Hello and welcome to Project Nitsuj. The death game setup has become a staple in the horror genre. To be fair it is a good setup. Strangers/friends forced to kill each other for survivor, alliances made, backstabbing from others we assumed were friends, and ultimately a person’s true character comes to light in these scenarios. There’s been a number of death games in anime, and one that quickly became a favorite of mine was Darwin’s Game. Based off a manga written by FLIPFLOPs, the series ran from 2012-2023 in the pages of Titan Comics selling 10 million copies in circulation. While it added nothing new to the setup, it puts its best foot forward and gave us a good story that wants to be edgy and cool. In 2020, before the world went into shutdown, an anime based off the manga was produced by Nexus (Chivalry of a Failed Knight and The Eminence in Shadow). While I wouldn’t call the anime a big hit, it succeeded in getting people interested in the manga and story. Let’s dive into a world of death, alliances, and backstabbing. This is Darwin’s Game.
Opening and Ending Theme
The opening is “Chain” by ASCA. This song is pretty good upon re-listening to it for this review. I like the piano at the beginning and it might just be me, but does anybody else get major SAO vibes from this opening? Either way, it’s a good opening in my book.
The ending is “Alive” by Mashiro Ayano. This is another underrated ending you don’t hear people talk about. The ending gives you so many chills when you listen to it. Mashiro’s voice is beautiful and so powerful here. You are completely mesmerized by her performance that you don’t want it to stop. Definitely track this song sound and listen to it.
Episodes 1-4
The anime starts with a high schooler named Hamada running from a killer dressed like a panda wearing a baseball uniform (oh great, it’s a Fortnite player). Hamada gets cornered by the panda who can turn invisible and kills him. The next day we go to Hamada’s school where we meet our main character Kaname voiced by Yūsuke Kobayashi (Subaru from Re:Zero) a friend of Hamada. Hamada’s other friend Kyoda comes in asking Kaname if he’s seen Hamada (nope. Have you heard any news about a dead body being found?)? Kaname says no, however he did receive a notification from Hamada inviting him to play a mobile game called Darwin’s Game (where survival of the fittest is taken quite literally). Kaname opens the app where he’s immediately bitten by a snake and passes out (wuss). He wakes up in the nurse’s office and decides to head home for the day. As he’s riding the train, he gets challenged by a player named Banda the same guy who killed Hamada. It turns out Banda is a rookie hunter, attacking new players who don’t know anything about the game and killing them to earn quick points. Kaname runs for his life with Banda in pursuit (the thrill of the hunt) where he gets saved by Kyoda who gets stabbed but managed to shoot Banda with his crossbow a few times (next time shoot him in the head). They escape to a parking garage where Banda is able to track them down thanks to the app (it doesn’t give Kaname’s exact location, but it lets him know that he’s in the vicinity). Wanting to keep Kyoda safe, Kaname leaves Kyoda behind and goes to face Banda himself where in a series of events they reach the time limit and Kaname wins because he managed to damage Banda more. With Banda’s defeat he dies via pixilation (that’s a new one). Kyoda also dies via pixilation from his stab wound, but he sent Kaname a text telling him to survive (a guidebook would have been better). Sometime later, Kaname receives a message from a player named Shuka nicknamed the undefeated queen voiced by Reina Ueda (Mira from Dimension W). She saw his fight the other day and offers to answer his questions assuming he earns her trust. Desperate for answers, Kaname goes to Shuka in a warehouse (I feel like a café would have been safer) where in a show of good faith she answers one of his questions for free. Kaname asks the most reasonable question, how to quit. The answer, there is no way to quit (at least to the best of Shuka’s knowledge). Before she answers any more questions, she wants to know what Kaname’s sigil is. A sigil is a special ability that every player gets when they join the game. Kaname says he doesn’t know what his sigil is and even on his character’s profile it comes up as an error (either the game is bugged or you hacked the game to give yourself an unfair advantage). Shuka begins to grow impatient with Kaname and attacks him where we see her sigil is being able to control her chain whips at will. Kaname is mostly on the run from Shuka until he finally figures out how to use his sigil which is being able to forge any weapon out of thin air as long as it’s not too complicated. He sets up a trap for Shuka and manages to hold her at gunpoint where he convinces her to surrender and she does. However, unlike Banda and Kyoda who got pixelated, Shuka stays alive and just loses some of her points to Shuka. Kaname soon passes out and wakes up a day later to the sight of a naked Shuka beside him (uh~ how did we get here?) who wants to start a family with him (bail Kaname. She’s clearly yandere).
So in episode 2, we find out that when Shuka said start a family she wasn’t referring to the sexy time (oh but trust me we will get there). Instead, families are the names of clans or guilds in the game and Shuka wants to form one with Kaname as she’s taken a liking to him. Unfortunately, Kaname’s level is too low to start a clan and Shuka wants him to be the leader, so she doesn’t do it herself (prove to her you’re a man). As Kaname prepares to leave, Shuka tells him to use his points saying that he can use points to gain immunity from participating in games and can even convert his points to cash (hell, just 10 points gives you a million yen. Holy shit, if it wasn’t for the perma-death I would play this game). Sometime later, Kaname receives an invitation to a treasure hunting event happening in Shibuya. Only a select number of players have been invited to the hunt and Shuka is one of the players as well. Kaname and Shuka go on a date in Shibuya where his phone gets stolen by a guy named Inukai a member of a clan called Danjo Boxing Club (I’ve heard stranger names to be honest). Inukai leads Kaname to a secluded area to fight all while warning him not to lose his phone as he won’t be able to download the game again and will pretty much be an open target as other players can find him, but he won’t be able to find them (he’s basically defenseless. He’s like a blind man carrying 1 million dollars in a bad neighborhood and begging to be mugged). Inukai gives Kaname his phone back and the fight begins between the two where Inukai seems to have the upper hand with his boxing skills (it’s not a name for show). However, Kaname gains the upper hand by stealing Inukai’s phone (that boy got some quick hands) and forces him to give up or risk getting his phone destroyed (have you seen phone prices today, they’re ridiculous. Also, he’ll more than likely die). Inukai gives up just as Shuka arrives on the scene (you ruined her date man, you’re lucky she doesn’t kill you) and just in time as the event is about to begin. All three of them get teleported to random locations where the objective is to find and collect 3 rings. There are 300 participants (actually, 299 as someone got cocky and got killed by another player) and those that don’t collect 3 rings will be killed off.
Not much really happens in episode 3, but it’s still an entertaining episode. Kaname manages to find one ring only to lose it to another player who corners him and him not having the balls to take down his opponent when he had the chance to (weakling). He soon comes across another player named Rein an information broker who has data on just about every player in the game and discovers that they’re stuck in the hotel thanks to the sigil of another player called the Florist who can control plants and has turned the hotel into his personal garden by blocking staircases, putting traps in elevators, and having the ability to control other players (wow, talk about a broken sigil). Kaname and Rein decide to team up together to survive this botanic nightmare where Kaname figures out that the Florist is hiding in the security room which is how he knows where everyone is.
We get some good action in episode 4 as Kaname and Rein begin their counterattack on the Florist. First off, Rein distracts the possessed players and dodges all of their attacks using her sigil to predict the future. She’s not seeing the future, but rather using statistics to predict what her opponents are going to do and then avoiding their attacks (https://youtu.be/830KwNb3Fbs). Meanwhile, Kaname shows he has balls by scaling down the building from the outside on the 25th floor down to the first floor (not gonna lie, that’s badass) where he and the Florist proceed to fight one another. The Florist covers his body in weeds (not the kind that takes you somewhere else) which gives him a suit of armor that deflects all of Kaname’s bullets. Despite having a number of chances to actually kill off Kaname, the Florist continues to just monolog and not go in for the kill (dude, you’re not auditioning for Broadway just kill the guy). Sure enough his hesitation to kill Kaname gives Kaname enough time to go into his mind, talk to an alternate version of himself, and prepare a counterattack. Kaname modifies the gun to shoot bullets 10% faster and that speed is enough to pierce through the armor of the Florist (https://youtu.be/cISmo3FzphA). Kaname manages to take down the Florist but refuses to kill him. Rein comes in asking for a truce between the 3 saying that the first round of the event is almost over and since there are 24 rings in this hotel that means this spot is going to become a free for all warzone and they’re too exhausted to defend themselves.
Episodes 5-8
Not much really happens in episode 5. Kaname’s group has 15 rings deciding to split them up evenly and even bring in a new character to their alliance, Ryuji, the same masked gun man who mocked Kaname for not fighting when he had the chance. At first Ryuji says no, but when he finds out that Wang an A-rank player as well as the leader of the street gang the 8th clan (the other clans were eaten by the 7th clan only for it to die of heartburn later) he changes his mind and joins the alliance. As the group waits for Shuka to arrive, Kaname receives a text message from her asking for help. Apparently, she went underground to avoid snipers only to get caught by another player who has the power to control water and ice. Now she’s trapped underground in a flooded area where she’ll most likely drown to death (hopefully she doesn’t hear that daunting Sonic music. It’s not the drowning that’s traumatizing, it’s the damn music). Kaname and Ryuji go to rescue Shuka where we learn that Ryuji’s sigil is being able to detect when people are lying (he’s basically a living lie detector. While I’m sure that skill will be valuable, this is so far the weakest sigil we’ve seen). They arrive at the underground station where Kaname dives in to save Shuka and Ryuji points his gun at the girl responsible for this. The girl manages to escape by freezing his gun.
Episode 6 easily gets me hyped for the next episode (although this episode is good as well). It starts off with Ryuji searching for the girl from last episode named Sui, a timid girl who has control of water (she’s a waterbender in training) and her brother Sota the more aggressive of the two who can control ice. In the past Sota died in an accident, but thanks to the game Sota’s spirit came back to possess the body of Sui so the two coexist together in the same body and flipflop personalities (this is like a new level of trap). Anyway, Sota manages to trick Ryuji to walk into a store and head down the water aisle where Sui controls the water to splash on him and Sota freezes it thus trapping him in ice. Just when Sota is about to go in for the kill, Sui stops him as she can’t bring herself to kill someone for survival (then you are in the wrong game sister). Back with Kaname, he finds Shuka and performs CPR to save her life (that counts as a first kiss) and then she gives him a real kiss to thank him. As they swim out, Shuka reveals that the reason she’s playing the game is to find the man who murdered her parents as well as the creator behind the game (you’ll have to get in line because I’m sure everybody wants a piece of his ass). Once out of the underground a message goes off signaling the remaining players (which is less than 100 at this point. Man they narrowed that field by 2/3), that the real treasure has finally appeared and is up for grabs. Kaname and Shuka reunite with Ryuji and Sui where Sui joins their clan not as a fighter but as a maid as she doesn’t want to fight. Back with Rein and the Florist, Wang’s gang the Eighth attacks the hotel where Kaname tells her to ditch the rings because they’re not the real prize. You see each ring has a number and each one represents the hardness of the gem as well as coordinates to where the true treasure is hidden. This means the rings they have are only good for money which Rein doesn’t need, but the Florist chooses to stay behind and fight as he needs the money to save his daughter who has a heart disease. Rein escapes and the Florist takes on the Eighth all by himself. He easily defeats the small fries on the first floor but comes across his Achilles Heel as the one leading the charge has a fire sigil (and if Pokémon taught me anything, fire beats grass).
So in episode 7 (man, this anime goes by fast) we start with the Florist fighting against the Eighth. The fire sigil guy corners the Florist with help from another sigil user and punches the Florist through the chest (oh~, not the kind of fisting he wanted). As he bleeds out he gets the last laugh by bringing the whole building down on everyone killing himself and possibly everyone else in the building (why do I get the feeling someone survived this?). Rein makes it into the station where the treasure is hidden and the place is crawling with Wang and the Eighth. It doesn’t take long for her to get captured and tortured for information. Wang breaks her arm and she stalls long enough for Kaname and the others to come to her rescue. Shuka, Ryuji, and Sui/Sota fight against the Eighth while Kaname gets Rein to safety so she can figure out how to end this game. In order to find the answer, she does a deep dive into her mind where she finds the answer in a book Darwin wrote (how the hell was anybody supposed to figure that out? Christ, this is making the Escape Room look easy). Meanwhile, Ryuji gets cornered by Wang who has this teleporting sigil and loses an arm (man, Wang really loves targeting the arm). Just when Ryuji is about to sacrifice himself to kill Wang (and fail), Kaname appears saying that he knows where the treasure is and is willing to exchange it for their lives.
At the start of episode 8 Kaname outsmarts Wang to get the treasure and win the game with Wang vowing to find him and rip him apart piece by piece. As a reward for winning the game, Kaname gets to speak to the game master who will fulfill any request Kaname wants as well as answer any question he has. Kaname asks how he can quit the game entirely (you already know the answer to that question) to which the game master says the game has to be completed (and since this is a mobile game as long as the game is making money and people are playing it, it can go on forever) or someone has to kill him. After hearing this Kaname then makes his request and we fast forward 2 months later where Kaname’s clan called the Sunset Ravens, are making preparations to buy a building as their new base and Kaname has been working out at Danjo’s Boxing Club to get ripped (the things Shuka will do to that boy) and is trying to form an alliance with Danjo who is the leader of the Boxing Club. At the end of the episode, Shinozuka the last friend of Kaname goes to his apartment hoping to find him only to get caught by a member of the Eighth.
Episodes 9-11
Episode 9 is a really solid episode. It starts off with Kaname taking on Danjo to verify if an alliance is possible (nobody wants to team up with a weak clan. Stand as equals or fall separately). This fight is actually pretty good as it shows Kaname actually having a better understanding of his sigil and using it more effectively in this match as he has a wide ranch of items to use such as sub-machineguns, hand grenades, flash bombs, and even swords. Despite Kaname being on offense, Danjo does seem to have the advantage as he’s the better fighter, but Kaname does force him to use his sigil which is turning his body into tungsten (kind of lame, but for a martial artist like Danjo this quirk does fit his personality and fighting style). Kaname earns Danjo’s approval, but the two decide to keep fighting until it gets interrupted by Xuelen the number one ranked player in the game. Using a mysterious martial art that hits people with invisible swords that gives them a flash of death, Xuelen manages to paralyze everyone and kidnapped Kaname (Shuka is going to be pissed). So, Xuelen reveals to Kaname that she comes from a long line of assassins and considers Kaname to be suitable mate (man, Kaname really knows how to attract strong women. Too bad they’re yandere). Not only does Kaname have an awesome sigil, but Xuelen argues that the assassin lifestyle suits him perfectly as he maintains a calm and controlled demeanor when facing death (in other words, she’s saying he enjoys the situation he’s in). Kaname denies this and the others finally arrive onto the scene chasing down Xuelen’s limo in a hummer (well this is one of the strangest car chases I’ve seen). Kaname makes a bet with Xuelen saying she can’t escape without killing his allies, saying that if she manages to prove him wrong, he’ll marry her. Xuelen accepts this bet and a fight breaks out between her and the Sunset Ravens (where I have to admit this fight scene is pretty awesome. They fight on cars, the choreography between Shuka and Xuelen is good, and the camera work is top notch). Just when it seems like Xuelen will escape, Sota freezes one of her tires and this leaves her stranded surrounded by the Sunset Ravens. Now despite being surrounded, it’s obvious that she could beat them all (the only person who seems to be able to go toe to toe with her is Shuka), but the question is, can she beat them without killing them. Xuelen’s butler says she can’t, she agrees, and admits defeat. Xuelen decides to join the Sunset Ravens on the condition that if she decides to betray them, she has to kill Kaname first.
In episode 10 Kaname finally learns about Shinozuka’s abduction by the Eighth (they mailed him the fingers no doubt). With Rein’s sources, they managed to find out where the Eighth is hiding (in a warehouse down by the pier. How 90s cliché) and since they’re not as big as they once were, now is the perfect time to attack them and rescue Shinozuka. The Sunset Ravens with Inukai go to the location where the cops are there (and we all know how useful they are in anime) only to get mowed down by the Eighth. Kaname uses this distraction to have Shuka deliver a phone to Shinozuka. Kaname’s plan was to have Shinozuka join the game, send a help request, and get teleported out of there to safety. The plan unfortunately all depends on if Shinozuka will accept the app and even if he can use it (seeing as how he has no fingers). Using his tongue, Shinozuka activates the app (and just like his other friends, Kaname has invited his friend into a death game) where I’m not gonna lie he gets a good sigil which is telekinesis. Sadly, that cool sigil isn’t enough to save him from Wang as he kills Shinozuka, stuffs his body in a box, and has Kaname see the rotten remains of his last friend (hey wait. Something’s off here. Why didn’t the body get pixelated away like the others?).
In the final episode (which is easily the best episode), the Sunset Ravens take the fight to Wang and make him pay. Shuka takes on Wang while Kaname and Ryuji clean house with the other members of the Eighth where Kaname actually kills people but doesn’t get lost in the bloodlust like most characters (he’s essentially becoming a badass. (Seras): Starting to see why Shuka fell for him). Shuka gives Wang a taste of his own medicine by manipulating wires that cut off his arms and legs (how do you like it?). We actually see the guy beg and cry for mercy as he realizes that he’s just another fish in the ocean (and the bigger fish will eat you). He manages to teleport himself outside where he comes face to face with Kaname and Ryuji (shoot him) where he surrenders so they get all of his points but Kaname reveals the special skill he got from the game master, point betting. Kaname can change how many points he bets in the game meaning if he wants to he can bet more points than his opponent and if his opponent doesn’t have enough points then the remaining points get taken from his clan members (in short, Kaname just fucked over everyone in the Eighth). Kaname takes all the points of the Eighth thus beating them all and they get pixelated to death. Some time passes and we see the Sunset Ravens start to create their own territory where they forbid D-game battles thus creating a safe zone and controlling a small part of the game (okay, can I join your clan because you are seriously doing everything I would do).
Final Thoughts
This is a perfect example of the anime getting people interested in the manga/novel. I went into this anime not knowing what to expect and I gotta say I couldn’t be more impressed and interested with this series. Kaname’s growth throughout the anime was good. He was a pretty realistic character and as the anime progresses he becomes a strong leader for his team. While not physically strong he is smart, trusts his teammates, and is compassionate. He’ll kill but he doesn’t lose himself and give into the bloodlust. The rest of the characters are good as well although I do wish they would have explored some of the characters’ pasts more. I actually do like the romance between Shuka and Kaname. She’s clingy but not too clingy to him and is always there to support him. I really do believe Kaname’s confidence boost is thanks largely to Shuka.
The animation isn’t really all that good compared to some of the other animes I’ve watched, but the music is good and the action is good as well. I do like how it places more emphasis on strategy rather than numbers and strength. While some sigils are cliché there are some that are unique and different from your typical powers. I think my favorite sigil has to be Shuka’s. I’ve always been a big fan of chain and wire manipulation fighters.
Final Score
The final score for Darwin’s Game is a 7/10. This is a great series worth checking out and I’m proud to say that I’ve become a fan of the series. Definitely give this anime a watch when you get a chance. It’s a real shame they never continued this series. Maybe they will some day, but definitely check out the manga. It’s been done for three years now and things get more interesting from here. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.
