New BTS Mobile Game, BTS Universe Story, Releases In September

In August, BTS and developer Netmarble announced a new free-to-play mobile game called BTS Universe Story. Fans of the superstar boy band will now be able to officially play it on September 24.

Billed as an "interactive social game" that features stories with BTS members as characters, BTS Universe Story offers two main modes: Story Playthrough and Story Creation. In the Story Playthrough option, players select stories from an existing set of storylines, and in the Story Creation route, players can use in-game production tools to create a custom story. A third mode, Collection, allows players to style characters and take AR photos with their customized characters. You can check out a preview posted by BTS Universe Story's Twitter below.

Starting now until September 17, you can also get daily character photocards on the BTS Universe Story website. With the AR photos and virtual photocards, Netmarble and BTS are bringing familiar real-life fan interactions to the game's promotions and gameplay. During BTS's Love Yourself world tour, fans could take pictures with a member of their choosing through an AR photo booth. Collectible photocards are also a big part of K-pop culture, and new album releases usually come with at least a couple different options per member.

This is BTS's second collaboration with Netmarble on a mobile game. BTS World was released in 2019, allowing players to role-play as BTS's manager in it. BTS World was pretty successful and became Netmarble's first mobile game to hit number one on Apple's US App store. The boy group also had a rhythm game, but SuperStar BTS's service ended on June 23. Big Hit Entertainment, BTS's label, likely has other plans for a BTS-themed music game in the future, since the company acquired Superb, a music game company, in 2019.