Game Over is a Sword Art Online fanfic focusing on Suguha in the real world while her cousin and adoptive brother Kazuto is in trapped in the eponyous death game. Unlike in canon, however, there's no happy ending, although the explanation of why this is leaves something to be desired.
Suguha's sadness over her brother distancing himself from her, as well as her growing despair as he lies in a coma are well-shown. Of course, by making them siblings, rather than cousins, it forgoes explaining why Kazuto distanced himself from her in the first place, and a heart-wrenching moment from the light novel in which Suguha's mother tells her the truth about Kazuto years earlier than planned, so she can do so while her nephew is still alive.
SPOILERS'
However, Fridge Logic comes into play wiith how this fic arived at the ending- the government can't keep the SAO players alive, so when the money runs out, Kirito and some others are taken off life support. While caring for the SAO survivors is a long-term problem, it doesn't seem expensive enough to result in what happened late in the fanfic. As a result, the critical developent that leads to the tragic outcome comes across as forced and not very believable.
One also has to wonder how the ending happened as it did, considering that Suguha heard of it second-hand. How did the players get as far as they did with so many gone? How did Asuna defeat Heathcliff/Kayaba when Kirito could not do so without her Heroic Sacrifice and the ability to cheat death? How did Asuna avoid being ensnared by Sugou's plan? The answers are never fully explained.
END OF SPOILERS
All in all, it's tragic and well-written, but there are a few too many flaws for me to give it a favorite.
FanficRecs Tragic, but hamstrung by Fridge Logic
Game Over is a Sword Art Online fanfic focusing on Suguha in the real world while her cousin and adoptive brother Kazuto is in trapped in the eponyous death game. Unlike in canon, however, there's no happy ending, although the explanation of why this is leaves something to be desired.
Suguha's sadness over her brother distancing himself from her, as well as her growing despair as he lies in a coma are well-shown. Of course, by making them siblings, rather than cousins, it forgoes explaining why Kazuto distanced himself from her in the first place, and a heart-wrenching moment from the light novel in which Suguha's mother tells her the truth about Kazuto years earlier than planned, so she can do so while her nephew is still alive.
SPOILERS'
However, Fridge Logic comes into play wiith how this fic arived at the ending- the government can't keep the SAO players alive, so when the money runs out, Kirito and some others are taken off life support. While caring for the SAO survivors is a long-term problem, it doesn't seem expensive enough to result in what happened late in the fanfic. As a result, the critical developent that leads to the tragic outcome comes across as forced and not very believable.
One also has to wonder how the ending happened as it did, considering that Suguha heard of it second-hand. How did the players get as far as they did with so many gone? How did Asuna defeat Heathcliff/Kayaba when Kirito could not do so without her Heroic Sacrifice and the ability to cheat death? How did Asuna avoid being ensnared by Sugou's plan? The answers are never fully explained.
END OF SPOILERS
All in all, it's tragic and well-written, but there are a few too many flaws for me to give it a favorite.