Phantasy Star Portable

 PSP
  • Publisher: Sega
  • Release Date: Mar 3, 2009
Phantasy Star Portable Image
Metascore
64

Mixed or average reviews - based on 38 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 24 Ratings

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  • Summary: Fans of the acclaimed Phantasy Star Universe series can now explore Gurhal on-the-go via the PSP m. Up to four friends team up to unravel the exclusive new storyline that picks up where Phantasy Star Universe ends and before the start of PSU: Ambition of the Illuminus. The infestation of theFans of the acclaimed Phantasy Star Universe series can now explore Gurhal on-the-go via the PSP m. Up to four friends team up to unravel the exclusive new storyline that picks up where Phantasy Star Universe ends and before the start of PSU: Ambition of the Illuminus. The infestation of the alien SEED was thought to be under control by the end of PSU, but a new menace has stricken the Gurhal system. Alongside a new character named Vivienne, players must investigate the contamination and clear out the affected wildlife. In this intriguing new installment, players will delve deeper than ever before into the mysteries of Phantasy Star Universe. [Sega]… Expand
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 38
  2. Mixed: 25 out of 38
  3. Negative: 5 out of 38
  1. 1UP
    91
    Any port that makes me consider giving the source material another spin is worth the price of admission any day.
  2. Impulsegamer
    78
    In conclusion, this game does add another level to the franchise that has been successfully transferred to the PSP with strong gameplay, decent graphics, although sometimes a little dated and an impressive soundtrack.
  3. Cheat Code Central
    74
    The story presentation isn't so hot, and the gameplay can get repetitive, but hunting for items, weapons, and gaining experience is addictive.
  4. SpazioGames
    70
    Quotation forthcoming.
  5. Multiplayer.it
    65
    Whoever fell in love with Phantasy Star Universe will certainly like this porting, for better or for worse. The franchise however needs nowadays a severe update to be more attractive: combat is definitely out-of-date and gameplay becomes repetitive soon despite of the multiplayer mode. Nevertheless, fans of the genre or the series will like this portable installment of their favourite dungeon-crawling.
  6. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    60
    Ask yourself: how much do you care about fictional weaponry? [June 2009, p.95]
    All this publication's reviews
  7. RPGamer
    30
    If you can track down three friends to play with and enjoy this style of gameplay, Phantasy Star Portable might be an enjoyable experience. However, it remains an excessively repetitive grindfest with little lasting appeal, regardless of multiplayer capabilities.

See all 38 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. VagrantW
    Mar 17, 2009
    9
    My history with Phantasy Star has been storied; I loved the first four games, they were wonderful. Phantasy Star Online I hated at first, but My history with Phantasy Star has been storied; I loved the first four games, they were wonderful. Phantasy Star Online I hated at first, but I warmed up to it slowly, I played it for a little while and it was fun but an easily forgettable game, not really Phantasy Star at all (it would've fared better had it had another name). So I'd pretty much given up on the franchise until I caught wind of Universe. I gave Phantasy Star Universe a try and that seemed very promising, but the 'kewl kid' I had to play as, Ethan Waber, was more boring than the Houses of Parliament on a dull day, that coupled with the painfully bad voice acting of some of the characters (especially the Neuman female) realy put me off it. And at the end of the day, that's sad because I saw some real potential there. I tried Phantasy Star Portable not really expecting anything special, but I was interested because it was the same sort of thing as PSU but I would no longer have to play Ethan Waber (huge bonus), I could play my own character instead. What I found I was pleasantly surprised about, quite so indeed. The gameplay is exactly the same as Universe, and that's a good thing because it's a nice little Diablo-style dungeon romp, that's what the gameplay elements are, and they do that well. What was great about the game though was outside of that. The storyline was a little on the predictable side, but the characters were handled very well, especially the CAST named Vivienne whom it'st he player's duty to help evolve as a character. The charming interactions between the characters made the pedestrian storyline come alive, and because of that it feels like the most 'Phantasy Star' game to date since IV. All in all, Phantasy Star Portable is what I would consider the first point of logical evolution from Phantasy Star IV in the current generation of technology, and if Sega plays this right then they could easily have a cult classic on their hands. I'm already eagerly looking forward to Phantasy Star Zero and hoping for more of the same. One thing I am going to snark at though is the poor Games Radar review, which actually complained about the characters having depth. So... what, a handheld RPG has to have shallow characters to be enjoyable? I don't think so. Just because it's on a handheld doesn't mean a game has to be instant gratification, that's not at all what Phantasy Star Portable is about. And in fact, this only more proves my point that it's more true to the originals in that it has decent characters. These young reviewers have no idea what the original Phantasy Star was like. So to fans of Phantasy Star (I through IV), I'd say give this a look. The gameplay is no longer the same, it had to evolve to keep up instead of remaining stuck in the past, but the feel of it is there, and if you're willing to give it a chance, it'll grow on you.… Expand
  2. MarlonB
    Mar 15, 2009
    9
    An amazing port of an awesome game. Ugh, but no online multiplayer?! Still the best PSP game by far.
  4. BizitmapB
    Mar 15, 2009
    8
    While some of the more irksome behaviors of Universe, such as dumb NPC AI and silly storyline, are still present, the 90% of the time you While some of the more irksome behaviors of Universe, such as dumb NPC AI and silly storyline, are still present, the 90% of the time you spend hacking and slashing at endless hordes of nasty critters is a lot of fun, as is getting all the very different weaponry to lay down the law.… Expand
  5. Welterweight426
    Aug 16, 2012
    7
    This game is good for mindless entertainment. The story is cliched and relatively boring. The characters are horribly voiced and lack depth.This game is good for mindless entertainment. The story is cliched and relatively boring. The characters are horribly voiced and lack depth. Your choices sort of matter but the game is only really good for the dungeons. However, you better be ready to see the same dungeons over and over again. I was entertained only because of the nice music, loads of weapons and excellent graphics (for the psp). Lastly, this game has a fantastic customization system for a portable game.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

47
#47 Best PSP Game of 2009
34
#34 Most Discussed PSP Game of 2009
56
#56 Most Shared PSP Game of 2009