Accel World
| Accel World | |
 First light novel volume cover, featuring Kuroyukihime | |
| アクセル・ワールド (Akuseru Wārudo) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Novel series | |
| Written by | Reki Kawahara (as Semedain) |
| Published by | Self-published |
| Original run | October 2007 – December 2007 |
| Light novel | |
| Written by | Reki Kawahara |
| Illustrated by | HIMA |
| Published by | ASCII Media Works |
| English publisher | |
| Imprint | Dengeki Bunko |
| Magazine | Dengeki Bunko Magazine |
| Original run | February 10, 2009 – present |
| Volumes | 28 |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Reki Kawahara |
| Illustrated by | Hiroyuki Aigamo |
| Published by | ASCII Media Works |
| English publisher |
|
| Magazine | Dengeki Bunko Magazine |
| Original run | April 10, 2010 – June 9, 2017 |
| Volumes | 8 |
| Manga | |
| Acchel World | |
| Written by | Reki Kawahara |
| Illustrated by | Ryuryū Akari |
| Published by | ASCII Media Works |
| Magazine | Dengeki Bunko Magazine |
| Original run | April 10, 2010 – June 10, 2016 |
| Volumes | 5 |
| Manga | |
| Accel World / Dural: Magisa Garden | |
| Written by | Ayato Sasakura |
| Published by | ASCII Media Works |
| Magazine | Monthly Comic Dengeki Daioh |
| Original run | January 27, 2012 – June 27, 2017 |
| Volumes | 8 |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Masakazu Obara |
| Written by | Hiroyuki Yoshino |
| Music by |
|
| Studio | Sunrise |
| Licensed by | |
| Original network | Tokyo MX, TV Saitama, Chiba TV, tvk, TV Aichi, MBS, AT-X, HBC, RKB, BS11 |
| English network | |
| Original run | April 7, 2012 – September 22, 2012 |
| Episodes | 24 (+ 2 OVA episodes) |
| Film | |
| Video games | |
| |
Accel World (Japanese: アクセル・ワールド, Hepburn: Akuseru Wārudo) is a Japanese light novel series written by Reki Kawahara and illustrated by HIMA. Kawahara originally released the first volume's story as a web novel, under the title Transcendent Accelerated Burst Linker (超絶加速バースト・リンカー, Chōzetsu Kasoku Bāsuto Rinkā), on the novel submission site Arcadia in 2007. It has been published by ASCII Media Works under its Dengeki Bunko imprint since February 2009. The series has spawned three manga series; Accel World by Hiroyuki Aigamo, published in Dengeki Bunko Magazine from April 2010 to June 2017; Acchel World by Ryuryū Akari, published in the same magazine from April 2010 to June 2016; and Accel World / Dural: Magisa Garden by Ayato Sasakura, published in Monthly Comic Dengeki Daioh from January 2012 to June 2017. The light novel series and its manga adaptation of the same name have been licensed for English release in North America by Yen Press.
A 24-episode anime adaptation produced by Sunrise aired between April and September 2012. It was licensed by Viz Media and began streaming in English on its Neon Alley service in April 2013. Two video games were released for the PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 3 in September 2012 and January 2013, each containing an original video animation (OVA) episode. An anime film titled Accel World: Infinite Burst featuring an original story by Kawahara premiered in Japan in July 2016.
Plot
[edit]Haruyuki "Haru" Arita is a short, overweight boy who is frequently ridiculed by delinquents at the Umesato Junior High School. Using his Neuro Linker to escape the torment of real life, he logs onto the school's local network cyberspace where he always plays virtual squash alone, and his innate video game skills bring him to the attention of Kuroyukihime (literally meaning "Black Snow Princess"), the school's popular, highly intellectual and attractive female student council vice-president.
After helping him against the delinquents, Kuroyukihime introduces Haruyuki to Brain Burst, a secret program that is able to accelerate the human cognitive process to the point at which time appears to stop. Haruyuki soon learns that Brain Burst is more than just a program, but an augmented-reality massively-multiplayer online (ARMMO) fighting game where people fight each other in fierce duels in order to obtain burst points, which can be spent for acceleration abilities in the real world.
Kuroyukihime then enlists Haruyuki's help in reaching level 10 within Brain Burst by defeating the "Six Kings of Pure Colour" and ultimately meeting the creator of Brain Burst to learn its true purpose. With every challenge they face in the accelerated world, Haru and Kuroyukihime, under their aliases "Silver Crow" and "Black Lotus", gather trusted allies and confront treacherous enemies. Their bond grows stronger while working to attain their ultimate objective: to reach the highest in-game level and meet the game's creator, who will reveal why the game was created and the true purpose of it.
Media
[edit]Light novels
[edit]Accel World began as a light novel series written by Reki Kawahara and illustrated by HIMA. Originally, Kawahara entered the first novel in the series into ASCII Media Works' 15th Dengeki Novel Prize in 2008 and the novel won the Grand Prize.[3] The first novel was published by ASCII Media Works on February 10, 2009, under their Dengeki Bunko imprint.[4] As of August 2025, 28 volumes have been published.[5] At their Japan Expo USA panel, Yen Press announced the rights to publish the light novels in English.[6] The English version is translated by Jocelyne Allen.[7] The first volume was released on July 22, 2014.[8]
| No. | Title | Original release date | English release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kuroyukihime's Return Kuroyukihime no Kikan (黒雪姫の帰還) | February 10, 2009[4] 978-4-04-867517-8 | July 22, 2014[8] 978-0-316-37673-0 |
| 2 | The Red Storm Princess Kurenai no Bōfūki (紅の暴風姫) | June 10, 2009[9] 978-4-04-867843-8 | November 18, 2014[10] 978-0-316-29636-6 |
| 3 | The Twilight Marauder Yūyami no Ryakudatsusha (夕闇の略奪者) | October 10, 2009[11] 978-4-04-868070-7 | March 24, 2015[12] 978-0-316-29637-3 |
| 4 | Flight Toward a Blue Sky Aozora e no Hishō (蒼空への飛翔) | February 10, 2010[13] 978-4-04-868327-2 | July 21, 2015[14] 978-0-316-29638-0 |
| 5 | The Floating Starlight Bridge Hoshikage no Ukihashi (星影の浮き橋) | June 10, 2010[15] 978-4-04-868593-1 | November 17, 2015[16] 978-0-316-29639-7 |
| 6 | Shrine Maiden of the Sacred Fire Jōka no Miko (浄火の神子) | October 10, 2010[17] 978-4-04-868969-4 | March 22, 2016[18] 978-0-316-29640-3 |
| 7 | Armor of Catastrophe Saika no Yoroi (災禍の鎧) | February 10, 2011[19] 978-4-04-870276-8 | September 20, 2016[20] 978-0-316-35819-4 |
| 8 | The Binary Stars of Destiny Unmei no Rensei (運命の連星) | June 10, 2011[21] 978-4-04-870550-9 | December 13, 2016[22] 978-0-316-31761-0 |
| 9 | The Seven-Thousand-Year Prayer Nanasennen no Inori (七千年の祈り) | October 10, 2011[23] 978-4-04-870954-5 | March 21, 2017 |