Saying the Sword Art Online is a popular anime is a massive understatement. It may have started as a humble web novel, but the series ended up becoming one of the largest media franchises and single-handedly helped launch the "isekai" genre into its current state of popularity.

Out of numerous mediums that have the Sword Art Online name, the most famous and influential one has to be the anime series. After all, the series helped bring attention to the story from the original light novels, giving them new life in the process. However, after three whole seasons and nearly 100 episodes aired since 2012, Sword Art Online has nearly exhausted all of its source material. In that case, what's next for Sword Art Online? Are there any other adventures left for Kirito and his friends? As it turns out, there are still quite a lot of things to look forward to.

The Main Sword Art Online Light Novels

Sword Art Online War of the Underworld poster

Since the first episode of the Aincrad arc to the last episode of the War of Underworld arc, the anime series has been continuously adapting the story from the main light novel series. Reki Kawahara is a highly prolific writer. Other than the main story arc such as the Aincrad arc, Fairy Dance, Phantom Bullet, Alicization, and many more, he also wrote other stories based on SAO characters on the side.

Since the main light novel series is still ongoing, the logical continuation for the next SAO anime series is certainly the next arc after the War of Underworld, called Unital Ring. Reki Kawahara said that Unital Ring will be the last arc for SAO. The light novels for the Unital Ring arc is still ongoing right now, and it's highly likely that the anime will pick it up right after the light novels are finished.

In the meantime, it is also possible that the anime will adapt a short story called Moon Cradle. This short story takes place within the Alicization arc, but it hasn't been turned into an anime yet. Considering the fact that Moon Cradle is only two volumes long, it may be adapted into a movie instead of the usual TV series.

Continue Adapting the Sword Art Online Progressive Light Novels

Sword Art Online Progressive Movie Double

As mentioned earlier, other than the main Sword Art Online series, Reki Kawahara also wrote tons of side stories. One of the biggest ones is the Sword Art Online Progressive line of light novels that focus on Asuna and Kirito's early days in the Aincrad.

As of right now, there is already one movie based on the novels called Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of the Starless Night. The second movie, Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of a Dark Dusk is planned to be released sometime in 2022.

Based on the light novels, there is enough left for a couple more feature films. As a matter of fact, the light novels for the Progressive story itself are still ongoing right now. So if the production team is truly committed to this story, then it can easily evolve into a movie series, just like the Rebuild of Evangelion.

Adapting the Official Sword Art Online Short Stories

Sword Art Online Extra Edition main characters

Other than the Progressive stories, there are also many other short stories set in the Sword Art Online world and feature characters from the main series. All of them are written by Reki Kawahara. Every major arc has its own share of short stories involving mini-adventures or interacting with minor characters.

The only reason why these short stories are not part of the main SAO storyline is simply that they don't advance the overall narrative. They're just a collection of interesting things that happened in the world of SAO. If these short stories are to be adapted into an anime, fans can expect to get around two new seasons worth of content. There may not be any connection between one episode to the next, but it is still new content nonetheless.

Adapting Sword Art Online Spin-off Stories

Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online

Aside from the many short stories written by Reki Kawahara, there are also numerous spin-off stories written by other writers under the supervision of Kawahara. These spin-offs usually feature some supporting cast from the main story, or they can also simply take place in the world of SAO.

One of these spin-offs has actually been adapted into a stand-alone anime; Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online, written by Keiichi Sigsawa. The anime itself only adapted the first three out of twelve volumes of the light novels, so there is potential for another series.

Other than that, there's also the short light novels Sword Art Online Alternative: Clover's Regret, written by Souichirou Watase, and a manga called Sword Art Online: Girls Ops. Girls Ops was actually written by Reki Kawahara himself with illustrations by Neko Nekobyou. Overall, there is tons of new content that fans can enjoy after the end of War of Underworld. For now, fans can expect more stories to come from the Sword Art Online Progressive series.

More: Sword Art Online: Is Kirito a Good Protagonist?