Have you ever wondered what would happen if The Hunger Games, Phoenix Wright, Battle Royale, Sherlock, and bunch of common tropes--anime and otherwise--were combined into a magenta-blood-tinged smoothie? Are you confused, yet intrigued? Well. I have a game for you. Danganronpa is a sleek, stylish, hilariously goofy, yet shockingly cruel (and sometimes bordering on offensive) murder mystery for those who want to shake up their playing and reading list.For this reviews' sake, I'll be talking about the Steam versions of both games, even if I've only played the second one myself.

I have a nostalgic fondness for Danganronpa; I devoured a fan-translated playthrough of the first game, a cult-classic visual novel,in high school. While looking for games to put on my Steam Sale article, I found out that it not only hadbeen officially translated and released in the US, but had also been ported to PC for Steam this year, with the sequel coming out shortly afterward due to popularity. That kind of turnaround, especially for a somewhat niche genre like visual novels, is almost unheard of, which speaks to the quality of this series. I, as both a visual novel fan and huge nerd, almost wept with joy!

In the first game, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, you play as Makoto Naegi, a high-school student who gets into the prestigious Hope's Peak Academy through a lottery. There, any prodigy, no matter their talent, can make it big as an "Ultimate". These talents aren't just conventional talents--there's an Ultimate Programmer and Ultimate Fanfic Creator (I kid you not), among many other amusing characters. After passing out upon entering the school's doors on his first day, Makoto wakes up with 14 of his classmates, all of them trapped at school, gathered there by their sadistic principal--Monokuma, a robotic stuffed bear--for a deadly "game".

The rules: If a student manages to murder another student and get away with it, after a class trial, everyone else is killed and they can leave as long as they aren't the one declared guilty. But, if they are declared guilty, the killer is executed in an over-the-top, cartoon-y, (and karmic) fashion. The students begin to kill each other out of desperation and you have to investigate, soon discovering there's more to the eye than first appears in Hope's Peak.

A screencap from the original Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc. (Source: Google Images)

Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair introduces a new crew of Ultimates, with the player taking control of Hajime Hinata, another amnesiac student who also passes out upon entering Hope's Peak. But, this time, he wakes up on a tropical island for a fun school trip! Sadly, Monokuma co-opts this trip into another murderous nightmare. Still, there's something fishy about it all, but Hajime can't figure out what it is...

Building where the first game left off, the sequel adds substantial world-building. In fact, I strongly recommend playing the first game before playing the second, or at least watching a playthrough. There are some aspects of the first game that become very, very important as the second game progresses, to the point where the entire final chapter shows how the two games connect--and creatively so, at that!

A screencap of one of the conversations in-game in "Danganronpa 2". Screencap by me.

On that note, the first game is good, but the second is definitely better! It takes what made the original a cult-classic and not only streamlines it, but also subverts the player's expectations, all of which it does brilliantly.

Both games are full of lovable characters. A few do border on offensive--one character has a gender identity that could have been handled much better than it was, though it wasn't maliciously done. There are also some problematic anime tropes, but those are small grievances. The cast of Danganronpa 2 was my favorite of the two, and while some characters do feel like archetypal repeats of the first game's characters at first, it quickly becomes clear that that's not the case, which throws players for a loop. Also, the game isn't afraid to lean on the Fourth Wall, which becomes non-existent at points! It takes itself seriously when it needs to, but Danganronpa knows that it's a goofy, ridiculous ride, and isn't afraid to admit it. So, the writing in both games (if anime-esque at times) deserves a shout-out.

With intricate stories come lots of dialog and text, so these games are long. The genre name of "visual novel" isn't an understatement!Here is my Steam record after one playthrough.

Yep. Thirty-one hours. It's $30 USD for each, but there is a bundle. For more than a day's worth of story, I'd say it's worth it! I will warn, though, that these games definitely deserve their "M" rating. At points, it felt like watching a disaster in the making, but I couldn't look away. I actually played a couple of scenes with my eyes peeking through my fingers, dreading what would happen next!

The storyline for both games is linear, but there is replay value in going back and forging friendships with Makoto and Hajime's classmates, along with new extras, such as a novel and extra play mode where no one dies. Much of the story is in Free Time character interactions, where you build friendships, and upon doing so, get abilities to use during the Class Trials.

An example of one of Danganronpa's signature trials. (Credit.)

After a murder has been committed, the students have to investigate to find who the killer is. Once the player finds enough evidence, they can use it as a literal weapon during the Trial, shooting it and breaking their opponent's argument with "Truth Bullets". It's a creative way to show arguments, and I thought it was a clever way to engage players. There are also other minigames to enrich the trial experience.

As for other aspects of the game: The art is stylish and pop-art influenced, and offers a stark contrast to the violence depicted. Characters are anime-style paper cut outs on a 3D background, creating a dreamlike atmosphere. Even with the morbid subject matter, the violence not as bad as it could be--the blood is magenta, due to Japanese censorship laws. But, the deaths can get pretty grisly. Meanwhile, story happens in partially-voiced conversations and in cut-scenes, which are separate, fully-voiced illustrations with more detail.

On the audio side of things, the music makes the game. Whether it's the iconic opening theme, or the music that plays whenever Monokuma arrives, it all sets the mood with zany, classy style. I mean, here's my favorite track in either game: "Homicide". The eccentric music helps to set the mood wonderfully.

As for other audio, the acting is phenomenal. While the English cast is good, I'd recommend the original Japanese audio, since the Japanese cast blew me away. For example (I'm going to keep this spoiler-free!), in the second game, Hajime has to prove who the "traitor" among the group is during a trial, but is reluctant to do so, because they're his friend. Instead of the normal "YOU'RE WRONG!" exclamation the player gets when Hajime proves his argument, all we get is him choking up, overwhelmed with emotion. In the following conversation sequence, he struggles to speak, his voice cracking, trying to hold back tears. That's good acting. It's moments like those where the game shines.

Lastly, the translations deserve a shout-out. While the first one assumes that the gamer knows about relatively niche aspects of Japanese nerd culture (which I do, so it wasn't an issue for me), the second game actually localizes in a way that is more accessible to English-speakers overall. The second game's translation is awesome, simply put, and that elevates it above the first game.

In conclusion: Danganronpa is a wild ride of a game series, and while it's most certainly not for everyone, if it ends up being your cup of tea, then it's worth your time!

Rating: 4/5 for Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc

4.5/5 for Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair