| “ | Attention players. Welcome to my world. My name is Kayaba Akihiko. As of this moment, I am the sole person who can control this world. I'm sure you've already noticed that the logout button is missing from the main menu. But this is not a defect in the game. I repeat... This is not a defect in the game. It is a feature of Sword Art Online. You cannot log out of SAO yourselves. And no one on the outside can shut down or remove the NerveGear. Should this be attempted, the transmitter inside the NerveGear will emit a powerful microwave, destroying your brain and thus ending your life. Unfortunately, several players' friends and families have ignored this warning, and have attempted to remove the NerveGear. As a result, two hundred and thirteen players are gone forever, from both Aincrad and the real world... | „ |
| ~ Akihiko Kayaba to the players of SAO, revealing the game's dark secret |
Akihiko Kayaba is the overarching antagonist of the Sword Art Online franchise.
He was the creator of Sword Art Online, a VRMMO which trapped thousands of players in a game where, if they died in-game, they died in real life. He secretly placed himself among the 10,000 trapped players, creating the identity of Heathcliff, leader of the Knights of the Blood Oath.
His Evil Ranking[]
What Makes Him Heinous[]
- Created the video game Sword Art Online to trap the players inside of it.
- His game trapped approximately 10,000 people and caused the deaths of over 3000 of them, and he shows no remorse for it.
- After accidentally striking down Asuna and causing her apparent death, he shows no remorse for this, instead seeming rather amused at it while Kirito was in intense grief.
- Planned to betray Knights of the Blood Oath at Level 95 by killing some members, so that he could be the final boss.
- Is generally a sociopathic person who doesn't care for the lives of others, including himself.
What makes him inconsistent?[]
- He is one of the most honorable villains in the entire series:
- After revealing himself to be the final boss, he allowed Kirito to fight against him one-on-one, and even disabled his own admin privileges.
- When Kirito beat him, he allowed all of the remaining players to leave the game once and for all.
- He didn't interfere with any of the players while under disguise, and even helped them clear floors.
- While he did make himself invincible throughout the game, it was only so he could reach the 95th level and reveal his true identity as the final boss at level 100 to test the remaining players without using any of his admin privileges.
- Honored Kirito's request and made Asuna immortal so she couldn't kill herself.
- Cares for his co-worker and love interest, Koujiro Rinko, as he implanted a fake bomb into her neck to make it seem like she was forced to work with him against her will, so she wouldn't be charged for her crimes.
- Instead of making SAO extremely rigged, so no one could beat it, he instead made it so anyone with the skills could conquer the game.
- He accepted his death with honor and dignity, even congratulating Asuna and Kirito.
- He has standards, as he prohibits children from using the NerveGear and hates sexual harassment.
- After his death, a program created by him scanning his brain helped Kirito defeat Nobuyuki Sugou by giving him his administrator ID and password.
- After Kirito defeats Nobuyuki, Kayaba's program clone gave him the World Seed, leaving the choice of what to do with it up to Kirito.
- Following the web novels at the end of the Alicization arc, he ultimately redeems himself by sacrificing both his physical and digital bodies to save everyone on Ocean Turtle when the reactor starts a meltdown.
External Links[]
- Akihiko Kayaba on the Villains Wiki
- Akihiko Kayaba on the Sword Art Online Wiki
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 Inconsistently Heinous
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