The Idolmaster 2

The Idolmaster 2 (アイドルマスター2, Aidorumasutā Tsū; officially stylized as THE iDOLM@STER 2) is a Japanese raising simulation video game in The Idolmaster series developed and published by Namco Bandai Games. It was originally released on February 24, 2011, for the Xbox 360 in Japan, and later for the PlayStation 3 on October 27, 2011. The story in The Idolmaster 2 is told from the perspective of a producer in charge of leading and training a group of three pop idols to stardom and receive music awards. Its gameplay, while remaining similar to the previous title, features several improvements and differences, including changes in the roster of idol characters and the removal of online multiplayer elements. The game is developed as the centerpiece of the franchise's next stage called "2nd Vision". Its production began before the announcement of the series' first 2nd Vision game, The Idolmaster Dearly Stars, and its staff proceeded with the goal of earning the franchise's fans' continued support and the mindset of creating the game from scratch akin to the original arcade game's development. Yurina Hase, the voice actress of the character Yukiho Hagiwara, opted not to return for the role, and Azumi Asakura was brought in by the development staff after several failed auditions. The game's Xbox 360 version of the game sold 34,621 units in its first week of release in Japan, while its PlayStation 3 version sold 65,512 units as the third best selling game in Japan in its first week.