Review: #612
Title: Sword Art Online: Progressive 1
Series: Sword Art Online: Progressive - 1st volume
Author: Reki Kawahara
Read Before: no
Comments: Sword Art Online: Progressive is like a reboot of the series, but this time, it complements the main novels of the series by fleshing out the original Aincrad arc. Kirito and thousands of other players are trapped within the virtual reality MMORPG where if they die in the game, they die in real life. To beat the game, they have to travel up 100 floors and beat all the bosses and monsters; it is a terrible predicament to be in. This time around, Progressive takes the story on a floor by floor basis, with this first volume focusing on the first two floors. We get to learn a lot more technical aspects of the game which makes it very interesting at how the game’s mechanics work, especially with all the structure of the game, boss battles and other more “normal” actions such as eating and sleeping. In a slight contradiction to the main series, Asuna features heavily alongside Kirito as the two work together. Due to the lack of a length limit which severely crippled the plot of the original, the plot is allowed time to build momentum and it encompasses various subplots. In particular, the weapon scandal subplot that takes place on the Second Floor of the game is interesting and keeps you guessing at how it was pulled off. The game has two significant Floor Boss battles which are great to read with all the action, strategy and quick thinking. You can help but cheer on Kirito even if he is hated by other characters, a bit overpowered and even at times, not deserving of being the only one that’s scoring all the bonuses and good things. Progressive is a good approach to the Aincrad arc that takes things slowly, being able to flesh out the world to make it more immersive than ever.
Rating: 7/10