Honestly, I can't believe this series is over. It saddens me deeply to know that it has come to an end. The game itself is great. It's not disappointed me at all and I give it five out of five on both scales and I would recommend this game to ANYONE I see. I have played .hack from the very beginning with .hack//Infection and I must say that it only continues to get better. The .hack//G.U. games bring back some of the quirks and qualities of the original four but it adds its own flare with side quests, bike quests, arena battles and affection levels for your partners. This is really one of the only games that I have ever wanted to complete. With the original four .hack games I would get frustrated with how much everything in each game repeated itself. They seemed to drag on within the game. The .hack//G.U. fixes these problems very well and continues the excitement from the beginning to the end. The graphics continue to get better and the levels aren't the only things that are advancing with the characters. Haseo's Xth form finally shows itself in this game providing new weapons and new attacks. With Haseo's Xth form also comes new opponents and a new arena to battle in. New quests will pop up in the quest shop and another opportunity to save "The World" comes with it all. I hope this game will do very well in America so that another .hack series will be created and sent to us soon.

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No longer is Haseo the immature, self-centered, arrogant child from volume 1. After many trials, Haseo has grown up and has decided to cleanse the world of this new evil. For the sake of all those who play the World, he must. Introduced in this volume are many features familiar to fans of the original dot Hack games, though I'm not going to list them for fear of spoilers, but expect to be surprised ;) New characters are added to your team roster as well, opening up more doors than ever before. You will not believe the events that unfold even within the first few missions of the game!

Players who have never played a dot Hack game can still pick up Vol 3 and begin play just as if it were a stand-alone game. The beginning of the game will give you an overview of the prior events and you will begin the game with everything you need to play. However, the best way to play is by having completed the first two volumes, in which case you will be allowed to import you saved game from volume 2 into volume 3, allowing you to keep your level, all your items, etc is if you never stopped playing volume 2.

Be there in the end as Haseo confronts the true evil, unraveling the mysteries that have plagued him since he first stepped foot in the world. Fight and make the World the great game it used to be, not just for yourself but for all players!

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With seven games to this series, and an inexhaustible supple of anime, film, toys, etc., the Dot Hack series has reached the heights of longevity shared by very few RPG's. Final Fantasy is the undeniable owner of the title, both in terms of number of episodes and sheer quality, but Dot Hack will always be a contender. And more to the point, a lot of fun as well. The premise of these games is that a multi-player online fantasy game can become larger than life and that threats within the game can endanger the real world. The first 4 games in this series were based on Kite, a young player who finds himself caught up in the game beneath the game. This set of games established the basic pattern - basically a dungeon game with a number of sidequests,

This second series - 'G.U.' - continues this pattern, this time centered on a new set of characters led by Haseo. Haseo, seeking vengeance for the loss of his girlfriend as become an avid killer of player killers whose nickname is 'The Terror of Death.' One of the things that make the three 'G.U.' an improvement over the original games is the strong element of character depth and development. Haseo starts out unlikable and, as the conflict with the viral AIDA develops, becomes more the responsible leader and hero and less the bitter killer. By the end of the game there are some twenty characters that Haseo can team with, oppose AIDA with, or even propose to.

Along with the quality of character the storyline has become more detailed and logical. And the character enemies have become more interesting as well. This last stanza carefully ties many of the threads together. The game uses the interactions in the game, in addition to resources in the computer interface such as emails and discussion groups, to drive the plot forward. In fact, one of the most noticeable flaws in the game is that faithfully reading your emails will drive the story forward faster than you want to go. Of course, this is one of the few games that will let you play all the sidequests after the main story completes but I found this a bit unsatisfactory. But there is a lot of gameplay here in any case.

The game offers a considerable number of sidequests and internal games to keep anyone happy. There's a fight card game where you can go on quests for special cards and challenge other players. There's motorcycle races and arena fights. All of this in addition to the find every one thing or another quests. There is a enough game time here to play until you are senseless. Since this is the last in a long series most of you know what to expect and I promise you that that is exactly what you will get. If you are new to the series I suggest you track down at least the previous two games if you want to understand the plot and the characters.

Now, what should I do until .hack starts up once again?

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As a person who is a fan of the .hack// anime and the previous original 4 .hack// games, I just had to play the .hack//GU games(3) to complete the story of .hack//Roots.

The .hack//GU games start right where the anime, .hack//Roots ends. The story unfolds which each part of the game, getting deeper every second. All of the .hack// series are conected to this one, where things like cameos are happening alot in it; making it a game for the fans.

The gameplay is okay but not great. But the story makes up for it! .hack//GU 3 is a must have for the players who enjoyed the first 2 GU games, and the .hack// franchise.

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Our world.... "The World"... and the virus that threatens to destroy them both.

The first two games of this series (which itself is a sequel/continuation of the original .hack series, and goes with the animie ".hack//ROOTS"), tell us about Haseo, a player in the immensely popular MMORPG "The World", the people Haseo encounters throughout the game, and the threat that makes itself known to the players and the world as AIDA.

A good chunk of this game is "more of the same"; you level, you do quests, you get emails, you fight in the tournament. This was the only part that bored me, though often the plot winds its way through the various events in the game. The plot is very well written, with a few good twists, and fans of the original .hack series will be very pleased to see familiar faces and places that they knew and loved.

Fight the Sage Emperor Taihaku, learn the secrets behind the enigmatic Ovan, and save The World...!

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It's rare for a game to keep me interested until the end, it's equally as rare for games to surprise me with its story--.hack has done all of the above. //Redemption is an amazing game and a worthy sucessor to the previous volumes. Despite it being a sequel, it's stand-alone-worthy plot would be interesting for anyone to play. The battle system, as well as the overall design of the game is among the most unique out there. The game is fun, addictive, and you get attached to it so quickly. I bought the first volume without knowledge of any of the other games or series', and it quickly grew to be one of my most favorite games of all times. It's a true masterpiece, down to every detail. Everyone needs to play this game. The only negative thing I can say about this game is that it's the last of the series, and I hate to see it end.

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Vol. 3 wraps up the .hack//G.U. series. It starts off with a bang, with the disappearance of an ally, and the repearance of an foe you thought was defeated. Even though it once again rehashes the same side quests from vol 1 (Bounty Hunter, Mecha Grunty, Lucky Animal, etc) the story is top notch and well worth playing the game for. I give .hack//G.U. 5 out of 5.

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In order to truly enjoy this game you must have played and watch the animes. That way you can understand every bit of the game.

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As a .hack fan, I had high expectations for .hack//GU. Since I hadn't yet watched ROOTS, I wasn't sure if I could enjoy it without the background information. Thankfully, it was problem, since important info is revealed when needed.

Character development is fantastic, especially on the main character, Haseo. After I finished Redemption, I went back to play Rebirth, and was surprised to see how different he was in the beginning. I hadn't even noticed how much he changed. By the end, I found it difficult to dislike any of the characters, those I hated at first.

The gameplay is a significant improvement over the previous .hack//GAME series. Gone is the repetitive dungeon-crawling, forced to fight every enemy group. Most times, you can slide past the enemies. The battle system is engaging and doesn't degenerate into pure button mashing (unless using a rapid-hit weapon, but then, you asked for it). Skill triggers allow mid-battle weapon changes and are shortcuts to use skills.

Graphics do not disappoint, however they are not perfect. Character sprites sometimes move in ways a human being shouldn't, and Bandai-Namco's CG scenes are not up to standards set by Square-Enix.

Extras serve to customize and to help you get to know your party. Your 'desktop' can be customized with a background and music. Greeting cards can be sent to party members, to which they will respond. In Redemption, you're also given a special greeting card with allows for the Max Affection event - that is, for one male and most female party members that you send it to, a marriage ending will happen. For the others, a "friendship" ending occurs. I suggest saving before you send it; you only get one!

Tl;dr:

PROS

- Character Development is smooth.

- Music is enjoyable without being annoying or "just there."

- Improved dungeon and battle systems.

- Improved equipment system.

- Enjoyable extras (Desktop, greeting cards, marriage, etc.)

- Plot is engaging and unique.

CONS

- Graphics could be better

- Arena battling may feel repetitive.

- A few characters seem "just there."

I recommend this game series to any RPG-player or .hack fan for its overall experience.

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.hack//G.U. Vol. 3 Redemption is part 3 of a 3 part game series in the .hack conglomerate. The story follows Haseo, the main protagonist, in his struggles to save "The World," an online game which has mysterious connections to the real world, along with the many "Lost Ones."

The gameplay is utterly fantastic. With real-time RPG style fighting, Redemption promises to provide many hours of intriguing game play. Haseo's Xth form also provides a new twist to fighting, providing long-range attacks, dashing, and double Skill Triggers. Another element added in Redemption is the Avatar Awakening, where Haseo utilizes the strength of his Avatar to Data Drain his enemies.

There were a few things that bothered me, but weren't really a big deal. For one Atoli's voice isn't consistent with the preceding games, which is not a big deal, but was strange to get used to. I also notice some bad lip syncing with the voice overs, mainly when Haseo summons Skeith saying "I'm right here." Aside from those two little pet peeves, this turned out to be an incredible game which reached my expectations and was worth the wait.

I would recommend this game only if Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 were previously played.

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this game is a great finish to the .//hack G.U. series. I like it a lot.

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This game is awesome, I love playing every little bit of it. I'm so glad I got this game becuse it also help complee my collection.

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I will confess, there are a number of corny lines in this final volume, but the journey, characters, and awesome fights are well worth it. While not absolutely every question is answered (both standard .Hack procedure and good storytelling), the important threads are all wrapped up. All of the characters have a good amount of growth and new fans to the series will almost certainly be surprised by the final boss, fans since the quadrilogy will probably shout "hey, that's where it is!"

Story: 8/10

Following Volume 2, there's more artwork to unlock, and besides episode 6 of Roots (no, I don't know why they jumped from 1 in Vol 2, to 6 in Vol 3) there are "joke videos" called "4koma"s.

Graphics: 8/10

While still excellent in its own right, I don't think there's a single new sound (outside dialog, obviously) from Vol 2 to 3. Some fans will also joke that certain effects are overused - a number of enemies' death growls sound like cows, a source of comic relief for myself and my friends.

Sound: 7/10

The last volume, and it does not disappoint. Chikayo Fukuda remains strong the whole way through, and whatever your favorite is it probably makes some appropriate appearance (from "Everything in These Hands" in the showdown with the Azure Knights) to an epic-sounding track prior to the showdown with the story's Final Boss.

Music: 9/10

While graphics and sound didn't really change from one volume to the next, the expansions in skills, weapons, and other things smooth out tough spots in gameplay and give a lot of fun options - once you clear story mode, you gain access to a whole new challenge in the 100-floor-long dungeon "Forest of Pain" where you can get great items like a one-slot 50% SP absorb per hit.

Gameplay: 9/10

There's a lot to do outside the story mode itself. All of the minigames are back, and this is where completionists can go out with the dothackers guide to find truly 100% of everything the game has to offer. The Forest of Pain and eventually trading Virus Cores is a particularly interesting addition, though there's really no build to the story or characters after that - though there are some cameo bits like recruiting Tabby, a versatile character familiar to Roots fans. Beating the Forest of Pain unlocks a final video, but Roots fans will already know that Shino's a jerk.

Replayability: 8.5/10

By this point it's easy to have invested 100 hours in the G.U. game trilogy, and this game can easily double that, being fun all the while. Many games can't manage to remain entertaining for all of 30 hours, so even if it's got a spot or two of things slowing down, the combination of action, adventure, RPG will satisfy fans of any of those genres. Grab all three to glean everything the games have to offer and they may be treasures you go back to even years down the road.

Overall: 9/10

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I very much think that this is the greatest game achievement in the rpg world yet, the dot hack GU series. It has a mix of everything a good game, book, movie, or anything needs. It has very many instances of suspense with who will become a lost one, who is the real tri-edge and Haseo dealing with who he is, which is of course Ovan. The twists are astounding, such as Ovan being Tri-Edge, and Sakaki becoming an AIDA idiot that gains control of CC corp despite him being 10 years old in real life. Also there is the romance, the love triangles that go on with Haseo, Alkaid, Shino, and Atoli, and perhaps more later in the game. They fight for him so much in a silent way, which is very funny (excluding Shino). Speaking of funny, the comedy is a key element in the game. From dancing grunties to Endrance's supposed homosexuality towards Haseo, it gets very hilarious. Also the classic of Mecha Grunty always crashing. The action of course in the game is the main thing that attracts though, there are the new weapons, new levels, new moves, and intricate storyline that is very unexpected. Pretty much that sums it up, and it is the best rpg out in the world.

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.hack//GU Vol. 3 is the last game in the second series of .hack games, meaning it has the conclusion to the much improved G.U. series contained within. While not necessary to have owned and played the last two in the series, you really should for the most enjoyment.

The series continues with smooth graphics, and a nice cel-shaded style that doesn't look cheaply done, not to mention the gameplay isn't nearly as monotonous as the old series (don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the story of the older games... but they were boring to PLAY). You also get Haseo's Xth form in this game, which adds new ways to play even now.

I fully recommend this game to any fan of the .hack franchise, and to many of you who never got into it, but thought it looked interesting. Even some of you who've never heard it before. It really is one of my favorite game series, particularly within the selection of the PS2.

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