Danganronpa

Danganronpa (ダンガンロンパ Dangan Ronpa in the original Japanese) is a Japanese video game franchise developed and published originally by Spike (later merged with Chunsoft as Spike Chunsoft) and localized by NIS America in 2014 and later by Spike Chunsoft in 2020. The series currently consists of three main titles and two major spin-off games. The franchise also includes some anime, manga, mobile games, and light novel spin-offs based on the Danganronpa universe and characters.

Premise
The series revolves around an exclusive, government-funded high school called Hope's Peak Academy (希望ヶ峰学園, Kibōgamine Academy) which, every year, selects "Ultimate" students (超高校級, Super High School Level) who are at the top of their field, and one average "Ultimate Lucky Student" who is chosen by lottery. However, when average student Makoto Naegi arrives at the school, he loses consciousness, and when he wakes up discovers that he and his 14 classmates have been trapped within the school. Headmaster Monokuma, a sadistic robot bear, informs the students that they will be forced to live within the school forever, with only one way to leave: murdering another student and getting away with it.

When a crime scene is discovered, a Class Trial is held, in which the remaining students must decide amongst themselves who the murderer is. If the students successfully discover the murderer, the culprit will be executed, and the killing game continues. However, if they guess incorrectly, the culprit will be able to leave the school, but the other students will be executed.

Gameplay
The main Danganronpa visual novel games are split into three play styles: Daily Life, Investigation, and Class Trial.
 * During School Life, the player explores the school grounds, builds relationships with students, and investigates the mystery of the students' captivity. Monocoins collected throughout this free-roam mode can be spent on presents at the MonoMono Machine, which can be given to other students to increase their friendship with the protagonist. Becoming friends with another student will grant the protagonist special skills, which can be used during the Class Trial mode.
 * During Investigation, the player searches for evidence relating to a murder.
 * During Class Trial, the students try to solve the murder by discussing the evidence they have. The player plays several mini-games to progress the trial. The most common mini-game, Nonstop Debate, involves the player trying to refute the students' statements using Truth Bullets based on the evidence they collected during the Investigation mode.

Unlike the series' main titles, Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls, is a third-person adventure game in which the player controls Komaru Naegi and Toko Fukawa. Komaru has a Megaphone Hacking Gun with which to attack enemies, but which can also control enemies, activate machinery, and scan the environment for clues. Toko can use a stun gun to temporarily turn herself into Genocide Jack, who can attack enemies with scissors. Skills can be unlocked and equipped, which makes it easier to defeat enemies.

Development
The series originally began as an unpublished beta called DISTRUST, written by Kazutaka Kodaka, produced by Yoshinori Terasawa and with art by Rui Komatsuzaki. The game was inspired by movies such as Saw and Cube, and the Sega Dreamcast game Illbleed. The series' name, Danganronpa, is compounded from the words "bullet" (弾丸 dangan) and "refutation" (論破 ronpa), as the game blends shooting (with Truth Bullets) and crime investigation. Because visual novels were becoming less popular at the time, and because the PSP had a very small, competitive market, it was necessary to develop unique elements and combine genres which would not normally mix in order to make the game stand out.

While DISTRUST included more grotesque executions and realistic red blood, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, the game developed based on the concept of DISTRUST, uses a more distinct pop-art style with unrealistic, fluorescent pink blood and horror which is more psychological and toned-down. The change was made in order that the audience did not focus on the grotesqueness of the situation, and instead could focus on the relationships and personalities of characters  and the psychological impact of the scenario. This change also meant that the game's age rating could be lowered, widening its audience. Hiring Nobuyo Ōyama as the voice actress for Monokuma was a huge turning point in the game's development, and it led to an all-time high in hits on the game's development website. Monokuma was her first voice acting role after retiring as the voice of Doraemon after 27 years. Hiring a voice cast that was very well known from popular anime series led to a lot of fan interest outside of people who would usually be interested in a game like Danganronpa, which was the development team's goal.

Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc ultimately earned an aggregate review score of 83/100 on Metacritic, which opened the door to sequels and an anime adaptation. The success has led to the games being localized in multiple languages and published in many countries worldwide.

Spin-off Games
Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls is a midquel, set between Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc and Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair. Unlike the games in the main series, Ultra Despair Girls is a third-person action-adventure game, with a battle system. It has a much greater focus on exploration and world-building collectibles.

Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp is an expanded version of Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony's Ultimate Talent Development Plan, 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.

Anime
Danganronpa's anime series are animated by Lerche, and licensed by Funimation in North America and Manga Entertainment in Europe. They are available with Japanese, English, and German voice acting. Danganronpa 2.5: Nagito Komaeda and the World Vanquisher is a one-episode OVA included with the special edition version of Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony, and as such is currently only available in Japanese.

Game Consoles
Sony released three themed PlayStation games consoles as part of the promotion for the release of Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony. They were released exclusively in Japan on January 12, 2017.

Trivia

 * 107 Danganronpa Facts YOU Should Know!! The Leaderboard August 5, 2017, the popular internet channel The Leaderboard released a video for their 107 Facts series about the Danganronpa franchise.
 * DANGANRONPA (Honest Game Trailers) August 29, 2017, the popular internet channel Smosh Games released a video for their Honest Trailer series about the Danganronpa franchise.
 * The Complete, Unabridged Timeline of Danganronpa April 28, 2021, the internet channel EruptionFang released a video for their Complete Timeline series about the Danganronpa franchise.
 * Danganronpa franchise was referenced in AI: The Somnium Files several times. Iris's comment about a panda ride references Monokuma and Executions. Junko Enoshima's autograph can be seen in Mayumi's restaurant and read in her Somnium. The franchise itself is even referenced by name when investigating the dashboard in Date's car once. Iris comments "Dangan," to which Date replies with "Ronpa."