Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online

Further information
Manga
Written by	Keiichi Sigsawa
Illustrated by	Tadadi Tamori
Published by	ASCII Media Works
English publisher	NA: Yen Press
Magazine	Dengeki Maoh
Demographic	Seinen
Original run	December 27, 2015 – January 21, 2021
Volumes	4 (List of volumes)
Anime television series
Directed by	Masayuki Sakoi
Written by	Yōsuke Kuroda
Music by	Starving Trancer
Studio	3Hz (S1) A-1 Pictures (S2)
Licensed by	AUS: Madman Entertainment BI: Anime Limited NA: Aniplex of America SEA: Muse Communication
Original network	Tokyo MX, BS11, GYT, GTV, MBS, TV Aichi, Nittele Plus (S1), AT-X (S2)
Original run	April 8, 2018 – December 21, 2024
Episodes	24 (List of episodes)

Anime and manga portal

Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online (Japanese: ソードアート・オンラインオルタナティブガンゲイル・オンライン, Hepburn: Sōdo Āto Onrain Orutanatibu: Gan Geiru Onrain) is a Japanese light novel series written by Keiichi Sigsawa and illustrated by Kouhaku Kuroboshi. The series is a spin-off of Reki Kawahara's Sword Art Online series. A manga adaptation by Tadadi Tamori launched in 2015, and an anime television series adaptation produced by studio 3Hz aired between April and June 2018. A second season produced by A-1 Pictures premiered in October 2024. Both the light novel and the manga adaptation are published in North America by Yen Press, while the anime is licensed by Aniplex of America.

Plot

Due to the incident that occurred in VR MMORPG Sword Art Online—where 10,000 players were trapped in the game on launch day—the popularity of VR games has plummeted due to fear of similar incidents. The NerveGear, SAO's VR device, was recalled and destroyed, but with the launch of its successor, the AmuSphere, combined with release of the license-free development support package the "Seed", the popularity of VR games saw a sudden resurgence.

The story follows Karen Kohiruimaki, a university student with a complex about her abnormal height. She begins playing a VR game called Gun Gale Online after it gives her the short, cute avatar that she has always wanted.

Media

Print

Dengeki Bunko announced on September 18, 2014, that Keiichi Sigsawa would be writing a light novel based on Reki Kawahara's Sword Art Online light novel series. The series is supervised by Kawahara and illustrated by Kouhaku Kuroboshi, and ASCII Media Works published the first novel under the Dengeki imprint on December 10, 2014. During their panel at Anime NYC on November 18, 2017, Yen Press announced that they had licensed the series.

Tadadi Tamori launched a manga adaptation in ASCII Media Works seinen manga magazine Dengeki Maoh on October 27, 2015. During their panel at Sakura-Con on April 15, 2017, Yen Press announced that they had licensed the series in North America.

Anime

An anime television series adaptation was announced at the Dengeki Bunko Fall Festival 2017 event in October 2017. It is produced by Egg Firm and animated by studio 3Hz, and directed by Masayuki Sakoi, with scripts written by Yōsuke Kuroda, and character designs by Yoshio Kosakai. The opening theme song is "Ryūsei" (流星, lit. 'Meteor') performed by Eir Aoi, and the ending theme song is "To See the Future" performed by Tomori Kusunoki as her character LLENN.

The series aired from April 8 to June 30, 2018, on Tokyo MX and other networks. The series was released on 6 home video sets with 2 episodes each, for a total of 12 episodes. Aniplex of America licensed and simulcasts the series on Crunchyroll and Hulu. Anime Limited announced that they had acquired the series for release in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Madman Entertainment licensed the series for release in Australia and New Zealand, simulcasting it on AnimeLab.

A second season was announced at the Dengeki Bunko 30th anniversary event in July 2023. The main cast and staff members returned from the first season, with A-1 Pictures as the studio, replacing 3Hz. It premiered on October 5, 2024. Muse Asia reported that they have licensed the distribution of Gun Gale Online II in Asia. The English dub was streamed on Crunchyroll on November 1, 2024.

Airsoft collaboration

To promote the anime, Tokyo Marui made a limited edition FN P90 submachine gun with a pink finish as part of a collaboration with Keiichi Sigsawa and Kōji Akimoto, the latter who worked on the air gun's color. The pink P90 was raffled to the public through a raffle in a collaboration with Pizza Hut Japan, in which two of them were awarded to contestants.

A limited edition Vorpal Bunny pistol made by Tokyo Marui was announced for a release in 2019. It was eventually released on April 3, 2020.

Video game

Llenn, Pitohui, M, and Fukaziroh made their video game debut in Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet as a free update. They later have a major role in the DLC episode "Dissonance of the Nexus", which is also the first time they interact with the main series characters.

Reception

During the first half of 2015, the series was the eleventh best-selling light novel series, with its first and second volumes ranking at eighth and seventeenth place, respectively. The fourth volume also managed to be the 25th best-selling novel during the first half of 2016. By May 2018, the series had one million copies in print.

Notes

Tokyo MX listed the series premiere as April 7, 2018, at 24:00, which is effectively April 8 at midnight JST
Tokyo MX listed the second season premiere as October 4, 2024, at 24:00, which is effectively October 5 at midnight JST

References

^ "Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online, Vol. 1 (light novel): Squad Jam". Yen Press. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
"Kino's Journey's Sigsawa Writes Sword Art Online Novel". Anime News Network. September 19, 2014. Archived from the original on 2018-02-04. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
"Yen Press Adds New Sword Art Online, WorldEnd, Little Witch Academia, Fruits Basket, Star Wars Titles". Anime News Network. November 18, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-12-27. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
マオウ10周年の読み切り祭りに田中久仁彦、武田すんら、新連載も一挙開始. Natalie (in Japanese). October 27, 2015. Archived from the original on 2018-02-04. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
"Yen Press Licenses Saga of Tanya the Evil, Acca 13, One Week Friends, A Polar Bear in Love, More". Anime News Network. April 15, 2017. Archived from the original on 2018-06-13. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
"Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online TV Anime Announced". Anime News Network. September 30, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-10-01. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
"Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online Anime Premieres in April". Anime News Network. January 3, 2018. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
^ "Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online Reveals Visual, Studio 3Hz". Anime News Network. January 31, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-01-31. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
"Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online Anime Reveals TV Ad, Staff". Anime News Network. February 7, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-02-08. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
"Eir Aoi Performs Opening Theme for Sword Art Online: Alternative Gun Gale Online Anime". Anime News Network. March 7, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-03-08. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
"Tomori Kusunoki Performs Ending Theme for Sword Art Online: Alternative Gun Gale Online Anime". Anime News Network. February 17, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-02-17. Retrieved February 17, 2018.
Pineda, Rafael Antonio (March 22, 2018). "Sword Art Online: Alternative Gun Gale Online Anime Reveals Ending Song Title in Video". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 2018-03-23. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
"Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online Anime Premieres in April". Anime News Network. January 3, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-01-04. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
^ "Sword Art Online: Alternative Gun Gale Online Anime Premieres on April 7". Anime News Network. March 10, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-03-10. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
"BD/DVD Vol.6". gungale-online.net (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2018-04-09. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
Ressler, Karen (March 30, 2018). "Aniplex USA to Stream Persona 5, Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online on Crunchyroll, Hulu". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 2018-03-31. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
Stevens, Josh A. (October 28, 2018). "Anime Limited To Release Sword Art Online Alternative & More". Anime UK News. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
"Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online Vol. 1 (Eps 1-6) (Blu-Ray)". Madman Entertainment. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
Bortignon, Tegan (April 17, 2018). "AnimeLab Spring Simulcast Lineup 2018!". AnimeLab. Archived from the original on July 21, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
Loo, Egan (July 15, 2023). "Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online Anime Gets 2nd Season". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 15, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
Hodgkins, Crystalyn (June 17, 2024). "Studio 3Hz Transfers Animation Planning, Production Business to A-1 Pictures (Update)". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
Hodgkins, Crystalyn (March 23, 2024). "Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online II Anime Reveals October Premiere in 2nd Teaser Video". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on March 24, 2024. Retrieved March 24, 2024.
Pineda, Rafael Antonio (August 2, 2024). "Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online II Anime Premieres on October 4". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on August 2, 2024. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
Rafael Antonio Pineda (2024-07-22). "Muse Asia Licenses Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online II Anime". Anime News Network.
https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/announcements/2024/10/31/sword-art-online-gun-gale-online-season-2-english-dub-release-date
"Tokyo Marui P-90 Version LLenn Update". Popular Airsoft. September 5, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
"Sword Art Online: Alternative Gun Gale Online Inspires P-chan Airsoft Gun". Anime News Network. July 1, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
"Gun Gale Online Takes Aim at Pizza Hut with Signed Merchandise Campaign!". Tokyo Otaku Mode. June 7, 2018. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
Sato (2018-02-18). "Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet Details What's New In Recent Free Update". Siliconera.
"Top-Selling Light Novels in Japan by Series: 2015 (First Half)". Anime News Network. May 31, 2015. Archived from the original on 2018-02-04. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
"Top-Selling Light Novels in Japan by Volume: 2015 (First Half)". Anime News Network. June 2, 2015. Archived from the original on 2017-12-05. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
"Top-Selling Light Novels in Japan by Volume: 2016 (First Half)". Anime News Network. May 29, 2016. Archived from the original on 2018-02-04. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
Komatsu, Mikikazu (April 29, 2018). ""Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online" Novel Reaches One Million Copies in Print". Crunchyroll. Archived from the original on 2018-04-30. Retrieved April 30, 2018.

External links

Official anime website (in Japanese)
Elsa Kanzaki website (in Japanese)
Official anime website (in English)
Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online (novel) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia

v t e Works by Keiichi Sigsawa
Kino's Journey	Novels Episodes
Tale of a Single Continent series	Allison Lillia and Treize Meg and Seron Allison & Lillia Episodes
Other works	Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online Episodes

Sword Art Online by Reki Kawahara

Media

Print	Light novels Manga
TV series	Episodes Season 1 II Alicization
Films	Ordinal Scale Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night Progressive: Scherzo of Deep Night
Spin-off	Alternative: Gun Gale Online Episodes
Video games	Infinity Moment Hollow Fragment Code Register Lost Song Hollow Realization Accel World vs. Sword Art Online Integral Factor Fatal Bullet Tales of Arise

Characters

Kirito
Asuna

Category

v t e Dengeki Maoh series
Current	This Art Club Has a Problem! (2012) Detectives These Days Are Crazy! (2016) The Foolish Angel Dances with the Devil (2016) Zatsu Tabi: That's Journey (2019) Wolf and Parchment: New Theory Spice & Wolf (2019) Rebuild World (2019) The Many Sides of Voice Actor Radio (2020) The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady (2020) Butareba: The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig (2020) This Monster Wants to Eat Me (2020) Zatsu Tabi: Another Side View: Hasunuma Koyomi no Nichijō (2023)
2000s	DearS (2005) Makai Senki Disgaea 2 (2006–2007) Bludgeoning Angel Dokuro-chan Ripiru (2006–2008) Lotte no Omocha! (2007–2013) Spice and Wolf (2007–2017) Iriya no Sora, UFO no Natsu (2007–2009) Utawarerumono Chiriyuku Mono e no Komoriuta (2007–2010) World Destruction: Futari no Tenshi (2008–2009)
2010s	Sōkō no Aliasse (2010–2011) Na mo Naki Chikai no Hana (2011–2012) Kyousougiga (2011–2014) The Devil Is a Part-Timer! High School! (2012–2015) Black Bullet (2012–2014) Alderamin on the Sky (2014–2017) Grimoire of Zero (2014–2017) Zero kara Hajimeru Mahō no Sho Nano! (2015–2017) Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online (2015–2021) Kiznaiver (2016–2017) The IDOLM@STER Million Live! Blooming Clover (2017–2023) A Tropical Fish Yearns for Snow (2017–2021)
2020s	Himekami no Miko (2020–2021) Hollow Regalia (2022–2024) Midara na Sotai wa Sei ni Mezameru (2022–2024)

v t e Works by 3Hz
Television series	Celestial Method (2014) Dimension W (2016) Flip Flappers (2016) Princess Principal (2017) Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online (2018) Chidori RSC (2019–2020) A3! (2020) Healer Girl (2022) The Devil Is a Part-Timer!! (2022) The Marginal Service (2023)
OVAs	Celestial Method (2015) Dimension W (2016) Celestial Method: One More Wish (2019)
Films	Blackfox (2019)
Video games	Tokyo Xanadu (2015) Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana (2016) The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III (2017) The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV (2018)
Category

v t e A-1 Pictures television series
2006–2010	Zenmai Zamurai (2006–2010) Big Windup! (2007) Persona: Trinity Soul (2008) Birdy the Mighty: Decode (2008–2009) Black Butler (2008–2009) Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens (2008) Valkyria Chronicles (2009) Fairy Tail (2009–2019) Sound of the Sky (2010) Big Windup! 2 (2010) Working!! (2010) Night Raid 1931 (2010) Black Butler II (2010) Occult Academy (2010) Togainu no Chi (2010)
2011–2015	Fractale (2011) Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day (2011) Blue Exorcist (2011) Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love 1000% (2011) The Idolmaster (2011) Working'!! (2011) Space Brothers (2012–2014) Tsuritama (2012) Sword Art Online (2012) From the New World (2012–2013) Chōsoku Henkei Gyrozetter (2012–2013) Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic (2012–2013) Oreshura (2013) Vividred Operation (2013) Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love 2000% (2013) Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai. (2013) Servant × Service (2013) Silver Spoon (2013–2014) Magi: The Kingdom of Magic (2013–2014) Galilei Donna (2013) World Conquest Zvezda Plot (2014) Nanana's Buried Treasure (2014) Sword Art Online II (2014) Aldnoah.Zero (2014–2015) Persona 4: The Golden Animation (2014) Black Butler: Book of Circus (2014) Magic Kaito 1412 (2014–2015) The Seven Deadly Sins (2014–2015) Your Lie in April (2014–2015) Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend (2015) The Idolmaster Cinderella Girls (2015) Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha ViVid (2015) Ultimate Otaku Teacher (2015) Gunslinger Stratos: The Animation (2015) Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love Revolutions (2015) Gate (2015–2016) Working!!! (2015) The Asterisk War (2015–2016) The Perfect Insider (2015)
2016–2020	Erased (2016) Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash (2016) Ace Attorney (2016) B-PROJECT: Kodō＊Ambitious (2016) Qualidea Code (2016) The Seven Deadly Sins: Signs of Holy War (2016) WWW.Working!! (2016) Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love Legend Star (2016) Occultic;Nine (2016) Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga (2017) Interviews with Monster Girls (2017) Granblue Fantasy The Animation (2017) Eromanga Sensei (2017) Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend Flat (2017) Fate/Apocrypha (2017) The Idolmaster SideM (2017) Blend S (2017) Record of Grancrest War (2018) Darling in the Franxx (2018) The Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of The Commandments (2018) Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku (2018) Sword Art Online: Alicization (2018–2020) Kaguya-sama: Love Is War (2019) 22/7 (2020) Kaguya-sama: Love Is War? (2020) Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima (2020) Warlords of Sigrdrifa (2020)
2021–present	86 (2021–2022) Visual Prison (2021) Kaguya-sama: Love Is War – Ultra Romantic (2022) Lycoris Recoil (2022) Engage Kiss (2022) Nier: Automata Ver1.1a (2023–present) Mashle: Magic and Muscles (2023–2024) Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle: Rhyme Anima+ (2023) My New Boss Is Goofy (2023) Solo Leveling (2024) Too Many Losing Heroines! (2024) Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online II (2024) Fate/strange Fake (2024–present) Solo Leveling: Arise from the Shadow (2025)
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