#v3:ppt1

[jacksmusesdrv3]

Strange and troubling moments from our Ultimate Detective (cut up):

Recognition of ‘Ultimate’ as if it’s something bad (JP). Granted it’s before he has his memories, but what’s also curious is the recognition a few of the group have of the Monokubs. The vagueness is... troubling, in part considering that Danganronpa is purported to be popular.

Deja vu recognition, while Kaede has no such response. Shuichi alone is particularly unsettled by the notion that he had been there before. Add that to a recognition of ‘Ultimate’ as something awry, and there’s a curious implication of what he means by ‘in for something strange’, considering that his own lab room is filled with Ultimate experiments...

His wish to die, coupled with rejecting Ultimate memories. The group are running to throw away their memories, purportedly because of the Hunt. But if Shuichi alone explicitly wanted to die, why is he going through such a roundabout process... unless he wanted something else...?

[jacksmusesdrv3]

Monophanie, faking falling asleep after... apparently forgetting to do her duty. She doesn’t seem to be too bothered about what happened though, not like she was when Monokuma was present for the motive video jumble, later on.

One way or another, it’s because of her that we see the Prologue the way we do, and we get a classic deflection from the gormless Monotaro. Could she have done this on purpose, along with the premature Exisal situation?

[jacksmusesdrv3]

Types of distortion in intros

[jacksmusesdrv3]

wolfiered23 replied to your photoset “There’s something really off with this introduction. Kaede looks...”

This always struck me as really weird, cause I expected the game to start similar to the demo. It feels more like Kaede’s reciting a script or talking to a voice in her head, like this isn’t her body, or she’s having an out of body experience cause the player can see her, but there’s no mirror so she can’t see herself, if that makes sense.

It’s especially freaky because even though Tsumugi was all about the ‘script did everything’, she has no explanation at all for what Kaede did here. Whereas in the past, you have the swirl memory explained, and the glitching explained... this though? All you can guess at is that she was dissociating, lacking any other context; what’s more, a curious theme that is reflected on after her death.

[jacksmusesdrv3]

Curiously, in DR1, you find out that the group barricaded themselves in, that the ‘imprisonment’ was their own doing. So with that you get a clear context for the appearance of those windows.

As for the barbed wire presence though, we don’t. We don’t even know what that area ‘feels’ like, as Makoto investigated the metal by touch, but Kaede didn’t go to touch the window... understandably, as it’s obviously dangerous.

With that in mind...

Those windows there... almost don’t look like windows. The barbed wire is crossed over bars on the inside, bars that for all intents and purposes look like they belong in a prison. The only indication there’s a window there is the imagery of greenery smushed up against glass.

The wires don’t even seem to serve any purpose - not like the End Wall ‘cage’, at least - but one way or another, ‘less than friendly’ is an understatement. 

The other side though, has regular pane windows, no freaky wires or anything. You can also see the form of each pane quite easily. It puts me in mind of when Ryoma’s lab was partway turning into a prison room- some of it was functional for his research, but the rest was prison.

As for the overgrowth... this place is a really old one, and the game sure wants to emphasise that a bunch...