127-677: Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair is a 2012 visual novel developed by Spike Chunsoft . It is the second game in the Danganronpa franchise following Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc (2010). It was first released in Japan for PlayStation Portable in July 2012, and a port for PlayStation Vita was released in Japan in October 2013. NIS America released the game worldwide in September 2014;
254-525: A Dragon article by Jean Wells and Kim Mohan which includes the following statement: "There is great potential for more than hacking and slashing in D&;D or AD&D ; there is the possibility of intrigue, mystery and romance involving both sexes, to the benefit of all characters in a campaign." Hack and slash made the transition from the tabletop to role-playing video games , usually starting in D&D -like worlds. This form of gameplay influenced
381-581: A Danganronpa player asked him to sign a copy of Goodbye Despair , Bosch could better understand the character he voiced. As well as a standard edition, a limited edition was released via NIS America's online store, including an art book, soundtrack CD, stickers, Monokuma medals, and a pair of sunglasses. Danganronpa 1・2 Reload was also released in North America and Europe for PlayStation 4 in March 2017. An enhanced version for Android and iOS , under
508-469: A cult following . Following Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake , Kojima produced his next graphic adventure, Policenauts (1994), a point-and-click adventure notable for being an early example of extensive voice recording in video games. It also featured a hard science fiction setting, a theme revolving around space exploration, a plot inspired by the ancient Japanese tale of Urashima Taro , and some occasional full-motion video cut scenes. The gameplay
635-449: A day-night cycle with a time scheduling system that provides context and relevance to character interactions, allowing players to choose when and if to interact with certain characters, which in turn influences their responses during later conversations. It is not uncommon for visual novels to have morality systems. A well-known example is the 2005 title School Days , an animated visual novel that Kotaku describes as going well beyond
762-480: A hentai anime. Traditionally, PC-based visual novels have contained risque scenes even if the overall focus is not erotic (similar to the " obligatory sex scene " in Hollywood action films ). However, the vast majority of console ports do not contain adult material, and a number of recent PC games have also been targeted at the all-age market; for example, all of Key 's titles come in censored versions, although
889-610: A point-and-click interface for a console, like The Portopia Serial Murder Case , but making use of visual icons rather than text-based ones to represent various actions. Like the NES version of Portopia Serial Murder Case , it featured a cursor that could be moved around the screen using the D-pad to examine the scenery, though the cursor in Suishō no Dragon was also used to click on the action icons. Hideo Kojima (of Metal Gear fame)
1016-544: A post-apocalyptic science fiction setting, an amnesiac protagonist, and some light gun shooter segments. It was praised for its graphics, soundtrack, high quality writing comparable to a novel, voice acting comparable to a film or radio drama , and in-game computer database with optional documents that flesh out the game world. The Sega CD version of Snatcher was for a long time the only major visual novel game to be released in America, where it, despite low sales, gained
1143-415: A real-time branching choice system where, during an event or conversation, the player must choose an action or dialogue choice within a time limit, or to not respond at all within that time. The player's choice, or lack thereof, affects the player character 's relationship with other characters and in turn the characters' performance in battle, the direction of the storyline, and the ending. Later games in
1270-410: A "Truth Blade" to strike the correct weak point when it appears. Logic Dive is a snowboarding minigame in which players steer themselves down a logical tube while avoiding obstacles and pitfalls, and occasionally choosing between multiple routes based on a question to arrive at a logical conclusion. The final segment Spot Select requires players to examine an image and indicate an important spot. Besides
1397-591: A Little Planet . There are role-playing video games that feature visual novel-style elements. A well-known example in the West is Mistwalker 's Lost Odyssey , an RPG that features a series of visual novel-style flashback sequences called "A Thousand Years of Dreams". These sequences were penned by an award-winning Japanese short story writer, Kiyoshi Shigematsu. Another title is the Arc System Works fighting game series BlazBlue , which plays off of
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#17327874491661524-435: A branching path structure, and allowing them to focus on complex stories with mature themes and consistent plots in a way which Choose Your Own Adventure books were unable to do due to their physical limitations. Many visual novels often revolve almost entirely around character interactions and dialogue choices usually featuring complex branching dialogues and often presenting the player's possible responses word-for-word as
1651-475: A clue. "Panic Talk Action" replaces "Bullet Time Battle", with a similar rhythmic timing gameplay mechanic used to overcome a student's mental defenses as the latter refuses to listen to logic. Controls from the last game are slightly revised; players must spell out a phrase in the correct order at the end of the section rather than firing a specific Truth Bullet. In the Closing Argument, players fill in
1778-504: A comic strip depicting the events of a crime; panels are selected from stocks, and must be chosen correctly, rather than being available from the start. New gameplay elements have been added to the Class Trial. Rebuttal Showdowns take place when a student tries to refute the player's logic. In these sections, players must slash apart their opponents' argument to gain dominance in the conversation and reveal new information before using
1905-419: A common trend in visual novels, which frequently use multiple branching storylines to achieve multiple different endings , allowing non-linear freedom of choice along the way, similar to a choose-your-own-adventure novel. Decision points within a visual novel often present players with the option of altering the course of events during the game, leading to many different possible outcomes. An acclaimed example
2032-509: A complex fantasy setting where a one-hundred-year period is reset indefinitely with many variables. The many branching storylines in Story Mode can serve as stand-alone stories, but players must consider them together along with Arcade Mode stories to be able to fully understand the universe. Another successful example is Sega 's Sakura Wars series, which combined tactical role-playing game combat with visual novel elements, introducing
2159-455: A generally open world , a branching dialogue conversation system where the story develops through entering commands and receiving responses from other characters, and making choices that determine the dialogues and order of events as well as alternate outcomes, though there is only one true culprit while the others are red herrings . It also features a phone that could be used to dial any number to contact several non-player characters . The game
2286-554: A group Junko led, whose terrorist actions led to a crisis known as The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History, also known as The Tragedy, which caused societal collapse worldwide. The Future Foundation has been attempting to undo Ultimate Despair's damage. Makoto Naegi , the previous game's protagonist and survivor who now works for the Future Foundation along with his surviving classmates, captured
2413-425: A live-action television drama, but allowing players to explore multiple character perspectives and affect the outcomes. Another successful example is 428: Shibuya Scramble , which received a perfect score of 40 out of 40 from Famitsu magazine. The history of visual novels dates back to The Portopia Serial Murder Case (1983). It featured non-linear elements, which include traveling between different areas in
2540-432: A page (many recent games offer "play" or "fast-forward" toggles that make this unnecessary), while making narrative choices along the way. Another main characteristic of visual novels is their strong emphasis on the prose, as the narration in visual novels is delivered through text. This characteristic makes playing visual novels similar to reading a book. Most visual novels have multiple storylines and more than one ending;
2667-587: A port for PC was released in April 2016 and a bundle for PlayStation 4 and Playstation Vita called Danganronpa 1-2 Reload , also containing the first Danganronpa game, was released in March 2017. An enhanced version with the subtitle Anniversary Edition was released for Android and iOS in August 2020, for Nintendo Switch in November 2021, and for Microsoft Windows and Xbox One May 2022. Development of
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#17327874491662794-474: A portmanteau of ero tic ga me ( エロチックゲーム )). Many visual novels also qualify as eroge , an abbreviation of 'erotic game'. These games feature sexually explicit imagery that is accessed by completing certain routes in the game, most often depicting the game's protagonist having sex with one of the game's other characters. Like other pornographic media in Japan, scenes depicting genitalia are censored in their original Japanese releases, only becoming uncensored if
2921-675: A reference and analyzed them to try to determine why they were so popular. He decided that the secret was that the stories would start with ordinary, enjoyable days, but then a sudden event would occur leading the player to cry from shock. He used a similar model as the basis for Higurashi but instead of leading the player to cry, Ryukishi07 wanted to scare the player with the addition of horror elements. Other examples of horror-themed visual novels include: Animamundi: Dark Alchemist , Higanbana no Saku Yoru ni , Umineko no Naku Koro ni , Ookami Kakushi , Imabikisou , Saya no Uta , Doki Doki Literature Club! , and Corpse Party . Prior to
3048-1276: A resurgence in the adventure game genre outside Japan. GameSpot has credited Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney in particular for revitalizing the adventure game genre. The success of the Ace Attorney series was followed soon after by the even greater success of Level-5 's Professor Layton in 2007. Both have since become some of the best selling adventure game franchises, with Ace Attorney selling over 3.9 million units worldwide and Professor Layton selling over 9.5 million units worldwide by 2010. Their success has led to an increase in Japanese visual novels being localized for release outside Japan, including: KID 's Ever 17: The Out of Infinity (2002), Cing's Another Code series (2005 onwards), Marvelous Entertainment 's Lux-Pain (2008), Chunsoft 's 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (2010), and Capcom's Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective (2010). In more recent years, several modern Western narrative adventure games have drawn comparisons to visual novels, including Telltale Games titles such as The Walking Dead (2012), and Dontnod Entertainment 's Life Is Strange (2015);
3175-577: A save file of Konami's dating sim Tokimeki Memorial is present, a technique Kojima would also later use in Metal Gear Solid . From 1997 to 1999, Kojima developed the three Tokimeki Memorial Drama Series titles, which were adaptations of Tokimeki Memorial in a visual novel adventure game format. Other acclaimed examples of science fiction visual novels include ELF 's Yu-No (1996) and 5pb. 's Chaos;Head (2008) and Steins;Gate (2009). Popular subgenres of visual novels include
3302-478: A small, rabbit-like mascot named Usami, who claims it to be a field trip. However, the school's principal Monokuma hijacks the trip and usurps Usami’s authority, reducing her to a powerless mascot named Monomi. He then announces the students cannot leave the island unless they participate in the Killing Game, a period in which students murder one or two of their classmates and attempt to get away with it. After
3429-518: A story. Another improvement is having hidden decision points that are automatically determined based on the player's past decisions. In Fate/stay night , for example, the way the player character behaved towards non-player characters during the course of the game affects the way they react to the player character in later scenes, such as whether or not they choose to help in life-or-death situations. This would be far more difficult to track with physical books. More importantly, visual novels do not face
3556-458: A sub-genre of beat 'em ups . Traditional 2D side-scrolling examples include Taito 's The Legend of Kage (1985) and Rastan (1987), Sega 's arcade video game series Shinobi (1987 debut) and Golden Axe (1989 debut), Data East 's arcade game Captain Silver (1987), Tecmo 's early Ninja Gaiden ( Shadow Warriors ) 2D games (1988 debut), Capcom 's Strider (1989),
3683-521: A voice actor for Nagito in the English-language version proved challenging because he is meant to clash with Makoto's ideals. Bryce Papenbrook voiced both characters, making the connections between them more interesting according to localization staff. Johnny Yong Bosch took the role of Hajime; Bosch found being immersed in Hinata's role difficult due to the lack of artwork depicting him. When
3810-897: Is Fate/stay night (2004). Many visual novels are centered on drama , particularly themes involving romance or family, but visual novels centered on science fiction , fantasy fiction , erotic fiction and horror fiction are not uncommon. Dōjinshi ( 同人誌 , often transliterated as doujinshi ) is the Japanese term for self-published (fan-made) works. This includes (but is not limited to) dōjin games ( 同人ゲーム ), also sometimes called dōjin soft ( 同人ソフト ). These visual novel-style games are created as fan-made works based on pre-existing fandoms (usually anime and manga , but also for TV shows or even other pre-existing games and visual novels). Dōjinshi games are often based on romance (or shipping ) between two characters, known as an otome game ( 乙女ゲーム ) or dating sim ; sometimes becoming sexual (or hentai ), known as an eroge ( エロゲ ,
3937-471: Is Symphonic Rain , where the player is required to play a musical instrument of some sort, and attain a good score in order to advance. Usually such an element is related as a plot device in the game. Fan-created novel games are reasonably popular; there are a number of free game engines and construction kits aimed at making them easy to construct, most notably NScripter , KiriKiri and Ren'Py . Many visual novels use voice actors to provide voices for
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair - Misplaced Pages Continue
4064-538: Is Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward , where nearly every action and dialogue choice can lead to entirely new branching paths and endings. Each path only reveals certain aspects of the overall storyline and it is only after uncovering all the possible different paths and outcomes, through multiple playthroughs, that every component comes together to form a coherent, well-written story. The digital medium in visual novels allow for significant improvements, such as being able to fully explore multiple aspects and perspectives of
4191-416: Is a pseudonym . Although the truth is that Nagito is a twisted version of Makoto Naegi , where instead of being a protagonist, he is an antagonist. Ogata had problems playing Nagito because she did not understand him. Komaeda was introduced with the same Lucky Talent as Makoto Naegi, but the staff considered them opposites based on their ideals of "hope". There was a lack of pre-release promotion materials for
4318-483: Is a sub-genre of beat 'em up games, which focuses on melee combat, usually with swords. Third-person hack and slash games are also sometimes known as character action games and spectacle fighters . The term "hack and slash" was originally used to describe a play style in tabletop role-playing games , carrying over from there to MUDs , massively multiplayer online role-playing games , and role-playing video games . In arcade and console style action video games,
4445-412: Is also all-ages, its spinoff Tomoyo After: It's a Wonderful Life is not. Often, the beginning of the eroge will be dedicated to introducing the characters and developing the protagonist's relationship with them, before the protagonist sexually interacts with other characters, for example, Lump of Sugar games such as Tayutama: Kiss on my Deity and Everlasting Summer do this. The effect it has on
4572-418: Is available after clearing the game once, is an alternative mode in which the students are not subjected to Monokuma's killing game and aim to make friends with each other and earn Hope Fragments, allowing players to bond with characters more easily than in the main story mode. Danganronpa IF , a short story depicting an alternative storyline for Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc , is also unlocked after clearing
4699-505: Is considered his killer, and executed. During the graduation, it is learned that she is actually an AI program created by the late Chihiro Fujisaki to observe and protect the students during the Future Foundation's experiment. After Chiaki's death, Hajime recovers a memory of arriving at the islands with Nagito, who had transplanted the arm of a woman, Junko Enoshima . As reality falls apart around him, Hajime learns that Nagito and his fellow students are surviving members of Ultimate Despair,
4826-459: Is considered to be some of the best pixel art in the history of video games , with a popular example being Policenauts in 1994. There have also been visual novels that use live-action stills or video footage, such as several Sound Novel games by Chunsoft . The most successful example is Machi , one of the most celebrated games in Japan, where it was voted No. 5 in a 2006 Famitsu reader poll of top 100 games of all time. The game resembled
4953-421: Is part of a group of high-school students who are trapped on a tropical island by their high school's headmaster Monokuma , a sentient stuffed bear, along with Monomi, a sentient stuffed rabbit. Similar to the first game, to leave the island, students must kill one of their peers and not be caught in the subsequent investigation and trial. The game was well received based on sales and critics. Critical response to
5080-483: Is small, though a number of anime based on visual novels are popular among anime fans in the Western world; examples include Clannad , Danganronpa , Steins;Gate , and Fate/stay night . Visual novels are distinguished from other game types by their generally minimal gameplay. Typically the majority of player interaction is limited to clicking to keep the text, graphics and sound moving as if they were turning
5207-642: Is sometimes known as "character action" games, and represent a modern evolution of traditional arcade action games. This subgenre of games was largely defined by Hideki Kamiya , creator of Devil May Cry and Bayonetta . In turn, Devil May Cry (2001) was influenced by earlier hack-and-slash games, including Onimusha: Warlords (2001) and Strider . The term "hack and slash" itself has roots in " pen and paper " role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), denoting campaigns of violence with no other plot elements or significant goal. The term itself dates at least as far back as 1980, as shown in
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair - Misplaced Pages Continue
5334-427: Is under the effects of Despair Disease. Team Manager Nekomaru Nidai is killed by animal breeder Gundham Tanaka in an honorable duel to prevent the rest of the students from starving to death. As these murders occur, new areas of the islands are discovered and the group becomes aware of an organization monitoring them, the "Future Foundation". Nagito, through a convoluted process, arranges his own death so that Chiaki
5461-593: The nakige ( 泣きゲー , crying game) , which still usually has a happy ending, and the utsuge ( 鬱ゲー , depressing game) , which may not. The genres are somewhat fluid and were largely pioneered in parallel during the late 1990s through the early 2000s by the works of Key co-founder, scenario writer, lyricist, and composer Jun Maeda ; and through the works of Hirohiko Yoshida [ ja ] through his affiliated company Âge , particularly Kimi ga Nozomu Eien and its successors, notably Muv-Luv . The ultimate goal of nakige and utsuge are emotional connection with
5588-470: The Memories Off series (1999 onwards) by KID , D.C.: Da Capo (2002) by Circus , Wind: A Breath of Heart (2002) by Minori , and Snow (2003) by Studio Mebius (under Visual Art's ). One of the most acclaimed visual novels of this subgenre was Key's Clannad , written by Jun Maeda, Yūichi Suzumoto , and Kai and Tōya Okano. Released in 2004, its story revolved around the central theme of
5715-611: The PC game titles released in 2006. In Japanese, a distinction is often made between visual novels (NVL, from "novel"), which consist primarily of narration and have very few interactive elements, and adventure games (AVG or ADV, from "adventure"), which incorporate problem-solving and other types of gameplay. This distinction is normally lost outside Japan, as both visual novels and adventure games are commonly referred to as "visual novels" by international fans. Visual novels are rarely produced exclusively for dedicated video game consoles , but
5842-544: The PSP version of Tactics Ogre (2010). Chunsoft sound novels such as Machi (1998) and 428: Shibuya Scramble (2008) developed the multiple-perspective concept further. They allow the player to alternate between the perspectives of several or more different characters, making choices with one character that have consequences for other characters. 428 in particular features up to 85 different possible endings. Another popular visual novel featuring multiple perspectives
5969-448: The non-player characters in the game. Often, the protagonist (that is, the player character ) is left unvoiced, even when the rest of the characters are fully voiced. This choice is meant to aid the player in identifying with the protagonist and to avoid having to record large amounts of dialogue, as the main character typically has the most speaking lines due to the branching nature of visual novels. Non-linear branching storylines are
6096-487: The Class Trials and Daily Event, Goodbye Despair also offers several mini-games. Players always have access to a virtual pet , accessed from the pause menu, that grows as players walk in the game and earns players rewards based on its Hope and Despair statistics. Magical Girl Miracle☆Monomi is a minigame in which players control Monomi, a mentor of the main characters, who fights waves of monsters. Island Mode, which
6223-562: The Condominium Wife ), which was an early adventure game with colour graphics, owing to the eight-color palette of the NEC PC-8001 computer. It became a hit, helping Koei become a major software company. Other now-famous companies such as Enix , Square and Nihon Falcom also produced similar erotic games in the early 1980s before they became famous for their role-playing video games . While some early erotic games integrate
6350-525: The Deadly Life section, which occurs when players discover a crime scene, the player must search for evidence that will help them in the upcoming Class Trial to expose the culprit. The Class Trial, in which players must determine the identity of a culprit, has the same features as the previous game with new gameplay elements. Class Trials, which uses the first-person shooter genre, mostly consist of Nonstop Debates, in which players must find weaknesses in
6477-553: The Joker and Magneto who always survive. Kodaka said Junko can be killed and that she may be the strongest villain he ever created. Danganronpa 2 was first released for the PlayStation Portable in Japan on July 26, 2012. A limited edition that 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 was available. A compilation of
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#17327874491666604-483: The PC-8801 and FM Towns computers in 1990; it featured a branching narrative, multiple endings, and audio CD music. A common feature used in visual novels is having multiple protagonists giving different perspectives on the story. EVE Burst Error (1995), developed by Hiroyuki Kanno and C's Ware, introduced a unique twist to the system by allowing the player to switch between both protagonists at any time during
6731-507: The Sega Master System game Danan: The Jungle Fighter (1990), Taito's Saint Sword (1991), Vivid Image 's home computer game First Samurai (1991), and Vanillaware 's Dragon's Crown (2013). The term "hack-and-slash" in reference to action-adventure games dates back to 1987, when Computer Entertainer reviewed The Legend of Zelda and said it had "more to offer than the typical hack-and-slash" epics. In
6858-477: The Ultimate Hope. Having the courage to create the future, he persuades the other surviving students, Fuyuhiko, princess Sonia Nevermind , mechanic Kazuichi Soda , and gymnast Akane Owari to refuse graduation, proposing that they create a future in which they do not have to live in despair. Hajime, Makoto, and the others reset the system, which revives Usami who uses her power to delete Alter Ego Junko. As
6985-638: The all-ages market in recent years, with titles such as Steins;Gate and Higurashi no Naku Koro ni respectively. In addition to official commercial translations, a vibrant fan translation scene exists, which has translated many free visual novels (such as Narcissu and True Remembrance ) and a few commercial works (such as Umineko no Naku Koro ni and Policenauts ) into English. Fan translations of Japanese visual novels into languages other than English such as Chinese, French, German, and Russian are commonplace as well. English translations of Japanese visual novels on video game consoles were rare until
7112-464: The balance between lighthearted moments and violent deaths, and said the characters are likable and distinct enough from each other enough to make their dating sim events enjoyable and easy. Touch Arcade liked the characters and their dating sim elements, favoriting Ibuki Mioda and Nagito Komaeda. While originally viewing the cast as archetypes, GameInformer noted the writing was good at fleshing them out. Hardcore Gamer had mixed feelings in regards to
7239-949: The best game of 2012. The game sold 69,000 copies during its first week on sale in Japan and was the fifth best-selling game of the week. In Japan, the PSP version sold 162,408 copies during its life cycle. The Steam release had an estimated 178,000 players by July 2018. By October 2021, Spike Chunsoft confirmed that the game had achieved over 1 million sales on PC alone. Several manga publications based on Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair have been conceived. A direct adaptation began serialization in Enterbrain 's Famitsu Comic Clear magazine from December 10, 2012. The spin-off manga Dangan Island - Kokoro Tokonatsu Kokoronpa♪ , Chō-Kōkō-Kyū no Kōun to Kibō to Zetsubō , and Nanami Chiaki no Sayonara Zetsubō Daibōken were published by Mag Garden from October 2013. Another spin-off, Nangoku Zetsubo Carnival! ,
7366-437: The bodies of the deceased students, which are still intact in the real world, once the surviving students "graduate". Alter Ego Junko's ultimate plan is to download herself into every person on the planet. Makoto tells Hajime if the class votes not to graduate and instead hits the “Graduate” and “Repeat” buttons simultaneously, the system will shutdown, reset, and purge Alter Ego Junko. Since there aren’t enough students to activate
7493-407: The cast more human as the story progresses. The characters were designed by Rui Komatsuzaki . In early sketches, Hajime's design differed from those used for the series; his hair was originally meant to be longer, and at one point, he was designed to be wearing glasses. He was the earliest designed character which generated a major contrast between his white clothing to Nagito's dark clothing. Nagito
7620-578: The cast, viewing some as likable and others as annoying despite the more engaging narrative. Similarly, Polygon found few character bondings in the game worthwhile due to some being less likable than the original Danganronpa and the rest dying across the title. Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair won an "Award of Excellence" at the Japan Game Awards 2013 ceremony. Hardcore Gamer awarded it "Best PS Vita Game", "Best New Character" ( Monokuma ) and "Best Adventure Game". Famitsu readers voted it
7747-547: The characters of Goodbye Despair prior to the events of the first game. A Monomi costume is available in the Japanese PS Vita and PlayStation 3 versions of Terraria . Downloadable outfits based on Monokuma and Monomi also appear in the Super Sonico game Motto! SoniComi . Visual novel A visual novel ( VN ) is a form of digital interactive fiction . Visual novels are often associated with
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#17327874491667874-543: The characters real than Trigger Happy Havoc . To bring more variety to the sequel, Monokuma was given a counterpart named Monomi (or Usami). Kodaka also said the islands were used to give players more content to explore, comparing the sequel to the television series Lost in terms of amount of plot twists and how different the narrative is. Kodaka said characters like Nagito, Byakuya, and Gundham were created to confuse returning players due to their similarities with characters from previous games. However, he still feels he made
8001-484: The characters, through exploration of their personalities and evolving interrelationships through the drama of the game's storyline, and to emotionally resonate with the player; repeated playthroughs across a rich cast of characters offers a multi-layered narrative. Games from publisher Key often follow a similar formula: a comedic first half, with a heart-warming romantic middle, followed by a tragic separation, and finally (though not always) an emotional reunion. This formula
8128-484: The content might still not be appropriate for children, and three have never contained erotic content at all. Also, all of KID 's titles are made with general audiences in mind. However, some of these games are later re-released with the addition of erotic scenes, or have a sequel with such. For example, Little Busters! was first released as an all-ages visual novel, but a version with erotic scenes titled Little Busters! Ecstasy came out later, and though Clannad
8255-400: The digital world shuts down, the survivors promise to retain their memories. In the epilogue, Makoto and his friends awaken in the real world and depart the island on a ship. Makoto is confident the students will find a way to revive their friends and that they too can create their futures. Kyoko and Byakuya wish him luck in explaining these events to their superiors in the Future Foundation as
8382-427: The discovery of a body and an investigation is performed, the students deliberate the identity of the murderer in a Class Trial. If the students can identify a murderer in a Class Trial and vote accordingly, that culprit is executed, but if they make the wrong assumption the killer goes free whilst everyone else is sentenced to death. Several students are murdered throughout the game, and, through Hajime's investigation,
8509-567: The early 21st century, journalists covering the video game industry often use the term "hack and slash" to refer to a distinct genre of 3D , third-person , weapon-based, melee action games. Examples include Capcom's Devil May Cry , Onimusha , and Sengoku Basara franchises, Koei Tecmo 's Dynasty Warriors and 3D Ninja Gaiden games, Sony 's Genji: Dawn of the Samurai and God of War , as well as Bayonetta , Darksiders , Dante's Inferno , and No More Heroes . The genre
8636-414: The end of the final episode of the first game's 2013 anime television adaptation Danganronpa: The Animation . An anime adaptation of Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair was initially planned but the producers instead chose to make an original anime series titled Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School , which aired between July and September 2016. The series' second part Despair Arc focuses on
8763-411: The erotic content into a thoughtful and nuanced storylines, others often used it as a simplistic vehicle for fetishism, pleasure, an aid of the lightheaded themes that encourage stress relief or to portray nuances of sexuality. The Japanese game Pai Touch! involves the protagonist gaining the ability to change the size of girls' breasts, and the adventures that ensue in trying to choose which girl to use
8890-456: The focus in visual novels, including Spanish, French, Russian and Mandarin, which have seen increased success due to the popularity of the genre. Sales data for visual novels is frequently unavailable; the sales listed below can be significantly outdated as some of the sources are over a decade old, and series qualified for an entry could be missing. These lists should be referenced carefully. Free visual novels do not appear in these lists due to
9017-666: The game and its predecessor, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc , titled Danganronpa 1・2 Reload , with new touch controls and high resolution graphics, was released in Japan for the PlayStation Vita on October 10, 2013. After releasing the Vita remake of the first game in North America and Europe in February 2014, NIS America released the sequel under the name Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair in Western territories in September 2014. Localization member Robert Schiotis said finding
9144-436: The game is licensed outside Japan with all art assets intact. Certain eroge titles receive re-releases which exclude explicit content in order to be sold to a younger audience, such as ports to consoles or handheld systems where sexually explicit content is not allowed, and storylines referring to aforementioned sex scenes are often omitted from adaptations into other media, unless that media is also pornographic in nature, such as
9271-462: The game once. In Goodbye Despair , players control the new protagonist Hajime Hinata , an amnesiac boy who has just become one of Hope's Peak Academy's "Ultimate" students alongside fifteen others, including the calm but mentally unstable Lucky Student Nagito Komaeda and the seemingly ordinary and quiet Gamer Chiaki Nanami . The game is set on a remote tropical island called Jabberwock Island, where they have been marooned by their alleged teacher,
9398-431: The game started as Kazutaka Kodaka was writing the tie-in prequel light novel to Trigger Happy Havoc , Danganronpa Zero , and added hints about a sequel to the novel following their approval, revolving around the mysterious Izuru Kamukura . Kodaka aimed to develop a unique plot to give players more mysterious elements in a group of islands, inspired by the television series Lost . The protagonist Hajime Hinata
9525-526: The game's narrative and cast was generally favorable. However, the gameplay elements involving class trials earned mixed responses; some writers found some parts of the game uninteresting, while early ones proved unchallenging. Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair was followed by the spin-off Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls , which was released on September 25, 2014, and the anime Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School , which ran from July 11, 2016, to September 29, 2016. A loose sequel to
9652-435: The game), with character sprites ( 立ち絵 , tachi-e ) superimposed onto these; the perspective is usually first-person, with the protagonist remaining unseen. At certain key moments in the plot, special event CG computer graphics are displayed instead; these are more detailed images, drawn specially for that scene rather than being composed from predefined elements, which often use more cinematic camera angles and include
9779-454: The game, instead of finishing one protagonist's scenario before playing the other. EVE Burst Error often requires the player to have both protagonists co-operate with each other at various points during the game, with choices in one scenario affecting the other. An important milestone in the history of visual novels was YU-NO: A Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of this World (1996), which
9906-445: The humor is more adult and perverted than that of the first game, making it feel more innovative for its genre. The class trials earned mixed responses. Giant Bomb praised the way the class trials become progressively more challenging. According to Hardcore Gamer , "So much of Dangranonpa 2 is an immediate, purposeful retread in both mechanics and storytelling" he felt there were not many improvements. Hardcore Gamer appreciated
10033-540: The killers are discovered and executed. Byakuya Togami (later revealed to be the Ultimate Impostor ) is inadvertently killed by Chef Teruteru Hanamura in an attempt to stop Nagito from committing the first murder. Photographer Mahiru Koizumi is killed by swordswoman Peko Pekoyama , to prevent yakuza Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu from killing her to avenge his sister. Musician Ibuki Mioda and traditional dancer Hiyoko Saionji are killed by nurse Mikan Tsumiki as she
10160-558: The latter's creative director cited visual novels such as Danganronpa (2010) as an influence. Additionally, there have been some visual novels developed mainly in English, and intended for an English-speaking audience; one of the earliest commercially-available examples on a mainstream platform is 2004's Sprung , and in more recent times, the availability of the genre has increased, with notable examples being Doki Doki Literature Club! and VA-11 HALL-A . Other languages have been
10287-417: The main protagonist does not advance towards the flow of the story. Kinetic novels are visual novels with non-branching plots, similar to a conventional novel or a graphic novel in multimedia form. Examples of kinetic novels include Higurashi When They Cry , Muv-Luv Alternative , and Digital: A Love Story . The term was first used by the publisher Key for their title Planetarian: The Reverie of
10414-578: The market thrived with the excitement and the risks that were being taken, and became a hotbed of creativity". The branching timeline system was influential, opening "the door for visual novels to become more elaborate and have a greater range of narrative arcs, without requiring the player to replay the game over and over again". According to Nintendo Life , "the modern visual novel genre would simply not exist without" YU-NO . Branching timeline systems similar to YU-NO also later appeared in role-playing video games such as Radiant Historia (2010) and
10541-612: The mechanic in these cases typically consists of intermittent multiple-choice decision points, where the player selects a direction in which to take the game. For example, in a dating simulator -themed visual novel, the player is prompted to pick different characters to date which, in turn, leads to a different ending. This style of gameplay is similar to story-driven interactive fiction , or the shorter and less detailed real-life gamebook books. Some visual novels do not limit themselves into merely interactive fictions, but also incorporate other elements into them. An example of this approach
10668-513: The medium of video games , but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustrations and a varying degree of interactivity . The format is more rarely referred to as novel game , a retranscription of the wasei-eigo term noberu gēmu ( ノベルゲーム ) , which is more often used in Japanese. Visual novels originated in and are especially prevalent in Japan , where they made up nearly 70% of
10795-515: The more popular games have occasionally been ported from PC (or a hardware equivalent) to systems such as the Sega Saturn , Dreamcast , PlayStation Portable , or Xbox 360 . The more famous visual novels are also often adapted into light novels , manga , or anime , and are sometimes succeeded or complemented by video games such as role-playing games or action games set in the same universe. The market for visual novels outside of East Asia
10922-549: The name Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Anniversary Edition , was released on August 20, 2020. This version features the gallery mode, allowing players to replay the character voices and view event illustrations. During E3 2021 , it was announced that this version of the game will also be released for the Nintendo Switch in 2021, both as part of the Danganronpa Decadence bundle, as well as separately. It
11049-399: The narrative style of literature , visual novels have evolved a style somewhat different from print novels. In general, visual novels are more likely to be narrated in the first person than the third, and typically present events from the point of view of only one character. In the typical visual novel, the graphics comprise a set of generic backgrounds (normally just one for each location in
11176-411: The need to keep the notch on the right, they also considered the cellphone versions superior to previous versions in terms of performance, content, and interface. GameSpot enjoyed the class trials for staying true to the original formula but gave a negative response to the minigames, which the reviewer said feel unnecessary. GameSpot also praised the plot and cast. GameRevolution said the additions to
11303-414: The new setting and enjoyed the multiple plot twists for being more difficult to understand than those of the previous game, and added references to other games made him feel the plot is self-aware. Touch Arcade praised the touch controls of the cellphone versions and said the camera control in particular is vastly better than in any previous version of the game. While criticizing the lack of cloud saving and
11430-487: The novel Danganronpa Zero , which he decided to write after consulting producer Terasawa. While writing Zero , Kodaka was approached by Terasawa with the idea of writing a sequel, and took on writing for both Zero and Goodbye Despair concurrently, eventually finishing with the former in October 2011. Kodaka considers the novels needed more structuring work than the game. As Zero foreshadows events of Goodbye Despair , Kodaka recommends gamers read Zero before playing
11557-464: The original class trial system are enjoyable because they provide more variety in terms of gameplay but found some mechanics annoying. Due to the multiple minigames of the class trials, Game Revolution wished the game had focused more on its visual novel style, which he felt is the part of the game that stood out the most. Hardcore Gamer enjoyed the blade-based style in the form of the Rebuttals and
11684-418: The original version of Goodbye Despair in its release year. This surprised Ogata because the anagram had been kept secret from the other developers and voice actors, including Ogata. Other characters include the heroine Chiaki Nanami , with whom Hajime would often interact and bond romantically; Kodaka said the relationship between Makoto and Kyoko Kirigiri , a skilled detective and supporting character from
11811-439: The player character would say them. Such titles revolving around relationship-building, including visual novels as well as dating simulations , such as Tokimeki Memorial , and some role-playing video games , such as Persona , often give choices that have a different number of associated "mood points" that influence a player character's relationship, and future conversations, with a non-player character. These games often feature
11938-470: The plot. Conversing with characters during "Free Time" sections earns items known as Hope Fragments, which can be exchanged for skills that can be used in the Class Trial, increasing the protagonist's skill in debates. Players earn currency known as Monocoins by finding hidden Monokuma Figures and performing well in trials. Monocoins can be exchanged for presents that can be given to other characters during Free Time segments and thus create more Hope Fragments. In
12065-461: The power on the most. Another subgenre is called "nukige" ( 抜きゲー ) , in which sexual gratification of the player is the main focus of the game. In 1986, Square released the science fiction adventure game Suishō no Dragon for the NES console . The game featured several innovations, including the use of animation in many of the scenes rather than still images, and an interface resembling that of
12192-465: The previous game, was meant to help the player solve cases. In the Japanese version of the game, Hajime was voiced by Minami Takayama , famous for voicing the main character of the detective manga Case Closed ; the staff put a reference to her career in the snowboarding minigame of Goodbye Despair as Jimmy Kudo often surfs a turbo skateboard. Junko's resurrection was left to the player's interpretation. Kodaka compared her to comic book villains like
12319-498: The protagonist. These event CGs can usually be viewed at any time once they have been "unlocked" by finding them in-game; this provides a motivation to replay the game and try making different decisions, as it is normally impossible to view all special events on a single play-through. Up until the 1990s, the majority of visual novels utilized pixel art . This was particularly common on the NEC PC-9801 format, which showcased what
12446-509: The reader is the H-scenes (sex scenes) will have a stronger emotional impact for the two (or possibly more) characters. Some of Japan's earliest adventure games were erotic bishōjo games developed by Koei . In 1982, they released Night Life , the first commercial erotic computer game . It was a graphic adventure , with sexually explicit images. That same year, they released another erotic title, Danchi Tsuma no Yūwaku ( Seduction of
12573-742: The release of the Nintendo DS , though some games with visual novel elements had been published in the Western world before then, such as Hideo Kojima 's Snatcher . Following the success of mystery titles for the Nintendo DS such as Capcom 's Ace Attorney series (which began on the Game Boy Advance in 2001), Cing's Hotel Dusk series (beginning in 2006), and Level-5 's Professor Layton series (beginning in 2007), Japanese visual novels have been published in other countries more frequently. The success of these games has sparked
12700-512: The revised Hangman’s Gambit, which come across as improvements. According to Video Gamer , the gameplay mechanics are one of the title's weak points. The characters and their interactions with Hajime were the subject of praise. Video Gamer praised the returning villain Monokuma and said the cast provide enjoyment despite having mixed thoughts about their originality due to most being stereotypes previously seen in other games. Joystiq praised
12827-452: The same length restrictions as a physical book. For example, the total word count of the English fan translation of Fate/stay night , taking all the branching paths into account, exceeds that of The Lord of the Rings by almost 80%. This significant increase in length allows visual novels to tell stories as long and complex as those often found in traditional novels, while still maintaining
12954-402: The searches for clues when interacting with the cast. He said newcomers to the franchise would be confused by the story of Goodbye Despair , which is connected with the plot of the first game. On the other hand, Game Revolution stated the mystery involving the connection between two Danganronpa games is obvious and it does not confuse newcomers, who would notice clues. The reviewer also said
13081-416: The sequel. The writer attempted to create unique storytelling methods for Goodbye Despair ; this is more relevant to the second half of the story, in which Hajime starts playing a video game when the player is already controlling Hajime. In retrospect, Kodaka felt proud of the way the game's writing focuses on humans and their emotions. Kodaka felt the second half of Goodbye Despair did a better job of making
13208-422: The series added several variations, including an action gauge that can be raised up or down depending on the situation, and a gauge that the player can manipulate using the analog stick depending on the situation. The success of Sakura Wars led to a wave of games that combine role-playing and visual novel elements, including Thousand Arms , Riviera: The Promised Land , and Luminous Arc . Despite using
13335-433: The series, called Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony , with similar gameplay but a different storyline was released on January 12, 2017. In a similar manner to the series' previous game , Danganronpa 2 has two modes of gameplay; School Life, which is split into Daily Life and Despair Life sections, and the Class Trial. In the dating sim -like "Daily Life" section, players interact with other characters and progress through
13462-441: The shutdown, Makoto’s fellow survivors and friends from the previous game Kyoko Kirigiri and the real Byakuya Togami also enter to allow the shutdown to happen. Junko attempts to deter Hajime by revealing he is Izuru Kamukura, the leader of Ultimate Despair. The other students hesitate, afraid of reverting to their original personalities, but with the help and encouragement of Chiaki's essence, Hajime awakens to his true talent as
13589-417: The students' discussions and shoot them with "Truth Bullets" that contradict them. Yellow "Argue Spots" and blue "Agree Spots" must be shot with a Truth Bullet, indicating someone is telling the truth. In the minigame Hangman's Gambit, players must combine matching letters appearing from both sides of the screen before they collide and combine incorrectly. Combined letters may either be destroyed or used to spell
13716-475: The surviving members but, rather than executing them, decided to rehabilitate them by erasing their memories and putting them in a virtual reality program. During the Graduation Ceremony, Makoto enters the virtual reality before the survivors can choose to Graduate. He warns Hajime that an artificial intelligence copy of Junko has hijacked their program and is trying to manipulate events to possess
13843-437: The term has an entirely different usage, specifically referring to action games with a focus on real-time combat with hand-to-hand weapons as opposed to guns or fists. The two types of hack-and-slash games are largely unrelated, though action role-playing games may combine elements of both. In the context of action video games , the terms "hack and slash" or "slash 'em up" refer to melee weapon-based action games that are
13970-403: The three leave the island. Hajime, having also returned to the real world with the others, watches them depart as he resolves to keep living his life as who he now is. After the release of the first Danganronpa game, there were no plans for a sequel, and the game's development team was split up to work on other projects. As a result, writer Kazutaka Kodaka was attracted to the idea of creating
14097-686: The time they have used a Reflector stone. The game also implemented an original system called Automatic Diverge Mapping System (ADMS), which displays a screen that the player can check at any time to see the direction in which they are heading along the branching plot lines. YU-NO revolutionized the visual novel industry, particularly with its ADMS system. Audiences soon began demanding large-scope plotlines and musical scores of similar quality and ambition to that of YU-NO , and that responded by hiring talent. According to Gamasutra : "The genre became an all-new arena for young artists and musicians once again, with companies willing to take chances on fresh blood;
14224-475: The title after showing his work on the Dragon Quest role-playing video games to a girl he was dating. On finding she did not enjoy them, he was encouraged to make a video game that he described as "for people who haven't played games before." Influenced by the early survival horror game Sweet Home , he developed it into a horror-themed interactive story. Chunsoft's next release, Kamaitachi no Yoru ,
14351-408: The unreliability of download numbers and for consistency with other best-selling lists. Hack and slash Hack and slash , also known as hack and slay ( H&S or HnS ) or slash 'em up , refers to a type of gameplay that emphasizes combat with melee -based weapons (such as swords or blades). They may also feature projectile-based weapons as well (such as guns) as secondary weapons. It
14478-410: The usual "black and white choice systems" (referring to video games such as Mass Effect , Fallout 3 and BioShock ) where you "pick a side and stick with it" while leaving "the expansive middle area between unexplored". School Days instead encourages players to explore the grey, neutral middle-ground in order to view the more interesting, "bad" endings, e. g. an ending where a character dies or
14605-982: The value of having a family. It was voted the best bishōjo game of all time in a poll held by Dengeki G's Magazine . It served as the basis for a media franchise, with successful adaptations into a light novel , manga , animated film , and acclaimed anime series . In 2008, several of Key's visual novels were voted in the Dengeki poll of the ten most tear-inducing games of all time, including Clannad at No. 2, Kanon at No. 4, Air at No. 7, and Little Busters! at No. 10. In 2011, several visual novels were also voted in Famitsu ' s poll of 20 most tear-inducing games of all time, with Clannad at No. 4, Steins;Gate at No. 6, Air at No. 7, Little Busters! at No. 10, and 428: Shibuya Scramble at No. 14. After developing The Portopia Serial Murder Case , Chunsoft released Otogiriso in 1992. Koichi Nakamura conceived
14732-485: The year 2000, few Japanese visual novels were translated into other languages. As with the visual novel genre in general, a majority of titles released for the PC have been eroge , with Hirameki 's now-discontinued AnimePlay series a notable exception. As of 2014, JAST USA and MangaGamer are the two most prolific publishers of translated visual novels for the PC; both primarily release eroge, but have begun to diversify into
14859-577: Was "heavily hyped [and] had gamers impatient until its release. It was only one game released by Key so far, and yet [it] had already sent major shockwaves around the industry. And yet another game [ Air ], two years later, sent even more shockwaves. Air was equally hyped and well received." Key's "crying game" formula used successfully in One and Kanon was later adopted by other visual novel companies to create their own "crying games". Examples of this include: Kana: Little Sister (1999) by Digital Object,
14986-422: Was "hooked from the get-go, enthralled by every surprise turn taken by the story, stunned by every unexpected character revelation, devastated at every death, and pumping my fist at every small victory against that bastard Monokuma". Polygon 's reviewer found the cast's traits repetitive but enjoyed the dating sim elements. He found the trials more challenging and engaging than those of the original game, including
15113-434: Was also a best seller and would prove to be highly influential. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni ( When They Cry ) was a 2002 horror-themed visual novel by 07th Expansion , influenced by the "crying game" subgenre. Ryukishi07 of 07th Expansion mentioned in 2004 how he was influenced by Key 's works and Tsukihime during the planning of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni . He played their games, as well as other visual novels, as
15240-433: Was also released for Xbox One and Windows via Microsoft Store on May 10, 2022. It was made available through Xbox Game Pass on the same day. Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair received "generally favorable" reviews based on Metacritic reviews. Upon its release in North America, the game was met with praise for its plot. VideoGamer said " Danganronpa 2 tells a great story that is worthy of your time" while GameSpot
15367-451: Was developed by Hiroyuki Kanno and is ELF 's most famous visual novel. It featured non-linear storytelling, with a science fiction plot revolving around time travel and parallel universes . The player travels between parallel worlds using a Reflector device, which employs a limited number of stones to mark a certain position as a returning location, so that if the player decides to retrace their steps, they can go to an alternate universe to
15494-527: Was influenced primarily by Hiroyuki Kanno 's YU-NO: A Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of this World (1996) and Leaf's To Heart (1997), and was further developed in One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e (1998) by Tactics . After One was complete, the development team quit Tactics to form Key where they developed their first title Kanon , also based upon this formula. According to Satoshi Todome in his book, A History of Adult Games , Kanon
15621-493: Was inspired by The Portopia Serial Murder Case to enter the video game industry, and later produced his own adventure games . After completing the stealth game Metal Gear , his first graphic adventure was released by Konami the following year: Snatcher (1988), an ambitious cyberpunk detective novel, graphic adventure, that was highly regarded at the time for pushing the boundaries of video game storytelling, cinematic cut scenes , and mature content. It also featured
15748-508: Was largely similar to Snatcher , but with the addition of a point-and-click interface and some first-person shooter segments. Policenauts also introduced summary screens, which act to refresh the player's memory of the plot upon reloading a saved game (save), an element Kojima would later use in Metal Gear Solid . The PlayStation version of Policenauts could also read the memory card and give some easter egg dialogues if
15875-495: Was made to be an absolute rival to Hajime, with a relationship similar to the one between the Joker and Batman in Batman (1989). Some traits of Nagito ended up making players believe the characters Makoto Naegi and Nagito Komaeda may be the same person, as Makoto and Nagito were both voiced by female actor Megumi Ogata . The name "Nagito Komaeda" was conceived as an anagram for "Naegi Makoto da" ("I am Makoto Naegi") to infer it
16002-713: Was serialized in GA Bunko 's magazine from April 2013. Other two include 4Koma Kings and Comic Anthology compilations by various artists. Dark Horse Comics has released the Chō-Kōkō-Kyū no Kōun to Kibō to Zetsubō manga under the title Danganronpa 2: Ultimate Luck and Hope and Despair in North America on September 15, 2018. They also published the first of three volumes of the Super Danganronpa 2: Sayonara Zetsubou Gakuen manga, as Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair in North America, on March 25, 2020. Monomi appears at
16129-406: Was well received in Japan for its well-told storyline and surprising twist ending , and for allowing multiple ways to achieve objectives. Shortly after, in 1988, Snatcher appeared, developed by Hideo Kojima and released for the PC-8801 and MSX2 in 1988, in which a cyberpunk detective hunts down a serial killer. Another more non-linear early example was Mirrors , released by Soft Studio Wing for
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