Sword Art Online skyrocketed the “isekai in a virtual world” anime subgenre to full blast, showing a game where players can’t log out and where death happens both virtually and physically. Thanks to the efforts of swordsman Kirito and his friends, survivors of the horrific “Sword Art Online” got back to the real world safely, and Kirito became the go-to guy for any weird incidents related to various virtual games thereafter.
However, before Sword Art Online fans take a deep dive into Kirito’s adventures in “Alfheim Online,” “Gun Gale Online,” and even “Underworld,” dedicated fans can look at the original “Sword Art Online” MMO from the context of an actual game. Unfortunately, deep-diving into the mechanics of the original “Sword Art Online” MMO does unravel some things that just don’t make sense - perhaps even ruining the viewing experience.
Edited on June 16, 2022 by Rhenn Taguiam: With the second Sword Art Online Progressive movie slated for a Fall 2022 release, fans of the isekai franchise might want to look back and check some of the series’ “VRMMOs” - from the likes of gun-toting “Gun Gale Online,” the magic-oriented “Alfheim Online,” and especially the sword-focused “Sword Art Online.”
And with regards to the first VRMMO featured in the franchise, MMORPG fans might realize that “Sword Art Online” poses its fair share of inconsistencies - especially regarding its approach in melee combat, lack of integral game components, and even common “expectations” of a game of its caliber.
12 Actions Do Not Make Sense
The virtual reality mechanics in “Sword Art Online” - and its sequel game in particular - also don’t make particular sense in terms of movement. The NerveGear VR system was predicated under the assumption that it uses brainwaves to simulate both movement and recipient of signals from the user’s brain and interpret it into the game.
This explains why Kirito and the others are able to perform special moves in particular or do combat in general, when they normally couldn’t do it in real life. As such, it’s odd how a lot of their attacks lack the power to tear through tough opponent armor when the brain could simply input enough signals to mimic enough strength of tearing does a new one. The concept of the level of “strength” the brain could input into the game vis a vis the SAO concept of power bars and stamina don’t make much sense.
11 Shields May Or May Not Make Sense
Throughout “Sword Art Online,” both viewers and players made peace with the fact that the game will focus solely and largely on sword-based combat. As such, it was quite a surprise how Heathcliff was able to wear a shield. Granted, both his sword and kite shield form two halves of his “Liberator” set. However, knowing that Heathcliff is not only the leader of the all-powerful “Knights of the Blood” guild and also SAO creator Kayaba Akihiko does leave a bad taste in the notion of a shield-toting character in an “all-swords” game.
It doesn’t even help that Heathcliff was programmed to be invulnerable while helping players reach the 100th and Final Floor, after which he would reveal himself as the final antagonist and make himself “beatable.” Perhaps what’s odd about Heathcliff’s Liberator is that it defies his character’s life philosophy. If Kayaba truly wanted to design SAO as a “beatable” game for skilled players, he should’ve been skilled enough to be able to beat his own bosses in his game’s own terms. If anything, it seemed only fair to include shields in the game on the get-go given the game’s lack of classes.
10 Not A Lot Of Different Swords
One of the greatest creative lapses for “Sword Art Online” was perhaps the lack of diversity amongst its weapon classes, despite its sword-only focus. Granted, it could be safely assumed that weapon types not included in the mentioned 16 categories of swords in the game, but it’s also safely assumed that this is all there is to the game’s weapon offerings.
This leaves a gaping hole in the creative potential of players in the game. After all, unique weapons such as hook swords enable users to grab weapons out of enemies’ hands in swift motions. Likewise, swords of varying blade widths can function in different ways. While some would argue these could easily fit as subtypes of the existing categories, the lack of inclusion for these weapons seem odd when the game also has skills for totally-not-swords such as “Claws,” “Axes,” and even “Martian Arts.”
9 Lack Of Classes Hurt The Game
While the game’s lack of classes do allow players to be more “creative” in how they want to approach “Sword Art Online,” it may help in both a narrative and development sense to at least encourage categorization of players according to their playstyle. The inclusion of melee-based archetypes in a game without magic is possible, especially since a game in real life such as For Honor divides heroes among straightforward Vanguards, heavy-hitting Heavies, mobile Assassins, and gimmicky Hybrids.
Given the nature of weapon skills in “Sword Art Online” to lean towards certain playstyles, the addition of “classes” can make it much easier to get to know characters and their skill sets better. For instance, shield-touting Heathcliff could become a tank, whereas the likes of Kirito and Asuna could be speed-based DPS, and blacksmith Lisbeth could become a support class with buffing capabilities.
8 Inconsistent VR Sensations Emphasize Fanservice, Not Immersion
With NerveGear built to replicate sensations as accurately as possible, the visual immersion in the fantasy realm of “Sword Art Online” seems second to none. Sadly, the inconsistent approach to VR sensations hurt the worldbuilding of the series. For instance, the plot declares that while players can’t feel the pain of combat, they still feel fatigue and hunger. Plot-wise, this cements the “thrill” of combat without consequence, combined with the fright of being able to die outside battle.
However, why even remove the sensation of pain? Extreme fatigue in “SAO” is most likely felt in combat - so it doesn’t make sense for the game not to help players feel tired and “in pain” to indicate they’re on the verge of death. This inconsistent take on sensations doesn’t align with the story’s aim of recreating the horrific fear of death. Additionally, the fact that there’s an option to remove visual censorship with “heightened tactile sensations” aligns with the hypothesis that the sensation simulation in “SAO” focuses more on plot and fanservice, not necessarily for the game itself.
7 Main Menu System Spells Trouble In Combat
Fans of “Sword Art Online” can argue that some things in the MMO don’t make sense as it’s not meant to be treated as a tap-target MMO. The lack of UI, for instance, is compensated by the fact that players can see what’s happening in real-time and wouldn’t need status symbols to tell them what’s happening in their environment. However, for a fast-paced action MMO, it still doesn’t make sense for the main menu to have such a dragging UI.
“Sword Art Online” uses a motion-based menu system that lets players access things ranging from their stats, equipment, weapons, and even items. Sub-menus lead to a list of items that players need to scroll through to get their desired object. While such a system compartmentalizes the menu, this can prove fatal in high-stress situations like combat.
6 Lack Of Hotkeys Ruin Accessibility
Considering how multiple sub-menus and scrolling make it burdensome for players to get to a much-needed potion or item, it should make better sense to just have an allocated hotkey system to make these features easy to access. Moreover, even if others argue that they can just strap potions and other items to belts, “SAO” has a tap-based use mechanic that can compromise accessibility.
Of course, there’s that loophole of “where” hotkeys would be placed, since adding hotkeys into the main menu will make the solution redundant. As such, a better alternative here is to introduce gesture-based hotkeying. After all, if Sword Skills and the main menu get activated with pre-programmed motions, then it shouldn’t be difficult to implement a mechanic where certain hand or finger gestures could access certain items.
5 The Stats System Is Cluttered Across Players, Equipment, And Weapons
As with any MMO, “Sword Art Online” has its own take on player progression. It’s revealed that players who level up can raise either their STR (Strength) or AGI (Agility) attribute. This makes sense, given how the strength of blows and the motion of one’s body can determine the success of hitting or not getting hit. However, the stats system starts falling apart when other items are taken into consideration.
For instance, Weapons have attributes like Sharpness, Quickness, Accuracy, Heaviness, and Durability that play into their performance. However, Equipment don’t seem to have this kind of stats-based system, despite players having more than 10 Equipment Slots available. Furthermore, there’s no mention of how STR and AGI play into a Weapon’s stats in combat, how Equipment protects players from damage, and how players even raise their HP in the first place.
4 Party Combat Ruins The Point Of Raids
Given the death penalty of “Sword Art Online,” it definitely makes sense to engage in any form of combat through parties. Sheer numbers alone give anyone a better chance of survival in the game. However, the MMO’s take on party combat makes it quite unreliable to engage in any form of large-party combat.
For instance, only one player can engage a monster at any given time. Thanks to Switching, players can “trade” aggro and lead the assault against monsters. Against bosses, this allows players to trade places and recuperate while others take the lead. Nevertheless, this mechanic seems quite imbalanced against players. For instance, it’s very likely for monster numbers to overwhelm players. A player may be able to engage multiple foes at once, but not all players are as skilled as Kirito. Moreover, wide-area attacks from large monsters can still hit multiple players anyway.
3 Sword Skill Acquisition Remains Unclear To Become Reliable
Akin to special moves in a fighting game, Sword Skills are system-assisted combat moves that players automatically perform once they “master” them. This serves as a nifty way for players to perform stunts without having the need to physically do them all the time, as the game takes over control for them.
It’s also common knowledge that all weapons have Sword Skills, and each Sword Skill can become stronger with levels. However, it’s never mentioned how Sword Skills are acquired in the first place. For instance, does using a weapon often eventually unlock its Sword Skills? Do players unlock specific Sword Skills in the same manner, or are there prerequisite conditions?
Moreover, if a Pre-Motion prompts the system to use a Sword Skill, can a player accidentally perform a Sword Skill they don’t know with an accidental Pre-Motion? These questions on skill consistency can break the enjoyment Sword Skills bring to the game.
2 Unique Skills Can Easily Break The Meta
Given the lack of magic in melee-focused “Sword Art Online,” it makes sense for the game to try and compensate with flashy Sword Skills. And it’s said that the game can bestow Unique Sword Skills to certain players, where they’re the only ones to ever receive them. Kirito receives this McGuffin in the form of the Dual Blades, while Heathcliff has the Holy Sword.
Unfortunately, there’s no way of knowing how often the game bestows Unique Sword Skills to players. Aside from Heathcliff who essentially “modded” the Sword Skill to himself, Kirito is by far the only regular player to have one. If Kirito’s affirmation is true that anyone can get a random Unique Skill, and the game can provide a near-unlimited number of them, then the procedural generation of Unique Skills gives a higher chance for players to have a useless Unique Skill. Moreover, what if a player who doesn’t want to fight receives Kirito’s Dual Blades Skill?
1 Crystals Are Too Fragile To Be Worth The While
Anyone who’s watched Sword Art Online will likely loathe the MMO’s Crystal system courtesy of Sachi. While there’s no magic in the game, the MMO does have Crystals that grant certain effects - from healing, to recording messages, to even teleporting people out of certain areas. These serve as a nifty way to heal status effects or even cure in the middle of combat.
However, the game does penalize the Crystal system through a number of factors. First, Crystals tend to be extremely expensive on the get-go. Secondly, certain levels - such as dungeon traps and boss levels - disable the usage of Crystals entirely, completely ruining their point. Considering how certain Food and Potions can help heal players anyway, there doesn’t seem to be much incentive getting Crystals that “may or may not” work.