The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy Offers a Nostalgic Nod to Beloved Danganronpa Tropes Without Being a Sequel

Earlier this month, I wrapped up my first playthrough of Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony, marking my completion of the main story in a sprawling multimedia series that snagged my interest during the mini-renaissance it enjoyed over the pandemic lockdowns of 2020. Diving into the demo for The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy at this month’s Steam Next Fest, I had the conclusion of Kazutaka Kodaka’s most celebrated work at the forefront of my mind, setting the stage for some intriguing comparisons.

Kodaka, along with several notable former Spike Chunsoft employees, established the independent game studio Too Kyo Games around the time V3 launched in 2017. Since then, various games released under this new banner have been viewed as spiritual successors to Danganronpa, albeit with twists that left some fans wanting more. For example, both World’s End Club in 2020 and Master Detective Archives: Rain Code in 2023, while possessing the essence of Danganronpa, missed certain key elements (no killing game theme for World’s End Club and no school setting for Rain Code).

Now comes The Hundred Line, receiving the same anticipation from fans. After playing the demo, it’s clear that it leans more heavily into these comparisons than any other title from Too Kyo so far. The musical themes and sound effects will feel familiar to Danganronpa enthusiasts, almost to the point of direct reuse. The art style and character types evoke a sense of familiar yet slightly surreal encounters, like meeting distant relatives at a wedding.

The opening sequence of the game – featuring fully-animated, fully-voiced cutscenes – is a notable departure from Danganronpa’s visual novel style. It follows a familiar pattern: an average teenager and his not-quite-girlfriend find their normal school day disrupted by strange events, leading the protagonist to awaken in an unfamiliar classroom surrounded by strangers and confronted by a bizarre mascot character.

It’s almost like Too Kyo is playfully baiting players, introducing a character eager for the group to be thrust into a fight-to-the-death scenario. But that’s where the stories diverge. In The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, the focus shifts to turn-based strategy where characters work together to defeat nefarious robots and monstrous creatures, thwarting a potential apocalypse—an inherent backdrop in the Danganronpa series now brought to the forefront.

While still getting to grips with turn-based strategy games, I can’t claim to be an expert on The Hundred Line’s mechanics yet. However, its strategic challenges are engaging, if not revolutionary, reflecting what one might expect when a narrative-driven game studio explores a new genre. It’s likely to serve as an accessible strategy experience for visual novel fans rather than a groundbreaking strategy game.

The demo spans the first seven in-game days, finishing with a suspenseful cliffhanger sure to delight fans of the creators’ earlier works. It doesn’t seem The Hundred Line is camouflaging an intent to rehash the killing game formula but instead offers something new. As someone who recently completed Kodaka’s lengthy exposition beyond Danganronpa, I’m hopeful that he and Too Kyo will continue exploring fresh creative avenues while maintaining amiable ties with Spike Chunsoft.

Entering The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy hoping for more Danganronpa might not do it justice. However, it’s clear that the game wants to convey it understands what resonated with Danganronpa fans. Too Kyo confidently delivers captivating characters and eccentric plots, free from the gameplay constraints or predictable patterns of its predecessor.

What I’ve experienced so far cleverly balances fresh innovation and nostalgic homage, though it’s uncertain which aspect will dominate in the finished game. Still, I’m eager to see where it leads. With its 2025 release, The Hundred Line suggests that unity triumphs over division—a timely evolution rather than subversion of familiar themes.

You can check out The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy demo on Steam right now, gearing up for its full release on April 24th for Windows and Nintendo Switch. PC players can rejoice, as progress from the demo will carry over to the complete version.