Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair

Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair

North American PlayStation Vita cover art featuring Monokuma (top center), Monomi (right), and the students of Hope's Peak Academy.
スーパーダンガンロンパ2 さよなら絶望学園
(Super Danganronpa 2: Sayonara Zetsubō Gakuen)
Genre Murder mystery, psychological thriller, urban fantasy, action-adventure
Game
Developer Spike Chunsoft
Publisher
  • WW Spike Chunsoft
Music by Masafumi Takada
Genre Adventure, visual novel
Platform PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Vita
Microsoft Windows[1]
Released

PSP

  • JP July 26, 2012

PS Vita

  • JP October 10, 2013
  • NA September 2, 2014[2]
  • EU September 5, 2014
  • AU September 5, 2014

Microsoft Windows

  • WW April 18, 2016[3]
Manga
Written by Spike Chunsoft
Published by Enterbrain
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Famitsu Comic Clear
Original run December 10, 2012 – present
Volumes 2
Manga
Super Danganronpa 2: Dangan Island - Kokoro Tokonatsu Kokoronpa♪
Written by Spike Chunsoft
Illustrated by Yoryu
Published by Mag Garden
Demographic Shōnen
Original run October 30, 2012 – April 15, 2013
Volumes 1
Manga
Super Danganronpa 2: Chō-Kōkō-Kyū no Kōun to Kibō to Zetsubō
Written by Spike Chunsoft
Illustrated by Kyosuke Suka
Published by Mag Garden
Demographic Shōnen
Original run November 10, 2012 – present
Volumes 2
Manga
Super Danganronpa 2: Nanami Chiaki no Sayonara Zetsubō Daibōken
Written by Spike Chunsoft
Illustrated by Karin Suzuragi
Published by Mag Garden
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Monthly Comic Blade
Original run October 30, 2012 – April 30, 2014
Volumes 3
Manga
Super Danganronpa 2: Nangoku Zetsubo Carnival!
Written by Spike Chunsoft
Illustrated by Ayune Araragi
Published by GA Bunko
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine GA Bunko Magazine
Original run April 14, 2013 – present
Volumes 4

Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair (スーパーダンガンロンパ2 さよなら絶望学園 Sūpā Danganronpa Tsū: Sayonara Zetsubō Gakuen, lit. Super Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Academy) is a visual novel adventure video game developed by Spike Chunsoft. It is the second installment in the Danganronpa series, and a direct sequel to the 2010 game Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc. It was first released in Japan for the PlayStation Portable on July 26, 2012. A port for the PlayStation Vita was released in Japan on October 10, 2013 and was published in North America and Europe by NIS America in September 2014. A port for Microsoft Windows was released on April 18, 2016.

The story follows a group of high school students who are trapped on an island by their high school's headmaster Monokuma, a sentient stuffed bear. In order to leave the island, a student must kill one of their peers, and not be caught in the subsequent investigation and trial.

Gameplay

Similar to the previous game, Danganronpa 2 features two main styles of gameplay; School Life, which is split into Daily Life and Deadly Life sections, and the Class Trial. In the Daily Life section, players interact with other characters and progress through the plot. Conversing with characters during 'Free Time' sections earns Hope Fragments, which can be exchanged for skills that can be used in the Class Trial. Performing various interactions increases the player's level, allowing them to equip more skills during trials. Monocoins, earned by finding hidden Monokuma Figures or performing well in trials, can be exchanged for presents that can be given to other characters during Free Time segments, with certain items able to trigger special events. The Deadly Life section, which occurs when a crime scene is discovered, has the player search for evidence that will assist them in the Class Trial.

The Class Trial, in which players must determine the identity of a culprit, features the same aspects as the previous game, but with new gameplay elements. Like before, Class Trials are largely formed of Nonstop Debates, in which players must look for weak points in the students' discussion and shoot them with "Truth Bullets" that contradict them. This time around, the yellow-colored 'Argue Spots' are joined by blue-colored 'Agree Spots', which must be shot with a Truth Bullet indicating someone is telling the truth. Hangman's Gambit now requires players to combine matching letters coming in from both sides of the screen before they collide into incorrect matches. Combined letters may then either be destroyed, or used to spell out the clue. The Bullet Time Battle from the previous game is now known as Panic Talk Action, featuring largely the same mechanics of using rhythmic timing to break through a student's mental defenses. Controls are revised slightly from the last game, and players must now spell out a phrase in the correct order at the end of the section, rather than firing a specific Truth Bullet. Finally, the Closing Argument, in which players fill out a comic strip depicting the events of a crime, is adjusted so that players select panels from stocks of panels, as opposed to having access to all the pieces at once.

Various new gameplay elements have been added to the Class Trial. Rebuttal Showdowns take place when a student attempts to refute the player's logic. In these sections, players must slash apart their opponent's argument to gain dominance in the conversation and reveal new information, before using a "Truth Blade" to strike through the correct weak point when it appears. Logic Dive is a snowboarding minigame, in which players steer down a logical tube whilst avoiding obstacles and pitfalls, occasionally choosing between multiple routes based on a question given, in order to arrive at a logical conclusion. Finally, Spot Select requires players to examine an image and indicate an important spot.

There are also various modes outside the main game. Players have a virtual pet that can be accessed from the pause menu, which grows as players take steps in the game. Magical Girl Miracle☆Monomi is a minigame in which players control Monomi fighting off against waves of cute monsters. Island Mode, which is available after clearing the game once, is an alternate mode where the students are not subjected to Monokuma's killing game and instead aim to make friends with each other and earn Hope Fragments. This allows players to bond with characters more easily than in the main story mode. Danganronpa IF, a short story depicting an alternate storyline for Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, is also unlocked after clearing the game once.

Plot

Following a similar premise to the previous game, Danganronpa 2 puts players in control of Hajime Hinata, an amnesiac boy who has just become one of Hope's Peak Academy's 'Ultimate' students, alongside fifteen others. The students find themselves taken to a remote tropical island called Jabberwock (ジャバウォック島 Jabawokku-tō) by their alleged teacher, a small, rabbit-like mascot named Usami, who claims it to be a simple field trip. However, things turn out to be too good to be true as Hope's Peak Academy's notorious principal, Monokuma, announces they are stuck on the island for life unless they can murder another student and get away with it. If the students can determine a murderer in a Class Trial, that culprit is executed, but if they make the wrong assumption, then the killer walks home free whilst everyone else is sentenced to death.

Over the course of the game, several students are murdered, and thanks to Hajime's investigative skills, their killers are found out and executed. However, Hajime begins to realize something isn't quite right with the world, and discovers a terrible truth. He and his fellow students are in fact the surviving members of Ultimate Despair, a group led by the first game's antagonist, Junko Enoshima, whose sole purpose was to spread despair to the world. They managed to instigate a worldwide rebellion that caused society to collapse. However, one group, called the Future Foundation, has been attempting to undo the damage Ultimate Despair caused. They captured the surviving members, but instead of executing them, decided to try and rehabilitate them by erasing their memories and putting them in a virtual reality program.

Upon finding out that they are in a program and that all of the students are merely artificially constructed avatars, Hajime is then contacted by Makoto Naegi, the protagonist from the first game and now a member of the Future Foundation. He warns Hajime that an artificial intelligence copy of Junko Enoshima, based on the "Alter Ego" AI from Trigger Happy Havoc, has hijacked their program, and is trying to manipulate events so that once the surviving students "graduate", she can possess the bodies of the deceased students, which are still intact in the real world. Alter Ego Junko's ultimate plan is to download herself into every person on the planet. Makoto tells Hajime that if the class votes not to graduate, it will allow him to reset the system and purge Alter Ego Junko. However, that also means that the student avatars will be deleted, along with all of the memories they gained while in the simulation.

Junko attempts to convince Hajime by revealing that he was formerly the genius leader of Ultimate Despair, Izuru Kamakura. He and the other students hesitate, afraid of reverting to their original personalities. However, Hajime eventually finds the inner courage to thwart Alter Ego Junko's plan, and convinces the other students to refuse graduation, saying that they will create a future where they do not have to forget. Makoto then resets the system and deletes Alter Ego Junko.

In the epilogue, Makoto, and fellow survivors and Future Foundation members Kyoko Kirigiri and Byakuya Togami look on as the students decide to return to the island. They muse that they are already vastly different from their original Ultimate Despair personalities, choosing to stay behind on the island to look after their comatose friends who were "killed" in the simulation. Even though the chance is extremely small, Makoto is confident that the students will find a way to revive their friends.

Upon beating the game, players can unlock an alternative story mode where Usami manages to prevent Monokuma from taking over the island, so the field trip goes on as planned. This allows to the player to freely socialize with the other characters.

Development

Super Danganronpa 2 was originally released for the PlayStation Portable in Japan on July 26, 2012. A limited edition was available, which included a Monokuma PSP pouch, an art booklet, a soundtrack and audio commentary CD, keychains and badges, and a download code for a custom theme.[4] A compilation of the game and its predecessor, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, titled Danganronpa 1・2 Reload, was released in Japan for the PlayStation Vita on October 10, 2013, featuring new touch controls and high resolution graphics.[5][6] After releasing the Vita remake of the first game in North America and Europe in February 2014, NIS America announced it would release the sequel in Western territories in September 2014, under the name Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair.[7][8][9] As well as a standard edition, a limited edition will be released via NIS America's online store, including an art book, soundtrack CD, stickers, Monokuma medals, and a pair of sunglasses.[10]

Other media

Manga

Various manga publications based on the game has been released. A direct adaptation began serialization in Enterbrain's Famitsu Comic Clear magazine from December 10, 2012. Three other spin-off manga, Dangan Island - Kokoro Tokonatsu Kokoronpa♪, Chō-Kōkō-Kyū no Kōun to Kibō to Zetsubō, and Nanami Chiaki no Sayonara Zetsubō Daibōken, have been published by Mag Garden from October 2013. Another spin-off, Nangoku Zetsubo Carnival!, has been serialized in GA Bunko's magazine from April 2013. The game has also received 4Koma Kings and Comic Anthology compilations by various artists.

Anime

Monomi appears at the end of the final episode of the first game's 2013 television anime adaptation, Danganronpa: The Animation.[11] An anime adaptation of Danganronpa 2 was initially planned, but the producers instead chose to make an original anime series, Danganronpa 3: The End of Kibōgamine Gakuen. The series' second part, Zetsubō-hen, will focus on the characters of Danganronpa 2 prior to the events of the game.[12][13]

Other appearances

A Monomi costume is also available in the Japanese PS Vita and PlayStation 3 versions of Terraria.[14] Downloadable outfits based on Monokuma and Monomi will also appear in the Super Sonico game, Motto! SoniComi.[15]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings84%[16]
Metacritic81/100[17]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Destructoid8/10[18]
Famitsu37/40[19]
Game Informer8/10[20]
Game Revolution[21]
GameSpot8/10[22]
Giant Bomb[23]
Joystiq[24]
Polygon8/10[25]
VideoGamer.com8/10[26]
Awards
PublicationAward
FamitsuGame of the Year (Readers)[27]
Hardcore GamerBest PS Vita Game,[28]
Best New Character (Monokuma)[29]
Best Adventure Game[29]

Danganronpa 2 debuted higher than its predecessor and received critical acclaim, peaking at number 5 and selling over 69,000 copies its opening week.[30] Famitsu gave the game a score of 37/40, based on four scores of 10, 9, 9 and 9, and was voted the best game of 2012 by its readers, with an average reader rating of 9.79 out of 10.[31]

Upon its release in North America, the game was met with praise. Japanese game specialist Hardcore Gamer gave the game a 4.5/5,[32] and PushSquare gave it an 8/10. Cubed3 awarded a 9/10, highlighting an "exceptional plot" that "is every bit as an emotional rollercoaster as the first game," going on to say, "Coupled with Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, this is a series no visual novel aficionado can do without."[33]

References

  1. ↑ "Danganronpa And Danganronpa 2 PC Ports Only The Beginning For Spike Chunsoft". Siliconera.
  2. ↑ http://atlus.com/sales/danganronpa2/atlus_danganronpa2_sellsheet.pdf
  3. ↑ Danganronpa And Danganronpa 2 PC Ports Only The Beginning For Spike Chunsoft, Siliconera
  4. ↑ "Super Danganronpa 2 Sayonara Zetsubou Gakuen Limited Edition Package | Senpai Gamer 先輩 - Nintendo, PlayStation, Xbox, iPhone and Android news with Anime news from Japan, America and Europe". Senpaigamer.com. 2012-06-20. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  5. ↑ Ishaan . July 3, 2013 . 9:00am (2013-07-03). "Danganronpa 1 & 2 Reload Slated For Release In October". Siliconera. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  6. ↑ Spencer . July 9, 2013 . 6:13pm (2013-07-09). "DanganRonpa: Trigger Happy Havoc Will Have High Res Movies, Touch Controls". Siliconera. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  7. ↑ Ishaan . July 6, 2013 . 4:51pm (2013-07-06). "Danganronpa And Demon Gaze Coming To North America". Siliconera.com. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  8. ↑ "Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc Coming to PS Vita on February 11th, 2014". Blog.us.playstation.com. 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2014-02-14.
  9. ↑ http://nisamerica.com/pressreleases/Dangan2_announce_20140213.pdf
  10. ↑ http://store.nisamerica.com/Preorders/Danganronpa-2-Goodbye-Despair-Limited-Edition
  11. ↑ "Final Danganronpa Episode Ends with Image of Super Danganronpa's Monomi". Anime News Network. 2013-10-23. Retrieved 2013-10-27.
  12. ↑ "New Danganronpa V3 has Scrum and Panic Debates". Gematsu.
  13. ↑ http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2016-03-26/new-danganronpa-anime-to-be-split-into-2-chapters/.100289
  14. ↑ Spencer (2014-01-15). "Monomi From Danganronpa 2 And Toro Make Cameos In Terraria In Japan". Siliconera. Retrieved 2014-02-14.
  15. ↑ "SoniComi Game Offers Danganronpa Costumes". Anime News Network. 2014-02-10. Retrieved 2014-02-14.
  16. ↑ "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair for PlayStation Vita - GameRankings". Gamerankings. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  17. ↑ "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair for PlayStation Vita Reviews - Metacritic". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  18. ↑ Vincent, Brittany (September 28, 2014). "Review: Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair". Destructoid. Modern Method. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  19. ↑ "スーパーダンガンロンパ2 さよなら絶望学園 [PSP]/ファミ通.com". Famitsu. Enterbrain. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  20. ↑ Wallace, Kimberly (August 29, 2014). "Looks Can Be Deceiving - Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair - Vita - www.GameInformer.com". Game Informer. GameStop. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  21. ↑ LaBella, Anthony (January 8, 2015). "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review". Game Revolution. AtomicOnline. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  22. ↑ Kemps, Heidi (August 25, 2014). "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review - GameSpot". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  23. ↑ Klepek, Patrick (October 1, 2014). "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review - Giant Bomb". Giant Bomb. CBS Interactive. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  24. ↑ Arendt, Susan (September 8, 2014). "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review: Magically malicious". Joystiq. AOL. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  25. ↑ Farokhmanesh, Megan (September 18, 2014). "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review: Sophomore Effort". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  26. ↑ Phipps, Brett (September 5, 2014). "Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review - Videogamer.com". Videogamer.com. Candy Banana. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  27. ↑ Nakamura, Toshi (March 14, 2013). "Japanese Gamers' Favorite Games of 2012 Might Surprise You". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  28. ↑ "Best of 2014 – Day One: PS3, 360, PSV, 3DS". Hardcore Gamer. December 23, 2014. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  29. 1 2 "Best of 2014 – Day Six: Character, Strategy, Adventure, Sports". Hardcore Gamer. December 28, 2014. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  30. ↑ Ishaan (2012-08-01). "This Week In Sales: New Super Mario Bros. 2 Gathers The Gold". Siliconera. Retrieved 2012-12-15.
  31. ↑ "Blog Archive » Famitsu readers rank the top games of 2012". Gaming Everything. Archived from the original on 2013-03-18. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  32. ↑ Whittaker, Matt (2014-08-29). "Review: Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair". Hardcore Gamer. Archived from the original on 2014-09-01. Retrieved 2014-08-31.
  33. ↑ 2014-04-01, Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review, Cubed3

External links

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