Looking for a serious time vacuum on your PSP? Look no further than Phantasy Star Portable, an RPG with some seriously addictive properties. Lock your doors and silence your cell phone because you're going to be spending many an hour with your GUARDIAN brethren.
The Phantasy Star series has been around for many gaming generations. With titles reaching as far back as the Sega Master System, this is certainly a series that has seen its share of ups and downs. Thankfully for PSP owners, the series' debut on Sony's mighty handheld is one of the high points.
| Story | Rating  |
Taking place after the events in Phantasy Star Universe, the plot of Portable puts the player in control of a new member of the GUARDIANS, a group of protectors who venture out on missions with the ultimate goal of providing peace to the star system. The main threat is a mysterious alien force known as the SEED, which also appeared in PSU.
Along the way, the player will meet a whole cast of mostly-likeable characters whose stories are told through 2D still frames that change with each sentence or paragraph of dialogue. This style works, but it would have been nice to see fully fleshed-out 3D models at least animating their dialogue. It can take some of the punch away from a particularly heated conversation when the character you're speaking to only moves twice the entire time.
| Gameplay | Rating  |
Phantasy Star Portable is an action RPG, meaning that while in combat the player always has full control of his or her character in the 3D world, yet still must use timed attacks and certain weapons to defeat foes. The combat will feel familiar to anyone who has played a PS game in the past, but gamers new to the genre may experience some trouble. Lock-ons, which are implemented to give the player more freedom of movement while still targeting a certain enemy, don't always work as they should and you will sometimes find yourself jumping from enemy to enemy while in the heat of battle. This is not the ideal way to take down your foes, but fortunately it only happens on occasion.
The main aspect of any Phantasy Star game is looting and leveling up your character and purists can breathe a sigh of relief; Phantasy Star Portable is one of the most enjoyable grinding experiences I've ever played. There is a ton of new armor and items to make your warrior the ultimate bad-ass and rarely does a difficult section fail to yield some amazing gear.
Phantasy Star Portable Images
