The premise of Sword Art Online has alway been fascinating. As someone who has played games for much of my life, the idea of being trapped in one is both alluring and terrifying. Depending on the title, of course. I was fortunate enough to get to review Echoes on Aincrad and experience the world of SAO firsthand.
Risk Your Reality
Players find themselves on the floating castle of Aincrad. You wake up alone but hearing your teammates speaking through coms. They beckon you to catch up, with much haste, and so begins the game and tutorial. I love games that include the tutorial into the first level. I am notorious for skipping the tutorial when available, much to my own chagrin. As you learn the ropes, your team begins to hint at things going awry. Calamity befalls your team just as you find them and amid the ensuing chaos, players meet Iori.
He is quick to provide background context and does a great job of explaining the world and inherent risk. A lot of early story and world building comes from Iori’s quips. As you move forward in the dungeon, he continues to dialogue. Perhaps at times a bit too much. While I found most of the information useful, I also found that he seemed to talk a little excessively. As the game progresses and players complete the tutorial, this becomes less of situation. My only reason for bringing this up is I am a fan of game music and sound effects, both of which are quite enjoyable in Echoes of Aincrad.
Single Player Doesn’t Mean Alone
Iori is the first of several non-playable teammates players can recruit throughout Echoes of Aincrad. There is no multiplayer or online component for this installment in the franchise. This is another thing I enjoyed about this game. I love having single player, offline games in my rotation to enjoy some me time while still experiencing my favorite worlds. However, single player does not mean alone. As the story continues, more NPC teammates become available, allowing players to build their “dream team” for quests.
Each NPC is introduced through questlines where players get to meet them and see how they perform in battle. These introductions also serve as a way to get to know their personality as well. The real-time combat system allows players to control their teammates without the strict rules of turn-based combat. Players can choose to let the NPCs battle on their own terms, switch taking the lead between themselves and said teammates, and even do combination moves for better damage. I liked this fluidity and appreciated that battling alongside your team in real-time action.
Play Your Way
Echoes of Aincrad does an amazing job in letting players take the lead. This starts with selectable difficulty options. I chose a more laid back option, but don’t worry – an unlockable Death Game Mode is available for those seeking the highest challenge. Beyond this choice, players are met with fully customizable characters. With third-person battling and cut scenes, the freedom to build a character I enjoy looking at is always appreciated. I also find it helps with immersion when I feel like the character I am playing as is truly mine. Whether found on the battlefield or gained due to purchasing the ultimate edition, players can also change the clothing their character is wearing. While style is the true endgame, each piece also has stat bonuses worth noting.
But the customization doesn’t stop there. Loot is there for the taking with varying types of weapons among earnable gear. Maybe you like the quick speed of a shorter sword. Or perhaps a heavy axe is more your speed. Not to worry, with several weapon archetypes, players can fall into a comfortable fighting style or try something new. In-depth weapons leveling also adds another touch of variability.
“Growth points” allow players further control over their characters. These points are earned by playing the game: progressing quests, exploring, and all the things that garner experience points. These points are accessible at the player’s base, a room that serves as your resting point and where you begin in between play-sessions. This system reminded me most of my time with games like Elden Ring. Players are free to place points in whichever column they desire, each having their own pros and cons. Yes, building into certain aspects does correlate with battle styles and weapon choices, so choose accordingly.
Explore and Survive
The world is both stunning and very alive in Echoes of Aincrad. I spent my time in-game playing on a base PlayStation 5. Even with an “older” machine, the vistas were beautiful. Each quest allowed for semi-open world exploration. If you began to wander too far from objective, you are stopped and returned to the designated play area. As someone who side quests just a little too close to the sun at times, I appreciated the guardrails this created. Another small detail I appreciated was upon crossing into a new section of the map, large text naming said location would be floating on screen for players to run through. This detail kept me in the narrative of the game by reminding me I am an avatar trapped in the world. Small, fourth wall breaking moments such as this occurred continuously and I enjoyed every single one.
Echoes of Aincrad does a great job of putting the player fully in the world of SAO. I liked that the game reminded me I was a player playing a character avatar trapped in a game. It’s not something many games I’ve played have done. Another way of doing this is, if accessing the menu during a quest, there is an option to exit the game. But when you hover over this, the game tells you it is not time for that. That feeling of being trapped online translates onto the real-world player. Don’t fret! There is autosave, but again, just a small reminder of the world players find themselves in.
“[T]here’s so much to discover”
During quests, a ping appears on an oftentimes blank map. As players explore and discover safe areas, the map fills in with topographical information upon activation of each area. Of note is that these safe areas are the only places players can pause during quests. I assumed that I could simply pause mid-quest. I returned to Iori attempting to save my character from being gored by a boar, lesson learned. Each quest introduces a new area or new parts of an area previously explored. With treasure chests aplenty and enemies roaming the lands, there’s so much to discover.
Verdict
Overall, I enjoyed my first foray into the world of SAO as a player. The combat is fun and with so much customization, I enjoyed being able to build and play how I prefer. I had a few minor pinch points along the way. The first being that certain NPCs are chatterboxes and after several missions, I just wanted to take in the game’s soundtrack and world sounds. Exploration is very enjoyable, but occasionally I would get myself lost along the way. This was especially of concern early on when I had no active safe areas. Once I got the flow of how quests worked, this became less of an issue and was more so an early-game concern. Log in, suit up, and be ready to charge the floors to survive and escape…or die trying.
Jamie’s Score: 7/10
Echoes of Aincrad releases July 10, 2026 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam.
