. Attacks to anything but a weak point are completely ineffective, and you have to [[ColossusClimb climb its body]] to get to those weak points.
** Certain concerts, such as We're ARKS! and Cosmic Twinkle Star, use a RhythmGame mechanic where your character dances along when the player pushes buttons in time with the song, indicated by a target at the top right corner of the screen that rings approach. The target design uses an eighth note design identical to the one used in the ''VideoGame/HatsuneMikuProjectDiva'' series for its Song Energy gauge.
** Train Ghidoran is a bit of an on-the-nose {{Expy}} of [[Film/GhidorahTheThreeHeadedMonster King Ghidorah]] that uses train tracks similar to the ones used by the train-themed heroes, [[Series/KamenRiderDenO Kamen Rider Den-O]] and [[Series.ResshaSentaiTokkyuger Ressha Sentai Tokkyuger]], both shows also being of the {{Tokusatsu}} meta-genera, tough they are part of the live action version of the Main/HenshinHero sub-genera and not the {{Kaiju}} sub-genera.
** The Valkyrie R25 [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial definitely isn't a pair of]] [[AKA47 Walther P99s]]. Their description even mentions them being used by a [[Franchise/JamesBond "Legendary Secret Agent"]].
** Take one look at the Blanc Noir camo and try not to mention that it looks almost exactly like [[LightNovel/SwordArtOnline Elucidator and Lambent Light]].
** [[spoiler:Bethor's death scene]] is one big reference to a certain [[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventure time-stopping]] KnifeNut. Bonus points for also being an ActorAllusion.
** The U.F.O. enemy can use an attack where it attempts to grab a player with claw machine arms, alluding to SEGA's own line of "UFO Catcher" claw machines.
* ShowWithinAShow: One of the fan videos Sega played on the lobby monitors in the spring of 2015 was a fan-made SuperSentai parody made within [=PSO2=].
* [[SigilSpam Sigil]] [[BladeSpam Spam]]:
** Dual Blades have the Justice Crow Photon Art, where they generate the ARKS logo out of slashes, then fire it forward to deal damage.
** The sigil behind Deus Hunas's back is the updated ''Phantasy Star Online 2'' logo.
* SingleBiomePlanet: Lillipa and Vopal are both a [[ShiftingSandLand Shifting Sand Planet]] and ocean planet, respectively. Naberius and Amduscia subvert this trope: Naberius is covered all over in forest, but has frozen regions, while Amduscia has a whole two biomes: volcanic caves and [[FloatingContinent floating islands]].
* SinisterGeometry: Most of the architecture on Amduscia is composed of distinctly cubic and cuboid shapes. Some of these can glow, move to trap players, or even (in Sanctum) unfold into turrets. Taken UpToEleven in Destroyed World: Amduscia, where the environment is explicitly ''out to kill you.''
* SirNotAppearingInThisTrailer: Strangely, the Summoner does not appear in the 5th opening sequence for the game despite being billed as the face of ''EPISODE 4''; instead, the [[InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha A.I.S.]] take center stage.
* SituationalSword:
** Salus Punisher's Hidden Potential. It provides a whopping '''+27%''' damage... but only during the hours of 9 to 3[[note]]In Japan Standard Time, even. If you live in a different time zone where that means "midnight", tough luck[[/note]].
** The Japanese-style weapons granted by trading in Weapons Badge 2017 have a second Potential that's otherwise useless for 99% of content... except for the solo version of the Perennial Apocalypse EQ, in which it gives ''+20% damage'' and a massive '''-40% damage reduction.'''
** One of the most notable examples comes from the 12★ Dual Blade Niren Orochi. There's a reason why it's one of the only weapons that hasn't been obsoleted by the 13★ meta: at Hidden Potential Lv. 3, Niren Orochi grants an utterly explosive damage bonus of '''''+60%''''' against breakable parts during Break Stance. Given how Break Stance is only viable for select content, it's rare to pull out Niren on a conventional basis, but when you can, it can outshine even the best 13★ Dual Blades in raw DPS.
* SkyscraperCity: The City Area has lots of tall buildings to navigate around. Tokyo being, well, ''Tokyo'', is also this.
* SlippySlideyIceWorld: Naberius' Tundra. There is no slipping, nor sliding, though.
** Not for the players, at least. Breaking the "armor" on the legs of the [[DualBoss Snow Banther/Banshee]] have them [[InertiaIsACruelMistress slip every time they perform their long-range lunge attack.]] Banther in particular loves to spam this in quick succession and thus gets winded after one too many failures to keep his balance.
** YouFailPhysicsForever: This is also the case with their forest equivalents Fang Banther/Banshee, even though they're fought in a forest and have plenty of jagged terrain to grab onto with their fully-functional paws[[note]]Then again, you ''have'' just [[{{Fingore}} shot/slashed/burned their claws off...]][[/note]].
* SmashingSurvival: Some grapple attacks, such as Rockbear/Wolgahda's grab or the UFO's tractor beam, can be escaped by ButtonMashing. Others, like Gwanahda's pincer attack and Decol Malluard's electric field, cannot be escaped from; you can do nothing but eat the damage.
* SongsInTheKeyOfPanic: During the Rideroid segment of Racing the Phantom Mother, falling behind to the point where the notification for using Over Boost appears will cause the music to transition to a very panicky version. If you fall too far behind, you'll continually take unavoidable damage until you die.
* SoundOfNoDamage: Four different ones; one when your attack bounces off the shield of the ShieldBearingMook, another when you successfully Just Guard, one when you attack Goronzoran's/Zoron Goraal's energy shield, and one when [[spoiler:Luther's energy shield deflects your attacks.]]
* SpaceElves: What modern ''Phantasy Star'' game would be complete without Newmans?
* SpamAttack: The Twin Dagger Photon Art Facet Folia runs an enemy through repeatedly from every direction, the user being invulnerable throughout.
** Partizans get in on the action with Tears Grid, an Art where they jab with the Partizan an innumerable amount of times before finishing off the target with a powerful thrust.
* SpacePirates: Azanami (in appearance at least). The players can be one too, thanks to the Wild Ocean Pirates scratch including such costumes.
* SpecialGuest: Vivienne and Lumia Waber from the ''[[VideoGame/PhantasyStarUniverse Universe]]'' saga are unique among guest characters in the sense that they also star in bonus voiced cutscenes that expand on their characters, as part of ''Universe'''s [[MilestoneCelebration 10th anniversary.]][[note]]This is a MythologyGag to ''Phantasy Star Portable 2'', in which the two of them [[spoiler:built a spaceship that allows them to cross interdimensional barriers. The last time they used it, they wound up in [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline Ragol]]]].[[/note]]
* SpellMyNameWithAnS:
** The players have been using the "Dewman" or "Duman" spelling since the race has no official English name. However, with the remade prologue including them, if one is able to read the stylized font, their spelling is actually "Deuman".
** How Lillipa is officially spelled in Japan seems to run into a few inconsistencies. Is it "Lillipa", "Lilipur", or "Ririepa"?
** Thanks to JapaneseRanguage, a lot of "official" spellings for character names in the credits can vary wildly from their translations given by the fan translation. For example, Lisa is "Risa" in the credits, and "Melphonsina" is ''"Melfonseana"''.
* SpinToDeflectStuff:
** The Partisan's method of blocking. [[spoiler:Persona in Episode 2 Chapter 6 can and will use this against you, with a nasty CounterAttack waiting in store if your attack bounces off.]]
** A well-timed spin with Twin Daggers will register as a Just Guard and nullify damage.
* SpoilerTitle: Long-time fans of the series [[FridgeLogic might be able to realize]] from the start that Naberius [[VideoGames/PhantasyStarIV is home to]] [[VideoGames/PhantasyStarOnline a sealed Dark Falz]].
* StableTimeLoop:
** [[spoiler:The event that turns Klaris Krays into Matoi happens because she mistakes Persona for you. This could only have happened if you had traveled back in time to meet her.]]
** [[spoiler:This is ultimately what Persona attempts to invoke by making you kill Matoi, which turns you into Persona, which causes the loop to start over. However, Xion's intervention allows you to break free from the loop and change the course of fate.]]
* StanceSystem: Some classes have stances that alter the stats and nature of your attacks and abilities. They are as follows:
** Hunter: Fury Stance (Increased attack, decreased defense) and Guard Stance (Increased defense, decreased attack)
** Fighter: Brave Stance (Increased damage when attacking from the front) and Wise Stance (Increased damage when attacking from behind)
** Braver: Weak Stance (Increased damage when attacking weak points) and Average Stance (Small amount of increased damage)
** Bouncer: Break Stance (Increased damage when attacking breakable body parts) and Elemental Stance (Increased damage when exploiting elemental weaknesses)
* StandardStatusEffects:
** Burn: Gradually reduces HP. Capable of spreading to others in close proximity.
** Freeze: Renders you completely immobile.
** Shock: Causes you to twitch occasionally, throwing off attacks and leaving you vulnerable.
** Mirage: Causes attacks to miss randomly.
** Panic: Causes enemies to attack one another. Players, on the other hand, [[InterfaceScrew have their directional controls scrambled]].
** Poison: Gradually reduces HP. Unlike Burn, which deals flat damage per tick, Poison damage scales with your max HP.
** Stun: Renders you completely immobile. Wears off faster by spinning the analog stick/[[SmashingSurvival mashing the movement keys in a circular motion.]]
** Jellen: Decreases ATK stats.
** Paralysis: Renders the player incapable of movement, but otherwise unaffected.
** Wound: MaximumHPReduction.
** Weak Bullet: Multiplies damage taken. On monsters, Rangers can target specific spots to afflict this condition on.
* StatStick: Because you can't really fight with them, Batons only serve to give you extra ATK.
* StealthPun: The Easter Emergency Quest's background music is, of all things, Robotnik's theme from VideoGame/SonicAdventure2, thus making it [[spoiler:Easter Eggman]].
* StopPokingMe: Weaponoids will give these types of reactions if you tap them in the Lobby.
* {{Stripperific}}: Many an outfit, but special mention goes to the Smart Inner, a default Innerwear piece that covers little more than the essentials. While it's intended for clothes that show a lot of skin, it's enough to make even non-players tilt their heads.
** Astonishingly, there's actually an ''in-universe justification'' for why this trope is so prevalent. Photons are absorbed through the skin, so greater skin exposure increases photonic intake and thus boosts the available resources for one to draw on. Mind, [[GameplayAndStorySegregation this has no bearing on actual gameplay]], but this is used as an actual plot point to explain why the [[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2es Stella Tears]] looks ridiculously skimpy.
* StrongAsTheyNeedToBe: Chances are, if you're fighting what's normally a raid boss in a normal Quest, it'll be [[InvertedTrope far weaker than the actual fight.]] This generally happens to the ARKS Grand Prix version of Dark Falz Loser, [[spoiler:the secret Dark Falz Elder fight that can happen in Extreme Stages, and the story fight against Dark Vibrace in Episode 2 Chapter 6.]]
* StuffBlowingUp:
** [[EveryCarIsAPinto Cars in the City]], bombs on Lillipa. The latter tends to be more dangerous, since they're generally clustered in groups, and blowing up one can cause a chain reaction of bombs that can cause [[OneHitKill instant death.]]
** Melon and Maron, a pair of Pets for the Summoner, have this as their main gimmick. Once they've been hit enough, they'll inflate to large sizes and begin to blow off steam, at which point you can use a Photon Art to throw them at enemies like a grenade for massive damage. Maron Strike, Maron's throwing PA, has '''the highest''' power of any existing attack at '''''25,500''''', but using it ''knocks him out'' instantly. Conversely, Melon Strike, Melon's throwing PA, is substantially weaker, but to compensate, Melon can be chucked multiple times in a row before going out.
* SuddenlyVoiced: [[spoiler:Hadred, right on the verge of his death, after having been Quna's silent friend for who-knows-how-many years.]]
* SuperDeformed: Tama-hime, which looks like a miniature chibi version of Sukuna-hime.
* SuperpowerLottery: 1st Generation ARKS literally worked like this. Due to unrefined Photon compatibility, whether an ARKS member was competent at wielding Photon energy varied wildly. You either got ridiculously competent members, near-useless members, or anything in between. Regius and Maria won the lottery, but were [[{{Cyborg}} forced to sacrifice their original bodies for CAST bodies]] due to their original bodies being unable to withstand the sheer power.
* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: The Rappy Fan Fan talis claims that "it definitely does not use real [Rappy] feathers... definitely not."
* SwordBeam:
** One of the Photon Arts/Technics for sword-type weapons, named Sonic Arrow. They can hit multiple enemies at a range, with excellent damage. [[MundaneUtility Also great for cutting the tall grass in forest levels.]] It should be noted that Sonic Arrow does not create a single flying wave like most {{Sword Beam}}s. Instead, it produces two air-current-like lines which rotate, forming a spinning projectile.
** There's more than that: the Partisan weapon has Speed Rain and Slide End, both of which produce... Spear Beams?
** A sword Photon Art, Over End, involves producing a huge blade of light over your existing weapon to cleave enemies with. The last hit in particular ''hurts''.
** Dragon Ex, the armored dragon knight boss in Sanctum, has his own version of Over End.[[note]]The name he calls for it translates to "world-destroying conflagration sword"[[/note]] If you're not a Hunter or Fighter with above-par HP, [[OneHitKill expect to eat dirt if you're hit by it]].
** The katana Photon Art, Hatou-Rindou, throws a vacuum wave in front of you. If you time the attack right, it can also produce a small blue flame.
** Gigur Gunnegam combines this with BladeSpam by slashing several times in rapid succession, sending out a beam with every slash, before ending with a powerful thrust. It's one of his stronger attacks, has a moderate chance to inflict Freeze with every hit, and is almost inescapable if you get caught.
** The avatar summoned by the Ilios Imera Photon Blast attacks using these.
** The Form weapons have a Potential that enables them to fire projectile waves with normal attacks. Thing is, they only come in Tech weapon formats, there being a Rod, Wand, and Jet Boots. The higher the Potential level, the more waves fired at once.
* [[SwordsAkimbo Swords]]/GunsAkimbo: Dual Blades, Wired Lances, Twin Daggers, and Twin Machineguns.
* SwordOfPlotAdvancement: The Clarissa, a Genesis Weapon which can absorb, transfer and purify corrupted photons. This ability makes it invaluable to certain characters throughout the first three Episodes, [[spoiler:and since it contains a copy of Xion's consciousness, it can act as the final key to her Core]].
** From ''[[ScreenToStageAdaptation -ON STAGE-]]'', Star Quaser, the katana used by the legendary ARKS "R", is the only weapon that can defeat Dark Falz.
* {{Synchronization}}: The Summoner Skill "Alter Ego" has this effect: in exchange for boosting attack power, you'll take damage when your Pet gets hit.
* SymbolSwearing: When an expletive is typed in chat, it is replaced by a bunch of symbols. The filter is, as per MMO tradition, overzealous due to trying to cover all intended regions' expletives at once.
* TheBattleDidntCount: [[spoiler:The Falz Hunar fight in Story mode. If you've done your LevelGrinding, got your best equipment together, you could completely wipe the ass of a partly-awakened destroyer of the universe in under two minutes (possibly one), and it will still be standing (commenting on how the fight has warmed it up nicely) and you still have to leave two of your three NPC friends behind to do their HeroicSacrifice. Even if you're thirty times stronger and one of them has a legendary status. Would've been a ''huge'' kick in the teeth by SEGA if his level were high enough for him to drop his [[RareRandomDrop rare equipment]] (you're booted back to the Campship and can't return, so no Boss Crystal), but thankfully he isn't 41+ here.]]
** [[spoiler:Now you can wipe what seems to be a fully awakened version of said destroyer in under three minutes (although there's twelve of you at him now, though it's disturbing how the player-base have practically turned ''utterly destroying Dark Falz Elder into an art form'') and the previous guy who was possessed by said destroyer simply pops out and escapes. Oh, and Dark Falz is ''still'' in control of said body, so he's ''still alive''.]]
* TalkingIsAFreeAction: [[spoiler:In the cutscene mentioned above, there's an argument between your NPC friends on who should rescue the victim who was [[MyMasterRightOrWrong (consentually)]] used to summon said destroyer and who should stay behind to fend him off to buy time. After you and another NPC leave with the victim, the following conversation happens:]]
--> '''[[spoiler:Zeno]]''': "You were waiting for us? You're surprisingly considerate of people's conversations, [[spoiler:Dark Falz]]."
--> '''[[spoiler:Elder]]''': "I have no interest in weaklings who aren't willing to fight."
* TacticalSuicideBoss:
** Gigur Gunnegam infuses some of his stronger attacks with ice to boost their effective range and hit a lot harder. He also winds up freezing himself whenever he uses any of these attacks, creating ice structures that the player can scale to get to Gigur Gunnegam's [[AttackItsWeakpoint head]].
** A common trait of Phantoms is that they typically expose their weak points by performing specific attacks.
* TacticalRockPaperScissors: In theory, weapons work this way in Battle Arena. Sword beats Rod, Rod beats Rifle, and Rifle beats Sword.
* TakingTheBullet: The Summoner Skill "Dear Master" is a pseudo-Iron Will clone that gives you up to a 75% chance to survive a fatal blow, and the damage is instead dealt to your Pet. This ''can'' KO the Pet as well.
* TankGoodness: The Type-15 Tank. In addition to being able to fire heavy-duty shells your way and run you over, it also comes stocked with rocket payloads, a [[KillItWithFire flamethrower]], and a localized missile.
* TeamShot: Similar to the final boss of the original ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'', winning the battles against [[spoiler:any of the Dark Falzes, the Profound Darkness, or Yamato]] rewards the players (along with boss loot) with a shot of all the players who took part in the battle. Unlike in the original ''PSO'', this Team Shot includes not only the player and their party, but the other parties that fought the battle [[http://i.imgur.com/5ueLqGB.jpg for up to twelve players in the shot]].
** The Vita version, conversely, only supports up to four players in the shot. If you aren't in a full party, any remaining slots are filled by other random participating players.
* TeleportGun: Inverted with Chase Arrow, which functions like ChekhovsGun weaponized. The user fires up to three arrows (per cast) into the sky, which warp out to... somewhere. After that, the next time the user attacks with a Photon Art, said arrows warp back in and deal extra damage to the target.
* TemporaryOnlineContent:
** As one would expect, the Collaboration Scratches. Once their Scratch card expires, that's it. No more new stuff. The only remaining stuff is what currently exists when the Scratch expires, which means the price of said gear will proceed to ''skyrocket'' once it's no longer readily available. And God help you if you want any of the older Collaboration items, like [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica Evo. Device/Kyubey]] or whatnot.
** In a strange case where this applies to common equipment, many of the older, common-rarity gear is no longer obtainable by normal means. This is because the introduction of New Type grinding brought with it a change that removed a bunch of older gear from the drop tables that used the original Grinding system and replaced it with gear that uses the new New Type grind system; as such, much of that gear can no longer be found except by looking on the Player Shops. Some of the replaced gear does drop in ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2es'', however, since that game didn't accommodate for the New Type update and thus some gear can still be found as regular drops or as Weaponoid Presents.
* TerseTalker: The Dragonkin on Amduscia usually speak like this.
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: In-universe, Hitsugi learns this the hard way in the first episode of Chapter 4. [[spoiler: In the anime, it's revealed what could have ended up happening to her. And it's revealed that almost all the computers in 2028 have Phantasy Star Online 2 installed...]]
* ThemeNaming:
** Many Darkers have -ahda attached to the ends of their names.
** Twin Dagger Photon Arts are named after [[MusicalThemeNaming types of music and music terms]], such as "Dark Scherzo" and "Raging Waltz".
** Katana Photon Arts feature FloralThemeNaming as a BilingualBonus, such as Sakura-Endo[[note]]Cherry blossoms[[/note]] and Kazan-Nadeshiko[[note]]Wildflowers, as described by the YamatoNadeshiko trope[[/note]].
** Dual Blades Photon Arts are named after [[AnimalThemeNaming birds and bird terminology]]; "Starling Fall" and "Justice Crow" for example.
** Jet Boots Photon Arts, which are named for synonyms of "wind". Moment Gale, Strike Gust, and so on.
** The [=NPCs=] at the Casino have... well... casino-themed names. The emcee is "Deal", the quest receptionist is "Any Pair", one of the prize counter [=NPCs=] is "Chip", another is "Ante" (as in the term "Ante Up"), etc.
* ThirdPersonShooter: A button on the keyboard can switch the camera mode to over-the-shoulder, allowing ranged fighters to play like this. This gives the player pinpoint-precise aim, and it is often recommended to master it to attack targets that your lock-on can't latch onto.
* ThrowItIn: In-universe example; when a Secret Stage starts in an Extreme Quest, Karin will briefly mention not having included it in the training program, then tells the player to roll with it.
* ThrowTheDogABone: [[spoiler:While Ulc did get killed offscreen, you eventually end up rewriting history so that she is simply believed to be dead. With her alive, she manages to pull Theodore back from the brink of despair.]]
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks:
** [[spoiler:Falz Hunar]] has an attack that involves him tossing his sword and having it constantly hover around him like a boomerang. Subverted however in that you can break his sword, nerfing its damage by a great deal.
** Then there's the Double Saber Photon Art called "Deadly Archer" which, if properly distanced, can inflict a '''ton''' of damage. It also has a variation called "Deadly Circle" that orbits you.
** And then there's Hien Tsubaki for Katana!
** Falz Dourumble can also toss the Elder Pain as an attack.
* TimeBomb: The target of Emergency Code: ''Judgement'', where you have to defuse time bombs. Each bomb has glowing lines running across its side connecting an unlit node to a lit node on the other end via tracks that direct the player to move up or down across the maze; defusing the bomb is a matter of deciphering which of the unlit nodes, Top, Middle, or Bottom, links directly to the lit node. However, messing it up only results in a painful shock, and you can retry a few seconds later.
** Darchymes and Baize in Emergency Code: ''Destruction'' also do bad things if you let them explode, though, counter-intuitive to the trope and true to the Code's name, you have to destroy them to stop them.
* TimeSkip: Two years pass between Episode 3 and Episode 4, during which you remain in Cold Sleep.
* TimedMission:
** [[NecessaryWeasel Let's face it, this is a staple for [=MMOs=].]] A fair few of the client orders will have a time limit in which to fulfill them, started when you enter the required area/mission; fortunately failing doesn't mean you get kicked out of the area or anything, so it won't interrupt whatever else you're doing.
** ''Literal'' Timed Missions - as in the ones that ''do'' kick you out for failing - exist as periodic events that are available anywhere between fifteen minutes to an hour, and their in-mission timers last anywhere between ten to twenty minutes. These mostly consist of invasions [[spoiler:and Dark Falz Elder]], though seasonal events do this too. The game server is at least kind enough to inform you well ahead of time if an event is going to start, so you have a chance to finish up whatever you're doing and prepare.
** Many Emergency Codes are timed, and fail you for timing out, except in Emergency Code: ''Avoid''.
** Played with in the case of Racing the Phantom Mother; the first phase will eventually end if you fail to deal enough damage within a set amount of time. While you still go to the second phase anyway, failing the first phase will automatically drop your Rank to a B, locking you out of the best rewards.
** The notorious DPS check in Phantom God of Creation is this. You and the other players get 11 minutes to inflict about 30 million damage worth of HP to kill Deus ESC-A Zephyros. Most multi-parties can make it up to this point, but once you get to the DPS check, if your team has undergeared players, you're effectively ''screwed.''
* TimeyWimeyBall: How the TimeTravel aspect of the plot works. It's not ''technically'' time travel so much as observing different variations of the same timeline either to discover the full details of a complicated scenario, or to keep trying different things until you find a beneficial sequence of events.
** [[AllThereInTheManual The EPISODE 1&2 Materials Collection gives an explanation for this;]] the Matter Board has the ability to alter the past and create new possibilities with so-called "Matter", hence the node system.
* TokyoIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse: Initially played straight, then averted after the plot moved to America.
* TooAwesomeToUse:
** Many AC consumables, including Scape Dolls and Cosmos Atomizers. It costs real money to get them, so odds are, you either won't get them or you'll never use them because you're waiting for that ''exact'' moment when you absolutely have to use it. Downplayed with Half Dolls, which are distributed for free via the Stamp Card and various promotional events, but the player can only carry one at a time, so figuring out the best situation to expend your only one can be a task.
** Grind Rate Up (+100%). It allows you to bypass the RNG and get ''any'' single grind guaranteed. However, they're one of the few items you can't get through either AC Scratch or the normal course of gameplay; they're only ever event-distributed and untradeable at that, so you'll only ever have a handful at once.
* TookALevelInBadass: Katanas were initially perceived as weak on launch. They were progressively buffed down the line, including giving them Shunka-Shunran, Combat Escape, and Guren Tessen, and now sit at their current standing as one of the easiest high-damage weapons in the game.
* TotalPartyKill:
** If Magatsu breaks the final gate, it will unleash a blast that wipes out everyone in the party.
** In Demise, Apprentice has a charging WaveMotionGun she'll launch every so often. If the charge isn't stopped before the attack is launched, it's basically a NonStandardGameOver; the beam is a OneHitKill against players, AIS, and Mining Bases.
** Letting the Mothership Trial expire in Riding Quest will cause it to fire a WaveMotionGun that wipes the multi-party.
* TowerDefense: The Mining Base emergency quest tasks players with defending three towers against waves of Darker enemies. Crystals scattered about the area provide points with which to repair the base, erect shields, and set up turrets.
* TransformingMecha: The Tranmizer miniboss, as well as the core of the Big Vardha.
* TrapMaster: In addition to the regular guns-and-bullets assortment, Rangers are also fluent in Trap Skills. They can passively search out set enemy traps before they activate, and they can lay down their own traps that can inflict various status conditions or launch enemies.
* TrickedOutShoes: The Bouncer's Jet Boots are weapons attached to one's feet that have blades for kicking attacks and allows the wielder to use magic.
* TronLines: The pre-release [[http://pso2.jp/gallery/screenshot image gallery]] has a few characters sporting a lot of these.
* {{Tsundere}}: Friend Partners can get this as their Trait. A Tsundere Friend Partner will increase frequency of healing the player relative to how low the player's HP is.
* TurnsRed: Notably, Orota Biketta can do this. If you trigger both of its alarms, it becomes enraged and begins rampaging around the area while slamming everything around it [[ItMakesSenseInContext with its gigantic lollipop]]. Unless you're fairly tanky, it's pretty easy to die to this. A fair number of bosses also get it, usually denoted by a specific animation accompanied by an aura/sound shockwave.
* TurtlePower: Zeshrayda looks like some unholy fusion of [[{{VideoGame/Pokemon}} Blastoise]] and [[{{Franchise/Gamera}} Gamera]].
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: Episode 4 reveals that the entirety of the plot takes place little more than a decade in the future.
* [[TwentyBearAsses Twenty Rockbear Asses]]: A lot of the client orders take the form of either "Kill X (Monster Name Here)" or "Collect X Item Drops Off (Insert Monster Name(s) Here)". They're usually worth a significant amount of experience, so they're often necessary for grinding once you get into the higher levels. The monotony of it, however, is mitigated since all of these drops (excluding Team Order drops) can be and usually are sold in the Player Shop.
** Most of these are courtesy of the NPC Franka, who is your best friend if you need EXP in a hurry.
** Most of these can be used to level your support partner, who can also be used to take part of the work as long as it has the right level and equipment to actually beat the required enemies.
** The RandomEvent version occurs in Emergency Code: ''Collect'', which has players doing things like collecting keys to open blockades, picking up crystals for inspection, or drilling for minerals.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tropes U-Z]]
* UncannyValley: In-universe, the "mysterious ARKS": a group of new ARKS members that ''look'' like regular ARKS members, but act rather strangely, behaving somewhat out-of-character and being capable of unusual actions such as "Logging Out", where they spontaneously disappear without warning or trace, seemingly invoking MediumAwareness. [[spoiler:As it turns out, the "mysterious ARKS" are {{Digital Avatar}}s of video game players on Earth.]]
* UncannyValleyGirl: Fourier herself states that [=CASTs=] are usually seen as being cool and calculating. The only two [=CASTs=] ever being portrayed as such are Regius and Maria. ''Everyone else is eccentric in one way or another.''
* UndergroundLevel: The aptly named Subterranean Tunnels of Lillipa. Amduscia's Caves, too, to an extent.
* UndergroundMonkey:
** Most Tundra enemies are reskins of Forest enemies with one or two extra snow-based attacks. The King Yede enemy is even a palette swap of Rockbear, but as a regular enemy, different attacks, and its weak spot is its rear instead of its head.
** Several of the Dragonkin found in the Skyscape are the same as those native to the Volcano, but in pale blue and white colors instead of reddish orange (and weak to darkness rather than ice). Even the area mid-boss, Caterdra'nsa, is just a recolored Caterdra'n; in fact, they share the same rare variation.
** The Aberrations faced in Ultimate Quests are massively powered up versions of previous enemies with new attacks. While the Darkers are simple {{Palette Swap}}s with a stronger [[RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver black and red]], many of the other Aberrations are visually completely different from their original counterpart. This is especially true with the bosses -- Vol Dragon's Aberration is a giant bird found on Naberius, while Lillipa has mechanical versions of the Banshee and Banther.
** Similarly to Abberrations, ESC-A Darkers use existing Darkers as a base, but are colored varying shades of white and blue due to the use of Ether. However, ESC-A Darkers have slight design variations and even get several new attacks or variations of existing attacks.
* UnderwaterRuins: Vopal's Seabed.
* UnexpectedCharacter: ''Sachiko Kobayashi'', famous ''enka'' singer. She performs in-game with her own concert.
* UnexpectedGameplayChange: Emergency Code: ''Gesture''. You must communicate a message from one Lillipan to another via Lobby Actions.
* UnexpectedShmupLevel: The first phase of ESC-A Falz Mother is a Rideroid chase a la ''VideoGame/StarFox''. You must take her down with bullets, missiles, and [[DoABarrelRoll barrel rolls]] in time to get to the second phase.
* UnidentifiedItems: The game gives rare weapons a chance to drop in an unidentified (and unequippable) state, though you can tell what type of weapon it is at a glance. This is a good thing for the most part, as when you do identify it, you're allowed to attach a special ability to it and to choose its elemental affinity. The only bad part is that you won't immediately know if you got something that's actually valuable in the case of enemies who have common and rare drops of the same weapon class.
* UniqueEnemy: The miniboss Viel Hunar only appears in one Quest in the game. This is largely because while it has a different design from a similar miniboss, Dio Hunar, it has an identical moveset and AI. [[spoiler:Also, for story reasons, it wouldn't make sense for Viel Hunar to show up anyways, since Viel Hunar is the armored form of Matoi while she's possessed by the Profound Darkness.]]
* UniqueItems: Every item in the game can either acquired from someone else or you can gain multiple copies of. However, some Camos can only be acquired via Title Rewards, as well as the [[spoiler:Coat Doublis, the "pure" version of Persona's Coat Doublis D]], a ''very'' powerful one-of-a-kind Double Saber that you can get from getting OneHundredPercentCompletion on Matter Board 3-7.
* UnlimitedWardrobe: Shii/Xie always shows up in a different outfit (usually to the lobby theme) in every appearance she's in.
* UnusableEnemyEquipment: Played with. While you can't literally pick up enemy weapons, some of the gear you can get is fashioned after enemy weapons.
* UrbanFantasy: Everything happening on Earth is this.
* UselessUsefulSpell: Several classes have largely useless Skills that no one bothers to put points into.
** On both Force and Techer, players avoid the Status-based Skills. Status is useless for boss fights except for some instances, and it takes away points that can be invested in percent damage increases.
** Fighter mains try to not put points into the situational stat boosts whenever possible. The keywords are "situational" and "stat boosts"; raw stats are less favorable for damage than percent damage increases, and having them active for only certain segments of gameplay makes them even less useful.
** On a lesser note, Chase Advance and the relevant skills. Status damage has no use on bosses since most of them [[ContractualBossImmunity are immune to status]], and for some reason, the "special status" effects that some bosses can be affected by don't count as being afflicted by status, rendering the point moot. However, it has a fair use for mobbing if you have either a weapon affixed with a proper status-inducing Ability or a caster on your team.
** Automate Deadline is considered pointless because the activation threshold is 25% HP, which is way too low to reliably activate without taking a kill shot. Also, since Gunners have Perfect Keeper, there's no reason for a Gunner to be dropping below half health anyway unless they don't like damage bonuses for some reason.
** Reverser Field. Revive your friends for free! Except it has a cooldown of 15 minutes, which means that unless it's called "Mining Base Defense", you're only going to be using it all of once most of the time. Also, it requires investment before it restores more than 50% HP so it can stop being a weaker Moon Atomizer with inferior range, at which point it also stops being worth it. There is a Skill Ring that halves the cooldown time, but it's still not efficient to put points into unless you play full support and have no points to put anywhere else.
** Attack Advance increases normal attack damage by 50%. Normal attacks aren't really relevant for the majority of builds, so this Skill is skipped over for other, more relevant skills. [[NotCompletelyUseless Unless, of course,]] you play the [[GameBreaker Dragon Slayer HU/BR build]], in which case Attack Advance is a major component for dealing obscene damage.
** Break Stance gets the shaft a lot in the sense that it's considered one of the worst Stances in the game. The number of enemies that have breakable parts is minimal at best, and once a part is broken, Break Stance is useless. Elemental Stance, while more pricey to invest in, is considered much more consistent for damage. SEGA tried to avert this with Break Stance DB Bonus, but the multiplier for DB Bonus is still too small to consider using over Elemental Stance. It has a niche for Magatsu[[note]]Of note, there exists a super-gimmicky TE/BO build that can hit ''over 100%'' multiplier for Zanverse, but requires Break Stance and a breakable part to work, which Magatsu has lots of[[/note]], but is otherwise not very good.
** Summoner's Subclass Grow Up was originally considered a waste of a Skill Point because its only effect was to double the EXP gained by a Subclass. Thing is, 5% multiplied by 2 is still only 10%, and your Subclass stops getting EXP at Level 40 onward anyway, so it's basically a noob trap to put a point in. This was fixed in a Skill Tree revision that made Subclass Grow Up a default skill.
** Massive Mate is unnecessary on Summoner Main because it gives you super armor when consuming Mates. Except Summoners have Technique access anyways, so there's no reason for them to be using Mates when they can just Resta to heal. This is only important for Subclassing Summoner for main classes that rely on Mates and don't have enough T-ATK for Resta to be efficient.
* VariableMix: The music works this way. When you are attacked, the usually gentle music changes into a more intense mix, only to go back to calmness when the enemy is down. Boss battles also have variable mixes that become more intense the more you progress through the fight.
* VendorTrash: If you defeat an Izanekazuchi, it will often drop a rare type of Stone. This is the only Stone that has no value as a trade-in; however, you can dump it on the Item Shop for 50,000 Meseta apiece.
* VerbalTic: Nyau ends many of his sentences with "nyau". He also says it when he gets hit.
* VideoGameCaringPotential: While playing as Summoner, Pets will occasionally ask the player to cast either Resta or Shifta, marked by an icon appearing next to them. If you do so while the player owns the Pet Sympathy skill, Sympathy activates, which boosts various Pet parameters, including damage.
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential:
** If you've beaten your [[MirrorMatch Clone]] in [[spoiler:Darker Den]], then congratulations, [[YouBastard you've just turned it loose]] [[DemonicSpider on the rest of the PSO2 community]] for three days; they copy ''all'' your stats and weapons and have a ''lot'' of HP, and you can potentially have given them a lot of good equipment. Expect anyone who dies to your Clone to curse your name if they see the real you.
** VideoGameCaringPotential: By the same token however, you can also make them complete pansies by beating [[spoiler:Darker Den]] with terrible equipment, or just by having a CripplingOverspecialization for other players to exploit against your Clone. [[BonusLevelOfHell The latter is more likely though.]] Clones of players in your friend list also yield more loot upon defeat, notably Photon Spheres.
** If you dodge Empe Rappy's healing hug, Empe Rappy will become sad.
* VideoGameObjectives: Emergency Codes work like this. Sometimes you're issued one of these, and they vary depending on the area. Common ones include "Attack" (Defeat the marked enemies), "Collect" (Find a specific pickup and bring them to the collection point), and "Duel" (Defeat the boss). Turned on its head in spectacular fashion with Emergency Code: ''Abyss'', [[spoiler:where '''''you're''''' the target!]]
** Odin is unique in the sense that instead of using a standard Emergency Trial display, a Full Active Time Event popup from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' appears instead.
* VideoGamePerversityPotential: There's no apparent moderation with what you can whip up in the game's Symbol Art system. Although not rampant, don't be surprised when someone shows off a picture of boobs, panties, or other lewd whatnot through Symbol Art.
* VisualPun: [[http://i2.wp.com/www.bumped.org/psublog/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Airplane-boots.jpg One of the pre-release screenshots for Jet Boots]] shows off ''literal'' Jet [[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke As in, airplane jet]][[/note]] Boots!
* VocalDissonance: Seems to be a running theme for Dragonkin, though it's justified by them communicating through telepathy.
** Dragon Ex suitably has the voice of a gruff, battle hardened warrior. Its rare counterpart, Noire Draal, has the voice of a confident teenage schoolgirl.
* VoiceClipSong: Many of these can be found on Nico Nico Douga, typically involving Dark Falz Loser and his plethora of lines that [[BossBanter he likes to repeat very often.]]
* WaveMotionGun:
** The Photon Blast Cetus Imera fires a large, frontal beam. You can't exactly aim this thing, but it is smart enough to keep itself locked on a moving target.
** The Big Vardha boss has five of them.
** [[spoiler: Dark Falz Elder]] has one that fires out of his head.
** Photon Particle Cannons will rip apart nearly anything it hits, but you only get one shot.
** The A.I.S. comes equipped with a portable one with its chaingun. It's notably far more handy than the Photon Particle Cannon featured in the same Quest.
** Sphere Eraser turns your Launcher into a laser cannon, enemy-piercing included. Designed after the A.I.S.'s own WaveMotionGun, no less.
** The Fusion Technic Fomelgion is essentially a giant laser powered by fire and darkness.
** Dark Falz Apprentice has one in ''Mining Base Defense: Demise''. It has more than enough firepower to destroy all of your towers in one blast, so it's a race against time to defeat Dark Falz Apprentice before it gets fired. [[spoiler:At the finale of the battle, you get to combat its WaveMotionGun with one of your very own and blow it to high hell.]]
** The Phantom Battleship Yamato is armed with several laser cannons, which it will gladly fire at you on foot and in an A.I.S.
** In the Godzilla Lobby, you can watch Godzilla fire his signature Atomic Breath at the TV in the distance. It's just a prop Godzilla, though.
** In Mining Base Defense: VR, if you let a Zeta Guranz stay alive for too long, it will initiate a unique move where it summons a ginormous laser that ''two shots a Base'' before [[VillainExitStageLeft flying up, up, and away.]]
** In the "Cosmic Twinkle Star" concert, Quna combines her power with the A.I.S.' Photon Blaster to make a ''superpowered'' laser to destroy Dark Vibrace.
* WeaksauceWeakness: For some reason, AIS Exoda more or less die instantly to Vol Graptor or Banishing Arrow even at moderate re-applicable damage.
* WeatherAndEnvironment: Weather can change at random. Weather changes vary by region; some are pretty standard, like Thunderstorm, Thick Fog, and Heat Wave. Then there are the really weird ones, like Dragon Spirit, Black Dust, and Butterfly Dance.
* WeaponOfChoice: Each class has its own set of weapons that are unique to it (barring the universally equippable Gunslashes):
** Hunter: [[{{BFS}} Swords]], [[WhipSword Wired Lances]], and [[BladeOnAStick Partizans]].
** Fighter: [[DoubleWeapon Double Saber]], [[DualWielding Twin Daggers]], and [[PowerFist Knuckles]].
** Ranger: AssaultRifles and [[{{BFG}} Launchers]].
** Gunner: AssaultRifles (shared with Rangers) and [[GunsAkimbo Twin Machineguns]].
** Force: [[MagicStaff Rods]] and [[PaperTalisman Talises]].
** Techer: [[MagicWand Wands]] and [[PaperTalisman Talises]] (shared with Forces).
** Braver: [[KatanasAreJustBetter Katana]] and [[BowAndSwordInAccord Bullet Bows]].
** Bouncer: [[DualWielding Dual Blades]] and [[ArmedLegs Jet Boots]].
* WeaponOfXSlaying: Some weapons have a Potential that gives them an advantage against certain enemy types. For example, weapons with the Potential "Negative Hunter" deal boosted damage to Darkers. Dragon Slayer has a Potential that boosts damage to Dragonkin, and the Welk series weapons dropped by ESC-A Ragnus increases damage against and decreases damage taken from Phantoms.
** Curiously inverted by Rig weapons, which deal bonus damage to everything ''except'' Dragonkin.
* WeaponTwirling:
** [[BladeOnAStick Partizans]] have this as their main schtick, and it's not just for RuleOfCool. With Partizan Gear learned, letting the PlayerCharacter twirl the Partizan at the end of any combat action, be it standard attacks or Photon Arts, charges the Gear Gauge, which can then be consumed when attacking to boost the Partizan's effective range.
** The Hero's Twin Machineguns also have this as a gameplay mechanic. To compensate for their normal attacks ''consuming'' PP to use, the Hero gets a Weapon Action called Reload, which causes you to spin your [=TMGs=] [[Franchise/MetalGear Revolver Ocelot]]-style to restore PP.
* WhamEpisode: After seven chapters of seemingly filler events and buildup chapters, Chapter 8 finally drops the first big bombshell of the game with [[spoiler: Melphonshina's taking of a fatal attack from Gettemhart, Gettemhart reviving Dark Falz, Gettemhart's subsequent [[DemonicPossession possession]] due to Dark Falz, and Zeno's HeroicSacrifice.]] Episode 2 expands on this further by [[spoiler: granting you the power of TimeTravel and using it to pull a BigDamnHeroes moment to save Zeno.]]
** Episode 2 Chapter 5 serves as another one, [[spoiler: with the truth about Matoi and Xion finally being revealed, Zeno making his return (As one of the six heroes, no less), Theodore and Ulc being reunited, and Luther becoming Dark Falz Loser after his initial plan fails.]]
** Chapter 6 keeps the whams coming, [[spoiler: taking you back in time to the terrible darker raid ten years before the game's events.]]
** Episode 3 Chapter 4 is another one: [[spoiler: First, turns out Apprentice [[TomatoInTheMirror isn't actually Apprentice]] (Double ambushed and ate Apprentice while she was starting to possess Eucreta). Then Elder of all people pulls a BigDamnHeroes and fights alongside the player [[GoodIsDumb (in human form)]] against clones of Apprentice and Loser. This culminates in Elder (again of all people) pulling a HeroicSacrifice to save Melphonsina from Double. Elder's (or possibly Gettemhart's) parting words to Melphonsina give her the redemption she has been seeking and she begins using her real name again.]]
** Episode 3 Chapter 6 continues the trend of significant plot developments. [[spoiler: Double ''finally'' gets off their high horse to fight you and Matoi in combat, but no sooner than they are defeated that they attempt to infect Matoi with a large mass of corrupted photons to transform her into The Profound Darkness. Of course, being TheProtagonist, [[HeroicSacrifice you step in the way and take the brunt of it,]] and are very nearly transformed into The Profound Darkness before Matoi steps in and uses the Clarissa to transfer the mass to her, saving your life while [[HeroicSacrifice becoming The Profound Darkness herself.]] After Sara carts the unconscious you back to the Medical Center, Persona appears and takes the Clarissa for his / herself.]]
** Episode 4 Chapter 4 drops the first real bomb of the story by [[spoiler:killing Hitsugi. Aru then proceeds to reveal that he possesses a Falz-like form that commands Photons, and revives Hitsugi. However, Mother Cluster abducts Hitsugi before Enga or the player can act, leaving them with Falz!Aru.]]
* WhatTheHellPlayer: Breaking Nyau's sword causes him to break down in tears, looking practically heartbroken. If you feel bad about doing that, that's understandable. However, what cements this trope is [[KaizoTrap the possibility of actually getting downed by Nyau's tantrum,]] and if that wasn't enough, [[spoiler: the game may throw a boss at you for good measure.]]
* WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer: Thanks to ComplacentGamingSyndrome, the majority of solutions to all of a Ranger's problems can boil down to two words: "Weak Bullet". EliteMook in your way? Weak Bullet its face. DemonicSpiders? Weak Bullet them. FightingYourFriend? Weak Bullet. Staring down a universe-ending EldritchAbomination? Weak Bullet that too.
* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: Of sorts. At the end of ''EPISODE 4'', Hitsugi narrates an epilogue detailing what happened to everyone after the events of the main story. [[spoiler: Hitsugi, Enga, and Kohri return to their normal lives, Och and Phul integrate into regular society, Aratron formally disbands Mother Cluster and becomes the new head of ESC-A, Phaleg is taking time off, and Al enrolls as a new student in Tensei Academy. Hagito is also still around, but is mentioned only in a news article.]]
* WhipSword: The Wired Lance weapons can be used for medium-range special attacks.
* {{Wingdinglish}}: The strange hexafont you see on the ship actually spell English words. There's sign boards that read "SHOP AREA" or security walls that read "KEEP CLOSE" to name some examples. [[http://i.imgur.com/AuA5Ehz.png Here's a guide if you wish to try to decode it.]]
* {{Wutai}}: Episode 3's Harukotan has a planet-wide civilization that resembles feudal Japan.
* YouCantThwartStageOne: [[spoiler:Matoi becoming the Profound Darkness is all but predetermined; it's the only [[ScrewDestiny destiny]] [[SubvertedTrope you can't screw.]] What you ''can'' change is her ultimate fate.]]
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: While a handful of the characters have normal hair colors, there are several characters with funny hair colors like Zeno's red hair, Marlu's light purple hair, Melphonsina's green hair, and so on. The player can gleefully pick any color of the spectrum if they so wish.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness:
** Aki is the first to get this treatment come Episode 2; in fact, the ARKS seems perfectly fine with doing this to a lot of their staff, seeing as how it considers most of them pawns.
** [[spoiler:When the Black King Clone that Double manifested begins to gain a consciousness, Double swiftly takes action and invites Sukunahime to the Black Castle, then offs the Black King Clone and pincers Sukunahime in a trap. She barely makes it out thanks to a HeroicSacrifice from you and Matoi.]]
* ZergRush: The 3rd opening treats us to the characters facing off against an entire '''legion''' of Darkers on Lilipa Desert. Mining Base Defense throws you into that, and boy does it get chaotic.
* ZeroEffortBoss: Stage 1 of "Heaven and Hell" is six Nyau. They're pitifully easy to defeat if you bait out their spin attacks[[note]]Unlike regular Nyau, sheer brute force also works, since they have very low HP[[/note]]. Just beware the [[KaizoTrap flailing of arms]] that follows shortly afterwards, which ''will'' make short work of you if you get too close.
[[/folder]]

* ActionGirl:
** Almost every female NPC you converse with, including Echo, Lisa, Marlu, Io, Azanami, [[spoiler:Matoi/2nd Gen Claris Claes]], the list goes on.

* TankGoodness: The Type-15 Tank. In addition to being able to fire heavy-duty shells your way and run you over, it also comes stocked with rocket payloads, a [[KillItWithFire flamethrower]], and a localized missile.

* TemporaryOnlineContent: As one would expect, the Collaboration Scratches. Once their Scratch card expires, that's it. No more new stuff. The only remaining stuff is what currently exists when the Scratch expires, which means the price of said gear will proceed to ''skyrocket'' once it's no longer readily available. And God help you if you want any of the older Collaboration items, like [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica Evo. Device/Kyubey]] or whatnot.

* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: If you've beaten your [[MirrorMatch Clone]] in [[spoiler:Darker Den]], then congratulations, [[YouBastard you've just turned it loose]] [[DemonicSpider on the rest of the PSO2 community]] for three days; they copy ''all'' your stats and weapons and have a ''lot'' of HP, and you can potentially have given them a lot of good equipment. Expect anyone who dies to your Clone to curse your name if they see the real you.

* GameBreakingBug: The update on 5th December 2012 included a revamp to the physics engine and a few other things so that it can be compatible for PS Vita and PC user co-op play. Cue people getting stuck in the loading screen, stuck in boss room teleporters, applying strange textures to random models, model animations spazzing out (which, hilariously, includes people in Rappy Suits standing sideways with half their body into the ground and rotating anti clockwise at high speeds), buttons not appearing (rendering a certain quest incompletable). It rendered the game either nigh unplayable or an extremely annoying experience. Of course, an emergency maintenance fixed most of it.

** The 5th Anniversary Concert, due to it's hugely complex set-pieces, including the ENTIRE AUDIENCE dancing to the second song, can have characters, including Quna herself, incorrectly render and/or the game crash out completely. This was quickly patched as part of maintenance done a few days later.
** Within Episode 4, Hitsugi suffers from one of these... [[spoiler: Except, in her case, it throws her avatar out of the game LITERALLY.]]

** The 5th Anniversary Concert, due to it's hugely complex set-pieces, including the ENTIRE AUDIENCE dancing to the second song, can have characters, including Quna herself, incorrectly render and/or the game crash out completely. SEGA are suggesting to players to find every way possible, including going to a virtually empty block, to at least minimise the effect of the bug.

* HelpfulMook: Empe Rappies have an "attack" where they try and hug you. If they manage to grab you, they'll cuddle you while healing your HP.

** In the Ultimate Naberius and Ultimate Lillipa, if there is already a substantial amount of players partaking in the Quest on the field, you will be given the option to drop at the spot closest to the largest group of players instead of at the standard start point.

** The February 2017 Limited Quest sets you up against every Ultimate Quest boss in the game in back-to-back fashion. Notable in that it's the only Quest in the game that has a four-player limit, meaning there are less players to work with overall. However, the boss stats do scale to the number of players in the Quest, which makes it somewhat less taxing on those going solo.

** Ether particles, a mysterious type of particle discovered on Earth in the year 2016 AD. Even in the modern day, it is still unknown what Ether is or how it works, but it is capable of high-speed data transmission, which is used for the Ethernet, an advanced form of TheInternet that utilizes Ether to achieve lightning-fast wireless communication anywhere on the globe. This service is maintained by ESC-A Towers, which are large, glowing spires built in numerous places across Earth for the purposes of dispersing Ether. [[spoiler:Phantoms are also comprised of the same Ether that makes the Ethernet run.]]

** The Katana PA Guren Tessen is known more for its ridiculous travel speed than its damage. It's one of the fastest ways to navigate short of Katana Combat if you have enough PP to spam it.

* ''Heroes: EPISODE 5'': Taking place shortly after ''EPISODE 4'', the ARKS are alerted to a black hole that has appeared where the planet [[spoiler:Xion]] was once located and discover that it leads to a parallel universe known as "Omega", a wartorn world of [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy knights, magic and monsters]]. Guided by the spirit of Alma, who resembles the legendary "Klarisklaes I", the ARKS must investigate the mysterious "Bloomless Flowers" whose demonic magicks are fuelling the war effort. Introduces the Hero class, an Advanced Class which combines melee, ranged and technic combat.