User:FrostFairBlade/sandbox/Blue Archive

Potential links
July 17, 2020 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-is-yostars-new-mobile-rpg-about-finding-miracles-in-everyday-life/ - Blue Archive is Yostar’s New Mobile RPG About Finding Miracles in Everyday Life - SATO - Siliconera

January 27, 2021 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-release-date-set-for-february-2021-in-japan/ - Blue Archive Release Date Set for February 2021 in Japan - SATO - Siliconera
 * Yostar announced that Blue Archive was to be released in Japan in 2020; will be accepting closed beta test applications for Android through July 31, 2020

February 8, 2021 - https://www.mk.co.kr/news/it/view/2021/02/130326/ - NAT Games' new "Blue Archive" is gaining popularity in Japan - Im Young-taek - Maeil Business Newspaper
 * Yostar announced that Blue Archive will release in Japan on February 4, 2021
 * You play as a teacher supporting female students and solving problems together; throughout the game, you'll collect memories of important scenes and bonding moments with your students
 * During investigations, you'll let your students engage in combat in the city, while you act as their strategic commander


 * Since its launch on February 4, it ranked first in popularity on Japan's Google Play and Apple's App Store within 3 days, followed by ninth in App Store sales and fourteenth in Google Play game sales
 * Blue Archive is a character-collection RPG that lets players lead students from different academies to solve incidents that occur in the city
 * Players can interact with the game's characters via the in-game MomoTalk messenger app, and can view special character animations in the "Memorial Lobby"
 * NAT Games will service the game domestically in Korea and globally; Chinese company Yostar will handle the game's service in Japan

June 9, 2021 - https://www.hankyung.com/it/article/202106091456v - [NDC21] Kim In AD "Blue Archive, communication with characters is the top priority" - Seo Dong-min - The Korea Economic Daily


 * Art DIrector Kim In explains the art direction for Blue Archive
 * According to Kim, when Blue Archive first began development, cute objects and characters were popular, stemming from the popularity of Kantai Collection; Blue Archive 's involvement with firearms was meant to be a way for the game to differentiate itself from its competition
 * Blue Archive wanted to combine attractive characters players would like to date, with realistic aspects of modern warfare
 * To satisfy players interested in exploring the relationship between them and the game's characters, the game's art direction emphasized on making the characters have various facial expressions, as well as interactive elements like patting the character's head or making eye contact
 * The artwork of Blue Archive was intended to give a unique visual experience and narrative -- the team made a promotional video that would be used as a reference for future work
 * The goal for Blue Archive was to create a game that would not feel out of place in Akihabara

August 18, 2021 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-english-version-website-twitter/ - Blue Archive Official English Version Announced - Kazuma Hashimoto - Siliconera


 * The English version of Blue Archive 's website and Twitter account have been created
 * Nexon Korea and NAT Games will be working together to release the English version

October 1, 2021 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-global-english-begins-pre-registration-in-october/ - Blue Archive Global Pre-Registration Begins in October - Josh Tolentino - Siliconera

October 14, 2021 - https://www.chosun.com/economy/tech_it/2021/10/14/UUDPOSC2IBGKNBCRJAHLRZOVLU/ - Starting today, 'Blue Archive' pre-registration, etc. - Cho Yu-mi - The Chosun Ilbo
 * Pre-registration for the game will begin on October 14, 2021
 * The game takes place in Kivotos, a city housing several schools and students
 * The player plays a teacher who has been assigned the leader of SCHALE, an organization that assists Kivotos' student council to investigate problems within the city
 * To fill out teams for its investigations, SCHALE recruits students from various schools in Kivotos knowledgeable in firearms and other skills
 * Blue Archive is a RPG where battles revolve around gunfights


 * Nexon announced that it would start pre-registration for Blue Archive
 * Blue Archive is an RPG that tells the stories of students in academies and clubs
 * Nexon released a preview of the in-game MomoTalk messager on its teaser page

October 15, 2021 - https://www.pocketgamer.com/blue-archive/blue-archive-is-an-upcoming-anime-rpg-with-simulation-elements-now-open-for-pre-/ - Blue Archive is an upcoming anime RPG with simulation elements, now open for pre-registration - Catherine Ng Dellosa - Pocket Gamer

October 15, 2021 - https://www.hankyung.com/it/article/202110150640v - The new OST for "Blue Archive is favourably-received... bright and pure atmosphere - Seo Dong-min - The Korea Economic Daily October 21, 2021 - https://www.mk.co.kr/news/it/view/2021/10/997045/ - Nexon's new film "Blue Archive" catches the eyes of anime enthusiasts - Im Young-taek - Maeil Business Newspaper
 * Blue Archive is open for pre-registration on both iOS and Android
 * Players who sign up will receive in-game bonus items and milestone rewards
 * Pre-order the game to get rewards like a 2-star Mutsuki, 1,400 pyroxenes, and 150,000 credits
 * "Target for Love", a new song from Blue Archive 's original soundtrack, was released on October 14
 * Is a future bass song composed by Mitsukiyo (Moon Kwang-ho) and singer-songwriter Lee Jin-ah, who also sang and played the piano on the track


 * Blue Archive has been gaining in popularity, reaching 14th in game sales in the Korean App Store
 * Over 500,000 players have pre-registered
 * KakaoTalk emoticons were distributed to users who subscribed to the game's official Youtube channel

October 27, 2021 - http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20211027001027 - Nexon’s Blue Archive: Mobile game for anime fans by anime fans - Kim Byung-wook - The Korea Herald

November 2, 2021 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-global-release-is-next-week/ - Blue Archive Global Release is Next Week - Jenni Lada - Siliconera
 * Blue Archive was well-received by anime fans when it released in Japan in February, becoming the most popular game on Google Play and App Store
 * Produced by Nexon producer Kim Yong-ha, who enjoys anime
 * In the game, players play as a female academy teacher who works with students to solve mysteries
 * Kim's studio, MX Studio, is a portmanteau of the Japanese word moe, and the game series Xcom
 * Kim envisioned Blue Archive to combine beautiful girls with fighting, and the development team immersed themselves in anime and firearms to prepare for the project
 * After one day of pre-registration beginning on October 14, over 500,000 people had signed up

November 5, 2021 - https://www.mk.co.kr/news/it/view/2021/11/1051478/ - Nexon's “‘Blue Archive’ is a bright and cheerful youth school drama” - Im Young-taek - Maeil Business Newspaper
 * Blue Archive will be released on November 8, 2021
 * Players will receive pre-registration bonuses of a 2-star Mutsuki, 2,200 pyroxenes, and 150,000 credits
 * Originally players would receive just 1,400 pyroxenes, but Nexon added a fifth reward tier due to a million people signing up


 * In a video interview, the head of the scenario team at NAT Games, Yang Joo-young, answered fans' questions about the game's story development
 * Yang explained that the team wanted to create an interesting fantasy story about youthful girls in an academic city
 * In line with the game's bright colours, the story aims to avoid depressing or overly dark situations

November 9, 2021 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-global-launch-celebrated-with-videos-of-characters/ - Blue Archive Global Launch Celebrated With Videos of Characters - Jenni Lada - Siliconera


 * Blue Archive has been released globally, and Nexon are accompanying its release with videos focusing on some of its characters from different high schools
 * They also gave all players an additional 1,200 pyroxene to celebrate the game reaching number one on the App Store

November 9, 2021 - https://www.pocketgamer.com/blue-archive/official-launch-android-ios/ - Blue Archive, the highly anticipated anime RPG with over one million pre-registrations, has launched on Android and iOS - Tanish Botadkar - Pocket Gamer

November 15, 2021 - https://www.mk.co.kr/news/it/view/2021/11/1073770/ - Nexon's new 'Blue Archive', 'successful' at the initial box office - Im Young-taek - Maeil Business Newspaper
 * Blue Archive has been launched globally for Android and iOS, amid over a million pre-registrations
 * The game follows schoolgirls from Kivotos, as they lead their lives under guidance from a teacher, the player, as they investigate problems in the city
 * The city is comprised of multiple districts containing schools
 * Each academy is governed by The General Student Council
 * However, the city has fallen into turmoil since the disappearance of the Student Council president, so the Council decided to have the city's newest club, Schale, help them investigate
 * Schale relies on a Sensei to help resolve the problems happening in Kivotos
 * In celebration of the game's launch, players will receive 500 pyroxenes, a decorative Valentine tea table for the Schale cafe, and a Shiny Bouquet until November 30
 * Players can also earn more rewards by completing daily objectives

November 19, 2021 - https://game.donga.com/101346/ - Weekly Game News: "Blue Archive" ranked 5th in sales; "Diablo 2" on the decline - Cho Young-jun - The Dong-a Ilbo
 * Blue Archive has reached the top 5 in Google Play game sales in Korea, and is ranked 5th in game sales on the Apple App Store
 * The game is ranked 35th on Taiwan's App Store, 33rd in Singapore, 52nd in Hong Kong
 * In the United States, the game entered the top 50 for Google Play, and is ranked 148th on the US App Store sales rankings
 * The game has been popular amongst anime fans; fan-generated content like user-created emoticons has helped its popularity in Korea
 * Nexon has conducted marketing activities in local markets, such as promotion through VTuber agencies like Hololive


 * Blue Archive has continued to rise in popularity, entering top 5 in sales a week after its launch on November 9

November 24, 2021 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-characters-are-packed-with-personality/ - Blue Archive Characters are Packed with Personality - Jenni Lada - Siliconera


 * The game's story mode follows preset teams
 * The first story arc follows Abydos’ Foreclosure Task Force, in which five women from Abydos High School work together to overcome challenges
 * The game's secondary plot-lines (Sub Stories) focus on characters from other schools
 * Blue Archive focuses on giving a "slice-of-life feel" in its presentation, emphasizing each character's personality through character designs, unique animations

December 1, 2021 - https://www.siliconera.com/blue-archive-figure-and-figma-announced/ - Blue Archive Figure and Figma Announced - Jenni Lada - Siliconera


 * Good Smile Company announced that they would be producing two Blue Archive character figurines
 * Karin will be released as a regular figurine, while Shiroko will be released as a Figma action figure

December 1, 2021 - https://www.pocketgamer.com/blue-archive/content-update-cherry-blossom-izuna-shizuko-raid/ - Blue Archive receives first content update featuring new storylines, raid bosses and characters - Tanish Botadkar - Pocket Gamer


 * Nexon announces Blue Archive 's first major content update
 * A new storyline, Cherry Blossom Festival Commotion, has been added, along with two new students, such as Izuna and Shizuko
 * The update adds new bosses to raid battles, other story events, and 1,200 pyroxenes to players' account

December 14, 2021 - https://www.pocketgamer.com/blue-archive/volume-2-clockwork-flower-pavane/ - Blue Archive’s story continues with the release of Volume 2 - Clockwork Flower Pavane - Tanish Botadkar - Pocket Gamer


 * Blue Archive is updated with another content update that expands the main story
 * The update adds sisters Midori and Momoi, along with the exploration of the Game Development Department in the Millenium Science School
 * Players will receive a log-in bonus of 1,200 pyroxenes and 80 Action Points (AP) if they log in between December 14 and December 21

Reviews
November 11, 2021 - https://game.donga.com/101240/ - Review: 'Blue Archive', a great adventure for female students who teach with guns and bombs - Cho Young-jun - The Dong-a Ilbo


 * Developed by NAT Games developer MX Studio, Blue Archive has underwent an unusual development process spearheaded by fanboys familiar with otaku genres, lead by Kim Yong-ha who developed Qurare: Magic Library and Focus on You