While Sega’s ambitious Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis doesn’t have worldwide release date yet, players in Japan will get the chance to try it soon. The publisher recently announced that a closed beta test for PC players in the region will begin in late January 2021. This will go on until early February 2021.
Applications are currently open with 50,000 users being accepted till January 4th 2021, 11:59 PM JST. Requirements include living in Japan, having an existing PSO2 account and meeting the hardware requirements for the beta. There will be two beta tests – the first is for current players and will utilize their PSO2 character data.
It’s currently unknown whether the console versions will also get a closed beta test in Japan. Closed beta tests for other regions are also yet to be announced. Regardless, Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis is still slated to release next year for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and PC in North America along with PS4, PC and Switch (via the cloud) in Japan.