I don't usually write reviews, let alone negative ones, but oh my God... this game is a huge disappointment.
It's full of bugs. Sometimes it crashes, swimming feels awful (at least add a stamina bar), and if you try to take shortcuts or skip certain sections, the game just sends you back to the beginning. That's not difficulty—it's just frustrating.
If it weren't for the fact that I fell asleep watching the anime cutscenes and had already played too long, I would've refunded it.
Who thought it was a good idea to force players back to town just to open a chest just to increase their stats? On top of that, the very same chest is also where you're forced to manage your equipment, meaning you have to return there every time you want to upgrade your stats, change your armor, switch weapons, or even equip your party members with different gear. It completely destroys the pacing and turns what should be a simple menu into an unnecessary trip back to town every single time "This isn't SAO".
Honestly, it makes me sad because this isn't what I expected from Bandai Namco. You don't even know what floor you're on most of the time, exploration feels confusing, and the combat is surprisingly clunky and lacks impact. Enemy variety gets repetitive very quickly, side content starts feeling like copy-and-paste, and progression isn't nearly as satisfying as it should be.
The game has a great concept—finally letting us experience Aincrad with our own character—but the execution feels unfinished. Between the bugs, questionable design choices, inconsistent performance, repetitive gameplay loop, and lack of basic quality-of-life features, it's hard not to feel like this needed several more months in development.
Also, be very careful when customizing your character. You can't change your appearance later, which is another baffling design decision.
I'm still playing and keep finding more issues, which is honestly disappointing because I really wanted to enjoy this game. I hope Bandai Namco commits to major patches because there's a solid foundation here, but right now I can't recommend it.
The more I play, the more I realize that almost every system is designed to waste your time. You're constantly forced back to town to manage your character, you're not allowed to freely explore Aincrad because the game keeps pushing you back into the quest area, and even basic RPG features like changing equipment are tied to the same chest where you allocate your stats. Instead of making the game immersive, these design choices just make it feel tedious.
In summary:
It doesn't really feel like an open-world game. You're constantly restricted by the active mission, and if you try to explore on your own, the game pushes you back into the quest area. Many players expected to freely explore Aincrad but instead found a series of linear, closed-off zones.
There are only two floors of Aincrad. Many players expected a much larger adventure and feel the amount of content doesn't justify the price.
The price is too high. This is probably one of the most common complaints. Even players who enjoy the game say it would be much more reasonably priced at around $30–40 rather than as a full-priced AAA title.
Enemy and boss variety is lacking. You'll fight the same enemies repeatedly, making combat feel repetitive after just a few hours.
Combat feels shallow. Many weapon types end up playing very similarly, there aren't enough unique skills or special attacks, and the overall combat lacks depth.
Exploration is punished. If you leave the intended path, the game tells you that you've left the mission area and forces you back instead of rewarding exploration.
Crafting and shops feel underwhelming. Many players feel these systems add very little to character progression.
NPC and companion AI is disappointing. Allies often make poor decisions, stand in enemy attacks, or pull unnecessary aggro.
Your custom character often feels like a spectator rather than the protagonist. Instead of feeling like an important part of the story, you're mostly watching events unfold around the established characters.
Progression feels artificially stretched. Long walks, repetitive objectives, and constant trips back to town make the game feel longer without adding meaningful content.
Performance and optimization are inconsistent. Besides crashes, there are reports of stuttering, texture and vegetation pop-in, and various graphical issues.
Character customization is limited. Not only can you not change your appearance later, but many players also feel the initial customization options are fairly basic.
Overall, the game feels unfinished. It has some genuinely good ideas, but it comes across as if it was released several months before it was truly ready.
For now, this is a negative review. Save your money and wait until the game receives significant updates before considering buying it.
Note= I'm still playing it; I'll update my review if it gets better.
