Since the release of Danganronpa V3 in 2017, dedicated fans of the Danganronpa series have been clamoring for more games. The first game in this murder-mystery visual novel franchise released on the Playstation Portable all the way back in 2010 and has spawned sequels, spin-offs, manga adaptations, and a couple anime series in the time since. It's safe to say that the Danganronpa franchise has grown to be quite popular thanks to its fantastic writing, characters, and thrilling twists. The success of the Danganronpa Decadence collection on Nintendo Switch in 2021 shows the series deserves a new mainline entry.
After the ambiguous ending of Danganronpa V3, fans were left wondering if that was truly the end of the series and if there would be room for future games to exist within the lore of Danganronpa's world. In the time since, series creator Kazutaka Kodaka has moved on to other titles, including the upcoming Master Detective Archives: Rain Code which seems to share a lot of DNA with the Danganronpa series. While fans will have this game to tide them over when it releases later in 2023, it likely won't serve as a real substitute for a new mainline Danganronpa game.
How a Danganronpa V2 Could Supplement the Story of V3
The polarizing ending of Danganronpa V3 reveals that the entire killing game takes place as part of an extreme reality show being broadcast to fans of the violent series all over the world. The "V3" in the title denotes that it is the 53rd season of the show and knowledge of the previous seasons had been wiped from the participants minds along with the rest of their memories of their past lives. The survivor of the 52nd season, Rantaro Amami, appears in this subsequent season, having won the right to participate again with the prize of a pre-recorded video message to his future self explaining his situation as the Ultimate Survivor.
As a beloved Danganronpa character, having Rantaro as the protagonist for a prequel to Danganronpa V3 makes a lot of sense. In the bonus mode unlocked after beating the game's main story, Love Across the Universe: Dangan Salmon Team, it's revealed that Rantaro was known as the Ultimate Adventurer in the previous season of the killing game. It would make for an interesting story to explore his time during the 52nd season and could offer more development for his character, as he met his demise too early in Danganronpa V3 to be fully fleshed out. However, V2 would need an unexpected twist to keep things interesting, since players will know the outcome of its killing game.
Danganronpa 4 is Still Possible Someday
If the franchise were to move away from Danganronpa V3 altogether, it could reboot the series entirely with a Danganronpa 4. The revelation at the end of V3 makes it pretty clear that the current saga wouldn't be able to continue the way it has been, making a total reboot necessary for the game to make sense canonically. Of course, it's entirely possible that elements of the game could be retconned to make Danganronpa 4 possible in the same timeline, but it may end up being easier to reboot the series as a whole with loose references or Easter eggs included for fans of previous entries while retaining the iconic bear mascot Monokuma and usual series gameplay.
A recent interview with Kodaka revealed that he would like to return to the Danganronpa series someday, but wants time to explore other stories like that of Master Detective Archives: Rain Code. This is good news for series fans, as it means a new entry is not out of the question, but likely won't happen for some time still. Fans will have to look into other Danganronpa-like games until an official announcement about a new entry is made.
Danganronpa Decadence is available now on the Nintendo Switch.