Hey everybody! It's been a week since we pushed our big giant update for Idol Manager, which included the addition of story mode, among many other new features.

Over the past week, we've really enjoyed getting to see your feedback on many long-awaited features. During that time, we've also been hard at work pushing out a bunch of bug fixes. (A big thank you to the many of you who have helped us during this period by reporting the bugs you've found!) Of course, you'll need to update the game to benefit from all of these recent bug fixes, so if you're playing the beta, make sure that you're running the latest version! (For detailed patch notes on what exactly has been changed since the story update shipped a week ago, scroll down to the bottom of this post.)

Over the past week, in addition to all of your bug reports, we've gotten several common questions, so now seemed like an opportune time to put together an FAQ to address some of them.

Frequently asked questions

Q: How do I make sure I'm playing the latest version of the beta?

If you're participating in the beta via itch.io, you can install the itch.io app, which is a desktop program similar to programs like Steam that you can use to download the game and automatically install updates as soon as they go live. This should also save you the trouble of having to re-download the entire game each time a new update ships. (If you participated in the alpha via Steam, the Idol Manager beta should be a part of your Steam library, and Steam should download and install the updates automatically.)

Q: Will I lose my save files if I create a new install folder or update the game?

Save files are stored separately from the game install in your computer's appdata folder, and will not be affected if you delete or replace your game install. That being said, this is a beta, and you may encounter bugs that could affect your ability to progress -- we recommend that you create multiple save files just in case you run into any game-breaking bugs and want to revert to a previous save!

Additionally, beta update 20 (the big update that went live on December 30) added "story mode." The game still includes "free play" mode, which provides an experience similar to previous versions of the beta, with no story progressions. Any save files from older versions of the beta are "free play" save files; if you want to play story mode, you'll have to create a new save file.

Q: Are the debugging tools ("cheats") still in the beta?

Yes they are! Debugging tool shortcuts are currently disabled by default, but you can press F7 five times to access the debugging menu, which also unlocks a number of keyboard shortcuts which you can read about here.

Q: How do I participate in the beta?

Kickstarter backers who were part of the "intern" tier or higher can use the Steam key (sent when the alpha started in 2018) to to add Idol Manager to your library and access the latest version of the beta.  Backers who were part of the "student" (or "[early bird] student") tier were issued keys to participate in the beta via itch.io in 2019. Additionally, the beta is available directly for purchase via itch.io.

Q: I backed as part of the Kickstarter, but I lost my beta key / never got it

You can use this recovery form and enter the email address associated with your Kickstarter account to receive a link to the page where you can obtain the key that was sent to you. If you have any other trouble accessing your key, message us directly through Kickstarter and we'll be happy to assist.

Q: I'm participating in the beta via itch.io. When do I get a Steam key?

All beta participants will receive a Steam key once the game moves out of beta and the full game is available for purchase on Steam.

Q: I found a bug! What should I do?

We'd really appreciate it if you took the time to report it! (Even if you find a workaround for your particular bug, reporting the bug allows us to fix it so that other users won't be affected either.)

You can report a bug by posting in the beta forum, or emailing contact@idolmanager.net with a description of the issue. When reporting a bug, please include a description of the issue  describe it in a way that would allow us to specifically pinpoint where the issue occurred, and steps that we could use to reproduce the issue you're reporting -- oftentimes, including a screenshot can be helpful.

Additionally, please include your save file. (You don't need to upload your save file if you're reporting something like a typo in the game's dialog, but please include your save file if you encountered an error that's specific to your gamestate.) Being able to look at your save file helps us figure out what caused the issue in the first place, which gets us a lot closer to coming up with a solution!

Q: Where is my save file located?

Your save file can be found in the following location:

Windows:

C:\Users\*your username*\AppData\LocalLow\Glitch Pitch\Idol Manager\data

Mac:

~/Library/Application Support/Glitch Pitch/Idol Manager/data/

The save file should be a file named save.json. (Story mode saves are located in the "story_mode" folder, free play saves are located in the "manual_saves" folder.) When sharing the file, you can simply upload save.json, no need to upload the entire folder.

Patch notes roundup

As we mentioned at the top of this post, we've put out several patches in the past week, which is all the more reason to make sure you've updated and are playing the latest version, especially if you run into one of the bugs that's been addressed in one of the patches! Here's the full patch notes:

Hotfix 1 (added December 31, 2020):

• Closing the game during some events could remove story mode tasks in your auto save file
• Some story events didn’t trigger after loading the game from a save file
• You now need to press F7 five times to unlock cheats and debug menus
• Fixed various issues with dating (wrong girl showing up to the date / never getting caught or getting caught too easily / broken music in one of the endings)
• One of the endings could break if you clicked too quickly
• Various small substory fixes: broken text formatting in a few lines, idol sprites overlapping each other

Hotfix 2 (added January 2, 2021):

• Ramen cafe dialogue could ignore one of your previous decisions
• ldol could request to center a specific single and then complain that she was chosen for it
• Releasing a single with no marketing could cause a bunch of bugs
• Awards show not starting after a character's speech
• Idol showing up with a wrong or empty sprite in the postgame
• Various small dialogue fixes

Hotfix 3 (added January 5, 2021):

• One of the tasks in Chapter 4 (“watch all events”) could get stuck in an incomplete state
• Committee popup in Chapter 5 could break after loading the game from a save file
• Some story-important idols could be fired at inappropriate times, and some couldn't be fired even in postgame
• Couldn't force idols to stop bullying even if you had enough influence
• Idols being unreasonably rude after being asked to not graduate
• You could still get a bankruptcy game over on the relaxed difficulty