Sword Art Online: Alicization is the third season of the Sword Art Online anime television series based on the light novel series written by Reki Kawahara and illustrated by abec. It was produced by A-1 Pictures and directed by Manabu Ono.The series takes place in the 2020s and focuses on protagonists Kazuto "Kirito" Kirigaya and Asuna Yuuki as they play through various virtual reality MMORPG worlds, and later their involvement in the matters of a simulated civilization