SciFi Japan - Aniplex of America Announces SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE

: 01 February 2018

The movie that brought SWORD ART ONLINE fans together worldwide now available for digital download! Source: Aniplex of America press release Official Site: sao-movie.net (Japan), sao-movie.net/us (US) Official Twitter: twitter.com/sao_anime Special Thanks to Aiko Makino

Aniplex of America Inc. announced that the fan-favorite anime blockbuster SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – (??? ???????????? -???????????-, Gekijooban Soodo Aato Onrain -Oodinaru Sukeeru-, 2017) is now available for digital release, launching on iTunes, Vudu, and the Microsoft Store. The film, which takes place after the high-stakes events of SWORD ART ONLINE, will also be available on Amazon Video and Playstation Video at a later date. Now fans unable to purchase the package release can experience the action, giving a budget-friendly, censored option just in time for the next season of SWORD ART ONLINE. Links to download the film can be found at sao-movie.net/us/#digital_hd. Based on the franchise of best-selling light novels that inspired the TV anime, SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – captured anime fans across North America, with its nationwide theatrical release grossing over $1.35 million on opening weekend. Fans lined up at sold-out theaters as Kirito and Asuna came to life in this new story by original author Reki Kawahara. SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – hit the silver screen in February of 2017, debuting at #1 in Japan and grossing more than ¥425 million. Now, almost one year later, fans can own the digital version of the film that IGN’s Alex Osborn calls “a gift for longtime fans.” Further catering to longtime fans, SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – features the original voice cast from the TV series, with Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (SWORD ART ONLINE, EROMANGA SENSEI) as Kirito, Haruka Tomatsu (PERSONA 5, DARLING IN THE FRANXX) as Asuna, and Ayana Taketatsu (SWORD ART ONLINE, THE ASTERISK WAR) as Leafa, and introducing Sayaka Kanda as a new character Yuna. The movie also stars an English dub cast of heavy hitters, including Bryce Papenbrook (BLUE EXORCIST, SWORD ART ONLINE) as Kirito, Cherami Leigh (SWORD ART ONLINE, ERASED) as Asuna, and more. Famed studio A-1 Pictures (BLUE EXORCIST, SWORD ART ONLINE, ERASED) beautifully animated Reki Kawahara’s vision to life with director Tomohiko Ito (SWORD ART ONLINE, ERASED), character designer Shingo Adachi (SWORD ART ONLINE), and composer Yuki Kajiura (Fate/stay night [Heaven’s Feel] THE MOVIE 1. Presage flower). Labeled as “a must-watch for all anime fans” by MANGA TOKYO, SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – pulls no punches, delivering an action-packed love letter to longtime fans of the franchise and new fans alike. In their review, Crunchyroll.com’s Isaac Akers claims “as a film for fans, SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – succeeds because it reaches for and achieves a single peak of unadulterated fan joy.” The uncensored version was released on Blu-ray and DVD in December of 2017, and now fans can own the censored digital release across a variety of platforms. For more information, please visit the movie`s official website. For the latest news on SWORD ART ONLINE, please visit facebook.com/SwordArtOnlineUSA. About SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – The NerveGear, the world’s first dedicated full-dive device developed by the genius programmer, Akihiko Kayaba in 2022... a revolutionary machine that opened up infinite possibilities for the world of VR (Virtual Reality). Four years later... A next-generation, wearable multi-device called the Augma has been released to compete with the NerveGear’s successor, the Amusphere. A cutting-edge machine boasting the ability to enhance AR (Augmented Reality) to the maximum, the Augma offers a safe, user-friendly experience, as it can be used while the player is awake, making it an instant hit. Its most popular title is an ARMMORPG developed exclusively for the Augma, “Ordinal Scale (a.k.a. OS).” Kirito is about to join Asuna and the others as an Ordinal Scale player, but they’re about to find out that it isn’t all fun and games... Credits STAFF Original Story: Reki Kawahara (Dengeki Bunko / ASCII MEDIA WORKS) Director: Tomohiko Ito Character Design Concept: abec Character Design: Shingo Adachi Music: Yuki Kajiura Voice Director & ADR Script Writer: Alex von David Animation Production: A-1 Pictures Distributed by Aniplex Inc. Produced by SAO MOVIE Project CAST (Japanese/English) Kirito / Kazuto Kirigaya: Yoshitsugu Matsuoka / Bryce Papenbrook Asuna / Asuna Yuuki: Haruka Tomatsu / Cherami Leigh Yui: Kanae Ito / Stephanie Sheh Leafa / Suguha Kirigaya: Ayana Taketatsu / Cassandra Lee Morris Silica / Keiko Ayano: Rina Hidaka / Christine Marie Cabanos Lisbeth / Rika Shinozaki: Ayahi Takagaki / Sarah Anne Williams Sinon / Shino Asada: Miyuki Sawashiro / Michelle Ruff Klein: Hiroaki Hirata / Kirk Thornton Agil: Hiroki Yasumoto / Patrick Seitz Seijirou Kikuoka: Toshiyuki Morikawa / Matt Mercer Akihiko Kayaba: Koichi Yamadera / Marc Diraison Yuna / Yuuna Shigemura: Sayaka Kanda / Ryan Bartley Eiji / Eiji Nochizawa: Yoshio Inoue / Chris Patton Tetsuhiro Shigemura: Takeshi Kaga / Taylor Henry

About Aniplex of America Inc.

Aniplex of America Inc. (Santa Monica, California) is a subsidiary of Aniplex Inc. (headquartered in Tokyo, Japan), a group of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc. and a leading provider of anime content and music production and distribution in Japan. Aniplex of America has launched fan-favorite Blu-ray and DVD releases including FATE/STAY NIGHT [UNLIMITED BLADE WORKS], FATE/ZERO, the SWORD ART ONLINE series, YOUR LIE IN APRIL, KILL LA KILL, BAKEMONOGATARI, PUELLA MAGI MADOKA MAGICA, BLUE EXORCIST, NISEKOI, the OREIMO series, DURARARA!!×2, MAGI series, EXPELLED FROM PARADISE, The irregular at magic high school, and ALDNOAH.ZERO. The company`s ever-growing line-up of shows include: MARCH COMES IN LIKE A LION, BLUE EXORCIST: KYOTO SAGA, ERASED, THE ASTERISK WAR, OWARIMONOGATARI, KIZUMONOGATARI, CHARLOTTE, OCCULTIC;NINE, WWW.WAGNARIA!!, GRANBLUE FANTASY, EROMANGA SENSEI, KATSUGEKI TOUKEN RANBU, BLEND-S, SLOW START and RECORD OF GRANCREST WAR. In June 2017, the company launched the English version of mobile game, FATE/GRAND ORDER, which quickly exceeded one million downloads.

For more information on SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE –, please see the previous coverage here on SciFi Japan: