History VideoGame / PhantasyStar

* LegoGenetics: Numans are humanoids comprised of human, monster, and animal DNA. To top it off, the first Numan was created ''accidentally''.

* SortingAlgorithmOfWeaponEffectiveness: Cruelly subverted in ''[=PSII=]''. Dezo sells Laconia Daggers for 18,400 meseta, and only Shir can equip them. You'd think they'd be her ultimate weapon... But it only boosts her damage by 4. That's even less than the ''Scalpel''.

* ''PhantasyStarUniverse''

* DarkerAndEdgier: Compared to many [[EasternRPG JRPGs]] of the period, the series was far darker and far less willing to [[PlayerPunch pull its punches]]. The first game ''started out'' with the [[DeadLittleSister heroine's brother being casually murdered by government agents]], and the second through the fourth established that not only [[AnyoneCanDie can anyone die]], but that important characters ''will'' die and that your actions and failures ''will'' have consequences even if you succeed.

Also related to the tetralogy are a number of {{Gaiden Game}}s that appeared on the SegaGenesis: ''Phantasy Star II Text Adventures'' provided a look into the history of each of the protagonists from ''PSII.'' ''Phantasy Star Adventure'', another text adventure (for the GameGear this time) also took place during the era of ''PSII'', but the player's character was a nameless government agent of Motavia (like Rolf) that partook on an adventure unconnected to the plot of the main game. All of these games were {{Adventure Game}}s rather than {{Eastern RPG}}s. Then there was ''Phantasy Star Gaiden,'' a {{Eastern RPG}} for the GameGear which took place 471 years after ''PSI'' in a star system colonized by Algo's people, named Copto. It centered around two colonists, Alec and Mina--the latter of which just so happens to be a descendant of Alis Landale herself ...

A number of times, the games of the tetralogy have been ported to newer consoles. At one point, there was even a [[TheRemake Remake]] of the first two games in the tetralogy--''Phantasy Star Generation 1'' and ''Generation 2''--for the [[PlaystationTwo Playstation 2]]. On top of a more fleshed out story (''far'' more in ''Generation 1's'' case) and updated graphics, there were a few additional quests and tweaks made to the remakes. [[NoExportForYou Of course, nobody outside Japan got to see these either]]. A similar remake of ''4'' was planed and a US release bundling the 3 was announced, but the remake of 4 disappeared and the US release along with it.

'''Please add any examples relating to the PhantasyStarOnline, PhantasyStarUniverse, or PhantasyStarZero sub-series to their dedicated pages.'''

Sega's continued to make games in the ''Phantasy Star'' series, but they've largely taken place in entirely new settings with only tenuous connections to the Algo System ... well, apart from the fact that Dark Force just can't seem to leave the universe alone. For more information on the sub-series that came after the tetralogy, see ''PhantasyStarOnline'', ''PhantasyStarUniverse'', and ''PhantasyStarZero''.

* ''PhantasyStarZero''

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: The monster that attacks Alis while staying at the Governor's Mansion in Motavia is called a "Saccabus" ([[SpellMyNameWithAnS or rather, a succubus]]).

* EscapeRope: The Myau's "Exit" spell allows escaping from a dungeon, while Alys' "Fly" spell returns you to the last church you visited when cast in a city or the surface (even travelling across planets to do so). This becomes odd in Skure, which is an underground city where Exit is not available, while Fly may be cast. Neither is usable in combat, but there's still an escape combat spell.

* [[EarthIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse Algo Is The Center Of The Universe]]: Thoroughly [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in ''PSIV'', as it's revealed that [[spoiler: the entire star system and all that live in it were originally created by the Great Light to imprison the Profound Darkness]].
* [[ALongTimeAgoInAGalaxyFarFarAway A Long Time Ago In A Star System Far Far Away]]: The tetralogy is set primarily in the Algo star system, over the course of thousands of years. It just so happens that Algol is a [[http://www.phantasy-star.net/art/algol2.jpg real-life star system]], too. Its name is Arabic for "demon star." [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything Now, think back to the plot in]] ''PSIV'' ...

** As stated above, Rika of ''PSII'' was originally meant to be Nei.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Compared to many EasternRPGs of the period, the series was far darker and far less willing to [[PlayerPunch pull its punches]]. The first game ''started out'' with the [[DeadLittleSister heroine's brother being casually murdered by government agents]], and the second through the fourth established that not only [[AnyoneCanDie can anyone die]], but that important characters ''will'' die and that your actions and failures ''will'' have consequences even if you succeed.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Compared to the ''FinalFantasy'' games of the period, the series was far darker and far less willing to [[PlayerPunch pull its punches]]. The first game ''started out'' with the [[DeadLittleSister heroine's brother being casually murdered by government agents]], and the second through the fourth established that not only [[AnyoneCanDie can anyone die]], but that important characters ''will'' die and that your actions and failures ''will'' have consequences even if you succeed. It took until ''FinalFantasyTactics'' for Final Fantasy to get this dark.

* ScienceFantasy: The setting is more or less sci-fi, but magic is commonplace in ''PSI'' and continues to exist in the games set afterwards (though its role is mainly taken over by [[PsychicPowers Techniques]].

* ''VideoGame/PhantasyStar''
* ''PhantasyStarII: At the End of the Lost Age''
** ''PhantasyStar II Text Adventures''
** ''PhantasyStar Gaiden''
** ''PhantasyStar Adventure''
* ''PhantasyStarIII: Generations of Doom''
* ''PhantasyStarIV: End of the Millenium''
* ''PhantasyStarOnline''
** ''PhantasyStarOnline Episodes I and II''
** ''PhantasyStarOnline Episode III: C.A.R.D. Revolution''
** ''PhantasyStarOnline Blue Burst''
* ''PhantasyStar [[VideoGameRemake Generation 1]]''
* ''PhantasyStar [[VideoGameRemake Generation 2]]''

** ''PhantasyStarUniverse: Ambition of the Illuminus''

** ''[[PhantasyStarUniverse Phantasy Star Portable]] 2''
*** ''[[PhantasyStarUniverse Phantasy Star Portable]] 2 infinity''

[[quoteright:320:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ps_ps1_478.gif]]
[[caption-width-right:320:Alis, ready for action.]]

The first game in the ''PhantasyStar'' series was Sega's answer to ''DragonQuest'' for their SegaMasterSystem, and with a heavy SciFi twist. In Japan, the first installment came out within ''days'' of ''FinalFantasy''; it also came out in the United States well before either of its contenders.

It tells the story of Alis Landale, a young woman seeking to avenge the death of her brother at the hands of the [[PresidentEvil corrupt ruler]] Lassic.

The game is notable for animated enemy sprites, using pictures instead of just text to tell stories, and 3D dungeons (although the latter element was dropped for the sequels).

Probably the single greatest legacy left by this entry was the fact that it was one of the very earliest games to feature a lead ''heroine'' (as noted below in the ActionGirl entry - Alis is right up there with [[{{StreetFighter}} Chun Li]] and [[{{Metroid}} Samus]] ). Furthermore, hers wasn't a quest driven by the need to explore, follow a heroic love interest, or treasure hunting... hers was a quest driven by straight up [[{{Revenge}} vengeance]]. She could still serve to hand out some lessons to RPG heroines today.

Not to be confused with ''FantasyZone'', another SegaMasterSystem game.

!!Provides Examples Of:
* ActionGirl: Seeing as this has been around since the start of both [[{{DragonQuest}} DQ]] and [[{{FinalFantasy}} FF]] - Alis is one of the earliest female heroines of gaming, alongside [[{{StreetFighter}} Chun Li]] and [[{{Metroid}} Samus Aran]].
* AwesomeButImpractical: The Laconian Axe. Statistically, it is the most powerful weapon in the game and is capable of doing heavy damage, especially when combined with Myau's Help spell. In reality, it is often less useful than the Laser Gun, which does a fixed 20 points of defense-ignoring damage and also targets all enemies. Against high defense enemies (including the final bosses), you will on average do more damage with the gun than the axe.
* BlindIdiotTranslation: In addition to the [[AmbiguousGender gender confusion]] concerning Noah, we got the classic "I tell you no one can do!"
* ButThouMust: When you finally confront Lassic, he asks you if you really want to kill an old man like him. Answering "no" causes him to become insulted and commence the fight anyway.
** And your party loses initiative for the first round. No small thing in a boss fight in a game that involves a lot of defensive spells you want to cast ASAP.
** Subverted in the confrontation with Doc Mad. He asks you to hand over Myau. If you say "no" he gets angry and fights you. If you say "yes" he gleefully kills Myau and attacks you anyway.
* CashGate: At the beginning, you need to collect 200 meseta for a road pass, then an additional 100 for a passport. You also need to upgrade your starting equipment to fight anything other than monsters just outside the city's exit.
* CompleteMonster: Lassic hasn't been treating the Algol star system well.
* CreditsGag: Story by April Fool.
* CulturalTranslation: In the English version, the healing items "Perolimate" and "Ruoginin" were respectively translated as "Burger" and "Cola". As it turns out, "Perolimate" is a play on a Japanese energy supplement product called "[=CalorieMate=]."
* DiscOneFinalDungeon: [[spoiler:The Air Castle.]]
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: First-person dungeons, for one thing. Also, the iconic [[{{Catgirl}} Newmans]] hadn't come about yet, and plain magic is used instead of [[PsychicPowers techniques]].
* EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses: After Dark Force is defeated [[spoiler: Alis is very suddenly and undramaticly revealed to be the daughter to the former king of the Algol star system and the rightful ruler. Whether or not she assumes this position is up to you.]]
* FauxFirstPerson3D
* ForcedLevelGrinding: All of the "good" armor needed to survive battle cost an arm and a leg. Then there's the fact that there are a ton of essential vehicle items that cost as much as Alis's ultimate armor (15,000 meseta).
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: ''Phantasy Star'' was one of the first games officially translated ([[BlindIdiotTranslation sorta]]) into Portuguese. 20 years later, Brazilian gamers still have fond memories of it.
* GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere: [[spoiler: Dark Force's role as the final boss.]]
* GiveMeYourInventoryItem: The beggars.
* HotChickWithASword: Alis
* InexplicableTreasureChests: Every monster carries with them a treasure chest for some reason.
* ItIsPronouncedTroPAY: Myau is pronounced like "meow." [[IncrediblyLamePun Ye]][[PunnyName ah.]]
* ItsPersonal: Alis' quest to destroy Lassic starts with the death of her brother Nero.
* JapaneseRanguage: In this world, Fast Food Shops are called "First Food Shops".
** Or possibly a pun on [[HyperactiveMetabolism first aid]].
* KickTheDog: Doc Mad's "experiment" on Myau.
* LastBreathBullet: With his last strength Lassic [[spoiler: transforms the Governor of Motavia into Dark Force.]]
* LaughingMad: Doc Mad if you allow him to kill Myau.
* LoyalAnimalCompanion: Myau the musk cat to Odin (and Alis).
* MadScientist: The appropriately named Dr. Mad.
* MarathonLevel: Baya Malay Tower is the biggest and most complicated dungeon in the game, with many dead ends and looping corridors to get hopelessly lost in while tough monsters whittle down your party's HP and MP. If that alone isn't bad enough, you have to face the Air Castle directly after it with no hospital or inn nearby to heal, which itself is also full of monsters and a tough boss at the end. If you wasted your party's MP (and thus can't cast the nearly mandatory Fire, Cure and Wind spells), [[UnwinnableByDesign forget trying to beat him]]. If you are low on HP or MP you ''can'', with a Transfer or the Fly spell, escape to the last church you visited, but to get back to the Air Castle you'll have to go through Baya Malay all over again. The only reasonable way through both dungeons is to run away from every single battle possible [[GuideDangIt using a spare Wand in your inventory]], to conserve your MP for Lassic.
* MagicKnight: Alis
* MiniDressOfPower: Alis
* NintendoHard: "Alis hope cannot overcome the power of Lassic. The adventure is over."
* OminousFloatingCastle: Lassic's invisible floating castle.
* PaletteSwap: Beyond just the enemies, the game's ''dungeons'' are all palette swaps of each other as well.
* {{Revenge}}: Alis' motivation.
* SaintlyChurch: The churches provide the party with resurrections and as a destination for Alis' WarpWhistle.
* ShesAManInJapan: [[strike: Lutz]] Noah was referred to as ''both'' a "he" and a "she" in the English version, apparently [[BlindIdiotTranslation by accident.]]
* TalkingAnimal: Myau.
** A few of the monsters as well, though sometimes you need to use magic to understand each other.
* TraumaInn: Normaly averted as you need to visit hospitals to heal you character... Or just spend a night at Suelo's to heal everyone for free!

* CompleteMonster: Lassic hasn't been treating the Algol star system well.

* MarathonLevel: Baya Malay Tower is the biggest and most complicated dungeon in the game, with many dead ends and looping corridors to get hopelessly lost in while tough monsters whittle down your party's HP and MP. If that alone isn't bad enough, you have to face the Air Castle directly after it with no hospital or inn nearby to heal, which itself is also full of monsters and a tough boss at the end. If you wasted your party's MP (and thus can't cast the nearly mandatory Fire, Cure and Wind spells), [[UnwinnableByDesign forget trying to beat him]]. You ''can'', with a Transfer or the Fly spell, escape to the last church you visited, but to get back to the Air Castle you'll have to go through Baya Malay all over again. The only reasonable way through both dungeons is to run away from every single battle possible [[GuideDangIt using a spare Wand in your inventory]], to conserve your MP for Lassic.

* MarathonLevel: Baya Malay Tower is the biggest and most complicated dungeon in the game, with many dead ends and looping corridors to get hopelessly lost in while tough monsters whittle down your party's HP and MP. If that alone isn't bad enough, you have to face the Air Castle directly after it with no hospital or inn nearby to heal, which itself is also full of monsters and a tough boss at the end. If you wasted your party's MP (and thus can't cast the nearly mandatory Fire, Cure and Wind spells), [[UnwinnableByDesign forget trying to beat him]]. You ''can'', with a Transfer or the Fly spell, escape to the last church you visited, but to get back to the Air Castle you'll have to go through Baya Malay all over again.

** And your party loses initive for the first round. No small thing in a boss fight in a game that involves a lot of defensive spells you want to cast ASAP.

* [[ShesAManInJapan She's A Man In Japan]]: [[strike: Lutz]] Noah was referred to as ''both'' a "he" and a "she" in the English version, apparently [[BlindIdiotTranslation by accident.]]