.hack//SIGN - Ver.01 Login

You could call project .hack a ‘new multimedia’ – anime + video game + manga.
Actually,a whole new world has been designed – ‘The World’. You guessed it – RPG. MMORPG to be exact: ‘Massive Multiplayer Online RPG’. Hm… true…

Through various landscapes, some arid, some urban ( AquaCity, something like cyberVenice) with buildings marked with strange signs, game/anime flows focusing around mysterious character Tsukasa – a virtual prisoner of the created world. How he got there, he doesn’t know, we don’t know, but a small group of motley characters intends to find out: Mimiru, feisty young warrior; Bear, less than feisty old warrior; Subaru – Lady of the World, to name few. Carefully selected to include all popular cathegories of RPG alter-egos, cast of .hack//SIGN is, I must admit, superbly designed and animation is smooth  (Bee Train distinctive), although sometimes is much too obvious that characters are ‘layered’ over background. Also, design of ‘Guardian’ is puzzling…
Story does have smart setup and includes very nice ideas of World’s infrastructure. But it does not go much further. I found dialogues unrefined and plot development clumsy. Jumping between parallel events also lacks smoothness. You will find the best example in episode three “Folklore”, completely unfocused group of events. Luckily, the final episode this first volume brought much needed action and introduction of fresh and innovative character Crim.

Initial idea is fantastic, really intriguing, and had a lot of potential. Somehow, it’s realisation does not reach higher levels of imagination. Although with (yet again) superb direction by Mr. Kouichi Mashimo, .hack//SIGN has not a necessary edge that makes good work stand out. Maybe it is intended for young teen audience, resulting in blunted sharpness and diluted story. Too bad, since framework of the story could have been support for a cult anime.

I sincerely praisel the idea of creating a world, virtually – designing grand-scale multimedia RPG. With it, we are one step closer to William Gibson ’s vision of the future. But this step could/should have been bigger. “Thus we are still waiting…”