Fictional Newspaper Recreates the Sword Art Online Incident in Real-Life Publication
In a few weeks, the real world and the worlds of Sword Art Online will cross paths as November 6, 2022, marks the date that the SAO incident occurred in-universe, creating the catalyst for the entire story. To celebrate the horrifying in-universe event, 1,000 people who go see Sword Art Online -Progressive- Scherzo of Deep Night when it premieres on Saturday, October 22, will be given a fictional newspaper reporting on the incident.
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????号外！????
＼映画『SAO -プログレッシブ- 冥き夕闇のスケルツォ』の公開を記念して
SAO事件が起きた“あの日”を再現した新聞「東玉新聞」を
10/22より一部の映画館にて限定1000部配布✨エギルのスイーツレシピ特集など掲載！
ゲットしたら、ぜひコメントで教えてください????#SAOVS #SAO10th pic.twitter.com/4AKhOM1PDi— 【公式】SAO ヴァリアント・ショウダウン（SAOVS）事前登録受付中！ (@saovs_gameinfo) October 20, 2022
For some reason, the newspaper is also publishing the recipe for Agil’s sweets as seen in the Sword Art Online game in-universe. Interesting how that got that scoop so quickly!
The Togyoku Shimbun newspaper will only be given out to 1,000 people who see Scherzo of Deep Night at regular theaters on October 22, though the distribution is very limited and spans only the Toho Cinemas chain across Japan. This is in conjunction with the theatrical gifts that people will already get for being the first to watch Scherzo of Deep Night in theaters in Japan.
Sword Art Online -Progressive-, a retelling of the series’ Aincrad arc, was first published by author Reki Kawahara in 2012 and now spans eight volumes, with each volume generally covering a single floor in the Sword Art Online game, starting from Floor 1 in Aria of a Starless Night which was released in Japan in October 2021. “Scherzo of Deep Night” is the title of the fourth volume’s storyline, which means we’ll be jumping ahead to Floor 5 of Sword Art Online. Yen Press, which publishes the light novels’ official English version, describes the volume as:
It’s been just two months since they were trapped in the game of death that is Sword Art Online, and Kirito and Asuna continue their struggle at the vanguard of progress through the game. The fifth floor of Aincrad is a mazelike ruin, and the two dare to take pleasure in raiding it for the treasure it contains. Upon returning to the fourth floor, it’s time to do some questing on behalf of the Elf Lord Yofilis–but here begins Asuna’s discontent, for in doing so they will have to face her least favorite monster ever…
The main staff members from the first film return for Sword Art Online -Progressive- Scherzo of Deep Night at A-1 Pictures, including Ayako Kono as director. It is scheduled to premiere in Japan on October 22 in regular theaters with an October 21 opening in IMAX theaters.
Source: Sword Art Online VS on Twitter
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Daryl Harding is a Senior Japan Correspondent for Crunchyroll News. He also runs a YouTube channel about Japan stuff called TheDoctorDazza, tweets at @DoctorDazza, and posts photos of his travels on Instagram.
