What Remains of Edith Finch
What Remains of Edith Finch
Game
Game2020
Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire
Developer Love in Space
The girls of Starnova are back in a new business simulation game! It's up to you the producer to build your office, re-hire the girls and get the money flowing to put on the greatest live concert ever. Do you have the management skills to once again accomplish everyone's dreams? From the Steam store page
54 reactions from 1 source (Steam reviews) · newest May 10, 2026 · last updated Oct 8, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
81
LovedLoved
44 positive · 10 negative
95% range 69–90%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 44 | 10 | 0 |
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
83 of 97 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What people are saying
Summary pending — the reactions are listed below.
Reactions
54 of 54 · most liked firstI feel like business simulation games are getting more popular lately, but I won’t complain about it since I found this genre quite charming, to say the least. Since management does take up a lot of time in this game, it’s evident that this game might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but that’s alright. In fact, I find it admiring when developers try out a new genre since it’s a refreshing experience for fans of the Shining Song Starnova series and might even attract new fans along with this…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →SSS Idol Empire is a game about spirals. I love tycoon games, played pretty much all that is out there through the last years, and this one has a big conceptual flaw that is simply unforgiving: It spirals out of control. Think about a normal situation in perfect balance. Then, something happens, let's say THING A. That's good, things should happen in video games. Thing A is something bad, a challenge you have to deal with. But why did THING A happen? Well, THING A happens because of VALUE Z.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you are like me and enjoy improving the stats of virtual avatars because your crippling fear of failure prevents you from doing the same in real life, you'll probably enjoy this game. At least up until the point where the sum total of your mistakes brings everything you worked hard for crashing down around you, leaving you wondering where you went wrong and why you even tried in the first place. .... I mean, cool waifu game yeah!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The girls spend more time in the hospital than they do recording and singing. It's an insane amount of micromanagement to keep them happy and healthy. One big cause of problems is salary. Their demands change minute to minute because every time a girl gains a little bit of fame (roughly from performing any action), they want a raise. They won't tell you this straight away and often, before they do, they've already fallen into a deep depression about being underpaid which makes them useless and…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fundamentally, an "Office Tycoon" game similar to the dozen or so video game tycoon games you can find on Steam, the actual gameplay of Idol Empire is largely one of setting up a schedule for a cast of bobbleheaded characters and responding when random events are thrown your way. On the most fundamental of levels, the game is fairly solid if somewhat uninteresting in that regard. Idol Empire, however, suffers from a seemingly unending torrent of poor design choices ranging from one of the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I REALLY wanted to like this one a lot more, but it's super frustrating. There are so many bad events that can stack on top of each other after one or two mistakes, effectively meaning you'll have to keep loading until you figure out how to ♥♥♥♥♥♥ yourself. There's also not any CGs (aside from some chibi art) or cool prizes for winning, which is disappointing. Not terrible, but pretty meh overall. If your hardcore into tycoon games and want a challenge, you'll probably like this a lot more…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →When one Idol is constantly stuck in Yandere mode and you can't get her out of it, and whenever you put her in the break room she just walks out and goes back into that same mode.... and when another is constantly angry and refusing to do anything you tell her to do, even if it means making her happy... then yes, you have a serious flaw with the game. I wanted really hard to like this one cause I'm really into games like this, but the Idols themselves just ruined what could have been an…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire takes the colorful idol setting and established cast of the Starnova universe and turns them into the foundation of a real-time management simulation. Developed by Love in Space and published by Sekai Project, the game places players in the role of Producer-san, who must rebuild a struggling talent agency and guide its performers toward success. Instead of functioning primarily as a visual novel, the experience revolves around constructing facilities, training…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →no boba but i accept this, story i great ⣼⣿⣿⢿⡻⢝⠙⠊⠋⠉⠉⠈⠊⠝⣿⡻⠫⠫⠊⠑⠉⠉⠑⠫⢕⡫⣕⡁⠁ ⣼⡻⠕⠅⠁⣀⣤⣤⣄⣀⠈⠄⠁⠄⠁⣿⡮⠄⠁⠄⠄⡠⠶⠶⠦⡀⠈⣽⡢ ⣿⣧⠄⠁⠄⠔⠒⠭⠭⠥⠥⠓⠄⢀⣴⣿⣿⡄⠁⠠⣤⠉⠉⣭⠝⠈⢐⣽⣕ ⣿⣷⡢⢄⡰⡢⡙⠄⠠⠛⠁⢀⢔⣵⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⣄⡈⠁⠈⠁⠉⡹⣽⣿⣷ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣬⣭⡭⠔⣠⣪⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣵⡒⠫⠿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⠿⣛⣥⣶⣿⠟⢁⣶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⡙⣿⣿⣶⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡫⠁⢀⠑⠓⠫⢝⢟⣿⣿⣿⣿⡻⠊⢉⣄⠈⠪⡫⢿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢟⠁⣰⣿⣿⣢⢤⣀⡀⠈⠉⠉⢀⠠⠪⢝⡻⣷⡀⠊⡪⡻⣿ ⡫⢟⣿⣿⣿⣿⡊⢠⣿⣿⡫⠚⣊⣡⠶⢦⣤⣤⠶⠞⡛⠳⣌⠫⡻⡀⠈⡺⢿ ⠪⡪⡫⢟⡿⣕⠁⡫⠝⠊⡴⠋⠁⠁⠐⠁⠂⠈⠐⠈⠈⠐⠐⠳⠄⠹⣇⠪⡻ ⠄⠁⠊⠕⡪⢕⢀⠞⠁⠄⣁⢀⢀⣀⣤⣤⣠⣀⣤⣴⣶⣶⣶⡆⠄⠆⢷⠕⡪ ⣄⠄⠁⠄⠁⠄⡎⠄⠁⢬⣮⣕⠻⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡫⡪⡵⠄⠁⠄⠈ ⣿⣄⠁⠄⠁⠄⡣⠄⠁⣷⣯⣵⣢⠄⠄⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⣠⣬⣟⡕⠄⠁⢀⣿ ⣿⣿⣷⡀⠁⠄⡎⠄⠁⠻⣿⣾⣯⣪⣔⢄⣀⣀⣀⡠⣶⣾⣽⣿⠃⠄⢀⣼⣿
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire is a nice little business sim where you take on a role of an idol producer who manages his idol unit in order to make it as successful as possible. Reading the VN it is based on is not required but will make you appreciate this game more. And remember: NATSUKI IS THE BEST WAIFU!!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Check out our [url=store.steampowered.com/curator/36364102-Horny-Hentai-Festival/]Steam curator , [url=www.youtube.com/curatorhhf/]YouTube channel and [url=twitter.com/hhfcurator]Twitter! [Idol Management Sim] A spin-off simulation from Shining Song Starnova. Nice girls from SSS and moreover 5 chosen girls from Sunrider by DLC! Avava!!! :D [アイドル育成SLG]SSSスピンオフ。Sunriderから5人の女の子も参戦!(DLC)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Its a solid Business tycoon game, I just wish it was incorporated into the visual novel so that the story and gameplay would be tie in to each other.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Shining Song Starnova is a great little management sim with a whole lot of charm! I personally spend most of my time playing just enjoying the cute sprites and voice lines, but the game is good too .-. It's already been getting consistent updates since it's early release and it is turning out to be a well polished gem of a game :) Go Aki!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Another great game from love in space
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lore-wise, this game is awesome. One of the things I felt was missing from the visual novel, Shining Song Starnova, is that in many of the game's arcs, it is never clear HOW this idol group ascends to the top of the idol world as the narration heartily proclaims. For the focus of the visual novel, which is about each girl's development into a worthy leader, such a detail isn't particularly necessary. However, my curiosity remained until this game. This game makes abundantly clear the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →<-- Review written for [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/35180752/] 3 Point Play --> Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire shouldn't really be played if you haven't played Shining Song Starnova, otherwise, it has at least half of the appeal if you haven't done so, because, well, it has the same characters!!! (and this one, being a business management game, and not a VN, doesn't explain who these girls are or what their story is, think of it like an analogue to Sunrider: Academy and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Honestly Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire offers so much for the low price it's asking, compared to similar games. I could sit here and list pros and cons but I don't see the reason. If you love Love in Space, the previous Shining Song game or management games in general, this game should be right in your alley.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's actually preety good, i got alot of fun.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →SSS is an addictive game while taking two concepts i'm not fond of, being idols and studio games. I would recommend this game to anyone who is looking for a game to relax and unwind to.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Mariya still best girl, fight me!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A wonderfully addictive sim game from Love In Space, featuring the characters from their visual novel Shining Song Starnova. Have been playing this game through their Patreon in alpha and beta for around the last six months and the game is still as fresh and fun as ever. Plenty of strategy to be found here, and each of the characters have a lot of personality. Really great fun!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →They have sense added Auto features into the game which is way better now. So it's good to see the Devs are listening. Still waiting to see what they will add to make it more lively with the Idols in the game. I will give it a recommend with the Auto features been added in but still needs more work.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A good management game. Helps to have played the related visual novel for emotional connections to the idols, but still a good experience for people who haven't. There are several difficulty levels, as well as four different play modes. One mode has a story & twenty individual varied challenges, one mode is basically a free play mode, one where you have to win an increasingly-difficult idol performance challenge every ten in-game days, and one where the idols grow older & can retire & can be…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you enjoyed reading the original Starnova and enjoy playing office tycoon games, you'll absolutely love Idol Empire. If you haven't read the Starnova VN, I would definitely recommend doing that before getting this game - without the original for context, Idol Empire's writing would seem almost totally nonsensical, and the many, MANY easter eggs and inside-jokes would go completely over your head. But if you HAVE read the VN, Idol Empire is freaking hillarious! It captures all of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The anime tiddie/management cross-over is hard to find on the PC. Most are primarily rhythm games and/or untranslated. Mobiles have lots of options, like Azur Lane and Girls Frontline. But on PC, we get very few. So this was a nice treat. It's not perfect, but it scratches the itch in this genre that gets no love at all on PC. If you the top of your priority list is cute girls and management games, you will like this. If you don't like one or the other, you might find the shortcomings make…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Overview A Business Management-Strategy game from the franshise Shining Song Starnova. Here you play as Nishiyama Kaoru, the producer for the Idol Group Starnova, where you'll manage every aspect of the idol business, from building room in the office, to managing the Girls wagers, the income-outcome, the jobs you negociate to send the girls to, and there abilities to not only do the jobs well, but also perform the Lives. Art Style and Sound The Art is half Anime style in story pieces, just…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Finally, a game that allows me to be the ruthless idol manager I always wanted to be!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Game to confusing, weird controlls glad i refunded this game (also not really my game style)
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Cozy, fun little game. I would enjoy more complexity, but this is fine to lose a few hours.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Too many bad events happening that make this game very tedious and annoying to play through
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire, the strategic idol management game developed by Love in Space, offers players a backstage pass into the thrilling world of idol production. With a harmonious blend of rhythm gameplay and managerial strategy, this title brings a fresh perspective to the idol simulation genre. Visually, Idol Empire adopts a vibrant and anime-inspired art style that captures the essence of the idol culture. The character designs are charming, and the attention to detail in both…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love management games like this game, Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire. I'm no expert on how to actually run an idol agency but i'm sure this would be the simplified iteration of how the idol industry operates. To that I say, Fantastic Job! Developers of Shining Song Starnova! Overall I enjoyed the story and mechanics of the game so I would be recommending this game. Now for the Pros and Cons. Cons: - Pop Up notifications sometimes obstructs your view on what's going on. You can still…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →一款由偶像教你經營偶像事務所的室內設計偶像經營遊戲， 價錢低廉但遊戲性十足，值得推薦遊玩
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is fun and cute and hard to stop playing. The varying difficulties ensures everyone has a grand time. I think it would be fun if they added more furniture for decorating the office, but this is a great game as it is.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very fun idol management game. It's kind of confusing to play at first, but once you get used to it it's really engaging. Probably a lot better for fans of the VN, but I'm sure newcomers can enjoy it. Natsuki #1.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →if you're looking for an idol / management game this is a really good one .that isn't rhythm based which i much prefer I've been looking for one that is like another idol game i play but nothing was any bit similar until i came across this one .EDIT: now that ive played this game for a lot longer then when i wrote my last review i just wanted to come back and say i absolutely love this game i hope they come out with more similar games because i can never find anything like it besides 1 app…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the best timesinks I've dealt with recently, the devs hit the right spot ^^ Some more polish would be nice, but even in its current state the game's worth its price IMO.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun little simulation. Not something to play for hundreds of hours, but still fun for a while. Worth it when on sale (which it is relatively often), or of course when you want to support the devs
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I wish for death
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I did not expect this game to be so hard but still fun
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A management game where you direct the careers of the idols that you met in the Starnova VN. Develop your office, take on jobs, deal with controversies that your idols get into, and all sorts of other fun things. Also it has a story mode which actually is pretty decent. This is best if you are already familiar with Starnova the VN, but there is a good game here. :o
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →this is probably the most well-rounded idol game i've played; i like the room building and decorating, i like that you can shoot MVs and sell merch, i like how the live shows are interactive, i like how the idols have unique personality traits that require different management responses, the writing is generally enjoyable/funny ... i think the stat-building is kind of annoying and can get a bit overwhelming (in a frustrating way), the art style is a bit ugly/outdated, and there are some minor…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Love the visual novel
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After 7 hours i can say this is too repetitive and too complicated, i would even say that some mechanics are totally broken. Julie is kinda made to become infamous but getting any girl with a bit too much infamy gets you in an insane scandal loop ruining you (less than 20 seconds between each on high speed on the same girl) and bringing fans to destroy your office. In 7hours of gameplay i had the "vacation" "job" that reduces infamy (a little bit) less than 10 times. Also ot being 100% pure…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is a lot of fun and one of a kind for idol and anime lovers. I love the cute story and fun management aspect. Once you get about a few hours into the game it gets a little repetitive and there's a few glitches, but definitely an awesome time and would love to see more
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a good game but the girls or the idols can get easily sick and I hate that thing in this game. I hope there's should be another big update in this game. I hope that the developers are not throwing this game away without an update
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Love it. I've spent so many hours already in the various modes of this game, and still have lots of story mode to play.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The best game I ever played, Liked the story and liked the cute characters.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great Spin-off for great game
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is actually a lot of fun. I played the VN and I loved it and all the girls (Aki's story was my favorite), so this was a great surprise to me. It's challenging and fun. There are a lil bit of clipping issues, and I do have some annoyances with some features but overall I loved it and I wouldn't mind more games similar to this from the developer with girls we already know and love <3
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →For a more detailed video review, please click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rluNItxGE6I General Info Shining Song Starnova: Idol Empire is a tycoon management simulator and a non-canon spinoff of the Shining Song Starnova visual novel by Love In Space. The aim is to build up a Jpop idol group and become a legend in the industry. Technical info Idol Empire is very low-intensity game, so you should have no difficulties meeting the minimum specs to run the game. In nearly 29 hours of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →8 out of 10 Star Nova Idol Empire continues the track record of fun games by the crew at Love In Space. Great writing, music, cute characters, fourth wall breaking humor (P-Kun is everywhere!), all wrapped up in a fun resource management game. Do expect a few bugs though: rare crashes, and the occasional item-placement glitch when building rooms. But even then, totally worth it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Originally I had an issue with the game not loading, but that was something with the Steam Library UI. Fantastic. Had to reinstall my ENTIRE Steam for this single game to work. Was it worth it? Not really. But this is a fun game regardless of that bizarre issue. As a LiS fan, this is yet another quality game from them. Unfortunately (or fortunately, I guess, for some people), there's no H-Scenes, but the new art for the game is quite nice to see. I feel the depth of the game isn't as deep as…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Pros: If you like the characters from Shining Song Starnova then this is a game where you can as the producer develop them and really make them shine! Added bonus: the girls from Sunrider add a new dimension to the game! The story mode of the game has good scenarios which help you to get the hang of the mechanics. Each scenario can be continued after successful completion of the objective, so you can build upon your success in the scenario and start your empire from there, but it is worth…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.