Suds Richardson
Staff Reporter
I hate Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc. I also love it so much. The issue I have run into is that it is so unbelievably entertaining in its embarrassing writing filled with harmful stereotypes, plot holes, inconsistent stories, and a conclusion that left absolutely no one satisfied. Its story is an absolute mess that rivals that of the Kingdom Hearts Trilogy. That is the best part of all of it.
The game follows Makoto as he enters a school for the “Ultimates,” of the world. The cast is filled with characters who are the best of the best, such as Celeste who is titled “Ultimate Gambler,” and Toko who is known as the “Ultimate Writer.” Makoto's ability is not found out until the end of the game, however, and he is introduced into the school and its cast. Though after meeting all of the characters, Makoto is soon found unconscious and has been indoctrinated into a killing school with no hope! The only way to escape is to kill a classmate and not be caught, but if the culprit is not found out by the other students all the other students will die as the culprit is set free.
Said murderer would be found out through trials held by the headmaster, Monokuma (the half white and half black teddy bear who is found later to be controlled by the true headmaster), who knows who is the murderer, though debated by the students until either a verdict is reached or time is up. At the end of the trial, all the students must vote on who they think is the murderer. If all of the innocent students agree on the right culprit, then the culprit is killed. If the students can not agree or accuse the wrong culprit, then all the students die and the murderer is set free. This cycle repeats itself throughout the game as more students try to escape by killing their classmates.
That is the absolute basic premise. Yeah, we are just getting started.
There are quite a few reasons why the game is such an embarrassment and almost all of them have to do with the writing. The art is actually quite intriguing and the concept itself is interesting but where the game lacks is in its plot, characters, and messy storytelling, and as a visual novel, that is by far the most important part.
I think a good place to start would be in its aggravating misrepresentation. This is most seen in the aforementioned character of Toko who is found to have schizophrenia throughout the game. However, instead of using this for character development and an interesting plot, they reveal that she has two personalities and mention no other significant symptoms. One personality is a quiet bookworm who is known as the “Ultimate Writer,” and the other is a mass murderer who is known as Genocide Jill, who, somehow, even being known on a mass scale has not been found out still, even as an urban legend come true. They even go as far as to call her “schitzo,” in one of the minigames. This is all to say their representation is disgusting in not only the mental health scene but in other areas as well such as gender, relationships, and people in general. Though this trainwreck of a plot is what makes it so enjoyable and entertaining. In its messy writing, I never know what is coming next and I am constantly baffled by what they have the audacity to do.
That leads to my next point, most of the plot is pulled out of nowhere. A prominent example of this is how the headmaster, the one who has been controlling Monokuma behind the scenes, is found out. The headmaster is found to be Junko, a character we had seen earlier in the game to be killed in front of everyone. This leaves almost everyone in dismay, but rather than having a thorough and well-constructed plot that led up to this, this is how Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc clears up the confusion: apparently, who we thought was Junko at the beginning of the game was actually her twin sister who had disguised as her in order to pose as her as to not arise suspicion around a missing student. Her twin sister is found to be an undercover agent named Mukuro, known as the “Ultimate Soldier,” in which Junko uses her abilities to further her plan as the headmaster even to the point where her sister is killed. This is to say that in the final act of the game it is revealed, with almost no prior setup, that a vague figure we had barely heard of prior (Mukuro, who for the most part of the game was just known as the mysterious ‘16th Student’) was actually a previously deceased character’s (Junko) sister and they had switched places in order to allow Junko to run the school. This type of writing is to say that the creator had no real complex thought behind their own story but that this would get heads turning and more people to listen, despite any sort of quality. The worst part of all of it is that it totally worked. The reason why I love this game so much is that it is genuinely so entertaining to be both angry at what is happening and dying to know what will happen next.
Another point is plot holes. During an investigation after a murder has taken place, the students have found their way into the control room of the school. It is found to be filled with screens and is littered with different equipment. Rather than just saying that they have been being watched or that there is a camera set up in the school, whoever was writing that day thought it would be fun to do an improv exercise. It is revealed that their murder school has been broadcasted for all to see across the world. In this, the cast is of course shocked and has very reasonable questions such as, “What about the police?” and, “How have they not found us yet?” These are all very good questions to ask but Monokuma brushes it off by telling them that they just have not. One would think they could trace the broadcasting signal back to a mysterious complex that has boarded windows and locked doors but because of the plot, they just can not find the school! There are honestly so many things wrong with the idea of people just peacefully watching this in their homes with no investigation, as Monokuma has expressed that authorities have not tried to break in but that they just do not know where to find the location, but again that is why I love it. Despite the entire plot and crucial information not making any real-world sense, they still roll with it and add it to the long list of horrible curve balls they throw.
Whether it be other plots gone unmentioned for the sake of time such as a dead students consciousness being transferred to a computer, Junko's multiple personalities, Makoto being the “Ultimate Hope,” and essentially immune to the killing game, using an inferiority complex to explain why someone is basically transgender without ever having to say it, and my personal favorite being how Junko describes the outside world as brainwashed by Monokuma (complete with things like the Sphynx of Egypt being carved as Monokuma instead), or smaller details such as constant crude jokes that never land, almost everyone being a complete stereotype, how most important evidence for a trial is revealed during the trial, and how the writing makes me want to yell the obvious at my screen, it is all in good fun.
I love this game because of how terrible it is. The amount of genuine fans who find the game interesting and intelligent is remarkable for what it actually is. Lots of media get large followings in a similar fashion despite the quality and it has always been so fun to me to hate the very thing that so many people adore. That is right, I am coming for you next Steven Universe.
Image Credit: Niccijade Reeves-Alhark
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