Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp

"An all-star cast of characters from the Danganronpa series, will come together to battle at a tropical resort!"

Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp, known in Japan as Happy Danganronpa S: Super High School Level Tropical Dice Camp (ハッピーダンガンロンパＳ 超高校級の南国サイコロ合宿), is an expanded version of Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony's Ultimate Talent Development Plan, released as part of the Danganronpa 10th Anniversary celebration. In Japan and Taiwan, the game released on November 4th, 2021, and released in North America and Europe on December 3, 2021. Originally a Nintendo Switch exclusive, it will be ported to PlayStation 4, Steam, iOS and Android on July 21st, 2022.

The game is a RPG board game featuring characters from Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair, Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony and Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls.

The game is currently available as a physical-only bundle for Danganronpa Decadence, or standalone in digital format from the Nintendo eShop.

Synopsis

 * "With an all-star dream lineup of characters from each Danganronpa game, gather Hope Fragments at a tropical resort. Explore Jabberwock Island and develop your Dangan characters. Gather money through battle and upgrade your equipment, then defeat bosses and move on to the next island!"- Official synopsis

Mechanics
Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp is an expanded, stand-alone installment of the board game minigame Ultimate Talent Development Plan (UTDP) which previously featured as post-game bonus content in Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony. Danganronpa S is set in an alternate universe in which characters from all four games are able to interact as peers, in a non-killing peaceful environment based on Jabberwock Island, the tropical location of Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair. Danganronpa S features new sets of sprites featuring the characters in beachwear, new CGs, and new encounters not featured in the original board game. The game features 60 characters and over 1,000 different character events.

Like it's predecessor UTDP, the game features three main modes which work in a cyclical system:
 * The player can play as any main character from Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair, Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony - or, new to this new installment - Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls. The player unlocks these characters by earning cards from the via a gacha system. There are three MonoMono Machines themed around the machines from the 3 main Danganronpa games, with each machine allowing the player to obtain differing rarities of card. All content such as characters, character upgrade cards, and items can be unlocked by playing the game, with coins earned by playing the battle mode. However, all characters and character upgrade cards can also be purchased through the MonoMono Machines at the School Store with real-world money.
 * The player can then use their unlocked characters to play the board game mode, which features cross-over interactions similar to Free Time Events between characters from all four games, allowing characters to interact with characters they never would have met in the normal timeline. The player has 50 days (50 turns) to navigate the Jabberwock Island camp map, encountering other characters, raising their character's abilities, learning skills or obtaining equipment based on which tiles they land on on the board. The higher the card rarity of the character you are playing as, the more significant their stats will be boosted during board game evets. The aim is to defeat all of the Monobeasts on the island, and level up enough to climb higher up the Tower of Despair.
 * Once the characters are leveled up, the player can then use them in the Tower of Despair dungeon crawler minigame, a battle mode where players defeat waves of enemies in a 200-story tower. The player can create a party of up to 4 characters, who each have different stats and abilities based on how they were leveled up during the board game mode. The player must battle through each wave in order to proceed to the next level of the tower. Each level also has 3 special missions to complete, which when achieved, will grant the player a bonus Monocoin reward for the gacha. Additionally, the enemies drop items which can be used to forge weapons and armor for strengthening your characters.

Early Development
According to director Shun Sasaki: "The first Danganronpa game became 10 years old in November 2020. [Danganronpa S] all started with our wish to release some kind of new Danganronpa game in time for the 10th anniversary. We considered many different ways to capture the festive feeling of this milestone, and decided that evolving Danganronpa V3's bonus mode would be a great way to let the whole all-star cast of characters in Danganronpa 's history share the spotlight. That's what lead to the creation of Danganronpa S."

On November 13th, 2017, a job listing was posted by developer Spike Chunsoft on Japanese website Levtech seeking a game programmer, character designer, and 3D designer for a future Danganronpa game to be launched on the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. On December 20th, 2019, another job listing was posted on Workport by Spike Chunsoft seeking a UI designer to work on an adventure game for PlayStation 4 and PC (Steam). One of the required job qualifications is "someone who likes the Danganronpa series." The other requirements are that the applicant has professional communication skills, as well as experience in UI creation for a console title or equivalent PC or browser title. Both of these listings led to heavy speculation by games journalists and the fandom of an upcoming Danganronpa title. The latter job listing is likely to have been related to Danganronpa Decadence, specifically the UI for the Anniversary Editions and Danganronpa S.

On December 27th, 2019, Spike Chunsoft and TooKyo Games contributed to a "Game Developers New Years Messages" segment in Famitsu gaming magazine, in which both companies confirmed that they are working on something for the 10th anniversary of Danganronpa in 2020. Spike Chunsoft said: "We're preparing many projects for Danganronpa's 10th anniversary.", while TooKyo games said: "We want to create a reunion party-like atmosphere with the players working together with Spike Chunsoft for Danganronpa's 10th anniversary." On April 9th, 2020 it was announced by Spike Chunsoft in Famitsu online gaming magazine that "a lot of new information on games, goods, tie-ins monthly commemorative programs, etc" would be announced over the course of 2020-2021 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the series, in what was titled the Danganronpa 10th Anniversary Project. . The first major announcement came in the form of a special segment in the Famitsu/Dengeki Game Awards 2019 online stream on April 18th, 2020, in which the three main-line Danganronpa video games were announced to be ported to smartphones. .

Announcement
Danganronpa Decade was announced as part of Nintendo's 2021 E3 Nintendo Direct presentation on June 15th, 2021 with a 1:50min trailer. It was revealed the collection would include the debut of Danganronpa S alongside the three Anniversary Edition ports, and all four games would also be released digitally as individual titles on the Nintendo eShop. Sub-sites were created on both Danganronpa.com and the Spike Chunsoft English division website, showcasing a number of in-game screenshots, the Danganronpa Decade and Danganronpa S logos, and a new piece of key art by Danganronpa character designer Rui Komatsuzaki. The North American pre-order contents and box art were revealed later that same day by Spike Chunsoft's English division.

Development
Unlike all previous main games in the franchise, which were directed by Kazutaka Kodaka, the development team for Danganronpa S was helmed by director Shun Sasaki, who was also the director for the original Ultimate Talent Development Plan. The team brought back Yoichiro Koizumi, Nami Tayama and Satomi Hachimura - the writers behind the Free Time Events and Hotel Kumasutra events featured in Danganronpa V3 - to write all brand new scenes for the game. The vision for the game was an alternate universe based on the question "what if Hope's Peak Academy never had any killing games?". Despite it being an alternate universe however, character's backgrounds and relationships in the main games are unchanged.

The goal with Danganronpa S was to improve on Ultimate Talent Development Plan in all aspects, but it became difficult when it came to upgrading some of the graphical elements. The game was originally being developed with all assets in 2D, but pivoted to 3D for the board game elements to elevate it. The art designers put effort into recreating Jabberwock Island as seen in Danganronpa 2, with all buildings and objects exactly as they were in the original game.

As of July 21st, 2021, Danganronpa S's development was 90% complete, with the developers focusing on game balance and fixing minor bugs.

Release
Danganronpa S is available in the Danganronpa Decadence compilation in physical cartridge format in Standard Edition or Collector's Edition variants with all four games on one game cart, or à la carte as four individual game downloads via the Nintendo eShop. The physical releases are published by Spike Chunsoft worldwide, except in Europe where the game is published by Numskull Games. Both the physical and digital versions are playable on Nintendo Switch in TV mode, tabletop mode, or handheld mode.

The game is available in three languages:

Physical
In North America and Europe, the Danganronpa Decade Collector's Edition includes all four games on one cartridge in an exclusive Collector's Edition steelbook with unique artwork. The game is bundled with a 18x24" cloth poster featuring new artwork by Rui Komatsuzaki of Kyoko, Nagito, and Shuichi; a lenticular print art print set for each of the main three games; and a special 10-track remixed soundtrack CD composed by Masafumi Takada. The Standard Edition includes all four games on one cartridge with no bonus material.

In North America, pre-orders opened on June 21, 2021, with an RRP of $59.99 (Standard Edition) or $99.99 (Collector's Edition). In Europe, pre-orders opened on June 23rd, 2021 with an RRP of £49.99/€59,90 (Standard Edition) or £89.99/€99,90 (Collector's Edition).

In Japan, the physical box set is titled Danganronpa Trilogy Pack + Danganronpa S (ダンガンロンパ トリロジーパック+ハッピーダンガンロンパＳ 超高校級の南国サイコロ合宿) instead of Danganronpa Decadence. It released on November 4th, 2021, featuring Japanese voice and text only. Pre-orders opened on July 19th, 2021, with an RRP of ¥4,980 (standard edition). The premium "Famitsu DX Pack" collector's edition bundle was available exclusively through the Japanese retailer Ebten, and included a B2 tapestry, an acrylic art panel, an eco bag, a bromide of Junko Enoshima, and one Danganronpa S character swimsuit acrylic standee. The bundle was priced at ¥10,978, or  ¥9,878 without the swimsuit standee. A number of other retailers offered pre-order bonuses on the same day, although much of the contents' final artwork is still TBA.

In Taiwan, where the series is called 槍彈辯駁, the physical box set is titled 槍彈辯駁 三部曲合輯 + 幸福槍彈辯駁 S 超高中級的南國擲骰合宿. It will release physically on November 4th, 2021 for 1,350 NT$. Preorders will received four bonus PVC collectible trading cards of Kyoko Kirigiri, Chiaki Nanami, Kaede Akamatsu, and Komaru Naegi.

Digital
In Japan, the digital versions of the Anniversary Edition Nintendo Switch ports and Danganronpa S will release alongside the physical release on November 4th, 2021. The Danganronpa 1, Danganronpa 2, and Danganronpa V3 Anniversary Edition ports are priced at ¥1,782, whereas Danganronpa S is priced at ¥2,000.

In Taiwan, the digital versions of the Anniversary Edition Nintendo Switch ports and Danganronpa S will release alongside the physical release on November 4th, 2021, with the price still to be determined.

Music
Masafumi Takada, the composer of all previous games, returned to compose 10 new remixed soundtracks.

Trivia

 * Danganronpa S is the first standalone game in the franchise to have been neither written nor directed by Kazutaka Kodaka.
 * Danganronpa S Trivia - Aoi and Kyoko swimsuits.png Makoto Naegi, Mikan Tsumiki, Aoi Asahina and Kyoko Kirigiri's S-Rank outfits are based on swimsuits featured in merchandise created as promotional pre-order bonuses for Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School.
 * On the advertising image featuring the European collector's version of Danganronpa Decadence shared by Numskull Games on Twitter, the rating from PEGI is visibly 18, while the first three games in the series were previously released with a PEGI 16 rating. This PEGI is however noted as "provisional". This however could also be a change for all three titles, or a new rating due to the release of Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp.
 * Danganronpa S is the first game in the series to be launched exclusively to a Nintendo platform.
 * At 29 days, Danganronpa S has the shortest period between the Japanese and English releases of any game in the series. The previous games in the series had time periods of 1 year (DR1 vita, DR2 vita, DRAE vita) and 8 months (DRV3) between the Japanese and English releases respectively.
 * This is the first time the real Junko Enoshima has ever appeared on a title screen, despite being a returning character in every game.

Links

 * Danganronpa.com: JP / NA
 * Nintendo Switch e-Shop: NA / EU

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