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After an event they name the Apocalypse, 30,000 Japanese players find themselves trapped in the world of Elder Tale, an extremely successful MMO. Shiroe, and his two friends Naotsugu and Akatsuki, band together to try and make sense of things, and to try and figure out how best to survive in a world where all the rules have suddenly changed.
The Elder Tale players find themselves in a world where many things are still the same as the game world they are familiar with, but some realities have become subtly altered, and they find themselves needing to step quickly to adapt. As such, Log Horizon actually includes a lot of political maneuvering, scheming and plotting, with Shiroe proving to be a master of all three. The series also includes a lot of explanations of various facets of the game – explaining class mechanics, or game mechanics, which MMO gamers will find familiar, and provides non-gamers some insight into some of the ways things work.
It's very much the same concept as Sword Art Online, but the execution is different. Where SAO focused on action and romantic relationships, Log Horizon is much more concerned with politics, inter-personal relationships and in-game mechanics. The pacing is also very different - were SAO moved at a rapid pace, Log Horizon can stretch one particular event over quite a few episodes.