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I'm not going to say that the original Sword Art Online is bad - that'll just trigger fans. But something we can all agree on is that it is very controversial. When I heard about Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online, I didn't pay much mind to it since, well, it's SAO. I only got around to watching it after watching a few Youtube vids saying it's nice, so I just went ahead and watched it. I wouldn't say that it was the worst decision I've ever made, but I was... disappointed.

I had high expectations for the story. Karen is a taller-your-average-female-japanese character that ... has insecurities about her height. She decided to play VRMMORPG games because of these insecurities, wishing to become a cute and short person. I liked this aspect, since the main character has actual motivations why she's playing GGO. Don't get me wrong, I like stories that are written around characters who are all about gaming and nothing else, but I just like how it adds a bit of depth to the protagonist.

So far, I've only been saying good stuff about the story. So why the 6? (Spoilers ahead) What pissed me off is when after the first Squad Jam, she lost her insecurities about her height without any further explanation. All she said was she had to fight for her life (in the game) and realized that it doesn't really matter (her height, that is). However, there was no real reference or connection between Squad Jam (the tournament) and her insecurities! I know it's unfair to compare another anime to another one, but this move in SAOA:GGO is akin to Kayaba Akihiko saying 'lol I don't remember anymore' when asked by Kirito why he created Sword Art Online!

And Pitohui. SAOA:GGO started light and fun, but suddenly when the first Squad Jam ended and the story focused on Pitohui, the anime took a nosedive to darker territories that don't suit its previous vibe. I just don't feel that it fits. And Pitohui's motivation for her actions is... bland and lazy.

There were also characters that were introduced in the story and the anime made it look like they would be important in the story, but surprise surprise they're going to be killed with just a few shots. Pew pew.

I'm not going to talk about much technical stuff, such as the art and the sound. But overall I liked both of them. They're not 'holy sh*t this is good' kind but they're definitely nice.

Overall, I at least enjoyed the anime. While there were certain points in the anime that made me feel bored I had to skips some parts, at the very least the anime didn't make me think about dropping it and moving on to another show.