Gundham, I’m not listening to you until you take out the hamsters. I especially loved Gundham Tanaka, a chuunibyou-afflicted animal lover with four adorable hamsters accompanying him as his “4 Dark Devas of Destruction.” Most of the characters also evolve beyond the confines of their original gimmicks, and some are just hilarious. And on the other end of the spectrum, much like the first game, the last chapter of Danganronpa 2 hits you with so many rapid-fire revelations and twists that it becomes difficult to turn the game off until the final conclusion. Even on my second playthrough, some of the cast’s lines had me giggling even as I tried to piece together each case. Amid characters discussing a serious matter, there are still jokes and insults dished out between them, and watching their reaction to Monokuma’s antics is always amusing. Where Danganronpa 2 shines is how each element of the story-individual character development, each murder case, the overall mystery, and surreal humor are blended. Each case is a self-contained story in the “whodunnit” style, though throughout each, various hints are dropped as to the larger mystery of the killing game and Jabberwock Island.
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What follows is a series of increasingly convoluted murder plots involving the students. As in the first game, in Danganronpa 2, the students are trapped and to escape, they must kill one of the other students and get away with it during a “class trial.” Though this is jarring for the group, things get worse as Monokuma (the sadistic two-toned bear who ran Danganronpa’s killing game) takes over the island and redefines the itinerary for Hajime and his classmates. They are introduced to a rabbit mascot who seems to be facilitating what should be a fun trip. However, not even a few minutes in, it’s revealed that Hajime and his classmates have been transported to the tropical Jabberwock Island. These specialties can range from the fairly typical, like the Ultimate Mechanic or Ultimate Gymnast, to some odder ones, like the Ultimate Lucky Student or Ultimate Princess. The school, previously featured in the first Danganronpa, is an institution for those with an “Ultimate” talent or ability. This anniversary Danganronpa Decadence release, alongside the other games in the collection, will hopefully introduce this visual novel mainstay to a new generation of fans.ĭanganronpa 2’s story begins with Hajime Hinata, the player character and an incoming freshman at Hope’s Peak Academy.
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While Danganronpa 2 does hit many familiar beats in setup and gameplay, the sequel is so successful that it overcomes a lack of novelty by once again drawing the player into an enthralling and suspenseful world full of quirky characters and intense mysteries both big and small.
Not long after, however, Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair was released and proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that this franchise had more to offer. While the first Danganronpa was a stand-out title, it wrapped up fairly neatly, and it wasn’t necessarily clear the new classic would benefit from sequels. But it can be easy to forget that it started with one self-contained game.
From our perspective, more than ten years later, Danganronpa has since become a successful franchise with multiple mainline games, a spin-off, anime series, and various other materials.