.hack

.hack logo

.hack (pronounced "dot-hack") is a Japanese multimedia franchise that encompasses two projects; Project .hack and .hack Conglomerate. Both projects were primarily created/developed by CyberConnect2, and published by Bandai. The series is mainly followed through the anime and video game installations, and has been adapted through manga, novels and other related media.

Projects

Project .hack

Project .hack was the first project of the .hack series. It launched in 2002 with the PlayStation 2 game, .hack//Infection and the anime series .hack//Sign. Project developers included Koichi Mashimo (Bee Train), Kazunori Ito (Catfish), and Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, (Gainax). Since then, Project .hack has spanned television, video games, manga, and novels. There are 4 original .hack games .hack//infection - .hack//mutation - .hack//outbreak - .hack//quarantine

.hack Conglomerate

.hack Conglomerate is the second and the current project of .hack by CyberConnect2 and various other companies. The companies include Victor Entertainment, Nippon Cultural Broadcasting, Bandai, TV Tokyo, Bee Train, and Kadokawa Shoten. It encompasses a series of three PlayStation 2 games called .hack//G.U., an anime series called .hack//Roots, prose, and manga.

Media

Video games

• .hack, a series of four PlayStation 2 games that follow the story of the .hackers, Kite and BlackRose, and their attempts to find out what caused the sudden coma of Kite's friend, Orca, and BlackRose's brother, Kazu. The four volumes, in sequence, are .hack//Infection, .hack//Mutation, .hack//Outbreak, and .hack//Quarantine.

• .hack//fragment, the first .hack ORPG (Online Role-Playing Game). It was released in Japan and the servers have since been closed, ending all official online gameplay. Bandai announced at E3 '06 that frägment will not be coming to North America

• .hack//G.U. is a series of three video games (Vol. 1 Rebirth, Vol. 2 Reminisce, and Vol. 3 Redemption) released for the.hack Conglomerate project. It focuses on Haseo's search for a cure after his friend was attacked by a player known as Tri-edge, which led to his eventual involvement with Project G.U, and the mysterious AIDA who plague The World R:2. This latest series has proven greatly successful to the .hack franchise, with the recent release of .hack//G.U. Vol 3 in Japan selling over 100,000 copies in one day and becoming the number one game the week of its release in Japan.

• .hack//Link, a PSP game released under the .hack Conglomerate project. It was said to be the last game in the series. Contain characters from .hack and .hack//G.U. video games.

Publications

• .hack//AI buster, a novel released under Project .hack. It tells the story of Albireo and a prototype of the ultimate AI, Lycoris, and of how Orca and Balmung defeated "The One Sin" and became the Descendants of Fianna.
• .hack//AI buster 2, a collection of stories released under Project .hack. It involves the characters of AI Buster and Legend of the Twilight Bracelet: ".hack//2nd Character", ".hack//Wotan's Spear", ".hack//Kamui", ".hack//Rumor" and ".hack//Firefly". "Rumor" was previously released with the Rena Special Pack in Japan.
• .hack//Zero, a novel series released under Project .hack. It tells the story of a Long Arm named Carl, of what happened to Sora after he was trapped in The World by Morganna, and of Tsukasa's real life after being able to log out from The World.
• .hack//Another Birth, series of novelizations released under Project .hack. It retells the story of the .hack video games from BlackRose's point of view.
• .hack//Legend of the Twilight, a manga series released under Project .hack. It tells the story of two player characters Shugo and Rena, as they win a mysterious contest that earns them chibi character models of the legendary .hackers Kite and BlackRose (from the .hack PlayStation 2 games).
• .hack//Epitaph of Twilight, a novel series telling the story of Harald Hoerwick's niece, Lara Hoerwick, who finds herself trapped in an early version of The World.
• .hack//CELL, a novel released under the .hack Conglomerate project. It revolves around a female Edge Punisher called Midori who acts as a "professional victim", by letting people PK her for money.
• .hack//GnU, a humorous manga series released under the .hack Conglomerate project. It revolves around a male Blade Brandier called Raid and the seventh division of the Moon Tree guild.
• .hack//Alcor, a manga series released under the .hack Conglomerate project. It focuses on a girl called Nanase, who appears to be quite fond of Silabus, as well as Alkaid during her days as empress of the Demon Palace.
• .hack//G.U.+, a manga adaptation of the three .hack//G.U. video games released under the .hack Conglomerate project.
• .hack//4koma, a manga series which throws a little humor into both .hack and .hack//G.U. alike.
• .hack//Link, a manga released under the .hack Conglomerate project. It occurs three years after the end of .hack//G.U. in a new version of The World called The World R:X. It focuses on a player named Tokio and a mysterious exchange student named Saika.
• .hack//XXXX (read as "X-Fourth"), a manga series released under the .hack Conglomerate project. The manga adapts the four original .hack video games.

Anime

• .hack//Sign, an anime series released under Project .hack. It revolves around the character Tsukasa and his inability to log out of The World.

• .hack//Liminality, a set of four DVD OVAs included with the games released under Project .hack. It follows the story of Mai Minase, Yuki Aihara, Kyoko Tohno, and ex-CyberConnect employee Junichiro Tokuoka as they attempt to find out what is causing the comas.

• .hack//Gift, a self-deprecating, tongue-in-cheek, OVA that was created as a "gift" for those who had bought and completed all four .hack video games. It was released under Project .hack. In Japan, it was available when the Data Flag on the memory card file in .hack//Quarantine was present, whereas the American version included Gift on the fourth Liminality DVD. It is predominantly a comedy that makes fun of everything that developed throughout the series, even the franchise's own shortcomings. Character designs are deliberately simplistic.

• .hack//Legend of the Twilight anime series released under Project .hack.. It features most of the same characters as the manga version, but with an alternative storyline. It was incorrectly called .hack//Dusk, among other names, in early fan-translated versions.

• .hack//Roots, an anime series released under the .hack Conglomerate project. It follows Haseo and his joining (and subsequent exploits with) the Twilight Brigade guild. It also shows his rise to power and how he becomes known as "The Terror of Death". Towards the end of the series we see the start of .hack.//G.U.

• Online Jack, a set of anime clips in the news section of the .hack//G.U. games' fake internet. It tells the "real world" story of the mysterious "Doll Syndrome".

• .hack//G.U. Trilogy, a CGI video adaptation of the .hack//G.U. video games released under the .hack Conglomerate project.

• .hack//G.U. Returner, a short follow up video and the conclusion to .hack//Roots released under the .hack Conglomerate project. It tells the story about the characters of .hack//G.U. in one last adventure.

• .hack//G.U. Trilogy, a anime film consists of three plots.

• .hack//Quantum, a three part OVA series from Kinema Citrus and the first to be licensed by Funimation.

• .hack//The Movie, a CGI movie, announced in August 23, 2011. On January 21, 2012 it will be launched in theaters throughout Japan.

Other

• .hack//Enemy, a collectible card game created by Decipher Inc. based on the .hack series. It was discontinued after running five separate expansions between 2003-2005.

• .hack//G.U.The Card Battle is a trading card game similar to that of .hack//Enemy released under the .hack Conglomerate project. Unlike .hack//Enemy, the game was made by the original creators of .hack//G.U.. There are two sets of rules, one based on the mini game in the G.U. series, Crimson VS, and the one specifically designed for the trading card game.

References

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-10-05/hack/the-movie-slated-to-open-on-january-21

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-08-23/hack/the-movie-to-open-in-3d-in-january

http://www.animenation.net/blog/2011/08/25/dot-hack-movie-announced/

http://playstationlifestyle.net/2011/08/23/hackthe-movie-blu-ray-announced-includes-ps3-game/

External links

• .hack// - Official (Worldwide)
• .hack// - Official (Japanese)
• Project .hack// - Official (Japanese)
• .hack// Conglomerate - Official (Japanese)
• .hack//Trilogy - Official (Japanese)