.hack//AI Buster - Volume 2 - Chapter Pr

Foreword

Welcome to The World!

Part of what makes .hack lU1ique is that its universe is a combination of genres: fantasy/sword & sorcery meets cyberpunk meets RPG, with a little techno-evolution added to the mix.

Ever since William Gibson coined the term "cyberspace" in his 1980s novel Neuromancer, he created a new sub-genre of science fiction. Though arguably an inevitable genre given the rapid rise of computers and technology, Gibson was the first to give it voice in his brilliant novel, which mostly takes place in the Far East. So, in many ways, .hack comes full circle as a story set in a game world from the Far East, finds its way west.

Each of five short stories in this colJection is told from a different character's point of view, yet each of them gives us some new insight into The World they all share.

Though The Wodd may be an online fantasy game, the adventures told within are more man mere hack and slash as the players encounter a growing nwnber of Ars. It is up to the Cobalt Knights to find and delete all such anomalies. but what happens when the debuggers begin to question the validity of their mission? After a1l, are the knights merely debugging a computer program or are they exeruting a newly evolving life form? Can consciousness rise out of cyberspace? Watarai, the head of the Cobalt Knights. and his successor Face these questions in the stories "Wotan's Spear" and "Kamui."

The first story "2nd Character" gives us a different perspective on volume I of .hack//Al buster as we now see the story through Hokuto's eyes. We get to learn about the woman behind the avatar and her personality is far from what you would expect.

The final story presents a fairly clever riddle for anyone who has ever played any online game. The dues are all there, so can you figu re out the answer before Hotaru does?

No doubt these stoties wi1i enten ain, but they will also shed new insight into the .hack universe for anyone who has read the graphic novels, played the games, or has watched the anime. We hope you dig this book as much as we have. See you soon in .hack//Another Birth!