Is a Phantasy Star Online 2 Steam release happening (Updated)

Update: By late July, Microsoft and Sega officially confirmed the Phantasy Star Online 2 Steam release date. The anime MMORPG is coming to Valve's digital store on August 5, 2020. You can access the PSO2 Steam page right now.

While everyone seems to be aiming their focus at the Phantasy Star Online 2 Xbox One closed beta, another source of interest surrounding this MMORPG surfaced. As you may know by now, the PC version was delayed and is going to launch later this year, while the PSO2 Xbox One release remains firmly set for a spring launch. But now we know a bit more about the likeliness of a Phantasy Star Online 2 Steam release, as some promising official info has been unearthed by attentive players.

Since Microsoft is behind the move of bringing Phantasy Star Online 2 to North America, with PC and Xbox One as target platforms – the anime MMORPG will eventually release for Nintendo Switch and PS4 – it wouldn't be surprising to discover that the PC version is planned for the Windows Store. Alas, that may not be the case, and Microsoft could be eyeing a PSO2 PC Steam release as well.

Phantasy Star Online 2 Release Date | When is the PSO2 download available?

This was discovered in the game's online manual, of all things (via ResetEra). At the time of writing, the link to the manual isn't working anymore, but the info was clear: a Phantasy Star Online 2 Steam release is planned. The following instructions are a dead giveaway:

Launch PC game version

When the download is complete, you can proceed to launch the game by doing the following:

• Steam: Open the Steam client and search for “Phantasy Star Online 2” under the “Library” section, then click “Play”.
• Windows 10: Open the start menu and search for the “Phantasy Star Online 2” app shortcut.

Sega and Microsoft haven't officially confirmed this situation, but it's highly likely that the PSO2 Steam launch is indeed going to happen. It will certainly give the game a nice boost, as Valve's platform is the preferred place for many MMO fans to go for.