#In my head this was formatted as that one Marcille is good at magic! Senshi is good at cooking! Laios. Izutsumi is very perceptive! meme

[demos-cloud]

Although there were flaws and they were by no means perfect, I really did enjoy the Dangan Ronpa series, and feel that every installment had some parts it did better than the others.

The first game was rather novel at the time, and the real-time 'trial' gameplay it introduced was tons of fun and allowed for more tension compared to the trials in the Ace Attorney games (which are fun in their own right). The intertwining of the characters and discussions of social issues such as the idol industry, the perception of "man" and "manliness", otaku culture, how others could interpret suicide, and so forth, paired with the simplicity of "hope versus despair" in its purest form allowed the cast to feel so full of depth, much more than their initial introductions made them seem. It was truly revolutionary. Also Ouyama voicing Monokuma in Japanese felt like being hit by a 50-freight train.

SDR2's story was more fantastical compared to DR1 but it absolutely excelled with its puzzles and trials. I found them to be far more interesting and more difficult/complex which really drew me in. The characters are also absolutely spectacular (I am pretending Hanamura doesn't exist) and I adore that none of them have a simple relationship with another. From the conflicting Pekoyama who devotes herself as merely a tool to be used and discarded by her master, Fuyuhiko, who desires for her to learn and grow and eventually stand by his side as an equal - as a human; to the appreciation and loathing that Saionji holds towards Mikan; to the muddled mixture of love and hatred that is KomaHina. It was all so wonderful and I found myself so attached to these characters.

Ultra Despair Girls existed.

Dangan Ronpa: Zero and DR: Kirigiri were interesting reads and helped to provide additional characterization for some of the cast members that didn't get as much game screen time. They were by no means exceptional, but I would consider them decent supplementary material.

Dangan Ronpa Gaiden: Killer Killer was surprisingly more interesting than I expected. It introduced new characters which weren't the most compelling, but the primary focal relationship was just so charming and the finale was fantastic and I am such a sucker for double suicide-murders as a way to convey your love I mean what.

NDRV3 ends with another charming cast but primarily the OumaSai dynamic which felt like it really made you think and wonder and speculate. The overarching theme of "truth/real versus lie/fake" was delivered spectacularly within the confines of these two characters, and I am furthermore biased with the existence of all the wonderful girls this game introduced. Tenko you are so wonderful and even though you are a fictional character, you deserve so much better.

DR3 Side: Hope existed.

DR3 Side: Future was... interesting. I enjoyed a lot of the characters - and I feel that this is one of the series' strong points - and yet, somehow many of them felt lacking. Ruruka especially got on my nerves as she was played up to be this competent manipulator type and ended up as just. bratty.