Phantasy Star

1987 · RPG · Sega Master System

Overview

Phantasy Star (1987) is Sega's Master System role-playing game: Alis Landale travels across three planets to avenge her brother, through first-person 3D dungeons.

Deep Dive

Phantasy Star follows Alis Landale, whose brother is killed on the orders of the tyrant King Lassic, as she gathers companions — the cat Myau, the warrior Odin and the wizard Noah — and travels between the planets Palma, Motavia and Dezoris. Its dungeons are explored in smoothly animated first-person 3D, and its setting mixes swords and sorcery with spaceships and robots. Its female lead, animated monsters and science-fantasy world made it one of the most ambitious 8-bit RPGs.

Developer Story

Phantasy Star was developed by Sega and released for the Master System in 1987. The team was led by Yuji Naka (who later created Sonic) and Rieko Kodama, with art direction by Kotaro Hayashida. Kodama designed the protagonist Alis as a female lead — radical for a JRPG in 1987. The game featured first-person 3D dungeons (rare for its era), a science fiction setting (unusual among fantasy-dominated RPGs), and an epic story spanning three planets.

Did You Know?

Alis Landale was one of the earliest female leads in a console RPG — nine years before Tomb Raider's Lara Croft.
The 3D first-person dungeons were technically demanding — programming them for the Master System required significant engineering effort.
Yuji Naka, later famous for creating Sonic the Hedgehog, programmed Phantasy Star's game engine.
The game's science fiction setting — spaceships, robots, and technology alongside swords and magic — was a blend no other RPG of 1987 attempted.
Phantasy Star is still considered one of the greatest RPGs ever made for 8-bit hardware, and its storyline spanned multiple sequels on the Mega Drive.