Summary
Danganronpacreator Kazutaka Kodaka andZero EscapeandAI: The Somnium Filescreator recently announced that they are once again collaborating. Little is known about the currently untitled project, although the pair did hint that more information will be revealed during 2024. On his personal X account,Danganronpa’sKodaka stated that the release was “not too far away,” leading some fans to theorize that it will debut in late 2024 or early 2025. This collaboration, the pair’s second, should play to their strengths within the mystery, horror, and visual novel genres.
Kazutaka Kodaka is best known for theDanganronpaseries, a series of games in which groups of elite high school students are trapped in various scenarios and must successfully commit and get away with murder to escape. In 2023, he stepped away fromDanganronpato releaseMaster Detective Archives: Rain Code,an original mystery title. Kotaro Uchikoshi is best known for theInfinity, Zero Escape,andAI: The Somnium Filesvisual novel series, with his most recent release beingAI: The Somnium Files - nirvanA Initiativein 2022. The two men’s works are often compared because both feature twisty mysteries, quirky detective characters, and surprisingly gruesome deaths.
Kodaka and Uchikoshi’s First Collaboration Received Mixed Reviews
Previously, Kodaka and Uchikoshi collaborated onWorld’s End Club,which released for Apple Arcade in 2020 and Nintendo Switch and PC in 2021. The game received mixed reviews, with critics praising the fun characters and interesting story but feeling that the puzzle-platformer gameplay fell flat. In particular, many felt thatWorld’s End Clubdid not live up to either Kodaka or Uchikoshi’s previous solo work. The game was also criticized for initially presenting itself as a “death game” similar toZero EscapeandDanganronpabut then abandoning this plot in the first chapter in favor of a lighter, more kid-friendly story.
World’s End Clubis so far the only game the two have created together at their co-founded studio Too Kyo Games. They have, however, both contributed work on two anime series, 2020’sAkudama Driveand 2022’sTribe Nine.However, Kodaka’s recent social media activity hints that the upcoming work may be more in line with himself and Uchikoshi’s previous projects. On X, he said the following:
The scenario for the game I’m currently working on is so crazy that I end up working more than doing anything else. Even when things are tough or troublesome, I put more into working and writing the scenario than I do into my free time and resting. I think this might be the first time I’ve been so obsessed with work.
The New Collaboration Should Focus On The Pair’s Strengths
Kodaka and Uchikoshi’s upcoming project, which was teased with single piece of key art that seems to be designed byDanganronpaseriesregular Rui Komatsuzaki, will hopefully have more in common with their popular visual novel series. Some elements worth featuring include:
It remains to be seen exactly what the upcoming game, which may be calledLimit x Despair,will involve. The single revealed art piece is promising, however, as it features many elements associated with Kodaka and Uchikoshi. These include a tanuki who may be a mascot character, likeDanganronpa’sMonokumaorZero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward’sZero 3, a masked figure with a villainous air, and a central character who looks like an ordinary high school girl. Hopefully, more information about the collaboration, including a release date, will be announced soon.
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair
WHERE TO PLAY
Jabberwock Island – once a popular tourist destination, this now uninhabited island remains oddly pristine. You and your classmates at the elite Hope’s Peak Academy have been brought to this island by your super-cute teacher for a “lovey-dovey, heart-throbbing school trip.” Everyone seems to be having fun in the sun…until Monokuma returns to restart his murderous game! Trapped on this island of mutual killing, your only hope of escape rests in solving the island’s mysteries. But be warned—sometimes the truth can be its own despair…Deadly Island Vibes:Murder is the only means of escape when you’re trapped on this island paradise. As your fellow classmates start dropping like coconuts, you’ll need to delve into each murderous incident, forage for clues, and interview your classmates to reveal the opportunity, motive, and means behind each killer case!Tribal Council:You’ll go head-to-head in all new minigames with the other students during the Class Trial, shooting down their false truths and using your evidence to uncover what really happened. But watch out! If a student is unconvinced, they’ll challenge you to a one-on-one Rebuttal Showdown and force you to defend your argument!Survival of the Keenest:Match up your evidence with your fellow classmates’ arguments and determine who’s really telling the truth. Once you’ve got a suspect in your sights, turn up that tropical heat in a variety of timing and reflex-based game systems to reveal the ultimate truth and escape with your life!
