We asked Hiro Arai, the official navigator of PSO2 NEW GENESIS, about the updates coming in February 2022 and beyond.

　The online RPG PSO2 NEW GENESIS (PC/PS4/Switch), which SEGA released in June 2021, is the latest in a series of games that began with Phantasy Star Online, which was released for the Dreamcast on December 21, 2000.
　It is also positioned as an incredibly large update for their previous title, Phantasy Star Online 2 (PC/PS4/Switch), and some of the data can be shared and played between the two titles.


　Sandstorm Requiem, the game’s first major update, was released in December 2021. With it came a new region, Retem, and the new stories set there. The level cap was also raised, and the hard-to-get Relik weapon series was released, so it seems they’ve been able to resolve player dissatisfaction regarding a lack of content.
　We sat down with the game’s official navigator, Hiro Arai, and talked about players’ reactions to this update as well as about future updates.

Original Interview （Japanese）



4Gamer:
　It’s been about a month since the major update Sandstorm Requiem was released. How did the players react?

Hiro Arai:
　We’ve received positive comments stating that the new Retem Region has higher-quality graphics compared to Aelio. The dev team is very happy to hear that players are enjoying the beautiful landscapes and the unique and drastic weather changes.

4Gamer:
　What about the new stories, enemies, and weapons?

Hiro Arai:
　Players enjoyed the content and songs featured in the stories. Also, some responded that the character development was more in-depth than in Aelio.

　The amount and diversity of enemies and the variety of battle styles have made combat more interesting, and some have said that the high-performance but difficult-to-obtain Relik weapons series has motivated them to grind for rare drops as well. We are very grateful that our players are enjoying it.
　The addition of the Active Sonar function to Mags has also made gathering materials and searching for Red Item Containers easier, which has also been well-received.


4Gamer:
　On the other hand, has there been any negative feedback?

Hiro Arai:
　Although there is more than what we had in Aelio, we have received some comments that the amount of story-based content is still insufficient. There also seem to be many players that feel that leveling up more than two classes is rough.
　Along with the above feedback, the dev team is listening to the various comments we’re receiving from players and will make the necessary improvements in future updates.

On the updates after February

4Gamer:
　Nadereh’s in-game concert was implemented on February 9. The two songs from the story are included here. Will there be new songs in the future?

Hiro Arai:
　We have no comment on this as of now. It all depends on how players receive and respond to this update, and we will report on this topic accordingly.


4Gamer:
　Please tell us why Nadereh’s songs are jazz while the PSO2 popstar, Quna, has a pop idol style.

Hiro Arai:
　They thought jazz would be fitting for the desert and canyons of Retem, Retem City, the NPC Nadereh, and the mood of the story. The PSO2 popstar, Quna, had idol-style songs, so many players were a little surprised by the difference.

4Gamer:
　The level cap increased to 40 along with the in-game concert release. In April, it’ll be raised to level 45, and in June, level 60. Will the level cap continue to rise at the same pace beyond that as well?
　Also, will there be new weapons added each time the level cap increases?

Hiro Arai:
　I believe that the level cap increases will slow down after reaching level 60. The timing of that is still undecided, and it seems that like in PSO2, the level cap will stop increasing once it reaches a certain point.

　New weapons will be added in the future, but to keep players motivated to grind for rare drops, weapons stronger than the Relik series will not be implemented for a while.
　
　The Cinquem weapon series coming on February 16 is fairly easy to obtain and performs well. However, the materials needed to enhance them are a bit special, so they are tricky in that aspect compared to the Relik series. I’m looking forward to seeing which weapons players go for.


4Gamer:
　Will Class Skills and Photon Arts also be added along with level cap increases?

Hiro Arai:
　There are plans to add new Class Skills when the level cap increases to level 60 as outlined in the roadmap. Other than that, it seems they will decide on the timing based on the situation, similar to the level cap raises.

4Gamer:
　In PSO2, equipment of the highest rarity could not be sold or traded in the Personal Shop for a while. Will it be this way in NGS as well?

Hiro Arai:
　There are plans to add in items that players will not be able to list in the Personal Shop. I believe this will start with 6-star rarity equipment, and they are making considerations to ensure that our players can enjoy the challenge of getting their hands on the rarest equipment available.

　For weapons, I hear that a system similar to PSO2’s Weapon Transmutation will be added sometime in the future. If a weapon is powerful but doesn't look appealing to you, you will be able to change the appearance of it to your favorite weapon.
　However, if we keep the same specifications for Weapon Transmutation as in PSO2, the only difference between that and Weapon Camo will be that visual changes will be permanent. Therefore, they are discussing making it a function that's different from what we had before.

4Gamer:
　Let’s talk about High Rank Sectors. Rank 3 of Mount Magnus will be added on February 9, Rank 3 of the Vanford Laboratory Ruins on February 16, and Rank 2 of Resol Forest on February 22. High Rank Sectors have also been implemented in several areas before, but is anything different about them this time?

Hiro Arai:
　There will be new formidable enemies called Megalotix in the added High Rank Sectors. As of the February 9 update, you can enhance your equipment up to +50. This enemy will drop Arms Refiner, a material item that you will need for enhancement, so be sure to hunt them down!

　It seems that the Relik series weapons will not drop in these High Rank Sectors, so we will choose which region to play in depending on whether we want enhancement materials or the Relik series.

Urgent Quest: Dark Falz Interception

4Gamer:
　Will the Urgent Quest: Dark Falz Interception, coming on February 16, have the same specs as the other Urgent Quests so far?

Hiro Arai:
　I believe so. When Urgent Quests occur, the quests themselves are randomly selected. This one will occur in Aelio, and to participate, your Battle Power will need to be at 1898 or higher, and you will need to have completed all of the main story tasks that are currently available.
　I've heard that the occurrence rate will be set higher right after it’s released, so there will be many opportunities to join in the fight.


4Gamer:
　Are there any other exclusive items that drop from this Quest, other than the Cinquem series?

Hiro Arai:
　The C/Eradi Soul Augment Capsules are guaranteed to drop. There are I, II, and III, which add HP, PP, and Potency to your weapons, and whichever one drops will be random.

About other updates as well as PSO2’s 10th Anniversary and NGS’s 1st Anniversary

4Gamer:
　The Party Bonus was implemented in the February 9 update. What made you bring back something that was in the Closed Beta Test but disappeared at launch?

Hiro Arai:
　We received a lot of requests for this feature. In NGS, we wanted to allow players to play freely in the open field and enjoy the game without having to form a party.
　However, many players wanted benefits to being in a party, so we decided to implement it again after reviewing the specifications.


4Gamer:
　The next major update is coming in June. Will there be a new region with this update as well?

Hiro Arai:
　Yes, we will see the opening of a new region. The developers are working very hard to make this new region even bigger, more fun, and more beautiful than Retem.
　It seems they have new gameplay and new action in store for all of us, and I myself can’t wait to jump in and play.
　I can’t reveal any more information, so stay tuned for more information coming around April.

　There are also plans to implement Super Challenging Quests and Limited-time Quests like in PSO2 following spring. So it’s just a little longer until we can enjoy this content too.


4Gamer:
　NGS welcomes its 1st Anniversary in June. And in July, PSO2 celebrates its 10th Anniversary. Are there any plans for offline events?

Hiro Arai:
　Both the dev and live ops teams want to hold offline events. However, due to the global pandemic situation, it might turn out to be quite different from our past thank-you events or ARKS Fests. Please sit tight until more details are announced officially.

4Gamer:
　Could we have a message from you to the players?

Hiro Arai:
　Thank you all for playing NGS.
　I personally really enjoy Nadereh's extravagant performance and songs!
　New players will be able to watch it from the large monitor in Central City as well, and I'd be happy if you enjoyed this in-game concert as much as I did.
　There is also Dark Falz, who will be invading in an Urgent Quest soon. The required Battle Power to take on this Quest is fairly high, but the rewards and Titles you can gain are pretty sweet, so I implore you to level up your character and take on the challenge!
　We want to make it a memorable year both in-game and in-person for PSO2's 10th Anniversary and the NGS's 1st Anniversary.
　We have a powered-up Seasonal Event in store leading up to the next major update coming in June.
　Our teams are hard at work, not just to create content, but also to make improvements based on the valuable feedback we've received via various channels such as surveys and customer support. I will continue to answer your questions and feedback on NGS Headline as well.
　We are all giving our best to make NGS more fun for everyone with more content, more frequent updates, and more improvements, and we wouldn't be here without your support.

Other questions

4Gamer:
　Why aren’t there more Outerwear items included in AC Scratch Tickets?

Hiro Arai:
　This is because items that change the appearance drastically in one go are prioritized when creating NGS-spec outfits and Parts. Since the workload required to develop Basewear and Outerwear is almost the same, we can create more outfit variations by creating two Basewear items instead of creating one Basewear and one Outerwear item.
　We have quite the wardrobe available now from all of the releases we’ve done, so I hear that the plan is to release more Outerwear items going forward.

4Gamer:
　I feel like many of the outfits are quite revealing. I was surprised to see that the Christmas outfits for 2021 had bikinis, which other online games would usually release in the third or fourth year when they would have run out of ideas.

Hiro Arai:
　Since revealing outfits are in high demand and many people like to wear them, it may give the impression that such outfits are common.

　The development team also took into consideration the designs of the outfits and Parts that were released in PSO2 and aimed to make different items.
　Because of that, NGS has come to have many bold designs. They are discussing adding more highly-requested traditional designs in the future, so please keep an eye out for them.

4Gamer:
　With so many players communicating at the same time, the maximum number of characters that can be displayed is 32, which seems like a low number. Is it possible to increase the number of characters displayed by preparing an area with a low volume of peripheral displays?

Hiro Arai:
　Graphics-wise, the display load on characters is the highest, which makes it difficult to increase the number of characters shown even in extremely low-load surroundings, for example in a simple white room.

　In this interview, Hiro Arai, the official navigator, answered questions we had for the development team. Some of the answers were also presented in a recent broadcast of the official program NGS Headline.
　They also responded regarding the frequency of CAST Parts releases and revival releases of avatar items, so please check out the article explaining this.

※The responsibility for the contents of the Japanese article lies with 4Gamer.
The responsibility for the translation lies with SEGA.