'ProM' Cancellation: Commentary of Samu - Magalleon, the Eroge Which Never Was (Patreon)

This post is a continuation from the following post earlier in the month.

Additionally considering the timing of this post Happy New Year to those in the future as well as those starting their own preparations for welcoming 2021. Stay safe but have fun in your celebrations and see you on the other side.

Introduction

The year was 2017. It was a time of uncertainty for Love in Space. Production on Shining Song Starnova was in the final stages. On the minds of both the staff and fans of Love in Space was the ever-pressing question, "What comes after Starnova?"

The uncertainty before Love in Space was compounded by Valve's then-unspoken publishing guidelines, wherein games with prominent explicit content, including graphic sexual violence and situations involving 2D illustrated post-pubescent minors, were permitted on the platform, so long as the offending content was made available in an off-Steam mod. In October 2017, Love in Space believed Valve would continue its policy of permission by silence, and greenlit the eroge project, "The Banner of Humanity: Magalleon."

The year 2018 proved to be a time of great upheaval for the eroge business on Steam. Valve's policy of permission by silence, did not, in fact, hold. However, the story of Magalleon's cancellation was not the story of changing Valve policies, but the culmination of many other reasons. By October of 2018, Magalleon was officially put into indefinite hiatus, and all of Love in Space committed to the production of Starnova: Idol Empire and Sunrider 4: The Captain's Return. 

It was not an easy decision. A non-trivial amount of assets, as well as conceptual work, had already been finished by the time Magalleon was put into hiatus. In the indie game business, one did not have the luxury of abandoning assets which had already been created. However, surprisingly, staff at Love in Space murmured to themselves: Magalleon's cancellation could be a step in the right direction.

As of the publishing of this post, we are now at the end of the year 2020. And the passage of time would decisively prove that the cancellation of The Banner of Humanity: Magalleon was the single best decision in our company's history.

Why was it cancelled?

1.  A monumental change in Valve's content restriction policy on Steam

As of the writing of this post, explicit content is not banned on Steam. However, Valve reserves the right to decline to publish any game containing explicit content, especially if it involves certain story situations. I knew as director that whilst Valve may have no issues with explicit games wherein the game is dependent on the mechanical rubbing and meeting of two adult anatomical bodies like in a typical American porno, if I were to attach story content, especially thematic story content, to a sex game, then Valve would have an increasing list of objections they could raise to ban the game.

Our eroges are not games of instant sexual gratification. Magalleon was not to be a simple space themed explicit game, but another monumental epic, wherein the story content would be equivalent to a 1000+ page novel. It would contain heavy themes, such as humanity's self-destructive pursuit of military technology, crimes committed in war, and our racial and national hatreds. The game would earn its adult age rating not through the sexual content, but due to its adult story themes. And it would be a controversial game. One with a long list of objectionable content, any one of them which Valve could pick to block the game from ever releasing.

But Valve's policy change was merely the final nail in the coffin.

2. Sunrider, Sunrider, Sunrider

Creating a new IP is risky. Love in Space already had an established science fiction IP in Sunrider, so it would be a safer bet to simply make a new Sunrider game rather than start from scratch with Magalleon. While creating a new IP has creative appeal and would allow us to fully implement the lessons we've learned from Starnova, Sunrider already had a fan demand. I knew from the beginning that creating a new IP would be difficult, but my goal with Magalleon was to use the lessons we've learned from Starnova to create an epic eroge in space. It would stand separate from Sunrider, as Magalleon would have a much higher word count and a traditional eroge route structure, whereas Sunrider would be a TRPG with visual novel story elements. However, it would nigh inevitable that problems would arise from attempting to create a new space IP when we already had one.

3. Budget

While optimistically, I believed Magalleon's budget would still be feasible for Love in Space to fund thanks to it having no gameplay at conceptualisation, and thus would cost a minimal amount to code, in reality, Magalleon was probably going to be an expensive game to produce. With space mecha battles against enormous monsters in space and a plethora of characters needing sprites, CGs, and sex scenes, it would once again be a large budget production. In the end, Magalleon was going to be just as expensive to produce as Sunrider 4, even without gameplay battle sequences, thanks to its much larger script, as well as its several lengthy character routes. Thus, the question which repeated itself in my mind was, "Why spend all my money making a risky new IP, when I can alternatively spend all my money making the sequel to an already established IP."

4. Is it really going to turn out as good as envisioned?

I envisioned Magalleon as another monumental eroge, with heroines you love and thrilling mecha battles in space against a monstrous and terrifying enemy. There would be politics, love, and drama; desperation, hate, and resilience in the face of certain death. However, actually turning vision into reality is not a simple process. It was entirely possible that despite our best efforts, Magalleon would turn out merely a bootleg, lower budget version of Muv Luv Alternative, and we would have wasted an enormous amount of our time and money making an embarrassment.

On one hand, we had a potentially legendary idea which could be the greatest eroge ever, but on the other hand, it could also have been a colossal waste of money to create a new IP which nobody cared about, and which might never even be released because Valve might ban it!

And so, in October 2018, I made the difficult choice to shelf further development on Magalleon, despite a large amount of assets already having been made for the game.

What was Magalleon Even About?

Mecha space battles against enormous monsters? A desperate war against impossible odds for survival? So, what was "The Banner of Humanity: Magalleon" even about? It is at this point that it becomes explosively clear that Magalleon has no hope of ever releasing as of the writing of this article.

In the year 2070, Earth has been completely overrun by rampant nanomachines which virally self-replicate through infection of human cells. 50 000 remaining humans have evacuated to the moon and prepare for a final stand against the Nanophage. You are an elite pilot of Valkyrie Squad, brave fighters who launch on mechs from humanity’s spaceship, the Magalleon, to intercept Nanophage which launch into space to land on the moon.

However, humanity is not prepared for the ensuing space war.

Fighting against an overwhelming enemy with no resources, no manpower, and no home, hope is all humanity has left in this bleak but brilliant tale of the human spirit.

A large amount of story work had already completed by the project's cancellation in 2018. The story begins after all but 50 000 humans have been wiped out by a bio-engineered nanovirus which leaked from a secret military facility in Northern China. In a lengthy backstory segment, it is explained that both the American and Chinese militaries were in an arms race to develop a new biological weapon of mass destruction - the Nanophage. Unfortunately, the Nanophage leaks in an accident and rapidly infects humans in the densely populated cities of China. Due to an error in the Nanophage's genetic code, the nanomachines consumes human flesh to self-replicate themselves further, gradually replacing humans with monstrous synthetic colonies of trillions of nanomachine cells.

China is the first to develop a vaccine for the nanovirus, but the vaccine instantly fails when the Nanophage adapts to it immediately. Mass panic and hysteria grips the globe. However, when a unified effort is required to deal with the Nanophage, humanity instead reverts to its worst tendencies and resorts to violence and paranoia. A mass exodus begins in China, leading to upheaval in Asia. The global economy collapses. The Nanophage becomes a non-sentient synthetic lifeform, which exists solely to consume more human flesh to self-replicate. Upon its spread to the Middle East, Israel detonates 10 nuclear warheads, in an attempt to vaporize the spread of the Nanophage. However, that shocking event only de-stabilizes the global political situation and does nothing to stop the spread of the Nanophage.

The Chinese government is shunned by the world, and is forced to eventually relocate to South Africa, the only country to accept them. India is shortly overrun, and its government flees to England. Korea is overrun and the Middle East is a radiated wasteland. Contact is lost with the Russian government. Japan believes it can still save itself from the Nanophage and implements its Absolute Defensive Line - completely shutting itself off from the rest of the world.

Europe realizes that the Nanophage will replace humanity as the dominant lifeform on Earth and institutes Project Sanctuary: A desperate plan to abandon Earth and evacuate the surviving humans to the Moon. Meanwhile, America and Canada together prepare for an all-out war in Alaska, where only the Bering Strait separates North America from the Nanophage.

The Nanophage evolves the capability to cross the ocean and lands in Japan, instantly overrunning it. However, America may have a trick up its sleeve. Upon the Nanophage's arrival in Alaska, America detonates a 10-megaton nuclear device in space, causing a massive EMP which disables the nanomachines. While humanity wins for the first time against the Nanophage, this act completely destroys all electronic devices in Canada. For two years, North Americans starve to death and fight a losing struggle against the Nanophage. After this struggle, humanity finally learns to abandon its old national differences and unifies under a single banner, the Council of Humanity. However, it is too little, too late. The Nanophage evolves the ability to generate energy via internal nuclear fusion, and turn into massive war machines. The North American defensive line collapses, and in the end, 50 000 humans manage to escape on improvised rockets to the Moon.

And the game begins five years after the Nanophage have gained complete control of Earth. The Nanophage have begun construction of a massive spire at Ground Zero in China. The Council of Humanity believes it is a space elevator. The Nanophage will not stop until it has infected every last human and will soon be able to launch an attack on the Moon. And so humans launch the very first space warship, The Magalleon, to intercept any and all Nanophage that launch from the Spire with its squadron of mechs called Banners.

However, the Magalleon is completely unequipped to fight the Nanophage. With no access to fuel or water, humans rely completely on reversed engineered Nanophage fusion reactors as well as nuclear weapons to fight the Nanophage. With barely functional mechs, dwindling supplies, and dimming hopes for survival, the flight of the Magalleon will be a dark tale.

You are Lieutenant Sorenski. You and your squad were left behind on Earth while the remnants of humanity retreated to the Moon. For five years, you endured hell as you sought a way off planet. You and your squad finally find a derelict Russian ICBM which might be your ticket off world. However, you are attacked by the Nanophage as you attempt to launch and you lose your entire squad in the attack. During this attack, your superior and mentor figure heroically holds the line against a horde of Nanophage to allow you to escape. You scream in agony as you smash the button to lift off alone, into the dark abyss of space. Adrift in the dark, you just repeat a single word into the communicator: "Magalleon... Magalleon... Magalleon..."

You are rescued while unconscious several days later. You wake up to find yourself in the sickbay of the Magalleon, humanity's only hope to prevent an invasion of the Moon. After you recover, you are enlisted as the Valkyrie Squad's newest Banner pilot. A lengthy day-to-day story segment ensues, where you are introduced to the heroines.

Fei Meilin

A mysterious silver haired girl with a sharp and smug personality. She seems connected somehow to the Chinese researchers who created the Nanophage. She believes the Nanophage was designed with a Kill Code: a specific sequence of data when transmitted, will instantly deactivate the Nanophage. However, all attempts to uncover the Kill Code has led to failure. She sorties on a special custom Banner during battles to gather intel about the Nanophage to further her quest to discover the Kill Code.

Jeanne Augustine

An older sister type character, who serves as your operator. A Banner is controlled by two people, a jockey, who pilots the mech inside it, and an operator, who controls the mech remotely from the Magalleon. Jeanne is blindly devoted to the Council of Humanity and wants the erasure of humanity's past divisions. However, this sometimes puts her in conflict with the rest of the crew, some of whom still remain proud of their previous nationality, race, or religion. Overall, she takes care of you like an older, mature woman.

Anya and Ceres Uno

The two "Luny Twins," due to their eccentric personalities and because they are the only members of the Magalleon's crew to be born on the Moon. They are the product of genetic engineering. Anya is a successful case and exhibits superhuman reaction times, along with a hyperactive mental state. Her twin sister, Ceres, is a failed case, and exhibits overall poor health and no outstanding physical traits. However, Anya is incapable of working with any other operator aside for Ceres, and so the two of them are inseparable.

Captain Reika Kurosaki

The captain of Valkyrie Squadron. Your commanding officer. A no-nonsense warrior in battle, but acts like a cool older sister to the team. Skilled with the sword, her Banner is equipped with a blade. Her father was a fierce Japanese nationalist who masterminded the disastrous Absolute Defensive Line. It seems she has disavowed his beliefs to work with the Council of Humanity. However, she still has deep personal suspicions that the Council hides secrets of its own.

The Common Route

After a lengthy training and daily life arc where you are introduced to the various difficulties faced by the crew of Magalleon, including rationed food and water, cramped living spaces, equipment malfunctions, as well as interpersonal disputes between crew members due to some crew members still refusing to accept the Council of Humanity's authoritarian policies, the Magalleon confronts its first battle.

A shuttle filled with survivors and a key scientist related to the Nanophage's creation unexpectedly launches from Earth, having avoided infection for years on Earth. The Magalleon reroutes to rendezvous with the shuttle. However, it turns out a pregnant woman onboard the shuttle was carrying the Nanophage in her womb. Everyone on board the shuttle is infected, and the Nanophage eventually swallows up the entire shuttle, turning into a massive, monstrous spaceship. The Nanophage shuttle diverts course and heads straight to the Moon.

The Magalleon narrowly arrives in time. You sortie for the first time with the heroines after the training arc. After a hard battle, you follow your training and prevail against the Nanophage shuttle. The pilots all celebrate their victory, but the higher ups only seem worried. The Nanophage shuttle was just a newly born variant. Based on the battle data, had the squadron engaged a matured Nanophage, they would have had a non-existent survival chance.

Cue another story interlude, where the Magalleon docks at the Moon to resupply after the battle. You see that humanity is on the verge of extinction. The Moon's microgravity has led to a new race of humans who are over two meters in height, but less than 50 pounds in weight, called the Caretakers. These Caretakers are unlikely to live longer than 30 years, and also cannot ever return to Earth even if humans do eventually retake it, or else they would be crushed under their own weight.

We are introduced to the two villains of the story.

Shun Meilin

Fei's older brother. He has become infected by the Nanophage, but somehow retains a shred of his sentience. However, he has turned into a monster who craves sex and violence. The pilot of the Nanophage mech unit, Nemesis.

"Ebon Mask"

A mysterious masked man who serves as a member on the Council of Humanity. He is the mastermind of a project to create genetically modified humans capable of surviving in space. Further, he created Project Counter Attack: A top secret mission undertaken by the Council of Humanity to redirect a 200 kilometer wide asteroid into impacting Earth at 5% the speed of light, which would completely obliterate the entire planet. The 50 000 humans on the Moon will then migrate to Mars, where with his genetically modified super humans, will establish a new human civilization, safe from the Nanophage.

After the Magalleon returns from the Moon, the second battle begins. This time, the Nanophage launch its first space vessel from the Spire in a legitimate attempt to land on the Moon. The Valkyrie Squadron launches, unaware of the horror which is to await them. They are completely outmatched by the Nanophage. You watch helplessly as your squad is picked off, one by one. At this stage, the Captain orders all jockeys to stand down. You lose all control over your Banner, and instead, the operators on the Magalleon take total control. It is here the truth is revealed: The jockeys were never intended to pilot the Banners in the first place. Fei had discovered an ironic truth: The Nanophage are programmed to never kill a human, only to infect them. The jockeys inside the Banners were always nothing more than human meat shields, to prevent the Nanophage from instantly vaporizing them. Instead, so long as the jockeys are inside the Banners, the Nanophage will be forced to fight at less than 1% of its true strength to minimize the damage to the human flesh which will be left for its consumption.

Thanks to the Operators, the squadron clenches a narrow victory against the Nanophage, but the pilots return feeling betrayed and hopeless. It turned out the Council had planned on using them as nothing but meatshields all this time.

With this, the common route ends and the character routes begin.

Jeanne Augustine

The route which is recommended to be played first. In this route, you side with the Council of Humanity. Jeanne comforts you after you realize the truth of the operators. You decide to entrust your life to her, your operator, and to the Council of Humanity. Together, the two of you fight many more battles.

In the ending, the Nanophage launch an all-out attack on the Moon from the Spire, just hours before Project Counterattack can be completed and the asteroid will obliterate Earth, along with all of the Nanophage. By trusting in each other, you and Jeanne manage to hold the Nanophage back long enough.

The asteroid impacts Earth, completely destroying it. The Nanophage are instantly vaporized by the blast. Many humans also die from the resulting impact on the Moon.

The remaining survivors board the Magalleon and set course for Mars. It will be a long journey, but you hope that once humanity lands on Mars, they can rebuild a civilization which ensures the mistakes of the past will never repeat. The Council of Humanity will continue to guide humanity as one species - its dark secrets known only to Jeanne and you.

Reika Kurosaki

The route which is recommended to be played either first or second. Largely an exposition route, which shows the backstory of the Nanophage infecting Earth in a flash back. Reika's father, an ardent nationalistic politician, sought to blame the Chinese for the Nanophage. He led an anti-immigrant attack against those displaced by the virus and closed Japan to the outside world. However, this policy was disastrous, as the Nanophage eventually crossed the sea and Japan found itself without allies in a hopeless war against the machines. Reika's father is killed by a particular Nanophage form, which Reika swears she will kill to avenge her father.

Now in the present, Reika has a difficult relationship with the Council of Humanity. You join her in suspecting the Council and discover its many dark secrets.

In the ending, the Magalleon is attacked by the very same Nanophage form which killed Reika's father. She fights this monstrous upgraded vessel, nearly losing her life in the process. It's ambiguous whether she survives, or whether humanity wins or loses against the Nanophage. However, a large amount of background information is revealed about how the Nanophage took over Earth, as well as the Council of Humanity's secret plans to destroy Earth and create a new civilization on Mars.

Anya and Ceres

You form a connection with your fellow pilot, Anya, and so also with Ceres. You first deal with Ceres inferiority complex against her sister. However, Ceres learns to believe in herself after saving Anya in battle countless times.

However, the Ebon Mask threatens your relationship with the sisters by apparently taking Ceres away. This is merely a misunderstanding, but you and Anya try to rescue Ceres by infiltrating Ebon Mask's secret space station. Here, you make a horrifying discovery: Ebon Mask is creating an entire army of genetically modified humans. He was merely treating Ceres due to her defected genes, but it appears he has plans of his own: To create a new race of humans, which will come to replace humanity as we know it on Mars.

Ebon Mask claims that it was humanity's rotten nature which doomed itself, and until humanity itself is cured, history shall repeat itself and humanity shall merely destroy itself again once it has colonized Mars. He fears that decades of existential war against the Nanophage has turned humanity into monsters even worse than the nanomachines. Once we are rid of the Nanophage, he believes it is inevitable we will turn our weapons on each other, as we have been mindlessly pulling triggers for decades.

While sounding like a hero, he is not without darkness. By creating a new race of humans, he plans to become the god of a new age on the red planet. He invites you to join him, offering you eternal happiness with Anya and Ceres at your side.

However, you and Anya reject Ebon Mask. You face him in mech combat, and with Anya and Ceres' help, defeat him. You declare that humanity is still inherently good and that we do not need tyrants like Ebon Mask as god. Before crashing to his death, Ebon Mask makes you swear to uphold that promise.

It is unclear whether humanity will ever win against the Nanophage, but at least, Ebon Mask's plan to create a new race of humans is thwarted. You, Anya, and Ceres pledge to defeat the Nanophage and one day save humanity.

Side Story: Agnes and Julietta

Agnes, a redheaded woman seldom seen without a bottle in her hand, is even by the standards of the Magalleon's Valkyrie Squadron, an eccentric. You first saw her fighting over a bottle of booze with a flight deck mechanic in the cockpit of her Banner moments before sortie. "I do it better with this," the woman snarled, as she yanked the bottle from the poor mechanic's grasp and took a swig. "Now let's kick some Phage ass."

Sure enough, she proved just as deadly inebriated, although some might suspect that the skills of her operator, Julietta, might have played more than a supporting role. Quiet and crippled with constant anxiety, Julietta served as Agnes' eternal sidekick or punching bag, depending on the time of day. The two of them served as Valkyrie Squad's troubled sharpshooter: Agnes the eternal drunk, and Julietta, who froze up with performance anxiety whenever she had to make a shot.

Whenever you attempt to straighten her up, Agnes grumbles something about how Five Horny Brats and a Broomstick made her like this and walks away. Whenever you ask the other girls about the Five Horny Brats and a Broomstick story, the others would merely cringe and change the subject, subtly implying that Agnes backstory was too graphic to tell, even by the Magalleon's standards.

One day, you finally muster up the courage to ask Agnes about the Five Brats and a Broomstick story. She grumbles as she takes another swig from her bottle and recounts the tale of when she was a pilot for the Council back on Earth in the North American front...

She had crash landed after taking a hit and landed in the snow. She managed to escape her burning mech and found shelter in a nearby wooden barn, only to discover it was occupied by a group of orphans. The orphans informed her that local militiamen were on the prowl, but everyone knew the militiamen intended to send the orphans to a labor camp. Agnes finds shelter with the orphans and learns to be their caretaker.

The next day, they are visited by five male militiamen who threaten her and demand she turns over the orphans to them. You think some violent sexual act is about to occur, but in fact, Agnes fights all five soldiers off with a broomstick. It seems the day is saved and Agnes will stay and take care of the orphans herself until she is rescued by the Council.

That night, Agnes is taking a bath, and the bratty boys try to peep on her by replacing her rifle with a broomstick. However, the prank turns deadly when the barn is attacked by a Nanophage. Agnes grabs her rifle, but instead pulls out a broomstick. Agnes falls back to find her rifle, but by the time she has it, the Nanophage has already infected the orphans. She comes face to face with a horrifying sight: the children, melded together, into a single, horrific creature, a fate worse than death.

Agnes screams as she pulls the trigger, again and again, until the monster is killed.

She is again visited by the militiamen. They shake their heads at her. "If only that fool had listened. Then the brats would still be alive."

Back in the present, Agnes takes another drink. "You see kid, if I hadn't been so full of myself back then, maybe things would have turned out differently. I'm just a drunk now and happier."

However, the Magelleon is attacked by a Nanophage. The battle hinges on Julietta sniping out a part of the Nanophage, but she freezes up. Agnes chuckles and says it's fine for Julietta to miss. Julietta then comes back to her senses and shoots the Nanophage dead.

Back from the battle, you watch Agnes and Julietta hang out, the eternal combo. Agnes mutters that everyone should just be a moron like her and then there'd be nothing to stress out about.

Fei Meilin

The final route which requires playing all the other routes first. After forming a bond with Fei, she reveals the truth about the Nanophage: Her parents were medical scientists kidnapped by the Chinese military to create the original Nanophage. Fei has cancer and her parents were researching nanomachine technology in the hopes of discovering a cure for cancer. In fact, Fei is already "infected" by the Nanophage, as her parents completed their research and give Fei an experimental version of the nanomachines to manage her cancer. However, the military attempted to use the nanomachines as a weapon, and accidentally changed the way they behave. Instead of attacking cancer cells, the nanomachines now behave similarly to cancer cells themselves now.

However, this information changes your perspective, as it turned out the Nanophage was originally created with good intentions in mind.

You encounter Shun Meilin, who was infected with the militarized Nanophage, after being inoculated with the original benign Nanophage. Due to the two nanomachines being at complete war with each other in his body, he went insane and turned into a monster. You two cross swords. Based on the information from this battle, Fei believes that the Kill Code to the Nanophage does indeed exist. However, it is stored in the research facility were the Nanophage was originally created: In other words, at Ground Zero, at the base of the Spire from which the Nanophage are launching all their attacks.

There is another complication: The Kill Code will destroy all Nanophage, even the benign ones inside Fei's body. In other words, if the Kill Code is activated, Fei will die of cancer. Despite your horror upon realizing that Fei must die for you to accomplish your mission, Fei forces you to still get the Kill Code, as her life is insignificant compared to the survival of humanity.

In the end, the Magalleon, with a combined force of all of humanity's forces, launches an attack on the Spire to acquire the Kill Code. The Valkyrie Squad dives into the Spire and descends deeper and deeper, to the very base, where the Kill Code is held.

As the squadron descends, they encounter various old foes in the other routes. Each heroine must face off against the foe, and you leave them seemingly to their doom.

Finally, at the base of the Spire, you encounter Shun on the Nemesis. In an epic battle, you defeat the Nemesis at last. Meanwhile, the Ebon Mask appears, now believing that humanity might still have hope, and manages to rescue the rest of the squad.

Fei manages to acquire the Kill Code and Valkyrie squadron detonates nuclear bombs at the base of the spire to destroy it. They then jet out, still chased by thousands of Nanophage forms.

The nuclear bombs detonate and the Spire collapses. It is unclear whether Valkyrie Squad managed to escape at first. Jeanne, Ceres, and the rest of the crew look on in desperation as they try to re-establish contact. Finally, they hear your voice. "The Kill Code has been acquired."

Humanity erupts into celebrations. Jeanne and Ceres weep in joy. The Ebon Mask is wounded but has managed to escape as well. He reflects that perhaps humanity deserves another chance at proving its goodness. 

You fly back to the Magalleon, Fei in your arms. She is holding the Kill Code in a data stick in her hand. You promise to her that you'll find a way to keep her alive when she activates it. She snickers and smiles at you.