Danganronpa Brings Murder Mystery To Vita In February

The PlayStation Vita is about to get a healthy dose of mysterious mayhem as NIS America announced a Feb. 11 launch for Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, a game featuring one of the best subtitles ever created.

NIS Marketing Coordinator David Alonzo made the announcement official this morning through the PlayStation Blog, saying that Trigger Happy Havoc is actually an updated version of the first Danganronpa game to appear on the PSP in Japan back in 2010. Until now, the game never made its way to the West, which is, to me, one of the strongest arguments for gamers embracing digital distribution.

I’m not saying we should do away with physical media or anything like that, just that maybe we shouldn’t be so quick to hate on digital distribution, either. Without cutting out the need to print a physical version of a game, niche titles like this one might never make it out of their home market. But enough inside baseball, let’s have a little chat about Danganronpa and its unique mix of graphic novel, puzzles and wonderful mystery.

Being a Vita revamp of a PSP game, you can expect all of the usual upgrades including new graphics, touchscreen functionality and even a new game mode. So what, exactly, is this game all about?

“Imagine attending the most elite high school in the country, Hope’s Peak Academy, where only the best students get their education,” says Alonzo, setting the scene. “Your classmates include the ultimate swimming pro, the ultimate fashionista and the ultimate baseball star. And then there’s our main character, Makoto Naegi, who’s not much of an ultimate anything.”

So you play as a nobody in a school full of whiz-kids. Not too out of the ordinary for these types of stories, right? Well, the hard left turn comes when the headmaster, a psychotic bear named Monokuma, locks everyone in the school and pins them with an insane task: The students can only leave the building if they manage to kill off one of their classmates and get away with it. If you’re caught, Monokuma himself will do away with you. It’s a uniquely Japanese premise, one full of murder, suspicious figures, questionable evidence and, of course, a murderous bear.

“The gameplay utilizes the investigatory elements of the Phoenix Wright series with the dark storytelling of games like 999 and Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward,” said Alonzo, instantly winning me over with that particular description. “Throughout the game you’ll gather clues and establish ties with other students. Once a murder happens, you’ll then enter the ‘Class Trial’ period, which consists of a series of adrenaline-laced timing and rhythm-based games, shooting down falsehoods and shining the light of truth in the darkest corners of the school halls.”

Sound like a good time? Then keep your eyes peeled for more information leading up to the Feb. 11 release date. Otherwise, read more about the game at the Danganronpa official website.