Phantasy Star Online 2 producer, Satoshi Sakai, recently held another fan briefing presentation, where he outlined a few details regarding the game’s upcoming open beta test. While Sakai wouldn’t say when the open beta would begin, he did tease some of the newly-added features players would find.

For starters, the open beta will allow you to level up to level 30. For level 20+ characters, there will be a hard mode of some sort. Additionally, Planet Liliipa will see a new desert-themed area (above) for the open beta. This new field will be entirely covered in sand and contain the remains of old structures that were used to collect resources from the planet at one time. Story quests will be added to the open beta, too.

Sakai also teased a few additional features for the full version of the game. The official release will come with 8 weapon types, but more will be added as time goes on. Responding to a fan asking for the inclusion of Double Sabers, Sakai confirmed that those would be added. A Knuckle weapon category was confirmed as well.

We’ll keep our eyes and ears open for when Sega announce open beta dates for Phantasy Star Online 2. The game’s official release is still expected early this summer.