Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet

1. Xbox_Alive

   Feb 26, 2018

   8

   The RPG genre has another release in the form of Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet and at times it can provide you with some very enjoyableThe RPG genre has another release in the form of Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet and at times it can provide you with some very enjoyable moments. Unfortunately it does suffer with a few shortcomings and this does stop the game from being included in the higher echelons of the RPG genre. The gameplay has a number of different mechanics in play at the same time which is what you would expect from an RPG, and these mechanics mostly hold up really well throughout your time with the game. My biggest problem with the gameplay though is that it is very grindy and that can make things become tedious especially when you include the amount of loading screens as well. In terms of content the game has a vast amount for you to get to grips with and you will without a doubt sink quite a few hours into the game because the amount of customisation you can do is absolutely fantastic. Something that disappointed quite a bit with this game was the combat that was present. I just felt that the combat was lacking in certain areas and it felt boring some of the time, but thankfully at least the shooting mechanics were up to snuff though. If you like a decent story that keeps you invested throughout then you will enjoy the story that’s present in Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet. I found the story to be very interesting and it immersed me into the gameplay extremely well. Despite the game suffering with an array of technical issues I did find that the presentation side of the game checked a lot of boxes for me. Thankfully the technichal issues aren’t game-breaking but they do cause some frustration, but I will say that if you look past these issues then you will find that the visuals and sound design do a great job of creating an immersive experience at every turn. At the end of the day Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet is kind of stuck in limbo at times because the problems it suffers with are not present in the top end RPG’s so that means there are quite a few RPG’s out there that are better than this game. Don’t get me wrong this game is far from being bad and fans of the genre will find more than enough enjoyable aspects that will satisfy them a great deal, it’s just that I don’t find this to be as interesting as some of the other game’s in the genre. That being said Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet does however do enough to warrant a recommendation from me.… Expand

   • 42 of 43 users found this helpful
2. FluFreedom

   Nov 22, 2018

   8

   Game is very enjoyable. Story and game-play are fun and the choice of how you want to play with different weapons makes the re-playability very high

   • 0 of 1 users found this helpful
4. Kiwazan

   Jul 21, 2020

   8

   Este juego es muy entretenido y su gameplay simple podría engañar, envicia bastante en multijugador o singleplayer cuando estas farmeando. LosEste juego es muy entretenido y su gameplay simple podría engañar, envicia bastante en multijugador o singleplayer cuando estas farmeando. Los problemas son los gráficos, los diálogos y la historia, gráficamente parece un juego de principio de PS3 y la historia con sus diálogos es una tortura tanta vergüenza ajena.
   
   Yo pensaba ignorar la historia y solo ir por la vida farmeando cosas, aunque el juego se puede pasar perfectamente omitiendo todos los diálogos y cinemáticas, es lo mejor. Recomiendo mucho el juego por su aspecto multijugador y gameplay pero no recomiendo intentar disfrutar del modo historia.… Expand

   • 0 of 1 users found this helpful
5. CatsPawDigital

   Aug 14, 2020

   7

   I remember back in the day when played the first of the .Hack games feeling as if I actually was playing an online game. Graphics andI remember back in the day when played the first of the .Hack games feeling as if I actually was playing an online game. Graphics and features have come a long way since then, as has the ability to tell stories through a digital medium in general but... I didn't get that same feeling of 'being online while offline' that I did in that comparatively primitive PS2 game.
   
   Which is not to say I don't like it Fatal Bullet. It just doesn't have what (for me) made .Hack so special and (at that time) appealing. I'm not a fan of the anime, I know, never having seen it- but I hadn't seen any of the .Hack anime way back then either.
   
   Well, on with the review.
   
   SOUND=1/2
   It didn't annoy me but it came across as generic and unmemorable. Ten minutes ago I was playing the game and I can't for the life of me remember anything about any of the music- just the sound of the assault rifle my character uses as a primary weapon. On the other hand, this means that unlike other games (I'm talking about *you*, Xenoblade Chronicles X) there wasn't anything so obnoxiously annoying that it stood out.
   
   GRAPHICS= 1/2
   Once again, nothing stands out. Pretty standard for an anime-inspired game. Maybe playing Ghost of Tsushima has made me too picky about my visuals. They're by no means bad- but I can't help but feel they could be so much better.
   
   STORY= 1/2
   Everything about this game screams "GENERIC!" Fans of the anime will hopefully forgive me but as I said I have never seen the anime so I started playing without an existing attachment or bias. I think the references to other games in the series is a nice touch but as the previous two games in the series are still in plastic on my shelf this had no effect on my perception of the story one way or another. There's just nothing about it for me that stands out.
   
   CONTROLS= 1/2
   There are a small number of control issues but for me, I found the walking/running implementation awkward. Also, since most games these days lack instruction manuals I was on day 2 of playing before I figured out how to use my gadgets and I still don't know if my constant NPC can *really* be given an allowance or not and if so how exactly it's done. This latter is annoying but given that rare indeed is the game these days with a booklet that tells you how to play I can hardly hold this lack against it.
   
   EXECUTION: 2/2
   While none of the areas I've scored the game in thus far particular impressed me, everything fits together as a cohesive whole very well. I can wish that the game's guns were easier to modify but that was a design choice, not a flaw or oversight and it kind of drives grinding not just for experience but for better versions of weapons and accessories. Anyway, I'm giving it a 2 out of 2 here.
   
   PERSONAL EXPERIENCE MODIFIER: +1
   Once I understood what I was doing, I liked the game. It's fun and passes the time- but not to the extent that it can hold my interest indefinitely. None of the aspects above really 'grab' me. It's not bad, just... well, generic. Add 1 if you're a fan of the anime and maybe another 1 if you really like the other SAO games since it has been my experience that additional familiarity coupled with perhaps a hint of nostalgia yields increased enjoyment where execution is at least competent. But for me... 7… Expand

   • 0 of 1 users found this helpful
6. Bruninho1997

   Oct 13, 2021

   7

   A jogabilidade é muito boa e viciante, é divertido fazer grind de itens e XP, mas o jogo peca em alguns pontos.
   A história é bem fraquinha eA jogabilidade é muito boa e viciante, é divertido fazer grind de itens e XP, mas o jogo peca em alguns pontos.
   A história é bem fraquinha e desinteressante até um certo ponto, é MUITO blablabla desnecessário e chato, e é chato demais fazer tudo que precisa ser feito para chegar ao final verdadeiro.… Expand

   • 0 of 1 users found this helpful
7. StanleyPain

   Feb 27, 2018

   6

   It's a very solid third person shooter sort of dragged down by a lot of fiddly mechanics, a depressing amount of grind, and not using it'sIt's a very solid third person shooter sort of dragged down by a lot of fiddly mechanics, a depressing amount of grind, and not using it's setting or visual style to any great degree.
   While there is a significant amount of attention paid to the loot system and how you create a character that fits your personal play style, it feels like the combat system never really gets a chance to truly shine. There are some great boss battles and large scale moments in the game that feel great, but the same-iness of the environments and the repeating enemies really start to get boring and frustrating after awhile. It's also very bizarre/annoying that for a game based entirely around third person shooting, there are many places in the game that place in huge areas with absolutely no cover. Another problem is the rather slow moving story and what a slog it is. I knew going into SAO that since it was based on anime, there be a lot of that long-winded visual novel stuff meant for kids, but it kinda overdoes it. I swear, the game's opening is, like, 2 hours of high pitched Japanese girls screaming in your ear before you even get a chance to really get a feel for the game.
   Another huge problem is the difficulty balance, which seems totally arbitrary. There are parts of the game where you will be exploring an area that seems scaled well to about where you would be in the game, then you will suddenly, without warning, encounter enemies 20-30 levels higher than you which wipe out your entire party (since there's no way to run away or get out of aggro) in 20 seconds. This gates off areas you're not supposed to be in yet, yes, but it does so in a totally illogical and unpredictable way. So..you just grind and grind to level up and, depressingly, the game's "missions" rarely provide additional exp, just crafting materials and money.
   And then there's the load times....holy crap, the load times. So, let me give players a PROTIP: You can fast travel in the game *from* virtually anywhere *to* virtually anywhere. Remember this (since the game doesn't tell you up front), because you will need to make good use of the fast travel to cut down on the already insane amount of load screens and travel times. Not only should the game have condensed all of its services to one area, but it is mindboggling to me that it takes longer to load fast travel within an area, then physically walking to some of the points. It is a slog sometimes..
   There's so many things I wanted to love about this game, but it kinda felt like the setting was all in place, and then they only made use of about %60 of the game's potential. Starting out, it felt like it could be a spiritual successor to, say, Phantasy Star Universe, and in some ways it is, but not as visually interesting or with as much content. I dunno...it's hard to hate on SAO:FB for a lot of reasons, but at the same time it's hard to recommend.… Expand

   • 2 of 3 users found this helpful
8. weirdmagican21

   Nov 20, 2018

   1

   needs a lot of improvment to even be considered a decent game especially the controls.

   • 1 of 2 users found this helpful

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