Rock Star Life Simulator: Prologue

For anyone who's dreamed of rock superstardom but also glimpsed the potential pitfalls, Rock Star Life Simulator: Prologue provides an intriguing preview of that rollercoaster experience. This bite-sized preamble to the full game casts you as an aspiring guitarist taking their first steps toward music glory on the gritty city streets.

While light on content compared to what the eventual full release will offer, the Prologue still manages to whet the appetite with its novel premise and choose-your-own-adventure style gameplay. It's an immersive glimpse at both the allure and harsh realities of chasing your rock and roll dreams.

Rags to Riches (or Ruin)

Rock Star Life Simulator drops you into a grungy urban environment as a cash-strapped musician trying to get their big break. With little more than a beat-up guitar, you'll need to hit the streets and start busking to earn your first few bucks and fans.

From these humble origins, the Prologue branches out into an open-ended narrative experience driven by your decisions. Want to put all your efforts into practicing and honing your guitar skills? Or will you risk burning out by hitting the bar scene hard to network with other rockstars-in-the-making?

While simple on the surface, it's impressive how complex and enmeshing these interlocking choices become. One wrong move, like blowing your cash at the casino, can send your rockstar dreams spiraling in a stunningly abrupt nosedive mirroring the tragic tales of so many real-life musicians.

A Hard Road Ahead

As simply rendered as the visuals and animation are in this prologue state, Rock Star Life Simulator still manages to ooze a legitimately cool punk/grunge aesthetic that immerses you in the seedy side of music culture. The guitar playing mini-games also have a solid spatial positioning-based feel to them, while not being as solid as games dedicated to this like Rock Band 4.

Of course, being just a limited preview, everything here is hamstrung by a lack of scope and longevity. You can likely see and do all the Prologue has to offer in a single afternoon's play session. But the core premise hints at the potential for an expansive rock opera of a life simulator in the full game.

For inspiration on fleshing out that ambition, the developers could look to the rhythmic rise-and-fall cycles of Rockstar Games' Midnight Club Street Racing series. Those titles nailed the sense of paying your dues to build a reputation before getting your big break, a perfect fit for Rock Star Life Simulator's themes.

Review: 6/10

While barebones, Rock Star Life Simulator: Prologue is nonetheless a deliciously devious tease that sells its ingenious central premise.

Pros:

• Surprisingly immersive choice/consequence gameplay
• Nails the gritty, punk/grunge aesthetic
• Solid guitar minigames
• Tons of potential in the full version

Cons:

• Extremely limited scope as a prologue
• Barebones visuals and production values
• Maybe a bit too niche/edgy for mainstream appeal
• Potentially controversial subject matter