"Repetition, thy name is PSO."

Every once in a while, a game comes along that is so addictive that you won’t want to stop. However, this doesn’t necessarily interpret that this is the greatest game of all time. Yes, it is good. Yes, it is amazing. And yes, I still don’t want to play it anymore.

For such an epic saga, PSO's story is extremely weak. The plot, apparently, seems to pick up after Phantasy Star IV. Your home planet is dying and the last resort, ''Project Pioneer'' is used. Project Pioneer sends probes out to different areas of the galaxy, looking for suitable planets of habitat. Fast-forward seven years. Pioneer 2 is deployed, but before it could land on Ragol (obviously, the new planet), an explosion is seen and communication with Pioneer 1 is lost. You have been hired to go there and find out what exactly happened. This sounds like something that might branch out to be very interesting. However, it’s not. Once there, all you do is run around and kill some goons (that’s not so bad, is it?).

In the beginning, you get three choices of classes: Hunter, Force, or Ranger. Within each class, you get three different types, with a total of nine different paths. The Hunter is your standard sword-wielder. The Ranger uses guns from long-distance, and the Force uses magic powers to support team members and attack opponents.

With an international gaming base, Sonic Team has designed a clever system of communicating through language barriers. If you use preset salutations, it can appear in the other player's language setting. Neat, je? The languages are English, Japanese, French, Spanish, and German.

There's no denying it; other than Shenmue and Soul Calibur, PSO is the most graphically groundbreaking title that has been released for the Dreamcast so far. The lighting effects were done with extreme precision, and it shows off in the end result. Sunlight breaks through a canopy of trees and a stream of water on the ground reflects it. Impressed?

The music is... balanced, to say the least. The ending theme is catchy (I had ''La la la....'' stuck in my head for days), though some of the background pieces are downright annoying. I had to put my television on mute and listen to some of my dear punk rock (whoo hoo!).

So exactly why did PSO only receive a seven? The gameplay. Ugh... it's so repetitive. The standard level is combo button A, A, A, wander for the next room, and repeat. Eventually you’ll encounter the stage's boss, which is more or less the same process.

Speaking of levels, there are only four! Unbelievable! It's possible to beat the entire game in one sitting with the Online Mode. Fortunately, Sega is planning on releasing PSO v.2, which will include more weapons and get new levels! Yeah!

In the words of a great man, ''Phantasy Star Online is like a cheating girlfriend. It beats you down to the ground and laughs at you, but you keep coming back for more.'' I couldn't agree more. Sega has cleverly adapted ''rare'' items in the game. It might take you several weeks to actually get the item. And once you get it, you realize that it's a pathetic piece of junk, even though it has 12 stars (1-12 stars, 12 being the rarest). Yet despite all this, you will try to convince yourself that you’re having “fun.”

After playing for about 150 hours, I stopped playing PSO. A week later, when my friend was over my house, I picked it up and started playing it again. I go into an online game and start firing random weapons, showing my friend what the game was like. The other team member goes ''Looks like someone's a newbie.'' I go, ''No, had it for five months.'' Of course, I wasn't thinking at the moment (it hasn't been out for five months). Enter profanities. I mean, can people be any ruder (yes, Chandler isn’t the only one)?

Say you've worked for days and days to get yourself one of the best weapons in the game and now you want to show it off to everyone else. You go into a game and a team member uses GameShark codes to kill you. Might I add, when you die, your equipped weapon is dropped on the floor, free for other players to take until you reclaim it. That member just runs over and grabs it. Kiss that goodbye. And you can't get it back by choosing not to save, because if you turn off the game without saving, you'll lose all your unequipped items.

Although the title is Phantasy Star Online, it can be played locally. However, I strongly recommend that you don’t do so. Offline mode is extremely boring and repetitive (even more so than normal).

How exactly Phantasy Star Online has 235,000 gamers is beyond me. It's pretty good, but it's not as spectacular as it's cracked up to be. In any case, it's up to anyone's opinion, and this is mine. A definite buy over rent, but wait until the price drops to at least $30. I'm sure you'll enjoy it thoroughly, though after the first hundred hours, you’ll never pick it up again. Never. But then again, there’s that Sonic Adventure 2 demo...

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 04/29/01, Updated 04/29/01