Danganronpa Creator Suggests Deceiving Executives is Key to Developing Great Games

Danganronpa and The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy are the kind of games that typically struggle to gain traction with major studios. One revolves around a murder mystery where teens turn on each other, while the other is an expansive visual novel boasting 100 different endings. Kazutaka Kodaka, the mastermind behind both titles, shared insights on how he navigates the approval process for such unconventional projects, revealing that a bit of deception might be the secret sauce for getting a teenage deathmatch murder mystery greenlit.

In a recent AMA on X, a fan inquired about how Kodaka managed to secure approval for Danganronpa, given that most large game companies would likely dismiss the concept. His response? Sometimes, you have to mislead the higher-ups.

“You’ve got to deceive the company,” he stated. “Pursuing creative work while in a company is impossible if you’re someone who does whatever the company tells them. Even if it means pretending to obey, keep doing what you love. Use your company. And if something goes wrong, the one who hired you is to blame anyways lol.”

I’ve often pondered how Kodaka pulls off the bold moves he makes in the Danganronpa series. The third installment, Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony, features a particularly audacious, anti-capitalist theme that critiques companies for recycling the same franchises year after year. I would have been surprised if the studio had approved that angle, considering it casts them in a negative light. Nevertheless, the company continues to churn out more content from the series, including a gacha spin-off called Danganronpa S, which received a lukewarm reception from fans. Additionally, an enhanced remake of Danganronpa 2, titled Danganronpa 2×2, is set to release later this year, featuring a new “what if” scenario with fresh murder cases to unravel.