Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization Reviews
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is anything but hollow. There is an almost unbelievable amount of story content, with side stories piled high on top of that. The storytelling might be a bit too slow for some, but then this is par for the JRPG course. Most cutscenes are woefully static, but they are at least fully voiced. Combat almost feels like an afterthought, with few mechanics even explained well by the tutorials. Still, if you can’t get enough Sword Art Online, Hollow Realization is an easy purchase.
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is an enormous title, especially when compared to his most recent predecessor. Unfortunately the game is once again devoid of a charismatic antagonist and a solid storyline.
Review in Italian | Read full review
A game sustained by its combat system and its attractive history, although it is so much repetitive.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
It’s great to see how far the games have come in terms of managing all those damn menus, presenting an experience that is true to the source material, and figuring out how to take the combat system and make it fun and fluid. But in the end, it feels a bit too safe.
It’s possible to argue that the release of Sword Art Online -Hollow Realization- is a bit much.
A huge game with great ideas on how to treat an environment based on a MMO world. Sadly it has many flows. While it’s combat is interesting, the characters are dull and tracking missions ends up in a headache every time. An experience only SAO fans will like.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
This new installment of the Sword Art saga comes to PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita with brand new gameplay and great graphics that will be entertaining for the fans of the saga.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is a good JRPG. It's made with diligence, dedicated to anime fans from which it's drawn, but also suitable for simple lovers of the genre.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is, to put it bluntly, a little disappointing. I was expecting a lot more from it and the promises of improved combat etc… nothing really feels like it’s been changed all that much. Sure, it looks nicer and the maps have a lot more going on, but overall it just feels more of a chore to play than the enjoyable and fun Lost Song. Hollow Realization is far from a bad game it just didn’t resonate with me or meet my expectations, unfortunately. If you’re a fan of Sword Art Online and enjoyed Hollow Fragment and are looking for more of the same, then you’ll enjoy Hollow Realization.
Hollow Realization is the strongest iteration of Sword Art Online to date, and an easy recommendation for fans of the anime and previous games.
A lot of effort was clearly put into Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization, because almost every aspect of its gameplay has an underlying set of properties and nuances to come to grips with. While I usually love that kind of complexity, here it rarely felt meaningful or even coherent. Paired with a story that lacks the stakes and urgency of the source material, it leaves Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization feeling pretty tepid aside from its enjoyable combat.
While 'Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization' is definitely a step up from its predecessors, it's still too rough around the edges to really appeal to anyone other than fans of the anime. It fails to take advantage of the unique premise, and an unpolished localization makes the game overly confusing in spots. Hopefully 'Sword Art Online' will get a great game adaptation, but that still hasn't happened yet.
The characters are drawn in speaking cutscenes as well, and look authentic when compared to their source material.
An improperly paced plot and annoying artificial intelligence aside, Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is the best Sword Art Online game on PS4. It's utterly packed with content, from the lengthy main campaign and tons of optional side quests all the way through to challenging co-op trials and even dating sim minigames. The combat's got a nice edge to it, too, and there's a lot to be said for the sense of adventure that exploring Ainground instils. For fans of the source material, this is a no-brainer, but even if you're not into the property's waifu wars, Hollow Realization still offers hours upon hours of RPG fun.
The only real problem that Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization has is that it’s a little too steady and a little too laid-back. The premise is that this is Sword Art but without the death, and really without those stakes, and with its tepid narrative, you may begin to question why you’re grinding through so much of the game. That being said, this is the best digital rendition of Sword Art Online thus far, and goes a long way to capturing the essence of the show – warts and all.
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization is a hard game to judge, since newcomers to the series will be baffled and even bemused by the overly complex mechanics and the unnecessarily convoluted story that seems to refuse to focus on the interesting parts. That being said, though, Hollow Realization is a great instalment for long-term fans of the series, as it is filled with enough fan-service to keep them entertained for a long time, or at least until the inevitable next one in the line arrives.
While the combat is well designed and the worlds feels more expansive and alive than ever, the pacing with the story and overabundance of dialogue prevent Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization from taking the series to the next level.
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization does not depart from the fluctuating quality of its predecessors, with a pleasant story, though designed specifically for fans of the original work, accompanied by a complex and layered gameplay, which, however, has unclear mechanics to challenge even the most experienced of players.
Review in Italian | Read full review
I came in expecting another bad anime game but was instead blown away by Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization’s enormous game world, addictive combat and different gameplay systems. Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization has a charming cast of lovable characters, plenty of dialogue, countless missions, skills, equipment and areas to uncover, relationships with the girls, a level cap of 100 — I could go on. The abysmal story pacing, technical blemishes, online shortcomings and inadequate tutorials are considerable shortcomings, but not enough to keep this from being a standout action RPG.
Hollow Realization is the best Sword Art Online game to date but that doesn't mean it's great by any means. If you're a fan of the franchise this game is a no brainer as it’s packed with so much content you can put as many hours into it as you would an actual MMO. It’s just a shame that a lot of that content is as Hollow as its name suggests.