Overview
Gakuen Idolmaster (学園アイドルマスター, usually shortened to Gakumas) is co-developed by QualiArts and Bandai Namco Entertainment. It launched on iOS and Android on May 16, 2024, and a PC version followed on DMM GAMES on March 18, 2025. Each "produce" is a self-contained run: you train one idol for a set number of weeks, then send her through exams that play out as card battles.
Lessons
Most weeks are lessons that raise one of the idol's three parameters — Vocal, Dance or Visual. What you pick shapes the stats you take into the exams.
Card-battle exams
Exams and auditions are turn-based: you play skill cards from a deck you build up during the run, aiming to reach a target score before the turns run out.
Produce rank
At the end, your parameters, final-exam placement and final-exam score add up to a rating, which decides the produce rank (C up to S5).
Produce Ranks
The rating needed for each produce rank. A+ at 11,500 and S at 13,000 are the usual early milestones.
| Rank | Rating needed |
|---|---|
| C | 3,000 |
| C+ | 4,500 |
| B | 6,000 |
| B+ | 8,000 |
| A | 10,000 |
| A+ | 11,500 |
| S | 13,000 |
| S+ | 14,500 |
| SS | 16,000 |
| SS+ | 18,000 |
| SSS | 20,000 |
| SSS+ | 23,000 |
| S4 | 26,000 |
| S4+ | 30,000 |
| S5 | 35,000 |
How the Final Rating Is Calculated
In the original Hajime (初) scenario on Regular, Pro and Master difficulty, the rating is the sum of three parts:
- 1Placement points for the final exam: 1st = 1,700, 2nd = 900, 3rd = 500.
- 2Parameters: the final exam first adds +30 (1st), +20 (2nd) or +10 (3rd) to each parameter, capped at the difficulty's limit (Regular 1,000 / Pro 1,500 / Master 1,800). The sum of the three is multiplied by 2.3, rounded down.
- 3Final exam score, converted on a sliding scale: ×0.3 up to 5,000 points, ×0.15 from 5,001–10,000, ×0.08 from 10,001–20,000, ×0.04 from 20,001–30,000, ×0.02 from 30,001–40,000 and ×0.01 above that.
Work out the final-exam score you need for A+, S or higher →
How Rating Works in HIF
The HIF scenario scores a run differently from Hajime. The formula reported by Japanese players is:
Rating = parameter total × 2 + Star power (スター性) × 7.5 + finals score rating − 2,000
- 1Finals round 1: the score starts counting above 300,000, is worth the most up to about 700,000, then tapers off and stops adding anything at about 1,400,000 — at most 5,500 rating.
- 2Finals round 2: counts from 600,000, is worth the most up to 1,500,000, then tapers and caps at 2,400,000 — at most 7,400 rating.
- 3Star power is multiplied by 7.5, so every point of it is worth more than three points of a parameter. Round 2 also earns some extra Star power.
Glossary
Menus are Japanese-only. These are the terms that come up constantly.
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 評価値 | Hyouka-chi | Rating — the number that decides your produce rank. |
| プロデュース | Purodyūsu | One training run with a single idol, from the first lesson to the final exam. |
| ボーカル・ダンス・ビジュアル | Vo / Da / Vi | The three parameters. Their total feeds directly into the rating. |
| 中間試験・最終試験 | Chūkan / Saishū shiken | Midterm and final exams — card battles scored against rival idols. |
| スキルカード | Sukiru kādo | The cards you play in exams. You add them to your deck during the run. |
| Pアイテム | P-aitemu | Passive items that trigger effects during exams. |
| サポートカード（サポカ） | Sapoka | Support cards you bring into a run; they add events and parameter bonuses. |
| レギュラー・プロ・マスター・レジェンド | Difficulty | Difficulty levels. Higher ones raise the parameter cap and the achievable rank. |