The PS & PSO2 anniversary celebrations will be marked with a live-streamed event in Tokyo,
Celebrate the 35th Phantasy Star Anniversary with a Live Orchestral Concert
Written by Ollie Bradley at 01/15/2023, 06:37 AM
There seems to be something about anime MMOs and celebrating with IRL concerts, with SEGA soon to be the latest to mark their PSO2 anniversary with some sweet classical music courtesy of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. Though with a franchise as legendary as Phantasy Star, we'd say it's worth the fuss.
The Phantasy Star anniversary celebrations are twofold, as SEGA is marking 10 years of Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis and a whopping 35 years of the entire Phantasy Star series.
Entitled Sympathy 2023, the concert is set to be held at Bunkamura Orchard Hall on January 21st at 1am PST. This concert isn't the franchise's first, but it will have been two years since the last orchestral performance celebrating the sci-fi fantasy MMO.
Sympathy 2023 will feature Phantasy Star star Azusa Tadokoro, who voices Nadareh in Phantasy Star Online 2. She will be lending her voice to the proceedings by performing Song of War and Song of Mourning, while a vocal rendition of Unfathomable Darkness will open the show.
Other vocalists will include Annette Marie Cotrill, Mika Arisaka, Aimee Blackschleger, Karen, Jiro Takano, Florence McNair, Takenobu Mitsuyoshi, and Satomi Sato, with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Masamichi Amano.
Anybody who wishes to witness the show for themselves can attend the live stream from wherever they are around the world. The event will require a ticket, however, which can be purchased for ¥4,500JPY (around $35USD) a pop.
To sweeten the deal, ticket holders will also receive a bonus item code, which can be redeemed in PSO2 for a chat stamp, sticker, violin emote, and Mag Form. Anybody who missed the live PSO2 anniversary event will also be able to view the archived footage right up until January 29th at 11:59PM PST.
Since its conception in 1987, the Phantasy Star series has come on leaps and bounds, with Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis releasing to a global audience in 2021. It remains a popular MMO among sci-fi and anime MMO fans, and can be downloaded for free via Steam.