Artwork featuring Ashton, Precis and Celine.
Star Ocean Blue Sphere is a Spin-Off from the Star Ocean series for the Game Boy Color that serves as a direct sequel to Star Ocean: The Second Story.
In this new adventure, Ernest and Opera are stranded on an underdeveloped planet and is up to Precis and the rest of their friends to save them.
The game received a remake for mobile devices in 2009.
This game provides examples of:
- Anti-Villain: Rival is possessed by Mother Edifice but can't rebel because she knows the super computer would just replace her and follow the plan. Instead, she brought the heroes to the planet, knowing that they would try to stop her master and protect the world.
- Arbitrary Headcount Limit: You can only use three characters at a time. The others will be either waiting in the crashed spaceship or exploring the land on their own.
- Bag of Spilling: While this game doesn't use the traditional level up system of The Second Story, the returning characters begin the game with low status and basic gear.
- Big Bad: The master computer Mother Edifice is the final villain in the story, having possessed Rival to carry on its plan to flood the planet and prevent mankind's technology advancement.
- Bonus Dungeon: A dungeon that opens after beating the final boss, with series regular superbosses Gabriel Celeste and Iseria Queen.
- Boring, but Practical: Killing ants is a good way to farm Skill Points in early game. They don't give as much SP as other enemies in the same dungeon, but are much easier to kill due to their low HP and lack of multiple body parts.
- Co-Dragons: Nu and Diablos, to Rival.
- Cutting Off the Branches: This game establishes Claude/Rena (equal affection), Ashton/Precis, Opera/Ernest, and Dias/Chisato as the canon couples.
- Dragon with an Agenda: Rival follows Mother Edifice orders, but has her own plans.
- Egopolis: Aba City is named after its ruler, Lord Aba.
- Ensemble Cast: While Precis is your starter character, the plot don't focus on her (or in anyone in particular) and she can be removed from the party at any time.
- Fat Bastard: Lord Aba, the obese leader of Aba City, is one of the antagonists.
- Final Boss: Rival. She is the last challenge of the game, but not the last enemy you fight.
- Fish People: The Edifians are humanoid jellyfish-like beings that resides in Aqua City.
- Guide Dang It!: Many of the games secrets and even some basic needs such as how to level the characters correctly without ruining their development are things that can only be learned via a Guide.
- Healer Signs On Early: Noel Chandler is available from the very start of the game. While not as good as Rena at her best, as a healer he leaves litle to be desired.
- The Heavy: Rival. Justified, since Mother Edifice cannot move and wasn't created with combat capacities, therefore it needs someone else for protection and to carry out its orders.
- Item Crafting: Item creation is one of the game mechanics. The player can spend SP to make the characters learn field skills like Crafting, Enchantment and Forge. The most powerful equipment can only be obtained through this method.
- Joke Item: Some Random Drops like "Trash" and "tri-Emplem" are worthless and only exist to be sold for a few coins.
- Level-Map Display: The field action "Mapper" displays the traveled parts of the dungeon's current floor.
- The Maze: Every dungeon is a multiple-floored labyrinth filled with enemies, puzzles and traps.
- Merging the Branches: All twelve characters from the original game are featured here and treated as if they were canonically recruited, even though only eight could be recruited in The Second Story proper.
- One Bad Mother: The Big Bad is a Master Computer called "Mother Edifice".
- Optional Party Member: Subverted. Claude and Rena appears to be optional, but you'll need Rena's Field Skill "Rebirth" to solve puzzles in the last two dungeons.
- Pit Trap: Garp Dungeon is full of cracked tiles. Stepping into one of them causes the player to fall on the floor below.
- Post-Final Boss: Mother Edifice is a Zero-Effort Boss fought right after Rival.
- Pre Existing Encounters: Enemies are visible on the field map and can be avoided.
- Sprint Shoes: The Field Skill "Dash" allows the character to move faster.
- Status Effects: The traditional ones, like poison, paralysis and sleep. They're automatically healed after the battle.
- The characters can also become tired by using attacks or spells without pause.
- Subsystem Damage: Most enemies, including bosses, have multiple body parts aside from the main body that can be damaged and destroyed.
- Teleportation: The broken space ship has a device that can warps the party to previous visited places.
- Warp Whistle: The Teleporter item warps the player back to the broken spaceship, where you can recover or switch party members.
- White Magician Girl: Rena is the best healer and the the healer with most spells available but most never use her because she comes at the In Game equivalent of Level 1 near the end of the game. Its up to the player to use her along with or over Noel who is available from the very start
