World's End Club

 Switch
User Score
6.7

Mixed or average reviews- based on 29 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 29
  3. Negative: 7 out of 29
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  1. katpjs
    Jul 5, 2021
    4
    Overall, predictable story, disappointing platformer, uninteresting characters. Only plus it really has is the way the characters look and are designed. Not one I would ever recommend and one I’m disappointed I bought day one. Also, if you played the demo and expect the game to be like that the whole time, DO NOT BE DECEIVED. This is literally the only part of the game like this and isOverall, predictable story, disappointing platformer, uninteresting characters. Only plus it really has is the way the characters look and are designed. Not one I would ever recommend and one I’m disappointed I bought day one. Also, if you played the demo and expect the game to be like that the whole time, DO NOT BE DECEIVED. This is literally the only part of the game like this and is used (in my opinion) as a hook to pull fans of Danganronpa/Zero Escape in.… Expand
  2. SuperFantastico
    Jul 2, 2021
    5
    A unique story that doesnt execute itself well, janky and often frustrating platforming, along with plain and cliche'd characters and dialogue, the game very often feels like it couldn't pin down what demographic it was aiming for. Elements of the premise means i wouldn't give it to children, but the overly trope-filled dialogue means i wouldnt give it to anyone else. There were someA unique story that doesnt execute itself well, janky and often frustrating platforming, along with plain and cliche'd characters and dialogue, the game very often feels like it couldn't pin down what demographic it was aiming for. Elements of the premise means i wouldn't give it to children, but the overly trope-filled dialogue means i wouldnt give it to anyone else. There were some unique and interesting ideas here that i would have loved to see fleshed out, but poor execution prevents me from rating it any higher.… Expand
  3. Toleezu
    May 29, 2021
    7
    I really enjoyed this game. However, due to the creative team behind this game, some resetting of expectations are necessary. This game is smaller in scope than either Danganronpa or Zero Escape, and has a much lighter and friendly atmosphere than those titles. Those expecting darker or more cerebral themes will not be well served out of the box. For long-time fans, put yourself in theI really enjoyed this game. However, due to the creative team behind this game, some resetting of expectations are necessary. This game is smaller in scope than either Danganronpa or Zero Escape, and has a much lighter and friendly atmosphere than those titles. Those expecting darker or more cerebral themes will not be well served out of the box. For long-time fans, put yourself in the mindset that this is more of an introductory level game than a 'Master's Thesis'. Despite the lower 'difficulty' of this game to digest, the writing and character development are still solid and worthwhile. The platforming, however, is very basic, having poorly defined hit-boxes and frequently causes the character you are controlling to animation lock itself. Luckily, checkpoints are frequent and progress is easy with deliberate action. Essentially, the platforming is adequate. Not good, not gamebreaking, but adequate. If the authors want to strive for gaming excellence, the lack of a tight platforming experience is an area that they could improve upon moving forward. The story and characters do shine despite less polish in the gameplay aspect and I do welcome this title into my collection, and I hope you do as well, but this is more 7/10 than 10/10.… Expand
  4. ostara
    May 31, 2021
    6
    WEC is fun for what it is, but it stops at that. The parts of the game from the demo were the best and most interesting, while the content saved for the final release falls flat emotionally and narratively. Gameplay is pretty bad, and while it's serviceable, it makes it hard for me to recommend anyone play the game instead of just watching the cutscenes. It also is overshadowed, story andWEC is fun for what it is, but it stops at that. The parts of the game from the demo were the best and most interesting, while the content saved for the final release falls flat emotionally and narratively. Gameplay is pretty bad, and while it's serviceable, it makes it hard for me to recommend anyone play the game instead of just watching the cutscenes. It also is overshadowed, story and gameplay wise, by the games that, not only has the team made prior, but the games that it was obviously inspired by. The saving grace of the game is the characters, who are all very charming and fun to watch interact with each other. Overall, I did enjoy some of my time with it, but it left me thinking I would have rather gone back and played other games.… Expand
  5. Neg8iveMan
    Jun 15, 2021
    3
    Being a new game featuring the writers of the Danganronpa and Zero Escape series, I was really looking forward to this game. With this being said, I'm sad to say that the game was disappointing.

    There are some things this game does well, so let's talk about that first. The art style for this game is quite charming, both in the characters designs and the world. The music for this game is    Being a new game featuring the writers of the Danganronpa and Zero Escape series, I was really looking forward to this game. With this being said, I'm sad to say that the game was disappointing.

    There are some things this game does well, so let's talk about that first. The art style for this game is quite charming, both in the characters designs and the world. The music for this game is also pretty good, and definitely helps the atmosphere. Unfortunately, it's hard to enjoy a lot of it given the games other flaws.

    The demo for this game (about the first hour of gameplay) was an interesting start to the story, but quickly falls flat. The main cast, the Go Getter's Club, find themselves in a Danganronpa/Zero Escape-esque fate game that takes place in an underwater theme park. Only one of the participants can win by completing a task, but the catch is that everyone is wearing a bracelet that describes someone else's task. The initial story and the atmosphere of the underwater theme park are great, but once the section is over is when the game changes pace.
    The rest of the game is a trek across a post-apocalyptic Japan where the Club attempts to return to their home of Tokyo. The change in the story subverts expectations from these writers and is not inherently bad, but the rest of the story does not compare to the setup.

    The gameplay consists of 2.5D puzzle platforming sections. Each character has a single ability that they can use. This had the potential for some interesting gameplay, but unfortunately each ability is hardly used outside of hitting enemies or solving very easy puzzles. On top of this, only one ability can be used at a time, limiting the ways in which puzzles can be approached. Gameplay is also regularly interrupted by cutscenes where the characters will make bad jokes or give obvious warnings. Any time an enemy is on screen or an obstacle is introduced, the characters have to take away your control and tell you to watch out. It becomes grading to see spikes on the floor or lava shooting from the ground and have the characters have to tell you that these might be dangerous. It's especially confusing because the game has a system to let characters talk and display dialogue during normal gameplay, so this issue could have been mitigated relatively easily.

    The majority of the character cast are one-dimensional and don't have much personality outside of their single hyperfixation. Characters like Mowchan and Chuko are the worst offenders, in my opinion. The cast as a whole is not terrible, but there are a lot of moments where characters will spout sub-dad-joke level puns and I found myself just wishing for them to get on with the plot.

    With these flaws aside, this is primarily a visual novel, so the story takes focus. Again, the initial setup is great, but unfortunately the plot points fall flat, especially if you've played the Zero Escape series. There are several points at which characters will bring up seemingly random points that are obviously going to have to do with the plot later, and a lot of the twists are not as well hidden as the writers' previous games. Without spoiling anything, the plot twists feel either very obvious or completely out-there and over-complicated. There were very few "aha" moments
    compared to the likes of Danganronpa and Zero Escape.

    I went into this game feeling very optimistic, but finished it feeling more disappointed than I have in any game in quite a while.    … Expand
  6. subspace87
    Oct 19, 2021
    1
    This game wasn't too thrilling. For one, the story was a very haphazard one. It was hard to follow and not very in depth. It was also very lackluster and not all that immersive. Another issue with this game is its clunky platforming. I found it very frustrating at times and awkward at certain points. All in all it feels very unpolished.
  7. heytherekitty
    Jun 8, 2021
    7
    I had a great time with The World's End Club despite its gameplay issues. Being a huge fan of the Danganronpa series is what got me interested in WEC but I knew to temper my expectations that this game was going to be another Danganronpa (and so should you). Of course, that is not to say that there aren't shades of Danganronpa in WEC specifically in the unique character personalities asI had a great time with The World's End Club despite its gameplay issues. Being a huge fan of the Danganronpa series is what got me interested in WEC but I knew to temper my expectations that this game was going to be another Danganronpa (and so should you). Of course, that is not to say that there aren't shades of Danganronpa in WEC specifically in the unique character personalities as well as the twists and turns of the story. Notably, the story and characters are what really drew me into WEC. The story is more lighthearted than Danganronpa but that doesn't mean its less interesting. The game has a branching path narrative and you will have to experience all paths in order to get the true ending. Normally, this would frustrate me but WEC is a short enough experience and the story was intriguing and enjoyable enough for me to want to see all of it. Of course what helps to fuel the story is the assortment of unique personalities that makes up the Go-Getters Club. Each of them gets their moment to shine in the story although it is noticeable that some get more time than others.

    Now the real trouble with WEC is with its gameplay. The gameplay is mostly guiding each of the characters through levels by platforming and using the different abilities of each character to solve puzzles and get past obstacles. The platforming is a bit of a joke. It is one of those games where your character feels like they weigh 300+ pounds so when you tell them to jump it is sluggish. Also the puzzles are pretty simplistic which is not a huge complaint for me personally but it might be an issue for others.

    Finally, the game looks and plays good on the Switch. I played the entire game docked and only had minor framerate issues. As for visuals, the art style is great. My husband said the characters reminded him of Pokémon characters which I can see.

    All and all, I recommend WEC. It has a fun story and interesting characters despite the dated and lackluster gameplay.    … Expand
  8. Lukiro
    Jun 7, 2021
    2
    The high scores are probably from people who yet have to play the Danganronpa or Zero Escape series.

    This game sadly lacks in everything that made the other games good.
  9. Happyspelling
    Jun 1, 2021
    10
    I was not sure what to expect going into this game, but I thought the demo was fun so I gave it a go. This game is advertised as a platformer, but it's more of a visual novel. The game took me over 15 hours, and about three quarters of it was cutscenes. Fortunately the story was extremely well crafted and engaging. The direction the story goes in kept surprising me, and while some of theI was not sure what to expect going into this game, but I thought the demo was fun so I gave it a go. This game is advertised as a platformer, but it's more of a visual novel. The game took me over 15 hours, and about three quarters of it was cutscenes. Fortunately the story was extremely well crafted and engaging. The direction the story goes in kept surprising me, and while some of the twists are predictable, the execution makes it feel rewarding. I was constantly asking questions and wondering where the story would go next, and pretty much everything got answered in the end, which shows how well thought out the story was. The story is a little dark, but it has some humor to balance it out, and has a pretty good balance in tone. While there are a lot of characters, pretty much every character gets their moment to shine, and none of them were annoying. I found myself getting attached to them and getting to know their personalities pretty quickly. Overall I have no complaints with the story. It is full of twists, turns, laughs, and even made me tear up more than once. What makes it even better is the superb voice acting, which especially shines during the more dramatic moments. Nearly every line is voice acted, and honestly I don't think I could stomach 15 hours of reading. If there was little to no voice acting, the game would get a significantly lower score, probably only an 8/10. Pretty much everything about the presentation is phenominal. The music is absolutely amazing, it's up there as one of the best I've heard in any game. The graphics are pretty standard for a Switch game, which is not in any way a bad thing, but the overall style is really appealing. The price is also fair, $40 for a 15-20 hour game is the perfect price, and the inclusion of an art book and ost sampler in the physical version is a nice treat, even if it's an extra $10. Now let's talk about the gameplay. This is where I can see some people taking issue with the game, but I wasn't bothered by it. The platforming segments only takes up a few hours of gameplay. While it is a bit slow, the level design has some pretty clever puzzle elements, and there is a lot of variety. One issue I have is that the game likes to spell out what you need to do before even giving you time to figure it out, which was annoying because it took away some of the satisfaction. It doesn't completely ruin it for me, and the boss fights are pretty fun too, especially the final boss. Overall this game has some flaws but when it's good it's absolutely amazing. This was my first visual novel, and I might try getting into some other ones now that this one left such a great first impression. I hope other ones are as creative as this one. If you value story in a game as much or more than the gameplay, then this is the perfect game for you. So far this is my favorite original game of 2021, and I hope it stays that way (Miitopia and Void Terrarium ++ are both ports so they don't really count). I really hope we get more games like this in the future, or maybe even a TV adaptation, that would be pretty much perfect.
    Graphics: 8/10 Music: 10/10 Sound Effects: 10/10 Content: 8/10 Controls: 7/10
    Fun: 9/10 Characters: 10/10 Gameplay: 8/10 Story: 20/20
    TOTAL: 90/100 (MUST PLAY!)
    I usually have 10 areas worth 10 points each, but I had to give the story the credit it deserves. The game is nothing without the amazing story.    … Expand
  10. Zyloc
    Jun 11, 2021
    9
    I'm a big fan of the Danganronpa and Zero Escape series.
    World's End Club also has a great story. You can definitely tell that the game was written by Kodaka and Uchikoshi.
    There are several plot twists, much of which can be anticipated to some extent. It's very heartwarming. The characters are very good written. I liked them! I'm not a big fan of this platforming passages. However,    I'm a big fan of the Danganronpa and Zero Escape series.
    World's End Club also has a great story. You can definitely tell that the game was written by Kodaka and Uchikoshi.

    There are several plot twists, much of which can be anticipated to some extent. It's very heartwarming. The characters are very good written. I liked them!
    I'm not a big fan of this platforming passages. However, they were perfectly fine for a bit of variety.

    I don't know what age group the game is supposed to be for, though. It has PEGI 16 and USK (German rating 12). From the top, though, the game seems written for younger people. Very strange.
    The german translation wasn't good.

    I warmed up to the artstyle over time. Was definitely unique, but there I still prefer the drawings of Rui Komatsuzaki. After the game, I'm definitely looking forward to Tribe Nine!    … Expand
  11. Mbp_
    May 30, 2021
    8
    As someone who never played Danganronpa or Zero Escape, I had no expectations going in. This Game is a great visual novel at its core, with a great story, a well paced plot with some good twists, memorable and lovable characters and a solid ost. The gameplax is pretty basic, every character gets a unique ability which rarely ever gets used in a clever way. Also, dunno how its in the otherAs someone who never played Danganronpa or Zero Escape, I had no expectations going in. This Game is a great visual novel at its core, with a great story, a well paced plot with some good twists, memorable and lovable characters and a solid ost. The gameplax is pretty basic, every character gets a unique ability which rarely ever gets used in a clever way. Also, dunno how its in the other languages, but the german translation is shockingly bad. Give it a go, I had a great time with the game… Expand
  12. Ragnar_san
    Jun 3, 2021
    9
    De momento me esta pareciendo una gran visual novel donde el apartado artístico y una buena historia se fusionan para darle al producto un toque casi perfecto. Una lastima que su jugabilidad sea algo tosca y simple aunque los puzles están muy bien.
  13. OhNoItsSenpai
    Jun 11, 2021
    8
    The game has real tonal issue, and it can be horribly confusing at times. Whenever I saw the trailer I was super interested in it based on the art alone. Once I heard it was the Danganronpa crew that made the game I felt that I really wanted to play it based on the fact that I felt the mechanics in that game are just the worst. Wasn't actually going to buy the game but ended up doing soThe game has real tonal issue, and it can be horribly confusing at times. Whenever I saw the trailer I was super interested in it based on the art alone. Once I heard it was the Danganronpa crew that made the game I felt that I really wanted to play it based on the fact that I felt the mechanics in that game are just the worst. Wasn't actually going to buy the game but ended up doing so after playing the demo. It's pretty much the most interesting thing on the switch. I just wish the switch could handle it. Three hours in and it's crashed twice. Fun game, poor console. ;/ Also like I said the game suffers from not being able to hold down a tone.… Expand
  14. riwus34
    Jun 21, 2021
    9
    Well I played earlier in danganronpa, i think it's important in this review when i read other post. After played demo I was not impressed but i buy this game, so in short, the game was great. sorry that's just that but I'm not good at writing reviews :D
  15. DragotheKomodo
    Jun 7, 2021
    8
    a very enjoyable journey, with lots of plot twists i legit did not saw coming
    fun characters, music (the Go-Getters Club theme is something i keep listening to), and a fascinating world
    giving the characters hidden super powers was also a nice touch
    sure the platforming is not the best, but its simplicity fits with its style
  16. Omega1234
    Jun 3, 2021
    10
    si es buen juego solo que tiene uho teso para ni ewaEWeETTTRDRRDRDRRDRDRDRDDDR
  17. TimeTwoDual
    Jun 5, 2021
    7
    (Spoilers for some game mechanics)

    I'm someone who has played the entire Danganronpa Series and played through the first Zero Escape game. I went into this thinking I was going to get more of the same, the trailers implied some kind of death game and I thought that's what the game was going to be revolved around. I was wrong and was actually pretty excited to see where they would take    (Spoilers for some game mechanics)

    I'm someone who has played the entire Danganronpa Series and played through the first Zero Escape game. I went into this thinking I was going to get more of the same, the trailers implied some kind of death game and I thought that's what the game was going to be revolved around. I was wrong and was actually pretty excited to see where they would take the story. But unfortunately because of the decisions made to appeal to a larger audience and some of the worst platforming I've ever seen I think the game falls short of greatness.

    I'll start with something positive, I liked the music in the game the boss music was pretty cool. I just wish there was a bit more variety throughout the game instead of playing the same 5-7 BGMs the whole game.

    From a gameplay perspective this game was horrible, extremely clunky controls, unfun game mechanics and just in generally the "act" sections of the game were simply a means to move the story forward rather than being fun in their own right. It's interesting to note the company that actually did a lot of the development Grounding Inc. They have plenty of experience in games, but almost none have been received well, this is my experience playing a game made by them and unless something changes in that studio it's going to be the last.

    Though I did enjoy the narrative it wasn't exact what I was expecting, and I think I know why. This game directed towards children but along presented a pretty complex narrative. Because it was intended for children a lot of beats especially near the end of the game fell into troupes which was a bit disappointing.
    I read in an interview (can be found here https://www.4gamer.net/games/527/G052776/20210526037/ )that they were looking to find a way to appeal the game to as wide of an audience as possible (most importantly to be China approved), so they made the story about children and tried to dilute the dark themes that you can find in the writers' previous work so it would be more palatable. The result in my opinion is a story that has a lot of really good ideas, but is ultimately empty.

    They also tried to do something similar to what was done in the Zero Escape series forcing the player to use a time travel mechanic to be able to unlock the "true" ending which in theory I like, in Zero escape it was a fun gimmick that let you revisit old scenarios now with the knowledge of a different timeline. However, in World's end club the way that the time travel is utilized is much less interesting in my opinion, you just have various branch points that split off into 2 paths and always go back to a single point before branching back into 2 paths. So you essentially had to play the game twice to finish it but that was it.

    Overall I think the game had a lot of talent behind the writing and had a lot of good ideas, but was ultimately bogged down by a lack luster implementation of a game and some dilution of the narrative to the point where it felt emptier than I'd have liked to.

    Side note: The crashed 3 times during my play through at random points in the game (both in conversation and during the act portions of the game).    … Expand
  18. ElioJuneStar
    Oct 2, 2022
    10
    As someone who has played every Danganronpa game and some of the Zero Escape games, I LOVED Worlds End Club. While I agree with people saying the gameplay is the weakest part, I still find it fun especially since it isn't the major part of the game, the story is. The story is AMAZING and has plot twists I didn't expect coming. The story is very sweet and charming and I love the innocnenceAs someone who has played every Danganronpa game and some of the Zero Escape games, I LOVED Worlds End Club. While I agree with people saying the gameplay is the weakest part, I still find it fun especially since it isn't the major part of the game, the story is. The story is AMAZING and has plot twists I didn't expect coming. The story is very sweet and charming and I love the innocnence of it. This is a beautiful gam about friends and friendship and I reccomend it to any light novel fans!… Expand
  19. SwiSearmagician
    Jul 6, 2022
    4
    World's End Club feels so sad to play. There's so much potential. The art-style is amazing and the lack of a Danganronpa game in a while means that a game like this would fit well on the market. World's End Club was marketed as a Danganronpa style killing game. While it's nothing like that. The game's demo cleverly only has you play the portion that is a killing game. For that amount ofWorld's End Club feels so sad to play. There's so much potential. The art-style is amazing and the lack of a Danganronpa game in a while means that a game like this would fit well on the market. World's End Club was marketed as a Danganronpa style killing game. While it's nothing like that. The game's demo cleverly only has you play the portion that is a killing game. For that amount of time the game is kind of interesting but still not good. This part feels like a rapid fire killing game where characters we don't know at all "die". The killing game lasts about an hour but once you finish that you start the actual game which is a puzzle platformer that focuses on character interactions and story. I relatively enjoyed the characters. Some where annoying and others felt like they served no purpose but a fey were actually cool. These characters would get powers and develop through the game but it didn't feel satisfying because honestly I barely knew any of these characters. There's one character who has a sister who passes away but I'm not sad or invested in his character because the writing makes it seem like he didn't really care for his sister. The writing is at its best when it's not trying to be serious. Just characters talking to each other, that's where the writing shines. The moment the writers try to create lore for these characters I lose a lot of interest. The story and gameplay is the worst part of World's End Club. For most of the game you're exploring a post-apocalyptic world. You meet new characters and encounter simplistic conflicts. After playing ever single Danganronpa game I realized that almost every big plot element is taken from one of the games and they found a way to make the moments worse. Everything that's original is weirdly complicated and when I try to explain the story to someone it makes it sound like I'm insane. The story doesn't have to be good if there's good gameplay but they didn't even do that. The controls feel so floaty. You get to play as different characters using their unique special ability but its really nothing to write home about its just a basic ability that's supposed to have something to do with their personality. The puzzles are super simplistic and sometimes just end up being move the box. There is another positive element. I actually enjoyed the Monokuma like character in the game. They actual made me chuckle a few times but that might have been influenced by how absurd the plot is but nevertheless I still liked the Monokuma style robot they had. In conclusion there's not much to say about World's End Club. I could see it as a babies first Danganronpa but it still has major gameplay issues. The game is nothing horrible but its not good. The confusing plot, nothing gameplay, and mostly boring characters brings this game down and is why its gathered a mostly negative reception.… Expand
  20. AgentofKarma
    Jul 17, 2022
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The art is amazing but.. the rest of the game is just meh.. First off the story, it's alright but a bit confusing and sometimes dragged out. The character, they look like people between 16-20s why did you make them 6th graders? It makes 0 sense. The actual game.. well it was sometimes pure garbage, hit boxes (mostly on the enemies) are just pure awful, some levels were so confusing I had to literally look it up like us something of direction. And most of the boss fights were either boring/easy or I died so much because it just was confusing. The last one was alright, just Jennus and Anikis were so annoying and confusing, I didn't know what to do with jennu so I looked it up. And by with aniki I got constantly hit because of thre **** hit boxes and I wish Tatsune wasn't so annoying when using his power. Also can everyone atleast have a different emotion emote? They all look the same. Also the weeinfier? Are you serious? They are 6th graders.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

50
#50 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2021

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
62

Mixed or average reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 28
  3. Negative: 2 out of 28
  1. Gaming Age
    Dec 9, 2021
    42
    If World’s End Club existed in a vacuum — or even in a world where neither Danganronpa or Zero Escape didn’t exist — it might seem a little more interesting. The premise is solid, and there’s nothing inherently objectionable about the gameplay, it’s just not incredibly interesting since we’ve seen it done so much better elsewhere. But that’s precisely the problem — it’s been done much, much better, and those games are all still quite available, with the Danganronpa trilogy slated to arrive on the Switch in a few weeks. You’re better old holding out for that, rather than wasting your time with this pale imitation.
    Read full review
  2. GameCritics
    Oct 27, 2021
    60
    In the end, is the ho-hum gameplay worth trudging through just to enjoy the plot? For me it was not, and I’d have a hard time recommending this to anyone other than great fans of these creators’ other works.
    Read full review
  3. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Oct 7, 2021
    65
    World's End Club is more interesting than it is traditionally "good," so how much you're able to invest in this kind of story will determine how much enjoyment you'll be able to get out of your time with it. When you really break it down, most aspects of the game leave a lot to be desired, but for the right audience, World's End Club will be more than the sum of its parts. [Issue #55 – October 2021, p. 73]
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