Muv-Luv photonmelodies♮ is the second Muv-Luv spin-off to be released in English, following Muv-Luv photonflowers*. Seems like the developers are fond of incomprehensible game titles. No idea what that natural sign is doing there, nor do I know why the game displays a giant treble clef when paused. Yes, the game has a musical soundtrack, like every other video game released in the modern era, but has no musical "themes" to speak of. It's bizarre. Speaking of incomprehensible, don't even attempt this one unless you're familiar with the original Muv-Luv games (of which there are two, though the first is split into two arcs making the experience a "trilogy"). For the unfamiliar, the Muv-Luv saga is something of a delicious bait and switch: what begins as a light-hearted rom-com visual novel eventually (as in, after dozens of hours) morphs into massive alien invasion war drama.
As for Muv-Luv photonmelodies♮ itself, this is a strange little release. Originally appearing on the PlayStation 3 in Japan before being ported to the PC (Steam), photonmelodies♮ is comprised of three Muv-Luv side-story VNs, all of which initially appeared on the PC (two of which were parts of other side-story collections while the third was a [mostly] standalone release). The trio of tales: known as Adoration, Resurrection, and Altered Fable: A Shimmering Shard of Spacetime sport original release dates of 2011, 2012, and 2007, respectively. And yes, photonmelodies♮ does present the stories in this out-of-order fashion, and it's actually best to experience them this way.
Into the stories themselves. Adoration takes place in the Alternative timeline (so, while humanity is ceaselessly battling invading BETA aliens), but otherwise everything else is "new." New situations, new characters, new setting. The protagonist, Seijurou, is a young Japanese man who's been transferred to a European base for some specialized training. Seijurou makes for a fairly amusing character. Absolutely obsessed with a fantastical bushido honor code that interferes with his daily functions, he's also prone to quoting nuggets of wisdom passed on from his seemingly limitless number of siblings. Adoration is a sort of coming of age tale, of a youthful soldier trying to forge an identity amid trying times and unfamiliar territory. Unfortunately, the majority of the (mostly female) supporting cast is rather forgettable, which ends up hampering the entire narrative. The mecha vs. alien skirmishes, albeit brief, are some of the best looking in the series, however. Adoration features but one choice to make, about halfway through the story. Said choice doesn't ultimately alter the ending, but it's worth reloading a specific save a few times to view some of the tale's more interesting scenes. Oddly, the (Steam) achievement-heavy photonmelodies♮ doesn't even acknowledge the branching path in Adoration. Instead, but a single achievement is granted when the credits hit.
Next up: Resurrection. There's another European connection here, though flipped in the opposite direction. Now we have an Italian solider named Silvio Orlandi, who, after seeing his best friend die, getting mauled by the BETA, and turned into a superman with cyborg body parts, is sent to Japan to spy on the progress of some secret critical scientific research. Here, some familiar Muv-Luv characters do make an appearance, most notably the physicist Yuuko and the "new" Valkyrie fighters of Alternative. Resurrection is fundamentally a mystery tale, and provides something of a nice "behind the scenes" in regards to the events that preceded Alternative. Though the protagonist could be characterized as "somewhat serious" there are still plenty of cornball gags tossed into this one: exploding tape recorders and other spy movie clichés are frequent. The writing is pretty inconsistent overall, and the game's final hour or so tries to juggle several "big reveals" at once. Some of these revelations will be obvious to anyone who was paying the least bit of attention, while others are so convoluted they require massive tedious explanations. Note that Resurrection is entirely "kinetic" (linear) in nature. Don't you just love reading video games?
Then comes Altered Fable. This is the one everyone wanted, yearned for, pined after. It essentially renders the other two stories moot, and if Steam achievements are any indication there are plenty of gamers who went right for this one, skipping the other two completely. Why the hype? Because Altered Fable isn't a mere peripheral anecdote about some random fighter pilot we'll never see again; Altered Fable is a sequel to the great Muv-Luv Alternative, arguably the highest-rated visual novel of all time. With a story crafted in the image of Muv-Luv Extra, that initial rom-com segment of the saga, Altered Fable also mirrors its structure: expect to sink at least twenty hours into this (whereas Adoration and Resurrection clocked in at five apiece) as there are multiple routes to explore and endings to achieve.
In terms of story, this one oversees the main series protagonist Takeru, back in the "normal" world and back at school, as he shares in adventures and hijinks with his classmates and teachers. All the original characters are here, and those introduced in Alternative now appear as transfer students and freshly-hired school faculty. Takeru and his posse engage in an airsoft tournament, vacation at a winter resort, relax at hot springs (again), get drunk (again), go on another vacation to the tropics, learn to play volleyball, and much, much more. This one's not going to win any awards for writing, but it ticks all those same boxes Extra did: it's delightfully silly, irreverent, hilarious, and endlessly charming. Be on the lookout for some not-so-subtle Alternative references too; Marimo "chomping" Kasumi was quite the sight to behold.
As mentioned, Altered Fable adheres to a route structure, like most twenty-first century visual novels. It's a little more complex than anticipated, however. In addition to the typical "pop-up" branching path choices, there's also a map to be navigated. Travelling to a specific locale will affect the flow of the game, as will the order each location is visited. The volleyball tournament also features a "bracket" system of play, with a wide array of team possibilities, each rendering a slightly different outcome. Achieving the individual endings is easy enough -- simply choose a "best girl" and continuously give her attention -- but tracking down every CG and "wallpaper" requires the patience of a saint (I managed to do it, and my resulting homemade "flowchart" was the stuff of nightmares).
A couple of things to note about Altered Fable specifically. First, the writers thought it would be funny(?) to insert an extended parody of 24 (as in, the American TV show) into the narrative. An agent named "Chuck Sauber" is chasing after Takeru for... some reason or another. This whole aspect is senseless, humorless, and feels painfully dated. What's supposed to be a tense "espionage" sub-plot withers rapidly and culminates with some strange revelation about... renewable nuclear energy? Why not an investigation into Takeru's status as a "love nucleus" -- something that's actually mentioned throughout this game and at the end of Alternative?! Blessedly, the 24 segments are few and far between and easily enough forgotten (if not outright ignored). Next, there's the whole censorship fiasco. This particular variant of Altered Fable is missing content available in the original (though technically this content was first removed for the PS3 release that served as the basis for this one). To no one's surprise, the "eroge" scenes have been wiped. The game sincerely flows better without then. Some additional (less explicit) adult scenes remain but feature "sunbeam" and "hot spring steam" censoring -- classic! Next are the minigames. I believe three were present in the original Altered Fable; here's there's only one (a watermelon smashing game). This watermelon smashing business is pretty lame and seems totally RNG-dependent, so the exclusion of the skiing and volleyball minigames is perhaps a blessing. This exclusion does create an awkward moment regarding volleyball, however. Apparently the minigame was the only time the characters were actually seen playing volleyball, so with it now removed Takeru and friends instead simply talk about playing volleyball, the screen fades to black, and then the aftermath is discussed. Awkward!
On to aesthetics -- of Muv-Luv photonmelodies♮ as a whole. The soundtrack is phenomenal: the old tracks, the new tracks, the vocalized tunes that bookend the whole experience. Just lovely. Background art is decent enough, if not a bit static. The character designs are inconsistent, for a couple of reasons. First, it appears that the art "evolved" at some point after 2007, as the characters of Adoration and Resurrection look leaner and slightly more "realistic" when compared to the adorable doe-eyed ladies of Altered Fable. The "24" agents are supposed to be Westerners and are drawn like complete garbage. Hmmmm...... Chibi art pops up here and then, during the most absurd of situations, and never fails to elicit a smile. One unique aspect of both Adoration and Resurrection is that the protagonist's face is actually shown during those "internal monologue" sequences, and is drawn in its own unique style. Seijurou is displayed as a black & white manga drawing. Meanwhile, Silvio resembles a wispy creation of Yoshitaka Amano, of Final Fantasy fame (and when Silvio is displayed the music that plays is strikingly similar to a certain Nobuo Uematsu piece -- coincidence??).
Muv-Luv photonmelodies♮ is a worthy spin-off, and undoubtedly superior to photonflowers*. That said, it's carried solely by Altered Fable, which is preceded by ten decidedly "good but not great" hours. The marketing team has made endless jokes about how Altered Fable can cure the "PTSD" inflicted by the soul-searing Alternative. It's all hyperbolic, of course, but doesn't change the fact that fans of the series should indulge in this "Extra Extra" world without hesitation.
I'm back(-ish). Began homeschooling my kids weeks ago. Turns out to be a massive time commitment and I've been way too tired to play or write about much of anything. 
