Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment review: now you can be Kirito, hero of Aincrad!

If you live in Asia (or any civilized society, actually) then you will surely at least have heard of Sword Art Online. The popular anime series revolves around Kirito, a gamer who, along with 999 other beta testers, got his mind trapped in the virtual VMMORPG, Sword Art Online. The only way to escape the game world is to reach its hundredth level and defeat the boss there.

This is where you will find yourself when you boot up Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment: in the heart of Aincrad, the world of Sword Art Online. Hollow Fragment takes place midway through the anime series’ first arc, albeit along an alternate story plot that involves a mysterious new level, the Hollow Area.

An action RPG that takes closely after games like Monster Hunter and Ragnarok Odyssey Ace, Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment puts you in charge of Kirito, the series’ protagonist, who is responsible for sleuthing out the twists and treasures of the Hollow Area. Accompanying him is a mysterious girl, Phillia, who seems to be trapped in the Hollow Area.

(See: Ragnarok Odyssey Ace is technically good, contextually bad)

Kirito can move freely between the main town Arc Sophia, and the Hollow Area—possibly due to a crest that mysteriously appeared on his hand. This leads to him being able to take up Hollow Quests, which have objectives that can only be fulfilled in the Hollow Area. Completing these quests rewards you with better skills and drops to help you eventually conquer Aincrad and escape Sword Art Online.

The Sword Art Online universe

Technically, Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment is very good. We’ll have more on that later. However, it is also a game made for fans of the light novel. Players are thrown into the thick of action upon booting up the game, with zero explanation of who Kirito is, what Aincrad is, or who Kirito’s harem of babes are.

The Hollow Fragment story itself is actually all right: it picks up on level 76, and you’re given enough context of what’s happening, with enough confusion generated regarding the Hollow Area, but the game assumes that anyone who picks it up is automatically a Sword Art Online fan.

(See: Attack on Titan Howl of Freedom review: remember the titans?)

This does work in favor of the fanbase, though. If you like Sword Art Online then you’ll get a kick out of wandering Arc Sophia, checking out Aincrad’s levels, and teaming up with familiar faces to wreak some havoc in the field. Characters in Hollow Fragment are almost fully voiced, and all of them come with a variety of expressions, so it won’t stretch your imagination too much to pretend you’re actually within Aincrad. And that’s not even the best thing about the game.

Combat