Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls (2015)

My fiancee and I tried to get through this after finishing DR1 in our effort to play (well, watch for her) through the entire series together, especially because she loved Toko in the first game, but after however many months it's been of me trying to force myself through this and finding any excuse not to pick it back up again every time I close it, I just... can't anymore.

The story was interesting, I really did try to stick to it for the sake of that and the twists and the narrative connection to the series (I've never met Nagito before, for example, as I've never played the rest of the main games and am relatively unspoiled, so I wanted to see what was up with him here), but it's just not worth it.

The controls are excruciatingly awful, as is the camera, the characters are exhausting, the combat is janky, most of the minigames are tedious and repetitive, and the graphics are distractingly bad. Every non-main NPC is just the same two featureless silhouettes copy-and-pasted across the map, and the handling of themes like child abuse, body/facial dysmorphia, mental illness, and sexual assault are cartoonishly offensive.

And I didn't even get as far as all the pedophilia stuff.

Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls is a game meant to bridge the gap and fill in some story between the first two Danganronpa games. While the first two are pretty much visual novel with some light exploration/investigation, this one is a visual novel with a heavy influence on third person action/puzzle solving. Originally released for the PS Vita, it was later ported to PC which is the version I played.

This is a weird and messy game. While the overall story here is just as large in scope, crazy twists and turns along the way, the rest is not nearly as enjoyable. It has the same themes of hope, despair, trauma but it goes into really uncomfortable territory...especially with that last one. It makes light of child SA, a LOT of young or underage "jokes", and an uncomfortable amount of uncomfortable fan service. At times it felt like this game was made specifically for individuals who are into that sort of thing.

I did still somewhat enjoy the game, as it does still have over the top moments. There's still some good humor sprinkled in, and the monokumas are still entertaining as well as creative. The gameplay is split into 5 different chapters that all consist of trying to escape the city or get to the big baddy in the city center. Along the way, you are given a "gun" that looks like a megaphone, and different types of "bullets" that all have varying effects. These effects can be as basic as a normal attack, or will make monokumas dance in place attracting those around them. These lead into the puzzle aspects where some rooms require you to figure out the correct method if you want to get a better score for the chapter. Failing these though will not set you back, you will just have to fight your way out normally then and not get as big of an end chapter bonus.

The game does seem to really drag on towards the end, as I was really thinking it'd wrap up a few times before it finally did. Overall, it took me just over 20 hours to roll credits, getting 25/35 achievements along the way. I feel that's good enough for me as I don't feel compelled to go after any others. For anyone who really feels compelled to know everything about the story in this franchise, go for it. Otherwise, I can't really recommend this one.

Having played the other danganronpa games, I had expected this game to follow in the footsteps of its predecessors and contain a visual novel experience. While some elements of a VN remain, the gameplay is that of a shooter instead. The story is standard and what you'd expect from a danganronpa game - I liked the characters, especially the development of Toko.

(Spoilers ahead) However at some points the game felt quite stale and repetitive, especially with the deaths of relatives from the first game. Once you realise that each relative who shows up will die, you end up not really caring about their story and just wait for the typical execution sequence. Plus some sections of the game felt quite disturbing, even for danganronpa standards, with the tickle torture scene being incredibly uncomfortable to play through. The series as a whole has a few fan service scenes but given the context of it being a CSA survivor re-enacting their trauma onto you, the failure cutscene for this section was uncomfortable to say the least.

TLDR: It's a decent play if you want to connect the first and second games storywise, but it's not a necessary installment in the series if you dislike shooters.

I don't hate this game but there's a lot of things that are wrong with it, the review might be a little messy but i really don't feel like putting effort into it this time around.

The art direction is good, it does feel like Danganronpa, however, the in-game graphics are dull and emotionless.

The main antagonists of this game : The Warriors of Hope, are just simply unbearable. Everything up to their dialogue, character designs and boss fights are obnoxious. In fact, the writing in general was strange and... Weirdly sexual ? Like the other Danganronpa games have these moments right, but this game in particular had a huge emphasis on it. They were supposed to be funny moments i guess, but they just ended up being awkward and out of place.

This game's supposed to be an action game, right ? Then why are you interrupting my progression every 5 minutes with pointless dialogue that drags on for way too long. Not that i specifically want to play more of this game, since the gameplay itself is really not all that interesting, apart maybe from the Monoku-Man puzzle rooms, which were pretty fun all things considered.

Phew letting out all of that pent up aggression towards this game, i feel much better now.

But with all of this said, there's a lot of positive things to say about this game too, after all, it can't be all Despair, right ?

Komaru and Toko's (even though she was my least favourite character in Trigger happy havoc) banter is fun to listen to and i enjoyed seeing how they grew to like each other as the sroty progressed.

The BGM is still a blast to listen to, with some reused soundtracks here and there and few new really good ones.

Like i mentionned earlier, the late game Monoku-man sections were reallly fun, making use of the different truth bullets you acquired along your journey.

And, at the very least, the game wasn't all that long, 5 chapters that took me about 3 hours to beat for each.

2.9 out of 5, like i said, i don't hate this game but it's just disappointing to see how this game turned out, especially after how much i enjoyed the first two games.

(Ps : I don't want to see a single Monokuma ever again after this.)

Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls is a strange one. I like the game a lot but compared to the other Danganronpa games, it's the worst one. This is mostly because this is a visual novel series. This one is a spinoff. It's a 3rd person action-adventure game. However, if you want to get into the franchise, this is a very important one to play.

You play as Komaru Naegi, the sister of Makoto Naegi (the protagonist from the first game). She is talentless. But she is thrown into this post-apocalyptic world that stemmed from "The Tragedy". With the looming threat of "The Warriors Of Hope". Little kids who want to kill adults. She must team up with Toko Fukawa (And Genocide Jack) to escape the city.

This game takes place between the first and second entry in the series

Does this game succeed as an action-adventure?

Sorta. It works in some aspects, but it very underdeveloped.

Has a neat story though

3/5

What does Japan have against cute kids? Er, I guess, adults as well. Really this whole franchise is a bit misanthropic for its mostly humanist ideas, huh? The point is, Monaca is the best.

* I know the gameplay is kind of shit especially on handhelds, but I watched this as a let's play on a blog somewhere so I don't really care. Story, characters, and all thewild tone shifts are all good stuff.

And it's beat!

In the end I think I was a bit too harsh on it for its mediocrity as a 3rd person shooter. It's actually pretty okay but playing it on a Vita just sort of exemplified its flaws. I think if I had a proper controller it would have been significantly better.

All in all it was another fantastic entry in the series and made for a great segue between the first and second game. Definitely should not be played before the first game, and probably should be saved for after the second game buuuuut I can come up with good reasons to play it before the second one as well.

It's far and away the darkest of the three games, and the story holds up nicely. The characters are great, the pacing is good, and the series' often arbitrary concepts of hope and despair are better realized here, I think. You also get to know one of my favorite characters from the first game a LOT better, and the payoff is great.

Here's to waiting for Danganronpa 3...