From the creative minds that brought us Danganronpa, we have a brand IP in Master Detective Archives: Rain Code
A lot of stuff has been lifted over from Danganronpa. A quick glance at the character designs will let you see the unique style from Danganronpa has been carried over with expressive 2D portraits but also beautifully translated into 3D with its character models. Masafumi Takada has returned to do the soundtrack having done murder mystery and detective style soundtracks through Danganronpa and Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth and of course Kazutaka Kodaka is on writing duties.
Rain Code takes place in the mysterious city full of mysteries, Kanai Ward. Our protagonist, Yuma Kokohead wakes up with no previous memories having signed a pact with a death god called Shinigami with only a letter on him telling him to board the Amaterasu Express train to Kanai Ward and we're eased into this games gameplay cycle of story, a murdered body discovered, investigation, and then off into the mystery labyrinth to solve the mystery with the information picked up from the investigation.
It's a gameplay loop very much inspired by Danganronpa while putting its own spin on it.
The lead up to a body being discovered has you running through town, meeting new characters that will be important to the upcoming case and you have the opportunity to tackle quick sidequests that help flesh out the world of Kanai Ward. Having full movement from a third person perspective is nice and the city of Kanai Ward is beautifully realised in Unreal Engine, giving a pretty impressive looking title for the Nintendo Switch. The constant rain soaked and purple lit atmosphere of Kanai Ward is very well realised with the undertones of characters feeling the oppression of the Peacekeepers and the control Amaterasu Corporation has over their lives.
Investigation gameplay sees you going around an area clicking on things to pick up information that can be used as solution keys in the mystery labyrinth later. It's during these sequences that you will often work alongside a master detective who will have a unique forte ability to help you out, like being able to replicate the crime scene as it was discovered or creating 1:1 disguises to allow you to gather information you otherwise couldn't yourself.
Finally we have the mystery labyrinth's where the solving of the case is done. These are otherworldly areas created by Shinigami to get Yuma out of a bind so he can have time to figure out the case. Aesthetically the labyrinths are incredibly beautiful, bringing to life some really weird and unsettling environments. The labyrinths see you playing a variety of minigames in a similar vein to Danganronpa's class trials. You have Reasoning Death Matches against mystery phantoms (phantoms that take the shape of someone obstructing Yuma solving the case) where you dodge statements until you find one you can prove wrong with a solution key you picked up. There's Shinigami Puzzles where you spell out a missing word in a statement by throwing swords at a spinning barrel Shinigami is in. You've got your quick time events and a God Shinigami game where she runs towards a fortress knocking obstacles out of the way and jumping over things. It's clearly influenced by the Danganronpa DNA and very much trying to find its own identity to mixed results. For example the labyrinth's have portions of running in a straight line until the dialogue is finished which seems to be them mostly showing off what they did with the engine as the background constantly transforms but the pacing is hampered by Yuma going over things that are obvious. Likewise the RDMs are cool but are almost always one on one so you don't quite get the same level of intriguing and misleading debate the class trials provided from having a group of people.
It feels like a foundation onto a new thing but also held back a little by the roots of Danganronpa.
Each mystery labyrinth also ends with a deduction denouement which sees you going through the case and filling in blank spots in a scrapbook and once done Yuma will recap the whole case and announce the culprit, very similar to how the Danganronpa cases would end except it doesn't work quite as well when he's talking to a mystery phantom and not the real person. Solving the case requires Shinigami to reap the soul of the culprit, thus killing them in real life which does lead to some interesting internal debate within Yuma.
The gameplay loop works well despite a couple of issues holding it back and by the time you get to Chapter 4 and 5, it feels like they eventually get a good grasp on how to make everything work and flow well, as well keeping the mystery intriguing.
The story and characters are really good too. Each master detective has that Danganronpa brand of zaniness from Fubuki who is a rich girl who is so sheltered she comes out with hilarious stuff like being unable to count past 3, or Vivia who loves laying down in fireplaces or under pianos. Yuma is your typical lead who wants to help everyone with a good drop of naivete and works well as a counterpart to Shinigami who unfortunately straddles the Danganronpa line of juvenile humour. There's points in the game where Shinigami is jealous of any girl who talks to Yuma, calling Fubuki a sheltered skank, or Kurumi a flatty and it's just why? Chapter 2 is at its worst when Shinigami is constantly calling Kurumi names and Desuhiko is being creepy towards every girl he can. Thankfully it doesn't get as bad as Danganronpa 2 did with Mikan but it's still an annoying thing nonetheless. Same with the Shinigami puzzles resulting in her making a suggestive pose in a bikini when you get the right answer. It's bound to put some people off an otherwise really good game.
The story itself is really good once it gets into its swing. I do have some issues with the pacing and characters repeating points over and over, especially when you've already got a good idea of the answer to the case and Yuma is still going through every option trying to piece things together. When the cases are well thought out and subverting your expectations, the game truly shines. There's some good moments in Chapter 2 with its case but it's Chapters 4 and 5 where everything truly clicks and you see the true potential for Rain Code. The mysteries that unravel in Chapter 5 particularly were a highlight for me and exactly the type of thing I was hoping for.
One last issue to discuss is the performance. The Switch is really starting to show its age with some games and while Rain Code does look fantastic for the hardware it's on, it does come at a cost of performance. Most notably in cutscenes with 3 or more character models in view, the framerate takes notable dips. It's nothing game ruining but it is a noticeable distraction. I also had a couple of occasions in mystery labyrinths where when running forward there would be noticeable jumps and skips which again were more distracting than game breaking. The game does perform reasonably well for the most part and provides an enjoyable experience for the most part.
Master Detective Archives: Rain Code provides a solid foundation to build a truly exciting series out of. While it leans a bit too often on its Danganronpa roots and has some pacing issues, it does provide a fantastic detective mystery experience that truly shines on its own footing by the late game, showing the potential this series could have if they build off this experience in future.
A lot of stuff has been lifted over from Danganronpa. A quick glance at the character designs will let you see the unique style from Danganronpa has been carried over with expressive 2D portraits but also beautifully translated into 3D with its character models. Masafumi Takada has returned to do the soundtrack having done murder mystery and detective style soundtracks through Danganronpa and Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth and of course Kazutaka Kodaka is on writing duties.
Rain Code takes place in the mysterious city full of mysteries, Kanai Ward. Our protagonist, Yuma Kokohead wakes up with no previous memories having signed a pact with a death god called Shinigami with only a letter on him telling him to board the Amaterasu Express train to Kanai Ward and we're eased into this games gameplay cycle of story, a murdered body discovered, investigation, and then off into the mystery labyrinth to solve the mystery with the information picked up from the investigation.
It's a gameplay loop very much inspired by Danganronpa while putting its own spin on it.
The lead up to a body being discovered has you running through town, meeting new characters that will be important to the upcoming case and you have the opportunity to tackle quick sidequests that help flesh out the world of Kanai Ward. Having full movement from a third person perspective is nice and the city of Kanai Ward is beautifully realised in Unreal Engine, giving a pretty impressive looking title for the Nintendo Switch. The constant rain soaked and purple lit atmosphere of Kanai Ward is very well realised with the undertones of characters feeling the oppression of the Peacekeepers and the control Amaterasu Corporation has over their lives.
Investigation gameplay sees you going around an area clicking on things to pick up information that can be used as solution keys in the mystery labyrinth later. It's during these sequences that you will often work alongside a master detective who will have a unique forte ability to help you out, like being able to replicate the crime scene as it was discovered or creating 1:1 disguises to allow you to gather information you otherwise couldn't yourself.
Finally we have the mystery labyrinth's where the solving of the case is done. These are otherworldly areas created by Shinigami to get Yuma out of a bind so he can have time to figure out the case. Aesthetically the labyrinths are incredibly beautiful, bringing to life some really weird and unsettling environments. The labyrinths see you playing a variety of minigames in a similar vein to Danganronpa's class trials. You have Reasoning Death Matches against mystery phantoms (phantoms that take the shape of someone obstructing Yuma solving the case) where you dodge statements until you find one you can prove wrong with a solution key you picked up. There's Shinigami Puzzles where you spell out a missing word in a statement by throwing swords at a spinning barrel Shinigami is in. You've got your quick time events and a God Shinigami game where she runs towards a fortress knocking obstacles out of the way and jumping over things. It's clearly influenced by the Danganronpa DNA and very much trying to find its own identity to mixed results. For example the labyrinth's have portions of running in a straight line until the dialogue is finished which seems to be them mostly showing off what they did with the engine as the background constantly transforms but the pacing is hampered by Yuma going over things that are obvious. Likewise the RDMs are cool but are almost always one on one so you don't quite get the same level of intriguing and misleading debate the class trials provided from having a group of people.
It feels like a foundation onto a new thing but also held back a little by the roots of Danganronpa.
Each mystery labyrinth also ends with a deduction denouement which sees you going through the case and filling in blank spots in a scrapbook and once done Yuma will recap the whole case and announce the culprit, very similar to how the Danganronpa cases would end except it doesn't work quite as well when he's talking to a mystery phantom and not the real person. Solving the case requires Shinigami to reap the soul of the culprit, thus killing them in real life which does lead to some interesting internal debate within Yuma.
The gameplay loop works well despite a couple of issues holding it back and by the time you get to Chapter 4 and 5, it feels like they eventually get a good grasp on how to make everything work and flow well, as well keeping the mystery intriguing.
The story and characters are really good too. Each master detective has that Danganronpa brand of zaniness from Fubuki who is a rich girl who is so sheltered she comes out with hilarious stuff like being unable to count past 3, or Vivia who loves laying down in fireplaces or under pianos. Yuma is your typical lead who wants to help everyone with a good drop of naivete and works well as a counterpart to Shinigami who unfortunately straddles the Danganronpa line of juvenile humour. There's points in the game where Shinigami is jealous of any girl who talks to Yuma, calling Fubuki a sheltered skank, or Kurumi a flatty and it's just why? Chapter 2 is at its worst when Shinigami is constantly calling Kurumi names and Desuhiko is being creepy towards every girl he can. Thankfully it doesn't get as bad as Danganronpa 2 did with Mikan but it's still an annoying thing nonetheless. Same with the Shinigami puzzles resulting in her making a suggestive pose in a bikini when you get the right answer. It's bound to put some people off an otherwise really good game.
The story itself is really good once it gets into its swing. I do have some issues with the pacing and characters repeating points over and over, especially when you've already got a good idea of the answer to the case and Yuma is still going through every option trying to piece things together. When the cases are well thought out and subverting your expectations, the game truly shines. There's some good moments in Chapter 2 with its case but it's Chapters 4 and 5 where everything truly clicks and you see the true potential for Rain Code. The mysteries that unravel in Chapter 5 particularly were a highlight for me and exactly the type of thing I was hoping for.
One last issue to discuss is the performance. The Switch is really starting to show its age with some games and while Rain Code does look fantastic for the hardware it's on, it does come at a cost of performance. Most notably in cutscenes with 3 or more character models in view, the framerate takes notable dips. It's nothing game ruining but it is a noticeable distraction. I also had a couple of occasions in mystery labyrinths where when running forward there would be noticeable jumps and skips which again were more distracting than game breaking. The game does perform reasonably well for the most part and provides an enjoyable experience for the most part.
Master Detective Archives: Rain Code provides a solid foundation to build a truly exciting series out of. While it leans a bit too often on its Danganronpa roots and has some pacing issues, it does provide a fantastic detective mystery experience that truly shines on its own footing by the late game, showing the potential this series could have if they build off this experience in future.