Dreamcast Phantasy Star Online Servers Are Closing

It was only a matter of time, but that time has finally come. SEGA has announced the imminent closure of servers for the original Dreamcast versions of Phantasy Star Online. You'll have until the end of September to get your affairs in order.

Here's the message from SEGA of America, with the sad news indeed.

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Notification--Deactivation of PSO servers

Beginning October 1, 2003 the online services for Phantasy Star Online Dreamcast version 1 & 2 will be discontinued. The PSO US Dreamcast server (11:US/Oberon) will continue to operate and will be maintained until 9/30/03. However, starting September 30, 2003 at 11:59pm (Japan Time), 7:59am(US Pacific Time), the server will be disconnected and no players will be able to log into the game server.

The message boards have always been an integral part of the PSO community and they will continue to operate until 10/1/03.

If you have a valid Hunters License as of October 1, 2003 and after, you will receive credit for the charge against the credit card you used at the time of renewal. This credit will be issued around November 1, 2003.

Although this has been a difficult business decision, we know it is necessary to allow our valuable production resources to work on new games. On behalf of Sonic Team here at Sega, we would like to thank you for making PSO an unforgettable experience. You have brought us much joy and many wonderful memories. We invite you to try PSO on GameCube and Xbox and share your knowledge and skills with other PSO gamers so your legacy will continue to live on.

Source: SEGA of America