Uta no Prince-sama (Japanese: うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪Hepburn: Uta no☆Purinsu-sama♪, lit. 'Princes of Song') is a Japanese visual novel game franchise published by Broccoli. The original game was first released on the PlayStation Portable on June 24, 2010, and since its release, the game has spawned multiple sequels and rhythm game spin-offs. The series has also been adapted into several manga series.

An anime adaptation by A-1 Pictures began airing in 2012, titled Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love 1000% (うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪ マジLOVE1000％), which was then followed by three sequels and an upcoming 2019 animated film titled Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love Kingdom.

The franchise has been well-received in Japan, with thousands of music CDs sold and charting on mainstream music charts. The games have been awarded 'Best Consumer Game' in Dengeki Girls' Style Otome Game Awards 2011.

• 3Media
  • 3.1Games

Gameplay[edit]

Uta no Prince-sama is a comedy and romance visual novel in which the player assumes the character of Haruka Nanami. Uta no Prince-sama follows a branching plot line with multiple endings; depending on the decisions that the player makes during the game, the plot will progress in a specific direction.

There are seven main plot lines that the player will have the chance to experience, three which are initially available (four in All Star). Delphi 2015.1.3. Throughout gameplay, the player is given multiple options to choose from, and text progression pauses at these points until a choice is made. To view all plot lines in their entirety, the player must replay the game multiple times and make different choices to change the plot progression. The player must also complete various minigames, which affect the different endings.

Their various flicks, volleys, and flashy footwork make each an impressive display of technical prowess, and–unlike the tricks in FIFA Street’s predecessors–none of them would look out of place on the football pitch. No, that’s not complete gibberish; those are just some of the eccentrically named tricks you can use to outsmart, outrun, and outplay your opponents in FIFA Street. The cartoonlike visuals and seemingly impossible tricks of old have been replaced with a more gritty visual style and pure, fast-paced street football. Fifa street 4.

Plot[edit]

With dreams of becoming a composer and someday writing a song for her favorite idol, Haruka Nanami enters the Saotome Academy, a prestigious performing arts school. Surrounded by potential idols and producers, Haruka gets to know six of her classmates, who are all competing to become idols. For her project, she must team up with another student as an idol-producer team, and if they are successful, they will join Shining Agency after graduation. In addition, romance is strictly prohibited at their school.

Media[edit]

Games[edit]

Main games[edit]

• Uta no Prince-sama was first released for the PlayStation Portable on June 24, 2010. The game's theme song, 'Ao no Tsubasa', was performed by Mamoru Miyano.^[3] The game was later remastered for a PlayStation Vita port and released on August 11, 2011 under the title Uta no Prince-sama Repeat.^[4]

• Uta no Prince-sama: Amazing Aria was released on December 23, 2010. The theme song, 'Amazing Love', was performed by Takuma Terashima, Kenichi Suzumura, and Kisho Taniyama.

• Uta no Prince-sama: Sweet Serenade was released on February 10, 2011. The theme song, 'Netsujo Serenade' (熱情SERENADE), was performed by Mamoru Miyano, Junichi Suwabe, and Hiro Shimono.

• Uta no Prince-sama Debut was released on May 24, 2012. The theme song is 'Innocence' and performed by Mamoru Miyano.

• Uta no Prince-sama All Star was released on March 7, 2013 and introduced the characters Quartet Night. The theme song is 'Quartet Night' and was performed by Tatsuhisa Suzuki, Shouta Aoi, Showtaro Morikubo, and Tomoaki Maeno as Quartet Night.

• Uta no Prince-sama All Star After Secret was released on March 12, 2015 for the PlayStation Portable. The game is a sequel to Uta no Prince-sama All Star and is centered on Quartet Night, with the members of STARISH appearing as extra routes.^[5] The theme song is 'Marriage' and was performed by Tatsuhisa Suzuki, Shouta Aoi, Showtaro Morikubo, and Tomoaki Maeno as Quartet Night.

Spin-off games[edit]

• Uta no Prince-sama Music was released on November 24, 2011 and is a music rhythm game spin-off of the main series. The theme song is 'Welcome to UtaPri World!!' and was performed by Takuma Terashima, Kenichi Suzumura, Kisho Taniyama, Mamoru Miyano, Junichi Suwabe, and Hiro Shimono as STARISH.

• Uta no Prince-sama Music 2 is the sequel to the first rhythm game spin-off and was released on September 5, 2013. The theme song is 'Color Full Music.'

• Uta no Prince-sama Music 3 was released on January 28, 2015 for the PlayStation Vita.

• Uta no Prince-sama Shining Live was released on August 27, 2017 worldwide for the iOS and Android systems. It was co-developed by Broccoli and KLab and saw releases in both Japanese and English.^[6]

Music[edit]

Uta no Prince-sama has seen the release of multiple CD releases, with Broccoli handling the music for the games and King Records handling the music for the anime.

'Fly to the Future' by Quartet Night and 'Ultra Blast' by STARISH sold over 11,000 copies within its first week and were both some of the top-selling anime singles of 2018.^[7]

Anime[edit]

The March 2011 issue of Newtype magazine announced that an anime television adaptation franchise would air during the summer. Titled Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love 1000%, the series was produced by A-1 Pictures, with Yuu Kou directing the series, Tomoko Konparu supervising the scripts, and Mitsue Mori adapting the game's original character designs.^[8] The anime series began its broadcast run on Tokyo MX, Gunma TV, and Tochigi TV on July 2, 2011 (July 3, 2011 at 12:00 AM). The video streaming service Niconico simulcasted the series to audiences in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.^[9]

The second season premiered on April 4, 2013, under the title Uta no Prince-sama Maji LOVE 2000% (うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪マジLOVE2000％) on TV Aichi. The first season was released on January 7, 2014, on DVD/Blu-ray subtitled-only format.^[10]

A third season began airing on April 4, 2015, under the title 'Uta no Prince-sama Maji Love Revolutions (うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪マジLOVEレボリューションズ).^[11] On June 27, 2015, following the broadcast of the last episode of the third season, the ending message revealed that a fourth season had been confirmed.^[12][13]

The fourth season, titled Uta no Prince-sama Maji LOVE Legend Star, began airing on October 2, 2016.^[14][15]Sentai Filmworks has licensed the first and second seasons for a release in 2014,^[16][17] and has also licensed the third and fourth seasons.^[18][19]

Stage plays[edit]

Uta no Prince-sama has also inspired a series of stage plays, with the characters playing roles in a stage production and select characters appearing in certain plays. Music of the stage productions were later released onto CD. The first series, titled Gekidan Shining (劇団シャイニング), featured the stage plays Masquerade Mirage,^[20], Tenka Muteki no Shinobu Michi,^[21] and Joker Trap^[22] from 2013 to 2014.^[23]

The second series, titled Theatre Shining (シアターシャイニング), featured the stage plays Bloody Shadows,^[24]Pirates of the Frontier,^[25] and Everybuddy!^[26]

The third series, titled Shining Masterpiece Show, was screened at Gallery AaMo in Tokyo from February 23 to April 15, 2018, with each of the three stage plays rotating every month.^[27] The plays featured were Lost Alice,^[28]Trois: Ken to Kizuna no Monogatari,^[29] and Licorice no Mori.^[30]

Film[edit]

During the Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love Live 6th Stage event, the staff announced that an anime film titled Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love Kingdom has been green-lit.^[31][32] The film is produced by A-1 Pictures and directed by Tomoka Nagaoka, with Takeshi Furuta serving as chief director. The rest of the main staff and cast from the anime series are returning to reprise their roles. It is set to be released in theaters on June 14, 2019.^[33]

Manga[edit]

Uta no Prince-sama was adapted into several manga series. The first two manga adaptations, Uta no Prince-sama and Uta no Prince-sama Debut, were illustrated by Utako Yukihiro and serialized in Sylph. The gag comic, Uta no Prince-sama PP was illustrated by Kotoko Ichi and serialized in Comic B's Log. Alongside of that, several manga anthologies were also released with contributing fan artists.

Reception[edit]

Uta no Prince-sama was the 13th top selling franchise in Japan in 2017, with a total of ¥1,667,975,801 in estimated sales.^[37] Part of its wide appeal comes from Twitter accounts run by the characters, where fans are able to be updated on the characters' music and merchandise activities, and are in turn treated like real-life celebrities.^[38]

Uta no Prince-sama Repeat was awarded the Best Consumer Game by Dengeki Girl's Style for the Otome Game Awards 2011, while Uta no Prince-sama: Sweet Serenade was ranked #7 in the same category. Syo Kurusu won Best Character, while Tokiya Ichinose ranked #3 and Masato Hijirikawa as #9 in the same category.^[39]

Over 1 million users downloaded Uta no Prince-sama Shining Live upon the first week of its release.^[40]

Rebecca Silverman from Anime News Network praised Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love 1000%, the anime's first season, for its music and fluid animation, while citing its weaknesses in the 'ridiculous' plot points, poor choice in color, Haruka's character design, and that the characters never 'evolve beyond their types.'^[41] Bamboo Dong from Anime News Network called the series 'entertaining', but felt the character designs made the characters look more like adults instead of high school students and that adapting from the original video game resulted in the 'archetypal' characters having 'jerky' character development.^[42] The voice actors for STARISH won the award for Best Musical Performance at the 6th Seiyu Awards, while Mamoru Miyano won the award for Best Actor in Supporting Roles.^[43]

Regarding the series' fourth season, Uta no Prince-sama: Maji Love Legend Star, Silverman praised the music and character development, but felt that the show became oversaturated with 'too many characters', as well as the plot and animation going 'downhill.'^[44]Uta no Prince-sama has also been linked to the Odagiri effect, as seen in the later anime series where Haruka's role has been increasingly diminished in favor of the relationships between the male characters.^[45]

How to learn languages for free? Free foreign language programs.

Awards and nominations[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^2014-09-01, 『うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪』PS Vitaプロジェクトが始動【SCEJAプレスカンファレンス】, Famitsu
2. ^'Aniplus HD to Simulcast Tōken Ranbu: Hanamaru, 4th Uta no Prince-sama Anime'. Anime News Network. September 26, 2016. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
3. ^'話題の乙女ゲー『うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪』の制作発表会開催！主題歌＆出演の宮野真守さんと音楽プロデューサーのElements Garden・上松範康さんが出席。メディア展開も発表'. Animate (in Japanese). 2009-10-09. Retrieved 2019-03-11.
4. ^Pineda, Rafael Antonio (2016-01-10). 'Uta no Prince-sama PSP Games Get PS Vita Ports'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
5. ^Nelkin, Sarah (2014-02-28). 'Uta no Prince-sama All Star After Secret PSP Game Announced'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
6. ^Morrissy, Kim (2017-11-03). 'Explaining the Mobage Phenomenon'. Anime News Network.
7. ^Loo, Egan (2019-02-02). 'Top-Selling Anime CD Singles: 2018'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
8. ^Loo, Egan (2011-02-06). 'Uta no Prince-sama— Idol Romance Game Gets TV Anime'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
9. ^Loo, Egan (2011-06-30). 'NicoNico to Stream BLOOD-C, Uta no Prince Sama Free in English'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2011-07-12.
10. ^'Sentai Filmworks To Dub Maria Holic for Blu-ray'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
11. ^'Uta no Prince-sama Anime Gets 3rd Season in 2015'. Anime News Network. December 1, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
12. ^'Uta no Prince-sama Revolutions Ends With 'See You Next Season''. Anime News Network. 2015-06-27.
13. ^'Uta no Prince-sama Anime's 4th Season Confirmed'. Anime News Network. 2015-07-06.
14. ^'Uta no Prince-sama 4th Season's Title, Visual, October Premiere Revealed'. Anime News Network. March 25, 2016. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
15. ^'Uta no Prince-sama Maji LOVE Legend Star Anime Premiered on October 1'. Anime News Network. September 1, 2016. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
16. ^'Sentai Filmworks Adds Uta No Prince-sama Anime's First Season'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
17. ^'Sentai Filmworks Adds Uta no Prince-Sama Anime's 2nd Season'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
18. ^'Sentai Filmworks Adds Pleiades, Re-Kan, SNAFU Too, Hello! KinMoza, UtaPri Season 3, Is it Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon and Food Wars'. Anime News Network. 2015-04-04.
19. ^'Sentai Filmworks Adds Uta no Prince-sama Legend Star Anime'. Anime News Network. September 26, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
20. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪ 劇団シャイニング マスカレイドミラージュ'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
21. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪ 劇団シャイニング 天下無敵の忍び道'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
22. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪ 劇団シャイニング JOKER TRAP'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
23. ^'「うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪」、劇団シャイニング第2弾作品「マスカレイドミラージュ」の大千秋楽公演が生中継決定！'. Akiba Souten (in Japanese). 2017-08-30. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
24. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪シアターシャイニング BLOODY SHADOWS'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
25. ^'劇団シャイニング from うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪『Pirates of the Frontier』が2019年3月に上演決定'. Spice (in Japanese). 2018-10-09. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
26. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪シアターシャイニング エヴリィBuddy!'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
27. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪Shining Masterpiece Show 企画展【終了】 Gallery AaMo 東京ドームシティ' (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2019-03-08.
28. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪Shining Masterpiece Show Lost Alice'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
29. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪Shining Masterpiece Show トロワ-剣と絆の物語-'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
30. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪Shining Masterpiece Show リコリスの森'. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-06.
31. ^'New Uta no Prince-sama Anime Revealed as Brand-New Film'. Anime News Network. 2017-05-28. Retrieved 2017-05-28.
32. ^'完全オリジナル『うた☆プリ』初の劇場アニメ、2019年公開'. Oricon (in Japanese). 2017-12-24. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
33. ^'Uta no Prince Sama Maji Love Kingdom Anime Film Reveals Teaser, Visual, Staff, June 14 Opening'. Anime News Network. 2018-12-20. Retrieved 2018-12-20.
34. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪' (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
35. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪ Debut' (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
36. ^'うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪pp' (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
37. ^Loo, Egan (2017-06-23). 'Top-Selling Media Franchises in Japan: 2017 (First Half)'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
38. ^'「うたプリ」アイドルのTwitterが1日限定復活　新プロジェクト公開を記念'. KAI-YOU (in Japanese). 2015-11-18. Retrieved 2019-03-10.
39. ^ ^abcdef'『電撃Girl'sStyle』乙女ゲームアワード2011授賞式をレポ'. Dengeki (in Japanese). Retrieved 2012-07-12.
40. ^'「うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪ Shining Live」100万ダウンロード突破記念スペシャルログインボーナス実施決定'. Akiba Souken (in Japanese). 2017-09-01. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
41. ^Silverman, Rebecca (2012-02-17). 'Uta no Prince-sama - Maji Love 1000%'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
42. ^Dong, Bamboo (2014-05-19). 'Shelf Life: The Little Princes'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
43. ^ ^abcLoo, Egan (2012-03-01). '6th Annual Seiyū Award Winners Announced'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
44. ^Silverman, Rebecca (2017-01-06). 'Utano☆Princesama Legend Star'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
45. ^Orsini, Lauren (2016-12-21). 'What is a Fujoshi?'. Anime News Network. Retrieved 2019-03-12.

External links[edit]

• Uta no Prince-sama (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Uta no Prince-sama (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia