This contains the changes that was been made to the anime as there are quite a number changes in all episodes. This tread could be locked, if you want to share your thoughts about the change tweet to me and I will create a thread for discussion as I have stated that I may create a thread for it.
Update: After much think I have decided to put all 12 episodes title and removed the recap episode's title.
Episode 12 - Applause
None Listed. I will add in when the site that I got this information updates it may take a long time for it to happen or it may not happen and edit accordingly.
Episode 11 - Psycho Llenn
None Listed. I will add in when the site that I got this information updates it may take a long time for it to happen or it may not happen and edit accordingly.
Episode 10 - The Devil's Comeback
None Listed. I will add in when the site that I got this information updates it may take a long time for it to happen or it may not happen and edit accordingly.
Episode 9 - Ten Minute Massacre
None Listed. I will add in when the site that I got this information updates it may take a long time for it to happen or it may not happen and edit accordingly.
Episode 8 - Booby Trap
None Listed. I will add in when the site that I got this information updates it may take a long time for it to happen or it may not happen and edit accordingly.
Episode 7 - Second Squad Jam
The scene of Miyu telling her guildmates in ALfheim Online about converting her account to Gun Gale Online to participate in a tournament with a friend.
Multiple instances of Fukaziroh accidentally referring to LLENN by her real world nickname, as well as Fukaziroh becoming confused which name she should use when talking about real world money, were omitted throughout the episode.
Fukaziroh's dialogue with the avatar broker was shortened, omitting Fukaziroh's question on how much her avatar would be worth.
A comparison between LLENN's and Fukaziroh's stats was omitted.
In the novel, the origin of Fukaziroh's name was explained in narration in an earlier part of the story when Karen and Miyu met in Hokkaido, rather than LLENN asking about it in Gun Gale Online. Instead, during their conversation in GGO, LLENN complained about the difficulty in pronouncing Fukaziroh's name, thus Fukaziroh proposed to be called Fuka for short.
A comparison between the colourfulness of the world of Gun Gale Online and ALfheim Online was omitted.
The scene of Karen contacting Goushi for funds, as well as the explanation that Goushi used an item box to transfer the funds, instead of doing so directly, to avoid leaving any records of the transaction were omitted.
The origin of the two MGL-140s was omitted.
The explanation that an MGL-140 could use more than just explosive grenades was omitted.
Fukaziroh did not mention the source of her funds when purchasing her grenade launchers in the novel.
In the novel, the shop assistant's offer to remove the sights from Fukaziroh's grenade launchers was mentioned in a flashback while Fukaziroh and LLENN were practising in the fields.
The shop assistant's remark that Fukaziroh's purchase would be enough to support his living expenses the following month was omitted.
In the novel, Fukaziroh only bought her other equipment, including the knife that she uses to tie her hair, after purchasing her grenade launchers.
Fukaziroh's acquisition of a Smith & Wesson M&P as a side arm was omitted from the anime.
In the novel, Fukaziroh let LLENN test one of her grenade launchers to see how Bullet Circles worked. At that point, LLENN realised that it would be impossible for her to wield one of the grenade launchers in one hand effectively due to the heaviness of the gun.
Fukaziroh's comparison of grenade launchers with long-incantation magic in ALfheim Online, as well as her regret at not being able to soar the skies in Gun Gale Online and LLENN's retort that Gun Gale Online was not the home of fairies, were omitted.
In the novel, LLENN did not mention registering for the tournament when telling Fukaziroh about a new strategy she wanted to test.
The anime does not mention Karen developing sleeping issues and headaches, as well as earning concern from her elder sister, due to spending a lot of her time in the game to prepare for the tournament. The anime also does not mention that Fukaziroh, in contrast, could always already be found in-game whenever LLENN logged in.
The scene of SHINC members conducting intensive training sessions in Gun Gale Online was omitted. Additionally, the members learnt about Karen's participation while attempting to acquire a new weapon from a dungeon, rather than in a dressing room at school, some time after they had their strategy meeting about needing a new weapon.
ZEMAL's reference to Narrow was omitted.
A comparison of the prizes of the first and second Squad Jam, as well as the fact that the revelation of the prizes for the second tournament caused a surge in interest in the event, were omitted.
A reference to LLENN's love for snacks when Fukaziroh ordered drinks that came with complementary beef jerky was omitted.
In the anime, LLENN acquiring some camouflage ponchos in preparation for the different terrain during the Squad Jam tournament was skipped.
Fukaziroh's joke that PM4 could be a reference to a time for snacks was omitted.
In the novel, LLENN also specifically mentioned MMTM as one of the teams they had to be wary of.
Episode 6 - SAO Loser
In the novel, LLENN purchased a new P90 after returning from her trip to Hokkaido on March 15, rather than on February 11 before she left to Hokkaido.
LLENN did not encounter Eva in Gun Gale Online after purchasing a new weapon in the novel.
Context on how the members of SHINC were invited to Karen's home was omitted. Karen had encountered the girls on numerous occasions since they first discovered each other's identities. However, as their conversations grew in length despite their schedules not allowing them to speak for prolonged periods during such encounters, Karen eventually invited the girls to visit her home, as it was in the area. As Karen had not put much thought in her offer, she began worrying that her offer might have come a little too soon for the girls, but, to her surprise, all of them were quite eager to visit her.
The anime omitted context on how Karen and the members of SHINC decided to rewatch scenes from the Squad Jam.
The dialogue during the scene where Karen and the girls were watching LLENN's fight against the pros until the part where Saki remarked about being impressed each time she viewed the clip was entirely different from the novel. Additionally, the girls had rewatched the scene at least twice by the time of the dialogue.
The scene where SHINC's truck was displayed on TV and Karen commented on their vehicle was omitted.
The reference to a game that SHINC had played before Gun Gale Online was omitted.
The anime does not mention that SHINC had formed a proper Squadron in Gun Gale Online before taking part in the Squad Jam.
In the novel, after the members of SHINC explained how they began playing GGO, the girls requested Karen to rewatch the remainder of the scenes and to provide comments on them. The commentary was omitted in the anime.
Karen's recollection of a short message she had received from Pitohui after the tournament, with no followup messages since then, was omitted.
The anime does not mention that Karen and the girls from SHINC discussed a variety of topics, including Karen's height complex, how she came to play Gun Gale Online, Karen's P90 air gun, their real life hobbies, and Kanzaki Elsa, after finishing their conversation about GGO.
Karen's final conversation with Saki and the others did not take place outside her apartment in the novel.
Karen's visit to her parents' home and her parents' shock at seeing Karen's short hair were not shown. This scene was replaced with Miyu's comments about what the reaction of her parents must have been.
Karen met with Miyu at her parents' home before the two went to a karaoke box, rather than meeting each other at the karaoke box itself, in the novel.
Background on Miyu and her in-game avatar was omitted.
In the novel, Yuuki was referenced as a person who had offered an eleven-hit Original Sword Skill to anyone who could beat her, rather than being referred to by her nickname.
Miyu did not mention having personally fought against Yuuki in the novel.
The fact that Miyu's guild had acquired a cabin of their own that she could use to store her gear in case she ever wanted to temporarily convert to a different game was not mentioned in the anime.
In the novel, Karen received the email from Zaskar while still in Hokkaido, eleven days before she returned to Tokyo, rather than on the flight itself.
The scene of Goushi stalking Karen from a multi-storey car park, as well as in Gun Gale Online, was skipped.
In the novel, Goushi approached Karen after stalking her around town while she went for a walk the day after she returned from Hokkaido, rather than approaching her as soon as she returned from Hokkaido. Additionally, as Karen noticed that Goushi had been following her, she did not enter her apartment complex, fearing this would allow her stalker to discover where she lived. Goushi called Karen by name while she was contemplating what action to take, rather than after entering her apartment complex.
Pitohui's lecture to LLENN on not sharing private details online, as well as Karen's thoughts on the details that allowed her and the SHINC members to identify each other, were omitted.
In the novel, Goushi explained the origin of his real name when he introduced himself.
When Goushi mentioned that Pitohui was forming a team, in the novel, Karen initially thought that Goushi had come to request that she join their team so that it could avoid the preliminaries, before dismissing that idea.
Goushi's explanation on what a beta test is, as well as Karen's recollection that Miyu had once said she would have played SAO on day one if she had the chance, were omitted.
The anime does not mention that Pitohui inflicted injury upon herself, as well as causing Goushi to break three of his ribs and fingers when he tried to stop her, the moment she discovered that she missed an opportunity to take part in a death game. Other references about Pitohui inflicting injury upon Goushi were also omitted.
In the novel, Goushi did not immediately reference the promise Karen had made with Pitohui as LLENN. Instead, Karen herself demanded to know how killing Pitohui in-game would help prevent her suicide, which prompted Goushi to explain about the promise. However, the explanation itself was done offstage, leaving Goushi's plan a secret to the readers at that point of the story.
The scene of Karen's niece and elder sister entering the room after Goushi had left, and inviting her to go skiing was omitted.
Karen contemplating the idea of looking for strangers in Gun Gale Online to form a team with was not included in the anime.
The novel did not mention that Miyu was taking a bath when she called Karen.
Episode 5 - Leave the Last Battle to Me
M's mention that surrender was not forbidden in Pitohui's letter, as well as his claim that he would have properly explained the situation to LLENN after resigning from the tournament if he had succeeded, were omitted.
LLENN's confrontation with M lasted till 15:13:30, rather than 15:15, in the novel.
Episode 4 - Death Game
The scene of LLENN following M's convoluted instructions to reach his position was omitted.
LLENN considering the possibility of M using drones or cheats to determine her position while guiding her through a convoluted route was omitted.
LLENN mentioning that her in-game name was based on her real name while hypothesising on the meaning of M's name was omitted.
The scene of LLENN proposing ideas for their next course of action after seeing the 14:50 scan, while M was lost in thought about his letter for several tens of seconds, was omitted.
In the novel, LLENN initially thought that the enemy hovercrafts were simple motorboats.
In the novel, only one of the hovercrafts approached LM within firing range as a scouting attack, while the others kept their distance for a couple of minutes.
Pitohui's lecture on covers and their usefulness was skipped.
A summary of MMTM's exploits until their battle with LM was omitted from the anime.
MMTM's remarks regarding M's shield and their reasoning for choosing to charge at LM were omitted.
LLENN's internal monologue, including her considerations whether to use her weapon as a shield, while distracting MMTM was omitted.
In the novel, when Jake's partner was shot, he did not die instantly. Instead, the blow caused him to suddenly turn the hovercraft's wheel, causing the vehicle capsize and the two men inside it to fall into the water. Jake's partner attempted to warn his team members that they would not see any Bullet Lines, but was unable to voice his sentence due to being in the water. The man died several moments later due to drowning, just as he deduced M's trick.
In the novel, when only two members of MMTM remained, they attempted to retreat. However, when only one survivor was left, he abandoned his attempt to escape.
The novel did not mention LLENN firing three separate volleys at the final member of MMTM.
Pitohui's lecture did not have any context in the novel. The battle against a group of robots was not mentioned there.
In Pitohui's example of LLENN using a P90 in the real world, Pitohui's reference to the Japanese Swords and Firearms Control Law, and her remark on LLENN being capable of preparing her gun for shooting were omitted. In her explanation of the workings of the Bullet Circle, a reference to Sword Skills was skipped.
The anime did not mention that Pitohui herself had tested the workings of the Bullet Circle with a sniper rifle when commenting about what would happen if the player pulled the trigger roughly, yet managed to get the Bullet Circle focused on the target.
A scene of Pitohui acting as a teacher and praising LLENN's initiative to ask questions, and then grading her question was omitted.
A detailed list of all the factors that snipers need to account for in the case of long-distance shooting was omitted.
In the novel, the hovercraft that M used to escape from SHINC still had the bodies of its previous users when LM embarked, thus M had to dispose of them first.
Rosa and Sophie were ordered to open fire with their machine guns when Tohma exhausted her ammunition and M was already on the hovercraft. In the anime, Rosa and Sophie were both waiting at the truck instead.
SHINC's perspective of their encounter with LM before their opponents escaped was skipped.
In the novel, Tanya was the only SHINC member to keep track of the satellite scan. Eva (Boss) was on the balcony along with Tohma, using binoculars to observe LM and oversee the actions of her team. She continued following LM with her binoculars until they disappeared into the distance with their hovercraft.
In the novel, Eva chose the wasteland as their next destination as she saw the route LM was taking and surmised that they would not have enough fuel to change course.
Episode 3 - Fan Letter
None Listed. I will add in when the site that I got this information updates it may take a long time for it to happen or it may not happen.
Episode 2 - GGO (Note that this title is the same as Sword Art Online Season 2 Episode 4)
The novel's prologue and the first part of SECT.1 were omitted due to the anime changing how the Squad Jam was introduced.
The details about Karen's family, life in Hokkaido, and Karen's university, as well as how she enrolled to it, were omitted. These details were replaced with a short narration by Karen herself.
Karen hitting her head at a sign is an original scene.
In the novel, Karen became interested in virtual reality games after reading an article on the Internet criticising the surging popularity of the games, despite the casualties caused by the SAO incident. Instead, the anime has Karen watching a more neutral news segment about the games on TV. Additionally, in the novel, Karen focused on the phrase "a different self" (別の自分), rather than "a life different from reality" (現実とは違う人生).
Karen's meeting with Miyu in a cafe was mostly an original scene. The novel only mentioned that Karen had met with Miyu but did not provide details on the meeting, while in the manga, Karen just contacted Miyu via her phone.
The anime does not mention that Karen returned to Tokyo before buying an AmuSphere and a copy of ALfheim Online, as she felt that her parents would not allow her to do so at their house.
The ALfheim Online package, as well as the character generation sequence, was depicted differently than in the main series.
The anime did not explain that Karen chose a Sylph character due to Miyu playing the game as a Sylph, thus meaning that the two would have been able to meet in-game faster.
Miyu in the anime does not mention that remaking a character requires an additional fee, nor that ALfheim Online has some races that tend to have short avatars, like the Cait Sith.
When Karen was converting from game to game in search of an avatar that would please her, the anime does not mention that Karen only tried games that had a free trial period, or that Karen spent several days on her search.
In the novel, LLENN did not take the tutorial to discover the genre of the game, nor did she take it so soon after joining the game. Instead, after enjoying her short avatar for some time, LLENN decided to take the tutorial due to her serious side prompting her to take the game seriously and learn how to fight.
In the novel, the mechanics of Gun Gale Online were explained in a narration. The anime, instead, expanded upon the tutorial that was only briefly mentioned in the novel to explain the mechanics in-dialogue.
The anime omits the mention of character stats in the game, as well as the fact that LLENN primarily devoted her skill points to Agility and Dexterity.
In the novel, when LLENN realised that her outfit could have let her blend in with the environment, she tested this theory by leaving her pink gun on the ground and taking some distance from it, until she saw that the gun blended in so well that she could no longer see it.
In the novel, LLENN stopped ambushing players in the desert upon learning that some players had put a bounty on her and planned subjugation parties to deal with her.
The anime does not show LLENN using a green outfit in town to avoid being identified by the people she had killed.
LLENN first met Pitohui while window-shopping for a new gun in town in the novel, rather than encountering her in the field at gunpoint.
During LLENN's first encounter with Pitohui in the novel, the latter was wearing a highly revealing outfit that was not much different from a bikini.
Pitohui's commentaries about her gun of the day, as well as her mentioning that she had once attempted to purchase Sinon's PGM Ultima Ratio Hecate II to no avail, were omitted from the anime.
Episode 1 - Squad Jam
The anime began the story immediately from the day of the tournament, rather than the background story for how LLENN came to participate in it.
The narration at the beginning of the episode is an original scene.LLENN did not wear her pink uniform when she arrived to the tournament's venue in the tournament.
Instead, she wore a different outfit underneath her robe, as M had instructed her not to reveal her gear to the other participants before the tournament began.
In the novel, LLENN and M arrived at the venue for the tournament an nearly an entire hour early and waited in a private room at the bar for the competition to start, talking about Pitohui and the tournament. This scene was skipped in the anime.
The introduction to the tournament by the tournament's sponsor, as well as the reaction of the players to his speech, was omitted in the anime.
The scene of players betting on the number of bullets that would be fired during the tournament was omitted.
LLENN's reference to Kanzaki in the episode was not present in the respective part of the novel. Instead, at this part of the novel, LLENN remarked about Pitohui wearing a dress at the time, as Pitohui had claimed that she could not participate in the tournament due to needing to attend a wedding. The part about LLENN participating in the tournament because she could not get a concert ticket was covered in an earlier part of the novel.
The scene introducing the usage of the Satelite Scan Terminal was omitted in the anime.The scene of M forcing LLENN to take his knife as a spare weapon, as well as lecturing her on how to use it most effectively, was omitted from the anime.
In the novel, LLENN and M spawned near the upper-rightmost corner of the map. The map in the anime depicts that there is still an area further to the east.LLENN and M spent more time analysing the entire map before deciding on their destination.
When M was ordering LLENN to head south, he spoke at a barely audible voice in the novel, with their communication device adjusting the volume, thus ensuring that they could hear each other, while preventing others from hearing them.
LLENN did not trip over a root while running through the forest in the novel.
In the novel, still active opponents in the tournament were denoted on the map as white dots, rather than red.The first aid kit that a player used in the anime was supposed to heal players over a period of 180 seconds, rather than healing the player nearly instantly.