Review of Darwin's Game

I enjoyed this. A lot. Surprisingly so, in fact. My enjoyment of this series is probably why I rate it highly and because I can’t wait for a second season (if it gets a thumbs up). Moving on. The goal is clear: bash the guy behind Darwin’s Game. That’s exactly what the MC Kaname is going to do. At least that is what he is meant to do. The goal is unrealized at first, but by the end, the goal is set in stone. This first season’s story is like an opening or prologue to the real story; it sets up the goal and introduces the gameand characters. The events that occur during the season make sense: noob hunting? Check, there are assholes out there. Hunting popular people? Check, people ARE assholes (and suicidal). In-game special events? Check, just like a normal game. Clan wars? Check, I’m not explaining this. So the mechanics make sense. The mechanics and details are explained, sometimes quickly or at easily missed scenes so that can make things confusing. So in the end, the story is pretty solid I believe.

The art is pretty good. The setting is well drawn and the battles are great. The character expressions can be truly intense at times. The art is very good.

The sound is simply good. The music helps enhance battles. Although, as the series progressed, I started to stop noticing the music and more on the story. Not sure if it’s lack of music, good story writing, or bad music.

The characters are very good. The MC changed a lot during this season, though I can’t say that for the side characters. The introductions of characters mostly made sense. I enjoy the entire cast’s personalities. The interactions were interesting rather than comedic, which is harder to pull off, so props to that. Most of the main cast’s story is explored but some are still left in the dark, and if I were to guess, the second season would explore that aspect a bit more. Special mention to the Florist: great episode, good backstory, felt movement in my cold frozen heart.

I really enjoyed this. Yes, I said that already, and I’m going to say this again. I really enjoyed this. In my honest opinion, which I am free to express, I believe that Darwin’s Game is better than Mirrai Nikki. When I first entered this anime, I expected something similar to Future Diary but I got something much more: better characters, a better death game system, interesting battles, more people to know about. Darwin’s Game simply had more. I entered with low expectations but I got a lot out of this.

Conclusion: watch this. Think a bit. Understand what’s going on. Most of all, have fun.