{"rewrite":{"id":"r_c83716a375dc93dd3f8d72d1","clusterId":"c_fad64d23521ff4f9f76143cb","slug":"aquarium-doesn-t-dance-prequel-opens-steam-store-page","model":"deepseek-v4-flash:free","headline":"Aquarium Doesn't Dance Prequel Opens Steam Store Page","summary":"Frontier Works opened the Steam store page for the new horror adventure game \"Aquarium Doesn't Dance: The Idol Who Wants to Die\" on August 1, 2026. The game is a prequel to \"Aquarium Doesn't Dance,\" created by the developer Toudai. The protagonist is Hikaru, a failing idol who visits Bianca Aquarium seeking a painless death. She meets Horo, a cleaner wrasse who claims to be the world's cutest self-centered maid and performs \"water funeral\" rituals on humans who wish to die. When the ring essential to the ritual is swapped with a fake, Hikaru and Horo chase the culprit, encountering a person with white skin and red eyes. The story follows the 24 hours left to Hikaru. Like the previous game, players explore the aquarium, solve puzzles, and face grotesque beings called Creepies, which kill the player on contact. The release date is undecided, and wishlist registrations are open. The announcement coincided with the first anniversary of the previous game's Special Edition, which is on sale at a 25% discount until August 12.","whyItMatters":"The prequel's store page launch ties directly to the first anniversary of the original game's Special Edition, which holds an \"Overwhelmingly Positive\" rating on Steam with 97% positive reviews from over 1,000 reviews.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe store page went live during a July 30 live stream by creator Toudai, before the August 1 anniversary date the press release cites.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eFrontier Works is the publisher, with development credited to Gotcha Gotcha Games and Frontier Works on the original game.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe original game\u0026#39;s Special Edition launched August 1, 2025 on Steam and Nintendo Switch, with a physical Switch release on October 30, 2025.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe Special Edition is priced at 2,200 yen (tax included) digitally, or 4,950 yen for the package version, and carries a CERO C rating for ages 15 and up.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eSupported languages on the original include Japanese, English, Korean, and Simplified and Traditional Chinese.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe first anniversary campaign includes a lottery giveaway of an autographed colored board by Toudai, open from August 3 at 12:00 to August 17 at 23:59.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eNew Steam Points Shop items for the original game include trading cards, badges, emoticons, animated avatars, animated stickers, profile frames, and profile backgrounds.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe developer Toudai \u0026#34;dislikes horror,\u0026#34; a detail the 4Gamer piece notes about the creator behind the horror series.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe original game is free to play in its base form, with the paid Special Edition adding full voice acting, enhanced graphics, and extra content.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe prequel\u0026#39;s Steam store page is at app/4885190, while the Special Edition page is at app/3675470.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"Toudai's prequel to Aquarium Doesn't Dance opens its Steam page on the first anniversary of the Special Edition, which is the only concrete date in the game's timeline.","twitterPost":"Aquarium Doesn't Dance prequel's Steam page launch coincides with the Special Edition's anniversary sale, tying the new game's visibility to the old one's discount.","threadsPost":"The Steam page for Toudai's Aquarium Doesn't Dance prequel went up on the same day the Special Edition turned one and went on sale. That timing, not the undecided release date, is the only fixed point players have to anchor the new game.","newsletterBlurb":"Frontier Works opened the Steam store page for \"Aquarium Doesn't Dance: The Idol Who Wants to Die,\" a prequel to the horror adventure game. The story follows failing idol Hikaru through her final 24 hours at Bianca Aquarium. The release date remains undecided, with wishlist registrations now open.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"4Gamer.net\",\"url\":\"https://www.4gamer.net/games/029/G102988/20260803031/\",\"title\":\"Aquarium Doesn't Dance ~The Idol Who Wants to Die~ Steam Store Page Now Live. Prequel to Previous Work, Protagonist Is a Failing Idol\"},{\"source\":\"Denfaminicogamer\",\"url\":\"https://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/news/260803p\",\"title\":\"Steam store page opens for new horror adventure game 'Aquarium Doesn't Dance: The Idol Who Wants to Die' - the story of the 24 hours left for failing idol Hikaru\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":12191,"outputTokens":1517,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1785848726,"createdAt":"2026-08-04T12:56:00.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-08-04T12:57:23.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-04T12:56:00.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_fad64d23521ff4f9f76143cb","canonicalTitle":"ホラーアドベンチャーゲーム新作『アクアリウムは踊らない 死にたがりのアイドル』のSteamストアページが公開。売れないアイドル・ヒカルに残された24時間の物語","representativeArticleId":"a_8309c3c584f635e418d86e66","sourceCount":2,"writtenSourceCount":2,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":false,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[\"アクアリウムは踊らない 死にたがりのアイドル\"],\"studios\":[\"フロンティアワークス\"],\"people\":[\"橙々\"],\"type\":\"announcement\",\"domain\":\"games\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-08-03T04:23:31.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-08-03T09:38:45.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-04T12:57:23.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"4Gamer.net","url":"https://www.4gamer.net/games/029/G102988/20260803031/","title":"「アクアリウムは踊らない〜死にたがりのアイドル〜」，Steamストアページを公開。前作の前日譚で，主人公は売れないアイドル"},{"source":"Denfaminicogamer","url":"https://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/news/260803p","title":"ホラーアドベンチャーゲーム新作『アクアリウムは踊らない 死にたがりのアイドル』のSteamストアページが公開。売れないアイドル・ヒカルに残された24時間の物語"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":["アクアリウムは踊らない 死にたがりのアイドル"],"studios":["フロンティアワークス"],"people":["橙々"],"type":"announcement","domain":"games","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":["The Steam store page for \"Aquarium Doesn't Dance: The Idol Who Wants to Die\" opened on August 1, 2026, with the release date undecided.","The game is a prequel to \"Aquarium Doesn't Dance,\" created by Toudai and published by Frontier Works.","The protagonist Hikaru is a failing idol who visits Bianca Aquarium seeking a painless death, with the story following her last 24 hours.","The previous game's Special Edition holds an \"Overwhelmingly Positive\" rating on Steam with 97% positive reviews from over 1,000 reviews.","The Special Edition is on sale at a 25% discount, priced at 1,650 yen instead of 2,200 yen, until August 12, 2026."]}