The year is 2022, and gamers have lined up on launch day for Sword Art
Online, a hotly-anticipated MMORPG that lets players connect to an
immersive virtual reality world with special helmets called Nerve Gear.
Kirito is one such gamer who's eager to jump back into action, having
spent a great deal of time as a beta tester, and quickly becomes friends
with newbie warrior Klein. But soon, Sword Art Online's 10,000 players
discover that not only are they unable to log out, the only way they can
return to their physical bodies is by beating the 100-level tower's
final boss - death in the game means death in the real world. Now, with
no one else to turn to, Kirito and the other participants must survive
the game as best they can.