It's such a niche story (meant for MMO gamers, and japanese MMO gamers at that) that I would rate it 3/5 just because most people wouldn't understand a lot of the terms and references, but the translator does a great job of explaining the references so I bumped it up to 4/5, a wholesome romcom for anyone to read.

The harem tag is a lie - sure the protagonist is surrounded by women, but there's no hint of romance between him and any but one of them.

It's mostly just a funny... more>> story that people who play or have played MMOs will really enjoy. I'd also recommend it if you know people who play MMOs so you can understand their thought processes better, or if you like romcoms. <<less

It's enjoyable and doesn't make me cringe. It's not a harem. It's not a high fantasy where a perfect beautiful girl hanging out with the loser, or where everyone loves MC then having cringe conversation like "we are rival". Of course, it is not that realistic either with the girl composition or heroine's obsessiveness, but I'm willing to accept that kind of fantasy. We are here to read light novel, after all.

It covers the MMO topic quite well. The TL team put great effort on explaining the terms. If you... more>> know someone who play MMO but doesn't play like me, you will still get and enjoy (some) of the joke. The romcom and SOL is enjoyable too.

I would suggest reading it even if you don't like the anime (even more if you like it). The banter and MC's thought process is quite enjoyable. <<less