You can finally seize the opportunity to be the producer of the K-Pop phenomenon BLACKPINK. Developer TakeOn Company brings a puzzle game mixed with simulation for you to take stardom to another level in BLACKPINK THE GAME.
Most of all, you don’t need to be a Blink – a member of the BLACKPINK fandom – to appreciate the game. With its management system, challenging puzzles, and entertaining minigames, there’s a lot for you to explore and enjoy.
In this article, we will show you a throughout Beginners Guide & Tips for BLACKPINK THE GAME so that you can have a smooth start in your producing career and master the secrets of managing superstars.
Initiating the Game
First things first. You’ll be introduced to the girls as their producers, so you pick a name and meet Blink, a sort of pet/avatar that will guide you through the intricacies of music production.
As soon as you enter the game, you will be flooded with tutorials for quite some time. They are pretty didactic, but we are here to improve upon them and give you some pointers to help you in the long run.
The Management Screen
On this screen, you get a macro view of your studio. Each floor has four slots and can hold several rooms of different sizes. As you progress through the game, your studio grows, and the floors increase, allowing more rooms to be added.
This is the management feature of the BLACKPINK THE GAME. Rooms like Merchandise Development generate Gold every second, while the Recording Studio distributes Albums, the game’s energy system to take on the puzzles.
You will spend as little and as much time in the Management part of the game. It takes a little time because you will basically dictate the next Blackpink build, evolution, or skill upgrade and will have to wait for it to be done.
And a lot of time because the higher the rooms’ level, the more time-consuming the upgrade is. Luckily, these keep running in the background while the game is turned off.
The Resources
The game’s primary resource is Gold, used to build new rooms in your studio, upgrade current ones, or train the girls. You collect it by completing tasks, puzzles or in the Merchandise Development room every certain amount of time.
The second resource is the Album, equivalent to energy or stamina in other games. Here in BLACKPINK THE GAME, Albums are needed to tackle stages in Schedule mode, the game’s puzzle mode.
We also have Stardust, collected in several ways, but most commonly through the Fan Room. This resource is necessary to evolve the Photocards and increase the points they provide in the puzzle stages.
And, of course, there is Pink Diamond, the premium resource. It’s the scarcest and most expensive, used to collect new Photocards in the gacha system, speed up the construction of rooms in the studio, and many other excellent bonuses.
Task List
BLACKPINK THE GAME presents a task list, the equivalent of quests in the contemporary world. These tasks tell you what you can do next to bulk in some exciting rewards, such as Gold, Stardusts, and Pink Diamonds.
The primary purpose of the Task List is to guide you through your next step and the features introduced in the game. Some ask you to build new rooms, complete a specific chapter in the Schedules, or do daily tasks.
Check the Events
Like most mobile games, BLACKPINK THE GAME rewards the diligent player who logs in daily or at certain events. However, the game doesn’t do this automatically.
The player needs to click on Event on the left side of the screen and collect the rewards one by one. They are not cumulative, so even if you are not playing that day, it is still worth logging in for a minute to collect these bounties.
Novices have the New User Attendance, which confers several items daily, and a ticket to the gacha every seven days, a must-have.
The BLACKPINK Pass is the game’s Season Pass and has two variations, Free and Premium. Completing tasks increases the level of your pass, granting you several privileges.
And more often than not, the game offers some seasonal events that praise the most frequent players. So keep posted and try to log in daily.
The Schedule
Right from the start, you will be introduced to the Schedule, which is where we take BLACKPINKS on tour to stardom while trying to avoid chaos and disaster.
Each stage of the Schedule features a puzzle that is simple in execution but increasingly challenging as the player progresses through the game.
The puzzles have three particular characteristics. First are the blocks we need to eliminate by making combinations and shapes that correspond to your Photocard, like a reverse Tetris.
The second feature is the Photocards. Each one features a combination, a BLACKPINK girl, a color, and a point score. You can use a Photocard only once if the combination swiped on the blocks is similar.
By doing so, you get the points for the Photocard, adding them to your final score. Some blocks require using a particular BLACKPINK member, as shown by their faces.
As you progress in the game, new blocks pop up, such as the color blocks, which require Photocards with the same colored blocks on them. But by then, you’ll already be familiar with the game.
And third is the move limit for each Schedule. The levels have a maximum amount of Photocards that can be used, encouraging you to make bigger block combinations before the moves are over.
In the end, all this adds up to your score. To advance, you must reach a minimum of one star, but you can achieve a maximum score of three stars.
Gacha Photocards
If you need help reaching the minimum score or want to get the maximum in all Schedules, you can draw new Photocards through the gacha.
The system works in the same way as many mobile games and relies solely on your luck. There is a free daily Photocard that can grant up to four-star rarity. You can also spend Gold in this gacha to roll more.
The premium Gacha consumes Pink Diamonds or tickets, but for every ten rolls you are guaranteed a four-star Photocard.
Seasonally new Photocards focused on a BLACKPINK member are introduced but with a limited duration. These consume Pink Diamonds.
As each stage can have its own peculiarities and focus on a specific member or color, the ideal is to build a balanced deck of Photocards with all the BLACKPINK members and different colors. If you notice that you have a few Photocards of Rosé, for instance, we suggest you wait for an event dedicated to her and spend your precious Pink Diamonds on this gacha.
Upgrading Photocards
If you’re still having trouble with a particular Schedule, it’s time to invest your Stardust and upgrade your Photocards.
Upgrading your Photocards increases the score points you earn by using them, making it easier to succeed in the puzzle and get three stars.
Stardust is a free currency that accumulates over time, so you will eventually have enough to upgrade your Photocards. Don’t be petty; spend it!
A simple but good strategy is to use all your Stardust on the rarest Photocard you have. That way, make sure to use that Photocard in the stages and get a massive score.
Four repeated Photocards can be used in the Combine function to generate a new random one, which is always recommended since the game doesn’t bring duplicated Photocards to the stages.
Bonus Items
If, after all this, you are still stuck in a Schedule, time to bring out the big guns and use special items.
There are four items usable during a Schedule. The Pow X2 doubles the points earned on the next Photocard used.
The reuse card lets you use a previously discarded Photocard again to eliminate the blocks, and the extra Schedule mission turn does what it suggests, providing an additional move.
Finally, Match All is an item that allows you to use any card, regardless of color or member, if its blocks match the one you swiped.
The World
Aside from the Management and Schedule, there’s also the World, where you can explore, dress up, meet other players online, chat, and partake in amusing minigames.
It’s a giant online lobby with different NPCs – including dogs! – designed for socializing. Its main currency is the World Ticket, acquired in minigames and by completing tasks.
You can choose one of the four BLACKPINK integrants as your avatar, but you can easily change them, so don’t worry.
The Style Shop
You can find Miranda, the Style Shop owner walking around the World. She offers various clothing items to style her members in exchange for World Tickets.
Although the clothing variations for each member are limited, they all have several unique hairstyles that you can customize as you wish.
Initially, getting a complete outfit is a bit expensive, especially if you want to put all the BLACKPINKS on the fashion catwalk. You can earn tickets gradually by playing minigames every day.
Emotion Shop
Next to the Style Shop is Million Kim, who sells new emotions. In the lower right corner of the screen is the shortcut to express yourself with emotions or animations.
While the animations apply to all four members, the stickers refer to the BLACKPINK selected at the time of purchase. It’s a quick and fun way to express yourself in the online lobby.
The Market
The market sells fruits, ice cream, and other sweets used to restore the condition of the members. Condition is a status consumed by training members in the studio and improving their levels.
This NPC also offers the Schedule Random Box when watching an Ad up to 3x a day, giving you several advantageous items for your production career.
Costume Shop
The Costume Shop is not so much a costume as an entire makeover of your character. Or rather, a new character.
Here you buy potions that transform you into an NPC seen throughout The World, momentarily changing your appearance. The potions appear in the shortcut next to the emotions after buying.
Minigames
Last but not least, we have NPC Jina, the staff of the minigames. We consider this the most fun part of The World.
Jina offers two minigames, the Nunchi Game and the Dodge Game. You earn more World Tickers according to your minigame ranking and can tally up to a maximum of 200 daily.
Nunchi Minigame
The Nunchi Game is a strategic gold-collecting game. You start at one cardinal of the arena and can jump in three different directions close to you.
Gold will spawn in empty spots, each offering a certain amount. The goal is to accumulate more Gold than your opponents.
If you choose a spot to jump and are the only person in it, you collect the Gold. If there is more than one person on the site, you will knock heads, and no one will gather the Gold.
The game is straightforward but has a certain amount of stimulating strategy, forcing you to predict your opponents’ moves before considering yours in the short timeframe before jumping.
Dodge Game
As the name implies, the Dodge Game is a game focused on dodging. You will be playing against three other players and must avoid advancing soldiers on the sides.
Initially, the game seems easy, requiring little technique from the player. But as you progress, only a few safe spots will be left behind, and you can also barricade your opponent with your avatar.
The winner is the one who stands tall at the end and will be rewarded with World Tickets. However, it’s less popular than the Nunchi Game, and sometimes there are not enough players to run a match.
Pet Zone
The Pet Zone is a comfy and heartwarming place with many puppies and kittens in a park close to the minigame Jina.
Although there are no minigames or NPCs here, you can click on the pets’ names and interact with them, petting their cute little heads. It is a relaxing moment in the hectic life of a pop star.
Wrap Up
BLACKPINK THE GAME has three main features: Management, where you manage your studio, build new rooms, train your members, and collect resources.
Schedule, where the main story unfolds as you progress through the puzzles using your Photocards while learning more about the BLACKPINK universe.
And the World, a cozy online hub where you can socialize, be stylish, have fun with minigames, or just relax from all the hustle and bustle.
Regardless of your purpose within BLACKPINK THE GAME, the game is loaded with content and challenging puzzles and is constantly updated. You don’t need to be a Blink to enjoy its features and explore all it offers. It’s a game made for everyone out there.
