Danganronpa

is a Japanese video game franchise created by Kazutaka Kodaka and developed and owned by Spike Chunsoft (formerly Spike). The series primarily surrounds various groups of apparent high-school students who are forced into murdering each other by a robotic teddy bear named Monokuma. Gameplay features a mix of adventure, visual novel, detective and dating simulator elements. The first game, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, was released for the PlayStation Portable in 2010. The original scenario was written by Kodaka, who aimed to create a dark adventure game. The original concept was rejected for being too gruesome, but it was later approved after retooling. The series has morphed into a franchise that includes manga, anime, and novels. The franchise became one of Spike's most successful works since they previously outsourced their works. The series received many positive reviews from critics, praising the series' characters, tone, and atmosphere. Rui Komatsuzaki's character designs became popular for cosplay. Kodaka's work also inspired staff members from the studio Pierrot in the making of an anime titled Akudama Drive. By 2021, the Danganronpa series reached 5 million copies sold worldwide. List of Danganronpa characters The series revolves around an elite high school, Hope's Peak Academy, which, every year, scouts "Ultimate" students, talented high school students who are at the top of their field, along with one "Ultimate Lucky Student" who is chosen by lottery. The three games, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc (2010), Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair (2012), and Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony (2017) have similar premises. Sixteen talented students who stand out in different fields are trapped by a bear-like machine, Monokuma. Monokuma traps the cast into killing games. The cast is trapped for the rest of their lives in an establishment and the only way to return home is by killing another person and avoiding being found guilty during the class trials. The video games's narratives are connected by related media, expanding the story between titles.