Sword Art Online Review

 

Sword Art Online - Aincrad  Aincrad  (Sword Art Online Series Volume 1)  1)   by Kawahara Reki Reki 352 pages Published April 10th 2009 by ASCII Media Works

 Now the technology technology in this world world has advances it’s in May 2022, in that time the only machine that can make human experiencing total virtual reality or called full dive by using Nerve gear, the full dive means a total isolation from reality, fitting of the word full, This can be happened because the Nerve Gear not only sent fake signals to the five senses, it also blocked and rerouted the orders that the brain sent to the body.  Not so long after after the Nerve gear out in the worl world, d, a game for the Nerve gear is being planned by Argus, by titled Sword art online or called SAO it’s announced, the closed-beta closed-beta launched in August 202 2022, 2, only 1000 peo people ple that lucky enough that can get the closed-beta by a lottery. After the closed-beta end in September, SAO finally Launched in the November 6th, but it’s only for  ten thousand people, so the excitement and enthusiasm from the people make this game really hard to get, except the beta-tester they can pre-order the game from the closed-beta. So on the day of release because release because you afraid afraid it’s pos possible sible for you to not get this game, you skip work and stand in line to get a copy. You race home, pop it in the machine, and log on. After you log in you start in the Starting City, you amazed by the details of the graphic and how you can control your character directly not by some of  the old-style man-machine interface hardware like flat screen monitors or  hand-held controllers, so you happily going to weapon shop to buy a weapon, set your skill, form a party with someone, and slaying monster with them. After you learn the basic of the game, and earn some level, you think you

 

should log off to eat, but the log out button isn’t there, so you ask ed ed your party about it, your party member tell member tell you maybe it’s just a bug after all this is the first day, so you try to call the GM or usually called game master to report about this bug, but there is no answer at all. You went panicked and suddenly you were surrounded in a clear blue pillar of light and you were teleported to the central plaza of the Starting City. You heard a lot of complain in the central plaza, about when this bug going to be fixed or they are going to have a meeting after this, etc. Then, suddenly somebody raised his voice above all the complain and shouted to look above. A lot of people thought that is going to be the game master that came, but what appeared was a twenty-meter tall figure with a hooded robe draped around it and that was the game creator Kayaba Akihiko, he explained that the Log Out button has disappeared from the main menu is not a bug, but is the game system of sword art online, and he explained that until you clear  th

this game by clearing the 100 floors in the Aincrad the floating castle that can be seen in the sky, with diameter of the base floor is about 10 kilometers. He explained that dismantling of the Nerve Gear from outside by force will result in frying your brain and 213 player have tried it and died in the real world, luckily the nerve gear have their own built in battery which should be sufficient for players to be moved to hospitals for long-term care. So the only way out from the Sword art online game is by finishing the 100th floors and if  your HP bar reach to zero or somebody in the real world forcefully detached the nerve gear from your head, the machine will fry your brain. As a result mass panic happen, and the game that supposed to be fun has become a terror. That is the setting for this novel’s sword art online. online.   In this novel the solo player: Kirito, who had the lucky draw to play the  beta version, was was imprisone imprisoned d along with other players from Sword Art Online, inside the game, the only way to live is to win. The moment your HP bar reach to zero or if somebody in the real world forcefully detached the Nerve Gear, the Nerve Gear will fry your brain, the console that simulates the in-game character controls by redirecting brain signals. Escaping the game requires the defeat of the final boss on the top floor at 100th floor, two years later, out of  the original 10,000 players at the start, only around 6000 remain and 26 floors left to clear.

 

Sword art online starts as a web novel in 2002 with browsing numbers exceeding 6.5 million page views recorded at the personal website, in 2008 the author, kawahara reki won the dengeki game novel prize with Accel World, the publisher asked kawahara reki to get his prior work Sword Art Online to  be published too, too, and the author agree. agree. Suprising Suprisingly ly it quickly becam becamee a hit, rising through the ranks of the "This Light Novel is Amazing" poll until it took the top spot in 2012, beating out other favorites light novels like: I have a few friends, baka to test to shokanju, and toaru majutsu no Index in Japan. There are already 10 volume volume of Sword Art Online availa available ble right now in 2012. Let’s talk about the advantages and the disadvantages from this novel. I think, the advantages from this novel is the description, the description is so detail that even the smallest thing from the characters emotion, little chit chat in the town and what they are thinking in their action. For, example in this novel when character battling with monster, when they are going to use the  battle skill and using it, the pr process ocess is very detailed, from the thought of the  player, feeling, atmospheres, atmospheres, an and d the direction ffor or every swing ffrom rom their   blades. This gave us as a rea reader der a detail im imagination agination about how the battles flow, from the start until the end of the battle, making this novel very enjoyable The disadvantages from this novel. I think, the disadvantages from this novel is character development because, from the 1 st floors just suddenly go to 74th without any detail development in every character, there are so many time skips that make us think when we end the vol 1, “isn’t this a bit too rushed ru shed?”, ?”, from the objective is to finish aincrad from 1st floors to 100th floors with base floors about 10 km, it’s just start from the 1 st floors and skip like a flash to 74th  floors and end not so long from that. There are so many story for kirito and the companion that can be told if it goes on from 1 st floors to 75th floors  progressively,  progressive ly, it’s such a waste with a great plot like this. As a single volumes this novel lacks a lot in the story & character development, thankful thankfully ly as a

 

series this novel can cover the time skip by side stories in other volumes as in volume two, and volume 8, and the story from its web novel.  Now about the character, character, the prota protagonist gonist Kirito is not the typical heroine that can only be really counted on when the times come, but is the type that reliable from the start until the end. Kirito is someone who isn't good with words as said by Klein and can be quite direct. This is due to him not having many friendships and closing others off because, of his love for  computers. Kirito refused to abandon another player in trouble this can be shown when Kirito helping Silica for reviving her pet Pina, Kirito is also a very emotional person and lets his emotions control him from time to time, this can be shown when Asuna's character was killed by Heathclif. And, the other heroine Asuna, isn’t the type of characters who do nothing waiting to be saved by the protagonist, but can actually keep up with the protagonist in fights. Asuna is a kind and helpful young woman, who similar to kirito that can't abandon another player in trouble. She takes the game very seriously and is very focused on clearing it, before Kirito tells her to enjoy SAO a bit. Asuna is also somewhat proud and isn't afraid to get physical with those that challenge her authority in the guild or brag about her abilities such as Cooking. She even challenged Kirito to a duel after an arguement over how to handle a Floor Boss. She isn't afraid to act out on her own and will take matters in her own hands from time to time.   Despite all of those thing, Sword Art Online is really enjoyable. I finished two volumes in one days days.. It’s really enjoyable becau because se of the character action, conflict with each other, and their desperation to stay alive. Of course this novel has its flaws, but most of the flaws not really making the story not enjoyable as a whole. I highly recommended this novel for people that play MMORPG or at least RPG of course you don’t have to , and those who like a little crazy sci-fi with a little romance, and doesn doesn’’t mind read 352 pages per volumes.