.hack//Quarantine Part 4

If you’re only going to play one game in this franchise, .hack//QUARANTINE is the one to get. A powerful plot (including the series’ conclusion) and access to most of the gameplay from the prior three games makes it the definitive title in the series.

But if you are a fan, you’ll find that Quarantine ups the ante on battle and quest difficulty, sometimes maddeningly so, and finally ties up enough loose plot ends to satisfy.

I would have personally liked to have seen the game go out with more of a bang… at least in some changes to the overall mechanics and game engine, but I suppose that in some way we need to respect the fact that it was really all about the story.

If you're a fan of the .hack universe or have stuck it out through the previous three volumes, you'll find Quarantine a satisfying ending to the series. Everybody else, play at your own risk. [Jan 2004, p.148]

The shortest volume in all .hack-dom, and most of it is spent running errands, but the final battle (which is spoiled in the pack-in anime DVD) is a great payoff if you've been following the story all this time. [Feb 2004, p.122]

A rental and possible purchase for fans. For anyone else, "hack Part 4: Quarantine is a repetitive action-RPG that isn't as interesting as its concept and is almost impossible to enjoy independently of the series.

The in game music does not really make an impact on the player, with boring melodies that are simple and repetitive.