As fun as the Trust Meter would’ve been, it would’ve been an absolute nightmare to program and would most likely have made for a lackluster story to compensate for all the various outcomes so I’m glad they sacrificed it for a more linear stronger story.
I always felt that Leon had the most visceral execution in DR1. After his, the mondo butter/witch burning/computer crumple/Detention seemed rather goofy...
@@Nairda442 of every execution in the series, there were only 2 that I thought were actually hard to watch. All the others were so weird, but it did add a lot to showing how insane Monokuma really was I guess. Ones like DR2 and V3's chapter 3 had to make me rethink my life after watching them
I liked Celestia’s tbh, it had a thematic connection to her character of her wanting a graceful death and almost getting it, only to be smashed by a firetruck at the last second instead. It ties the best to the overarching theme of hope vs despair out of any of them. Also wasn’t all that wild, like it’s just a fire and then a truck, could totally happen irl. SDR2 I don’t mind being batshit as it’s intentionally ridiculous to hint at the main plot twist of the game, that they are in a virtual world. Hated literally every aspect of V3. Leon’s execution is by far the best one tho, forever and always.
Definitely agree with you. In general when people talk about danganronpa they usually talk about the trials, whereas i find the daily life sections to be just as interesting and probably would be even more so in a game like distrust.
yeah agreed, it also sets the theme for distrust much nicer. like if the freetime events at least mattered a little, dosnt have to entirely change the ending as to not sac the atory, but definitely at least making the freetime events matter as in character building so its canon and they remember it, and they can perhaps help you out in trials or have some small dialogie changes here and there to make it feel like the freetime events arwnt just pointless filler. like i get it theyre to get to know the characters but the fact that theyre skippable and wouldnt make a difference other than knowing a character is kinda sad
Thank you finally someone with some sense 🤣 always hear how dr2 is the best and I just couldn't disagree more. Dr1 had this unsettling, claustrophobic, depressing and downright eerie feeling that the other games never manged to reach not to mention that it felt the most grounded in reality compared to the others (obviously it's still wacky and unrealistic as hell but it felt more real, I feel like I felt what the characters were probably feeling walking about that school)
There is a Fanganronpa that appears to be very promising in the aspect that it wants to have a more unsettling and frightening atmosphere. Its called The Uzujigoku Massacre. The demo for its prologue is already out (yes its going to be a game) and its made by a lot of the same people who made Project: Eden's Garden, which i believe is very promising. I recommend looking into it, and they have a discord as well that goes more in depth with the game.
Personally I disagree that A danganronpa distrust atmosphere can work because one of the important things that a psychological murder mystery needs is moments of levity and calm moments. If the school was an unsafe wasteland for the whole game theme then there are no moments where the main character can breath and relax before something next bad happens. Free time events are those moments of levity and you can’t really feel relaxed for the event when you still feel anxiety walking around the school. It had to be like it is in the game.
Good point, the most unfortunate thing is that no matter what direction the game takes it will lose some of the things that make other directions work well. A big give and take situation
Part of the plot could be the students trying to create those moments despite the oppressive atmosphere, and succeeding those little moments could increase the general trust.
She was already my favorite in DR1, and when I eventually played UDG I was so glad she was picked for protag duty because I would not have stayed sane if she wasn't there. she carried that game so hard, solidified her as series GOAT for me
You really should play the Zero Escape games. 999, Virtue’s Last Reward, and Zero Time Dilemma. While they have their fair share of comedic moments as well it takes itself much more seriously than Danganronpa does. Even narrowing some of the scrapped distrust ideas. Like branching paths where characters trust you or not. It’s often considered a sister series to Danganronpa as the creators of both series are friends and work together on an upcoming new game together. It definitely has a more dark psychological horror aspect to it as the creator didn’t want to go full anime and what do you know it didn’t sell well at all only carving out an extremely niche audience here in the west. It was thanks to them being so passionate that a third game even saw the light of day.
Recently I got back into Danganronpa and even played Master Detective Archives: Rain Code and I was thinking in the past weeks that I would really love if they made Distrust so this video made me happy that I am not the only one who wants it even if V3 was in 2017 and still no sign of new Danganronpa. (+1 reason to make Distrust: Celeste design in Distrust is my favorite from Rui Komatsuzaki, top tier)
I have to absolutely agree that the first game's darker, more serious, tone is so much more exciting and leads to a much more grounded story. Up until recently I always thought of Sdr2 as my favorite out of the trilogy, but after experiencing another playthrough I like the first game a lot more and while I still respect the second game for it's more complex cases and interesting characters, I've grown to appreciate the original a lot more. If I could have an ideal DR title it'd feature a more serious tone with gripping cases and developing characters who are more then just subtle subversions of tropes. Unpopular opinion but I actually quite like the future arc of the anime. It's by no means perfect, some of those characters don't get to do anything noteworthy at all... but the tone, narrative, themes and a few of the more involved characters I really enjoyed. Damn now I wish that story would've been a game again... it could have been so great, experiencing two stories simultaneously, one a harsh and dark sequel, full of mystery, the other a slice of life prequel, slowly turning just as dark and showing us how it all began. Of course I'm being unreasonably optimistic and we don't know if it would've been any good, but it's fun to think about.
Honestly, I think if DR3 was a game I would enjoy it a lot more so I see where you're coming from. The anime's biggest problem for me at least was I think is that it rushed things a lot to the point where a lot of the major plot points really just felt like they were happening for the sake of giving the characters something to do (future arc is really just 70% anime fighting lol). A game would give it way more time to be able to actually build its characters and story. Side note: protagonist Chisa in a despair arc game would be fire she was kinda the goat
@@Bluegh Can't help but agree. I can respect the anime for what it tried, but 12 episodes per arc is just not enough to cover an otherwise 40 to 60 hour game. The original anime suffered the same problem, it doesn't give the plot or characters time to breathe, if Danganronpa would've started as an anime I couldn't imagine it being as popular as it is. If you ever played a Persona game and then watched the anime it's the same idea, it just doesn't work as well.
@@ProfessorNilo yeah with game animes especially I feel like the only novelty is having the ability to see big moments get animated. Really just a big problem with adaptations as a whole for a lot of media. Too many corners get cut from the original source
such a well articulated video, echoes a lot of thoughts ive had on the series for years. also your voice is lowkey hypnotic (and your character taste is based)
Recently, I've been going back and replaying the Danganronpa games on my vita and have been platinuming them. These games reminded me how much I love adventure games.
I'll give the second game one thing, while it is overall less scary (and unfortunately a little more fan servicey than a game like this should be) one problem I had with the first game is that with the exception of chihiro and sakura's death being a suicide, I pretty much saw all of the deaths coming. Leon and mondo I felt would be more obvious as killers than victims, celeste had murderer written all over her, and the deaths in chapters 1, 3, and 4 involved characters who were super focused on, so their deaths were not very surprising at all. Not only that, but I think all the deaths are pretty lame, like everyone likes Celeste's death a lot, but she just got ran over by a truck, and everything else felt super bland. Again, the only one that genuinely bothered me was Chihiro's, the others were pretty tame. With the second one, not only were the deaths a lot more unpredictable, but there were a lot more unsettling. I genuinely had to stop playing the game for a couple of days after witnessing the deaths in chapter three, and I didn't even like either of the characters. I still think the first one is a lot better than the second, but I do appreciate that they at least fixed that.
@@AwesomeMooseSmile i think barring a few exceptions, the actual murder mystery part of the games do pretty well. The only trials I was thoroughly disappointed in for how predictable it was is V3 chapter 2 and DR1 chapter 3 like you said. I can forgive the island setting for being less scary because of lore reasons in DR2 tbh but that was a big turning point from "liking Danganronpa cause its a spooky murder mystery" to "liking Danganronpa cause it's a goofy murder mystery". The scariest part about DR2 is their improved hangmans gambit 🥲
Im a Danganronpa, yttd, zero escape fan but im still pretty new to them but DTHH really is a good starter for the franchise once i played that i was all on board and just had to keep watching and playing
Out of topic To me, chapter 3 of the second game motive even though most hate that chapter. That motive was a set up for the students as a foreshadowing to let us, the viewers. Of who the second game cast are, aka remnants of disparate. While the first game, chapter 3, shows that Celeste actually lost for her first time with the name Yasuhiro, which is why she got pissed off as she didn't want to lose with that name being mentioned. As for gamblers, losing who you were before or reminding them that they failed is very disrespectful. And for Celeste to only lose once in her life was really upsetting. Kinda wanted her and Sakura to survive, but it's a way to show us the true nature of the students in each game, I could be wrong, and it's just me overthinking it. But that's what I think, at least. I like v2 the most and I think they took away the tension and horror from v1, is because of the reveal in the end of the true nature of v2's cast
Zero Escape: 9 Persons, 9 Hours, 9 Doors is a really awesome game that has a similar premise to Danganronpa but has more of the atmosphere you talk about here! It does a really good job of balancing its quirky cast of characters and the harsh reality of the situation Similar to Danganronpa, the sequel Virtue’s Last Reward (also a great game!) definitely has a lighter atmosphere to it, and I feel the stakes are much less extreme, but then the third game in the series, Zero Time Dilemma veers straight into a much darker, oppressive atmosphere. So if anyone’s interested in a series like this, I’d highly recommend checking it out!
This is the immediate comparison that came to mind. Could've helped flesh out some of the characters too if this direction was taken. What not with the distrust mechanic and alt timelines.
@ Yeah agreed!! I think 999 is great how it is but the idea of a similar game that relies on trust like that would be very very cool *SPOILERS* We see a liiittle bit of that idea with the fact that you need to give Clover the bookmark in order to get the true ending, but it would be very neat to see it on a larger scale. It’s just that a game with that many possible scenarios would probably take a very long time to make lol
I prefer the linear route that they went with but Danganronpa 4 should be like distrust with a more horror dark atmosphere and colors and much scarier. And the distrust system with multiple routes, in trade I think the trials would be shorter. Perhaps it could even have survival game elements where u can die and have bad endings if u make bad choices, but the game wouldn’t continue like DRV3 you’d have to go to a previous save file.
It would have been cool to see distrust as a game and they should have probably created it and sold it a few months after thh. I see why they didn’t release it but even selling as limited time would have been awsome.
i think that the randomiser portion of this video isn't very convincing. you can't create hypothetical situations (like chihiro killing celeste) from a perspective of having already read the 'canon', linear existing narrative. the argument that chihiro wouldn't have killed anyone is purely coming from your pre-existing perception of chihiro, having read the existing narrative. even without changing their character, it can easily be set up that they be a killer (there have been killers before who kill for more complex/nuanced reasons, or killers who you could easily say "oh they could never kill that person, this doesn't make sense") the distrust system can work, and would work, if it was handled correctly, obviously, like anything. the problem is this branching narrative opens up several problems that are easy to fall into, like the extra amount of time/effort that would take for you to write all these threads in convincing and well-written ways, or through issues of continuity, or sacrificing quality and substance for quantity and shallowness i agree that the distrust system was super interesting, and understand the reasons why it was scrapped, but i think the possibility of branching storylines, and this 'randomiser' feel, is more interesting conceptually than any of the darker, more horror-esque stylistic choices detailed in the beta. one 'canon' linear storyline is not automatically superior to several branching storylines just because of the existence of a definitive true 'route'
I never played Danganronpa, but I have heard somewhere (not sure how true it was) that the games are supposed to be deeply inspired by the works of Suda51 (which I love), that is why they apparently copped Grasshopper Manufacture's then composer, Masafumi Takada. I never really saw that inspiration from review videos, screenshots, story synopses. I haven't heard of Distrust before, but the footage from this video already gives me more Suda vibes than the entirety of V3 (I mean if that doesn't look like The Silver Case's UI 1:17, then I dunno what does)
I honestly don't know how far distrust would have even gotten because it seemed far too ambitious. Considering you have 16 students you either heavily restrict who can murder and who can die or you have to write like 100 different outcomes, make the textures and animations and i doubt the project would have seen any fruition if they kept that non linearity. It is a cool concept but i kinda worry that this could have absolutely happened if it weren't for the changes they made.
Well, as I say, why not both? Both is good. We have Danganronpa now, sure, and that's okay. But that doesn't mean it's impossible for a game that follows what "Distrust" could have been cannot be made. Someone just has to make it!
Danganronpa is a franchise that always had the potential to be something more, yet never attempted to actually make that jump. DR2 is proof of how stinky this franchise really is, we have a character as amazing as Nagito, togheter with Akane and Kazuichi? Absolutely worthless characters, and DR is full of one note, paper tin characters, yet in this mess of a franchise i've found 2 of the most compelling and interesting characters in anime, Nagito and Kokichi. But i feel that’s Kodaka's choice, no matter what the beta looked like, DR was never meant to be serious and every time it tried to be, it reverted back to its own slop, the proof is the example that i mentioned earlier.
If the game was less colorful and dove more into horror I think it would've be SO AWESOME! But at the least the vision *Kazutaka Kodaka* had was fully met so at least there is that.
i think if they followed through fully with Distrust, having multiple routes would have been crucial. the characters wouldn't have been as flamboyant, so mellowing everyone out to possibly be a killer would be scary in it's own regards. a definitive canon could still exist in a "true ending" though, but having a single route or ending would make this hypothetical Distrust almost indistinguishable from current Danganronpa outside of aesthetic. (I don't know if you could tell, I don't enjoy the 6th trials very much haha) I do agree with the other things you said though
I haven’t even watched the video yet but I love discussing this topic so I’m going to add some commentary even if it doesn’t necessarily relate to the video. As much as I love the second game, it completely ruined the vibe of the series. I’ve heard some people say that the first game is the “eeriest” one, and that’s because it is and it’s what Danganronpa is supposed to represent. The second game completely got rid of the claustrophobic, eerie, and to me almost uncomfortably nostalgic undertone. They seemed to try to bring this back a little with V3 but it’s not the same with how big and bright the school is, as well as them being able to go outside. I mean honestly other than the fact that you don’t know how you got there as well as some robot bear telling you that you have amnesia, (which don’t get me wrong those are pretty big things but other than that) what’s so alarming about being trapped on a huge private island with 15 other kids your age, unlimited food, and no responsibilities? Like wdym you wanna leave I’m staying here who gives a shit? And although again, there were motives such as school memories and others, it’s just takes away the panicky, the eerie, anxiety inducing feelings the first game had. It’s not necessarily the killing that’s supposed to be the main discomfort, it’s the atmosphere of being truly trapped. Like I was honestly really thinking about if I were to hypothetically be in one of the kg’s and honestly, none of them really got my heart pounding than the image of being trapped in first game. Not to mention thought of giving birth and living out my life forever until I pass like monokuma said they could do in that a place like that like what happened in the bad ending (or atleast what I think I don’t know I haven’t checked up on that ending in a while.) Physically makes me nauseous thinking about it too much. Long story short, ever since the second game released, it’s just never felt the same or captured the feeling the original game had. Can’t really thoroughly describe it to someone with the words in the English dictionary, other than the ones I’ve already overused; but it’s just completely different and I stand by that opinion, and will forever hate the devs for ruining the distrust feeling of the series. (Sorry if this is poorly written or I repeat myself, it’s pretty late at night for me while writing this.)
I really agree with your perspective for the most part. DR is pretty cool as is but I would have probably enjoyed it more if it was a bit more grounded in general, with some characters' tropeyness slightly toned down (Mikan ffs) and a little more of an emphasis on the atmosphere/setting and the effects it has on them. While I do like v3 the most, I really do feel like something was was tonally lost after DR1. Like things felt less oppressive and like they had less gravity to them, if that makes sense? Totally biased though, Virtue's Last Reward is one of my favorite games so I'd probably just subconsciously end up taking it in that direction. Anyways your top 10 does not include Kokichi so unfortunately I must rate this video 9.9/10
wow, someone who regularly posts some of the best content for one of my niche interests has now made a new and great video about another one of my (in recent years a lot less) niche interests! I am thankful for this, and I am happy that RUclips showed this video to me! ok algorithm support comment mode off, genuinely good video. ive been a DR fan since like 2013 and this vid was an interesting perspective!
I never understod why is someone making a horror game or movie with blood, even if is not red, not horror and grafic? Plus the trust mechanica should be added as a update as something like a sandbox mod to play how you want.
Ngl I don’t know if I would have gotten into danganronpa if it was distrust. At the same time I would be liked to play distrust Other than gonta your top ten isn’t that bad
Yeah, I understand why it isn't a super popular opinion and agree with their decision to change it from a business perspective for that reason. Also what can I say, I am a sucker for gentle giants lol
Chihiro discovered that Celeste was planning to kill tried to talk her out of it, which just got the gambler on him, in the intervening struggle chihiro hit her in the temple with his laptop and accidentally killed her Hiro killed himself by accident. Probably while planning to kill the mastermind. Leon with the help of alter egos discovered that Naekusaba is the top ship and not realizing the true threat of Kirigiri he instead goes after the one he's Mokoto is currently close to.
Your points are all very interesting and well articulated, and your reasoning is too! However, Chihiro isn’t in your top 3 characters so you’re nitpicking and biased I win bye bye
I think Danganronpa suffers from the 'I don't know where this story goes' problem more than anything, similar to FNaF. The first game was made on the idea to be on case and point, never to have a sequel and it's visible that's the case. The second game, in my opinion, is better than the first. The problem lies with the fact that it's a sequel of a game without sequel in mind, so... Yeah, contradictions on the story. And the third is a great satire on everyone that just wishes to have more Danganronpa when the creator was done with the series. Now we're getting a 4th game. _So much for V3, I guess._
Honestly I'm sort of surprised Danganronpa didn't go for an anthology kinda situation. Different universes all of which Junko Enoshima is always the master mind but there are different contestants each time with different enviroments. Have no events be related to any broader or bigger picture. As to not upset the original ending in anyway. That way you can tell different stories under a similar premise.
It was certainly made to be a stand alone game but it’s obviously they left it open for a possible sequel. Most games are made like that especially new IPs. The second game didn’t really contradict anything only expanded on the twists of the original. And Kodaka has always been open to making more games in the danganronpa series. Whether it’s him making the game or a new director. V3 was never meant to be THE final game in the series. But at the moment there isn’t any new danganronpa games that are coming out.
Agree with you greatly on this one. I've been thinking about this for a while, actually... The first game always felt much more solid to me in terms of atmosphere, I feel like that's because it's closest to the original concept? I feel like Distrust, if it did exist in the way it was first conceived, would be one of those games that people wouldn't talk about much, but would definitely remember with shivers running down their spines. Honestly, at one point I got completely obsessed with searching for early concept art and all other material for it. It's just so perfect, absolutely ingeniously done. Like... I feel like it also falls nicely into "ooohhh scary japanese media from the lands of japan ohhh so scary" type of story, but in a cool way..? Japanese artists have an admirable tendency to bask in specific kinds of violence from what I've seen and read, due to the cultural landscape and all... I feel like striving for marketability often strips distinctly "cultural" aspects, aspects that can tell us A Lot about the realities of living *wherever* in all their uncensored glory, away from such narratives. It's a shame. All that said, I don't think gritty and dark games can't have humor or anime-type-shit going on. It really just boils down to the natural dispositions of the writer and their skills. Hmm... When I think about violence in stories, specifically violence infused with lots of that anime insanity, I think about the WTC series. Higurashi is awfully violent and depressing, but has plenty of comedic moments... that only strengthen the story itself... And this makes the story that much better... Because the writer takes all his characters seriously and doesn't just use their identities as comedy itself. I feel like that's one of the issues with Danganronpa. It's a bit cynical. I feel like it could be a brilliant exploration of youth forced into systems of power and violence, the painful expectations forced onto you upon adults, feeling like the world is out to get you at all times... It's fun to think about what it could be but.. Alas! Danganronpa is what it is. Just, Danganronpa... It's decent, but could've been PEAK fiction in a different timeline.
As fun as the Trust Meter would’ve been, it would’ve been an absolute nightmare to program and would most likely have made for a lackluster story to compensate for all the various outcomes so I’m glad they sacrificed it for a more linear stronger story.
As fun as the Trust Meter would’ve been, it would’ve been an absolute nightmare to program and would most likely have made for a lackluster story to compensate for all the various outcomes so I’m glad they sacrificed it for a more linear stronger story.
Of course the work would be more, but it would be really good
I always felt that Leon had the most visceral execution in DR1. After his, the mondo butter/witch burning/computer crumple/Detention seemed rather goofy...
@@Nairda442 of every execution in the series, there were only 2 that I thought were actually hard to watch. All the others were so weird, but it did add a lot to showing how insane Monokuma really was I guess. Ones like DR2 and V3's chapter 3 had to make me rethink my life after watching them
I liked Celestia’s tbh, it had a thematic connection to her character of her wanting a graceful death and almost getting it, only to be smashed by a firetruck at the last second instead. It ties the best to the overarching theme of hope vs despair out of any of them. Also wasn’t all that wild, like it’s just a fire and then a truck, could totally happen irl. SDR2 I don’t mind being batshit as it’s intentionally ridiculous to hint at the main plot twist of the game, that they are in a virtual world. Hated literally every aspect of V3.
Leon’s execution is by far the best one tho, forever and always.
I think the most difficult to watch are
Leon
Kirumi
Kaede
Gonta
yeah its so jarring
@@HEHElo-w1ei agree, those are like the best ones in creep factor. but the monokubs giving birth in gonta’s ruined it
Definitely agree with you. In general when people talk about danganronpa they usually talk about the trials, whereas i find the daily life sections to be just as interesting and probably would be even more so in a game like distrust.
As a Danganronpa fan I usually talk about the ships ❤
yeah agreed, it also sets the theme for distrust much nicer. like if the freetime events at least mattered a little, dosnt have to entirely change the ending as to not sac the atory, but definitely at least making the freetime events matter as in character building so its canon and they remember it, and they can perhaps help you out in trials or have some small dialogie changes here and there to make it feel like the freetime events arwnt just pointless filler. like i get it theyre to get to know the characters but the fact that theyre skippable and wouldnt make a difference other than knowing a character is kinda sad
The first danganronpa changed my life. For the worse. Absolutely adored it sm. DR2 and DRV3 could never scratch the same itch that DR1 did.
Sameee
So true
yeah same
This is the same for me .
Thank you finally someone with some sense 🤣 always hear how dr2 is the best and I just couldn't disagree more. Dr1 had this unsettling, claustrophobic, depressing and downright eerie feeling that the other games never manged to reach not to mention that it felt the most grounded in reality compared to the others
(obviously it's still wacky and unrealistic as hell but it felt more real, I feel like I felt what the characters were probably feeling walking about that school)
There is a Fanganronpa that appears to be very promising in the aspect that it wants to have a more unsettling and frightening atmosphere. Its called The Uzujigoku Massacre. The demo for its prologue is already out (yes its going to be a game) and its made by a lot of the same people who made Project: Eden's Garden, which i believe is very promising. I recommend looking into it, and they have a discord as well that goes more in depth with the game.
yo this actually looks pretty cool! defo gonna be looking out for the full release.
Do they have a YT account?
@@DrowsyCarbonYes
YES!!! CHECK OUT THE UZUJIGOKU MASSACRE
OMG TOKO IN TOP 1?! I LITERALLY LOVE YOU, WE NEED MORE TOKO FANS
Tbh the only thing I mourn from Distrust is the trust system. A creepier danganronpa wouldve lowered sales and lowered the odds it even left Japan
@@agatha6999 yeah, I make that point too. It's near impossible to deny that the change to Danganronpa was better, but one can dream lol
Personally I disagree that A danganronpa distrust atmosphere can work because one of the important things that a psychological murder mystery needs is moments of levity and calm moments. If the school was an unsafe wasteland for the whole game theme then there are no moments where the main character can breath and relax before something next bad happens. Free time events are those moments of levity and you can’t really feel relaxed for the event when you still feel anxiety walking around the school. It had to be like it is in the game.
Good point, the most unfortunate thing is that no matter what direction the game takes it will lose some of the things that make other directions work well. A big give and take situation
Part of the plot could be the students trying to create those moments despite the oppressive atmosphere, and succeeding those little moments could increase the general trust.
Toko is your top 1? That makes me happy, we love a (deeply)problematic queen
She was already my favorite in DR1, and when I eventually played UDG I was so glad she was picked for protag duty because I would not have stayed sane if she wasn't there. she carried that game so hard, solidified her as series GOAT for me
Ngl- I feel like the executions that were the most brutal were Leon, Kaede, and Kirumi’s. Just- that broke me😭😭😭
What about Gonta or Korekiyo? I personally think they're also pretty brutal
Toko at 1 is so based
You really should play the Zero Escape games. 999, Virtue’s Last Reward, and Zero Time Dilemma. While they have their fair share of comedic moments as well it takes itself much more seriously than Danganronpa does. Even narrowing some of the scrapped distrust ideas. Like branching paths where characters trust you or not. It’s often considered a sister series to Danganronpa as the creators of both series are friends and work together on an upcoming new game together.
It definitely has a more dark psychological horror aspect to it as the creator didn’t want to go full anime and what do you know it didn’t sell well at all only carving out an extremely niche audience here in the west. It was thanks to them being so passionate that a third game even saw the light of day.
Recently I got back into Danganronpa and even played Master Detective Archives: Rain Code and I was thinking in the past weeks that I would really love if they made Distrust so this video made me happy that I am not the only one who wants it even if V3 was in 2017 and still no sign of new Danganronpa.
(+1 reason to make Distrust: Celeste design in Distrust is my favorite from Rui Komatsuzaki, top tier)
I have to absolutely agree that the first game's darker, more serious, tone is so much more exciting and leads to a much more grounded story.
Up until recently I always thought of Sdr2 as my favorite out of the trilogy, but after experiencing another playthrough I like the first game a lot more and while I still respect the second game for it's more complex cases and interesting characters, I've grown to appreciate the original a lot more.
If I could have an ideal DR title it'd feature a more serious tone with gripping cases and developing characters who are more then just subtle subversions of tropes.
Unpopular opinion but I actually quite like the future arc of the anime. It's by no means perfect, some of those characters don't get to do anything noteworthy at all... but the tone, narrative, themes and a few of the more involved characters I really enjoyed.
Damn now I wish that story would've been a game again... it could have been so great, experiencing two stories simultaneously, one a harsh and dark sequel, full of mystery, the other a slice of life prequel, slowly turning just as dark and showing us how it all began.
Of course I'm being unreasonably optimistic and we don't know if it would've been any good, but it's fun to think about.
Honestly, I think if DR3 was a game I would enjoy it a lot more so I see where you're coming from. The anime's biggest problem for me at least was I think is that it rushed things a lot to the point where a lot of the major plot points really just felt like they were happening for the sake of giving the characters something to do (future arc is really just 70% anime fighting lol). A game would give it way more time to be able to actually build its characters and story. Side note: protagonist Chisa in a despair arc game would be fire she was kinda the goat
@@Bluegh Can't help but agree.
I can respect the anime for what it tried, but 12 episodes per arc is just not enough to cover an otherwise 40 to 60 hour game.
The original anime suffered the same problem, it doesn't give the plot or characters time to breathe, if Danganronpa would've started as an anime I couldn't imagine it being as popular as it is. If you ever played a Persona game and then watched the anime it's the same idea, it just doesn't work as well.
@@ProfessorNilo yeah with game animes especially I feel like the only novelty is having the ability to see big moments get animated. Really just a big problem with adaptations as a whole for a lot of media. Too many corners get cut from the original source
such a well articulated video, echoes a lot of thoughts ive had on the series for years. also your voice is lowkey hypnotic (and your character taste is based)
Recently, I've been going back and replaying the Danganronpa games on my vita and have been platinuming them. These games reminded me how much I love adventure games.
I'll give the second game one thing, while it is overall less scary (and unfortunately a little more fan servicey than a game like this should be) one problem I had with the first game is that with the exception of chihiro and sakura's death being a suicide, I pretty much saw all of the deaths coming. Leon and mondo I felt would be more obvious as killers than victims, celeste had murderer written all over her, and the deaths in chapters 1, 3, and 4 involved characters who were super focused on, so their deaths were not very surprising at all. Not only that, but I think all the deaths are pretty lame, like everyone likes Celeste's death a lot, but she just got ran over by a truck, and everything else felt super bland. Again, the only one that genuinely bothered me was Chihiro's, the others were pretty tame. With the second one, not only were the deaths a lot more unpredictable, but there were a lot more unsettling. I genuinely had to stop playing the game for a couple of days after witnessing the deaths in chapter three, and I didn't even like either of the characters. I still think the first one is a lot better than the second, but I do appreciate that they at least fixed that.
@@AwesomeMooseSmile i think barring a few exceptions, the actual murder mystery part of the games do pretty well. The only trials I was thoroughly disappointed in for how predictable it was is V3 chapter 2 and DR1 chapter 3 like you said. I can forgive the island setting for being less scary because of lore reasons in DR2 tbh but that was a big turning point from "liking Danganronpa cause its a spooky murder mystery" to "liking Danganronpa cause it's a goofy murder mystery". The scariest part about DR2 is their improved hangmans gambit 🥲
This is what nagito-posting does to a man
He is so silly
They should've made DRV3 a full horror game
I don't really like the ending of Dv3 so a horror version would be cool
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS YESSSSSSS GOD IVE BEEN SAYING THIS
I HATE HOW THE EXECUTIONS GET SO GOOFY YOU CANT EVEN TAKE THEIR DEATH SERIOUSLY
V3's 3rd and 4th executions are... something for sure. At least the music is fire
EXACTLY. THE EXECUTIONS GOT RUINED
Im a Danganronpa, yttd, zero escape fan but im still pretty new to them but DTHH really is a good starter for the franchise once i played that i was all on board and just had to keep watching and playing
Out of topic To me, chapter 3 of the second game motive even though most hate that chapter. That motive was a set up for the students as a foreshadowing to let us, the viewers. Of who the second game cast are, aka remnants of disparate. While the first game, chapter 3, shows that Celeste actually lost for her first time with the name Yasuhiro, which is why she got pissed off as she didn't want to lose with that name being mentioned. As for gamblers, losing who you were before or reminding them that they failed is very disrespectful. And for Celeste to only lose once in her life was really upsetting. Kinda wanted her and Sakura to survive, but it's a way to show us the true nature of the students in each game, I could be wrong, and it's just me overthinking it. But that's what I think, at least. I like v2 the most and I think they took away the tension and horror from v1, is because of the reveal in the end of the true nature of v2's cast
A distrust video in the year of our lord twenty twenty four?!?!
Zero Escape: 9 Persons, 9 Hours, 9 Doors is a really awesome game that has a similar premise to Danganronpa but has more of the atmosphere you talk about here! It does a really good job of balancing its quirky cast of characters and the harsh reality of the situation
Similar to Danganronpa, the sequel Virtue’s Last Reward (also a great game!) definitely has a lighter atmosphere to it, and I feel the stakes are much less extreme, but then the third game in the series, Zero Time Dilemma veers straight into a much darker, oppressive atmosphere. So if anyone’s interested in a series like this, I’d highly recommend checking it out!
This is the immediate comparison that came to mind. Could've helped flesh out some of the characters too if this direction was taken.
What not with the distrust mechanic and alt timelines.
@ Yeah agreed!! I think 999 is great how it is but the idea of a similar game that relies on trust like that would be very very cool
*SPOILERS*
We see a liiittle bit of that idea with the fact that you need to give Clover the bookmark in order to get the true ending, but it would be very neat to see it on a larger scale. It’s just that a game with that many possible scenarios would probably take a very long time to make lol
Yeah I've heard fantastic things about Zero Escape. That's next on my backlog in fact after I finish up my current game, I'm excited to play them!
@@baristascallmewolfgang There is its called Virtue’s Last Reward.
@@oreotaku4017 okay ykw ur right
No, I was not aware of the beta version "Distrust"
I prefer the linear route that they went with but Danganronpa 4 should be like distrust with a more horror dark atmosphere and colors and much scarier. And the distrust system with multiple routes, in trade I think the trials would be shorter. Perhaps it could even have survival game elements where u can die and have bad endings if u make bad choices, but the game wouldn’t continue like DRV3 you’d have to go to a previous save file.
Sadly that probably won’t ever happen.
It would have been cool to see distrust as a game and they should have probably created it and sold it a few months after thh. I see why they didn’t release it but even selling as limited time would have been awsome.
danganronpa content? by a fire emblem content creator? it’s more likely than you think
" oh no!! The game isn't edgy enough!!! "
" DR2 and V3 are too anime because uh...uh mikan and iruma!! " ( Nvm this means nothing as an argument lol )
8:08 The ONLY person Hiro would be able to kill is himself
Right? The beta looked so dope!!
i think that the randomiser portion of this video isn't very convincing. you can't create hypothetical situations (like chihiro killing celeste) from a perspective of having already read the 'canon', linear existing narrative. the argument that chihiro wouldn't have killed anyone is purely coming from your pre-existing perception of chihiro, having read the existing narrative. even without changing their character, it can easily be set up that they be a killer (there have been killers before who kill for more complex/nuanced reasons, or killers who you could easily say "oh they could never kill that person, this doesn't make sense")
the distrust system can work, and would work, if it was handled correctly, obviously, like anything. the problem is this branching narrative opens up several problems that are easy to fall into, like the extra amount of time/effort that would take for you to write all these threads in convincing and well-written ways, or through issues of continuity, or sacrificing quality and substance for quantity and shallowness
i agree that the distrust system was super interesting, and understand the reasons why it was scrapped, but i think the possibility of branching storylines, and this 'randomiser' feel, is more interesting conceptually than any of the darker, more horror-esque stylistic choices detailed in the beta. one 'canon' linear storyline is not automatically superior to several branching storylines just because of the existence of a definitive true 'route'
Branching paths would've been far more interesting than linear story.
I never played Danganronpa, but I have heard somewhere (not sure how true it was) that the games are supposed to be deeply inspired by the works of Suda51 (which I love), that is why they apparently copped Grasshopper Manufacture's then composer, Masafumi Takada. I never really saw that inspiration from review videos, screenshots, story synopses. I haven't heard of Distrust before, but the footage from this video already gives me more Suda vibes than the entirety of V3 (I mean if that doesn't look like The Silver Case's UI 1:17, then I dunno what does)
Holy cow, I finally found another person obsessed with both fire emblem fates and danganronpa. In the matrix rn...
You wait for The Hundred Line which seems to have mechanic where people can live or die based on how well you play the game.
I honestly don't know how far distrust would have even gotten because it seemed far too ambitious.
Considering you have 16 students you either heavily restrict who can murder and who can die or you have to write like 100 different outcomes, make the textures and animations and i doubt the project would have seen any fruition if they kept that non linearity.
It is a cool concept but i kinda worry that this could have absolutely happened if it weren't for the changes they made.
Well, as I say, why not both? Both is good. We have Danganronpa now, sure, and that's okay. But that doesn't mean it's impossible for a game that follows what "Distrust" could have been cannot be made. Someone just has to make it!
2:15 YO MAKI IN TOP 5
GUNDHAM MENTION??? TOP 3 NONETHELESS??? Instant subscription, peak take
oh god i have not thought abt dr in years
Danganronpa is a franchise that always had the potential to be something more, yet never attempted to actually make that jump.
DR2 is proof of how stinky this franchise really is, we have a character as amazing as Nagito, togheter with Akane and Kazuichi? Absolutely worthless characters, and DR is full of one note, paper tin characters, yet in this mess of a franchise i've found 2 of the most compelling and interesting characters in anime, Nagito and Kokichi.
But i feel that’s Kodaka's choice, no matter what the beta looked like, DR was never meant to be serious and every time it tried to be, it reverted back to its own slop, the proof is the example that i mentioned earlier.
If the game was less colorful and dove more into horror I think it would've be SO AWESOME! But at the least the vision *Kazutaka Kodaka* had was fully met so at least there is that.
Gonta being top 5 is a W take
i think if they followed through fully with Distrust, having multiple routes would have been crucial. the characters wouldn't have been as flamboyant, so mellowing everyone out to possibly be a killer would be scary in it's own regards. a definitive canon could still exist in a "true ending" though, but having a single route or ending would make this hypothetical Distrust almost indistinguishable from current Danganronpa outside of aesthetic. (I don't know if you could tell, I don't enjoy the 6th trials very much haha) I do agree with the other things you said though
I haven’t even watched the video yet but I love discussing this topic so I’m going to add some commentary even if it doesn’t necessarily relate to the video. As much as I love the second game, it completely ruined the vibe of the series. I’ve heard some people say that the first game is the “eeriest” one, and that’s because it is and it’s what Danganronpa is supposed to represent. The second game completely got rid of the claustrophobic, eerie, and to me almost uncomfortably nostalgic undertone. They seemed to try to bring this back a little with V3 but it’s not the same with how big and bright the school is, as well as them being able to go outside. I mean honestly other than the fact that you don’t know how you got there as well as some robot bear telling you that you have amnesia, (which don’t get me wrong those are pretty big things but other than that) what’s so alarming about being trapped on a huge private island with 15 other kids your age,
unlimited food, and no responsibilities? Like wdym you wanna leave I’m staying here who gives a shit? And although again, there were motives such as school memories and others, it’s just takes away the panicky, the eerie, anxiety inducing feelings the first game had. It’s not necessarily the killing that’s supposed to be the main discomfort, it’s the atmosphere of being truly trapped. Like I was honestly really thinking about if I were to hypothetically be in one of the kg’s and honestly, none of them really got my heart pounding than the image of being trapped in first game. Not to mention thought of giving birth and living out my life forever until I pass like monokuma said they could do in that a place like that like what happened in the bad ending (or atleast what I think I don’t know I haven’t checked up on that ending in a while.) Physically makes me nauseous thinking about it too much. Long story short, ever since the second game released, it’s just never felt the same or captured the feeling the original game had. Can’t really thoroughly describe it to someone with the words in the English dictionary, other than the ones I’ve already overused; but it’s just completely different and I stand by that opinion, and will forever hate the devs for ruining the distrust feeling of the series.
(Sorry if this is poorly written or I repeat myself, it’s pretty late at night for me while writing this.)
I really agree with your perspective for the most part. DR is pretty cool as is but I would have probably enjoyed it more if it was a bit more grounded in general, with some characters' tropeyness slightly toned down (Mikan ffs) and a little more of an emphasis on the atmosphere/setting and the effects it has on them. While I do like v3 the most, I really do feel like something was was tonally lost after DR1. Like things felt less oppressive and like they had less gravity to them, if that makes sense? Totally biased though, Virtue's Last Reward is one of my favorite games so I'd probably just subconsciously end up taking it in that direction.
Anyways your top 10 does not include Kokichi so unfortunately I must rate this video 9.9/10
FINALLY SOMEONE WITH THIS TAKE
wow, someone who regularly posts some of the best content for one of my niche interests has now made a new and great video about another one of my (in recent years a lot less) niche interests! I am thankful for this, and I am happy that RUclips showed this video to me!
ok algorithm support comment mode off, genuinely good video. ive been a DR fan since like 2013 and this vid was an interesting perspective!
I never understod why is someone making a horror game or movie with blood, even if is not red, not horror and grafic? Plus the trust mechanica should be added as a update as something like a sandbox mod to play how you want.
2:15 YES TOKO IN NO.1
Ngl I don’t know if I would have gotten into danganronpa if it was distrust. At the same time I would be liked to play distrust
Other than gonta your top ten isn’t that bad
Yeah, I understand why it isn't a super popular opinion and agree with their decision to change it from a business perspective for that reason.
Also what can I say, I am a sucker for gentle giants lol
@ yeah that’s true although I wish it wasn’t as fan servicy although distrust could’ve been the same. Also I see
Chihiro discovered that Celeste was planning to kill tried to talk her out of it, which just got the gambler on him, in the intervening struggle chihiro hit her in the temple with his laptop and accidentally killed her
Hiro killed himself by accident. Probably while planning to kill the mastermind.
Leon with the help of alter egos discovered that Naekusaba is the top ship and not realizing the true threat of Kirigiri he instead goes after the one he's Mokoto is currently close to.
I think what actually happened was it was opposite day at Hope's Peak and because it was opposite day Chihiro turned into a murderer for fun
2:17 your 5. favorite is approved (by me) :D
Btw the reason for the change is different
Your points are all very interesting and well articulated, and your reasoning is too! However, Chihiro isn’t in your top 3 characters so you’re nitpicking and biased I win bye bye
Danganronpa fun in 2024
@@Coldeggman wait til you see what happens in 2025 👁
When’s Umineko though
Ibuki above Kaito yeah right
I still can't believe you let me think that was just a manga for YEARS
I think Danganronpa suffers from the 'I don't know where this story goes' problem more than anything, similar to FNaF.
The first game was made on the idea to be on case and point, never to have a sequel and it's visible that's the case.
The second game, in my opinion, is better than the first. The problem lies with the fact that it's a sequel of a game without sequel in mind, so... Yeah, contradictions on the story.
And the third is a great satire on everyone that just wishes to have more Danganronpa when the creator was done with the series.
Now we're getting a 4th game. _So much for V3, I guess._
Honestly I'm sort of surprised Danganronpa didn't go for an anthology kinda situation.
Different universes all of which Junko Enoshima is always the master mind but there are different contestants each time with different enviroments.
Have no events be related to any broader or bigger picture. As to not upset the original ending in anyway.
That way you can tell different stories under a similar premise.
Wait are we really getting a 4th game?
No way we're getting a 4th game!
4TH GAME??!!
It was certainly made to be a stand alone game but it’s obviously they left it open for a possible sequel. Most games are made like that especially new IPs. The second game didn’t really contradict anything only expanded on the twists of the original.
And Kodaka has always been open to making more games in the danganronpa series. Whether it’s him making the game or a new director. V3 was never meant to be THE final game in the series. But at the moment there isn’t any new danganronpa games that are coming out.
Spitting ngl
Agree with you greatly on this one.
I've been thinking about this for a while, actually... The first game always felt much more solid to me in terms of atmosphere, I feel like that's because it's closest to the original concept? I feel like Distrust, if it did exist in the way it was first conceived, would be one of those games that people wouldn't talk about much, but would definitely remember with shivers running down their spines.
Honestly, at one point I got completely obsessed with searching for early concept art and all other material for it. It's just so perfect, absolutely ingeniously done. Like... I feel like it also falls nicely into "ooohhh scary japanese media from the lands of japan ohhh so scary" type of story, but in a cool way..? Japanese artists have an admirable tendency to bask in specific kinds of violence from what I've seen and read, due to the cultural landscape and all... I feel like striving for marketability often strips distinctly "cultural" aspects, aspects that can tell us A Lot about the realities of living *wherever* in all their uncensored glory, away from such narratives. It's a shame.
All that said, I don't think gritty and dark games can't have humor or anime-type-shit going on. It really just boils down to the natural dispositions of the writer and their skills. Hmm... When I think about violence in stories, specifically violence infused with lots of that anime insanity, I think about the WTC series. Higurashi is awfully violent and depressing, but has plenty of comedic moments... that only strengthen the story itself... And this makes the story that much better... Because the writer takes all his characters seriously and doesn't just use their identities as comedy itself. I feel like that's one of the issues with Danganronpa. It's a bit cynical.
I feel like it could be a brilliant exploration of youth forced into systems of power and violence, the painful expectations forced onto you upon adults, feeling like the world is out to get you at all times... It's fun to think about what it could be but.. Alas! Danganronpa is what it is. Just, Danganronpa... It's decent, but could've been PEAK fiction in a different timeline.
hi bluegh
As fun as the Trust Meter would’ve been, it would’ve been an absolute nightmare to program and would most likely have made for a lackluster story to compensate for all the various outcomes so I’m glad they sacrificed it for a more linear stronger story.