Shuten Order is another striking visual novel from the creators of the Danganronpa series. Its bold art style and stylish presentation make it stand out, and at times it even reminded me of Kill La Kill, though I admit my anime knowledge is limited. Coming from the mind of Kazutaka Kodaka, the game delivers an ambitious story with layered gameplay that goes beyond what you would normally expect from a straightforward visual novel.
Unlike Hundred Line Defense: Last Academy, which focused heavily on branching endings, Shuten Order leans more into the traditional visual novel format. The story centers on a murder cult whose ultimate goal is to bring about the end of the world. Interestingly, despite their sinister intentions, they present themselves with a certain politeness that makes them unsettling. The protagonist, Rei, wakes up with no memory of what happened to them, which might sound like an overused setup, but in this case, it works surprisingly well.
Rei’s journey is about uncovering their killer and understanding the purpose of their existence. Along the way, Rei encounters mysterious beings who call themselves angels, guiding him through his lost past and the truth behind the cult. One of the strongest aspects of the game is its cast, both main and supporting, who each play an important role in slowly unraveling the mystery surrounding Rei’s identity and the cult’s motives.
The biggest draw of Shuten Order is the mystery surrounding Rei’s past, but the gameplay itself is just as engaging. Unlike a traditional visual novel that mainly relies on long stretches of dialogue and cutscenes, the game splits its experience into five distinct gameplay segments. This approach is both its strength and its weakness. On one hand, it is impressive to see so many genres blended into a single title. On the other hand, the execution does not always land, which sometimes lessens the overall impact.
These five segments are tied to different ministries: Security, Science, Justice, Education, and Health. Each one introduces its own unique style of missions. For example, the Security segment focuses on stealth and puzzle-solving. This part feels very reminiscent of the older Metal Gear Solid games, complete with a top-down perspective where your main objective is to avoid being seen or killed. It is a clever twist for a visual novel, though not always as polished as the inspirations it borrows from.
The Ministry of Justice shifts the gameplay into a detective-style adventure, where you investigate scenes and analyze clues to piece together what really happened. This segment puts you directly in the role of an investigator. A unique feature here is called “Snapping,” which allows you to uncover the truth hidden in dialogue or examine objects more closely, helping you solve each scenario.
The Ministry of Science takes a more traditional visual novel approach. It offers a broader perspective on the story by letting you switch between different characters’ viewpoints. This perspective shift adds depth and lets you consider multiple outcomes to determine the best path for survival. The Ministry of Education, on the other hand, plays like a romance-focused story. It introduces a relationship system with three heroines, encouraging you to build bonds while working to uncover the killer’s identity. It is an engaging way to explore the psychology of the characters and adds variety to the narrative.
Finally, the Ministry of Health leans into escape-room style gameplay. This mode is puzzle-heavy with less action than the others, but choices carry significant weight here. A single wrong decision can quickly lead to a bad ending, making it one of the more tense and unforgiving parts of the game.
I reviewed the game on a regular Switch since there is no native Switch 2 port, but thankfully, it runs quite well. While that is expected from a visual novel, there are still 3D segments where you control a character, and those play out fine, too. The stylized presentation helps hide some of the visual shortcomings, so it is not a big deal.
As for the value of the game, it can easily take over 40 hours to finish the main story. Each of the five segments feels like it could stand on its own as a separate game, so it ends up being good value for the price. Think of it as about ten dollars per gameplay segment. You are essentially getting a multi-genre visual mystery from the creators of Danganronpa, complete with their trademark writing twists and unique style. That said, the downside is that the story is not always engaging, so it will not keep you hooked all the way through. The idea of a bigger campaign sounds great in theory, but the execution is uneven, and at times it feels like a chore to push through certain parts. I found the Security and Health segments especially tiring.
The lack of English voice acting might be a dealbreaker for some, but honestly, if it means faster English localizations, I do not mind it. Overall, Shuten Order was a pleasant surprise. It might not reinvent the genre, but for fans of the Danganronpa franchise, it is another mystery worth diving into.
Shuten Order Game Information
- Price: $49.99
- Publisher: Spike Chunsoft
- Developer: DMM Games
- Platform: Switch (Reviewed)
- Disclaimer: A review code was given by the publisher
