Sword Art Online was one of the most popular media mix works among teenage boys and girls in the 2010s. Commonly known as SAO, this work is exciting in that players dive into a virtual world using a machine called a VR machine and fight in various competitive games, sometimes risking their real lives. One of the games that appeared in SAO, Gun Gale Online, is a bloody game full of reality, where players fight with guns like in a real war, in a VRMMO with strong fantasy elements of sword and magic fighting. Gun Gale Online, commonly known as GGO, is the only VRMMO with professionals, and the main character Kirito logs in to investigate "a certain incident."
【Gun Gale Online】Kirito is a hero in the SAO incident
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
The protagonist of "Sword Art Online," commonly known as SAO, is a boy who looks just like an ordinary boy. His in-game avatar name is "Kirito," and his real name in real life is "Kirigatani Kazuto." Kirito is also a player name that is a play on Kirigaya Kazuto. Although he appears to be an ordinary boy from any angle, in the world of VRMMO, Kirito is one of the strongest players, and he became a hero in a famous incident in the game known as the "SAO Incident."
[Gun Gale Online] What was the SAO Incident that caused so much suffering to Kirito and his friends?
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
The SAO incident was a horrific incident in which Akihiko Kayaba, the creator of Sword Art Online, trapped about 10,000 players in the game world and confined them to the virtual world for about two years. Moreover, Sword Art Online, commonly known as SAO, is a veritable death game in which if you die in the game, you also die in real life. Approximately 4,000 people have died in the two years since it began, and even player killers (PKs) have appeared in the game, where players kill other players.
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
Kirito was a top player in SAO, and Kayaba Masahiko also recognized him as the strongest player in SAO. In the end, Kirito defeated Kayaba Masahiko, and many SAO players, including Kirito, woke up in the real world for the first time in about two years, but this SAO incident left a deep darkness in Kirito's heart. However, the companions he made there were invaluable and proved to be a savior for Kirito later on.
[Gun Gale Online] What kind of person is Kirito?
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
Kirito, who had just been trapped in the world of Sword Art Online, was a solo player who preferred to play alone, but as he met Asuna and the others, he gradually became more cooperative and began to actively participate in parties. Although he looks like a kind boy, he is surprisingly stubborn and thinks that "to be honest, the people around me are holding me back." Therefore, in the world of SAO, which is a real death game, there was a tendency for him to want to be alone.
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
However, Kirito, who certainly had acquired skills far more powerful than the average, was so strong that even multiple other players could not stand a chance against him. Kirito generally prefers playing solo, but when he is in a situation where he can't do anything solo, he willingly joins a party and is flexible enough to contribute to the whole team, making him a very dexterous character whose behavior is hard to predict.
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
He may seem stubborn, but he is also surprisingly emotional, and he can't stay positive because he keeps dragging around the sadness of the past. There are also times when he is so emotional that he sheds tears. He often charges forward in anger or fear, and loses his composure, making him an unstable character that is hard to imagine from his appearance as an ordinary boy at first glance. However, this humanness is also what makes Kirito so appealing.
【Gun Gale Online】Kirito is a pathologically emotional character
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
One thing I can say is that Kirito is a character who values his own emotions. Of course, there are times when he thinks logically and acts efficiently, but more than that, he is characterized by "making decisions based on his own feelings." She starts off not wanting to form a party because she likes playing solo, but then forms a party because playing solo is impossible... but she doesn't keep up with the people around her, and (despite appearances) is a selfish girl.
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
(Though he looks quiet) he is a character whose emotions are stronger than his reason, so he is easily moved to tears for his comrades and sometimes loses his temper and charges forward. However, his emotional strength exceeds the SAO system, and this is also the part of Kirito that Masahiko Kayaba most appreciated. Kirito prioritizes emotional decisions over rational ones, so he seems to have a talent for subjectively choosing what suits him best and moving forward efficiently (high protagonist attributes).
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
When Kirito first logged into Alfheim Online, he chose the Spriggan because he liked the design and color, without understanding its performance, and made decisions based on his own preferences without thinking about the consequences. Even in GGO, even though it was a game where you fight with guns, he was obsessed with his own preferences to the point of being pathological, saying, "I'll fight with the Photon Sword (sword) because I like it (even though I don't know anything about GGO)!"
【Gun Gale Online】Kirito's partner "Asuna"
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
Asuna is the main heroine of this work, a girl whom Kirito met in the game during the SAO incident. She is one year older than Kirito, and is a bright and kind beautiful girl. During the SAO incident, she was famous as a female swordsman who fought with a rapier, and even Kirito, who has the fastest reaction time in SAO, was amazed by her consecutive attacks with the rapier. In terms of skill, she is a strong player who is in no way inferior to Kirito, and is a warrior who survived alongside Kirito in the harsh world of SAO.
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
Her real name in real life is Yuuki Asuna, and she is actually the daughter of a company president and is very rich. Although she is a girl of a status that seems very out of place with Kirito, she has feelings for him, and a love relationship has blossomed between them as the most reliable partners who have survived the harsh SAO. Even after surviving the SAO incident, the two of them still had a difficult time dealing with each other, but in the second part, "Fairy Dance," they were finally able to meet in the real world.
[Gun Gale Online] Kirito is also highly intelligent!
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
Kirito has been described as an emotional character, and while his true nature is that he makes decisions based on emotion, he also has a high level of thinking and a wide range of knowledge about VRMMOs. Although he's not on the level of an expert, he is able to explain the mechanics of VRMMOs to others in a fairly logical and easy-to-understand way, which highlights his intellectual side.
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
He also has a high level of deductive ability, and during the Death Gun incident in GGO, he quickly deduced that death in the game could not be directly linked to death in real life, and realized that Death Gun was actually a multi-person murderer who was killing players in the real world, showing his detective-level insight. Kirito's appeal is that he has a well-balanced mix of emotional and intellectual abilities, yet at the same time possesses overwhelming player skills that overwhelm others.
[Gun Gale Online] Cut through bullets with the Photon Sword!
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
In GGO, where you fight with guns, fighting with a photon sword is clearly a disadvantage. However, Kirito made a name for himself with his amazing technique of cutting down bullets with his photon sword, bringing the game into close combat and defeating the opposing player, making use of his high agility. Cutting down bullets that are coming at you at hundreds of meters per second is probably a nearly impossible feat, but in GGO, where you can see the predicted trajectory of the bullets, Kirito's speed might make it possible.
【Gun Gale Online】Kirito is blessed with friends
Source: Gun Gale Online © Keiichi Sigsawa/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/GGO Project
Kirito was a person who generally preferred to play solo, but after the SAO incident, he grew into a player who cooperated with his friends to overcome difficulties. And it's wonderful how, inevitably, talented and pleasant companions gather around Kirito and form strong bonds with him. The reason good companions gather around Kirito is probably because they trust him due to his high player skills, but it's also because he is a well-balanced and attractive person.
