- The title of this article is subjective and is not an official name. If you are looking for the .hack//GU games, please see its respective article.
The .hack//Games (also known as .hack//IMOQ) are a four part video games series telling the story of a Twin Blade named Kite and a Heavy Blade named BlackRose trying to figure out why people are falling comatose.
The storyline of the games was altered and made into a reboot manga titled .hack//XXXX, and there was also a novel series (closest to the actual storyline of the games, told from BlackRose's POV) titled .hack//Another Birth.
There was one soundtrack released for these games: Game Music Best Collection
Story[]
.hack//INFECTION[]
- For more details, see the INFECTION article.
As the saga's introductory game, INFECTION introduces the player to Kite, who, after witnessing an abnormality in the game that causes his friend to go comatose, goes on a quest to unravel the mysteries behind the popular MMORPG, The World. Gifted with the Twilight Bracelet, an item that grants him powers beyond that of normal players, Kite is joined by a cast of characters with their own agendas and encounters signs of a possible cover-up by CC Corp, the company that distributes the game. Kite's only clues are of the mysterious girl, Aura, who gave him the bracelet, and the reports of virus-infected monsters known as Data Bugs that only the bracelet is capable of defeating.
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.hack//MUTATION[]
- For more details, see the MUTATION article.
MUTATION continues where INFECTION left off, with Kite encountering a mysterious new enemy that threatens the system of the game. Kite is soon approached by the head system administrator of The World, Lios, who warns him of the danger the Twilight Bracelet poses to The World. Although Kite's character data is safe from Lios's threats of deletion, he realizes that following Lios's orders is beneficial to his cause and accepts investigative missions from Lios. Kite decides that his main objective should be to defeat irregular monsters and to restore Aura and make her whole again. However, as Kite uses his Bracelet to defeat increasingly stronger enemies, the corruption of the system seems to spread.
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.hack//OUTBREAK[]
- For more details, see the OUTBREAK article.
OUTBREAK is the turning point of the saga. Kite begins to doubt himself after the realizition that his powers have caused further corruption of the system. With BlackRose's help, Kite is able to get over his doubts and continue his quest. In order to fight the unseen enemy that prevents him from restoring Aura, Kite must get Lios and the hacker Helba to join forces. After their combined efforts, Kite finally sees progress towards normalization being made. However, as if cornered, the enemy prepares for a fiercer retaliation.
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.hack//QUARANTINE[]
- For more details, see the QUARANTINE article.
QUARANTINE is the final game in the saga. While progress against the enemy is being made, it is clear that time is not on Kite's side. The enemy within the game shows that it can affect systems outside the game; meanwhile, CC Corp is making preparations to destroy The World's servers in order to hide the truth linking them to the comatose victims and increasing system malfunctions. In his final push to uncover the truth, Kite is finally able to discover the cause of it all, the true identity of his enemies, and what must be sacrificed in order to set things right.
Characters[]
Infection[]
- Kite
- Orca
- Aura
- Helba
- BlackRose
- Balmung
- Elk
- Gardenia
- Lios
- Mia
- Mistral
- Natsume
- Piros
- Sanjuro
- Phase 1: Skeith
- Cubia
Mutation[]
Outbreak[]
Quarantine[]
Trivia[]
- All four games in North America received a "Mature Sexual Themes" content warning because of an in-game article involving internet pornography, although Infection does not have this news cast. In Europe most of the games did not receive the "Mature Sexual Themes", however the only game that did was Mutation.
- Placing all four American version game cases in order will show an image of Kite riding a noble grunty on the spines.
- Each game came with a special disc Liminality, which featured each an episode of the Liminality anime and extra features.
- The games were the first to use the PlayStation 2's DVD support.
- Each area in game have their own theme depending on the last word used, but are remixed to fit that specific area.