Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation - The Student Council MMO


When I started the PSO2 anime, I expected a Sword Art Online clone--something like Log Horizon but nowhere near as clever or with as detailed a display of MMO mechanics, classes, and gameplay.   The opening minutes seemed to confirm my suspicions...and then the OP finished, and suddenly I was plunged into your stereotypical high school setting, complete with it's own Omnipotent Student Council. 



You already know who's who, don't you?

The first episode follows Itsuki Tachibana, a "handyman" who seems to be "okay" at everything he does.  Whether its grades or sports, its always "good enouogh", which leads to an unintentionally hilarious scene about his life always being just "good enough".  (With so many people falling so far short, it seems as if he's complaining about an embarrassment of riches.)   This ability to be decent, though never exceptional, at everything causes him to be recruited by the Student Council to become the Vice President...and play Phantasy Star Online 2.   They give some reason about how PSO2 is a way to study how students relate to one another outside of a school setting, but ultimately I think they just wanted to have a way to stand out from the other "video game inside a real world" anime that's been so popular lately.

What is that strange device in her hand?  A 3DS?  They sure look different now--this must be a future revision!




Once they enter back into the game, there's barely enough time left in the episode to give viewers an actual idea of what sets this fantasy game universe apart from all the others, save that players can actually...log out.   They sneak a last minute twist in that most viewers will see coming, but that doesn't take away from the depth it adds to the character involved.

Overall though, it's an average opening...which is shockingly impressive to me.  The last three or so game adaptations I've watched--Blade & Soul, BlazBlue, and Gunslinger Stratos--have all been absolute trash, so even though the characters are somewhat cliche and the story doesn't exist yet, I've still somehow got interest.  It's not actively pissing me off (and my standards for video game adaptations are lower than the bar on the last round of a professional limbo contest), is what I'm saying.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sage Spoils The Plot: Kamen Rider Decade

Image
Starting a new section today, entitled Sage Spoils The Plot. I pondered over this name for quite a while, but as I thought about it, I realized calling it commentary or blogging or whatever is just bullshit. What you're REALLY doing is spoiling the plot and adding your own brand of shitty humor. So, why not be honest? Plus, Sage Spoils The Plot has kind of a ring to it. For the first section we're doing the new Kamen Rider series of 2009, Kamen Rider Decade. Kamen Rider checks a lot of "totally fucking awesome" boxes for me. A lot of people might call it, "Japanese Power Rangers" (which is untrue from the start since that already exists) due to the suits and the fight scenes. I accept this. That said, its proof that anything done right can be cool--so when you get rid of the over-acting, toss in a good plot (exceptionally good plots actually), add in some well done characterization, and tone down the stupid-level of the fight scenes and make them look less l
Read more

The New 52, Corrected: Justice Legion A

Image
What Happened: It’s another replacement book.  This time we’re getting rid of Legion Lost.  What I’d Change: Enjoy the adventures of the Justice League of the 853rd century.  Why: Put simply?  Legion Lost didn’t have enough legs to function as an ongoing series.  A group of the Legion’s best members go to the past to combat an alien virus...and then what.  They get stuck?  Meh.  The appeal of the Legion is they’re from the future.  This could have been a great MINI-series; something with a beginning, a middle, and an end.  As an ongoing I got bored, really fast.  So instead let’s replace them with a book about the Justice League of the far future. DC's got a terrible habit of making up awesome concepts and then leaving them by the wayside, this is one of DC’s greatest and its only been revisited like, twice.  (Once by Geoff Johns with Booster Gold 1,000,000 and once with Chris Roberson with some Superman/Batman comic.)   It helps lighten the hit that came with Flashpoint
Read more