Love Live! School idol festival

Love Live! School idol festival (ラブライブ！スクールアイドルフェスティバル) is a rhythm game released for iOS and Android, based on the Love Live! franchise. It was published by Bushiroad and KLab Inc. and was released on April 16, 2013 for iOS and June 6, 2013 for Android devices.

An English version was released on May 12, 2014 under the title "School Idol Festival" at version 1.6. A Taiwanese version was released on May 22, 2014 under Mobimon Inc. at version 1.2. A Chinese version was released on June 12, 2014 under MarlyGames at open beta. A Korean version was released on July 1, 2014 under NHN Entertainment Corp. at version 1.1. The Korean version was shut down and merged with the Global version as of August 10, 2016. The Traditional Chinese version was shut down and merged with the Global version as of May 17, 2017.

An arcade version was announced to be in production on November 27, 2015 and was made available for play on December 6, 2016. A new game titled Love Live! School Idol Festival ALL STARS was announced to be in production on September 21, 2017, and will be released in 2018. Both games will continue to run concurrently alongside each other.

Gameplay
''Love Live! School idol festival'' is a free to play rhythm game which features two modes—Story and Live—and all nine members of the idol group μ's. The school idol group Aqours was later added to the game as a major update (version 4.0) on July 5, 2016 with its accompanying songs, stories, cards and events. The players are free to switch between μ's and Aqours mode in the game.

Live Show
In the game's Live Show, players are free to choose to play songs from the μ's discography and ever growing Aqours discography at the cost of LP, an in-game regenerating energy. As of version 4.1, players have 4 options to spend their LP ranging from 25 to 100. Each song can be played in 4 main difficulties: "Easy", "Normal", "Hard", and "Expert". Exclusive to B-Side is "Master" difficulty which introduced Swing Notes. The players are tasked to tap circles properly according to the rhythm in order to receive score. The score can then be viewed and compared to the other players on the leaderboard. Depending on the player's results, they will be able to receive new idol cards to add to their team, and can be leveled up and transformed by combining them with other idol cards. The Idols and Songs are divided into 3 attributes: " Smile ", " Cool " and " Pure ".

Team building and cards formation
Players can form their own Teams (up to 9) and mix and match any card as they wish or use the game's auto function to automatically create a team. Each card has their own attributes: " Smile ", " Cool " and " Pure " as well as Skills and Leader Skills. Card rarity ranges from N (Normal), R (Rare), SR (Super Rare), SSR (Super Super Rare), and UR (Ultra Rare). All cards can be idolized by "Special Practice" using a duplicate card or stickers, which increases the card's max level and bond points. Side Stories can be unlocked once the card has reached maxed bond points. Version 4.0 introduced a new game mechanic where you can enhance the card's current skill using School Idol Skills. School Idol Skills can be collected randomly by completing live shows.

The Sticker Shop is where players can buy Rare to Ultra Rare cards, Scouting Tickets, SR Teacher Support Cards, and other miscellaneous items by purchasing them with Stickers. Stickers can be earned by selling cards, completing goals, login bonuses, completing live shows, or through in-app purchases.

Story Mode
In Story Mode, the player works as μ's' or Aqours's helper to manage their training and schedule. The story is fully-voiced by all of the idols' voice actresses. In order to progress the story, the player needs to perform various tasks, such as ranking up and performing a certain Live Song. The player is then presented the girls' story as they live their lives as both school idols and students. The Love Live! School Idol Diary series can be read if the player has unlocked them from events.

If players have participated in the Adventure Stroll event, the option to read the story will be available.

In-game events
Each month there are in-game events where players can earn rewards, event SR rarity cards, as well competing with other players in Event and Score Rankings. As of version 5.2 (Global version) and version 5.6 (Japanese version), there are a total of 6 events:

Token Collection (JP: Aikon Korekushon - アイコンコレクション ): Players play an event exclusive song on B-Side to acquire event points. The songs require Tokens to play, which players can collect by playing different songs.

Score Match (JP: Sukoa Macchi - スコアマッチ ): 4 Players compete head to head and the player with the highest score will be 1st Place.

Medley Festival (JP: Medore Fesutibaru - メロデーフェスティバル ): Players will play 3 songs in a row with the option to swap the playlist 10 times. Players are given several power ups to enhance their score, increased EXP or earn better rewards.

Challenge Festival (JP: Charenji Fesutibaru - チャレンジフェスティバル): Players will play up to 5 songs with the option to end the challenge as they wish. Unlike Medley Festival, players do not need to complete all 5 songs in a single session. At the end of the challenge, players will be rewarded. Adventure Stroll (JP: Osanpo Rari - おさのぽライー): Players will be presented of a map that shows various places where Aqours will visit. Each place has their own set of missions and side stories to complete to unlock the next place. Previously, players had to wait a specific day to unlock the next area. Completing songs gives player "souvenirs" that can be used to purchase items such as Friend Points, event SR rarity card, or backgrounds.

Companion Match (JP: Nakayoshi Macchi - なかよしマッチ): Unlike Score Match, all 4 players are to cooperate with one another to successfully accomplish their goal. Goals can either be achieving Full Combo or Highest Score. Players can also host their own private rooms with the option to enable public matchmaking.

Franchise
''Love Live! School idol festival'' has grown into a franchise in its own right, releasing multiple books containing guides and illustrations from the game.
 * 1) Love Live! School idol festival Official Guide Book
 * 2) Love Live! School idol festival Official Illustration Book
 * 3) Love Live! School idol festival Official Fan Book
 * 4) Love Live! School idol festival Official Illustration Book 2
 * 5) Love Live! School idol festival Official Illustration Book 3

In 2015, a Japan-wide competition was also held to determine the best School idol festival player in Japan. This competition culminated in the School idol festival Thanksgiving Festival 2015 (スクフェス感謝祭 2015) on June 6 & 7, the very first event based solely on School idol festival and not the Love Live franchise as a whole. Emi Nitta, Riho Iida and Sora Tokui were present as special guests.
 * In 2016, the entire campaign and finale event was repeated on May 21 and 22, 2016, with guest appearances by the members of Aqours. International players were also invited to participate in the tournament through official SIF events held at anime conventions across the different regions.
 * The event has been confirmed to repeat in 2017.


 * For more information or photos on these events, please refer to Love Live! History.

Japanese Version
JP Version Update Log: link

Global Version
Global (EN) Version Update Log: link

Gallery
List of cards found here.

In-Game =