Over the course of this year, I’ve played my way through all three games in the main Danganronpa series. They’re a strange bunch of visual novel games combining aspects of Battle Royale, Phoenix Wright, and a dating sim. I’ve already reviewed the first two games, but it’s been 5 years since the franchise has had a new entry. With the leap from the PSP to the PS Vita and PS4 and the promise of a fresh start to the series, the only question left to ask is whether or not one of the most original series in gaming can continue to surprise.

Danganronpa V3 promises players a new take on Danganronpa, being in a new universe with a new story and new characters unrelated to the first two games. It stars Kaede Akamatsu, the Ultimate pianist as she wakes up in a classroom of the Ultimate Academy for Gifted Juveniles. With her is a boy by the name of Shuichi Saihara, the ultimate detective. Eventually they find the rest of their class and are introduced to the Monokubs, small colored teddy bears with loud personalities that control the school through the use of giant mechs. After settling the class down, the kubs reintroduce the master of events, Monokuma, who explains the rules of the killing game.

As before, the game requires that all students must remain in the academy until one is killed by another. After which the remaining students will be given time to investigate followed by a class trial in which they’ll try to figure out who committed the murder. If the class finds the culprit, the killer is executed in a flashy and ironic fashion, but if they’re wrong the killer is allowed to go free while the rest of the class is killed instead. Over the course of the game classmates are killed off one by one as cryptic hints to the state of the outside world are found around the campus.

The framing of the story is pretty similar to the other two games. A killing game and class trial loop keeping the class busy while they try to find a means of escape and discover the mastermind behind their situation. However, this is hands down the best Danganronpa game thus far. This comes down to the characters and the mysteries.

The characters in this game are fantastic. All unique and fleshed out, they aren’t simply defined by their talents, but instead have certain personality traits that one might expect of people with these talents. The game also explores what life is like for people possessing such incredible gifts and the effect that can have on their quality of life. Kaede herself makes for an excellent protagonist throughout the game with an upbeat attitude and a fun personality, playing as her is loads of fun. Her sidekick Shuichi is a welcome addition as well, offering a counterbalance to her unbeat attitude with a realistic and sometimes cynical view of the events unfolding.

The cases are also improved this time around. Small details leading to big discoveries and a faster flow to the investigations make the game feel more natural and it never slows down. With the improved pacing comes more interesting and investing cases allowing the complexity to go through the roof without getting too confusing. Hints about the mastermind and endgame are also doled out more evenly this time around, keeping the cases in the middle of the game from feeling separated from the core experience.

The game’s tone is just as whacky as ever, balancing some extremely funny moments and references to other forms of media, with 4th wall-breaking meta narrative, and some equally saddening and emotional parts as well. Initially the Monokubs come off as annoying, but once Monokuma is around to rein them in they become a welcome addition to the cast. Side note: as a Prince of Tennis fan, naming the ultimate tennis player Ryoma and having him make references to the show is much appreciated.

All that being said, I do have one minor gripe with the story, and it has more to do with the advertising than anything. The game has been marketed as a fresh reboot of the Danganronpa series, but there are elements here that make a world of difference if the player has played the original games first. While I can still confidently say that newcomers will have an absolute blast with this game, I have to add that veterans of the series will have an exponentially better time with it, particularly towards the end, which is one of the trippiest and most exciting endings to a game ever made.

Presentation-wise the game is magnificent. Character designs are all unique and varied, the environments are well designed at a crisp clear 1080p, and the style is as eye-catching as ever. At first it’s a bit disappointing to see that the game isn’t fully animated, but after realizing that it’s also available on the PS Vita, it makes sense. Plus when the game does have fully rendered cutscenes they’re well worth the wait. Characters are expressive and the voice acting is top-notch. The music, while having quite a few repeat tracks from the previous games has just enough new tracks and jazzy smooth remixes to make this game stand out as having the best soundtrack in the series.

The gameplay, as before, is divided into three sections. Getting to know classmates on a day to day basis, investigating a crimes scene after a murder is committed, and finding the culprit during the class trial. Many elements of each are the same, but most have been improved and tweaked in ways that really add to this structure. 

When it comes to meeting classmates, it’s pretty much exactly the same as the previous games. Going up to one or two people a day to hang out, giving them a present to earn their love, and using the friendship shards as currency to buy new abilities to use in the class trials. It’s great getting to know fellow classmates and their backstories, with each one having surprises and adding depth to these already interesting characters. However it would have been nice to have more time to do this between cases, particularly since it’s never clear who’s going to be the next player on the chopping block. 

Buying presents one at a time is still kind of tedious and a system in which the player has to select a dialogue option most favorable to the person they’re talking to may have made for a better solution. Still, the option to talk to all classmates post-game to get all of their stories is definitely a welcome addition with additional options for romancing them as well.

Investigations are fairly simple. Going from one room to another, finding evidence, and talking to witnesses are all key factors in determining the culprit. While the game does still hold the player’s hand a bit and require them to find every object in a room before leaving, there is some choice in which rooms to investigate first. Not a major change, but due to the improved pacing mentioned earlier, the investigations fly by while taking just enough time to theorize about how certain pieces of the puzzle fit together.

Finally, the crux of the gameplay is the class trials. Like the first game, these center around nonstop debates in which the player must listen to the statements given during a cyclical argument and use evidence found during the investigation to point out a contradiction. In addition to that players also have the option to agree with a possibility presented during a case or to lie to the class in order to get closer to the truth. Contrary to previous titles, nearly all nonstop debates make sense in this game, with only one or two being questionably abstract in their reasoning. The controls are tight and responsive and finally figuring out where the case will be taken next is tons of fun.

This game also features mini games to keep things varied and interesting. Psyche taxi replaces the surfing minigame from Danganronpa 2 and has players collect letters to ask a question and pick up the hooker on the street that has the right answer. Mind mine requires players to excavate color changing blocks to reveal a hidden clue. Debate scrums have players in two teams trying to win an argument in a fast-paced debate. And thank god, Hangman’s gambit 3.0 is actually really fun, making third time the charm for this anagram deciphering game. Lastly, the mass panic debates require players to listen to three sets of people talking over one another to figure out which contains the contradiction.

Players can also be interrupted and get into a one on one debate with a classmate in an improved rebuttal showdown. Every single one of these minigames is fun to play and a welcome addition to the Danganronpa games. Each case concludes with a rhythm-based final battle followed by a summary of the entire crime in a manga comic from start to finish, both of which are also much better than in previous games. While all of the minigames within the story are great, those outside of the game… not so much.

Post-game rewards players with the aforementioned ability to fill the friendship meter with all of the classmates, but also unlocks a new minigame that combines Mario Party with Final Fantasy and it’s pretty disappointing. Grindy, slow gameplay interspersed within a few fun cutscenes makes for a supremely boring grind that isn’t worth the time invested into it. It would have been better to just turn the elements of the main game into shorter mini games and then have a full on Mario Party clone instead. 

All in all, Danganronpa V3 is the best game in the series. It not only improves on nearly every aspect of the previous two games, but innovates in both plot and gameplay to make for the best visual novel game to be released in a long while. While I do recommend those new to the franchise play the originals first, if they don’t they’ll still be able to have an excellent time with this game which is why Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony for the PS4 get s a 9.5 out of 10 and a spot on the MightyNifty must play list due to its masterful ability to showcase what the visual novel genre is capable of. 

Had it not been for the poor post-game content this game could have been the first 10 out of 10 on this channel, but as it stands it’s still well worth playing in its own right and if another entry to the series is made, I’ll be the first in line to give it a shot. That being said I hope you enjoyed this review. If you did, be sure to like and subscribe to see more mighty reviews, dissections, and other gaming content. And as always, have a mighty nifty day today!