Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Scene 0 is a prequel to Puella Magi Madoka Magica. The game will follow a story of Mabayu Aki, a cinephile[1] who is said to have been forgotten from the original anime series.[2] The scenario will involve a time loop and is set to have over 200,000 letters in length[note 1][1] and the main story will be completely voiced[1].
The project was first announced as part of Madoka 10th Anniversary with only the visual of the main characters and Vio Shimokura's involvement as a scriptwriter. More details were revealed during Magia Day 2023 on September 24th, 2023. The story will be available within Magia Record application starting October 3rd, 2023.
The opening theme to Scene 0 is Glow by the artist Siyui.
The plot for Scene 0 was initially intended for an anime project unrelated to the Madoka Magica series. Vio Shimokura pitched the plot to producer Yousuke Toba of Aniplex, who then suggested that the plot might work as part of Madoka Magica series as either a sequel or a spinoff. However, due to the difficulty of making an anime for a franchise with a large, existing fanbase, it was decided to instead be developed as a story within Magia Record.[3][4]
The title Scene 0 was chosen because it is meant as a prequel to Madoka Magica[5]. The scenario was completed in 2022.[6]
While the logo for other Madoka Magica content post-Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie shares the similar typeface to that of the movie, Scene 0 features a modernized version of the typeface similar to the original TV series.
The opening movie contains game CG's and animation from both Mabayu's and Madoka's transformation.
Notes
↑A Japanese novels typically have around 120,000 letters in length; 200,000 letters is about 1.5 volumes of novels
References
↑ 1.01.11.2Magia Day 2023 MC "What about the recording session?" Vio Shimokura "Actually, all recording has finished. The scenario will be fully voiced." MC "Eh, so I will get to hear this cinephile/have-no-friends/lazy-to-the-core/a-bit-fangirl Mabayu Aki fully in Hayamo-san's voice?" Saori Hayami "That's right (laughs)" MC "I look forward to it (laughs). So full voice this time is not just a system voice, but for the entirety of Scene 0?" VS "That's correct. Apart from some sub-scenario, the main scenario is completely voiced. The length of the scenario is also pretty long, with over 200,000 letters in length. It took quite some time to record (bitter laugh). As many players may have guessed, Scene 0 involved a time loop. During the recording there were some confusions like 'which loop is this?', but all the actresses did a splendid job with my sporadic script" MC「キャラクターに関しての収録は、現在どのような感じでしょうか？」下倉バイオ「実はすべて終わっていて、今回はシナリオはフルボイスで収録させていただいています。」MC「え、この映画オタク・ぼっち・根怠惰・ちょっとミーハーな愛生まばゆをフルボイスで早見さんが？」早見沙織「ええ、フルボイスで私が（笑）」MC「ええ、楽しみです（笑）。今回のフルボイスってシステムボイスではなくて、scene0全編そうなっているんですか？」下倉バイオ「そうですね。一部サブシナリオは別なんですけれども、メインは本当にフルボイスで、分量も結構多くてだいたい20万字以上のシナリオになっています。結構時間かかりました（苦笑）。まあ、ユーザーのみんなさんもいろいろ察していると思うんですけれども、scene0も時間のループがギミックとして関わってきます。そのせいでループするとどうしてもこれ何週目だ？とか収録で結構大変なところがあるんですけれども、それも飛び飛びの台本をこの素晴らしい役者さん方にうまく演じえていただいてすばらしい収録になったかなと思ってます。」
↑Magia Day 2023Vio Shimokura: "To put it simply, it is a prequel to the Madoka Magica TV series. Even though there is no character named Mabayu Aki in the TV series, she exists as a character and should have been part of the series. This is the story about why that is the case and how her existence has been erased. The 'Scene 0' scenario will center around Mabayu Aki as another viewpoint to Madoka Magica." 下倉バイオ「端的に言ってしまうと、テレビアニメ版の『まどか☆マギカ』本編の前日譚にあたるお話になっております。テレビアニメには愛生まばゆという子は登場しないですけれども、本来なら存在していて、本編でも本当なら書かれていてもよかったんじゃないかなというキャラクターなのに書かれていない。それはなぜなのか、なぜその存在を消えてしまったのかというのをめぐるお話となっております。今回の『scene0』では愛生まばゆを軸としてもう一つの『まどか☆マギカ』を新しい視点で描いているお話になっております。」
↑『魔法少女まどか☆マギカ scene0』シナリオ・下倉バイオ氏インタビュー。愛生まばゆの性格は？ まどかやほむらとの関係は？【電撃秋アニメ×ゲーム：マギレコ】 - 電撃オンライン Dengeki Online: "I heard that the start of your involvement in Magia Record's new project 'Madoka Magica Scene 0' involved anime project?" Vio Shimokura: "I had a chance to work with producer Yousuke Toba as a series composition and scriptwriter for the anime Tokyo 24th Ward, so I discussed with him with the idea of 'loop story'. When it becomes clear that this would be difficult to turn into an anime, Toba-san mentioned, "this story may work as 'Madoka Magica' series". I thought, "no way, that's crazy" (laughs). But that made me start thinking it might actually work as an idea for a sequel or a spinoff." DO: "So it was started as an anime?" VS: "That's right. However, I feel scared since it is a series with many existing fans. So it was then offered to make this a game scenario within Magia Record. In this case, I could make best use of my experience. It's also reassuring since there are staff to support and supervise me, so it was then decided to be make as a game. It was easy for me to work with."
↑Magia Day 2023 Vio Shimokura: "Originally, this project had nothing to do with 'Madoka Magica'. I had an idea for a loop story, and asked a producer if it's possible to turn this into an anime. The producer then proposed this could work as a story in Madoka Magica. Since it seemed like a good match, I decided to go with that and consulted other staff, including Urobuchi. […] Then, it was concluded as a story within Magia Record." 下倉バイオ「この企画元々は『まどか☆マギカ』関係なく、自分がループものでこういうアイデアがあるんだけれども、なんかこう、アニメにできないかなと思って相談していたんですけれども。そこにプロデューサーさんから『これはまどか☆マギカでいけるんじゃないか』とお話されて。それでじゃあ、それバッチリ合いそうなんで、お話持っていきますということで、虚淵もそうですけれども、関係者各位のところにご相談して、っていう経緯になったんですね。」「お話したら『マギアレコード』の中の話としてやるのはどうだと話がまとまりまして[…]」
↑Magia Day 2023 MC "So it was titled Scene 0 because it's a prequel?" Vio Shimokura "That's right" MC「前日譚なのでscene0、なんですよね？」下倉バイオ「そうですね、はい」
↑『魔法少女まどか☆マギカ scene0』シナリオ・下倉バイオ氏インタビュー。愛生まばゆの性格は？ まどかやほむらとの関係は？【電撃秋アニメ×ゲーム：マギレコ】 - 電撃オンライン Dengeki Online: "Has the scenario been completed yet?" Vio Shimokura "Yes. Unexpectedly enough, the scenario was done by the end of last year (2022). After that, we took time to edit the script. f4samurai-san also did a careful job at converting parts that needed to be converted to fit the game format."
