eromag

haruka and mitsuki were enjoyable, the rest sucked

While I can see why it is hailed as one of the best VNs ever: the cool action sequences and hard sci-fi setting, genuinely emotional moments, some unforgettable scenes, and the overall sense of epic scale.
I found it ultimately exausting to read: right from the start, you think you\'re jumping into something new, but no, we basically go through the Unlimited training arc again (with Takeru already skilled and trying to speed things up), followed by some cheesy japanese nationalist drama. Only after getting deep into the story do we hit the real stuff (fight against BETA), but even then, bursts of intense action are interrupted by endless infodumps, repetitive exposition, or Takeru looping through the same inner monologues and breakdowns over and over. His character arc felt like it went in circles, he\'d vow to change, suffer, regress, and repeat, with barely any meaningful growth by the end. And speaking of loops, for a VN that throws so much exposition at the time loop concept, they sure gave a dumb and unscientific explanation for it in the end.
I know the usual motto is to suffer through Extra and Unlimited before diving into the Kamige that is Alternative, but I would say the opposite: only read Alternative if you already loved Extra and Unlimited. It\'s an upgrade in some ways (deeper stakes, epic scale, intense moments) but a downgrade in others (pacing slog, repetition, characterization frustration).

This was so bad, the daily life theme will probably trigger PTSD on me if i ever listen to it again.