Danganronpa 2×2 has the franchise’s community endlessly theorizing on what the new scenario could hold. Three days after its announcement on Nintendo Direct, Famitsu managed to snag an exclusive interview with producer Shohei Sakakibara. Fans later translated the published article and posted it on Reddit on Sept. 15th. Sakakibara shared pieces of the game’s interesting development.

How Does DR2x2 Affects Danganronpa’s Canon?

The leading question in Danganronpa fans’ minds is whether it will change the series’ plotline. The community’s majority believed that the recreated scenario could affect Danganronpa 3, the disappointing anime sequel. Others hypothesized that Danganronpa 2×2 will significantly affect Danganronpa V3’s “Side: Future” ending. Sakakibara carefully gave two answers for both titles.

He first confirmed for the Danganronpa timeline, “DR2 can be used to offer the player base a new installment without breaking the pre-established lore. It will begin with the exact lead-in, then the special event occurs, diverging from the original narrative. This is not a route split.”

This is mainly because DR3 already set the events of The Tragedy, the time when mankind fell into despair. The anime shows Class 77’s development into becoming the Ultimate Despair students. The same can be said for the Future Foundation perspective, as it establishes the events during and after Danganronpa: Ultra Despair Girls. The game follows after the death of Ultimate Despair Analyst, Junko Enoshima, who was executed in Danganronpa.

Sakakibara then gestures a sly hint about DRV3’s being affected. He said, “You will have to play the game for yourself to find out how DR2x2 ends.” This makes sense for DRV3’s meta killing game plot.

Danganronpa 2×2 Will Have Updated and New Gameplay

Gemdrops Inc. and Spike Chunsoft have planned to update Danganronpa 2’s iconic game mechanics in this deluxe remake. The development team has already announced that Danganronpa 2×2’s First Class Trial will be playable at BelleSalle Tokyo Nihonbashi on Nov. 29th. However, Sakakibara hinted that fans will witness new minigames sooner rather than later.

He told Famitsu, “This will be announced on a later date.” The next game show to air this year is Tokyo Game Show 2025 (TGS 2025). The event showcases preview gameplay and announces upcoming Japanese-made titles. We are unsure of which date Spike Chunsoft will make a surprise appearance, but the show will air from Sept. 25th to 28th.

New Japanese Monokuma and Usami VAs Found

Famitsu reassured Danganronpa’s Japanese audience about Monokuma and Monomi’s casting. The black-and-white teddy bear’s original voice actress, Nobuyo Oyama, was famously known for voicing the blue robot cat, Doraemon. She later died on October 11, 2024. Her agency, Actors 7, confirmed she suffered from a stroke due to her old age.

Oyama’s death came after her successor, Taraka Isono. After Oyama retired around 2016 due to dementia, Isono became Monokoma for DRV3. She’s mainly known as Inuyasha’s Kilala and Hunter x Hunter’s Melody. She previously worked with Spike Chunsoft for Kotaro Uchikoshi’s Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward. She became the sinister virtual rabbit, Zero III. The 63-year-old actress unexpectedly passed away on Mar. 4th.

Finally, there’s Takako Sasuga, who voiced Monokuma’s rabbit opposite, Monomi. She became Oyama’s co-star in Danganronpa 2 for both the game and anime adaptation. Despite being three years younger, the Sazae-san actress met her fate on February 5, 2023.

Sakakibara happily announced that Monokuma and Monomi will have new actors alongside the original DR2 cast. All voice lines from the original story will be rerecorded for Danganronpa 2×2, as well as the additional scenario.

Danganronpa 2×2 Means “2 Stories, 2 Games”

The final detail that people waited for is what Danganronpa 2×2 identified as. Sakakibara sort of settles the debate. He explained, “The new scenario and the remake are two completely independent games.” As the producer previously mentioned, DR2x2’s second scenario is not a different path to a new ending.

He also emphasizes that the numbers are read as “Two by two.” Some are still skeptical about Sakakibara’s answer after what he hinted at about DRV3’s possible change. What we can say is that 2×2 has a new meaning: 2 stories, 2 games will exist on Jabberwock Island.