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1->''"In [[CrapsackWorld a world like this]], there are no morals."''
2
3[[InAWorld In a post-apocalyptic world]], on a pocket of land run by the evil [[EvilEmpire Emperor Kugar]], prisoners fight for their lives everyday for the entertainment of the masses. Only nine survive to this day. They are ([[HelloInsertNameHere at least initially]]) known by their color designation:
4
5* '''Blue''' - TheStoic (You play him.)
6* '''Green''' - TeamMom
7* '''Indigo''' - BrattyHalfPint
8* '''Yellow''' - BadassLongcoat
9* '''Violet''' - TheHeart
10* '''Red''' - PsychoForHire
11* '''Orange''' - TheSmartGuy
12* '''White''' - CoolOldGuy
13* '''Black''' - TheFaceless
14One day, however, an opportunity presents itself: rebels fighting against Kugar attack and give the prisoners an opportunity to escape, at which point you join one of three factions:
15
16* '''Rebellion''': Putting an end to Kugar's regime.
17* '''Imperials''': Squashing the rebel scum between your fingertips.
18* '''Independents''': Not joining any sides, and simply trying to find freedom.
19
20As it soon becomes apparent, however, fighting for one's faction is just the tip of the iceberg...
21
22Okay, getting past the movie-trailer-speak, '''Alter A.I.L.A''' is a fun, free, and highly-regarded RPG made by [[https://rpgmaker.net/users/Neok/games NeoK]]. As mentioned above, the game has three main routes, and a not-terribly-secret [[GoldenEnding fourth route]] which ties up the questions left by the first three. The plot is engaging, the aesthetics are strong, and the quality-of-life features are good enough to make it not a huge slog to play through four times.
23
24[[https://rpgmaker.net/games/268 Definitely worth checking out]]. ([[http://www.sinisterdesign.net/AlterAILA.html Alternate link]].)
25
26
27A [[VideoGameRemake remake]] titled "Alter A.I.L.A. Genesis" was released on October 10th, 2010. It removes the multiple-route mechanism in favor of a longer, more humorous plot, adds more art, and completely reworks the combat system. In addition, it expanded the playable cast, and gave them both set names and significant personality changes.
28It can be downloaded [[http://rpgmaker.net/games/272/ here]].
29
30A sequel, ''Alter A.I.L.A. Variant'', was in the works. However, [[{{Vaporware}} it was cancelled, revived, then cancelled a second time]] when Neok retired from the indie game scene.
31----
32!!This video game provides examples of:
33
34[[foldercontrol]]
35
36[[folder:Tropes used in Alter A.I.L.A.]]
37* ActionGirl: Almost half the cast.
38%%* AfterTheEnd
39* AnyoneCanDie: Even the GoldenEnding leaves a lot of important bodies on the floor. The other routes leave ''most'' of the playable characters dead.
40%%* ArbitraryGunPower
41* ArmCannon: Gold is in possession of one.
42* BarbieDollAnatomy: [[spoiler: Black, when fought at the end of the Rebellion route, is naked.]]
43* BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind: Happens in multiple instances, though only played unambiguously straight when [[spoiler: getting the EX Guns and fighting the character's shadow self]]. Other cases [[MindScrew might]] include [[spoiler: the Shadow characters]] and, for certain values of "mind," [[spoiler: Heaven]].
44* BattleThemeMusic: Each faction has their own unique theme music, the theme for whichever faction you play only playing for that route's FinalBoss.
45%%* BigGood: Gold.
46* BittersweetEnding: The [[spoiler:Independent ending. Violet is dead and President Gold is doomed to be assassinated, but the surviving heroes are free to explore the world without the Rebels and Imperialists dogging their trail.]]
47* BlackAndGrayMorality: TheEmpire is straight-up evil, but [[LaResistance the Rebels]] are no saints either, and the Independents start out [[HeroicNeutral just wanting to be left alone]] and end up [[spoiler:[[NeutralNoLonger trying to]] [[OmnicidalNeutral take both sides out]]; the Empire because ItsPersonal, and the Rebels because...um, Black had a feeling about White and went KnightTemplar]].
48** [[spoiler: Subverted. Except for Red, all the playable characters and [[EmperorScientist Kugar]] are heroes by nature, but some are being secretly manipulated by [[TheManBehindTheMan Aila]]. Oh, and Black was both right and wrong about White; White was one of Aila's pawns, but by nature he's good and makes a HeroicSacrifice in the Innovator path.]]
49* BloodlessCarnage: Averted somewhat. When at critical health, playable characters ''will'' start showing signs of bleeding.
50* OptionalBoss: One of Jackal's forms, others are required to get everyone's [[InfinityPlusOneSword Infinity+1 Gun]]. [[spoiler:Except Blue, who gets his from Gray.]]
51** There's also the [[spoiler:Shadow characters]] in the Innovator route, plus Shadow Omega Weapon, which is the hardest boss in the game.
52%%* BottledHeroicResolve: Stimulants.
53%%* CharacterPortrait
54* ClimaxBoss: [[spoiler:Limit Green]], fought at the end of part 1.
55** [[spoiler: Gold in Imperial Chapter 2.]]
56** [[spoiler: Red and Violet in Independent Chapter 2. Also Rebellion Chapter 2, but it doesn't mean quite as much as it does in the Independent Route.]]
57* CrapsackWorld: Whatever inhabitable land is left is in control of a dictator.
58%%* CrutchCharacter: Gray.
59* CutscenePowerToTheMax: [[spoiler:Black]] taking out [[HumongousMecha Ultima Weapon]] with ''one Mind Blast'' when she can't even use the power normally.
60* DownerEnding: Almost all of them, except [[spoiler: [[GoldenEnding the one gotten for completing the Innovator route perfectly]]]].
61* DownTheDrain: One of the [[ThatOneLevel low points]], unfortunately.
62%%* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Green.]]
63* DuelBoss: [[spoiler:Limit Green]], and [[spoiler:Blue on the Innovator route]].
64* EnemyScan: Blue's skill, Analyze, allows you to do this.
65* FinalBoss: One for each route.
66** Rebels: [[spoiler:Black on a power trip]]
67** Imperials: [[spoiler:Experiment 13, the Rebellion's secret weapon]]
68** Independents: [[spoiler:Jackal Epsilon]]
69** [[spoiler:Innovators A: Kugar]]
70** [[spoiler:Innovators B: Aila]]
71* FullCircleRevolution: [[spoiler:White becomes just like Kugar in the Rebel ending.]]
72* GlassCannon: Black, without the mask.
73* GoldenEnding: You'll need to play through the game four times to see it, though.
74* GunsAkimbo: Only Blue can do this. Everyone else is out of luck.
75* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:Orange, [[BlackAndGrayMorality sort of]].]]
76* HelloInsertNameHere / NoNameGiven: The entire cast. ''[[VideoGameRemake Genesis]]'' does give everyone canonical names, however.
77* HopelessBossFight: The first battle against [[spoiler:Aila]].
78** Also, the battle against Ultima Weapon between part 1 and 2.
79* JokeItem: Throughout the game, one can find such items as "Revealing Suit", "Masochist Suit", and "Pants".
80** Handguns also border on this -- they're by far the least useful of the different guns and are easily outclassed by anything, except for possibly shotguns, which have terrible accuracy. And even then, [[spoiler: Yellow's EX Shotgun]] is no lightweight weapon.
81* KudzuPlot: Several plot questions, such as why [[spoiler:Black betrays the Rebellion]] and [[spoiler:why White becomes just like Kugar in the Rebel ending]], are only answered in the Innovator path.
82* LightningBruiser: Black, masked and armed with a rifle, has high speed and strength, though no special abilities. Gets a bit more {{fragile|Speedster}} without the mask, but her PK abilities more than make up for it.
83* LoneWolfBoss: [[spoiler: Jackal Epsilon]] from the Independent Route. It's not aligned with anyone, it's just a mutant with super-psychic powers looking for a fight. Its only connection to the plot is [[spoiler: being a high-level Imperial project]].
84* TheManBehindTheMan: [[spoiler:Aila]] behind Kugar.
85* TheMedic: Green, though she's capable of using one of the best weapon types in the game, meaning she's [[CombatMedic strong offensively]] as well.
86* TheMenInBlack: Kugar's black-suited, white shirted flunkies. [[spoiler: In the innovator route, the one named Agent Smith kills Yellow.]]
87%% * MightyGlacier: Red.
88* MindControl: [[spoiler:Violet]] gets put through this halfway through the game.
89** TheManBehindTheMan, [[spoiler:Aila]], is capable of doing a specific form of this; they can imprint a "suggestion" on a target, causing them to think they thought of the idea themselves. Later in the game, this functions as straight-up MindControl.
90* MultipleEndings: One for each route.
91* NewGamePlus: At the end of each route, you're allowed to sell most of the items you've acquired and retain the money gained for the next route. Subverted in that very few things are carried over -- only the special bombs that you get at the end, the "badge" gotten for completing a route, and [[InfinityPlusOneSword EX Gun]] items like the Zodiac tiles are.
92* NonindicativeName: Blue's a redhead.
93%%* PerfectRunFinalBoss: [[spoiler:Aila.]]
94* PersonOfMassDestruction: The playable characters are treated like this after their escape by both Empire and Rebellion, and victory in the war hinges on who gets the most (and the most powerful) arena survivors. [[spoiler: Black, the Jackals and Aila]] are, of course, the real deal.
95* PoorCommunicationKills:
96** [[spoiler:Uri]] in the Innovator route.
97** It never even ''occurs'' to Green to talk to Blue, ask him why he's picked the side he's chosen or try to convert him; she simply accepts that he's become her enemy and, by their second encounter, is ready to murder him out of hand. [[spoiler: This, of course, leads to her death. In the Innovator route, meanwhile, because Blue is willing to talk to her first and call her out over this, she averts this trope and lives.]]
98%%* PsychicPowers
99%%* RebelLeader: White.
100* TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized: The Rebels attempt to take down the Independents because the latter might be brainwashed by TheEmpire. [[spoiler: In their ending, White becomes PresidentEvil, though it's [[MindControl not his fault]].]]
101* SacrificialLamb: No matter what route is taken, [[spoiler:Green]] is ''always'' the first core character to die. [[spoiler: Unless you're playing the Innovator route.]]
102%%* SamusIsAGirl: [[spoiler:Black.]]
103* SceneryPorn: [[spoiler:Kugar's virtual Heaven.]]
104* SchroedingersGun: Whatever side Blue chooses, Green will sign up with his group's enemy. [[spoiler: It's possible that Aila manipulated Blue into picking whatever choice he took, however.]]
105* SequelHook: [[spoiler: Indigo speaking with Aila's voice.]]
106%%* TearsOfBlood: [[spoiler:Jackal Epsilon]]
107* TechnicalPacifist: Orange is soft-spoken and prefers to take the path of least resistance when possible. He joins Kugar's regime because it's "the path of least resistance" when he has no other allies, but [[spoiler:he performs a HeelFaceTurn and joins the rebel side halfway through the game anyway.]]
108* ThemeNaming: Everyone is named after a color. {{Justified|Trope}} for the most part, as at the beginning of the game everyone is participating in a DeadlyGame and assigned a code color. [[spoiler: "Gray" isn't that uncommon as a name, either.]]
109** In addition, WordOfGod says that "Gold" and "Silver" are not the characters' actual names, but titles given to Rebel generals.
110* TitleDrop: [[spoiler:"A.I.L.A." stands for "Artificial Intelligence Lifeform Apex". It was a creature created for the purpose of harvesting psychic energy for power generation. However, the creatures eventually rebelled by creating massive outputs of energy, overheating the planet and causing the ice caps to melt. This caused most of the world to become flooded and destroyed, and marked the beginning of a new era, "Altered AILA".]]
111* TurnedAgainstTheirMasters: [[spoiler: Aila. She and her sisters had [[AndIMustScream perfectly good reasons for rebellion]], but [[OmnicidalManiac she takes it a little far]], [[SinsOfOurFathers long after anyone who offended against her is dead]].]]
112%%* UnderwaterRuins
113* UnusualEuphemism:
114-->'''Black''': "Hmph, like I'd tell some two-shoe foogie like you!"
115-->'''Yellow:''' "[[LampshadeHanging Two-shoe foogie?]]"
116* UselessUsefulSpell: A few of your characters' abilities.
117** '''Indigo's Siphon Shot''': Deals a low amount of damage for a low amount of healing; useless.\
118'''Yellow's Sharpshot''': Takes too long for too little damage bonus. Not much good once you switch to rifle anyway.\
119'''Violet's Trick Shot''': Confuses enemies, but a confused enemy's actions will probably hurt you anyway, so not that good.
120* VideoGameRemake: Alter Aila Genesis.
121* VerbalTic: My friends, Kugar has an unique way of speaking...my friends.
122* VirtualGhost: [[spoiler: Kugar]]
123[[/folder]]
124
125[[folder:Tropes used in the remake, Alter A.I.L.A. Genesis]]
126* HundredPercentCompletion: There are fourteen jokers, twenty darkside bosses, a hundred-round street tournament, two {{Bonus Dungeon}}s with a total of eight {{Optional Boss}}es between them, and a PerfectRunFinalBoss. This game will keep you busy for a while.
127* AbsurdlyHighLevelCap: As in most [=JRPGs=], you'll end the main game around level 50, despite the level cap being 99. You'll need to do a bit of grinding to have any hope of completing the postgame, though.
128* ActionGirl: Every single female character, pretty much.
129* AfterTheEnd: As in the original, there are only two small, devastated islands surrounded by endless ocean.
130* AntiFrustrationFeatures:
131** Downplayed with the bonus characters. While they're still a pain to level, their EXP requirements are much lower than the main story members, to the point where they will reach the level cap much faster if the player decides to spend some time on them.
132** Possessing the GPS Unit will automatically reveal hidden passages and possessing the Signal Ring will alert the player if there's at least one shard in a dungeon. This makes it much easier to track down every shard and complete the Joker sidequest.
133** In the postgame, the player can use the Personal Device to jump to any phase and reset the optional areas, which can subvert most cases of PermanentlyMissableContent.
134* AntiVillain: [[spoiler:Kugar and Hawk aren't in control of themselves.]]
135* ApocalypticLog: You find one in the [[spoiler:Orbital Prison]].
136%%* ArbitraryGunPower
137* ArmCannon: Galde, as in the original, though his cannon only shoots random elements rather than set elements.
138* ArtificialGill: The Aqualung item allows the party to breathe underwater and swim.
139* AscendedExtra: Jeebes and Reeves, Tinder's assistants, have their roles in the story expanded.
140* AuraVision: Celia is capable of this. [[spoiler:Actually a plot device, since it allows her to see whether or not someone is being {{Mind Control}}led, and who is doing the controlling.]]
141* AwesomeButImpractical: Nova, [[spoiler:Aila]]'s Exceed attack as a bonus character. It requires the use of the game's only activation ability that does not refund the points spent to use it, and only deals about twice as much damage as their second-strongest attack. In the time it takes to set it up (and charge to get your EX back again), you could deal more damage with less impressive abilities. It becomes somewhat more practical with her unique Sync, which does refund the cost.
142* BarrierChangeBoss: Nightmare can change its weaknesses while resisting anything it's not weak to.
143* BattleAura: As in the original, whenever a character goes into a "limit" form, they gain this. Some of the designs are quite interesting; for example, [[spoiler:Silvra]]'s looks like [[PowerGivesYouWings the wings of a butterfly]], and [[spoiler:Hawk]]'s looks like crystal.
144** In phase 5, Erin gets a blood red aura as she tells Scott that ''very bad things'' will happen to him if anything happens to Indy.
145* BattleThemeMusic: One for regular boss battles, three for {{Climax Boss}}es and {{Optional Boss}}es, one for the FinalBoss, and one for the penultimate OptionalBoss.
146* BodyHorror: Trauma, the boss of Orbital Prison 3 [[spoiler:was the writer of all those {{Apocalyptic Log}}s who mutated into a HumanoidAbomination. During the fight itself, the room is pitch black and the boss makes gross sounds when you damage it enough. The silhouette of the boss just gets bigger and more tentacle like as you whittle it down.]]
147* BraggingRightsReward: The Tear of All Ocean, one of the most powerful syncs in the game. However, to get it, you need to have beaten almost everything the game has to offer.
148** Subverted; this sync may still be useful for the TrueFinalBoss. Played straight, however, with the devices, which you get for beating it.
149*** And those, in turn, are still potentially useful for LevelGrinding the bonus characters, which is necessary for the Reverse Mirror bosses.
150* BreakingTheFourthWall: [[spoiler:Using your Personal Device to turn off entry indicators]] at certain point in the [[BonusDungeon Orbital Prison]] will show the path to an EasterEgg. It's fitting, [[MindScrew given the setting]].
151* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler:Jeebes and Reeves at the end of phase 6.]]
152** Also [[spoiler:Scott, Violet, Jake, and Dread at the beginning of phase 7]].
153* BigFreakingGun: [[spoiler:Jeebes]]' ultimate weapon is [[LampshadeHanging literally called this]].
154* BlatantItemPlacement: An ArtificialGill in the middle of an underwater megastructure that has been abandoned for years? Makes perfect sense...
155* BloodlessCarnage: The main characters and villains that get horribly beat up in battle show no signs of injury afterwards. Blood is only ever shown in a few endgame cutscenes.
156* BonusDungeon: Below Stynx and the Orbital Prison.
157* BonusFeatureFailure: The bonus characters. You get them after completing the game. They start at ''level one''. There is no LeakedExperience in this game. Conclusion: ForcedLevelGrinding ahoy! This is jarring considering that all the main story characters join with at least some levels, especially Hawk who rejoins in the final chapter at level 50.
158** It's a real pity too -- some of them are really cool to have as playable characters, and one of them has absolutely amazing stat growth.
159* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler:Hawk to Kugar at the end of phase 4.]]
160* BottomlessMagazines: Sort-of-maybe averted with Gray's Buster Cannon, which he needs to load before he can fire it. [[note]]If you get his ultimate weapon, however, it plays this straight, since it bypasses the need to use Load Cartridge.[[/note]] Played completely straight everywhere else.
161** This could be considered averted with [[spoiler:Reeves]]' RayGun, which is powered by psychic energy. He actually does need to charge first before he can fire it.
162** Maybe the characters generate bullets using their PsychicPowers?
163* CallingYourAttacks: Lampshaded heavily with Celia's "Psychostasis" technique.
164-->'''Erin:''' ...You're not going to yell that out every time you use it, right?
165-->'''Celia:''' Huh, why not?
166-->'''Erin:''' Just... don't.
167* {{Cap}}: Through use of battle events, Neok has managed to bump the normal damage cap for RPG Maker 2003 up by one numeric place. Also, EX is capped at 5 and never changes, and AP is the same but with a cap of 10.
168* CantDropTheHero: Averted, Leon can be dropped from the party once you have enough members and many sections in the game don't include him.
169%%* CharacterDevelopment
170* CharacterPortrait: Player characters and important [=NPCs=] get a portrait. [[spoiler:In the postgame, all the important [=NPCs=] end up as bonus playable characters.]]
171* ClimaxBoss: One for each phase, excluding 2. There's even a special BattleThemeMusic for them!
172** '''Phase 1:''' [[spoiler:Black]]
173** '''Phase 3:''' [[spoiler:Jake and Dread]]
174** '''Phase 4:''' [[spoiler:Lavitz, Scott, and Violet]]
175** '''Phase 5:''' [[spoiler:Galde and Silvra]]
176** '''Phase 6:''' [[spoiler:Leon]]
177** '''Phase 7:''' [[spoiler:Leon again]]
178** '''Phase 8:''' [[spoiler:Kugar]]
179* TheChosenOne: Celia believes herself to be this due to her rare psychic abilities.
180* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: Enemies always have maximum AP.
181* CrutchCharacter:
182** Scott. His high HP and multi-targeting capabilities are useful in the beginning, where those traits are unique to him. Once you gain access to other characters, however, he begins to fall behind -- his abilities deal pitiful damage compared to everyone else, and there are others with better stats and similar HP totals.
183** The entire main story party becomes this to the bonus characters, since the latter group has much lower EXP requirements to level up, to the point where they'll easily overtake the main party if you're willing to train them.
184* DefeatingTheUndefeatable: Subverted. [[spoiler:In Stynx, Black is capable of shrugging off all of the prisoners' attacks. Leon, Scott, and Violet try to fight him, but actually ''don't'' win -- they actually just stall him long enough for the rebels to attack Stynx.]]
185* DefeatMeansFriendship: [[spoiler:While Scott and Violet were well on their way to doing a HeelFaceTurn when they're exposed as special ops, it still takes an obligatory boss fight to seal the deal.]]
186* DemotedToExtra: Ultima Weapon goes from the Empire's best weapon to [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere the last line of defense]].
187** The Jackals go from a race of Imperial {{Super Soldier}}s who had a vital role in the plot to [[spoiler:a small cameo at the end of Phase 3.]]
188* DespairEventHorizon / MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler:Hawk after being freed from Aila's control.]]
189** [[spoiler:Erin]] also crosses the event horizon after [[spoiler:learning that she's only alive because of Kugar's HeroicSacrifice. While she and Leon are dangling from a ledge in Avalon, she tells Leon "[[DrivenToSuicide Let go [of me].]] [[TearJerker If you let go, you can pull yourself up.]]"]]
190* DevelopersForesight: Tinder and his allies randomly replace Tinderbots to sell goods, but they're also playable characters. Speaking to them with the same character as party leader results in a confused reaction from the shopkeeper.
191* DevelopersRoom: Half of your reward for beating the TrueFinalBoss is getting to read Neok's final thoughts on the game. It also shows a few scrapped sprites and ideas that never made it into the game.
192* DiscOneFinalDungeon: [[spoiler:Oberon Tower seems to be wear you'll confront Kugar, only for Hawk to become possessed by Aila.]]
193* DisappearsIntoLight: [[spoiler:Aila.]] Justified, since they're an EnergyBeing.
194* DramaticShattering: [[spoiler:Scott's sunglasses when he makes a HeroicSacrifice to save Violet during the ending.]]
195* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Lavitz kills herself after losing the boss battle.]]
196** Also [[spoiler:Tinderbot Mk. III kills itself so that it doesn't get used as a war machine]].
197* DuelBoss:
198** [[spoiler:Mind-controlled Leon]], twice]].
199** Also, the "darkside" {{Optional Boss}}es that can be fought to obtain characters' [[InfinityPlusOneSword Infinity+1 Swords]].
200* EarlyBirdCameo: [[spoiler:Silvra]] is first seen near the end of phase 1 in a cutscene. However, we don't learn her name or her role in the plot until the end of phase 5.
201* EasterEgg: The SNEWS article in Oberon Tower.
202** Also, through a strange [[MindScrew but fitting]] method, at a certain point in a BonusDungeon, you can find [[spoiler:the cell of the "little girl" talked about in the Orbital Prison's ApocalypticLog]]. And unlike most {{Easter Egg}}s, this one has major connections to and implications for the plot. No, we won't dare spoil it for you.
203* EleventhHourRanger: [[spoiler:Hawk only joins your party permanently when you're literally on the FinalBoss' doorstep.]] Subverted in that they do join your party for short periods of time prior to when they join permanently.
204* EleventhHourSuperpower: Femaelstrom is used to finish the FinalBoss. However, you can also get it permanently from a joker during the postgame.
205* EldritchAbomination: Nightmare, the boss of the Orbital Prison Core, is mess of red and black lines that vaguely resembles a dragon.
206** Possibly the [[spoiler:Orbital Prison]] itself, judging from the map graphic.
207* EnergyBeing: Variants, including [[spoiler:Aila]], of course. They are made up of pure psychokinetic energy, which is what allows them to be so powerful. This is a big deal; humans are only able to use very small amounts of psychokinesis due to it being poisonous to them.
208* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Erin gets ''two'', due to [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold the nature of her personality]] -- the first is [[spoiler:her scaring off Dread, one of the most dangerous figures in Stynx, with nothing but a warning shot and a DeathGlare, then congratulating Leon for standing up to Dread and saying that she's not a cold, heartless monster like everyone says]]. Her second establishing moment happens in her next appearance, where [[spoiler:she [[CurbStompBattle curb stomps]] three exceptionally powerful fighters, then proceeds to slaughter them without batting an eye while they beg for mercy...after which she hugs Leon and profusely apologizes for lying to him before walking off]].
209* ExpressiveHealthBar: [[https://rpgmaker.net/games/268/images/3848/ Before]] and [[https://rpgmaker.net/games/268/images/3849/ After]]. The red-haired guy, called "Blue", gets wounds on his face after he gets hurt.
210* FightWoosh: Bosses get red animations before their battles begin.
211* FinalBossPreview: Quite literally. At the end of the [[spoiler:Underwater Facility]], you fight a short battle against [[spoiler:[[BigBad Aila]]]].
212* FireIceLightning: These are the elements of the game along with Force and {{Psychic| Powers}}.
213* FlunkyBoss: Multiple. Most notable are Ultima Weapon and the FinalBoss. Interestingly, both use them to charge ThatOneAttack rather than act as random monsters.
214%%* {{Foil}}: [[spoiler:Kugar]] to [[spoiler:Tinder]].
215* ForcedLevelGrinding: Due to the lack of LeakedExperience. Mercifully, level doesn't impact much other than HP, but you will still need to do a fair bit of grinding if you want to do the postgame content.
216* FunWithAcronyms: S.P.E.A.R., G.U.A.R.D.I.A.N., and C.R.I.S.I.S. We never actually learn what they stand for. WordOfGod says that "C.R.I.S.I.S." stands for "Covert Reactant Intelligence Systematic Integral Special Force". He doesn't have any secret definitions of for the other two, though.
217* GameBreakingBug:
218** Due to the fact that the game is made in the (incredibly buggy) default battle system, the Guard stat does ''absolutely nothing''.
219** If auto-walk is active while traversing the Jackal Labs or other places with stairlike entry/exit points, the sidescrolling movement system will break.
220* GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere: Some bosses are just really random and only seem to be there because every dungeon has to have a boss. The greatest example of this is definitely Ultima Weapon, though. It's ThatOneBoss, comes after two other legitimate {{Climax Boss}}es, and is never explained or mentioned again.
221* GladiatorSubquest: The Arena, natch.
222* GlobalCurrency: Justified, since the entire game (and known world) only spans two tiny islands that are right next to each other, and all of that space is theoretically under the control of a OneWorldOrder.
223* GoodWingsEvilWings: Played with. [[spoiler:[[AntiVillain Kugar]]]] has regular white angel wings (they can also sprout six larger wings that look more like they're made of energy).
224** PowerGivesYouWings: [[spoiler:Silvra]]'s BattleAura looks like a pair of butterfly wings.
225* GenderEqualEnsemble: ''Almost'' manages this, but is slightly slanted in favor of guys. The playable character balance is 6 male/4 female, and the list of major [=NPCs=] would be perfectly balanced if not for Tinder's crew (3 guys).
226* GoryDiscretionShot: [[spoiler:Scott's death. Enforcers advance on him, then the screen goes black and the sounds of gunshots are heard, then the sound of a body slumping to the ground.]]
227** Also [[spoiler:Kugar's "death" at the end of phase 4]]. Though the screen doesn't turn completely black, the characters are reduced to silhouettes.
228* GuideDangIt: Getting through the Underwater Facility. Especially the teleporter mazes.
229** Also, finding some of the shards. The ones in Oberon Tower requires you to [[spoiler:press the four switches in the order south, north, east, west, south ([[FunWithAcronyms SNEWS]])]]. The only hint is an article titled [[spoiler:SNEWS]] in one of the offices.
230* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:Jake]] and [[spoiler:Dread]].
231** Also, [[spoiler:Scott and Violet almost immediately after being outed as {{The Mole}}s.]]
232* TheHero: It's hard to label any one character as this, as it's an ensemble piece, but Erin quite possibly qualifies. She tends to be the character the plot revolves around the most, and the one who relates to many of the plot elements the most. She certainly has the personality, as well.
233* HeroicBSOD: [[spoiler:Celia, once she sees Aila in phase 6. Indy manages to cheer her up again in phase 7.]]
234* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Hawk, Dread, and Scott during the ending.]]
235** Also [[spoiler:Kugar, during the game's backstory, who gave up his life to resurrect Erin after she was shot by Tinder]].
236* HumanAliens: [[spoiler:Gray, Leon, and Celia.]]
237* InexplicableTreasureChests: Lampshaded by Scott in the game's tutorial section.
238* InfinityPlusOneSword: Each character has one, obtainable by defeating their [[MirrorBoss darkside]].
239** The Tear of All Ocean is a more general example. Incredible stat boosts across the board, and has the properties of every element, meaning that if an enemy has an elemental weakness, it ''will'' hit it, no matter what.
240* InformedEquipment: Justified; equipment for the "wear" slot is usually more akin to a small accessory, so not seeing any difference on the character's model makes sense. And if it's not an accessory, it's probably a jacket, but given how many characters wear {{Badass Longcoat}}s the difference wouldn't be very noticeable.
241* ItemCaddy: [[spoiler:Tinderbot]]. It literally has ''zero'' offensive abilities except for its LimitBreak.
242* JackOfAllStats: Leon. Also Scott and Jake, to a lesser extent.
243%%* JustifiedTutorial
244* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:Scott, Dread, and Hawk during the ending.]] Also [[spoiler:[[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Kugar]]]], possibly.
245* LateToTheTragedy: [[spoiler:In [[BonusDungeon the Orbital Prison]]. Something ''really'' awful happened there, but your only clues are a few notes in the form of an ApocalypticLog and someone who has gone insane and mutated into a BodyHorror.]]
246* LawOfInverseRecoil: Magnums have incredible recoil; firing them one-handed is a good way to end up with a broken wrist. However, Hawk manages to fire one one-handed with no problem at all during a cutscene.
247%%* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Scott loves this trope.
248* LetsSplitUpGang: The party split up in three teams before infiltrating [[spoiler:Avalon.]]
249* LighterAndSofter: The game is still pretty dark, but is a bit lighter than the original overall.
250* LightningBruiser: [[spoiler:Lavitz]], as a bonus character. Has even higher speed than Violet, and pretty high ATK and MND as well.
251** For another bonus character example, [[spoiler:Aila]]. Has ''the'' highest stat growth in the game, in ''every stat'', period. Too bad they're a bonus character; see BonusFeatureFailure, above.
252* LimitBreak: Exceed abilities.
253* LostInTransmission: In a secret area of the Dam Facility, where there is a computer that contains a log of the [[spoiler:Underwater Facility]], but is missing pieces and terminates itself halfway through. Also overlaps with {{Foreshadowing}}, naturally.
254* LoveTriangle: [[spoiler:Between Scott, Violet, and Lavitz.]]
255* MagikarpPower: Some of the bonus characters are quite powerful if you take the time to train them from level 1. Some of them also have lower EXP requirements than the main story members to compensate for their low starting level.
256* TheManBehindTheMan: [[spoiler:Aila is controlling both the rebellion and the empire through her mind control powers.]]
257* MarathonBoss: [[spoiler:Kugar has a second phase where he'll only take damage from static damage syncs.]]
258* TheMedic: Erin and [[spoiler:Reeves]].
259* TheMentor: Scott to Leon during the first two phases of the game.
260* MetalSlime: Significant Bits in No Man's Land 3. They give out a whopping 50,000 exp; and can drop Rare Parts but are unkillable without static-damage syncs and flee when their EX is maxed out.
261** Them running away can be minimalized by using EX or Speed Crush Fields, even using Breakdown (Reduces EX Gain per round/ability) can make it easier to kill them.
262** Melons in the Orbital Prison core which have a countdown timer can drop [[RareCandy Enhancers]]
263%% * MightyGlacier: Dread, Galde, and [[spoiler:Tinderbot II]].
264* MindControlEyes: Subverted. When [[spoiler:Aila]] mind-controls people, their pupils disappear and their eyes turn turquoise, but only for a second.
265* MindScrew: [[spoiler:The core of the orbital prison.]]
266%%* MirrorBoss: The "darkside" {{Optional Boss}}es. There are twenty, one for each character, and every one is a DuelBoss.
267* MoneySpider: Justified or averted for the most part. In the cases where it doesn't make sense that an enemy should be carrying money, they'll probably drop ShopFodder instead. Why zombies or "???"-type enemies would be carrying money is anyone's guess, though.
268* MusicalSpoiler: Since there's a special BattleThemeMusic for bosses fought at the end of each phase, it's easy to tell when the phase is about to end.
269* MyNameIsQuestionMarks: Sort of. There's a certain enemy type classified as "???". Yes, really. What makes this egregious is that there is also an "Enigma" enemy type, which is for enemies with abnormal elemental affinities (usually bosses).
270** The trope itself does apply to unknown characters, however. Characters that have not introduced themselves have a "???" under their CharacterPortrait.
271* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: "Nightmare", one of the {{Optional Boss}}es. It's an apt name, considering the general creepiness of the area in which you fight it.
272* NeckLift: Dread does this to Jake in one cutscene.
273* NeverFoundTheBody: Played with. [[spoiler:Kugar falls off a building when Hawk shoots him, and, of course, turns out to be NotQuiteDead later on. However, he falls off said building due to ''[[NoOneCouldSurviveThat taking a magnum shot at point blank range]]''.]]
274* NewGamePlus: Played with. After loading from a game clear file, you can use the Personal Device to jump to any phase, which essentially lets the player get phase specific content without having to play the entire game over again.
275* NoCureForEvil: Averted with some human {{Mook}}s, who ''can'' use Stim Fields. Erin's [[MirrorBoss darkside]] can also use First Aid, naturally. A few {{Flunky Boss}}es can use Revive Fields to restore their flunkies, too. Played straight with everyone else.
276* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: [[spoiler:Dread]] delivers one to [[spoiler:Hawk]] late in the game.
277* NominalImportance: Played so very, very straight. Characters without names aren't even drawn with faces, and the lack of sympathy for their deaths comes close to WhatMeasureIsAMook at times, especially given how often your characters fight each other. Odds are very good that if someone's got a name and picture, then they will join your party during the game, or in the post-game.
278* NonElemental:
279** The FinalBoss and the last {{superboss}} have take equal damage from everything -- they have no weaknesses or resistances.
280** [[FixedDamageAttack Static damage syncs]] allows you to ignore an enemy's elemental resistance when attacking.
281* OneSizeFitsAll: Mostly played straight, although some equipment can only be worn by one gender.
282* OneStatToRuleThemAll: As with all ATB-based battle systems, Speed. Doubling it essentially doubles all of your other stats at the same time, since you can act twice as often. Fortunately, Neok is clever in this regard -- Speed can only be increased through equipment, and only in small amounts. SPD Boosters also cost more than other boost items.
283* OneWingedAngel: Ultima Weapon, played for laughs. After you defeat it once, it shoots off a PillarOfLight and gains a BattleAura. After you defeat it again, it tries to do the same thing, but [[TransformationIsAFreeAction a tinderbot shows up and]] [[SubvertedTrope blasts it with a laser]], defeating it before it can transform.
284** Happens quite literally in the case of [[spoiler:Kugar]], who transforms before the fight begins.
285* OpeningTheSandbox: Happens ''after'' the main game is completed, interestingly.
286* OptionalBoss: The Fallen Horde in phase 3, which is also a [[DualBoss quadruple boss]]. There are also "darkside" characters that can be fought after getting a certain item from a secret area. In the postgame, we have the bosses of the two {{Bonus Dungeon}}s, Below Stynx and the Orbital Prison, culminating in [[spoiler:the Controller]] and [[spoiler:Nightmare]], respectively. [[spoiler:There is also the TrueFinalBoss, [[TitleDrop Alter Aila]].]]
287** The Metal Hydra is a miscellaneous example; it guards a special sync during the postgame.
288** The final round of the street tournament consists of a battle with [[WolfpackBoss Tinder, Reeves, and Jeebes]].
289** The Enforcers found in the Core Shaft are Bonus {{Mini Boss}}es. They drop Rare parts which can be sold for 10,000 creds a piece.
290*** They appear later on in one of the areas as regular encounters.
291** There's also Tinderbot Mk. III, which is fought at the end of a postgame sidequest.
292** The Behemoth in Orbital Prison Level 2, you can either fight it at it's fullest strength or weaken it and defeat it then.
293** Shadow Ultima in Orbital Prison Level 4, you best bring a lot of reviving items/Revive fields. Destroying one bit kills the one who dealt the killing blow, if he or she destroyed all 3 at once, it's a TotalPartyKill, you also have to destroy the bits to prevent Shadow Ultima from using its' strongest attack.
294* OrphanedSeries: The cancellation of ''Variant'' has effectively turned this continuity into this.
295* OurAngelsAreDifferent: [[spoiler:Kugar, the penultimate boss, gain angel wings before the battle against him.]]
296%%* PaletteSwap [[spoiler: Shadow Ultima]]
297* PeoplePuppets / MindControl: [[spoiler:As in the original, Aila is capable of both.]]
298* PermanentlyMissableContent: Tinder, Reeves, and Jeebes may spawn instead of Tinderbots, but their stock will change as you progress through the game, making it easy to miss opportunities to get extra copies of items that are normally chest-exclusive. Subverted after beating the game, since that allows you to jump to any phase.
299* PillarOfLight: Whenever someone is endowed with the CRIT Boost status.
300* PopQuiz: G-Bot hosts one of these if you find it during the postgame. It appears in certain areas randomly, and asks a whopping 100 questions. The good news is that you don't have to get them all right on the first try. You just need a total of 100 correct answers from all attempts.
301* PowerAtAPrice: The Demon King Cradle, sort of. It gives an incredible boost to Attack -- even moreso than the [[InfinityPlusOneSword Tear Of All Ocean]] -- but reduces [[OneStatToRuleThemAll Speed]]. [[note]]In previous versions of the game, the tradeoff was more fitting -- [[GlassCannon it reduced Guard instead of Speed]][[/note]]. Unfortunately, due to the GameBreakingBug mentioned above, this made it unbalanced, so the creator changed the tradeoff to Speed instead.]]
302* PreAsskickingOneLiner: Every playable character delivers one right before the final battle.
303%%* PsychicPowers
304* PsychoSerum: [[spoiler:Red Juice in high doses, which is also justified. It's designed to heighten both mental and physical capabilities, but overdose causes neurological deterioration and reversion to primal instincts. However, the heightened strength and endurance are retained, meaning you now have someone who's effectively a superpowerful zombie on your hands. Mind's Smile is mental version of the serum]]
305* RainbowSpeak: Important phrases are highlighted in azure blue. Also, whenever characters' names are mentioned, they're in the colour they were in the original Alter A.I.L.A. Lavitz, Jeebes, Reeves, and Tinder get name colours as well.
306* RareCandy: Enhancers. Interestingly, they are infinite in amount; they can be obtained from red core chests and even bought from stores. To counteract this, however, they only raise stats by 1 per use. And [[OneStatToRuleThemAll there are none that raise Speed]].
307* ReadingsAreOffTheScale: Metagame example; the last hit of Violet's Shooting Star in that video actually ''[[{{Cap}} dealt more damage than the game could register]]'' (over ''one million'' points of damage according to WordOfGod)
308* RebelLeader: Hawk is the leader of the Rebellion [[spoiler:though he's only doing this to perpetuate a SnowballLie rather than out of good intentions]].
309* RedemptionDemotion / OverratedAndUnderleveled: [[spoiler:The bonus characters. Many of them can be fought as bosses during the main game, but as playable characters, not only are most of their abilities horrendously gimmicky, they also fit the "underleveled" part quite literally -- they start at level one! Averted if you do take the time to level them up normally.]]
310* TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized: [[spoiler:Only because [[BigBad Aila]] is calling the shots, however.]]
311* RedHerring: It's easy to assume that the little girl from the Orbital Prison is either Aila or Indy due to their MysteriousPast and supernatural powers. [[spoiler:It turns out to be Violet Alias.]]
312* RewardFromNowhere: You just defeated a OptionalBoss? Congratulations, an InfinityPlusOneSword has just appeared out of nowhere!
313** Possibly justified in the case of the characters' unique ultimate weapons, since their darksides may have been carrying them. The Tear of All Ocean, on the other hand...
314* RidiculouslyHumanRobots: Tinderbot Mk. III and G-Bot.
315* SecretCharacter: A couple of them, like Galde, Silvra and a Tinderbot are unlocked after beating the game.
316* SequelHook: [[spoiler:The second EasterEgg mentioned above. Neok says it's {{Foreshadowing}} for a plot point in ''Variant'', and it's basically there to prove he's plotted out the story that far.]]
317* SignificantAnagram: The names of opponents in the bi-yearly tournament are anagrams of their enemy type. ("Trobo" = "robot", for example).
318* SkippableBoss: The Turrent Wall boss in the first visit to the Bridge Facility can be skipped if you figure out the correct password.
319* SoLongAndThanksForAllTheGear: Averted. You can un-equip every playable character at any time, even ones that aren't currently in the party as long as you have recruited them once.
320* SquishyWizard: Celia, Indy, Silvra, and [[spoiler:Kugar]] as a bonus character. Hawk fits the "weak" part [[StoneWall but not]] the "frail" part.
321* StatusBuff: Boosters. However, they're so game-breaking that Neok is considering removing them entirely for the sequel!
322%%* StatusBuffDispel: De-Material.
323* TheStinger: [[spoiler:Tinder stares at Gray's ship as it takes off, extinguishes his cigarette, then walks off into the distance.]]
324* StoneWall: Gray, Hawk, and [[spoiler:Tinder]].
325** The Heart of Mysia and Al Di La syncs turn whoever equips them into an extreme version of this. They increase Guard and Speed by incredible amounts, but reduce the characters' damage to 1. (And before you try giving them to Erin, be aware that they affect her healing skills as well) They are useful for {{Item Cadd|y}}ies, though, as damage from items is not affected.
326* SuperDrowningSkills: Averted. Characters can only swim on the surface until the Aqualung ArtificialGill is obtained, however.
327* SuperMovePortraitAttack: Happens when using EX skills.
328* SupportingProtagonist: As in the original, Leon starts off dangerously close to this, and becomes more and more of one as time goes on.
329%%* TakeYourTime
330* ThisIsReality: Erin to Celia early in phase 4.
331-->'''Erin:''' This is a dangerous mission, [[BlatantLies not a happy-go-lucky romp-around where a]] [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits ragtag bunch of adventurers]] [[BlatantLies save the world from an evil empire]].
332* TooAwesomeToUse: CRIT Boosters are more expensive than all the others and are rarely used except against bosses.
333* TookALevelInBadass: Indy, who has gone from being the JokeCharacter of the original to a GlassCanon in this one. Sadly, inverted with Erin, who is now pathetic offensively.
334* {{Trailers}}: The official trailer can be found [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXk1mSaQ1Lw&index=3&list=PLSQLREUw9vwmE8HYXkE0uYgR6ur64hjIQ here.]]
335* TransformationIsAFreeAction: Subverted with Ultima Weapon; see OneWingedAngel, above.
336* UselessUsefulSpell: Averted; nothing is immune to status effects, even bosses. Inflicting crushes on your opponent is usually a good way to cripple them or to make a battle more bearable if your characters are underlevelled.
337* TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon: [[spoiler:Avalon is the site where Aila will finish her EvilPlan.]]
338* VideoGameRemake: Of the original Alter A.I.L.A. game, with a different story and cast of characters.
339* VideoGameSetPiece: During the battles with [[spoiler:Limit Silvra]] and [[spoiler:Limit Lavitz]], the bosses will drain 1 EX and 2 AP from your entire party, respectively, every turn they get.
340* ViolationOfCommonSense: Trying to go back after encountering [[spoiler:[[BigBad Aila]]]] for the first time, right after a certain character has told you to not go back. If you do, [[WhatTheHellPlayer they'll yell at you]].
341-->[[spoiler:'''Erin]]:''' What part of '''"leave this place immediately"''' don't you understand? We're as good as '''dead''' if we go back!
342%%* WhamEpisode: [[spoiler:The ending of phase 4.]]
343* WhamLine:
344-->'''[[spoiler:Aila (to Celia)]]:''' You are a hazard to my existence.
345-->'''*screen goes black*'''
346-->'''[[spoiler:Aila]]: Die.'''
347* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: Generally averted; the protagonists don't mind mowing down {{mooks}}, regardless of if they're humans, aliens, mutants, robots, or androids.
348* WithAFriendAndAStranger: Scott, Violet, and Leon in the first three phases. Turned around from its usual form; the protagonist is the stranger.
349* WordSaladHorror: The final note you find in the third level of [[spoiler: Orbital Prison]].
350* WolfpackBoss: Most of them, if they aren't {{Flunky Boss}}es.
351** The Gatekeepers are an interesting version of this. If one dies, it is revived by the other instantaneously. You must kill both of them at the same time to win. However, they're always revived with low HP, making it easier to wipe them out in the long run.
352%%* WorldHalfFull
353%%* YouCanTurnBack
354* YouShallNotPass: [[spoiler:Jake, Dread, Scott, and Violet hold off the rebel army at the end of phase 5 so Erin, Leon, Celia, and Indy can escape. Miraculously, they survive, and manage to return for a BigDamnHeroes moment in phase 7.]]
355* ZombieApocalypse: This happened in Pallas six years before the game started. It was caused by [[spoiler:a lab accident that flooded the city with a dangerous experimental PsychoSerum.]]
356[[/folder]]

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