Let’s find out together, in this review of Danganronpa Decadence, the reasons why this new collection is the least we wanted from the “return” of the Spike Chunsoft series
Anyone who hasn’t played the Danganronpa series is probably missing out one of the Visual Novels with the most interesting, versatile and surprising investigative elements of the last ten years. And, extraordinarily speaking for such a product, it also had some success in the West, with its three main chapters, a TPS spin-off and two anime series that aired at the same time and narrated different aspects of the intricate lore. In short, a franchise that has put Spike Chunsoft on the lips of all fans for years and that has created a circle of diehard fans who are still waiting for something new from the company. Whoever writes to you places himself among the irreducible ones.
Precisely for this reason, when in the chorus of E3 2021 we saw Monokuma appear on the screen, the heart went into fibrillation … before discovering that yes, Danganronpa Decadence is another collection of the franchise, with some news. This version, released last December 3 on Nintendo Switch, includes the three main chapters of the series, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Danganronpa 2: Goldbye Despair and Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony in the Anniversary Edition version. All this has been added Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp, a board game inspired by the minigame present in V3, expanded to the nth degree and with gatcha elements. Big excluded: Ultimate Despair Girls, too bad. Sit back and grab something hot to drink – welcome to the Danganronpa Decadence review.
Beautiful Days
Let’s start with an assumption: we don’t want to discuss in detail the history and lore of the three main titles of the Danganronpa franchise, because our philosophy is to make every review as spoiler-free as possible. This is even more amplified by the fact that Spike Chunsoft’s series is entirely based on narrative, which on balance it is among the most whimsical, extravagant and interesting we have seen in the genre in all these years. We find ourselves, in general, living the story of three different groups of teenage students trapped in the deadly game played by Monokuma, the iconic two-tone bear that has always been the face and disturbing mascot of the series.
To survive the game and get out of it, the protagonists will be mentally “forced” to kill one of the companions and hope to get away with it, without being discovered by the others. For each crime, which will inevitably have narrative implications also concerning the lore of the game, the protagonist of the specific chapter will have to turn to the various maps available in search of clues, which will then be taken to the Class Trials. During these Trials, all the characters will be pitted against each other in battles devoted to logic and investigative skills: a wrong verdict means the death of all, except the culprit.
Class Trial | Review Danganronpa Decadence
Each Class Trial will consist of a long series of minigames, all quite varied and intriguing, especially in the third chapter where there is an excellent balance between general difficulty and diversification between the various minigames. The main mechanic in all three games is to aim for inconsistencies in the words of the other protagonists and “shoot” (literally) the truth in the face of liars, but there is no shortage of other structurally different minigames, such as a modified version of “The hanged ”(damned) or obstacle courses. The level of difficulty, in Decadence, is exactly the same as the originals, having not in the least affected the gameplay (being, in effect, a simple Remastered) and is set down in Trigger Happy Havoc, it splashes up in Goodbye Despair to return to balance in Killing Harmony. An ups and downs that, lived after years, still makes us nervous.
And this is how the Danganronpa proceed, in long sessions of dialogues and narrative texts typical of Visual Novels, interspersed with moments of exploration and search for clues in the various game areas. Each chapter will then close with the Class Trial and the discovery of the culprit of the crime (also because, if you get the verdict wrong, it will be Game Over). A good pace of play and the ability to maintain a high level of player interest are the basis of the Spike Chunsoft titles, which stood out, at the time, more for the narrative and the script jokes (among which truly iconic characters stand out) than for the actual gameplay. The latter was definitely refined by the raw pearl which was the first chapter to arrive at V3 which is the perfect synthesis of what Danganronpa is and always will be.
Beautiful Deaths | Review Danganronpa Decadence
We have talked about the three original titles in general, but in this review we want to analyze more what Danganronpa Decadence is and why, eye, we don’t feel like recommending it to those who don’t know the series and even less to fans. Let’s go step by step. At the beginning we have already explained that the three titles are offered in the Anniversary Edition, remastered and corrected versions of the originals and that they should have eliminated the technical inconsistencies of titles that have now been released several years ago. Did they do it? No, definitely not.
This Nintendo Switch version of the Danganronpa series is plagued by the classic bad maneuverability of the character, which seems to run on tracks that are not too safe in the exploration of the various maps, especially in Trigger Happy Havoc. Having the feeling of playing them again on PlayStation Vita, when there are excellent ports on PC and on the flagship consoles of the last generation, is really a shame and suggests that this edition was done quickly and without great attention to detail.
The dancer frame rate doesn’t improve this feeling: all three games have severe FPS dips in the exploration stages (with greater emphasis during camera movements, already woody), especially in portable mode, that of election if we think about the gender of belonging. The tour is completed by various graphic glitches, the (literal) elimination of some graphic and sound effects that have always characterized the series, a very bad resolution of the movies and we get the perfect remastered recipe that “shouldn’t have come this way”.
Versailles Burning at the Stage Witch Hunt Preparations | Review Danganronpa Decadence
A few words about Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp, the real addition of this version. The title takes up the board game present in Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony and expands it both for mechanics and for longevity, giving it the status of a genuine standalone spin-off. A board is placed in front of us on which our pawn, one of the characters of the series, will be able to move for 50 days in total following the steps dictated by the dice, fortify in terms of statistics, fight with the monsters of Monokuma and find objects.
What fans of the series will love most is definitely the possibility of witness bunter of impossible dialogues in other games, as they occur between characters of different chapters. Nothing that expands Danganronpa’s already complex narrative, that’s for sure, but it’s that good dose of fanservice we all wanted to celebrate the 10th anniversary of a series that made Visual Novel history. However, there is an element, even in Danganronpa S, that made us turn up our noses, but that once we understand the essence of the title from the trailers, we already expected: the presence of micotransactions.
Ultimate Summer Camp has a strong gacha component, through which, within the game, you can “fish” from special machines (the ones that in the main chapters gave gifts to increase the affinity with the other characters) other versions of the protagonists of increasing rarity. To be able to fish, you will have to complete many games to get the rarest game coins that make the most “equipped” machines work, or … buy everything with real currency. Pity.
Punishment Rocket!
Ultimately, to close this review, who do we recommend Danganronpa Decadence to? Certainly not to newcomers and the curious, because there are much better and more accurate ports both on PC and on last generation consoles. This version on Nintendo Switch brings with it all the woodiness of the original chapters, adding not just technical flaws and a Danganronpa S that may seem nice, but which will give you just a few games to intersperse with the extended and interesting narrative of the other chapters and other money to spend, if you fall into the abyss of the gatcha component. If you are a fan of the first hour, instead, dust off PlayStation Vita and replay them there.
Danganronpa Decadence is currently available on Nintendo Switch. Let us know what you think below in the comments, we will continue to keep you updated with all the news, guides and reviews on videogame and tech! And if you are interested in game keys at advantageous prices, we recommend that you take a look at the InstantGaming catalog!
Points in favor
- Reliving the narrative of Danganronpa is always a pleasure
- One of the best Visual Novel series ever
- Iconic characters, unforgettable moments
- Danganronpa S is a nice addition …
Points against
- … if he weren’t plagued by micotransactions
- Poor and lazy porting
- Obvious technical problems, especially in portable mode