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Phantasy Star Online 2 Import |OT3| PS4 ways to play

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
So, who would one contact these days for an invite to the NeoGAF team? I shot a tell to Twentytwo last night, based on info from the old thread, but never heard back.
I think he hasn't played the game for a long, long time.
Honestly I'm not sure if there's anyone active left in that old team, most people stopped playing or moved to a different team/ship.
 

Crystalkoen

Member
I think he hasn't played the game for a long, long time.
Honestly I'm not sure if there's anyone active left in that old team, most people stopped playing or moved to a different team/ship.

I guess that'd make sense. I hadn't realized that team was about as old school as it gets.
Guess I'll stick with being teamless until finding one that is more than just another chat channel.

Also, screw trying to do Story 4-7 as Hunter. I thought I could manage it, but way too many enemies constantly attacking to actually be able to DO anything, or even just guard all of it. And for all her bluster and cutscene badassery, Hitsugi is useless in combat.
ESC-A Mother fight's as fun as I remember, though.
 
This is on android? Is it still 45 GB?

The Android/iOS games are more like companion games that happen to use your main account data. You have your costumes, items, and equipment but little else is shared, though leveling up in one will level you up a bit on the other. I'm not fully updated since I haven't played in a while, but the Android app is taking up about 85mb on my phone right now.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
The Android/iOS games are more like companion games that happen to use your main account data. You have your costumes, items, and equipment but little else is shared, though leveling up in one will level you up a bit on the other. I'm not fully updated since I haven't played in a while, but the Android app is taking up about 85mb on my phone right now.
There is an option in PSO2es allowing you to download all the data to display parts, weapons, equipment etc. with no loading. The app is currently ~840 on my iPhone, but I definitely don't regret downloading all the data.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Not being able to expert blocks feels weird - what's the easiest way to get a 12 star Arm unit?
You can buy rear and leg units with 2017 badges, but I don't think any NPC having Arm units.
 
Not being able to expert blocks feels weird - what's the easiest way to get a 12 star Arm unit?
You can buy rear and leg units with 2017 badges, but I don't think any NPC having Arm units.

Gix Arm as a title reward from S ranking Ultimate Amduscia.
Rina/Itsuki Arm from E-trials.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Who's ready for the Hero? I know I am!
DFFrfXlUwAEMKK0.jpg
 

chashodges

Neo Member
Maybe a really stupid question, butttt...

Looking to start playing on PS4. I know you can download with a JP account, but I'd prefer to have a retail disc (and it might make the download a tiny bit smaller I guess which is a bonus).

Does it matter which episode disc I buy? Episode 4 is currently around £35, but going back in time, 3 is about £10/£15. Since the game will have to update anyway, does it matter what disc I play with?
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Maybe a really stupid question, butttt...

Looking to start playing on PS4. I know you can download with a JP account, but I'd prefer to have a retail disc (and it might make the download a tiny bit smaller I guess which is a bonus).

Does it matter which episode disc I buy? Episode 4 is currently around £35, but going back in time, 3 is about £10/£15. Since the game will have to update anyway, does it matter what disc I play with?
Older version means having to download more updates, that's it.
I'm not sure if those item codes would still be valid though.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Would item codes work on an EU PSN account anyway? Or are they tied to the PSO / Sega account?
All of those codes can be only used in game and can be used on any platform.

If you don't want to wait, you could do the following:
- Make the PSO2 account on PC
- Use a Japanese PS4 account to download the game
- The game on the first time on your European PSN account and login with the PSO2 account you made
- Redeem the codes in game when the game gets delivered to you
 

chashodges

Neo Member
I managed to make my Sega ID this morning! Will think about downloading via PSN later - like you say, the delivery times are pretty long for most of the discs I was considering.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
I managed to make my Sega ID this morning! Will think about downloading via PSN later - like you say, the delivery times are pretty long for most of the discs I was considering.
You'll have to download gigabytes of patches anyway, so I'd definitely recommend doing it this way.
 

chashodges

Neo Member
Last question (for now at least!) - how big is digital footprint of the game + patch?

I'm going to need to do some serious HDD management I feel!
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Last question (for now at least!) - how big is digital footprint of the game + patch?

I'm going to need to do some serious HDD management I feel!
Current version is 54,24 GB installed, but we're probably getting a few gb patch next week for the Episode 5 update.
 

chashodges

Neo Member
I'm in!

Installed over the course of the evening, muddled through the training mission before bed. Biggest language barrier so far was finding how to 'invert look' in the control menus, but with Google Translate on my phone I got through it. Did a couple missions this morning from one of the counters and watched some of the story board cutscenes.

A few questions if that's ok:

1) Is there anything I should definitely be aiming to do early on? My plan was to just solo through as many of the early tasks as I could find for now, but are there certain NPCs or tasks I should be aiming to hit in particular?

2) How simple is item and equipment management? A huge part of PSO was obviously getting items, upgrading, selling, etc. How confusing is inventory management in PSO2 bearing in mind I'm coming in with no JP knowledge?

3) Hypothetically, if I like the game enough to want to play portably with the Vita, does my Sega ID mean my character will just be restored as soon as I log-on the handheld version?

Thanks!
 

OMG Aero

Member
I'm in!

Installed over the course of the evening, muddled through the training mission before bed. Biggest language barrier so far was finding how to 'invert look' in the control menus, but with Google Translate on my phone I got through it. Did a couple missions this morning from one of the counters and watched some of the story board cutscenes.

A few questions if that's ok:

1) Is there anything I should definitely be aiming to do early on? My plan was to just solo through as many of the early tasks as I could find for now, but are there certain NPCs or tasks I should be aiming to hit in particular?

2) How simple is item and equipment management? A huge part of PSO was obviously getting items, upgrading, selling, etc. How confusing is inventory management in PSO2 bearing in mind I'm coming in with no JP knowledge?

3) Hypothetically, if I like the game enough to want to play portably with the Vita, does my Sega ID mean my character will just be restored as soon as I log-on the handheld version?

Thanks!
1) The main thing you should probably do first off is clear Koffie's quests because they unlock certain things like the ability to have a mag and subclass, different areas, and eventually different difficulties and level caps.
2) Honestly item management might be a bit difficult without playing the PC version with the English patch at first, but once you start remembering what things look like you should be ok since most things you'll use have unique icons like weapons, armour, healing items, and upgrade items. The main thing you'll have difficulty with is fetch quests because the items for them all have the same generic icon, so you'll either need to Google Translate them or have a guide on your phone or something.
3) As long as you use the exact same PSN log in then you should just be able to start the game on Vita and your characters will be right there.
 

chashodges

Neo Member
Perhaps a really dumb question - when there is a Raid happening, how do you take part? Is it from a counter / client / elevator?

Really enjoying my time so far, but some of these endlessly nested menus are giving me a bit of a headache!
 
Perhaps a really dumb question - when there is a Raid happening, how do you take part? Is it from a counter / client / elevator?

Really enjoying my time so far, but some of these endlessly nested menus are giving me a bit of a headache!

Emergency Quests? You talk to the Client Order attendant where you start every other quest, it'll be the top most option. Most EQs are good Exp up until XH difficulty where you run them for rare drops too.

Edit: If you don't see the EQ option and there's an announcement it's either the warning announcement about an upcoming EQ (EQs start at the hour or half-hour mark depending if a concert or part 1 of the EQ took place, they take place for 30minutes) or you don't qualify for the EQ or 2nd part of the EQ (another 30minutes.)
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Perhaps a really dumb question - when there is a Raid happening, how do you take part? Is it from a counter / client / elevator?

Really enjoying my time so far, but some of these endlessly nested menus are giving me a bit of a headache!
Bumped blog has a weekly schedule of EQ for major timezones in their maintenance post.

The original schedule is here, updated after each week's maintenance, but the times are in JST.
 

chashodges

Neo Member
I found that schedule, but I mean more how do take part - I can't find a menu or option that would let me join a raid in progress kinda thing.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
I found that schedule, but I mean more how do take part - I can't find a menu or option that would let me join a raid in progress kinda thing.
Ah, I see. When it's active, it's the the top option at the regular quest counter.
You can only join a party if they haven't started the quest, so I recommend being at the counter at the exact time it starts. Since it matches you only with people from the same block, try going to a block which has the most people and is meant for the difficulty you need.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
Today's patch is already out. According to bumped, 3.1GB on PC and 11GB on the Vita.
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
I still don't know how to feel about episode 5. It feels like it introduces much less new things than previous episodes, but maybe I'm just remembering those wrong.

Anyway, Hero is really fun and definitely feels OP. Which is a good thing, I guess, since many other classes are OP as well.
Got mine to level 53 (unlocked lv 70 cap) and since I can join SH EQ now, getting to 75/80 (do we know what the requirements for 80 are yet?) shouldn't take long. I'm glad I stocked up on those triboost 50+ donuts from the last event.

Story didn't go very far and I'm still not sure what to think of buster quests, since the only one available now seems to be the one in the story, which is basically a tutorial (maybe I missed something).

I like the new system allowing to join quests across different servers, but it doesn't seem like it's trying the put you in the fullest room possible. I don't like the fact that "all blocks" is the default option, because it makes mashing to get a full EQ room harder.

Pro tip - once you clear all available ep 5 story, definitely give Ombinus Quests a shot, it's mostly viewing all cutscenes which you can skip and it rewards you with a ton of SG.
 
Hero is indeed fun and it seems to really benefit from the 3 button layout. Currently using 2 button layout and I'm not looking forward to setting up every classes' skills let alone reviewing all those skill trees.

I still don't know how to feel about episode 5. It feels like it introduces much less new things than previous episodes, but maybe I'm just remembering those wrong.

Anyway, Hero is really fun and definitely feels OP. Which is a good thing, I guess, since many other classes are OP as well.
Got mine to level 53 (unlocked lv 70 cap) and since I can join SH EQ now, getting to 75/80 (do we know what the requirements for 80 are yet?) shouldn't take long. I'm glad I stocked up on those triboost 50+ donuts from the last event.

Story didn't go very far and I'm still not sure what to think of buster quests, since the only one available now seems to be the one in the story, which is basically a tutorial (maybe I missed something).

I like the new system allowing to join quests across different servers, but it doesn't seem like it's trying the put you in the fullest room possible. I don't like the fact that "all blocks" is the default option, because it makes mashing to get a full EQ room harder.

Pro tip - once you clear all available ep 5 story, definitely give Ombinus Quests a shot, it's mostly viewing all cutscenes which you can skip and it rewards you with a ton of SG.

Right, I forgot to add that PSUblog seems to have Hero info: http://bumped.org/psublog/pso2-hero-class-preview/

Seems to be just like the other classes.
 

chashodges

Neo Member
So, after playing PSO2 for near 50 hours on PS4 I thought I'd give the Vita version a go.

A few really noob questions if anyone could indulge me:

1) How do you set up your attacks? On the PS4 you have three mapped to square, triangle and R1, with three more with L2 held in combo. I can't figure out how to change the default at all in this version!

Is there anyway to change the interface in inventory to see a larger icon for each item? I've got used to most icons, but these little piddly ones are proving tough to decipher along with the Japanese text!

Thanks!
 
I haven't played the Vita version in a while, but the fact there are fewer buttons available could mean the three-function palette is simply not possible. PSO2 originally used a two-function palette (which I currently still use because it is what I got used to and switching formats on PC/PS4 also kills my chat shortcuts) where melee weapons rotate PA on a cycle and other classes have a back half triggered by what would be the guard button on a melee weapon.
 

chashodges

Neo Member
..where melee weapons rotate PA on a cycle and other classes have a back half triggered by what would be the guard button on a melee weapon.

That seems to be how it works on Vita even when updated. Personally I'd like the option to replace guard with a palette switch but I'm sure I'll get used to it. Encourages me to try new weapons and eventually classes too!
 

Hasemo

(;・∀・)ハッ?
How's everyone's thoughts on the Buster Quests and Ep. 5 in general?

I have to say, the story in this episode feels even more boring than in episode 4 and also totally unfitting for a PSO game, but maybe that's just me. It's also weird that the game allows you to view cutscenes without playing actual story Buster Quests in the newest chapter - they definitely should be gated, because it's really weird to watch one after another.

Buster Quests themselves are like less interesting and hectic versions of base defense EQs. Having daily limits on matches where you can get points required for higher grades doesn't help.

All in all, so far the Hero class feels like the only interesting addition and even that isn't as fun as it could be because of the few PAs available. I guess it allows players to focus weapon switching combos etc., but I would prefer to have more attack options.
 
How's everyone's thoughts on the Buster Quests and Ep. 5 in general?

I have to say, the story in this episode feels even more boring than in episode 4 and also totally unfitting for a PSO game, but maybe that's just me. It's also weird that the game allows you to view cutscenes without playing actual story Buster Quests in the newest chapter - they definitely should be gated, because it's really weird to watch one after another.

Buster Quests themselves are like less interesting and hectic versions of base defense EQs. Having daily limits on matches where you can get points required for higher grades doesn't help.

All in all, so far the Hero class feels like the only interesting addition and even that isn't as fun as it could be because of the few PAs available. I guess it allows players to focus weapon switching combos etc., but I would prefer to have more attack options.

Story-wise Ep5 is initially better than Ep4. At least your player character is the main character again and there is more of a connection back to Arks. Also there aren't multiple bathing scenes. The whole thing is still really unfitting for PSO2 but they've long since abandoned caring about consistency. The biggest problem is how big, bland, and empty their fantasy world is.

Buster Quest seems cool. Haven't played enough of it yet to really form a coherent opinion on it though.

I really like Hero. It makes the best first impression out of any of the new-with-episode classes. Hero moves fluidly and all their attack options connect with one another quickly and effectively. I don't really mind the low number of PA options because honestly, we would only ever use the 2-3 good ones anyway. The PAs its got now are more than serviceable. It's also really strong. It actually might be too much. It basically outclasses every class (except maybe for FI depending on who you ask).

Overall, Ep 5 seems like a good step in the right direction. They're moving away from the intense EQ focus of Ep 4 and are instead trying to make more content! Maybe the new director might turn this ship around?
 
The game still has the issue of adding new content and making it irrelevant when the event/collection file expires, which is why I quit early into Episode 4 last year. Promising to update buster quests and the PvP is a step in the right direction, but there's still tons of modes in the game that aren't worth doing due to the power creep. Adding XH difficulty for the other free fields and some simple drop/reward table arrangements for things like challenge mode and the UQs could go a long way towards giving the endgame player more to do than just wait for the next good EQ. Cross-block matching removing the necessity to idle in the lobby for hours to get in on a EQ without the risk of being kicked off is good, but still doesn't solve the problem that waiting around shouldn't be a big focus in the game's design in the first place.

Heroes are fun, but the old classes could use some love in the speed and gameplay flow. Weapon switching has always felt clunky and slow in this game, so when a class is introduced that solves that problem, it makes the older ones feel less desirable to play. This episode's balance changes were just boring base damage increases/nerfs for the most part, which is another reason why everyone is playing Hero. Hopefully they'll put some more focus on revitalizing the old content and classes this episode, otherwise things won't improve.
 
The game still has the issue of adding new content and making it irrelevant when the event/collection file expires, which is why I quit early into Episode 4 last year. Promising to update buster quests and the PvP is a step in the right direction, but there's still tons of modes in the game that aren't worth doing due to the power creep. Adding XH difficulty for the other free fields and some simple drop/reward table arrangements for things like challenge mode and the UQs could go a long way towards giving the endgame player more to do than just wait for the next good EQ. Cross-block matching removing the necessity to idle in the lobby for hours to get in on a EQ without the risk of being kicked off is good, but still doesn't solve the problem that waiting around shouldn't be a big focus in the game's design in the first place.

Heroes are fun, but the old classes could use some love in the speed and gameplay flow. Weapon switching has always felt clunky and slow in this game, so when a class is introduced that solves that problem, it makes the older ones feel less desirable to play. This episode's balance changes were just boring base damage increases/nerfs for the most part, which is another reason why everyone is playing Hero. Hopefully they'll put some more focus on revitalizing the old content and classes this episode, otherwise things won't improve.

I feel the same way. Though some of the changes/planned additions make gestures at turning around the game in the right direction, they aren't as sweeping as they need to be.

PSO2 is now in year 5 of its 10 year plan. Maybe things will be better come year 8.
 
Episode 3 was the best era of this game in my opinion. Episode 4 introduced a lot of QoL changes at the cost of more monetization and things that don't make sense, like finishing an EQ and getting a dozen egg drops that are useless unless you play that class. They put even more focus on EQs with the collection file system, and also proceeded to add a bunch of new content that wasn't maintained past the events at all. I took a break for a year for that reason. It's a shame since this is easily my favorite combat system out of any action MMO, but the foundation of the game is still flawed. Maintaining buster quests is a step in the right direction, but it also shouldn't be a replacement for free fields either. Many people like this game because it's possible to get endgame gear and clear most of the content while playing casually, so ditching fun casual stuff like free fields in exchange for mandatory team-based gameplay isn't a good idea. If nothing else, the old fields should get XH difficulty so endgame players would have more variety than the same three levels over and over.
 

ShinMaruku

Member
Call me for pso3. They painted themselves into a corner with 2. No content patch will fix the issues. The whole skill tree thing was ill considered.
 
I only play for Rappies now. Got my 8 characters' Hero to at least Lv70 during the boost week to cheese through TACOs/XQs, sped up clear times even when before I always had WB available, very overpowered class.
 
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