Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6637 in Video Games
• Brand: Sega Of America, Inc.
• Platform: Sega Genesis

Customer Reviews

Phantasy Star III doesn't get the credit due to it.
Even among Phanatics like myself, Phantasy Star III tends to get passed off as a lacking game. This is truely sad, however, because it's not in any sense of the term.
Phantasy Star III does differ from the other games in the series, as its graphical style is a bit more detailed, but there is less animation in the battles. Significantly less. This is the biggest drawback of the game. The other drawback is that if the game had been translated more closely from the Japanese version, it would be considerably more indepth.

Nonetheless, Phantasy Star III has 4 different endings, and spans the adventures of 3 generations of heros-- and YOU get to decide who each generation's main character marries. At first, Phantasy Star III seems to have no apparent connection to the rest of the series, but an attentive gamer will have it figured out by the end of the game.
Some would say the game is fairly shallow, but if you track the careers of each character as they appear in different versions of the same generation, there is a deep story waiting to be revealed.
In any case, the game is well worth picking up. Those that were introduced to the Phantasy Star series with Phantasy Star III will swear by the game-- As with many things, for those who love Phantasy Star, you tend to love the first one you played the most.

Great game which deserves more credit than it is given
PS3- nicknamed the black sheep of the PS series. I have no idea why, as it is a great game, given you are willing to take the time to play the game. First off, the story. You are Rhys, a young prince who finds a mysterious woman named Maia on the beaches of Landen, your father's kingdom. You are arranged to marry her, however right before you say your vows, a dragon grabs her and snatches her away. Thus begins your adventure to save Maia. The story is not as cliched as you may think, because along the way you meet another woman who you can marry, and advance to the next generation.
The gameplay here is your standard, old school RPG fare, buy some weapons, go kill some enemies to gain experience. Fans of Dragon Quest will find similarities in the battle system. The real kicker to the game that sold me was the multiple endings. As stated before, you can marry other women in the game with each starting generation character. This gives you more stories, more endings, etc.
If you are wondering whether or not to buy this game because of the story spoilers from the previous games, do not worry. PS3 takes place at least 1000 years after PS2, and even then there are VERY few story references to it and other games in the series. This game was a favorite of mine back in Junior High, and I would reccommend it to anyone who is a fan of old school role playing games who love replay value.

Not The Best From The Series
Personally, I believe this is the worst of the Phantasy Star games, but I'm not saying it's bad. It's a great game the spans over 3 generations. The characters you play depends on your choices. Kinda like what some of the new systems are trying to do now, only sucking at it. Sega was 15 years ahead of their time, and this series proves it.

Now more about the game. The gameplay like the others is great, the caves are always changing, and your freedom to roam spans over 7 worlds. And as always you don't have to progress in the story to level up like most RPG's.