Danganronpa Creator Reflects on His Journey and Success as a Game Developer 15 Years After Creating the Game

For my anime fans, before we got to experience Danganronpa the series, it actually started as a visual novel adventure game developed and published by Spike Chunsoft and created by Kazutaka Kodaka over 15 years ago. To date, there are 10 games in the series, and Kodaka has been reflecting on his journey as a game developer. Here’s what Kodaka says about what inspired him to create Danganronpa and what had contributed to his success with the series.

Danganronpa Creator Says He Pursued Making Games Because of an Argument With His Co-Worker

Danganronpa has become a wildly successful game and anime series, and none of it would have been possible had Kazutaka Kodaka not pursued game development as a career. Kodaka recently revealed that he only pursued game development because of an argument he had with a co-worker at his part-time job. Her comments changed the direction of his life because he decided to commit to game development.

Recalling the exchange, Kodaka says he confronted his co-worker at the store where he was working about a mistake she had made. He told her she wouldn’t make it in society if she made mistakes like that, and she retorted by telling Kodaka he hadn’t participated or contributed in society in some time.

Kazutaka Kodaka’s Early Career

Kodaka revealed this exchange while talking at last year’s Computer Entertainment Developers Conference (CEDEC). Kodaka describes how he got into game development early in his career, though he spent much of his twenties pursuing independent filmmaking while working part-time at a second-hand video game store to support himself.

Before working on Danganronpa and before the argument, Kodaka’s first exposure to the industry was working on the production team for Capcom’s Clock Tower 3. He eventually joined Flagship, a Capcom-owned subsidiary specializing in scenario production; however, it was dissolved in 2007. Kodaka also worked on scenarios for Resident Evil 2, Onimusha: Warlords, and The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap.

Kodaka’s stint at Flagship did not last. According to him, working conditions were harsh, and so he subsequently left the company after about a year. This led him to work on developing indie films while working at the video game store. His early exposure to movies and anime by his sister, combined with the games he “borrowed” from his part-time job, helped him create unique titles like Danganronpa, which became an instant hit.

Kazutaka Kodaka’s Success with Danganronpa

Throughout Kodaka’s career, Danganronpa and his work with his developer company, Spike Chunsoft, have been his most successful works to date. The premise of Danganronpa appealed to many, combining horror and mystery in a highly suspenseful drama. The idea that a group of high school students would be trapped inside the most outrageously built school building, with a cute bear as their “caretaker,” makes this a must-play game.

If you like your whodunit mysteries, this is definitely one you want to add to your list. Through this game, Kodaka explores themes of hope and despair, and how such things affect human behavior and our actions. This game asks one simple question: How far would you go to survive? Each character in the game has their own personality, which makes everyone just as important as the main character, Makoto Naegi, the most unremarkable character out of the whole cast.

Kodaka also plays around with the mysteries behind this peculiar school, the reason why this particular group of high school students is trapped, why Monokuma the bear is holding them hostage, and why they are not allowed outside at all. There are so many pieces to this intricate puzzle, all interconnected and so well-thought-out, it’s no wonder that the series spawned 10 more games, an anime series, and a huge fandom.