Sword Art Online: Infinity Moment (ソードアート・オンライン -インフィニティ・モーメント-, Sōdo Āto Onrain -Infiniti Mōmento-) is a 2013 video game based on the Sword Art Online light novel series. The game was released in both standard and limited edition box sets in Japan on March 14, 2013, for PlayStation Portable.[1] A 2014 sequel, Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment, includes all of the original game's content.[2]
| Sword Art Online: Infinity Moment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Aquria |
| Publisher(s) | Namco Bandai Games |
| Series | Sword Art Online |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation Portable |
| Release |
|
| Genre(s) | Role-playing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Gameplay
editThe gameplay has many similarities to MMORPGs, though it is not an online game, including the ability to buy and upgrade weapons, take on quests, and fight in a group with other characters.[3] The protagonist, Kirito, can equip ten types of weapons, such as swords, daggers, and axes.[4]
Combat revolves around attacking automatically solo or with one party member and mainly dealing damage using sword skills that consume "SP" upon activation. Players can modify their skill palette to speed the flow of battle to their liking, allowing for much customizability. Like the original source material, skills are learned by increasing a weapon's proficiency bar and spending skill points obtained. With the player's party member of their choosing (though they're initially chosen for them during the first several floors), players can dish out damage using "Skill Chains" by unleashing sword skills simultaneously. Depending on the strength and combination of sword skills, Skill Chains can vary in levels, ranging from simple bursts to multi-hit flurries dealing tens to hundred thousands of damage.
Players can instruct their party member to follow various commands, such as switching, using sword skills, or parrying an incoming attack. Kirito can choose the main heroines and cast of the franchise to accompany him, or recruit other NPCs who belong to the made-up guilds of the game after assisting them in either leveling up or procuring a specific item.
Similar to its sequel, the game encourages multiple playthroughs to obtain certain items, unlock more events, and complete side quests that were unfinished or unobtainable the first time around. However, since it doesn't have the extra content its successor has, there's not much to explore.
Plot
editThe game follows an alternate storyline from the end of the first arc of the original story, in which a glitch causes Kirito and the other players to remain in Sword Art Online despite defeating Heathcliff, and players from other VRMMORPGs, such as second and third arc protagonists Leafa and Sinon, get sucked into the game themselves.[5]
Development
editThe game was released on March 14, 2013, in Japan for the PlayStation Portable. In June 2014, Bandai Namco released a patch that added a new game mode, which added additional gameplay after completion of the main storyline.[6]
Reception
editThe game sold 138,180 physical retail copies within the first week of release in Japan, topping the Japanese software sales charts for that week.[7] By June 2013, it had shipped over 200,000 copies.[6] Famitsu awarded it scores of 8, 7, 7 and 7 out of 10, totaling 29 out of 40.[8]
Remake
editThe game was remade for the PlayStation Vita in the form of Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment.[9] Some features, like the player's points and skills, can be transferred from Infinity Moment to Hollow Fragment.[10]
References
edit- ^ "Sword Art Online Game to Have 3D Date Movie DVD". Anime News Network. October 26, 2012. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
- ^ "Review: Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment". Destructoid. August 19, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
- ^ "Sword Art Online: Infinity Moment is Tailor-Made for Fans of the Franchise". Kotaku. April 5, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
- ^ "Kirito Has 10 Different Weapons In Sword Art Online: Infinity Moment". Siliconera. December 7, 2012. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
- ^ "Infinity Moment Takes Everything You Know About Sword Art Online, and Turns It on Its Head". Kotaku. April 2, 2013. Retrieved July 27, 2013.
- ^ a b "Sword Art Online: Infinity Moment Tops 200,000 Units Shipped And Adds New Patch". Siliconera. June 7, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
- ^ "This Week In Sales: Kingdom Hearts HD Falls To Sword Art Online". Siliconera. March 20, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
- ^ "Famitsu Review Scores: Issue 1264". Gematsu. March 5, 2013. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment releasing with Infinity Moment HD remake". Destructoid. April 30, 2014. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
- ^ "Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment Lets You Carry Over Stuff From The PSP Game". Siliconera. January 28, 2014. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
External links
edit- Official website (in Japanese)