Oh, where to begin with “Oshi no Ko”? The anime adaptation of this popular manga (personally I haven’t read it yet and since this series is not yet over I don’t want to spoil it for myself) but so far in just 11 episodes this anime took me on a breathtaking ride filled with emotions, artistry, and star-studded dreams. The story starts off with a feature-length premiere (almost two hours long!), setting the stage for a tale of two siblings reborn with past life memories and a mission to help their mother become an idol singer.read more
I mentioned in some of my other posts that I began using Photoleap, an AI text to image generator that allows anyone to be an artist and create fantastic unique one of a kind images. I love Photoleap the most so far out of all of the AI programs I have tried. Although I’m still on the waiting list for Dall-e-2.
In case you missed it, you can see some of my other AI art, mostly created with Dreamstudio.
I fell in love with the Japanese version of Idoly Pride. It is quite similar to other already existing idol simulation games such as Idolm@ster and Love Live or Bang Dream Girls or Colorful Stage. I think what makes Idoly Pride stand out for me is the very high-quality graphics. The music is good, but the cute idols is what pulls me in like “WOW!!”
Like those other games, there’s also an anime based on the franchise. I am not sure which came first the game or the anime. I have not watched the anime yet. If it’s anything like the game, I’m sure it’s very cute!read more
The sequel to KLab’s smash hit Love Live School Idol Festival, Love Live All Stars takes it to the next level with fully animated Live2D characters that dance around on the screen.
Like its predecessor, Love Live School Idol Festival, Love Live All Stars is a card collecting rhythm game with cute anime girls to collect.
The new installment in Love Live has a few key differences from the original, most notably is the animation. There’s also costumes you can unlock for your girls to wear and a new voltage gameplay system that allows you to score more points.read more
I had previously played the Japanese version briefly of A3! Act, Actor, Addict, an otome simulation game that puts you in the role of a young woman looking for her father who went missing 8 years ago.
Cybrid has now released an English version of the game, which is good, because this one has almost no gameplay, and tons of reading (as most Otome and Visual novels). Which is why I only played the JP version very briefly, because I can’t read Japanese, and with little gameplay, and no story (since I couldn’t understand it) it became boring quickly. But now that it is in English, I’m enjoying it quite a bit.read more
Title: Pop in Q Length: (approx) 1.5 hours, feature length film. I hear there is a 2nd film in production as well that will finish telling the story. *hint: Keep watching after the credits of the first movie* Genre: Shoujo, Magical Girl, Fantasy, Idol, Musical, Slice of Life, Drama Studio: Toei Annimation Release Date: December, 2016
Score Card:
Geeky 1/5 – There is a bit of action later in the film, also some nostalgia to anyone who grew up watching shows like Digimon. But largely, this is pure shoujo aimed at very young girls. Afterall the girls themselves are middleschool students in this film.
Sweetie: 5/5 – This anime is utterly adorable!!! The Popin look like Sanrio characters. The girls are young and have round faces and big eyes. The music is catchy. Idol culture is always kawaii AF. The backgrounds have a nice painterly style. And the story actually has some depth to it, especially towards the end and the small preview of the next film.
Story 9/10 The story is basically the same as nearly every shoujo series. Which isn’t a bad thing. A group of young girls who don’t believe in themselves (or other people), come together, find their own inner strength, and learn to trust each other and work together. The basic plot of Pop in Q surrounds 5 girls each with different regrets as they prepare to graduate from middle school. They escape to the magic world where they meet the Popins, loveable cute mascots who are responsible for the flow of time. The girls do not want to return to their own world until tragedy threatens both worlds and forces the girls to make some difficult decisions.
Characters: 10/10 – 10 out of 10 just for how cute they are. Plus I like how every girl is given ample screen time and has a rich back story. This reminded me a lot of sailor moon or magic knights rayearth, or to a lesser degree card captor sakura. It also has a hint of love live or aikatsu stars because of the idol elements. But the cutest thing of all are the Poppins!
Artwork: 4/5 I deducted 1 point because some of the 3D scenes are not animated that well. However, the character designs are so cute. The 2D parts are adorable, and the background environments have this lovely painterly style with heavy brush strokes. This creates a beautiful storybook like feeling.
Voice Acting: 4/5 – The voice acting is cute and suits each of the girls. The poppins also have cute voices. Only reason I didn’t give it a 5 was that it wasn’t that memorable.
Music: 5/5 – There are tons of vocal tracks, obviously as music plays a central role to this story. Luckily all of the music is quite catchy. I also liked the instrumental tracks, especially highlighting some sad and touching moments.
Tokyo, Japan – January 24, 2018 – KLab Inc., a leader in online mobile games, together with BROCCOLI Co., Ltd., released the smartphone rhythm game Utano☆Princesama Shining Live worldwide on Wednesday, January 24 (UTC+9). The game is now available for download in the App Store® and Google Play™ in over 136 countries and regions around the globe.* The global version of the game has been fully localized into English and Traditional Chinese.
* The global version of the game is available worldwide except for Japan and Mainland China. For more information on the Mainland China version (available in Simplified Chinese), please see the official site.
A series of events celebrating the worldwide release of the game are being held to showcase the latest entry onto the shining stage. Special login bonuses and exclusive missions are only available for a limited time. Players are encouraged to take advantage of these special offers before the performance ends!
About Utano☆Princesama Shining Live
Utano☆Princesama Shining Live is a rhythm game for Android™ and iOS mobile devices based on BROCCOLI’s Utano☆Princesama series. With over 2 million downloads* in the domestic market, the Japanese version of the game has found success with fans across the country since launching on August 28, 2017.
[Promo Video]
https://youtu.be/vC-Pw4RXcEo
Since the first Utano☆Princesama game was released in 2010, the series has grown into a popular media franchise for women gamers and fans alike, featuring CD releases, a televised anime series, and other popular content spanning multiple genres. The series now spans multiple anime seasons, manga, drama CDs, live concerts, and much more.
Utano☆Princesama Shining Live features 11 idols from the groups ST☆RISH and QUARTET NIGHT. Players can set their favorite idol to appear on their home screen and tap him to see his various reactions and watch his affection go up, as well as form personalized teams to play songs in a rhythm game. The rhythm game component allows players to train their own original unit of idols as they play a suite of songs from the Utano☆Princesama series at multiple difficulty levels. Players can also unlock stories starring the characters. The game transcends the boundaries of traditional gaming with a special Camera Mode that takes advantage of AR technology, giving players the chance to take photos with their favorite pop stars whenever, wherever.
* Total includes players who have downloaded the game more than once.
Features of Utano☆Princesama Shining Live
Multiple hits from the Utapri series! Turn your smartphone into a star-studded stage whenever you want!
Utano☆Princesama Shining Live is a rhythm game featuring simple, intuitive controls that gives players the chance to enjoy the greatest hits from the popular series. Create your own personalized idol unit and utilize their unique skills to rack up points and rewards
Watch stories and scenes starring your idols and their daily routines unfold before your eyes in vivid detail!
Check up on your idols and their idol lives via new stories and scenes updated regularly! Players can interact with the members of their group, or even transcend group boundaries to mix and mingle with the stars, as well as enjoy a variety of stage outfits that are sure to catch the eye of any watchful fashionista.
Interact and communicate with fully animated idols!
How to Get: You can check out my review of Aikatsu Photo on Stage to learn how to get free Japanese Itune items by creating a free Japanese Itunes account. In Aikatsu Photo on Stage, I was unable to help android users locate the game as it does not run on Bluestacks (or any rooted devices). I do not know if the same holds true for Idolmaster Theater Days as well. If so Android users may need a VPN Tunneling Service, which I know nothing about. Sorry.
Also in the case of this game when registering for a new account, be sure you select Japan as your country. This cannot be changed later. You can leave “English” as the language, but this only affects emails Bandai will send to you, and does not affect the language actually in the game – which is sadly only available in Japanese. Later, if Bandai ever releases the game in North America and in English you will have to make a new Bandai account to play the English versions of the game. But we’ve never received a single IdolM@ster game, despite success of their Love Live series which is very similar, so I don’t think the chances of English localization are very high! 🙁
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Overall: 66/80 83% B “Very Good Game for Girls”
Overview: 10/10 – I have a new obsession, as anyone who follows me on Instagram may have noticed this past weekend. Idol Master Million Live Theater Days may just be my new favorite mobile game of all time. It takes what I enjoy about Love Live, Aikatsu Photo on Stage, and Idol Master Cinderella Girls and smooshes them all together.
Graphics: 10/10 – The best part about Theater Days is that the girls are rendered in Live 2D just like Ensemble Stars, Dream Girlfriend, and countless other anime games. This technology allows for very lifelike anime renders. While 3D would feel stiff and 2D would feel flat, Live 2D finds a balance between these two. I can’t get enough of these Live 2D games!! In fact I wish to see the technology used even more, not just on mobile games, but PC and Console Games as well. I don’t know if this technology was used on Nekopara, but the result is VERY similar. The models look more clean than the cel shading technologies used in Catherine and School Days. Live 2D is the best thing to ever happen to anime games. More companies need to take notice.
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Not only do they look great, the girls appear on stage as full bodies, not just a tiny face in a circle like in Love Live School Idol Festival. Aikatsu Photo on Stage also has full bodied — but static — images (which kinda “bounced” up and down at times on the screen). But here, in Theater Days, thanks to Live 2D, the girls dance and sing on stage with unique dance routines choreographed for each song and each singer; and it’s just so incredibly cuuuute!!! I can’t stop playing, watching, and taking like a bazillion screen shots, seriously! Just check out my instagram account lol.
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Music 10/10 – Aikatsu Photo on Stage seemed lacking in the quality of the music compared to Love Live, but Idol Master Million Live Theater Days is at least as good, if not even better, in music when compared to Love Live. The songs are seriously addictive. I really like some of the earliest tracks like “Brand New Theater” and “Sentimental Venus”, but all of the songs I’ve heard have been good. I’ve played and watched the music videos (in game after beating the song at least once), over and over, all weekend. The music is so good, and the girls’ dancing is so well timed with the music. It feels so real, like you really are at a concert. The lights on the stage, the audience, the movement, the emotions, omg. It’s indescribable. There’s also excellent voice acting in the story scenes as well.
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Gameplay 8/10 – And like Aikatsu Photo on Stage and Idol Master Cinderella Girls you can dressup your girls in different outfits. I haven’t figured out how to do this yet. I’ve won, what looks like white, wedding dress, looking rewards from several songs, but can’t figure out how to use them or equip them. But I do see that we can change the uniforms for each member of our party, I just don’t have anything showing up when I go to this menu to change their outfits, except the starting red/white/blue outfits they are given at the beginning of the game. Perhaps the white dresses are materials or tokens to draw new outfits or something else useful and related to outfits. I just know there are costume changes, and the costume changes will be represented on stage when playing or watching / listening to the songs.
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There are also visual novel like elements to the game. I can’t read Japanese, but luckily there is only 1 response / option to select. I’ve only found 2 instances where I’ve had to make a “choice”. The first time was when choosing which starter card I wanted. I picked the girl in the pink sweater with side pony tail. The other time that the game asked me to make a choice was shortly after that, when a new girl is introduced, she has very short hair, sometimes in short pigtails with red ribbons and a green dress. — I think the main girl I had drawn already was jealous of the new girl, I think based on their facial expressions / interactions. My “main girl” and 2 other “starter girls” were in another room talking about something/one when the “new girl” overheard them, and they apologized and got embarrassed. I was presented an option, probably something encouraging the girls to get along. Whatever I picked seemed to surprise the girls. Story went on for a bit, then they all sang together, after the performance, my “main girl” came to me and asked something of me. There were 2 options, and the one I picked seemed to make her happy / satisfy her a bit.
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There will be other chances to interact with your girls, any time you are logged in, you can move around different rooms, and find your girls randomly going about their day. Sometimes they will have an “!” or a “…” bubble above their heads, when tapping on a girl, you can listen to what they have to say, which usually doesn’t even require any feedback from you – and rewards you with XP and the rare/summoning currency.
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You rank up as a producer by completing these “quests” and of course by putting on live performances which is where the majority of the gameplay comes from. You assemble a team of 6 girls. They have different attributes such as Princess, Fairy, and Angel. The song attributes change every day. For example, yesterday the songs wanted Princess, and Today they want Fairy. On my first day of play they wanted “All” which I guess would require a balanced approach. You can have several different teams built and saved up and switch freely between them. It also seems you can have it build the teams for you by hitting the pink “recycle” looking icon, and then choosing the attribute you want. For example, Princess would autofill your highest scoring Princess cards into the team. This doesn’t mean that only Princess members would appear, because you might have a fairy or angel who has high Princess points too. This probably all sounds familiar if you’ve played other titles such as Love Live School Idol Festival.
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Nekopalive, Nekopara, Nekoparadise, Neko, Catgirl, Catgirls, Idol, Idols, Idol Simulation, Idols Sim, Idols Simulation, Catcert, catcerto, Concert, Singing, Dancing, Rhythm Game, DDR, Parapara, Kawaii, Cute, Moe, Love Live, Love Live School Idol Festival, Love Live School Idol, Love Live School Idol Anime, Love Live Game, Free Game, VR, Virtual Reality, Free Virtual Reality Game, Free VR Game, HTC Vive, Occulus Rift
Look what just popped up on my facebook feed….
According to the official game page gameplay seems to be that of a rhythm game:
“What’s NEKOPALIVE? Why, it’s a “cat-certo!” The catgirls of La Soleil take to the stage and step into the spotlight with their very own live concerts. Dancing, singing, MIX’ing and purring, this is the NEKOPARA event that comes right home to you, and you’ve got the best seat in the house! No idol can compare to a catgirl! 🐾
Match the rhythm to cheer on the stars of the show! Watch them become the greatest idols of all! ” (Source: https://sekaiproject.com/2016/05/31/nekopalive-now-on-steam/ )
This free game will work with HTC Vive and Occulus Rift. I think it can also work without a VR Headset.
It features cute adorable cat girls from the visual kinetic novel games Nekopara as they get transformed into Japanese idol singers.
The cute jpop songs featured in the trailer are very catchy.
Gameplay seems quick and easy to pick up. A treat for fans of casual styled games like Love Live, or rhythm games such as DDR or Parapara.
Ensemble Stars | Dating Sim | Stat Raising Sim | Trading Card Game | IOS | Android | Anime | Game
I’ve been enjoying Ensemble Stars, a game that lets you collect cute anime boys. When I first got the game, I assumed it was like Love Live School Idol Festival! However, it’s a little bit different. Most notably, Ensemble Stars is a Stat Raising Simulation. Not only do you collect the cards (just like in Love Live School Idol Festival!) but then you train different stats such as vocals, dancing, etc. Also, this is NOT a rhythm game. I initially thought it was, until playing it. There’s no user input in battles; it’s all mathematically determined. Your cards stats vs the Opponents’ stats.
This game is not available yet in the US app store. And in no app store is it in English; However, you can easily make a free account (must be on a PC (or mac)) by logging out of your main account and then at the bottom of the screen, change location, and select either the Korean or Japanese app stores. Then sync your iphone/ipad with your new purchase (its a free game).
The company also makes a game called Ensemble Girls which is available in the US app store, however, it is not in English. I just started playing Ensemble Girls lastnight and its gameplay is markedly different from Ensemble Stars. Ensemble Girls plays like a board game. You roll dice and move the corresponding number of squares through each level. You encounter girls to battle and collect points. You can use points to summon new girls for your deck and also get sweet tasting food which if you feed to the girls makes them level up. It’s a cute game, but the gameplay in Ensemble Stars is more fun since it’s a stat raising sim, which Ensemble Girls is not.
When you first start playing Ensemble Stars you get to select one “team” to be your “starter deck” which will determine your rare card.
This is the one I chose, because, he is hot as hell LOL. :drool:
There’s also a dating sim element to the game too. You can date the guys and by correctly responding to their questions (which are not in English), they will level up. Here are a few more screens showing all of these elements of gameplay. The dating sim, the stat raising sim, and the collectible card game (ccg).
The game is really super fun – even though I can’t understand a word of it. I keep hoping they’ll bring us an English version. It’s in many asian countries already. I think with the rise in popularity in America of otome games and dating sims and JRPGs we would be a good market for this game as well. I have already emailed the company and asked them if they would please release an English or “international” version of their app. The game has only been around since April of 2015. So it is not even a year old yet. That means there’s still a chance they could release it at some point in English.
Geeky:
Sweetie:
Overall: 70 / 90 78% C+ “Good Game for Girls”
Concept: 10/10 finally a game like Love Live School Idol Festival but with all boy cards! Sweet!
Gameplay: 10/10 – The stat raising simulation and dating sim aspects are really fun, and it’s exciting/thrilling to summon the rare cards that you really want to add to your deck.
Graphics: 10/10 – one of the cutest games around. The little chibi sprites are so cute as they dance and practice their moves in the stat raising sim portion of the game. The still artwork on each card is beautiful, and the dating sim element treats us to fully animated 2d sprites. (not chibi though, full drawn like the card artwork. Lovely.) The backgrounds and environments are also beautiful, and the user interface is so simple and easy to use that I can easily navigate the game even without it being in English (I can’t say the same for Ensemble Girls which I’ve been stumbling through for the past day or two.)
Story: 0/10 – Unfortunately until the game is available in English, the story is a 0/10 – It might have a good story for all I know, but I can’t read it.
Characters: 5/10 – Well the characters are definitely easy on the eyes. But once again I can’t read any of their backstories. So shrugs. If I’m going by character art / concept / design it’s 10/10 – but It would be nice to have the “feels” during the dating scenes by understanding wtf the characters are saying. And getting to know their personality by more than just their facial expressions.
Replay Value: 10/10 Like most mobile games, there are numerous events every month with the chance to get rare limited edition cards and items.
Music: 10/10 – I really like the opening theme and some of the background music also
Voice Acting: 7/10 – I love the voice actors in this game as well. I can’t understand wtf they are saying since there’s no English subtitles (and I deducted points for that), but I do hope that should this game be brought over, that they keep the original voice cast in tact.
Overall: 70 / 90 78% C+ “Good Game for Girls”
If it were in English, chances are story and characters would rate higher, but as it is right now today, it’s still totally playable, and quite enjoyable even without understanding the dialogue.
The above guide is how to get a different game, but works regardless for obtaining any game from other app stores in different countries. It is the guide I used in order to get my game(s) :). I think she also has info on how to get the game for android, I don’t know since I am an IOS user.
If you know of other helpful resources for English players, please leave a comment below to share your sources!
