As expected, Bofuri v17 is a quick popcorn read, enjoyable, but in all honesty a bit forgettable. I mean, the series is working towards a grand final as becomes both clear in the writing as well as the after word by the author, but it is taking its time. The short arcs are entertaining, a bit reminiscing on earlier volumes and doing a decent job in showing the increased challenge of the game, but I would have preferred a higher pacing. I will be sad to see it go, but after 17 volumes it is definitely losing its charm. All in all, a decent addition to the series that fitted expectations, but that lacked some of the oomph of other parts of the story.
Lots of great hints at what’s to come. At this point in the story Maple Tree is a well formed team and is just crushing the game. I wish that there was more about what the other guilds are doing.
More random adventures in New World Online from Maple and the gang, and I liked Iz’s flying tank, but it felt quite repetitive without an overarching plot (because the plot is now just collecting a bunch of items - Demon Lord Mana - to fight the final boss, which is possibly the most boring part of any real game). I feel like most of it was setup for the future arcs in the next books. It might be time for the author to wrap up the series.