

Add on top of that the fact that there are a wide range of ways to approach a battle, thanks to the multitude of weapons as well as special abilities for the player to use.

The controller rumbling with each landed attack, the statistical feedback, and unique battle animations all feel gratifying. While the combat is pretty traditional, it's very satisfying. I quite enjoyed the combat in SAO: Alicization Lycoris, even though I experienced some framerate drops when things got a bit too chaotic for my PS4.

There are a mix of light and heavy attacks that players can use to deal some standard damage, as well as special abilities that can really pack a punch. During battles you control one party member at a time, with the ability to swap between them. This is all fine, not doing anything special, but not hurting the game experience either.Ĭombat in SAO: Alicization Lycoris is done in real-time. There is also a skill tree that allows players to better define what kind of playstyle they'd like to follow. There's a variety of different weapons, armor and items, all contributing different boosts and effects to combat. "Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris" follows very closely to what players expect from the standard JRPG. This leans into some of the major JRPG elements at play in this title. Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris allows players to customize their in-game avatar, with a fairly impressive range of options to choose from. Fans of the series will enjoy taking a walk down memory lane, reliving some of the most notable moments from the series with this JRPG. From the look of the characters, to the way their expressions are animated, to the environments and combat, the world of Alicization Lycoris feels incredibly true to its source material. The cutscenes and cinematics looked like sequences pulled directly from the series.Įven in gameplay, it felt like playing through an episode of the anime. What immediately struck me about the game were its visuals and art design. Throughout the story, fan favorites such as Eugeo and Alice will accompany Kirito. In "Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris," you play as series protagonist Kirito, on a journey that closely follows that of the anime and manga. I had the chance to go hands-on with Bandai-Namco's new game on PlayStation 4, here are my thoughts. The latest release, "Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris," puts players in the world of the beloved anime, letting them play through the anime's storyline, including some of its most iconic moments. Centering around characters playing as avatars in a virtual reality MMO world, the property is clearly ripe for video game adaptations. "Sword Art Online" is one of the most prominent and unique titles in anime. Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris review: Ready player one
