Phantasy Star Online pricing seems to have been established for the XBox

[Adam Tyner]

http://gamestop.com/product.asp?cookie%5Ftest=1&product%5Fid=210292

Game is $39.99, first two months are free, $8.95 every month after...

[Achika]

Like I and other XBOX Live doubters said all along, Sega/Sonic Team will be charging extra to play online!

According to this months Official XBOX Magazine, there will be a two month free online trial(the GC's trial is only one month), and after that it will be the same as the Gamecube, $8.95 a month for a Hunter's License.

So basically the people that had both systems and were waiting on the XBOX one because it "wouldn't have extra fees" are screwed and far behind.

[Achika]

Funny stuff!

Apparently you'll need an XBOX Live account just to even play PSO OFFLINE!

[Adam Tyner]

Originally posted by Achika
So basically the people that had both systems and were waiting on the XBOX one because it "wouldn't have extra fees" are screwed and far behind.

In fairness, though, the XBox version does have a lot of extra features that the GameCube doesn't, like voice communication, content downloads, etc.

I don't think Microsoft ever said "there will be no extra fees for XBox Live games", and it was speculated pretty much from day one that it would cost a little cash to play PSO online. Unfortunately, a lot of people apparently bought into the wrong speculation... XBox Live did tout its unified billing structure, but I'd imagine in the case of PSO that it means the credit card you used to sign up with XBox Live will be charged instead of having to establish a different account with a different company.

[Achika]

Originally posted by Adam Tyner
In fairness, though, the XBox version does have a lot of extra features that the GameCube doesn't, like voice communication, content downloads, etc.

Voice Communication...real great feature that is. Because of that, and this is official btw, US players can only play with US players. Same goes for EU with EU and JP with JP.

Content downloads? :rolleyes: You mean the same exact things the GC version is getting minus the GBA mini-games?

Etc? What is Etc? There is no new class like was being rumored so. What is Etc?



As for the extra fees I know that MS has always said that any extra fees past the XBOX Live one is up to developers. But nobody ever believed me when I said that PSO XBOX WILL have an extra fee. That's all I'm saying.

[Adam Tyner]

Originally posted by Achika
Content downloads? :rolleyes: You mean the same exact things the GC version is getting minus the GBA mini-games?

I don't know. I don't even have any interest in PSO -- I was just passing along the news. I guess that was my first mistake since posting anything about the XBox on Toon Zone tends to get really nasty really quickly. :(

Team XBox posted this about downloads:

This $8.95 will be going directly to SEGA, who will be developing more downloadable content for the game as time goes on, so the game will continue to develop as expected.

I guess more will be revealed as it gets closer to the release date. I would imagine the XBox's hard drive would give it increased capability as far as downloadable content goes vs. the competition.


Etc? What is Etc? There is no new class like was being rumored so. What is Etc?

Etc. == other things in the press release I skimmed through that I may have forgotten to mention


As for the extra fees I know that MS has always said that any extra fees past the XBOX Live one is up to developers.

Right, but you also said they were 'screwed'. If someone makes a choice based on inaccurate or incomplete information, I'm not sure how that's the fault of Sega or Microsoft. For the disbelievers...

From GameDaily interview with MS Head of Platform Evangelism (http://www.gamedaily.com/features/xbox_live/) back in August:


A premium service will be offered to those who wish to implement pay-for-play or subscription services, and of course those users will be charged an extra fee for services rendered.


Microsoft will sell a $49.95 bundle that will contain the Xbox headset Communicator, as well as a one-year subscription to the online service (good for playing any non-fee based online title).

From a Gaming Age article on the XBL launch (http://www.gaming-age.com/cgi-bin/specials/special.pl?spec=xbl&pagenum=1):


The service itself entails unlimited online gaming to most games. Developers are free to add additional charges for updates or even to play their game at their discretion.

I dunno, I would absolutely agree that this is disappointing, but I don't think it's entirely reasonable to fault XBox Live for failing to deliver on promises Microsoft never made.

[NachoHat]

Umm...this isn't exactly "official", ya know? It's from Gamestop, for crying out loud. Xbox Suikoden 3 anyone?

Two, if this is true...I don't even care at all. To me, this means I saved about $16. There's a good chance I won't even be playing PSO a year after it comes out and even if I am, I'll probably be able to pay for a year of Xbox Live for $50 again, which I would probably do anyways even without PSO. So...this means nothing to me.
So, in short, even at it's worst I'd still rather do this than the communication-free GC version that requires me to pay $50 for something I may NEVER use again.

The thing about not being able to play it offline without an Xbox Live account is probably just a misunderstanding, even though I don't care either ways.

It IS extremely lame that US players can't play with people with
different versions, though. I never really played with people in other countries in the DC version but it's still nice to have the option.

[Adam Tyner]

Originally posted by NachoHat
Umm...this isn't exactly "official", ya know? It's from Gamestop, for crying out loud. Xbox Suikoden 3 anyone?

Here's the full press release from Microsoft:


Microsoft Games Studios today announced that it will distribute SEGA's "Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II" for Xbox in North America. The award-winning online role-playing series, which had more than 400,000 registered online users on the SEGA Dreamcast, arrives on store shelves this coming March and will be playable through Xbox LIVE™. In addition, the Xbox Communicator headset is fully compatible with "Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II," enabling gamers from across North America to chat with each other with ease.

To play the game online, Xbox LIVE™ subscribers will be required to buy a "hunter's license," which gives gamers the ability to travel on wild adventures with other "Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II" gamers. It also provides access to a plethora of online exclusive content such as seasonal quests, downloads and rare in-game items. The hunter's license is free of charge for the first two months, and after that will carry a service fee of $8.95 per month.

Developed by famed SEGA game designer Yuji Naka and SONICTEAM, "Phantasy Star Online Episode I and II" features two games in one: Episode I contains all of the content from "Phantasy Star Online" and "Phantasy Star Online Ver. 2," while Episode II brings gamers back for an all-new adventure on the planet of Ragol. Gamers will search unchartered areas, battle unique monsters and discover numerous items. Both episodes can be played online or offline with up to four gamers. Additional game modes include Challenge and Battle. Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound is also supported in "Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II." An Xbox LIVE™ account is required to play "Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II" both offline and online.

[Floydian Slip]

eh, i liked the dc version. it ruled when i imported it and laughed at you all with my *****in 8 bucks for 3 months. yea, the best way to go was import it when it first came out, then all the little v.1 people could hang there heads in shame as i walked around with a gold name kicking ass. then it got boaring. i'm not even gonna bother checking out this version because i beat everything avalible (at the time that i had it) and enjoyed it. i've moved on past it.

[JohnCrichton]

Aside from the voice thingie and a keyboard, I don't see this as being much.

My friend actually is going to hook me and my other buddy up with a custom keyboard for about 20 bucks.

I'll let you guys know how it turns out...

[Adam Tyner]

Originally posted by AdamXS
Maybe I'm missing something, but why is an Xbox Live account required to play Phantasy Star Online offline?

Seems to me that they'll just end up with some angry customers and lost sales by doing this?

It definitely doesn't just seem that way to you.

Here's what Team XBox said about it:


Why? Well, the answer is probably a lot simpler than you might expect. The game was originally designed by SEGA as a launch title for Xbox Live in Japan, so the Live requirement was a given. The way the game initiates is designed around your Live account, so the game needs to access the account to play, even if you are not playing the game online. When Microsoft acquired the rights to distribute the game in the US, this requirement was left in place since the amount of time and effort that would have been needed to remove and rebuild the structure of the game would have pushed back the release of the game, causing a delay that was in the end deemed unnecessary. So gamers will just have to bite the bullet and get themselves an Xbox Live account if they want to play Phantasy Star Online. Don’t forget however, you will also get the Hunter’s License for 2 months for free, so you can at least take advantage of that even if you don’t plan on continuing the server beyond that.

[Achika]

I never said Microsoft screwed people.

I meant that the people with such stupidly high expectations screwed themselves out of stupidity.

Microsoft is screwing the good(?) name of PSO though. It was always meant for players across the world to play with each other and communicate on a semi-decent level. At least the GC version stays true to that.

[atf487]

Achika, how can you communicate with the GC version?

Voice > keyboard, anyway

[Achika]

Gee I don't know how I've been communicating with many players since November.

Maybe with the software keyboard?

[NachoHat]

Maybe with the software keyboard?
The one that costs $100+?

[Achika]

Originally posted by NachoHat
The one that costs $100+?

Guh?

Must I say in-game keyboard now so you won't confuse software with hardware?

[Perfect Cell]

The Xbox version will have less stuff than the GC version. Gamecube owners get stuff like the Nights into Dreams mini game.


I really dont see how people actually thought PS0 would be Free, All MMORPGs will have aditional fees on Xbox live. Just because your paying 50 dollars doesnt mean you wont have to pay 9.99 a month extra to play stuff like Star Wars Galaxies or True Fantasy

[NachoHat]

Must I say in-game keyboard now so you won't confuse software with hardware?
Oh, I really didn't think about that seeing how, as far as I'm concerned, that's NOT a form of communication. I couldn't stand 2 weeks with that thing when I first got PSO. I sure as hell wouldn't stand 2 months with it.

[atf487]

I hate Sega for this pricing thing, but the problem is Sega is providing the servers. I heard that somewhere, anyway. With most Live games, the servers are provided my Microsoft, so I guess they needed to pay for them somehow. Extremely dumb part on Sega, this is the first thing I've seen them done that I can't find a good reason for.

Anyway, software keyboards are crap. I laugh at you for thinking that's a decent form of communication.

Perfect Cell: Uhh, no. The Xbox version should be getting more then the GC, because of one thing. The hard drive. Hope they use it, anyway, since they are making you pay for content downloads, they should exceed what the GC ones can offer.