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Trigger Happy Havoc Danganronpa Review PS Vita

Trigger Happy Havoc Danganronpa Review PS Vita

There arent many games that render me unable to be a normal functioning human being, but Im strangely proud to say that Danganronpa is one of them. Trigger Happy Havoc: Danganronpas positively gripping plot and immersive world took me by surprise and gripped me with its thilling story and fun puzzle-like gameplay. If your PS Vita has been lacking a worthwhile visual novel with unique gameplay and a thrilling mystery, look no further than Spike Chunsofts masterpiece, Trigger Happy Havoc: Danganronpa.

The world of Danganronpa is based at the prestigious Hopes Peak Acadmey, where ultimate students of their fields (brilliant examples include Ultimate Fashionista, Ultimate Fanfic Writer and Ultimate Gang Leader) are scouted to attend this elite high school that boasts guaranteed success later in life. This sounds all well and good, until protagonist Makoto and the other students find that everything isnt what it seems and are now trapped inside the school. The only way out? Killing a classmate and not getting caught will allow a student to graduate, but if theyre caught theyll face punishment, as in, their own execution. If the wrong student is selected as the main suspect of the murder, the rest of the class is subject punishment while the killer is set free. Its a pretty dark story, but the students are next required to kill anyone � they have the option to live a communal life together. In turn, this plot characters many morality and though-provoking questions for the player and the game is filled with a wonderful cast of amusing and zany characters to lighten up the game and solve the mystery with.

Umm...

The show shopper for the game is Danganronpas immersive story and atmosphere. Like a good book that sucks you in, Danganronpa has that effect with its constantly moving plot full of incredibly interesting characters and surprises. The plot is constantly moving until the very end, decorated with wicked twists and turns that kept me guessing throughout the 25+ hours of story. What I was happy to see is that in the games six main chapters, there was only one where I was 100% sure who the killer was - each mystery is heavily veiled, requiring careful examination of all possible evidence to get the right clues to find the blackened student.

He seems nice.

Thanks to music, voice acting and quirky graphics, the games atmosphere does a lot to keep its mood and essentially never break character. The games graphics are rendered in a 2.5D art style, with 2D characters placed on a 3D background. Cutscenes also look unique, combining anime art and sketch artwork to create a visual style that is distinctly its own. One of my favourite parts of the games graphics that if a part of the game really doesnt need crazy artwork, it instead uses a retro feel, with pixel art and sprites used on things like the map or each characters door signs. The music and visuals all have a distinct feel that fits perfectly - things like having gruesome murder scene but hot pink blood and dark looking school corridors lit by a neon light create a disturbingly dark but light-hearted feel that fits the game perfectly. Partnered with incredible voice performances whether you choose the English or Japanese voice track, the game is well-polished and stylish all at once.

Taking advantage of the visual novel format, Danganronpas detail heavy and absorbing story is delivered in the best way possible between its text and gameplay functions. While the game is text heavy, the way Danganronpa adds gameplay to the visual novel format is smart and fits the who-dun-it vibe by using puzzle-like elements. In each chapter, the first half goes through Daily Life, where youre taken through the chapters main story and get the chance to get to know the cast through the mini-social sim Free Time section. Once a murder occurs, the chapter switches to Deadly Life. Youre given Investigation Time where you find the Truth Bullets you need for the Class Trial in the form of evidence from the scene of the crime. During Class Trial time, you literally shoot down weak ideas spoken by the class members, using the Truth Bullets you found earlier to counter against contradictions.

I was impressed at how the Class Trial takes full advantage of the PS Vitas hardware, incorporating the back-touch pad, front touch-pad, triggers and other buttons all in this one section of gameplay, which isnt something Ive seen in a Visual Novel style game. Class Trial throws in timed mini-games such as Hangmans Gambit (a mini-hangman-esque game) and Bullet Time Ballet (to my delight, a mini-rhythm game for when someone is mouthing off suspiciously) to keep things interesting and finishes off with a puzzle game where you put together a chronological comic of all the events that have been proven as fact in the class trial. The whole experience, along with the story each murder and the schools own mystery unfolding really kept me on my toes and I found myself becoming as shocked as the other character when a surprising fact was unveiled.

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Posted by ikeu at 3:10 PM

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Labels: danganronpa, happy, havoc, ps, review, trigger, vita