Sword Art Online is an animation series from Japan that made its appearance in manage and television. Additionally, it has made its influence onto the video gaming world. With its latest title, Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization, recently released for the Playstation Vita courtesy of Namco Bandai, the anime will make its mark once again as the fourth entry as a video game.
Note that here, we find ourselves in an alternate timeline and universe of the anime series. Although the game does cater to fans, there are flashbacks which allow players new to the series to catch up. The story behind Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is that we have Kirito and his friends participating in a new virtual MMORPG called Sword Art: Origin. During their playthrough, they run into a blank NPC as they bring her in as one of their own members.
In terms of the gameplay, Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization plays similarly to an RPG. The game allows you to customize Kirito to your heart’s content. You can change his appearance to that found in various versions in the anime. Or you can even completely change the look if you want. You will have three members that will come along to join you in your journey. Furthermore, there are hundreds of NPCs that can be invited to your group.
There is a great degree of complexity in the characters skills and equipment mechanics. This makes the game very deep but also convoluted considering that you’ll need to take in all this information within a limited period of time.
Throughout the game, there are numerous quests to engage in that involve finding items and engaging in battles. On some occasions, the quests can be shallow and monotonous. On the other hand, plenty of content is included in this Vita title which allows the gaming experience to be satisfying for the most part. Overall with such action-packed madness, it is quite an enjoyable ride to get involved with.
Presenation-wise, Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization may not be the best looking game. The colors are plentiful nonetheless while the frame rate does run at a constant smoothness all throughout. Meanwhile, the characters in the cut scenes are drawn out very well and remains true to the actual anime. As for the audio, the voice acting is done completely in Japanese. And as they speak, you really feel that the anime is coming to life in this video game title. And with the nice soundtrack and exciting sound effects, players will be effectively immersed into this world.
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization has a lot to offer on account of its memorable gameplay and vast content. You’ve got plenty of customizations to perform on your characters, a dynamic battle system, and numerous quests to keep you occupied. As such, I would definitely recommend this Playstation Vita title if you are looking for an RPG game with some very colorful characters and engaging storyline.
