K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut from PQube and Wisageni Studio will have you working on debuting the ultimate K-
pop group. Learn more in our K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut review!
K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut from PQube and Wisageni Studio will have you working on debuting the ultimate K-pop group. You must give it your all and lead your group so that it can stand out from the crowd and make it in the very competitive music scene. You’re a powerful manager who has what it takes to shape your girl group and forever change their destiny. You must work behind the scenes and away from the spotlight, scouting potential members, deciding their weekly schedules, and developing their skills to overcome their weaknesses, so that they can function as a tight unit that can grab the attention of a rising number of fans.
It can’t all be work and no fun, or else your rising idols will quickly feel the effects of some very real burnout. You’ll have to balance things out and mix training and work with some downtime, so that they can get some R&R as they regain their strength to keep the cycle going. Add some randomized events that can throw a wrench into your plans, and you have an experience that certainly gives you a look into the world of the K-pop industry.
Before your new journey – and that of your trainees – begins, you’ll need to customize your profile to decide what type of manager you’ll be. This includes entering your name, birthday, and age, as well as picking from one of three manager options: the Marketer, the Realist, and the Risk-Taker. Each one will have some bonuses for you to consider, which will change how you approach things. For example, the Marketer will favor dance and happiness during the initial run. Meanwhile, the Risk-Taker will gain access to an early photoshoot opportunity for a magazine, which can open many doors… or close them for good. As for the Realist, it offers a more well-rounded persona that might make for an easier journey.
The road to debut most certainly won’t be an easy path for your idols in the making. You’ll need to pick who will be part of your K-pop group, with eight different trainees. Your options will be Ai, Gita, Hana, Luna, Minji, Yejin, Yue, and Yuna. Each one will have a different personality and a variety of skills for you to consider, and it will be up to you to find the best way to maximize their individual potential as well as that of them as a group. Sure, you could have all 8 of them under your wing, but that’s going to considerably increase your operating costs!
Their stat values for Vocal, Dance, Charm, Fame, Stamina, and Happiness are something that you’ll need to keep an eye on as you find the best way to schedule activities for your trainees that can boost them as much as possible without making them feel overwhelmed. Oh, and did I mention you also need to manage a budget, or else you’ll go broke? Yes, time is money, and the time you need to put into developing your trainees is not going to be cheap!
There are some mini-games sprinkled here and there that will allow you to scout new idols, have your trainees take on dance routine segments, practice their vocals, and take on language lessons to boost their stats so that they can become better at their craft. And to spice things up, your trainees will have to face off against rivals who also want to climb to the top of the charts. This will happen every three months during evaluations.
These battles will require that each side pick its actions for its respective turns, as you aim to showcase the abilities and expertise of each of your trainees for particular elements. Perhaps you will want to show off their etiquette skill, showcase their modeling ability, or let them know that your trainees are getting better and better at learning other languages. Gain the upper hand as you deal damage and get their HP to zero before they do the same to you!
K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut will have you working on debuting the ultimate K-pop group. You must give it your all and lead your group so that it can stand out from the crowd and make it in the very competitive music scene. You’re a powerful manager who has what it takes to shape your girl group and forever change their destiny. You must work behind the scenes and away from the spotlight, scouting potential members, deciding their weekly schedules, and developing their skills to overcome their weaknesses, so that they can function as a tight unit that can grab the attention of a rising number of fans.
Working hard is definitely a must if your trainees want to eventually have a successful debut, but that doesn’t mean they can’t take a step back, breathe, and relax for a moment. As you work on their weekly schedule, their activities will take a toll on their stamina and happiness, and you can’t have a tired or sad trainee performing, because this will have an impact on their overall performance.
Even if your trainees make it through the gauntlet and are ready to debut, you’ll still need to work on producing their single, working on the album cover, deciding what their overall style and outfits will be, and you will even need to design what their light stick for the concert will be! All of this will start to stack up, so you’d better be ready to have a source of steady income to offset your costs… or at least work on securing a loan! But be careful, because you can’t operate in the red for long. If you don’t fix things, then the project will be terminated.
K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut features an original K-pop soundtrack that has been produced exclusively for this release, which will certainly help to scratch that K-pop itch. K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut launches today on Nintendo Switch with a $19.99 price tag.
Disclaimer
This K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy provided by PQube.
