Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage!
Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage! is a Japanese mobile rhythm game developed by Colorful Palette, a studio of CyberAgent's Craft Egg, and published by Sega Corporation. The game is a spin-off from Sega's "" series, and features the Crypton Future Media's virtual singers Hatsune Miku, Megurine Luka, Kagamine Rin and Len, Meiko, and Kaito, alongside the cast of 20 original human characters that are split into five units, each with a unique theme. Set in the real world where Virtual Singers only exist as fiction, the characters come across another world called "Sekai", where  various "true feelings" are projected. The game was released for Android and Apple devices on September 30, 2020. It was developed with Unity, and uses the Piapro Studio NT engine for voice synthesis. The game reached 5 million players as of July 2021. Sega released an English-language version of the game worldwide on December 7, 2021. A Traditional Chinese version for Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, published by Ariel Network, was released on September 30, 2021. A Korean version will be released on May 20, 2022 in South Korea by Nuverse. Setting. "Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage" is set in  the real world, specifically in the city of Tokyo and Yokohama (both located in the Greater Tokyo Area and the Kantō region). In this game, Hatsune Miku and her friends are famous fictional singers existing in the real world as Virtual Singer. They sing songs from creators all over the world, but they also exist in a mysterious world different from the real world that is created from a person's "true feelings", featuring various visual appearances based on the person. There are as many Sekai as there are emotions, and its form changes depending on the person's emotions . Therefore, the focus of the game is on the original characters and their journeys to find their "true feelings" with the help of the Virtual Singers. In order to enter Sekai, one must find and play the song "Untitled." This silent song has no melody or lyrics and is created at the same time as the Sekai, and is mysteriously inserted on their devices. It can be anything, such as a game console, a smartphone, a smartwatch, a TV, a tablet, and a computer. When they play an "Untitled" song, they can travel between the real world and the Sekai . As one is able to discover their true feelings, the song will contain a playable melody and lyrics, and well as its title. Plot. Each of the five groups and teams has their own story, focusing on their journey to convey their "true feelings": After the introduction movie, the player must choose one of the five orbs three times. If at least two orbs have the same color, the game will automatically reveal a group (e.g. if the player picked all blue orbs, it will reveal Leo/need). However, should the player choose different color orbs, it will choose the  group associated with the last colour they choose. There are three types of stories. First are group stories (or Main Stories), focusing on the backstory of one particular group, more of which become available as that group reaches higher ranks. Card Stories, on the other hand, revolve around one individual character with two parts. The first part becomes available upon acquiring the prerequisite items for the card, while the second part is unlocked by leveling up the card. There are also time-limited event stories, which are unlocked by playing the event. They are further divided into two types of  stories: standalone stories focus on single groups, while mixed stories feature characters from different groups. Characters. The characters are divided into five groups of four, each with a theme related to the groups' backstory, complete with Hatsune Miku in a thematic attire to sing alongside them, and another Virtual Singer if available. While only characters involved in the plot are mentioned, some songs in the game feature Virtual Singers from different Sekai. Leo/need. An all-girl pop-rock band formed by a group of childhood friends who have learned to overcome their differences. Their Sekai consists of a classroom  bathed in the afterglow of the sunset. They are supported by Hatsune Miku and Megurine Luka, who take on the form of band musicians. Their image color is Midnight Blue, and they represent memories. MORE MORE JUMP! A pop idol group formed by one girl who dreams of becoming an idol and three girls who have quit being idols. Their Sekai consists of a concert stage illuminated by countless glow sticks. They are supported by Hatsune Miku and Kagamine Rin, who take on the form of idols. Their image color is Bright Green, and they represent hope. Vivid BAD SQUAD . A top-level hip-hop, teen pop and street music group was formed to surpass a legend. They were originally two separate musical duos before their merger: Vivids and Bad Dogs. Their Sekai is consisting of an alleyway with walls covered in graffiti and concert posters. They are supported by Hatsune Miku, who takes on the form of a street dancer, alongside MEIKO, who takes on the form of a café waitress, and Kagamine Len, who takes on the form of a DJ. Their image color is Vivid Red, and they represent passion. Wonderlands x Showtime. is an eccentric musical  theater troupe formed to "put a smile on people's faces and make the world happy". Their Sekai is consisting of a theme park filled with fantastical encounters like singing flowers and walking stuffed animals. They are supported by Hatsune Miku, who takes on the form of a troupe performer, and Kaito, who takes on the form of a troupe actor. Their image color is Pop Yellow, and they represent happiness. Nightcord at 25:00. is an indie underground music circle whose identities are shrouded in mystery. Their Sekai is consisting of an empty space with nothing in it except for  a few dim rays of light and distorted screens. The only singer to accompany them at game launch is Hatsune Miku, who is mysterious in her personality as well as gothic appearance, though this changes later on. Their image color is Dark Purple, and they represent trauma. Nightcord refers to the online voice-chat platform the group use. NPCs/Others. Side characters that makes their appearance in the groups' main and event stories. Gameplay. "Colorful Stage" gameplay consists of tapping notes as they slide toward the bottom to the rhythm of a chosen song; players have to tap, slide and  flick to match new free-form rhythm notes, and special yellow notes that are worth more points towards your score. The overall gameplay is similar to Sega's "Persona Dancing" (Atlus), "Chunithm" and Bandai Namco's "The Idolmaster" series, the players are given 1,000 health points to clear a song, and one can adjust song speed and difficulty to their liking. In lieu of an energy system that is prevalent in most free-to-play games, "Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage" utilizes Live Boosts that increases rewards for completing a song, and players can continue playing even when they run out  of boosts. Players gain experience points (EXP) by clearing songs and listening to overworld conversations between characters. Such talks are fully voiced with 2.5D movement via Live2D technology, and their conversations are depicted in a visual novel-style presentation that is prepared for each group, including the Virtual Singers such as Miku. Further dialogues are added over time through events. EXP also improves a unit's rank, which unlocks additional chapters in group stories. Cards, which use a star ranking system to determine rarity (four stars being the rarest), are acquired via the gacha system, a luck-based mechanic in  which players spend the in-game currency Crystals with the hope of winning their desired cards. Although "Project Sekai" is a free-to-play game, players can spend real-life money to acquire more crystals. The game also features Virtual Lives, a mode where players can go to a virtual concert, similar to augmented reality or a Vocaloid live concert, where players can interact with one another. They can see other players all around the world and their favorite group performing via 3D animation. Song list. The game initially launched with 28 songs, with around four new songs added per  month to the game; as of December 2021, a total of 146 songs are included. The tracklist mainly consists of Vocaloid songs, with most songs having two versions: the original version (named "Virtual Singer version" in-game), and Sekai versions, having the song covered by the original characters, and sometimes joined by a Virtual Singer. Some songs also have a 3D MV or animated MV, with animated MVs either being newly created for the game (named "2D MV" in-game) or original. Songs without an MV are played with a static 2D background. Development. The game was first announced on  August 30, 2019, at "Magical Mirai 2019". The development is done by the Colorful Palette, a newly established subsidiary of Craft Egg (who is already known for another rhythm game: "BanG Dream! Girls Band Party"). Yuichiro Kondo, the first producer of "Girls Band Party", also serves as the producer for this game. The project started in 2017 and was initially being developed entirely by Craft Egg, but Kondo thought it was necessary to avoid a situation where the project would clash with the development of "Girls Band Party", so he created Colorful Palette with Craft Egg's core members within  the company. The title is a rhythm game that features arrangements of songs made by various artists over the years using the Vocaloid software. The original story of the game is told in a visual novel and musical film-style. The direction of the game's design and concept is different from other Hatsune Miku-related games, such as Sega's "," where the player and Hatsune Miku face each other directly and communicate in the game. The project is said to be "a work that embodies the existence of Hatsune Miku" and explores the relationship between music and people. One  of the reasons behind this format was the idea of "wanting the younger generation to listen to more Vocaloid music and other songs from the internet." Therefore, while knowing that there could be people opposed to the idea of addition of original characters, it was decided to develop such a setting. Release. The game's pre-registration was originally set to begin in late April, but was delayed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pre-registration later started on July 17, 2020, and Sega revealed the goals were set from 100,000 to 1,000,000 pre-registrations. In September  2020, the pre-registrations later reached 1,000,000 and players who pre registered received rewards. The game's worldwide release was announced in August 2021 with a slightly different title, "Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage!". Nuverse released the game for the Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan markets on September 30, 2021. Nuverse is also managing the release in Mainland China, South Korea, and Southeast Asia, with a release date to be announced. Sega released the game for all other regions (especially Western world including Oceania, Europe and North America) on December 7, 2021. Music. Singles. The original songs specially commissioned to famous  Vocaloid producers for each units. The albums are licensed under Bushiroad Music. It's also available worldwide through online music streaming services, such as Spotify, Amazon Music, and Apple Music. Albums. Collections of cover songs from each unit. Other media. Anime series. A mini anime series titled was announced during the game's first anniversary live stream. The mini anime series will have 10 episodes that will be broadcast through Tokyo MX and is available for free to watch through the game's official YouTube channel. The anime will have the characters drawn in chibi-style, and a bit of  gag-esque story that is slightly different from the original story. It premiered on January 13, 2022. Official English subtitles are made available some time after the official premiere. Printed media. An anthology comic was released on November 25, 2021, by Ichijinsha's DNA Media Comics. The manga collection are drawn by 15 different artists with their own depiction of the game, hence its content may not count as canon. An official visual fan book was released on November 26, 2021. Reception. , the game has reached over 5 million users and received positive reviews. The game was ranked 9th on  Twitter's Most Talked About Video Games list in 2021. Controversy. On February 17, 2022, episode 6 of the "Petit Sekai" mini anime, titled "Leo/need Style", premiered on YouTube. Due to a scene where the characters had darkened skin tones to reflect the typical Japanese "gyaru" fashion substyle of "ganguro" and wore costumes that were similar to stereotypical African tribal outfits and hair and makeup to look like lions, it was accused by American/Western viewers of blackface and cultural appropriation. The next day, the episode was withdrawn indefinitely and a public apology in both English and Japanese was  uploaded to the official Project Sekai Twitter account. The episode was reuploaded to YouTube on March 15, 2022, with some modifications that portrayed the "gyaru" style without tan and makeup or tribal items.