Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet Standard Edition - PlayStation 4

This is the 5th installment in a somewhat disappointing series. Hollow Fragment was an automated game that attempted to pack a visual novel into an old game engine. Lost Song attempted to update the engine without actually including much story and very minimal content. Hollow Realization finally began to show some promise, but promised more than it could offer. The game was an update of the previous "Hollow" title added a slight twist to the existing "discovers an unknown character that may be an AI" story. The season pass was similar to the DLC of NieR, while costing significantly more. If you didn't play NieR, the DLC was a single added quest line that included arena battles. Accel World vs Sword Art Online attempted to mix Lost Song and Hollow Realization, only to end up being just slightly better than Lost Song. This game introduced overpriced costumes and character additions. The mechanics were slightly more interesting, but it failed to live up to the advertisements. It showed Sinon being able to shoot her sniper, only to reveal this was a recorded special move. It was only explained in advertising shortly after the announcement of this game, which did support gun fire. Fatal Bullet has finally brought semi-modern graphics, semi-decent mechanics, and a somewhat immersive story design, but still manages to retain the same underlying pitfalls as previous games. Character customization is picking parts from main story characters with a few added colors and options. Names are absurdly censored, with words like "Puff" being considered prohibited and forcing you to be labeled "Player" in PvP. The preorder bonuses were not included via email, a code, or even any indication that they were included. The season pass is only available as part of the Deluxe, which cannot be purchased here. I am not familiar with what the season pass will include, but previous games made a lot of big claims that turned into minuscule updates. Overall, I hope the game progresses into something a little better than the past ones. Right now, it looks like another short distraction while awaiting bigger titles to be released.

This game follows the same general formula of the last SAO game I played, Lost Song. However, I found the gameplay to be better refined and far more enjoyable. I think These games tend to have far to much exposition for their own good, but it does help you get to know the characters. Otherwise I've been enjoying it quite a bit.

These games are really meant for fans of the anime, as you’re expected to already know the characters. That being said, I believe this game is the best so far out of all the SAO games. Gameplay is fun, and the environments are nicely detailed.

Controls are a bit awkward but I can get used to it. I like the story so far with this being a SAO game with guns

I have only played it a few times so far, but I've been enjoying what I have played. I like that you can use a sword for hack and slash or snipe away with a rifle and so on. I'm still learning what style of game play I like most for this SAO. I may update my review once I dive more into the online play