The virtual world of SAO expands further with its latest installment, SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection. Follow Kirito's perilous journey through the Dark Territory as an envoy for humanity. Read our full review to see if this game is worth your time.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Review Overview
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
 Great Variety of Weapons and Skill Palettes Cinematic Attacks and Abilities Incredibly Deep and Synergistic Combat Systems |
Wonky Camerawork Difficult Controls and Split Second Command Timing Incredibly Slow Game Progression |
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Overall - 82/100
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection is a dynamic JRPG that balances casual accessibility and competitive depth. It shows a clear focus on the complexity and synergy of its gameplay, showcasing many layers of game mechanics that all seamlessly integrate to provide a memorable and exciting adventure through Underworld. Pair that with massive maps, cinematic cutscenes, amazing weapon design, and over 30 hours of a story mode, and you’ve got yourself a min-maxer’s paradise.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Story - 8/10
While the story by itself is enjoyable, it breaks no narrative ground and tends to fall to standard JRPG tropes. Its pacing is extremely erratic, with some chapters consisting only of narrative elements while others have next to none. The side quests do little to expand the world’s lore, and much of the world is alluded to but never explained. Players new to the SAO franchise would be very lost.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Gameplay - 9/10
The gameplay is outstanding, meshing together multiple layers of complexity without bloating the game with mechanics. Min-maxing is encouraged, but standard hack-and-slash tactics work as well, although just a little slower. Every aspect is well-implemented and no mechanic feels like an afterthought. This is easily the game’s strongest aspect.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Visuals - 8/10
The game presents itself in an anime 3D world. While this lends itself to the game’s dynamic moves, cinematic abilities, and character designs, the 3D assets for the maps aren’t the best, even on the highest settings. That being said, much of the game’s narrative is carried well by the game’s visuals, utilizing flat visual novel-esque dialogues for the episode missions and in-engine scenes for much of the cinematics.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Audio - 8/10
The game is fully voice-acted by industry professionals and it shows. In fact, each character is represented by their original voice actor from the anime. The sound design for the abilities and monsters is passable, but the soundtrack actually works well for the game’s themes. However, while the soundtrack works well, it isn’t particularly memorable.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Value for Money - 8/10
At $60, the game's steep price tag may discourage some, especially newcomers to the SAO fandom. However, considering its 13 expansive tech trees, extensive story mode, side content, and replayability options, it actually offers great value for its cost. We wouldn’t recommend it as someone’s first exposure to SAO, as a lot of the deeper lore relies on knowledge of both the anime and past games. But hardcore SAO fans and JRPG veterans would be remiss to pass up this game.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Review: A Min-Maxer's Paradise
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection is a frenetic, hack-and-slash, 3D adventure game, stacked with layers of game systems that work together well. Harkening back to the era of overly complicated but captivating JRPGs, this game is a decent blend of casual gameplay and competitive min-maxing.
The game is playable even if you decide to slash your way through every foe without caring to incorporate any of the game’s interlocking combat mechanics into your strategy. But that’d be a shame. Because if you take the time to learn these various mechanics, to see how they enhance every aspect of the game’s initially simplistic combat system, you’d be in for a transformative experience.
The numbers will start to make sense, new builds will start to form, weaknesses will be compensated, strengths will be amplified, and before long, you’ll have yourself a well-oiled monster-slaying machine.
The game strikes a commendable balance between competitive depth and casual accessibility, catering to a broad audience without compromising gameplay. Ultimately, it’s a matter of preference on how you wish to play, with either choice being equally viable for a fun playthrough.
In addition to its engaging gameplay, the game features full voice acting by the original SAO cast, providing an authentic experience for fans. There’s always the fear of adaptations losing that special something from the original source, but those fears can be abated here. While presenting an original plot distinct from the anime, it stays true to the characters, lore, and world-building of the SAO universe.
Speaking of characters, the narrative introduces both familiar faces and new allies as unlockable additions to your party. Series mainstays like Kirito, Asuna, Eugeo, and Alice are present from the get-go, but other characters from the anime like Fanatio, Bercouli, and Renly become playable as you progress through the story. There are over 30 characters to unlock over the course of the game, so you’re bound to find just the right addition to fulfill your min-max dream team.
Pros of SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection
| Things SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Got Right |
|---|
|
Great Variety of Weapons and Skill Palettes Cinematic Attacks and Abilities Incredibly Deep and Synergistic Combat Systems |
Great Variety of Weapons and Skill Palettes
The game comes with 13 distinct weapons, each with its own unique move set, weapon-specific ability, strategic advantage, and awakening. Three of your four possible party members are locked into using a specific weapon respective to their characters. Meanwhile Kirito, your character, can use any weapon in the game, barring a few unique ones locked to specific characters. This allows you to mix things up as you need while also requiring you to make do with what the other members of your party can provide.
Each of these weapons is equally viable on a base level, but each eventually settles into its own strategic niche in which it excels. And since the game encourages min-maxing, you get to decide how and when that weapon excels.
Every weapon also has an expansive skill tree that uses skill points to unlock new abilities or passives, enhance existing skills, and provide new ways to use your chosen weapon. The game is generous with skill points as well, so you’ll be unlocking new attacks pretty often.
Cinematic Attacks and Abilities
Variety aside, each of these abilities, weapons, and skills are wonderfully animated. Weapon trails and particle effects tell you exactly where your attacks are going, all the while giving you a spectacle mid-battle.
Each character also gets an ultimate move called a Finish Art to cap off an already mesmerizing display of combat. These all differ depending on the character and the weapons they wield. Moreover, the Ally Skill meter can be filled to unleash a collective finisher, showcasing a cinematic combination attack. Though the character models themselves can use some work, the animations are fully capable of pulling you into the game, leaving you unable to take your eyes away from the combat.
Incredibly Deep and Synergistic Combat Systems
The game's core strength resides in its intricate yet harmonious combat system. The game has many layers to its combat that aren’t initially apparent but are drip-fed to the player as the game progresses. Chief among them is the Tactical Arts Command Mode.
In essence, this gameplay mechanic enables a single player to direct the actions of the other three party members during combat by establishing parameters for them to follow and the instances in which they trigger. This essentially allows you to program your teammates, allowing you to fight as a team even if you control only one character. This aligns seamlessly with the game's emphasis on team-based combat, especially since different enemies have attacks that can be countered by a range of abilities, including those not currently available to the controlled character.
Each of those abilities, accessed by the Tactical Arts Command Mode or otherwise, is enhanced by the weapon’s respective skill tree. Oftentimes, it’s this enhancement that can counter an enemy move in the first place.
These kinds of gameplay mechanics make SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection’s combat addicting, as every new weapon, skill, ability, or enhancement opens many more avenues for a min-maxed build. You'll never be without anything to do, as you'll be constantly changing your kit to suit your team's needs.
Cons of SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection
| Things That SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Can Improve |
|---|
|
Wonky Camerawork Difficult Controls and Split Second Command Timing Incredibly Slow Game Progression |
Wonky Camerawork
For a 3D Action JRPG, this game’s camera work could use some major improvements. It thankfully has a lock-on feature, as I would find it impossible to target enemies otherwise, but even this ironically exacerbates the camera’s issues.
The primary issue lies in the erratic camera controls, even during exploration. It's fairly manageable when dealing with a single enemy, but when facing multiple foes, it becomes nearly impossible to control the camera while defending yourself.
The lock-on feature notably auto locks into the nearest active enemy after you kill the last one, causing the camera to suddenly whip around, especially when fighting multiple low-level enemies. This creates an incredibly dizzying effect, and at worse, makes you completely lose sense of where your character is.
Difficult Controls and Split Second Command Timing
I reviewed this game on Steam for PC, so I’m using a mouse and keyboard. The game’s controls aren’t the easiest to understand or get used to, as they require sequenced inputs within a short window of time. While probably not a problem for consoles, it is very difficult to deal with on mouse and keyboard.
Perhaps the best example of this would be the perfect dodge and perfect block mechanic, which lets you avoid and reduce damage, respectively. The window to gain a perfect dodge or block is razor-thin, doubly so on PC keybinds.
Another would be chaining abilities mid-casting. Granted, this is easier for some weapons and nonexistent for others, but for the weapons that do require chaining abilities to make the most of their moves, this somewhat poses an issue.
Arguably, this is a skill issue. But this level of scrutiny encroaches a little on the game’s accessibility to more casual players, as these mechanics are not optional and are integral to the player’s base kit.
Incredibly Slow Game Progression
One might expect a game with linear progression to have a faster pace, especially since dynamic battles are the core of the gameplay. Unfortunately, due to the sheer amount of information that has to be learned by the player, the game progresses at a snail’s pace.
The game has 11 chapters, the first of which is comprised entirely of 3D cut scenes, with the second chapter lasting well over four hours. It doesn’t get any better after that. The following chapters are equally varied in length, with some not lasting more than five minutes and the end game chapters lasting a minimum of 3 hours each.
While this is a choice that JRPG veterans may appreciate, it significantly hampers the game's pacing, as the main content doesn't unlock until completing around 4 hours of tutorials. Constant loading screens also break up the pacing into unnecessarily bite-sized pieces which, in a 40-hour run time, gets tedious very quickly.
Is SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Worth It?
A Bit Pricey, But Worth Every Penny
The game retails at $60 for the standard edition across all platforms, reaching up to $100 for the PC Exclusive Ultimate Edition. For that price, you’re getting 30+ hours of main story mode gameplay, plus tens of hours worth of side content. This side content includes episode missions, hunting missions, and hidden areas, all still accessible after you finish the main story mission. There unfortunately doesn’t seem to be a New Game+ mode, but the game’s difficulty can be adjusted at any point to provide a better challenge.
Though we can’t speak for the DLC or Season Pass included in the Digital Deluxe and Ultimate versions, as their details are not yet released, the base game certainly has enough to justify its $60 price tag.
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Overview & Premise
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection follows Kirito, the famed Black Swordsman, and his party as they traverse the Dark Territory in an effort to quell a looming invasion forewarned by Dorothy, a Dark Knight from that realm.
Together, they will meet with the ten lords of the Dark Territory as envoys of the Human Realms, fighting massive beasts and encountering challenges along the way.
Game8 Reviews
SWORD ART ONLINE Last Recollection Product Information
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| Title | SWORD ART ONLINE: LAST RECOLLECTION |
|---|---|
| Release Date | October 6, 2023 |
| Developer | Aquria, Aclear Co., Ltd. |
| Publisher | BNE Entertainment |
| Supported Platforms | PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S |
| Genre | Action, Adventure |
| Number of Players | 1-4 |
| ESRB Rating | Teen |
| Official Website | Sword Art Online: Last Recollection Website |
