.hack//Mutation Vol.2 ~ Part 1
2.hack//MUTATION (.hack//悪性変異 Vol.2) is the second of the four-part video game series that is the core of the .hack franchise. It continues immediately after Infection and follows the heroes Kite and BlackRose as they become even more involved with what is hidden within The World.
Developer(s): CyberConnect2
Publisher(s): Bandai
Designer(s): Hiroshi Matsuyama
Platform(s): PlayStation 2
Release: [JP] September 9 2002, [NA] May 7 2003, [PAL] June 18 2004
Genre(s): Action role-playing
Language: English Texts / Japanese Voices
Played on PCSX2 1.5.0
In .hack//Mutation, Kite and BlackRose encounter system administrator Lios, who declares Kite's bracelet to be an illegal hack. He tries to delete Kite's character data, but fails due to Kite's data being encrypted by the Book of Twilight. Helba intervenes, and convinces Lios to observe Kite for the time being. Lios directs them to an area where they find Innis, a monster with powers similar to Skeith's. Upon defeating Innis, Kite receives an e-mail from Aura, who reveals that she is an AI. They travel to an area to meet her; but Cubia attacks them, and they repel the monster with difficulty. Short on leads, they contact Wiseman, who is intrigued by Kite's bracelet. He suggests that Skeith and Innis are based on the "Cursed Wave", an antagonistic force featured in the poem Epitaph of Twilight, upon which The World is based. Wiseman helps grant them access to Net Slum, a place known as a paradise for hackers and wandering AIs. Upon arrival, another Cursed Wave monster called Magus attacks them. They defeat it and return to the Root Town, where they discover that the computer virus has spread to The World's main servers and into the real world.