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Oops. Yea. It works great as your first game. I recommend PSIV->PSII->PSIII and maybe skip the original unless you're really into it. It's quite outdated.
The original is still a great game. But I'd recommend the `Sega Ages` version on the Nintendo Switch rather than the original because the Sega Ages version includes a couple of quality of life improvements such as a map of the dungeons. It's also a lot less "grindy".
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How can I play with you all!?
what version do you play? I believe that affects it. There are custom servers for pc and gamecube, but there's more work on dreamcast
The Dreamcast has it's own community servers and isn't compatible with Schtserv. Though I believe that might just be because Episode 2 wasn't release on the DC. I do have an account for the DC servers too but I wouldn't recommend them. The DC takes too much hassle to get online for the value when most people on the DC PSO server are there for the novelty rather than the grind.
Blue Burst (PC) has it's own community servers too. But I've never owned nor played PSO on the PC.
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The original is still a great game. But I'd recommend the `Sega Ages` version on the Nintendo Switch rather than the original because the Sega Ages version includes a couple of quality of life improvements such as a map of the dungeons. It's also a lot less "grindy".
imo part of the fun when I went back to it was drawing maps on graph paper :)
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I still play PSO weekly online with a small guild of friends.
How can I play with you all!?
It's free and they're almost always some open parties available for people to join (or create your own team and randoms will almost certainly join and help you level up).
I'm usually around on Tuesday evenings (UK timezone) but the guild meets other days too.
Do you have any characters already leveled up? Or would you be starting from scratch?
I like Phantasy Star IV, but my main love of the franchise is still Phantasy Star Online 1. From my understand during the planning phase of PSO it hadn't been decided to be a Phantasy Star game. It wasn't until later that they decided to skin the game to Phantasy Star. Funny how you can be well into development on the fundamentals of a game and not know what it will be called or exactly what it will look like.
Awesome game, highly recommended. It's fine if it's your first PS game
PS3 was one of my favorite games, maybe it's time to get myself one of those pocket emulators and play PS4 finally.
Otherwise, I recommend Retroid Pocket 6 if you like Android or want to play GC/PS2/N64, or a Miyoo Mini Plus if you don't care about any of that. Neat thing about the mini plus is its 640x480 screen, so you get Genesis/Mega Drive games edge to edge 2x integer scale if configured properly. Also has OnionOS which is a pretty good custom firmware.
Other than that, lots of these things have major problems. Watch out for things like improperly calibrated joysticks (can't run in certain directions in 3D platformers, only walking speed), screen tearing, saves disappearing from the filesystem if the system shuts down improperly during gameplay, audio crackle/poor audio in general, IPS bleed around display edges, soggy dpads, face buttons too firm, etc. A lot of problems with any given device you can run into that don't fall under the usual umbrella of review metrics, so you won't know until you realize a week into owning it why something feels off about it...
I love Phantasy Star I-IV (except III, mostly everyone agrees it's too flawed and wacky despite some good ideas). I never got into Phantasy Star Online, which is the only game people today seem to be familiar with, though. Is it even related to the original RPGs? I heard 2 has Dark Force as a boss but the events of IV make it...strange. That shouldn't be possible in-universe.
Still, Phantasy Star IV is my favorite and most likely the best RPG on the Megadrive by a long shot. It had good combat, good music, it stayed away from medieval fantasy and generally speaking was full of good vibes (except after the first battle with Zio. If you know you know.).
If you want to replay it there is a randomizer called Profound Distortion that allows to mix things up and I believe it's still in active development.
Anyway, I really loved some of the things it did with enemies like the witches using combined attacks or monsters fusing together like the Dualblade and the Life Deleter. Even today that stuff is rare to see, last game I remember with enemy fusions is Etrian Odyssey V.
I never managed to find the game in a normal shop, but when the local Blockbuster closed up, they happened to have a rental copy that I managed to get. It's still with me.