Sword Art Online - Complete Guide for Beginners

Sword Art Online , the last game from the animated series, is a MMORPG - and on this particular occasion, Bandai Namco Entertainment brought the experience to the small screen on both Android and iOS.

While from time to time familiar faces of anime like Kirito and Asuna, the main star of Sword Art Online : Integral Factor is you - with an alternate storyline that commits you to uncover every little secret prepared by the developers. Join new characters and other players as you explore the world of Sword Art in which you've been trapped.

With so many monsters, missions and attack powers in the game, here are a few things you should know when you start playing Integral Factor for the first time.

Sword Art Online : Integral Factor - Complete Guide

Prepare for combat

You'll find yourself in a tutorial from the beginning, take this as an opportunity to learn about the controls, which are designed specifically for mobile use (for example, pinch the screen to zoom in).

It also means that there are a lot of buttons that populate your game HUD - it's in your best interest to find out what they all mean. The direction controls are on the left and are quite simple; they are the combat buttons on the right that could trip you up: attack, dodge, and your different attack skills, including an extra combo attack. To save space, the game will automatically change the attack button with an interaction command when you are close to another character you can talk to.

Of course, while the basic combat in the tutorial is a piece of cake, many of the monsters to be tackled won't be... that's why it's even more important to know all the menu options in the game.

(Note: most attacks are easy to read, with very clear clues as to when and how they're going to attack. Watch them so you can anticipate and dodge and use your combos).

Weapons and equipment

Status is the most important tab in this menu because it's what allows you to control your weapons and attack skills, making you realize how powerful you are and how powerful your partner is at your side.

Keep in mind that everything has a cost and that you won't be able to access upgrades and changes if you don't have the corresponding cost (bottom right). Attack abilities only correspond to one type of weapon. The same goes for your armor and accessories.

Remember to choose the weapon that matches your style of play:

• Axes: high damage and wide area of effect, but slower
• Swords: High attack and dodge speed increased, but inflicts less damage than other types of weapons
• Swords:The most balanced weapon in terms of power and movement.
• Lance: Great long-range damage and can hit multiple enemies simultaneously in a straight line, but attack slower and harder to dodge

Whenever you use a one-handed weapon, also equip a Shield to increase your defense.

(Note: If you like your battle buddy's weapon better than the one you equipped yourself or you took a new attack ability for him in a loot box, you can't equip these things for yourself if there is a blue hand symbol on them).

As for the equipment / objects screen, this is where you can set the hotkeys. When you access items in your inventory, you have the option to use them immediately or simply assign them so that they are accessible during a fight: make sure to equip your health potions with hotkeys. You'll need them, especially during boss fights.

Note: Always remember to equip Koharu in the best way you can: he'll be a really important companion. Don't worry if she leaves when you're partying with someone else - she'll always come back, and keeping her in combat can make all the difference.

The loot system in Sword Art Online

While combat and missions will always guarantee you rewards (new attack skills, new weapons, etc.), you must keep in mind that the reality of the MMO genre is always about grinding - and Integral Factor is no exception to the rule.

New abilities are not simply unlockable when you reach a certain level; you'll have to buy them and they will cost you. Besides, you won't necessarily be able to unlock the skill you like, willy-nilly or not.

To obtain the skills, you need to purchase the Orders using the Arcane Gemswhich are then used to acquire the Skill Records ... and these, finally, are what the necessary skills teach you. Unfortunately, what you get is random. Skills are specific to each weapon - but they also have different levels of rarity. With six different classes of weapons available and so many upgrade options for each weapon and skill, it will take time to get a complete set.

Skill Records are also the way to acquire passive skills, and you'll have four slots for stat upgrades and bonuses for extra character customization.

Get Arcane Gems and Skill Records

The easiest way was to pre-register before the final release of the game. Players who signed up received a number of rewards when they logged in to the game once it was released:

• 2,500 arcane gems
• Two different types of in-game stamps
• A record 4-star skill for Asuna
• Two types of original avatars

How can you get more groan and more skill records? You'll get some after the tutorial. The loot you get is random, but if you don't like what you received, you can uninstall the game and then reinstall it. Run the tutorial again until you get arcane gems and skill records. Also try to get at least one 4-star weapon to get started.

(It can be terribly irritating this "trick" and could take a long time, but if you're trying to get through this game with little or no real money, you should try to use these little tricks.)

After completing the above, to earn the items you want, all you have to do is... play and complete the missions. Character missions and tower challenge missions will get you gems and other important items.

You can also grind by killing monsters freely, but the real rewards come from completing your goals. These will open up new areas and new missions along the way.

Other things to keep in mind

• Cosmetics won't affect your stats.
• Daily accesses will give you gems and other rare items.
• Always try to complete at least the daily search for money, experience and rewards.
• Different monsters will have different weaknesses. If you have problems, you'll need to change weapons and abilities to fight them more effectively.
• Grinda to create items when you can. Some areas in the fields have fungi that heal you - if you're close to them, you can simply automatically attack enemies who wander around until they die.
• You will gain experience, building materials and other rewards when you kill a monster.