Six chapters in, and I still don't have a clue about
what's really happening in that game. That's just brilliant.
Well, saying that I don't have a clue is not totally fair. I actually do have
tons of clues about what could, may or might be happening in this sky-forsaken
school; however, I still lack absolute, rock-solid certainties. Is this all a
sick real-TV game? A post-apocalyptic rescue attempt that turned terribly
wrong? The crazy product of a psychopathic mind—doubled with a seemingly
infinite bank account balance? All of that at once? Or something else entirely,
something even more twisted and devious? I do NOT know, and I LOVE not knowing.
I love stories that let you imagine anything while confirming nothing, and Danganronpa
is one of the most glorious example of them I've ever encountered.
My mind is reeling just now, but I'm trying to keep it in check. I wouldn't
want to think too deep and to uncover the actual truth about what's happening,
ruining any plot twist to come in the process. Better concentrate on the
gameplay and let the story properly blow me away, yes precious. I'm thus trying
to bury my doubts about (spoilers) whether the masked body really belonged
to Ikubasa Mukuro and may not have been the body of one of the already dead
female students, conveniently kept in a cooler before being used in an
elaborate setup. I mean, the face was unrecognizable, so it could have been
anyone, right? And a tattoo is just so easy to fake. I'm trying to forget the
uneasiness I feel regarding Kyoko, who seems just a little to helpful and
knowledgeable to be completely honest. How can I be sure that she's not Ikubasa
Mukuro herself, or the Mastermind—or both? After all, I didn't get to see
what's really hiding under her precious gloves, did I? And how do I know that
there are really sixteen students in the school, anyway? And... Oh dear, now
I'm starting again.
Like I said, better concentrate on the gameplay. To my utter delight, there is a substantial amount of it—enough to make Danganronpa more akin to a Point and Click on rails than to a full-blown Visual Novel. There's a delicious amount of roaming around and clicking on suspicious and/or interesting areas, and it wasn't look before I felt like the whole school was my territory—as much as a prison can be considered territory, that is. The Class Trials are a vibrant potpourri of gameplay mechanics that are challenging enough to keep me on edge, especially since I set the logic level to "Mean" when I started the game. In retrospect, I should have set the action level to "Gentle", because the shooting parts often give me a hard time. I even royally failed the first Bullet Time Battle: to my utter shame, I totally panicked and ended up tripping on my own fingers and losing before I could say "ohshitshitshit that's a bloody rhythm minigame!!!" I fortunately got better at it with time, but Bullet Time Battles are still far from being my favourite parts of the game. Oh, well.
I really love the characters, and I deeply regret that so many are dead
already. They are glorious clichés that zealously adhere to anime and manga
tropes, that much is sure, but they do so in a clever and tongue-in-cheek way
that makes them incredibly endearing. They cannot be deemed realistic or even
complex characters, but that fits the style of the narrative perfectly. The
unrealistic, slightly surreal premise of being stuck in a school and encouraged
to kill your classmates by a creepy mastermind certainly wouldn't work as well
with realistic characters—especially when the mastermind in question assumes
the shape of a Teddy Bear with a lopsided grin.
Anyway, I'm now heading towards what I hope will be a mind-blowing ending.
There's only one Class Trial left, and it will be the most intense of them all.
Brace yourself, Monokuma! Whoever you may be, I'll shed light on your true
identity! Until then, thanks for reading, and be my guest anytime!
14 comments:
Melanie 23 August 2015 at 13:30
I like very much the new formula with the shorter (nervetheless really complete) posts :)
Isleif 23 August 2015 at 14:26
Thanks a lot!^^ I'm glad you like it. :)
Sieg 23 August 2015 at 17:42
Good thing
you're enjoying it! The story really is something else. Actually, it's not the
story itself but the pacing of the story. You keep getting new chunks of
information at a nice pace and at the same time that information isn't enough
to know what's going on.
I 100% agree with Melanie's post by the way. The format you adopted now really
is more efficient. Both for you and for the reader. You convey the same ideas
with less text but with the same writing style and the reader doesn't take as
long to "digest" your extensive information. Keep it up!
Isleif 23 August 2015 at 18:03
You're
absolutely right, the pacing is incredibly efficient! It keeps you on your toes
at all times, and I was thinking the other day that it was simply one of the
best pacing I've ever encountered in a videogame.
Gee, that's so nice to read! I'm so glad you like that new "formula".
Since writing shorter post is also more pleasant for me, I guess everybody is
pleased with the change! =D
Kumiko 24 August 2015 at 10:55
Hmm, I have been considering this game, but I have been passing it up due to not being in the mood for a VN. It is currently on sale at the price of 15 euros though....one question, can you do the "clicking" parts of the game using the vita's touch screen? I always find it annoying to play point and click games with an analog stick.
Isleif 24 August 2015 at 14:55
Welcome! Unfortunately, you cannot click directly on the touch screen; you have to use the analog stick to aim and the x button to click. Still, it's not so bad: hitboxes are rather large and you can get an overview of all the "clickable" spots in a room by pressing the triangle button. 15 euros is a great price, you should leap at the opportunity!
Sieg 24 August 2015 at 18:16
I don't wanna
butt in but, I completely agree with Isleif; 15€ for Danganronpa is a steal! I
payed 35€ back then and I regret nothing.
Oh, and you should check out the demo on the PSN if you're afraid of
"gambling" your money in a game you don't know if you're gonna enjoy.
Kumiko 24 August 2015 at 18:31
Sadly, I cannot
find any demo for it in my PSN, or else I'd leap at the chance of trying it
out. And while I personally know very well that playing VNs is heaps of of fun,
watching somebody else play is boring to me, so youtube isn't much help for me
either. And in just 2 days there's gonna be a new PSN sale and a new VN release
I really want soon, so I'm hesitant to miss out on that to get Danganronpa
instead.
On the other hand, I can get both Danganronpa games for 35€ and I know I'll get
them eventually, so this is extremely confusing to me. I suppose I'll see if
they post the new sales on Wednesday, leaving me with a day before the
Danganronpa sale ends.
Sieg 24 August 2015 at 20:21
What the...?
There really is no demo on the PSN. The hell, Nisa?
Either way, I'll give you a typical advice: get the game you want more. The
Danganronpa games will get another sale down the road, for sure. It's just a
matter of time. So if the price is break or make deal for you, don't worry
about that.
By the way, what's the other VN release you're waiting for?
"watching somebody else play is boring to me, so youtube isn't much help
for me either", I completely agree with you. Watching somebody else playing
completely kills the idea of playing the game.
Isleif 24 August 2015 at 20:46
Could it be
"Amnesia: Memories"? It will be released in just a couple of days.
A new PSN sale in two days? Now that's excellent news!! I will pray for a
discount on Ar Nosurge Plus. I so want that game!
Kumiko 25 August 2015 at 09:45
Yes, it's
Amnesia: Memories. I played the original years ago on my modded PSP, and I
really want to support the game now that it's going to be in an English market.
It's more aimed at a female audience with the romance endings (like Stein's
Gate is more aimed at a male one), but it at least does have an interesting
multiverse plot with a really good true route.
The other games I really want are the Gust games, the Atelier series and Ar
Nosuge. Oh, and Demon Gaze, I've been craving a dungeon crawler lately. I guess
I'll just buy the Danganronpa games down the line, so thanks for all the advice
guys.
Also, I did some googling and there was a demo for Danganronpa, but it was only
for the PSP Japanese version. Why the hell NISA did not think to have a demo
for a genre that still isn't that well known outside Japan is beyond me.
Isleif: From what I've seen of PSN (I've only gotten into digital games since I
got my Vita a month ago), as soon as a sale ends, another one begins, with the
new sale sometimes starting a day early. I recommend using the PC site though,
since it's way easier to find the sales there than in the Vita store.
Isleif 25 August 2015 at 18:02
Romantic
endings like in Steins;Gate? Oh dear, now my desire to get that game plummeted
to the bottom of the ocean. I absolutely hated the romantic overtone of
Steins;Gate and I'm afraid I wouldn't like it more in Amnesia:Memories. On the
other hand, the art looks great; and if the multiverse is really good... Hmmmm,
Maybe I'll get it if I manage to get a juicy discount.
Yay! Constant sales is the way to go! I'll definitely check the PSN in the next
days. =D
Kumiko 25 August 2015 at 20:06
Oh, you didn't
knew? Well, besides getting your memories back, romance is the biggest part of
the game, so it's probably not your thing. A big part of the game is trying to
fake a relationship you know nothing about (there are options to almost
completely ignore the relationship or wreck them though. Doesn't lead to good
endings, but it is a lot more fun to play against the game). The true end does
make the story really nice and worth it though, so it's kinda like the opposite
of Stein's Gate I guess, who hooked you in with a interesting plot and then
left you hanging.
Definitely wait until it's on sale, I'm sure you'll be able to find it for 15
euros at some point. Are you European? If so, I'll give you a heads up when I
see it for a good price.
Isleif 25 August 2015 at 22:45
No, I was not
really aware of the romance element; I thought it would be your average amnesia
story. Still, the notion of having to fake a relationship sounds really
interesting; and if I know that romance is to be to expected from the get-go, I
will be spared disappointment along the way. Steins;Gate enraged me because it
promised a lot yet didn't deliver, like you said yourself.
15 euros would definitely be a good price as far as I'm concerned! Even if I
don't like the game, the loss wouldn't be so stinging. And yes, I'm indeed
European, so a heads up from you would be most welcome! 😊
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