Danganronpa is an amazing series of anime-style visual novel thrillers. Games like Danganronpa are few and far between, as it has a truly unique concept and style.
However, a few choice titles have managed to incorporate the elements of what makes the Danganronpa series so beloved among fans.
Whether it be through the great character writing, the difficult puzzles, or the immersive stories, there’s plenty of choices for Danganronpa fans. We’ve handpicked our favorite titles for this list, featuring games with similar vibes and mechanics to Danganronpa.
So, without further ado, let’s dive in. Here are the 12 best games like Danganronpa to add to your game library today.
Please note that some of the games in this list include some distressing themes. We’d advise looking up trigger warnings for some of the heavier titles.
12. Return of the Obra Dinn
Return of the Obra Dinn is a visually stunning puzzle game with a very unique aesthetic. In this game, players will explore a ship known as the Obra Dinn. The Obra Dinn is a merchant ship that went missing at sea and mysteriously returned to London years later, with dead crew mates and torn sails.
The main gameplay element of Return of the Obra Dinn is the ability to explore the moment right before a crewmate dies, as if the player is skipping through time. Players must then use this information to progress further into the game.
There are plenty of mysteries for players to try and solve in this game. It’s one of the most intriguing mystery games on the Switch.
Much like Danganronpa, Return of the Obra Dinn is great for those who love puzzle-solving in tense and thrilling situations.
11. 12 Minutes
12 Minutes is a top-down point-and-click interactive thriller game.
While sitting at home one night, your evening is suddenly ruined as a policeman breaks into your home. This person then proceeds to accuse your wife of murder before viciously beating you to death. However, instead of staying dead, you find yourself back on the couch at the same moment the policeman knocks on your door.
You are now stuck in this twelve minute loop and must use your time wisely to gather as much information as you can in order to stop the worst from happening.
12 Minutes is great for fans of games like Danganronpa who enjoy puzzle-solving and searching for clues. There is little to no information readily available to you in this game. You will need to uncover the truth and explore your surroundings.
For example, explaining to your wife that you are stuck in a time loop will be met with nothing but disbelief. However, after a few playthroughs, you can memorize her speech patterns and use them to prove that you aren’t lying.
12 Minutes rewards players for creativity when it comes to problem-solving. If you’re able to think outside of the box and deal with a time constraint, this is the perfect game for you.
10. Saw: The Video Game
Saw: The Video Game is exactly what you’d expect for a game based on the popular horror film series.
Just like the movies, this game puts players in an uncomfortable and scary situation. The game begins with a mysterious puppet kidnapping you and trapping you in a room. Much like Monokuma in Danganronpa, the identity of this unknown figure remains a mystery for the majority of the game.
Once in this undisclosed location, players will need to complete a series of difficult and life-threatening challenges in order to escape certain death. In order to escape, players will need to search the area for clues and utilize the scarce resources at their disposal.
There is, naturally, a lot more blood and gore found in Saw: The Video Game as opposed to Danganronpa, so be mindful of this. If you want a game with even more carnage, Saw: The Video Game provides this in spades.
9. AI: The Somnium Files
In AI: The Somnium Files, players will take control of Kaname Date. Kaname is a detective who is working to crack a series of mysterious serial killings. It is up to you to gather evidence and track down this criminal in a sci-fi setting of futuristic Tokyo.
AI: The Somnium Files comes from the same developer who created another mystery puzzle game, known as Zero Escape.
Both these games require keen-eyed players to look for clues that will aid in solving cases. AI: The Somnium Files is a lot like Danganronpa in that regard, as you must use these clues to uncover who the real culprit of a crime is.
AI: The Somnium Files is one of the best games similar to Danganronpa for sci-fi fans. It’s one of the best interactive story games on the Switch and absolutely worth checking out.
8. Corpse Party
After unknowingly performing an occult ritual, a group of young friends suddenly ends up in a supernatural elementary school, seemingly in a different plane of existence. There, they encounter several vengeful spirits of long-deceased children, who threaten their lives and sanity.
The only way to escape from this hell is to uncover the terrible mysteries surrounding the deaths of these children.
Players will take control of nine main characters and several side characters while exploring the various locations of the elementary school.
In a similar fashion to other games like Danganronpa, your actions will directly impact the story, and there are multiple endings to see depending on how your play-through goes.
Corpse Party leans more into the horror aspect than Danganronpa. If you love gruesome deaths, horrifying twists, and lots of blood, Corpse Party is a great and much more mature alternative for fans of Danganronpa.
7. Zero Escape: The Nonary Games
Zero Escape: The Nonary Games follows the story of a group of nine people kidnapped by a mysterious entity known only as ‘Zero’. These nine people then have to put their lives on the line as they compete in the diabolical Nonary Games.
The Nonary games feature a series of challenges that aim to pit the group against each other. They encourage foul play, lying, and any other negative things you can think of.
This might sound familiar, as in Danganronpa, Monokuma captures the group of teens that the game focuses on and forces them to solve several mysteries.
There are plenty of great character interactions to be found in Zero Escape: The Nonary Games and the Zero Escape series as a whole. Definitely check out this series of games if you have the time. Fans of Danganronpa will love it.
6. Steins;Gate
Danganronpa incorporates a lot of anime-style visual novel elements. Dialogue is the main focus of the game and is where most of the character development happens.
If you loved the witty dialogue and amazing character interactions found in the Danganronpa series, you might want to check out another visual novel-style game.
Where better to start with your dive into the world of visual novels than with one of the greatest visual novels in history? Steins;Gate is an incredibly popular visual novel game that was later adapted into a just as successful and well-received anime series.
The game incorporates elements of sci-fi, romance, and suspense expertly in order to create a unique and interesting storyline that focuses on time travel.
Much like Danganronpa, there are plenty of mysteries to uncover throughout Steins;Gate, and your choices will lead you to one of several endings.
As you can imagine, for a game as highly praised as Steins;Gate, the characters, theming, and overarching narrative are all of the highest quality imaginable here. This game can make players laugh just as much as it can make them cry (while delivering on all the emotions in between as well).
If you loved the writing style of Danganronpa, Steins;Gate definitely deserves your attention. It is easily one of the best anime games on Switch and Steam alike.
5. Professor Layton
The Professor Layton series is a lot more light-hearted than Danganronpa. Developed by Nintendo as a puzzle game, players will get to investigate several mysteries in the game’s world and solve puzzles while trying to uncover the truth.
Something less-discussed about the Professor Layton franchise is its unique art style. The game has a very charming aesthetic that manages to capture both the mystery of the world, and the more lighthearted nature of a child’s detective game.
If your favorite part about the Danganronpa games is the satisfaction you get from solving a puzzle, Professor Layton is a great alternative game series to check out.
There are several games in the series spanning several different systems, meaning there is plenty of content for you to start sinking your teeth into.
4. Doki Doki Literature Club
Doki Doki Literature Club is a great example of how to pull off an effective bait and switch. The game lures you in with the promise of sweet high school shenanigans, before shifting drastically into a psychological horror. Because of this, there are not many games like DDLC out there that can make you feel so many mixed emotions.
Danganronpa pulls off these kinds of personality shifts well also. Clearly, in order to make the murder mystery more difficult to solve, the surrounding members of the group need to all have some level of innocence about them. Otherwise, the culprit would be obvious from the start.
Without spoiling too much about Doki Doki Literature Club for those yet to play it, the rapid shift of one character’s personality will throw new players for a loop on their first play through.
Similarly, when that comrade you thought had your back in Danganronpa turns out to have been the killer all along, it can be pretty jarring and hard to accept.
If you love shocking twists, Doki Doki Literature Club is a great game to check out.
3. Among Us
Among Us is best described as Danganronpa in real life.
After a murder happens in Danganronpa, the remaining members will all gather for the debate portion. It is here where players will use the evidence at their disposal to decipher who is lying and who is telling the truth.
In Danganronpa, evidence is specifically left out in the open to give players a hint at who is the culprit. However, what if the only evidence available was that which you uncovered yourself?
Among Us is a party game similar to parlor games like ‘Mafia’ or ‘Werewolf’. A certain number of killers exist in the party and their job is to take out the other members of the party while remaining undetected.
After a successful murder and the body being found, the group will reconvene to discuss things over voice chat.
This is where things can get pretty intense as you are no longer confined by in-game speech options. If you suspect someone, you are free to call them out openly. And, if you are the imposter, you are free to lie through your teeth!
Among Us is a lot more fun and light-hearted than Danganronpa, but both games are appealing in their own way.
2. L.A. Noire
L.A. Noire is a crime thriller game in which you play as a detective over the backdrop of 1940s Los Angeles.
As you can imagine, there are plenty of action scenes littered throughout this game. Fist fights, gunfights, and car chases are all par for the course over the lengthy main storyline.
At first glance, this game might seem completely different to the more text-based suspense found in visual novel style games like Danganronpa.
However, one of the biggest parts of L.A. Noire is interviewing people, taking notes, and gathering evidence.
Over the course of the game, you will come upon various pieces of evidence. Depending on whether or not you have the right item in your inventory at the right time, you may have all the necessary cards to arrest your suspect then and there.
If not, however, you’ll be able to try and read the suspect’s facial movements and guess for yourself whether or not they are lying.
When you make a choice like this, the suspect has one of several options from storming out to confessing on the spot. The entire game can be affected based on the evidence you gather and the choices you make.
Much like Danganronpa’s multiple endings, every choice matters in L.A. Noire. If you enjoy gathering evidence and using your own judgment to decide who is innocent, L.A. Noire can satisfy your criteria.
1. Ace Attorney
The Ace Attorney series has players take part in several court cases as defense attorneys defending various clients across tons of different storylines.
These games are visual novel-style games with a heavy focus on narrative. Gameplay is split up into sections. The first involves players investigating the information surrounding the case in question and gathering evidence.
Then, when you are ready for action, you’ll take to the courtroom to battle it out in a verbal debate against your opposition.
Ace Attorney and Danganronpa share a similar kind of structure. Both focus a lot on narrative, especially rapid back and forths between characters (much like other visual novels).
It is necessary to uncover evidence about the potential killer in Danganronpa before using the said evidence to blindside an unsuspecting criminal.
Ace Attorney obviously doesn’t have the same consequences if you fail a mission, but the subject matter of both these games can get pretty graphic when it wants to.
If you love catching out crooks using a trail of breadcrumbs then the Ace Attorney series is perfect for you! It’s a lot of fun to play.
