We played the Echoes of Aincrad Demo.

The demo version of the game Echoes of Aincrad has arrived with a rather thankless task. Fans of the Sword Art Online series have been waiting for years for a game that will truly make them feel trapped in Aincrad, rather than just going through another anime adventure with Kirito as the main character. After spending a few hours in the demo, it seems that Bandai Namco is finally on the right track, but they still haven't reached the final floor.

Right from the start, it is clear that Echoes of Aincrad wants to offer something different from previous SAO titles. Instead of just observing the familiar story from the anime, here we create our own character and enter the world of Aincrad as one of the thousands of players trapped in a deadly VRMMORPG. For long-time fans of the series, this is the realization of an old wish and a concept that works excellently.

The biggest asset of the demo is definitely the combat. The system is based on real-time action, dodging, parrying, and using Sword Skills, and different types of weapons truly offer different play styles. Great swords provide powerful, slower strikes, while daggers and lighter weapons encourage a more aggressive and mobile approach. After a few battles, it’s easy to find a favorite style, and the feeling of progress through unlocking new abilities is very satisfying. It’s especially pleasing that strikes finally have a certain weight and "impact," something that earlier SAO games often lacked.

However, not everything is as rosy as Asuna might wish. The demo occasionally gives the impression that it holds the player's hand too much. The introductory hours are filled with tutorials, slow dialogue sequences, and situations where the game literally takes control to explain yet another system. After the third or fourth forced walk down a corridor while your companion lectures you, it’s hard not to wish for a skip button that, unfortunately, often doesn’t exist.

The atmosphere of Aincrad is almost perfectly captured. The visual style, music, and user interface faithfully convey the feeling of the anime. Wandering through grassy expanses and exploring dungeons will easily awaken nostalgia in every fan of the series. However, exploration currently feels quite linear, and the amount of content shown in the demo is still not enough to confirm how diverse the full game will be in the long run.

The technical side also leaves mixed impressions. Visually, the game looks quite decent, but animations sometimes feel a bit stiff, and occasional performance drops and awkward camera angles remind us that the project still needs polishing. Nothing that completely ruins the experience, but enough to be noticeable.

After playing the demo, I was left with the feeling that Echoes of Aincrad finally understands what fans want from a Sword Art Online game. The combat is fun, the atmosphere is excellent, and the idea of having your own character within Aincrad is a home run. On the other hand, the linearity, excessive tutorials, and somewhat outdated design elements still raise a certain degree of caution.

If you are a fan of the Sword Art Online world, the demo is definitely worth trying. Just don’t sell your NerveGear yet and reserve your annual leave in advance for conquering all one hundred floors.