The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, Kazutaka Kodaka’s new game from the Danganronpa creator’s new studio, has reportedly taken out a loan to fund their title.
The highly anticipated crossover title between Danganronpa series writer, Kazutaka Kodaka and Zero Escape creator Kotaro Uchikoshi, has finally received a reveal trailer during the Nintendo Direct 2024. While the mash-up of creators revealed a trailer rife with intrigue and sporting the striking art style consistent with the Danganronpa series, not everything is as cut and dry with The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy‘s development, namely its cost.
Writer Kodaka spoke with Famitsu (translated by Automaton) about development costs, how the team took a “plunge” and eventually took out a loan to fund growing costs. Kodaka has taken to X (formerly Twitter) to say “We have invested all our money and human resources into this game, and in a sense, it is an epic indie game” and that post can be seen below.
The post on X was not the tip of the iceberg, it turns out; in the interview, Kodaka details The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy has been in development for “6-7 years” almost immediately after the studio Too Kyo Games launched, and it has faced a myriad of development issues. The first was that the title was meant to be published elsewhere (by another major publisher) but that deal fell through. With that roadblock, the devs took it upon themselves to continue development thinking it could continue with an indie game budget. As the game matured, the scenario solidified, and the characters developed, Too Kyo Games realized that development would need to be expanded to create their ‘ideal game.’
Taking out a loan left the development studio in debt, as Kodaka has said “all our money”, and they found another publisher willing to work with them on distribution and landed on Aniplex, with Media Vision and Jet Studio joining the cause as co-developers. Kodaka notes the developers have “risked their lives” on this endeavour and reflects with “It was tough both financially and mentally, but I may never have another opportunity to put this much effort into a project.”
While The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy has had a rocky development, the title is set to launch sometime in 2025.
