Dazz informed us on our earlier post that the Phantasy Star Universe beta has been delayed, and this has stopped some gamers in their tracks. Of course, there's also the issue of having to pay US$ 10 for the privilege to play, when it's not exactly an MMORPG in the way World of Warcraft is. All in all, while we're excited for the game, we're wondering about the outcome for this Xbox 360 MMO.

Sega responds to the news, justifying the cost in their own way. In a story on 1Up, Sega of America Product Manager Ben Harrison explained, "With the online mode, we want PSU to be a highly interactive community that is constantly evolving and adapting to player participation."

In other words, the money put down by gamers will help pay for upkeep of the game and additional content down the line. This includes "quests, maps, bosses, enemies, weapons, armor, clothes, Photon Arts, SUV weapons for CAST and Nanoblast attacks for beast characters, My Room items and decor (including holiday themes)," and a host of other items, according to Sega.

While that's nice and all, postponed beta download dates do make a 10-dollar cost seem hard to accept. But, we do hope Sega gets its groove back and comes up with a hit of an online game for the 360 that won't be just a phantasy as well. If you have any ideas for them to keep PSU going strong, now would be a good time to send them some mail, if only to show concern for the games you love. Although... if there's a chance I can turn my room into a miniature torture chamber, I don't mind waiting a little longer for that option to be up.