Content Warnings: Includes the following (depending on the route): gangs, yakuza, drugs, mind control, split personalities, human experimentation, familial abuse, relationship abuse, gore, overt sexual situations, nonconsensual situations, etc. (non-exhaustive list)
Background Details
While DRAMAtical Murder was first released in 2012, JAST USA announced in 2018 that it was licensing it, thus bringing an official English release to a game that already managed to attract a substantial fan base. There was also a Playstation Vita release with a new route and toned down content meant for ages 15 and up (DRAMAtical Murder re:code), so I was personally interested to see if any of the controller compatibility made it into this English release, as well as just being generally interested in which version of the game JAST was using. This English release seems to be the original game and is definitely not recommended for anyone under 18.
“The Brain-Blaster Visual Novel”
Otherwise referred to as DMMD, DRAMAtical Murder is one of the key games in Nitro+Chiral’s BL portfolio, using the tagline of “the brain-blaster visual novel.”
And it’s not wrong.
This game is bright. If you liked the film Summer Wars, you might understand what I mean by this: it might have cyberpunk themes, but there are no rain-drenched alleyways only lit from neon signs here. Everything is brightly colored. The voice that announces supporting characters sounds like a professional wrestling announcer, thrilled to announce the names of the characters and full of corny ham.
The game starts out goofy with the protagonist Aoba taking phone orders at a small electronics junk repair shop, establishing the setting as one where everyone seems to have an AI-integrated mascot companion with them. Aoba has the ability to get people to make orders at the shop through his voice. His narration swiftly points out that many civilians in the Old Residential District where he lives have a lot to deal with: at least two online fighting game gangs fighting over turf, corrupt police, and the ultra-wealthy making life horrible for everyone other than themselves. And that’s just the first hour or so of the game; the game’s tagline, a “brain busting visual novel” truly sets the theme. The game everyone’s raving about in-universe, Rhyme, is a mysterious virtual fighting game. Usually, a referee called Usui appears to officially begin matches. However, when Rhyme fields start activating without Usui’s presence, Aoba gets thrown into a series of mysteries. His chronic headaches become exponentially worse, and when rumors of disappearances stop being only rumors, he finds out more secrets about himself along the way to saving his friends and his home.
Blending the Colorful With the Dark
The cast is incredibly varied. They all fight over Aoba, and Aoba clearly does not know or remember certain parts of the plot, so some of the reasons the other characters have interest in him is not clear at first; but there is no mistaking the cast for one another. There are some sight gags, too, especially if you have some basic knowledge of Japanese. For example, the character Kojaku, whose name uses the kanji for the strawberry finch, does look flamboyant in a kimono and like a red bird in terms of his motif. Another character, Noiz, looks like he stepped out of the early 00s rave scene.
This game does get dark, so the art style is an interesting contrast: instead of sinister plans happening in the dark of night, they happen largely during the day, and it makes the shadows of alleyway scenes or the metaphorical darkness of the plot that much more stark of a contrast. Nitro+Chiral, as the BL imprint of Nitroplus, was known prior to this title for more tragic and dark games. That trend of storytelling is still present here, but instead of the story being a tragedy for every character involved, there is at least a chance for bittersweet endings or even good, satisfying ones, especially if you manage multiple route playthroughs and unlock Ren’s route. If you like games like Persona 5 or Doki Doki Literature Club, you might find some parallels here with DRAMAtical Murder.
Accessibility
There are frequent user interface flashes, cut-ins, and animations that are much more likely to cause issues with people prone to seizures or migraines. Some of the menus overlay on top of the existing dialog or scene in a way that can be pretty confusing, as well. There are color contrast issues with the user interface, and the settings/options menu relies on mouse right-click to the point that even using an Xbox controller on a Windows PC will only grant limited controller use, which is unusual for such controllers on Windows PCs. Keyboard navigation seems to work for progressing dialogue and saving, even though it’s unclear how to access the options menu via keyboard. Testing the game with a screen reader application was not done at this time, due to the barriers when trying keyboard navigation.
Verdict
As a final note: I was just at an anime convention and I occasionally came across pins and art based on the characters. It’s also good to see a game like this still mentioned in 2026. That being said, this story does not feel like a relic of the past; it stands on its own. Yes, sometimes the voiced lines sound corny or hammy. The installer also feels straight out of the late 1990s. But in the current media landscape, with shows like Squid Game and Severance remaining at the forefront of popular consciousness, perhaps this game was instead years too early and ended up as a fun BL futuristic cyberthriller, rather than a dystopian social commentary that could hit too close to home. I highly recommend this game for fans of those properties, even. So if you want to play an arguable classic BL game that combines sci-fi and horror in a “brain-blasting” manner, DRAMAtical Murder might be the title for you!
You can purchase DRAMAtical Murder on the JAST store.
Credits
Scenario: Fuchii Kabura
Director: Chiyoko Reito
Character Design: Honyalaya
Composer: GOATBED
Developer: NITRO CHiRAL
Thank you to JAST USA for providing the game key & sponsoring this review. Receiving this key & compensation had no effect on the reviewer’s opinions as expressed here.
Article edited by: Cynthia Caraturo
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