''Death End Request 2'' (stylized as ''Death end re;Quest 2'') is an hybrid Japanese

role-playing Role-playing or roleplaying is the changing of one's behaviour to assume a role, either unconsciously to fill a social role, or consciously to act out an adopted role. While the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' offers a definition of role-playing ...

and

visual novel A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustratio ...

video game developed by

Compile Heart is a Japanese video game developer founded on June 2, 2006 as a subsidiary of Idea Factory. The company was formerly managed by Compile (company), Compile's former executive Masamitsu "Moo" Niitani, most well known as the creator of the ''Madou ...

and published by

Idea Factory is a Japanese video game developer and video game publisher, publisher founded by former Data East employees in October 1994. A division of the company makes otome games under the name of Otomate (see Idea Factory#Otomate games, list below). An ...

. The game released worldwide for

Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

and

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...

in August 2020, and was ported to the

Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...

in 2021. The game is largely a stand-alone story from its predecessor, '' Death End Request''.

Gameplay

Similar to its predecessor, '' Death End Request'', the game is a hybrid

JRPG While the early history and distinctive traits of role-playing video games (RPGs) in East Asia have come from Japan, many video games have also arisen in China, developed in South Korea, and Taiwan. Japanese role-playing games Japanese c ...

and

. Like the original, gameplay is split into two portions, though instead of the contrast being virtual world and real world, now the two gameplay type span across day and night segments in the game. During the day, the game plays as a visual novel, as the player works through reading the game's story. At night, the game plays as a third person traditional RPG where the player must explore dungeons and fight monsters. The game's battles are

turn-based Timekeeping is relevant to many types of games, including video games, tabletop role-playing games, board games, and sports. The passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. In many games, this is don ...

, and retains the prior game's mechanic of being able to strike opposing characters around the battle field in a

pinball Pinball games are a family of games in which a ball is propelled into a specially designed table where it bounces off various obstacles, scoring points either en route or when it comes to rest. Historically the board was studded with nails call ...

-like manner. However, the game does drop the prior entry's mini-games that temporarily altered gameplay into different other genres.

Story

The game follows the character Mai Toyama, a teenage girl struggling to fit in at the all-girl Woodsworth Academy. She explores the academy, and surrounding town of Le Choara upon feeling suspicions about things not being right. While some characters from the original game do make appearance, the game is generally described as a stand-alone experience.

Development

The game was first announced for the

in July 2019. The game was developed by Japanese studio

, and published by

. The game was written by ''

Corpse Party is a supernatural survival horror adventure and dōjin soft video game series originally created by Makoto Kedōin and developed by Team GrisGris. The series has spawned several manga works, an anime OVA series, drama CDs, theme park attraction ...

'' writer Makoto Kedouin. A

Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

version of the game was announced for its English localization in the west, and was released alongside the PlayStation 4 version in August 2020. The game received a release in Japan in December 2020. A special edition of the game contained a " midquel 1.5 novel" packaged with the game. A version for the

was later announced and released in 2021, with a February 2022 western release.

Reception

Reviewers generally shared more positive sentiments towards the game's narrative and characters, and less positive commentary on its graphics and gameplay. Reviewers were more divided on whether or not it was a better game than its predecessor. ''Digitally Downloaded'' felt the game lacked the impact the first game had due to its similarities in concept, but offered more praise than most others for the depth and nuance of its story. ''Hardcore Gamer'' felt it was the more enjoyable title of the two, citing its story, and improved battle system. ''RPGFan'' agreed with the improvements and streamlining of the battle system, and also felt it improved upon its predecessor's "confusing map design." ''RPGamer'' praised the story as generally good, though inconsistent, with parts that were either slow or confusing, such as the game's connections to its prior entry. Its battle system and graphics were also criticized as sub-par by the publication.

References

{{Reflist 2020 video games Japanese role-playing video games Visual novels Compile Heart games PlayStation 4 games Nintendo Switch games Video games developed in Japan Video games featuring female protagonists Video games set in Japan Video games set in 2019 Windows games Idea Factory games Single-player video games