Genesis REVIEWS: Phantasy Star III

Among Phantasy Star fans, the third game in the series is usually derided for being different than the rest, and is considered inferior to the second and the fourth game. Finding Phantasy Star II to be a terribly aged experience, I came into this game with some reservations. Anything that is considered "inferior" to that game would be damn near unplayable.

Yet, I found a significantly better game in Phantasy Star III, one that, while retaining some of its predecessor's major faults, still manages to push the envelope of RPGs in general. Ironically, this game might feature one of the earliest misguided fanboy tantrums in videogame history.

79: Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom:-

Year: 1991.
Genre: JRPG.
Publisher: Sega.
Developer: Sega. 

"We are the keepers of our people's history"
 

The major change that ticked Phantasy Star fans off was replacing the Sci-fi setting with something more similar to medieval fantasy, but with clear remnants of that space-faring past. It flagged the game as yet another standard RPG, instead of the unique setting of the series.

For me, the fact that PSII's setting was poorly used (it could have been set in a bathtub, and it wouldn’t have made a difference) makes this a non-issue.

Clearly, this third entry works much better narratively. While retaining the poor quality dialogue and minimal character interaction, the game's central premise makes the player much more involved with the game. Phantasy Star III takes place in three generations, and in each generation, the main character can marry. Essentially, this is one of the earliest choices in RPG history, and it has noticeable differences in the game, even if the endings are not as drastically different.

Getting married in videogames always ensures an extra layer of interaction with the game

Apparently, the space-faring age came to an end due to the series's big bad, Dark Force. Then, a war broke out between the people of Orakio and Laya. Early on, we learn that Layans are the scum of the earth. However, the plot unravels in a way as to question that assumption. Immediately, this is much more engrossing than the Dam hunting escapades of the second game, even if there is just as little exposition.

"I can see the pity and confusion in your eyes"

A lot of the time, you will spend in Phantasy Star III is divided between two things: grinding and looking in confusion for where you need to go next. Even though this is a linear game (when not choosing who to marry), there are still difficulties in finding where you need to go next. The map the game gives you is pitifully inadequate, and sometimes the game's environment adds insult to injury.

One entrance for a cave is hidden under the snow, and there is no physical indication of its existence whatsoever. If someone is not lucky enough to find it, they might search for hours to find it. Especially since they do not know what they are actually looking for.

This issue is actually exacerbated in this sequel, but is made better with the decreased random encounter rate.

Other issues from the past game remain. Grinding for one thing is just as important as it was, but at least new characters are not as useless. Outside of battle, trying to navigate the game's many menus is still a labyrinthine task. With everything taking thrice as much as it should.

You will get used to seeing the menu screen

Thankfully, this time around, you won't need a GPS to navigate the game's dungeons, as they are made much better.


"Come back here, you dragon-spawn of Laya"

Outside of the mindless grinding battles against the bottom feeders, the battle system in PSIII actually manages to be tactical and interesting. Far more so than PSII, which is one possible reason some didn't like it. It actually necessitated planning your party's equipment more than buying the best stuff.

It changes things from normal by adding enemy position, changing the spell system, and the fact that there are no misses or critical hits in the game.

With enemy positions, weapons have different attacking ranges. Some weapons weakly hit all enemies in a row, while others pierce through the first row and hit the back. Generally, the prime result you should look for is being able to finish each battle in one round.

Don't think you can beat Dark Force in one round, though, but you are welcome to try

To do that, you will want to utilize the spells at your disposal. Unique to this game is the fact that all spells for each character are unlocked from the start, but get stronger with leveling up. Additionally, you can change the balance for those spells. This means you can increase the strength of one spell at the expense of the others. Initially, you would want a balanced healer, for instance, but once you get two of them, you would want to specialize more.

Back to the one-round rule, once you understand the battle system, you realize you could finish most battles in one round only. Through a clever combination of weapons that can hit multiple enemies, and one-hit strong attacks, you can game the system in your favor. But you can even go further than that.

For instance, you can equip your front tank with two shields, making sure you spend minimal time in the archaic menus healing yourself. As for spells, you can either upgrade the spell that hits multiple enemies to prepare them to be mowed down by your melee attackers, or have a slow caster specialize on one target spells to kill that extra-strong enemy at the end of the round.

This all combines to make a battle system that is engrossing if you take the time to understand it, even if it appears chaotic and confusing at first.


"You used an escapepipe, normally a smart move, but you will need to restart the game"

Even though this game was released only 1 year after Phantasy Star II, it nearly looks a generation better than that game. Sprites are more detailed throughout, and the environment, while less interesting, is much more detailed than before.

In the battle system, we no longer see the backs of our characters, but the enemy sprites are more varied, well-designed, and there are actually varied backgrounds instead of one black screen.

The "scene" screens are actually pretty nice

Generally, the game's presentation is acceptable for its time, even if the overall design is a bit stale and repetitive. Looking back at what I thought of PSIIs graphics, I cannot believe I was as generous as I was.

Musically, the same trend continues, with a higher number of tracks of higher quality. However, these tracks do lack the catchy nature of their predecessor. One thing of note, though, is how battles feature more than one battle track, with the planning phase and attack phase each having a different tune.


In Conclusion:

Sometimes in gaming history, you go back to a much maligned game and do not understand what all the fuss was about. Clearly, Phantasy Star III is a much better game than Phantasy Star II, yet it consistently gets lower ratings and is derided by fans of the series as an inferior game.

With its unique generation mechanics and its overall better presentation, this is a better sequel, and one with enough qualities to offset the many sins of its age.

 

Final: 7/10

Pros:

• Generational progression mechanic.
• A decent turn-based battle system.
• Decent graphical and musical presentation.

Cons:

• Too much grinding.
• Caveman game design. 
• Really a chore to play through.

Tips:

1. Save before you make any marriage decision in a different spot. Maybe you would like to go back to see another ending.
2. Make sure you rebalance your spells for what you need.
3. Many spells are cheap to use, so don't be stingy with them.
4. Generally, offense is the best form of defense, so prioritize having better weapons over defensive gear.

 

Series:

For those reading one of my Genesis review blogs for the first time, here is the basic concept:

I already reviewed a bunch of SNES games, so, naturally, I am going to review the games of its prime competition. Does the SEGA Genesis stand a chance against the legendary SNES library?

My review series is based on the top 100 list of Retro Sanctuary

Originally, I posted most of my content on a football forum called "Goallegacy," which was the first online community I had ever joined. I found it to be the best place for a football fan (the REAL football, not handegg) to hang out on the internet, but the forum is not as active as it was years ago.

 

Next Game:

This game actually gives me hope in Phantasy Star IV. After experiencing the second game, I was beginning to think the series is just hyped by Genesis fans against the mighty Final Fantasy series, but this is actually a good (if a bit aged) game.

Next in the list is ARPG and the first of many Treasure games on this list, Light Crusader @ 65. Here's hoping for a good time.

 

Stay Tuned.

 

For Previous Genesis Game Reviews:

The List

This blog was originally posted in Destructoid Community Blogs on March 30th, 2016. The blog was slightly edited to fit my newer review format.