We can’t contain our excitement, a new Phantasy Star game is coming out for Nintendo DS! Today, SEGA of America and SEGA of Europe (finally) put up an official release for Phantasy Star Ø, a triumphant return to the playstyle of an old favorite, Phantasy Star Online.

The Phantasy Star Online series is legendary to me; a great dungeon crawler game that I’ve played with friends across a number of different platforms, and soon to be played again on the Nintendo DS. We’ve been discussing the game in the office for the past few months, ever since it was first rumored to be released internally. It’s so fun to be able to talk the finer details of the game and recount old stories and experiences from the previous releases.  In fact, we’re so excited, both Ruby and I writing our own articles about the release!

There are some really hardcore Phantasy Star fans in the office, and we’ve even gone out and picked up the Japanese import release for ‘research’. Returning to the Phantasy Star world is great and being able to enjoy it everywhere is even better. My commute has been a dream and I’ve even gone hungry a few days so I could play a bit more during my lunch break.

You can read the full press release here; and check out the first screens on our flickr page. If you are excited about Phantasy Star Ø, come join the discussion on our forums and check us out on Facebook!

Just under a year ago, when I first started working at SEGA as a game master on Phantasy Star Universe, I heard something dropped in one of our meetings that caught my ear. It was one of those moments where someone casually mentions something far from casual, and it takes you a few seconds before you stop, your mind realizes what they just said, and you halt the entire previous conversation solely in order to make sure you just heard that right.

“A new PSO game?”, I asked. As in timed combat, Mags, Photon Blasts, and techniques I don’t have to link to weapons?

“Yes.” Came the answer.

I smiled.

One of the new areas in PSZ features a night-time snow-covered landscape under a shining white moon. Sweet.

Ever since then, the Phantasy Star fan in me has been eagerly awaiting the day that Phantasy Star Zero would finally arrive. Now, that day has come at last, with PSZ officially announced for the US/Europe this morning and also shown in the latest issue of Nintendo Power:

Like Clumsy mentioned in his blog, we picked up some copies and have been ‘testing’ it out – go HUnewm! I’m stoked to see the US version  so I can understand the story – and there is a lot of it – but for now, my import copy will have to do. We’ll have even more about PSZ and the US release here on the blogs as we roll towards next fall.

Are there any PSO fans out there reading who are also looking forward to it? (Or if you’re hardcore and imported, what do you think of it so far?)