Videogames: BLACKPINK The Game

Language

1. What is the primary objective for the player in Blackpink: The Game?

To solve puzzles for the BLACKPINKS to reach the success that the current BLACKPINK have

2. What is an "Alternate Reality" narrative? How is this used to frame the storyline of the game?

To manage and debut the band members. As you play, you interact with CGI "chibi" versions of the band members, managing their hectic schedules and building various departments, such as recording studios and training rooms, to develop their careers

3. Where is the game set? Identify at least two different types of locations the player interacts with.

The Management Agency: This is the primary functional setting where you act as the producer. It consists of various customisable departments that you must build and upgrade, including Recording Studios, Training Rooms, and Office Spaces. These locations are essential for the "management sim" aspect of the game.

The Concert Hall: A specific high-status setting used for major milestones and the "The Girls" music video content, reinforcing the group's identity as global superstars.

4. What is the difference between the playable characters and the NPCs (Non-Playable Characters) like "Blinky"?

NPCs is AI

5. What specific activities and mini-games does the player perform to progress the band’s career?

Bingo & Puzzle Events: Players can participate in Bingo Seasons (e.g., Bingo Event Season 3) to complete daily missions and earn rewards, or join special puzzle events like "BLACKPINK’S NEW YEAR GREETING".

Representations

1. What representations of women and femininity can be found in the avatars in BLACKPINK: The Game?

It has been criticised due to Avatars often portraying unrealistic stereotypes for women, featuring identical body types with small waists and hourglass figures

2. How does the game represent K-pop celebrity culture and the "idol" lifestyle to its audience?

It is a desirable feeling and is represented like a doll house lifestyle. It is shown as straight forward 

3. How does the game reinforce or subvert traditional gender stereotypes through its character design and gameplay mechanics?

It subverts it as the game is trying to whitewash the characters whereas traditionally they want to use make-up as there way of beauty.

4. What does the game suggest about modern perceptions of fame and the importance of a "para-social" relationship between stars and fans?

The game suggests that modern fame is no longer a passive experience of consuming music, but an active, curated, and highly immersive partnership where fans—acting as "producers"—directly manage and elevate their idols' success.

5. How might a critic or a media student challenge the representations of body image or beauty standards presented in the game?

A critic or media student might challenge the representations of body image and beauty standards in BLACKPINK The Game by examining how it promotes a narrow, highly idealized, and often unattainable "thin ideal" common in the K-pop industry

Audience

1. Who is the primary target audience for BLACKPINK: The Game? Identify at least two different groups of players the game appeals to.

Teenage Korean and Western girls

2. What are "Blinks," and how does the game use brand loyalty to attract and retain its players?

"Blinks" are the name given to fans of BLACKPINK

3. Using Blumler & Katz’s Uses and Gratifications theory, what "pleasures" or "gratifications" does the game offer to its audience?

The game's setting is portrayed as a "perfect world" which makes people want to play it

4. How does the "BLACKPINK World" social space encourage audience interaction and a sense of community?

The band does in person concerts which encourage blinks to meet and socially interact with each other.

5. How has the marketing for BLACKPINK: The Game (e.g., YouTube trailers and social media teasers) been designed to reach a global digital audience?

They give the option to turn on language subtitles so global fans feel more comfortable 

Industries

1. How much does BLACKPINK: The Game cost to download, and how does this reflect the "freemium" business model?

They know that the band's audience is mostly teens so they make the game affordable for everyone to play

2. In what ways does the game make money? Identify at least three different types of in-game currency or micro-transactions (e.g., Pink Diamonds, World Tickets).

In app purchases such as diamonds and tickets give players ways to progress through the game faster and purchase items such as photocards.

3. What role do "Gacha" (Gambling) mechanics and randomised rewards play in the game’s monetisation strategy?

The gambling mechanic gives players the opportunity to receive exclusive rewards causing players to spend more money attempting to get those items.

4. How was BLACKPINK: The Game marketed and promoted to a global audience (e.g., social media "teasing," App Store screenshots, and YouTube trailers)?

The band produces trailers and social media posts to attract their global audience into downloading the game. In addition the game was released alongside a single.

5. How does BLACKPINK: The Game use media convergence and synergy to cross-promote the game alongside the band's music, such as the release of the exclusive single The Girls?

By integrating the single with interactive metaverse style gameplay, the app creates a superfan hub that drives engagement far beyond traditional streaming platdforms.