Best Sword Art Online Songs
This list is a countdown of what I consider to be the best songs from the anime series Sword Art Online. For this list, I'll be including songs from Sword Art Online, Sword Art Online: Extra Edition, and Sword Art Online II (and probably future anime installments in the future such as the new Ordinal Scale movie and Sword Art Online III) that I found to be enjoyable. These can range anywhere from Crossing Field by LiSA or Ignite by Eir Aoi. With that said, Sword Art Online fans and anyone else who likes these songs regardless of what they think about the anime, cast your votes!
Such an iconic song. Along with Yume Sekai, it truly captures the vibes of SAO. The feels.
A wonderful classic. Even though Courage is objectively better, this isn't far behind.
I've always loved this song. I never skipped the intro.
I just listened to this song for the first time, and wow, did it blow me away! After hearing Crossing Field, I thought for sure it would be the best opening in the show, but this one gives it some competition!
This song was an absolute bomb! I haven't listened to this song until the end, but that makes me want to listen to more! When the song reaches the middle part, it just blows my mind.
Been a while since I heard it, but it is definitely my favorite of the bunch. For whatever reason, I can't even imagine myself listening to SAO songs in English (extremely out of character for me since I'm usually the exact opposite with other shows, even in anime).
Courage is my favorite song of all time. Now, don't get me wrong, Crossing Field and Ignite are iconic and all, but Courage is not only that - it's also badass and emotional.
After listening to all these songs a lot, I've decided that Courage, out of all of them, is my favorite opening. Call me weird.
This is the only song I didn't skip when I watched SAO. Yuuki is my favorite character, and therefore, this is my favorite song.
To me, this is the single best song this anime ever made. Especially once you know the circumstances behind it, it's beautiful, it's powerful, it's emotional, and just an amazing song overall.
This is the best ending song of SAO. There's no other ending song in this show that even comes close, in my opinion. I love it.
So damn emotional! Even though I prefer Courage as a song, this is just... I can't describe it.
When I listened to this opening for the first time, I didn't skip the next episodes. Love it!
I love this song. I downloaded it the other day, and I never skip it.
This gives me nostalgia down the spine.
I fell in love with this song the first time I listened to it. It's probably my favorite, alongside Crossing Field.
All of the SAO openings are great. It's hard to rank them from favorite to least favorite, but this one is in the bottom half. It's still amazing, though.
The Newcomers
So many feels. I especially like how this song is a combination of traditional East Asian folk and electronic music. It metaphorically contrasts the world they are caught in (ancient) with something almost futuristic.
Much more emotional than the other songs. I really like the others, but this one really caught my heart at first listen and is also the song that brought me back to SAO.
This is the most climactic and epic opening of the series. Originally, I thought Courage was the best song, but I'm not so sure anymore after hearing this gift from the gods.
Her voice reminds me of Yui or Aimer. So beautiful!
Once the climax comes to a resolution, Yuna's fifth and final song, Smile for You, comes to fruition. Surprisingly enough, Smile for You isn't just a touching song that acts as a proper farewell for Yuna as her soul leaves the world a second time and embeds the memories of her time in Aincrad in all SAO survivors. It's also the closest thing Sword Art Online has to a song that sounds like something from a Disney movie! It helps that Sayaka Kanda, the voice of Yuna, also voiced Anna in the Japanese dub of the Disney movie Frozen.
To put it simply, Smile for You achieved something great in being the closest a Japanese animated film has to a Disney song. That said, Smile for You is a wonderful song that will leave you in tears towards the end of Ordinal Scale.
Ubiquitous DB's lyrics aren't lying when they say Yuna will forever be ubiquitous in your memories. Ubiquitous DB has an upbeat melody and catchy beat that perfectly matches Yuna as an AR pop idol singer. Whether you're singing along with the chorus like Silica or rocking your head in rhythm like Asuna, Ubiquitous DB is guaranteed to make almost anyone move to the beat of this amazing song.
Trust me, I love this song so much that I can't stop listening to it! Probably my favorite Yuna song out of all five!
Curiously enough, the first minute or two of "Longing" may sound familiar to those who have watched Fate/Zero, as "Longing"'s melody sounds very similar to the second opening song of Fate/Zero, "To the Beginning," by Kalafina. Regardless, "Longing" still manages to stand out from "To the Beginning" solely by tone and rhythm. One could say "Longing" is the less tragic sibling of "To the Beginning."
Also, I tried researching if Kalafina had any involvement in this song, but I never managed to find any connection to Ordinal Scale. Based on that, it could only mean Sayaka Kanda sang "Longing" herself, with only Yuki Kajiura's chorus collaborating with her! Japanese Anna never fails to impress!
Mondegreen aside, Break Beat Bark! is a song that speaks of inspiration and perseverance. The song truly fits perfectly towards the climax as Kirito and Eiji finally duke it out, both as foils to each other in a duel to restore their respective love interests' memories. I couldn't have imagined a better moment to showcase this phenomenal masterpiece of a song than at the concert and parking lot duel.
All things said, Break Beat Bark! is a sensational song that tells you never to give up.