Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment

 PlayStation Vita
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 137 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 94 out of 137
  2. Mixed: 18 out of 137
  3. Negative: 25 out of 137

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  1. ryuzaki57
    Aug 23, 2014
    7
    For those who are familiar with the chronology of SAO, Hollow Fragment starts when Aincrad ends. It’s at the same time an extension and an alternative ending to the first part of the anime.

    Let’s check the battle system. You always play as Kirito, while having in your party a girl (or a man, for that matters) controlled by the AI. The game mechanism is close to Xenoblade’s in the way    For those who are familiar with the chronology of SAO, Hollow Fragment starts when Aincrad ends. It’s at the same time an extension and an alternative ending to the first part of the anime.

    Let’s check the battle system. You always play as Kirito, while having in your party a girl (or a man, for that matters) controlled by the AI. The game mechanism is close to Xenoblade’s in the way there’s an auto-attack and cooling down when you use some skills. During battles, you have five palettes that you can switch between with L and R. Two are for giving instructions to your partner (retreat, defense, offensive, congrats, etc.), one regroups your attack skills and the last two your healing/support magic. Your partner will regularly ask you to perform certain actions (attack skill, switch, paralyze the enemy) by which both characters will launch a powerful joint attack or relay. You also have to watch a «risk» gauge : the higher, the less effective your normal attacks will be. You therefore have to ask your partner to «switch», which sends her/him on the front without cover, but recovers the risk.

    While it seems attractive on the paper, the execution is not always good. The IA of the girls tend to ignore the situation time to time, stopping for no reason or ignoring your switchs. But the biggest concern about them is that they are fairly weak at the beginning of the game. For example, Kirito starts at level 100, Silica only at lvl 70. They naturally reach Kirito’s level as you progress in the game, but it causes lots of irritating game over in the first hours. Furthermore, most of the fights can be done with only pushing the circle button and waiting for some sign from your partner. You’ll have to wait to have at your side partners at respectable level and in front of you some really though enemy if you want to experience the thrill of battle like it was thought by the devs. Technically speaking, the game is not even average : the 3D are neither that good nor that bad, animations are kinda stiff, and the game has quite a few annoying frame rate drops and graphics bugs.

    Let’s examine Aincrad now. Climbing your way to the 100th floor feels a bit humdrum : at every floor you’ll have to complete unappealing sub-tasks while in search for the boss’s room, and then beat the boss itself. The level design is nothing special, the floors look like each other too much. True, it’s pretty large in total, but most of time you’ll be going from point A to point B. There is no proper «exploration» and puzzles are scarce.

    You can still spend a bit of time with your harem for a change, sitting at the café with whoever you want to have a little chat. That said, the dates are nothing exciting because there are precious few topics and the answers are completely random. There is no logic to infer like you would you do in a real dating sim.

    Fortunately, the game includes a lot of events really close to the anime in terms of humor and atmosphere. And when I say a lot, it’s nearly a dozen per floor, with sometimes sub-quests that will make you go back looking for special things in previous floors. Events are a LOT more focused on fan-service than the anime’s average, which you can easily figure out from the numerous beautiful and juicy illustrations.

    The Hollow Area is organized very differently from Aincrad : it’s a very large surface divided into smaller areas you to clear one after another. The comparison with Xenoblade is clear, «exploration» becomes the keyword. Navigating is pretty tricky as the rough map you have at your disposal is about as precise as a pirate’s treasure map, and just going trough a couple of zones takes hours. The game helps out a bit but not too much, which leaves you really searching your way forward and think like you should always do in a correct JRPG. Note that the environments are a lot more refined, and level design improves a lot.

    Battles had become increasingly intense in the last stages of Aincrad, but here in the Hollow Area, they’re pure enjoyment. This is thanks to several things, the first being the thunderous boss battle theme that makes confrontations tremendously dynamic. The second thing is the perfectly balanced difficulty, which makes battles really rewarding. You have to be constantly swapping between palettes and item list, and at the same time having an eye your your partner’s situation. And believe me, the boss monsters’ design is something…

    Third thing is the scenario. While the story in Aincrad only begins in the upper floors (and actually merely copies what happens in Fairy Dance), the story that takes place in the Hollow Area is full of original and clever ideas, with some moments easily matching the best parts of the anime. The cutscenes are of really good quality (as good as in Fire Emblem Awakening for instance) and really help building a fascinating atmosphere. The sad thing is that it’s quite shorter than Aincrad : I rushed it within 20 hours, while Aincrad lasted 50h.    … Expand
  2. MakotoBlue
    Sep 24, 2014
    7
    The only problem this game has is the translation. Everything else in it is a dream for Sword Art Online and MMO fans. The game feels like an MMO, with FREE DLC and FREE Content Updates, there is a ton of stuff to do. The combat is amazing once you get used to it and the story is what all SAO fans wanted, to complete the remaining 25 floors of Aincrad and beat the game.
    But that's only    The only problem this game has is the translation. Everything else in it is a dream for Sword Art Online and MMO fans. The game feels like an MMO, with FREE DLC and FREE Content Updates, there is a ton of stuff to do. The combat is amazing once you get used to it and the story is what all SAO fans wanted, to complete the remaining 25 floors of Aincrad and beat the game.
    But that's only infinity moment, this is two games in one, the Hollow Fragment story is even better. New characters, returning characters. Truly a game fit for fans of the series.    … Expand
  3. LDSAFOL
    Mar 26, 2015
    5
    It has all the voice acting and the visuals are stunning, but it wasn't what I was hoping for. I was hoping it would add to the SAO story but it actually detracts from it by creating an alternate reality and redoing the ending to the first season and then randomly adding in characters from later in the series that don't belong. It's like a bad fanfic. The translation is sloppy as well.
  4. Kiseki
    Nov 26, 2014
    6
    The game has all the same voice actors and anime art - very pretty. If you like the SAO and want to play a game with all the female characters in it will be a ok game.

    The actual game play suffers from extremely limited features with very boring dungeon for the infinity moment portion lvl 75-lvl100. there is only 1 town with 3 very small areas with a few shops. The shops and items are    The game has all the same voice actors and anime art - very pretty. If you like the SAO and want to play a game with all the female characters in it will be a ok game.

    The actual game play suffers from extremely limited features with very boring dungeon for the infinity moment portion lvl 75-lvl100. there is only 1 town with 3 very small areas with a few shops. The shops and items are mostly useless and can be done completely without - and that means gold is not very useful...

    However the game does have many weapons types for you to play and skills that goes with them. You can party with one female character at a time and each female character uses a different type of weapon. you can gift them better weapons to use and set their combat behaviour.
    the skills are mainly good looking weapon combos plus support skills. not all are useful.

    The hollow fragment portion of the game is alot better with better maps, events and boss fights. (more complex and interesting)

    one other thing to note is that there quite a few typos and a few grammar mistakes. translation isnt done too well, but mostly ok. some lines are completely different or just skipped.

    overall acceptable game but could have been alot better.    … Expand
  5. Cyanne
    Jun 27, 2015
    5
    Gameplay: Pretty boring, since attacking is one button. Kirito can equip different weapons, but they don't change anything, so there's no point. The switch system is alright, where you switch with your partner if your 'risk' gauge gets too high, but battles are so short that it'll feel like the same thing over and over. The synthesis system is pretty confusing but functional, just shouldGameplay: Pretty boring, since attacking is one button. Kirito can equip different weapons, but they don't change anything, so there's no point. The switch system is alright, where you switch with your partner if your 'risk' gauge gets too high, but battles are so short that it'll feel like the same thing over and over. The synthesis system is pretty confusing but functional, just should feel much more engaging. Enemies are simplistic and aren't entertaining to fight. The game also fights for you, I guess if your thumb gets tired? You can dodge, but it costs SP which you'll want to reserve for skills, so may as well assume foes will miss you or tank, since your HP and SP recover if you stand still. The game feels immensely easy, so action seekers may end up disappointed by the low difficulty and linear battles.

    Characters: You can make your own character, who only shows up on the field or in towns. In cutscenes, you go back to being Kirito. The game also lets you name yourself but you are still Kirito everywhere else. This breaks the immersion and feels really inconsistent, they should have either let you be your own character or be Kirito, not both at the same time. Armor you equip does change your appearance, which is neat, unless you are Kirito. Your comrades are as they are in the show, so if you are into that sort of thing, you won't be disappointed with that. Dialogue is flat and uninteresting. Chatting with the characters is lifeless, as they talk in incoherent fragments, where you can randomly interject with unrelated agreements or remain silent. There is a relationship system which seems more focused on than any other element in the game. Despite its attempts to be 'intimate', characters still talk in broken sentences and act awkward so don't expect anything super engaging. Characters who shouldn't be in the game also make appearances, like Shinon and Leafa, without much explanation.

    Pacing: I found myself lost pretty often, and nothing seemed to flow well. You would go through a dungeon, find the boss and decide (well the game decides) to go back to discuss the boss, and your friends want to play poker and do pointless quests. The game also seems to purposely drag itself on incoherently and would rather you focus on building relationships than being in the dungeons. Also don't expect to level up a lot, after six hours of gameplay I leveled up...once, even after multiple mini bosses and one mid boss. You also find a ton of weapons from chests.

    Technical issues: The game has some laggy moments, dropping to 15-20 fps if there are more than five things on the screen at once. The game therefore tries to spread apart enemies so you won't encounter any slowdowns, which ruins the immersion and difficulty level. Models are also oddly animated, seemingly done by amateurs or interns...they aren't atrocious, just awkward. Textures are noticeably flat and ugly. I mean literally flat, the trees look like cardboard. Characters don't always respond to commands and the AI seems very simplistic, often running into walls/not turning around to talk to you/just standing around while you fight something. There are no button configurations, and the only commands to give your partner are to be either offensive or defensive. The game also suffers from consistent and noticeable translation errors, making anyone wonder if Namco checked the finished script at all. Grammar is butchered, random symbols and spaces interject text, and spelling mistakes become comical after a while, but not acceptable. There are many localized games, including from Namco, that do not suffer from this quantity of errors in translation. Also, why does the map have to cover the screen so you can't see? Enemies also are relentless and will hunt you for most of the dungeon, so you're better off just killing everything that sees you. They are also awkwardly fast (it's fun to see their little feet zoom away), and will be at your back in seconds.

    Overall: This game is an obvious cash in on a popular anime but lacks in actual enjoyment. Dungeons are linear, similar and empty. Gameplay is ridiculous easy. Your partners are worthless with wonky AI and no involvement besides awkwardly fragmented conversations and intimacy. Leveling up requires hours of pointless grinding. The story has no real direction besides shoed in quests and bonding with girls (and Klein, if you're into that). Characters already love you and want to marry you, so there is no development. Translation is absolutely atrocious, some skills are not even translated to English and the English language being butchered almost constantly. Pop-in, optimization, frame rate drops, and awkward modeling really show that Namco did not budget much for this game.

    If you are looking for a fun, interactive and challenging JRPG, there are others on the market well worth your attention over this obvious cash in.    … Expand
  6. Stnev1994
    Mar 6, 2016
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. It's a decent game, it's not the worst JRPG but far from best. It seems badly localized as they screwed that date as it's suppose to set after floor 75 but the date is before and the tutorial is fighting a weaker version of the skull reaper and claims Kirito already seen it. The battle mechanic is over complex and kinda overwhelming. The plot isn't exactly lor friendly however SOA isn't one of those anime/franchise that i overly care about. It's solid, i somewhat recommend it. it's only 20$ but digital only, which did threw me off due to limited space on the vita (way too expensive)… Expand
  7. Vivifyingly
    Aug 23, 2014
    6
    A weak entry in my Vita's colorful library. It suffers from inexcusable "Engrish" translations that range from confusing to cringe-inducing, and uncomfortable story sequences spawning from the game's attempt to incorporate "dating sim" / harem elements centered around the "married" main character. I find myself unqualified to determine if this is made better or worse by how fans will beA weak entry in my Vita's colorful library. It suffers from inexcusable "Engrish" translations that range from confusing to cringe-inducing, and uncomfortable story sequences spawning from the game's attempt to incorporate "dating sim" / harem elements centered around the "married" main character. I find myself unqualified to determine if this is made better or worse by how fans will be used to this.

    That said, it is a solid dungeon crawler experience. It is possible to carry through the game avoiding optional challenges, the complexities of combat, and its upgrade systems... However those that find themselves spamming "O" will miss out on a semi-thrilling experience that comes from conquering high-level optional enemies through reaction-based inputs, well-thought-out set-ups, and a varied playstyle.

    The story sequences CAN be genuinely appealing to a broad audience when they avoid the harem/fanservicey pitfalls that ostracize any but the most accustomed players. Unfortunately this is only roughly 50% of the time.

    This score would easily jump 3 points with a translation that was a little more true to the story's script. Seriously. Did we hire a Japanese major undergrad and give him Google Translate and tell him to have at it, with no context for the story, characters, or sensitivity to tonal variation?

    That last point would be there if they could only change the story to make me feel a little more comfortable sharing it with anyone that isn't a die-hard SAO fan, with a high toleration for Japanese media's infamous harem and fanservice techniques.

    Once again, aside from that, it's decent. Anyone that has played games like 358/2 Days will feel at home with the graphics and (to a degree) combat.    … Expand
  8. blakfayt
    Aug 1, 2017
    6
    I don't normally like to lay into a game like this, but with SAO Hollow Fragment I simply have to, because it's the way the game opens up. And it opens up with an alternate ending to an anime that the game decides to completely summarize TWENTY MINUTES LATER. This is the first of many issues that hold SAO:HF back. There is no reason for the game to start in a gameplay tutorial, and thenI don't normally like to lay into a game like this, but with SAO Hollow Fragment I simply have to, because it's the way the game opens up. And it opens up with an alternate ending to an anime that the game decides to completely summarize TWENTY MINUTES LATER. This is the first of many issues that hold SAO:HF back. There is no reason for the game to start in a gameplay tutorial, and then give a reason as to why the protagonist was in that area, how he got there, and what led to that point. It reeks of an executive decision that showing off gameplay rather than giving players the option for backstory (and yes, it's optional) would be better.

    So, in emulation of the game, let us now go BACKWARDS to the first fault with HF. When you press New Game you are first brought to a character customization screen where you can rename and change Kirito from the SAO anime. The problem that will crop up instantly is that ... everyone calls you Kirito, regardless of what name you chose, and all of your gear starts set towards the canon path of dual swords. Unless you go buy junk equipment in the first town, which is almost sure to be worse than the starting swords, you're just going to be Kirito. So why give us these options to not be him if the game is just going to assume we're Kirito? The only excuse is that I hear there's multiplayer, and it would be really bad if everyone looked the same, but I doubt that mode is really great enough that it warrants alienating the player like that.

    The second fault is where the game starts, at the end of the anime. They pull some silly "the game is glitched" thing to reset your skills and nerf your weapons, but if you just knock roughly two zeros off the end of everything it would be the same as starting at the beginning. You're not level 100, you're level 1. You don't have 3,000,000 gold, you have 30,000, etc, etc. You don't really feel like an end game character that soloed several bosses in an MMO. You feel like a guy who just picked up the game, and there's strangely no reason for that to have not been the case.

    See, the game tries so hard to just make you Kirito that they missed out on a huge concept. Remove him instead. Kirito is a typical anime blank face. He doesn't have wild anime hair, or super natural powers, he's just an everyday schmuck who happens to be really good at VR WoW. Rather than start at the end, SAO:HF should have been an alternate universe where your made up character took the place of Kirito, you were the beta player, you get stuck in the game, and now you have to make all the choices instead. And I say this because so many features in Hollow Fragment feel geared towards that. Like the fact that Kirito is married to Asuna and has that magical data child ... but you can still go mack on the other girls that like Kirito, even to a point where they brought in girls from future seasons for almost no reason other than "Hey, more waifu material!" But because they game wants you to be Kirito you'll feel slightly scummy seeing you ENGAGEMENT RING equipped while you hold hands with Leafa.

    The combat is fine, though the tutorials are horrible (Bad translation is bad) and some of the dialogue can be very confusing. One of the worst things in this section is that dialogue boxes are as long as the Vita screen, right? That makes sense, they go all the way across the bottom. They will use less than half of that space and instead stack two sentences three lines high, roughly two dozen words total.

    It ends up looking something
    like this. And frankly it's not only
    annoying, it's probably easily fixed.

    All in all the game's not bad if you like SAO, there's certainly worse games on the market. However the game ultimately failed because what I wanted was an SAO experience, not a Kirito Life Simulator which is what I got. If the specific idea of being Kirito sounds fun, you'll have a blast. If you want something more in lines of a traditional game with familiar characters, I hear the second game did a better job of that.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

34
#34 Best PS Vita Game of 2014
10
#10 Most Discussed PS Vita Game of 2014
3
#3 Most Shared PS Vita Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
67

Mixed or average reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 28
  3. Negative: 1 out of 28
  1. The Vita Lounge
    Nov 17, 2014
    80
    A great RPG experience with a ton of content, a ton of room to grow your fully customizable character, and many different battle styles and areas to explore - you'll be playing this one for a hundred hours before you get bored... easily. My only real qualms with the title were cosmetic, so despite the fact that the game isn't perfect it's still one I'd whole-heartedly recommend.
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  2. Multiplayer.it
    Sep 24, 2014
    80
    Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment is simply huge and filled with content but it is also very repetitive and dazzling for its own good. The abysmal translation does not help either, but if you are a fan of the anime and/or you are willing to take some time through every menu to understand what's going on, you will find there's quite a lot to enjoy.
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  3. Games Master UK
    Sep 19, 2014
    67
    Poor translation abounds. [Nov 2014, p.79]
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