evan · @enjoievan
30th May 2016 from TwitLonger
altered fable confusion
this is the subject of a lot of confusion, so thanks for asking this question. spoilers or whatever.
the common argument is based on a voiced disclaimer that plays when you first boot up AF.
when the "This story is a work of fiction..." disclaimer shows up, one character (selected at random) will explain this disclaimer briefly via voiceover. additionally, these voice clips always end with a line about how "this fandisk is completely unrelated to the original version of Muv-Luv Alternative." this is the basis of the "non-sequel" side of the argument.
after this, the main menu loads, allowing you to choose between kagayaku toki ga kienu mae ni (main story), faraway dawn, and the other bonus content.
this is an interesting disparity, to be sure, given how the beginning of AF directly - almost identically - parallels the ending of MLA. in addition, as you can see from the GIF i've attached of my translation of yashiro route, there are multiple blatant hints that kasumi does indeed remember the events of alternative, and she's the only one who does (as in final extra). this is an extremely cut-and-dry literal translation, there's no argument for misinterpretation whatsoever.
here are some quotes from my personal collection and elsewhere that support the sequel side of the argument:
from Muv-Luv Altered Fable's original manual (and the back of the box), 2007:
"Kagayaku Toki ga Kienu Mae ni - Final Extra AVG:
An idyllic high school rom-com adventure game taking place in the aftermath of Muv-Luv Alternative's final chapter, nicknamed 'Final Extra.'"
from Muv-Luv Photonmelodies' manual, 2014:
"Kagayaku Toki ga Kienu Mae ni:
The story of Shirogane Takeru, after returning to his original world following the events of Muv-Luv Alternative."
these are extremely literal translations as well. additionally, both the Muv-Luv Supplement & Altered Fable Memorial Artbook and the official âge website include it as part of the official timeline. in the artbook, it's even directly connected as the immediate followup to MLA.
the original voiced disclaimer was also completely removed from the Photonmelodies version of the game.
my view? the voice clips were originally included as a safeguard to shield themselves from any backlash of fans complaining that AF "taints" the MLA legacy with a fanservicey rom-com epilogue. however, as we can see from Photonmelodies, âge's current position on the matter has completely redacted any and all content that could be considered ammunition for the non-sequel theory. call it retconning if you will, but the fact of the matter is: AF is written as a direct follow-up to MLA, and the narrative evidence for this is undeniable. the argument was only ever about whether it was canon or not, and while this was originally subject to a bit of debate, the official stance on it is pretty clear-cut nowadays. choosing to accept or deny it is your own prerogative.