The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy Embraces Fan-Favorite Tropes Without Being Danganronpa 4

Earlier this month, I wrapped up my first playthrough of Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony. It’s an accomplishment that marks the completion of my journey through the entire main saga of a franchise that’s been a major fascination for me ever since the 2020 lockdowns rekindled its popularity. What’s particularly interesting, though, is that this timing set me up perfectly for diving into the demo for The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy at Steam’s Next Fest—with Kazutaka Kodaka’s iconic series still vividly fresh in my mind.

Back in 2017, right around the release of V3, Kodaka and other former Spike Chunsoft folks came together to form Too Kyo Games. Since then, they’ve rolled out several titles that fans hoped might pick up the Danganronpa baton, even if they weren’t official sequels. However, titles like World’s End Club in 2020 and Master Detective Archives: Rain Code in 2023 brought about a bit of a letdown. Despite their similarities, these games diverged from Danganronpa in key ways—think no killing games or school settings.

Enter The Hundred Line, which is drawing tons of parallels to Danganronpa, more so than any previous Too Kyo endeavor. Playing through its demo, you’ll recognize some musical and sound elements almost directly lifted from Danganronpa; the art style and character archetypes also echo those nostalgic vibes of meeting distant yet familiar relatives at a family gathering.

The game starts with a bang: the first half hour unfolds through beautifully animated, fully-voiced scenes that might feel a bit off if you’re accustomed to the visual novel format of Danganronpa. The setup mirrors its predecessors, with a normal teen and his not-girlfriend stumbling into chaos. They’re swiftly plunged into a bizarre scenario—the protagonist waking up in a foreign classroom, confronted by a twisted cartoon mascot in charge.

Too Kyo delights in toying with expectations, even featuring a character thrilled at the thought of a deadly showdown. But here’s the twist: The Hundred Line is all about teamwork, pitting characters against malevolent robots and monsters in a turn-based strategy setting. It shifts the narrative from Danganronpa’s doom and gloom backdrop to active heroism and world-saving.

I’ve recently started exploring turn-based games, so I won’t claim to be a strategy expert; still, The Hundred Line presents intriguing challenges without breaking ground. It seems tailored as a starting point for visual novel enthusiasts dipping their toes into strategy games.

The demo spans seven in-game days, concluding on a cliffhanger I won’t spoil—but it’s sure to thrill fans of Kodaka’s work. Importantly, I don’t believe this game is masking a return to the Danganronpa formula, and I’d actually prefer it not to. Kodaka’s narrative explanations in Danganronpa left little need to repeat the past unless inspiration truly strikes him again. And with Too Kyo’s good standing with Spike Chunsoft, should Danganronpa 4 emerge, it’ll likely bear the name proudly.

Approaching The Hundred Line purely hungry for more Danganronpa might not do the game justice. Yet, The Hundred Line knowingly taps into what players loved: eccentric characters and crazy plots, liberated from the constraints of its predecessor’s gameplay formula. It artfully balances fresh adventure with nostalgic homage, and I’m eager to see which side prevails in the final cut. There’s something poignant about a Danganronpa-follow-up reminding us in 2025 that unity triumphs over division, suggesting not just a subversion, but an evolution of beloved tropes.

The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy demo is out on Steam now, with full release slated for April 24th on Windows and Nintendo Switch. Good news for PC gamers—you can carry over your demo progress to the complete game.