Star Ocean is a unique game for Square Enix because it is mostly a sci-fi type of game that involves space travel. The creators created Star Ocean with a sci-fi setting in mind and having cited Star Trek as their main influence. The series of Star Ocean games are mostly known for their real time battle engines and being one of the earliest games to allow alternate endings. One of the best things in the series was the ability to allow
players to alter the outcome of the storyline through the players actions and dialogue choices mainly through a social relationship system referred to as "private actions". The original Star Ocean was published in 1996 by Square Enix and first introduced the " private actions " social system where the main characters actions mattered throughout the game. The first game had multiple endings and was replayable multiple of times to view the outcome of every action and dialogue. The sequel, Star Ocean: The Second Story showed over 86 different endings in which the character controlled the complete outcome of. The Star Ocean games also took an all-encompassing approach to items. Members in your party are able to create new objects or improve their current ones through craft like alchemy, metalworking, cooking etc... many of those created items can be equipped or sold if they are not to your liking, making Star Ocean one of the first games to include such a system.
It was the first game in the series that was released in 1996, the game was never released outside of Japan unfortunately. Star Ocean: The Second Story was the second game released for the PlayStation in 1999. The second game featured 3D battlefields and took place in 366 SD with improved graphics and better gameplay. Following that, Blue Sphere was the sequel to the second story and was released for the Gameboy color in 2001, the game was planned to release in North America but never made it due to lack of sales. Till The End Of Time was released on the PlayStation 2 in 2003 and included bonus dungeons, new playable characters, a versus mode, and tweaked gameplay. Till the end of time was the first game in the series to feature Voice Dialogue.The Last Hope was the last game released in 2009 for the Xbox 360, it was also released for the PlayStation 3 in 2010. It is a prequel to the entire series, chronicling the aftermath of World War III in which humanity must find a new home to survive.
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