Doki Doki Literature Club!

Doki Doki Literature Club! (DDLC) is a visual novel where players step into the role of a student who joins a literature club at the suggestion of his childhood friend. At first, the story feels light, with interactions centered on friendship, writing poems, and spending time with the club members—Sayori, Natsuki, Yuri, and Monika. Each character has distinct personalities: Sayori is outgoing but struggles privately with depression, Natsuki is lively and cares about manga and poetry, Yuri is quiet with a fascination for books and darker interests, and Monika, the club’s president, appears confident but holds unsettling secrets.

The choices players make throughout the story affect relationships and how events unfold. While the early chapters give the impression of a typical school romance, the game later shifts to deeper psychological themes and breaks conventional storytelling by directly addressing the role of the player. Because of this, it has been recognized for its writing and impact, sparking conversations about how video games can explore mental health and challenging emotions.

It’s important to be aware that the narrative includes sensitive subjects such as depression, anxiety, and altered perceptions of reality, which may be disturbing for some players.

You can play Doki Doki Literature Club! quickly and for free on kbhgames.com, directly in your browser with no installation required.

At first, gameplay seems simple: you click through dialogue, make choices, and even write poems to impress the girls. But the further you go, the more the game glitches, distorts, and forces players to mess with files outside the game itself. The cheerful facade crumbles, revealing themes of depression, obsession, and self-harm. Monika, the club president, becomes self-aware, realizing she’s trapped in a game—and she’s not happy about it.

Hi, Monika here!

Welcome to the Literature Club! It’s always been a dream of mine to make something special out of the things I love. Now that you’re a club member, you can help me make that dream come true in this cute game!

Every day is full of chit-chat and fun activities with all of my adorable and unique club members:

Sayori, the youthful bundle of sunshine who values happiness the most;
Natsuki, the deceivingly cute girl who packs an assertive punch;
Yuri, the timid and mysterious one who finds comfort in the world of books;
…And, of course, Monika, the leader of the club! That’s me!

I’m super excited for you to make friends with everyone and help the Literature Club become a more intimate place for all my members. But I can tell already that you’re a sweetheart—will you promise to spend the most time with me? ♥

DDLC Staff

• Doki Doki Literature Club (DDLC) was developed by Team Salvato.
• Dan Salvato – Writing, coding, music
  Twitter – Twitch – YouTube
• Satchely – Character art
  Twitter – Pixiv
• Velinquent – Background art
  Twitter – Pixiv

Merch:

Go buy some cool Merch from the official merch shop

DDLC Plus:

An expanded version of the game, titled Doki Doki Literature Club Plus!, was released as a premium game in 2021 for PCs as well as the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S home consoles. Get it at DDLC.PLUS