Fault milestone one was a visual novel developed by ALICE IN DISSONANCE that blended mystery, magic and suspense together into a solid title. As the original ended on a cliffhanger, fans have eagerly been awaiting the sequel as the original boasted beautiful artwork, enjoyable soundtrack and an intricate cast of characters. Sekai Project and ALICE IN DISSONANCE have teamed up again to bring the anticipated sequel fault milestone two side:above on Steam. This time around, fans will be treated to an exclusive Steam offer of a digital shikishi of Rune upon their purchase.

The story takes place right after the final events of the original fault milestone with Selphine and Ritona in a tense confrontation with their archnemesis Melano. After surviving the deadly encounter, Selphine, Ritona and Rune arrive at the Second Pole, a continent that comprises the next part of their journey. Speaking with the locals, they gradually learn more about their predicament as they struggle with who they can trust and how they will go about travelling to their next destination. As betrayals and mutinies occur, Selphine and her friend Rune are separated from Ritona following a series of incidents that heightens the plot’s suspense and mystery. Players are treated to a different perspective as the story unfolds and switches between the trio and those of the Alliance members that include Flora, Misha and Riggs. There is a strong emphasis on character development as your party learns of the surrounding society and the prevalent issues of discrimination, social status, prejudice, politics, income disparity and corruption. All of these issues are a recurring theme as Selphine and Ritona work together with two unlikely siblings in their fight for survival.

There are more questions than answers as there are mysteries that carried over from the original fault milestone visual novel about the Zhevitz and Hyves corporations, secondary characters like Rupika and Sceatoire and the motivations behind Melano’s act of sparing Princess Selphine in a bid to destroy the direct line of succession of the Rughzenahide kingdom. If you find the plot to be overwhelming, there is an encyclopedia that outlines the phrases, locales, terminology and items in the game. The game does not drop information or hints clearly so it is up to you as the reader to piece the story together based on your encounters with notable characters along your journey. As expected, fault milestone follows in the steps of its predecessor by ending on a cliffhanger that leaves you pondering the fates of Princess Selphine, her bodyguard Ritona and her new companion Rune. The narrative often switches between events that makes it challenging to follow the plot and often breaks the engagement players would have about the respective characters in their extended dialogues.

Visually, the game is polished and features a new 3D camera perspective in cutscenes and select events in the visual novel. While it doesn’t add anything per say to the story, it’s a welcome addition to fault milestone two to further immerse players into its world of mystery and wonder. Once again, the soundtrack is the highlight as it sets the pace appropriately with its happy, sad, frantic and heart-racing moments that reflect the party’s emotions and environment. The musical tracks are available as extras once the game has been completed.

Fault milestone two continues the fault series with its intricate characters, beautiful visuals and appealing storyline. Though players are still left with many questions about the characters and the timelines as a whole, Sekai Project and ALICE IN DISSONANCE have delivered another high quality visual novel entry worthy of the fault milestone series. The second instalment answers some questions from the original while bringing up more of its own to entice and engage fans for a third fault milestone game. Fans of the original fault milestone will feel right at home with fault milestone two and will not be disappointed.

 

SCORE – 80%

This review is based on a digital copy of fault milestone two side:above on Steam provided by Sekai Project