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There’s a curse going on, I tell ya! There’s a curse behind it all! *throws a look at Joachim, who is totally innocent*

‘History repeats itself.’ - a saying that applies to me so very relevantly.

November of 02, I had had my GameCube for 3 months, and was eagerly anticipating Phantasy Star Online Episodes 1&2. The Japanese version was released a month earlier, but I would need to mod my GameCube, and buy a separate memory card (note for GameCube idiots: US game saves cannot be mixed with Japanese game saves. Not sure about EU game saves, which nobody cares about. :P) if I were to play that version. No, I wanted my GameCube to be a virgin. I was going to hold on longer, and when I hold the game in my hands, I would savour it like a famished beggar would to a fresh piece of bread.

But it was not to be. The US game never reached the sunny shores of Singapore soon enough. November was gone, and December came. Day after day I called my favourite retailer, along with all other reputable game retailers, hoping that the wait would finally be over. My friends and I had already planned our PSO itinery a whole six months ago.

We were all eventually disappointed, for in late December, I had decided to sell away my small collection of GameCube merchandise. I was determined to quit gaming, and that was the first Neil Armstrong step I would take. The US version of said game eventually fell into my fellow GameCube enthusiasts in mid-January.

A weak-minded person I have always been. Hence it was no surprise that I bought my second GameCube in March, 3 months after I dipped my hands into the golden tub. My former passion for the purple machine soon returned, only this time, the machine was platinum.

But not all of my passion came back. In particular, Phantasy Star Online Episode 1&2 no longer meant anything to me by then. It was ‘O’ level year, and nobody would have the time to role-play, much less role-play together in a multiplayer title such as thee. Or so we thought..

As any fan of any single videogame would tell you, name any unreleased game on the preferred platform, and he/she would give you the lowdown on said game. So it was inevitable that I came across news of a third Phantasy Star Online, this time a card game. I was intrigued by its claim of multiplayer co-operative card play, as well as a compelling storyline and enchanting character art. No doubt it was going to be one of my most anticipated title.

The Japanese version was finally released in late November. Months before the release date had I decided to be one of the first Singaporeans to pick up a copy, and start playing online. By now you may be wondering: ‘PSO Ep3, being a card game, must be extremely text intensive. How would you be able to make heads or tails out of it?’ I could not read Japanese, and I definitely would not be able to make heads or tails out of the game, if it did not include a ‘full-English’ option. All previous Phantasy Star Online games featured multiple languages, and seeing the trend, Episode 3 should have been totally in English as well. But it wasn’t, and I did not pick up the game. It would be months later before Sonic Team announced a proper US release date.

The wait was long and hard. In February, the confirmed release date was finally announced - early March. Though not the most specific of dates, it was enough to know when I would roughly receive it. However, in February, I was all ready to trade my GameCube away for some cash. I hadn’t touched it for the past 2 months or so, and seeing as how I also had a PS2 and an Xbox, there was really no reason for me to keep the GameCube. There were too many games I could buy but never play.

History had repeated itself… or has it?

My original intention was to forget about Episode 3 altogether as well. However, a recent incident had made the then foolish me resort to a method of getting my mind off things, and the game seemed to fit the bill. I made plans to borrow a GameCube, and bought the game.

It was awesome. Probably the first and only game to have made and will ever make me forget about bathing for 60 hours straight. I was the kind of person who would cringe if I didn’t get my 2 bathes, both half an hour each, a day, mind you. The addiction completely destroyed my scheduled plans. Japanese classes? No way. Movie outing? Some other time, perhaps. However, the destruction was not solely caused by the addiction - I had caught a terrible flu just a few hours before receiving Episode 3, that lasted a whole week.

If I had not been so muddle-headed, I would have missed Episode 3 - the second time I would have skipped on a game I had been anticipating all year long. I didn’t know if I should be happy or sad about it. On the one hand, I was glad to find out that all the anticipation was rightfully justied. On the other, my life was destroyed.

The worst was yet to come. Right now I face the toughest decision that may quite possibly affect my life significantly. Should I or should I not buy a third GameCube, if only for the sake of playing Episode 3?

I was so smitten with the game that my initial answer was an undoubtedly ‘yes’. However, as luck would have it, all the reputable game retailers that I buy from had ran out of stock for the mighty machine. I have waited for more than a week now, and finally some stocks have appeared. However, the prices were slightly higher than before - a mere 15 dollar increase at least. I ponder ‘is God trying to dissuade me from making another big mistake?’

No amount of debating would justify either choice I have right now. But for now, I’ve received great advice from a great person. I shall get occupied with life’s more menial and pressing tasks, and maybe make the purchase as and when I feel that I am ready for it, as punishment for lacking the foresight.

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Did’ja know.. that Phantasy Star Online was the first console RPG to have ever went online? It was one of the flagship titles that embraced the ill-fated Sega Dreamcast console. The Dreamcast was also the first videogame console to have went online.

Phantasy Star Online has also received many, many updates. First there was Phantasy Star Online on the Dreamcast. Then version 2.0 came out for the same system. Sonic Team eventually published Episode 1 and 2 on both the GameCube and the Xbox, while version 2.0 was made into a PC game. Eventually, a major bug was detected early on in the Japanese GameCube version of Episode 1&2, and Sonic Team released a Japanese-only Episode 1&2 version 1.1. One whole year later, at the same time as the Japanese Episode 3’s release, the latest incarnation, called Episode 1&2 Plus, was released for the GameCube in Japan. This new edition basically was the same as version 1.1, but had all the downloadable content, such as new quests and even a NiGHTS into Dreams GBA game, packed into the disc.

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