.hack//Roots

After the termination of the incredibly popular virtual reality MMORPG "The World," a new version of the game—The World R:2—is brought online. On his first day in the game, newcomer Haseo thinks he has made some friends to quest with. However, as if mocking his sentiments, they kill his character just for fun. Luckily, he is saved by a mysterious, one-armed player named Ovan who offers to show him around The World. Alongside Ovan and his cleric friend Shino, Haseo enjoys a wonderful first year in the game. But this peaceful life is shattered when Shino's character is killed by a familiar figure notoriously known as Tri-Edge, whose victims have all fallen into comas in the real world. In a fit of rage, Haseo vows to find the elusive Tri-Edge and kill him. Taking place during Haseo's first year in The World, .hack//Roots explores the friendships Haseo built in the game before Tri-Edge ripped them away. hack//Roots is the prequel to the .hack// videogames. It follows the story of Haseo a member of the Twilight Brigade guild. In the year 2015 the C.C. Corp’s building was burned down, and with it most of the data for “The World” was lost. By mixing the remaining data with that of another game, the C.C. Corp was able to create the game, “The World: R2?, unlike the games before this game allowed player versus player combat. The anime starts when Haseo logs into The World R:2 for the first time and falls victim to the PKers that reside within. He is saved by Ovan, which prompts him to join the Twilight Brigade.