If you have followed my activity on Twitter as of late, you will know that I absolutely love the recently released Square Enix JRPG Bravely Default, having previously campaigned for the localisation of the Nintendo 3DS game under the name OperationBrave. I am also a fan of the anime series Sword Art Online, which is set in the virtual reality MMORPG game Sword Art Online, where players are trapped until they either beat the game, or they die (which will cause them to die in the real world too).
To try and help promote Bravely Default, I have been writing a series of weekly articles on WiiUAndMii.com titled Brave Friday and while researching about the game, I came across quite an interesting discovery: Bravely Default, which was released in Europe last Friday shares a few significant voice actors with Sword Art Online, which has its first DVD and Blu-Ray volume set to be released on Monday.
The Protagonist:
Tiz Arrior is the main male protagonist of Bravely Default; a former resident of the now destroyed Norende Village who is on a journey to help Agnés purify the four crystals to save the land of Luxendarc , as well as revive his fallen home. Tiz Arrior’s voice is provided by Bryce Papenbrook, who also gives life to Sword Art Online‘s protagonist Kirito, who finds himself trapped in the Sword Art Online virtual reality MMORPG and has to clear the game to escape. In a sense, both Tiz and Kirito are fighting to be reunited with their home once more.
The Feisty Swordswoman:
Bravely Default‘s Edea Lee and Sword Art Online‘s Leafa have four key things in common (aside from having similar hair styles – they totes co-ordinated that) – they are both the secondary female protagonist of their series (with Agnés and Asuna taking those roles in Bravely Default and Sword Art Online respectively), they both received tutelage in wielding a sword, they both have a big secret they wish to conceal and they are both voiced by Cassandra Lee Morris.
The Fairy Helper:
In Bravely Default, the four heroes are guided in their journey across Luxendarc to purify the crystals by the Cryst-Fairy named Airy. In Sword Art Online, Kirito and Asuna come across quite the oddity during their journey through the world of Aincrad; the artificial intelligence that is Yui. In Sword Art Online’s Fairy Dance arc, Yui appears in the form of a navigation pixie to aid Kirito in his mission there. Both of these fairies have their English voices provided by Stephanie Sheh.
The voice actor of Sword Art Online‘s Klein (Kirk Thornton) also provides his voice for a role in Bravely Default, although which character in particular has yet to be confirmed (although I have reached out for some confirmation on this and other roles).
Remember everynyan, you can purchase Bravely Default, which is exclusively on the Nintendo 3DS, from Nintendo’s online store and you can pre-order the first volume of Sword Art Online from Amazon!
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