This weekend at Dengeki Bunko Fall Festival 2015, Bandai Namco unveiled the new Sword Art Online game teased a couple weeks ago at Tokyo Game Show 2015. Titled Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization, the 4th SAO game project is in development for the PlayStation 4 and Vita for launch in 2016.
Hollow Realization takes the series back to a setting like the first story arc’s Aincrad, with Kirito beginning his MMORPG adventures. The world will seem familiar, instilling deja vu, but will seem off and slightly different than Aincrad. Up to three-characters can join Kirito this time around for a four-character party, with the ability to pull off for tag-team attacks. The battle system sounds more active than past entries, as auto-attack has been removed.
A currently unnamed new character, a 14-year-old girl, appears in the trailer and is an AI who joins Kirito and his allies in the story.
Key details on the game:
– No auto-attack (an aspect that made SAO: Hollow Fragment boring).
– Ability to jump.
– The PS Vita version is set to have a touch-enabled skill panel.
– Online multiplayer is planned.
The latest issue of Dengeki PlayStation magazine features an interview with Bandai Namco producer Yosuke Futami and Aquria producer Satoshi Hiraya. Below are translated excerpts (via Gematsu):
Regarding the development concept…
Futami: “We wanted to make a game where Kirito starts from Level 1 at the beginning. That’s the kind of concept it is.”
Hirayae: “We want people to play in the world of the early days of Sword Art Online and then gradually start to feel like something is off as they progress.”
Futami: “The setting looks like Aincrad, but as a matter of fact, it’s a different world. It’s a world where everything is connected by adjoining land, not a world divided into different layers.”
How are the action elements compared to Lost Song?
Hirayae: “You’ll fight and raid using a skill palette, and there are a number of management elements where you can direct your party members and such. One of the main features of the system is how these action and management elements coexist. Unlike Hollow Fragment, this time, you can take along up to three people. For example, one person could raise the toss, the second person could use a sword skill, the third person could restrain the enemy, and finally Kirito can deliver the finishing blow.
Regarding the new heroine…
Futami: “She’s about 14 years old. The heroine is an AI character, and that AI will develop as she adventures with Kirito and friends.”
The previous game in the franchise, Sword Art Online: Lost Song, launches in North America on November 17 and in Europe on November 13 for the PlayStation 4 and Vita. Taking place in the fairy-themed world of ALfheim Online, the game features flight traversal, a three-character party system, and more.