Story (4/10):
As a stand alone, much of the story didn't make much sense, and it wasn't the beginning that was so confusing. The beginning was rather interesting. Two siblings using a virtual game to stay in touch. It's what happens in the game that makes it so difficult to understand the plot. Throughout the entire anime, they hint at previous disasters and important events that have since past. For an avid .hack fan, it probably wouldn't have been a problem. As a first time viewer, so many aspects of the game weren't properly explained, so it was nearly impossible for me to connect to the plot and root for the survival of the characters.
Art (7/10):
The art by itself wasn't too shabby. The colors were bright, the characters were cute. Typical online games have pretty looking avatars. Overall though, it didn't quite match the story. When offline, I found it annoying how they would never show the eyes of the real people.
Sound (8/10):
I actually quite liked the sound. The opening was very catchy, if not a little too upbeat, and most of the music in game is what you would expect from an MMORPG. The ending, however, just sounds so soft and sad, and I can't make up my mind as to if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
Characters (6/10):
The characters weren't cliche or stereotypical, but I didn't fall in love with any of them. Shugo just wasn't all that likable although he had plenty of good qualities. Rena was fun character to watch, while Mireille was extremely annoying. Enough so that one character almost made me drop this series. The AIs were mostly underdeveloped and confusing. For people who've only seen this series, like me, we fail to see how the AIs are developed and just how/why they are so important to the game.
Enjoyment (4/10):
It was a pretty confusing and un-enjoyable show, although it did have some funny and cool sequences. I, however, think they should have either made this into more of a sequel or more of a stand alone, because as it stands, it doesn't seem to satisfy anyone.
Overall (6/10):
It was not the worst anime I've ever seen, but with a confusing story, unique, but not altogether likable characters, and art that doesn't match the tone of the story, this is a fair anime at best. For avid .hack fans though, they might enjoy another excursion into the world of .hack. For people who've never seen a .hack series before, I definitely wouldn't recommend this show.
