I'm probably going to Accentuate the Negative in this review, but I'd like to make clear that despite my reasons for having only bought the first two games, my overall opinion of Dangan Ronpa is still positive.
There are two very significant aspects of this series that effectively make it what it is and contribute immensely to its appeal, but could be deal-breakers if you've got issues with one or both of them. The first is that Dangan Ronpa is dark; the main villain of the series is motivated exclusively by a desire to cause as much despair as possible, and to that end, they'll go to great lengths to make the protagonists suffer. The cruelty exhibited by the main villain came off as senseless at times, and that's because it was supposed to be. The second is that Dangan Ronpa is very over-the-top; the characters are often caricatures, the villain is ridiculous, and the story, while starting out reasonable, eventually reaches a point at which it is in danger of breaking Willing Suspension of Disbelief. The latter, while usually good for humor, ultimately played a role in my decision to just read synopses and watch Let's Plays after completing the second game.
Dangan Ronpa has more than its share of funny moments, alternating between Black Comedy and more lighthearted gags. Personally, despite its reliance on the absurd, I think it does a better job with the former. That's not to say I wasn't able to laugh in the lighter moments, simply that I believe I would have enjoyed them more were I not expecting someone to be murdered soon after.
As a fan of the Ace Attorney series, I was able to enjoy the mystery aspect of Dangan Ronpa, feeling right at home investigating and solving the murders that happen in the games. Like the Ace Attorney games, the characters are often good for a laugh, if nothing else, and there were some I was able to grow legitimately attached to.
My main problem with the series, as I mentioned earlier, stems from its over-the-top nature. While it worked well for the moments meant to be funny, problems arose for me when the series applied this formula to something it took far more seriously. I found the finale of the first game annoyingly heavy-handed in its delivery of the "hope vs. despair" theme. I also think that while the villain's character was well-written, the developers made a critical mistake regarding the villain's actions that severely restricted where they could go with the series after the first game. To avoid spoilers, I will not name the mistake. All I will say is that it involves spectacle creep.
Good, but Nothing Incredible
I'm probably going to Accentuate the Negative in this review, but I'd like to make clear that despite my reasons for having only bought the first two games, my overall opinion of Dangan Ronpa is still positive.
There are two very significant aspects of this series that effectively make it what it is and contribute immensely to its appeal, but could be deal-breakers if you've got issues with one or both of them. The first is that Dangan Ronpa is dark; the main villain of the series is motivated exclusively by a desire to cause as much despair as possible, and to that end, they'll go to great lengths to make the protagonists suffer. The cruelty exhibited by the main villain came off as senseless at times, and that's because it was supposed to be. The second is that Dangan Ronpa is very over-the-top; the characters are often caricatures, the villain is ridiculous, and the story, while starting out reasonable, eventually reaches a point at which it is in danger of breaking Willing Suspension of Disbelief. The latter, while usually good for humor, ultimately played a role in my decision to just read synopses and watch Let's Plays after completing the second game.
Dangan Ronpa has more than its share of funny moments, alternating between Black Comedy and more lighthearted gags. Personally, despite its reliance on the absurd, I think it does a better job with the former. That's not to say I wasn't able to laugh in the lighter moments, simply that I believe I would have enjoyed them more were I not expecting someone to be murdered soon after.
As a fan of the Ace Attorney series, I was able to enjoy the mystery aspect of Dangan Ronpa, feeling right at home investigating and solving the murders that happen in the games. Like the Ace Attorney games, the characters are often good for a laugh, if nothing else, and there were some I was able to grow legitimately attached to.
My main problem with the series, as I mentioned earlier, stems from its over-the-top nature. While it worked well for the moments meant to be funny, problems arose for me when the series applied this formula to something it took far more seriously. I found the finale of the first game annoyingly heavy-handed in its delivery of the "hope vs. despair" theme. I also think that while the villain's character was well-written, the developers made a critical mistake regarding the villain's actions that severely restricted where they could go with the series after the first game. To avoid spoilers, I will not name the mistake. All I will say is that it involves spectacle creep
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