Which Order Do I Play/Watch The Series In?

[DaveDOX]

I'm new to the Senran Kagura series and was wondering which order the story (If there is a linking story between titles) goes in terms of the games and anime. I know the first title is on Nintendo DS which I don't have, I do have PS Vita and PS4 though.

A list in the chronological order of the series would be greatly appreciated.

[Juihau]

The series' chronology is...weird, and it's really meant to be followed in the order the games are released. For example, Deep Crimson has a few notable spoilers for Shinovi Versus, despite taking place months before, and none of the events that occur in DC have actually happened in SV. But, to give a sort of timeline...

Burst - Focuses on the original conflict between the Hanzo and Hebijo schools. Hebijo's elite students betray the school and become renegades, leaving the school as a pile of rubble. They are now known as the Crimson Squad.

Deep Crimson - Takes place anywhere from a couple weeks to about 2 months after Burst. Kyoto is under attack by an army of youma, forcing the Hanzo and former Hebijo students to team up. They also come across a young girl in a white dress and her guardian, who are being hunted by the youma.

Shinovi Versus - Takes place 6 months after Burst. A new school, Gessen, catches wind that Hanzo failed to eliminate the Hebijo elites, and challenges them to a battle royale. Meanwhile, Hebijo is rebuilt, and its new elite team are ordered to eliminate the traitorous Crimson Squad and restore the school's honor. The girls learn of Kagura, the highest rank of shinobi who specialize in slaying youma, and decide that's what they want to aim for. Notably, in this game, the Hanzo students haven't seen their old rivals since the original conflict, and none of them have fought youma yet.

Estival Versus - Takes place an undetermined amount of time after SV. The Hanzo-Gessen and Crimson Squad-Hebijo conflicts have been resolved non-lethally. Sayuri, a retired Kagura and Asuka's grandmother, brings them all to a strange world where they have one more chance to be with their deceased loved ones. She also starts a competition, hosted by her subordinates, three sisters known as the Mikaguras, claiming that the winning team will be shown the path to becoming Kagura. The Mikaguras are also searching through the wandering souls, looking for a young girl who they saw die at the hands of a youma.

Keep in mind, these are also really broad descriptions that don't go into major detail, leaving out things like Orochi, the first youma seen in the series, and Dougen, the mysterious Hebijo investor who's responsible for its quick rebuilding.

[DaveDOX]

Thanks for that Juihau, so would it be ok to start with Shinovi Versus? Also I noticed there was an anime title in the series: ( https://myanimelist.net/anime/15119/Senran_Kagura ) Is this linked within the series too? Lastly are these two titles: Senran Kagura: New Wave and Senran Kagura Bon Appétit! linked to the story at all?

Originally posted by Juihau:

The series' chronology is...weird, and it's really meant to be followed in the order the games are released. For example, Deep Crimson has a few notable spoilers for Shinovi Versus, despite taking place months before, and none of the events that occur in DC have actually happened in SV. But, to give a sort of timeline...

Burst - Focuses on the original conflict between the Hanzo and Hebijo schools. Hebijo's elite students betray the school and become renegades, leaving the school as a pile of rubble. They are now known as the Crimson Squad.

Deep Crimson - Takes place anywhere from a couple weeks to about 2 months after Burst. Kyoto is under attack by an army of youma, forcing the Hanzo and former Hebijo students to team up.

Shinovi Versus - Takes place 6 months after Burst. A new school, Gessen, catches wind that Hanzo failed to eliminate the Hebijo elites, and challenges them to a battle royale. Meanwhile, Hebijo is rebuilt, and its new elite team are ordered to eliminate the traitorous Crimson Squad and restore the school's honor. The girls learn of Kagura, the highest rank of shinobi who specialize in slaying youma, and decide that's what they want to aim for. Notably, in this game, the Hanzo students haven't seen their old rivals since the original conflict, and none of them have fought youma yet.

Estival Versus - Takes place an undetermined amount of time after SV. The Hanzo-Gessen and Crimson Squad-Hebijo conflicts have been resolved non-lethally. Sayuri, a retired Kagura and Asuka's grandmother, brings them all to a strange world where they have one more chance to be with their deceased loved ones. She also starts a competition, where the winning team will be shown the path to becoming Kagura.

Keep in mind, these are also really broad descriptions that don't go into major detail, leaving out things like Orochi, the first youma seen in the series, and Dougen, the mysterious Hebijo investor who's responsible for its quick rebuilding.

[Juihau]

The anime is an adaption of Burst, but I wouldn't really recommend it. SV is an okay starting point, but I'd definitely suggest at least watching a play through of Burst (Hanzo story, then Hebijo story), as its Hebijo story is my personal favorite part of the series thus far. New Wave has very little impact on the rest of the series, and Bon Appetit is a comedy spinoff thing focused on a cooking contest.

[DaveDOX]

Originally posted by Juihau:

The anime is an adaption of Burst, but I wouldn't really recommend it. SV is an okay starting point, but I'd definitely suggest at least watching a play through of Burst (Hanzo story, then Hebijo story), as its Hebijo story is my personal favorite part of the series thus far. New Wave has very little impact on the rest of the series, and Bon Appetit is a comedy spinoff thing focused on a cooking contest.

Ah okay, I still want to try the anime. Would I watch it after a playthrough of Burst?

[Juihau]

I guess. It's not bad, it's just not a good substitute for the actual game by any means, for a number of reasons. And I say this as someone who actually got into the series with the anime. Watch it before or after Burst, just don't watch it instead of Burst.

[DaveDOX]

Originally posted by Juihau:

I guess. It's not bad, it's just not a good substitute for the actual game by any means, for a number of reasons. And I say this as someone who actually got into the series with the anime. Watch it before or after Burst, just don't watch it instead of Burst.

Alright then thanks! Would it be ok to skip Deep Crimson then?

[DaveDOX]

Originally posted by PrimeSonic:

Originally posted by DaveDOX:

Alright then thanks! Would it be ok to skip Deep Crimson then?

From a plot and event perspective, yeah.
No major event in Deep Crimson really seems to have stuck since that whole plot was really never talked about again.

But, I would say that it's in Deep Crimson where you get the best scenes of the Hanzo girls and the Crimson Squad (old Hebijo) girls going from evenmies, to rivals, to allies, to friends.

If that's your cup of tea, I would say it's worth it.
Otherwise, you'll get most of the basics from the anime and Burst.
I just think Deep Crimson had the best moments of developing friendships.
That's not to say that you won't get a lot of that in SV or even Burst. But I'm of the opinion that Deep Crimson did it better.

Ahh I see. I was originally just planning on watching the anime then playing SV and EV after. It seems like I can't miss Burst though considering how vital it is to the story but I'm not usually one to watch playthroughs considering I don't have a DS. I'd rather play through it myself.

[CRES]

Here's a quick overview of the series.

1) Senran Kagura: Shoujotachi no Shinei (Portrait of Girls) (3DS)
The very first game in the series and created because Kenichiro Takaki wanted to use the 3DS's technology to see 3D boobs (The man knows what he likes). Follows the Hanzo Academy girls as they fight against the Hebijo School. Never released outside of Japan.

2) Senran Kagura Burst (3DS)
A remake/sequel to Portrait of Girls. Contains the entirety of the Hanzo campaign from the first game with gameplay tweaks and additions, but also contains an all new campaign following the Hebijo girls. The Hebijo campaign takes place at the same time as the Hanzo campaign with major differences between the two stories. The best place to begin, especially in order to understand the core cast of characters.

3) Senran Kagura: Shinovi Versus (Vita/PC)
First game in the "Versus" series. Follows four different campaigns, Hanzo, Crimson Squad (Old Hebijo Girls), and the all-new Gessen School and the New Hebijo School. Takes place Six months after Burst. Some knowledge about Burst is recommended, but not required.

4) Senran Kagura: Bon Appetit (Vita)
Spin-off game. Technically takes place after Shinovi, not regarded as a series entry in the series.

5) Senran Kagura 2: Deep Crimson (3DS)
A Direct sequel to Burst and starts right at the end of Burst. Follows the Hanzo and the newly formed Crimson Squad. Takaki regards the numbered series and the Versus series as taking place in different timelines. Knowledge of Burst is recommended but not required, while Knowledge of Shinovi is not necessary.

6) Senran Kagura: Estival Versus (PS4/Vita)
Second game in the Versus series and sequel to Estival Versus. Haven't played it yet, so I can't speak too much about it.

And there you have it. The entire Senran Kagura series in a nutshell. I hope that helps.

[Juihau]

I don't recommend the anime as a replacement for Burst for a few reasons. The most jarring one is probably that Hikage and Suzune are basically different characters entirely in the anime compared to the games. It tries to compress a lot of things into itself, too, and ends up changing the stakes in ways that don't really make a whole lot of sense. It has its high points, but it doesn't do the game justice, which is why I always recommend at least watching a playthrough (hell, have a link to a good one).

Originally posted by twitch.tv/DaveDOX:

Alright then thanks! Would it be ok to skip Deep Crimson then?

Kinda/sorta. Like PrimeSonic said, the events that happen in Deep Crimson don't really seem to have stuck in SV and EV. EV does have a few moments, though, that make more sense if you know what occurs in DC, and two major characters from DC are playable as dlc in EV.

You can start the series pretty much anywhere and play in any order. Each game makes a point to establish the characters and current stakes for any newcomers. It's just that the series is written in such a way that it makes the most sense when you go through it in the order it's released.