Much like God Eater 2: Rage Burst and God Eater: Resurrection before it, Bandai Namco is bringing Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization to the west in 2016, when it will launch across both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita.
Pitched as a new beginning for the SAO series, Hollow Realization acts as the fourth mainline console installment from Bandai and will be based on characters introduced in Reki Kawahara’s über-popular light novel series. As such, expect Kirito and Asuna to return to the fold, with the developers teasing a batch of new characters that are yet to make their Sword Art debut in a video game.
“The Sword Art Online franchise has experienced incredible growth in popularity on a global level with light-novel and anime fans,” Bandai Namco America marketing executive Eric Hartness said in a statement. “With Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization, we’re striving to take fans even further into Sword Art Online’s VRMMORPG world. We hope players are ready for the challenge.”
Previously confirmed for Japan in the aftermath of Tokyo Game Show, today is the first confirmation that Hollow Realization would be making its way to North America and Europe, following in the footsteps of other entries in the series such as Hollow Fragment and Lost Song.
Currently pegged for a vague 2016 window, we’ll let you know as soon as Bandai Namco nails down an official release date for Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization across PS4 and PS Vita.
