Sega released Phantasy Star for the Master System in Japan in 1987 and in the west the following year, and it went on to become one of the most influential console role-playing games of the decade. Set in the Algol star system, it follows Alis Landale, who swears revenge after her brother is killed by the tyrant Lassic’s forces. She travels between the planets Palma, Motavia and Dezoris, recruiting the talking cat Myau, the warrior Odin and the magician Noah. It was one of the first console RPGs to star a female lead, and it mixed science fiction with fantasy long before that became common. The overworld is viewed from above, but dungeons are explored in smooth first-person 3D corridors, a technical showpiece for the 8-bit hardware. Enemies were animated in battle, and the cartridge included a battery backup to save progress. Its success launched a long-running series.