ANIPLEX has revealed new information about their newest upcoming title, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy. Read on to learn more about the gameplay features revealed during the presentation.

Everything Announced at ANIPLEX TGS 2024 The Hundred Line Special Program

The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy Story and Setting Revealed!

ANIPLEX kicked off its presentation for The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy with an exciting behind-the-scenes glimpse of the studio and its talented team. The spotlight then shifted to Kazutaka Kodaka, the visionary behind Danganronpa, who, alongside voice actors Taihi Kimura and Shohei Taguchi, introduced the game’s captivating narrative and world-building, accompanied by a newly released trailer.

Kodaka showcased the game's concept art, highlighting The Hundred Line’s ambition to create "an immersive experience where players are swept into a whirlwind of emotion and action." He also teased that the story would follow his trademark style, exploring "human drama in extreme situations," much like his past works.

Expanding on the game’s core themes, Kodaka outlined its key features: an adventure story that uncovers the mysteries behind the school and its students, a simulation RPG where players defend the academy from a growing threat, and a multi-ending narrative where the choices of the protagonist, Takumi, shape the outcome.

The presentation confirmed The Hundred Line will feature a fully voiced cast, bringing Rui Komatsuzaki’s iconic character designs to life. With its visual novel-style storytelling, branching paths, and a diverse cast of 15 students—including the unforgettable Sirei—this is shaping up to be a narrative-driven experience that will leave players deeply invested.

World-first Look at The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy Gameplay

The presentation then moved on to its most anticipated portion, the world’s first look at The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy’s gameplay. This segment started off with the game’s first day and introduction, treating viewers to the game’s 2.5D graphics, voice acting chops, and dynamic visual-novel-style storytelling.

Here, we’re introduced to the game’s main character played by Taihi Kimura, Takumi Sumino, as he and four others stab themselves in the heart with a gakudo to initiate the game’s combat portion. As the demonstration proceeds to the game’s bread-and-butter combat, we’re also introduced to other characters like Darumi Amemiya, Hiruko Shizuhara, Takemaru Yakushiji, Eito Aotsuki, and Kako Tsukumo, among various other still unnamed characters.

Grid-based Combat with Dedicated Action Economy

The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy features a grid-based tactical combat system where every action—whether moving or attacking—is dictated by a shared resource called AP (Action Points). Each character on your team has unique mobility stats, passives, and attack ranges, all visualized through highlighted grid areas whenever you select an action, adding depth to strategic decision-making. AP is a highly limited resource, and depleting it ends your turn immediately. However, AP can be slowly replenished by defeating enemies, offering a dynamic flow to combat where careful management is key.

What truly sets The Hundred Line apart from other SRPGs is its shared AP pool. Unlike traditional systems where each character is bound by their own AP, in The Hundred Line, any character can continue moving and attacking as long as there's AP available. This design encourages creative strategies and teamwork, letting players maximize every opportunity on the battlefield while pushing the limits of their tactical approach.

Voltage Mechanic and Critical Conditions

Complementing the AP system in The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy is the Voltage mechanic, a special meter that all characters can fill by attacking and defeating enemies. Voltage is required to unleash powerful abilities, and the meter can be overcharged up to 300%, allowing for even more devastating effects. A unique twist to this system is a revenge mechanic of sorts—when a powerful enemy defeats one of your characters, the Voltage meter is immediately filled up to 100% and that character is granted a free attack, offering a chance to retaliate before they fall.

Adding further depth to combat, the game introduces a high-risk, high-reward strategy through its Critical Condition mechanic. When a character’s health falls below 5, they can opt to perform an extremely powerful attack at the cost of their life. While this is clearly a last-resort option, it opens up intriguing tactical possibilities. Some characters might even be able to manipulate or benefit from this mechanic, though details on how remain to be revealed.

Great Variety in Character Roles, Strategic Options, and Enemy Types

The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy boasts an impressive variety of playstyles, character roles, and tactical depth among its roster of 15 characters, offering nearly every role you’d expect from a traditional RPG lineup. For instance, Darumi Amemiya specializes in mid-range area attacks, while Hiruko Shizuhara excels at single-target damage with her mighty axe. Each character is further defined by their unique passive abilities, which complement their specific combat style. While details about a leveling system have yet to be fully revealed, it’s likely that characters will have opportunities to advance their skills as the game progresses.

On the enemy front, The Hundred Line provides a wide range of challenges, from basic fodder units to imposing boss monsters. Common enemies typically swarm in large numbers, but they have low health and attack power, serving primarily to overwhelm players. In contrast, elite enemies act as commanders for these mobs, being tougher to defeat and providing passive buffs to their underlings, which forces players to target them strategically.

However, the real highlights are the game’s bosses. In the demo, only one boss was shown, but it left a strong impression on every JRPG player watching. This boss occupied more grid space than standard enemies, had a broader attack range capable of targeting multiple players simultaneously, and could unleash counterattacks in a wide area whenever hit.

Its large health pool required several turns to take down, adding a layer of endurance to the fight. Combined with waves of common and elite enemies, reinforcement mechanics, and the game’s intricate tactical systems, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy is shaping up to be a quite strategic experience—and we haven’t even seen all of it yet!

The Countdown for The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy’s Release Has Begun!

The 100-day countdown to the release of The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy has officially begun, with the game set to launch on April 24, 2025. While the version showcased during the recent presentation was incomplete, ANIPLEX assured fans that the final updates and polish will be applied in the coming weeks as the game approaches its release.

In the meantime, pre-orders for The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy are now available on Nintendo Switch, and fans can also add the game to their wishlist on Steam. With anticipation building, this countdown marks the final stretch before players can dive into this exciting tactical RPG.

ANIPLEX TGS 2024 The Hundred Line Special Program Streams on September 27, at 2 AM PT / 5 AM ET

ANIPLEX TGS 2024 The Hundred Line Special Program will go live on September 27, at 2:00 a.m. PDT/5:00 a.m. EDT, streaming on YouTube, Twitch, Tokyo Game Show’s official X account.

Please refer to the table below for the streaming schedule using your local timezone:

Everything We Know About ANIPLEX TGS 2024 The Hundred Line Special Program

Director Kazutaka Kodaka Leads Live Gameplay Demo

After months of anticipation, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, the latest action-adventure title from the creators of Danganronpa and Zero Escape, is finally set to showcase never-before-seen live gameplay footage—complete with a star-studded cast!

According to the official Tokyo Game Show 2024 preview, game director Kazutaka Kodaka will be joined by voice actors Taihi Kimura and Shohei Taguchi for the world’s first live gameplay demonstration of The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy. Fans of both Kodaka’s past work and the genre can look forward to an exciting reveal packed with surprises and fresh insight into this highly anticipated title.

Aaron Bruce Albert..

A massive fan of roguelikes, turn-based RPGs, and open world adventure games. His gold standard games include The Binding of Isaac, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and Dragon Quest Monsters Joker.