Hatesune Miku: Colorful Stage! Is a mobile game available for Android and iOS developed by the studio Colorful Palate and published by Sega Corporation. This game combines familiar rhythm gameplay with a visual novel format to tell the stories of several young bands seeking stardom. To unlock new episodes in the visual novel format, players can play through songs, level up characters, and their groups. There are also various online and co-op modes for players.
The initial experience when playing this game is that the animation and music is bright and fun, and easily captures player interest. Though the initial concepts are a bit abstract, the audio and visual aspects of Hatesune Miku: Colorful Stage! are enough to keep players engaged while they get a hang of the concepts in the game. This continues throughout the game. The animation is particularly smooth and visually appealing during the visual novel portion, and the music for the rhythm gameplay is fun and suits the gameplay very well.
Speaking of the rhythm elements of Hatesune Miku: Colorful Stage!: the songs are very fun and even addictive! Playing them on different difficulties gives an added element of newness each time they are played. In my opinion, this game would have been very fun with this mechanic alone, but the visual novel aspect is also a fun, complete game inside a game. Playing each mode of the game is required to advance in the other, but it never feels tedious or arbitrary. I found myself playing the rhythm sections hoping to unlock more story, but was also excited to return to the songs after playing through the visual novel section. The elements are tied together very well.
One thing I noticed most about Hatesune Miku: Colorful Stage! was that it was so packed full of content. At times, it really did not feel so much like a mobile game with the visual novel content, and I was very impressed with the thoroughness of the voice acting, animations, and backgrounds given to each scene. The dialogue was also interesting, and I was genuinely invested in the characters—of which there are many groups, six in total.
One downside of all of the content packed into this game is that there is a good amount of downloading that needs to happen during gameplay. To experience the visual novel chapters with full voice-over, each one will have a separate download. This is not necessarily a dealbreaker, but a consideration while I was playing, because I was a bit concerned how much space the app might take up if I played through all the chapters. The tradeoff for a content-packed mobile app is naturally more downloaded content, so players should consider this when downloading the app.
As mentioned at the beginning of the review, there are a few concepts at the beginning that are a bit abstract and expect the player to go into the game head-first. I was admittedly somewhat confused when first playing through the introduction, and then in the first chapter of the visual novel for the group I chose. Once I was dropped in the main screen, I was also unsure what to do to progress in the story or in the rhythm section. After some exploring, I did eventually figure out what I was doing, so it’s by no means impossible to navigate it after some confusion, but some players may be more interested in having a more thorough tutorial.
Overall, Hatesune Miku: Colorful Stage! offers a content-rich experience, with some very fun gameplay intertwined with interesting story. I would give this mobile game an 8/10, based on the few drawbacks like multiple downloads and a bit of confusion when initially starting out and in some menu screens, but generally, I really enjoyed playing it. This game will definitely be staying on my phone, and I anticipate continuing to play it whenever I’ve got an extra minute.
Check Out the Hatesune Miku: Colorful Stage! Trailer:
Hatesune Miku: Colorful Stage! is available via App Store and Google Play.
I have been playing video games since I got my first pink Gameboy Advance SP when I was six years old. From that point on, video games have held a special place in my heart and I have been fascinated by the way games involve the player in the narrative and how their mechanics interact with that narrative. As an aspiring video game narrative writer, I jump at the opportunity to play any and all games at my disposal.
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