Muv-Luv Alternative Review
by
, 07-04-2015 at 12:14 PM (8913 Views)
This review will contain some spoilers for the general setting and plot of Muv-Luv Unlimited. If you wish to be completely unspoiled regarding the Muv-Luv series, stay clear of this review.
Muv-Luv Alternative is a visual novel created by âge, the sequel to the original Muv-Luv. As of writing this review, it is the #1 most popular visual novel on VNDB, and it's up there as one of the darkest stories ever told in visual novels.
Overview
Muv-Luv Alternative starts us right back where Muv-Luv Unlimited started; Takeru wakes up in his home, everything around him is in ruins, and the world is very different from the way it was in Muv-Luv Extra. However, this time he remembers all the events of Muv-Luv Unlimited, as well as the tragic ending to humanity's efforts to take back the Earth.
And so, to prevent it from happening again, Takeru puts all his efforts into making Yuuko's Alternative IV plan succeed. Having had three years of military training back in Muv-Luv Unlimited, he is now far from the rookie he'd been back then. Without wasting any unnecessary time on the training he'd required last time, hopefully this time he can do something before it's too late...
Structure
Unlike its predecessors, Muv-Luv Alternative is almost entirely linear. Your choices do not have any major effects on the storyline, and instead only affect minor scenes and which of the side characters gets the most screentime.
Story
While the setting of Muv-Luv Alternative is identical to Unlimited's, the overall tone and story are vastly different. Takeru knowing ahead of time what will happen is not all great, as for example he raises quite a few eyebrows when he predicts the satellite sabotage and has Yuuko deal with it ahead of time. These differences lead him to encounter situations and people he'd never dealt with before, and it's not too long before things go in directions he'd never imagined.
Muv-Luv Alternative has what might just be the darkest story I've ever read, which is quite a stark contrast to its predecessors, especially Extra which may just be the most lighthearted story I've ever read. Unlike Unlimited, where it's almost easy to forget that humanity is in a war with enemies that wiped out a huge part of their population, Alternative makes sure you remember that humanity is not just in a war with aliens, they're also losing.
Alternative manages the incredible feat of making me appreciate the previous two titles, because without the buildup and contrast, the payoff wouldn't be nearly as grand. They also serve as a 'goal' of sorts; when you're dragging yourself through an incredibly dark story, the fun and happy times of Extra become something beautiful, something to long for. I remember calling Extra boring? Well I'll take a simple boring day-to-day life over being thrust into a war with deadly aliens any day, thank you very much.
Overall Muv-Luv Alternative is a very inspiring and tragic tale of heroes that put their lives on the line to give the people that depend on them a chance at happiness. Heroes who due to military secrecy aren't even allowed so much as to have their names be remembered. If you like this kind of story, look no further.
Famous last words.
Though I do feel compelled to point out that I had several problems with Muv-Luv Alternative's story. The scientific explanations weren't always convincing, the pacing suffered at times especially thanks to the occasional infodumps, and the buildup isn't always followed up on. However, in spite of all these flaws, Muv-Luv Alternative was great. It's a perfect example of a story whose flaws are completely overshadowed by its good points.
Special mention for the 18+ parts of the story. For a change I feel MLA would be far worse off without them. They help the story a lot.
Characters
The characters, for the most part, are the same characters you've come to know over the course of Extra and Unlimited, but the shift in tone puts many of them in a different light.
Takeru is a very different person from who he was before. Besides being hardened by the events of Muv-Luv Unlimited, he's also much more driven; instead of just looking for a way to return to his own world, he's very invested in seeing humanity survive the war against the BETA. He's actually become a really likeable protagonist.
The girls all somehow manage to be way more likeable than in Extra and Unlimited. Especially Meiya, who didn't take long to become one of my favorite characters in the Muv-Luv universe. Although my absolute favorite female character is Yuuko, the woman who consistently manages to suppress personal feelings for the greater good and whose pokerface never falters, but who you can be sure is still very human and heavily affected by all she has to sacrifice to attain her goals. My utmost respect.
Unlike the previous games which had Takeru end up with any of the girls, Alternative has only one romantic interest for him: Sumika. For both Takeru and the player, returning to Sumika is a major motivation in returning to the Extraverse. Takeru x Sumika was my favorite romantic pairing in Muv-Luv, so I welcomed this choice. If you preferred another pairing, sorry, not happening.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack of Muv-Luv Alternative fits the atmosphere very well. There are lots of military- and war-themed tracks, a lot of melancholic themes, only few happy ones. Some tracks from the first two games make a return as well.
As for standout tracks, the opening is definitely one of the hypest songs I've ever heard and up there as one of the best visual novel openings ever, getting you all hyped up to play. The title screen theme, Crash, serves the same purpose and does it just as well.
My personal favorite track is Flame of Life, which is among the most beautiful tracks I've ever heard. Honorable mention goes to End of Regret, War Preparation and Briefing.
Summary
Muv-Luv Alternative is the best-rated visual novel on VNDB, and for good reasons. It's one of those stories that, while not perfect, is just plain good and sticks with you for a long time. There's a lot of things that bug me about it, but at the end of the day I honestly really enjoyed reading through it. An experience I can only further recommend to anyone who enjoys dark and thought-provoking shonen-esque stories. Comparing it to anime, it's reminiscent of shows like Attack on Titan or Neon Genesis Evangelion. If you like those, Muv-Luv might just be for you.
Overall, I give Muv-Luv Alternative a rating of
9 / 10
and that rating stands for the entire Muv-Luv Series. Yes, it's most definitely worth going through Extra and Unlimited.