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In the competitive industry of manga and anime, creators and mangaka are pressed to actualize stories and plotlines that are distinctive enough to stand on their own, leaving behind no room for any series to bear a direct link with one another. Some shows do feature a few easter eggs and slight references, but their purpose is to simply add a component of comedic relief within the series, while offering nothing substantial to the viewers.
Some anime, however, bear such striking similarities that fans are forced to ponder whether the two series are actually based in the same universe. Such is the case with Sword Art Online and Accel World, two series that offer a similar premise and parallel worldbuilding. The narrative that the two share the same universe is further made plausible by the fact that both series have been created by the same author, Reki Kawahara. Apart from being Kawahara’s works, there are several instances within Accel World that make it worthwhile to explore the possibility of it belonging to the same world as Sword Art Online.
The Premise of Virtual and Augmented Reality
One of the key similarities between the two shows is the use of parallel concepts, with only slight differences in terms of gameplay. Accel World features a Neuro Linker, a device that is similar to Sword Art Online’s NerveGear, allowing players to connect to a virtual reality world. However, the Neuro Linker allows players to access another form of gameplay – augmented reality, allowing them to stay in the real world while only changing the surroundings. This added feature in Accel World could simply be deemed a future upgrade to the VR headsets used in SAO, which is highly plausible considering the two anime are set in a time difference of almost 25 years.
Accel World also features a similar concept to the seed given to Kirito that allows all virtual reality games to share XP and skills. Brain Burst is a secret program introduced in the series that allows players to stop time, or simply their own perception of time, through accelerating brain waves. This program allows users to accumulate experience within the game through Burst Points, and some of these abilities can be used in the real world as well. This concept seems quite similar to SAO’s experience sharing feature through different VR games in the second season.
Reference to NerveGear in Accel World
A direct reference to Sword Art Online can be seen in Accel World episode 22, where Haruyuki, the series protagonist, tries to look for possible explanations for Nomi’s unusual Brain Burst powers. While doing so, he comes across a document pertaining to an older model of a VR set used for video games, which is then identified as NerveGear, the same headset used to log into the Sword Art Online game.
This clear reference indicates towards the two shows indeed being based in the same universe, but in different timelines. Sword Art Online takes place in the year 2022, while Accel World is set in 2047. A difference of 25 years within the two series’ timelines provides a feasible explanation, hinting towards the Neuro Linkers being based on the NerveGear prototype.
Versus – A Virtual Reality Crossover
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Written by Reki Kawahara, Versus is a magazine bonus side story featuring a crossover between Sword Art Online and Accel World. This side story clears any remaining doubt about the link between the two series as the crossover serves as unobjectionable evidence that both anime are set in the same universe. The story is set in 2026, four years after Sword Art Online’s original arc, and Kirito is shown as a part-timer working for a VR headset company.
While testing a new 4th generation FullDive machine, Kirito suddenly finds himself battling a robotic figure that appears out of nowhere in the game. The figure is actually Haruyuki’s avatar, Silver Crow, who somehow travels back in time due to Brain Burst’s brain wave acceleration feature. While Versus may simply be a side story that has no implications in either anime’s main story, it still serves as a basis for deliberating whether the two are actually linked. Considering the other factors and this substantial piece of evidence, it's safe to assume that Sword Art Online and Accel World are indeed set in the same universe, but with differing timelines.