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''Game'' (capitalized as ''GAME'') is the debut
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
by Japanese girl group
Perfume Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent ...
. It was released on April 16, 2008 by
Tokuma Japan Communications is a publisher in Japan, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. The company was established in 1954 by Yasuyoshi Tokuma in Minato, Tokyo. The company’s product portfolio includes music publishing, video game publishing, movies, anime, magazines, m ...
. ''Game'' marks Perfume's first studio album to be fully produced by Japanese producer and Capsule member
Yasutaka Nakata is a Japanese DJ and music producer. He formed the band Capsule in 1997 with vocalist Toshiko Koshijima and himself as composer and record producer when both were 17. The band debuted in 2001 with the song "Sakura". He is known for being the ...
, while Perfume contributes to the album as the lead and background vocalists. ''Game'' was recorded and mixed by Nakata in
Shibuya, Tokyo Shibuya (渋谷 区 ''Shibuya-ku'') is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. As a major commercial and finance center, it houses two of the busiest railway stations in the world, Shinjuku Station (southern half) and Shibuya Station. As of April 1, ...
. Four different formats were released to promote the album; a standalone CD, a limited CD and DVD bundle, and a digital release. It was re-released in February 2016 as a 12-inch LP, featured in both Perfume's 2016 box set ''Perfume Complete LP Box'' and a limited singular release. Two different artworks were issued for the album's cover sleeve; one has Perfume inside a small room with synthetic grass, while the second has Perfume holding
LED lamp An LED lamp or LED light bulb is an electric light that produces light using light-emitting diodes (LEDs). LED lamps are significantly more energy-efficient than equivalent incandescent lamps and can be significantly more efficient than mo ...
s in a dark room. Upon the album's release, it was met with mixed to favorable reviews from music critics. Several critics highlighted the commercial appeal, composition, and noted it as a resurgence of the techno-pop genre. However, some critics were ambivalent towards the album's lack of personality and polished production. ''Game'' has been listed on several publication lists as their best albums of 2008 and the J-pop genre. Commercially, ''Game'' was a success. It became Perfume's debut studio album to reach the top spot on Japan's
Oricon Albums Chart The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Oricon originally published LP, CT, Cartridge and CD charts prior to the establishment of the Oricon Al ...
and was certified double platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of Japan The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969. The RIAJ's activities include pr ...
(RIAJ) for shipments of 500,000 units. Three singles were released from ''Game'', including one promotional, one a-side single, and
extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.
. Its lead single and EP ''
Fan Service (Sweet) is Japanese pop group Perfume's ninth single. It was released on February 14, 2007. ''Fan Service weet' was the group's first single for the year 2007. The release date coincided with Valentine's Day, a theme present in the song "Chocolate Disco ...
'' reached number 31 on Japan's
Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track download sales. In J ...
, while its spawning promotional single "Chocolate Disco" reached number 24 on Japan's
Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
chart. The second single "
Polyrhythm Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music ( cross-rhyt ...
" reached number seven on the Oricon Singles Chart, and was one of the theme songs for the
Pixar Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californ ...
film ''
Cars 2 ''Cars 2'' is a 2011 American computer-animated spy comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel to '' Cars'' (2006), the second film in the ''Cars'' franchise, and the 12th animated film from ...
''. The album's third and final single, the a-side release " Baby Cruising Love/Macaroni" reached number three on the Oricon Singles Chart. Perfume promoted the album on their 2009 Game Tour.


Background and development

After signing to
Tokuma Japan Communications is a publisher in Japan, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. The company was established in 1954 by Yasuyoshi Tokuma in Minato, Tokyo. The company’s product portfolio includes music publishing, video game publishing, movies, anime, magazines, m ...
in September 2005, Perfume and Tokuma enlisted long-term collaborator, Japanese producer and Capsule member
Yasutaka Nakata is a Japanese DJ and music producer. He formed the band Capsule in 1997 with vocalist Toshiko Koshijima and himself as composer and record producer when both were 17. The band debuted in 2001 with the song "Sakura". He is known for being the ...
, to produce their work; this marks Perfume's first collaboration with Nakata. The collaboration spawned a series of singles including " Linear Motor Girl", "
Computer City Computer City was a chain of United States-based computer superstores operated by Tandy Corporation; the retailer was sold to CompUSA in 1998 and was merged into the CompUSA organization. Computer City was a supercenter concept featuring name ...
", and " Electro World". These singles were included on Perfume's compilation album '' Perfume: Complete Best'' in 2006. In December 2006, Perfume and Nakata released the ''Game'' album track "Twinkle Snow Powder Snow" as a digital download single, the group's first. The following month, ''Game'' album track "Chocolate Disco" was released in January 2007 and confirmed to be included on the then-upcoming album's lead A-side single. Then, in late January and early February 2008, Perfume confirmed the release of a new studio album in April that same year. Perfume and Tokuma hired Nakata to produce the album; this marks Perfume's debut studio album to be fully produced by Nakata. Perfume began recording the remaining tracks in
Shibuya, Tokyo Shibuya (渋谷 区 ''Shibuya-ku'') is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. As a major commercial and finance center, it houses two of the busiest railway stations in the world, Shinjuku Station (southern half) and Shibuya Station. As of April 1, ...
at Contemode Studios between 2007–2008 with Nakata. Nakata mastered and recorded the album with Perfume, and finished overall at the end of March 2008. The material from ''Game'' took nearly two-and-a-half years to produce and record, making it Perfume's longest spanning project to date. The material marks Perfume's first out of five studio albums to be fully composed, written, and arranged by Nakata. Perfume member A-Chan viewed ''Game'' as a
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Some ...
, stating "We see each album as being like a concept album...". Perfume member Nocchi expressed her delight of the finishing, stating "This is our first original album. It turned out so good that in every interview I have to say we are confident. It is cool! So I really want people to listen to it."


Composition and language

''Game'' is an electronic dance album that borrows numerous musical elements including
technopop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...
and
J-pop J-pop ( ja, ジェイポップ, ''jeipoppu''; often stylized as J-POP; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively also known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1 ...
. Ian Martin from
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
stated, "Perfume are not like other Japanese manufactured idol groups is evident from the trio's popularity among not only traditional pop fans but also large numbers of indie and electronic music fans." A staff member from ''CD Journal'' identified that the album's strongest musical genre was
technopop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...
; several other reviewers and editors, such as a staff reviewer from
Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential econo ...
and Zac Bentz from Japanator.com, also had similar hypothesises. Retrospectively, a staff member from
MTV Iggy MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
felt that the Japanese club and electronic culture had influenced all of Perfume's studio albums, including ''Game''. In an interview with Nakata, he stated that he was particularly interested in re-inventing the term
technopop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...
for the Japanese music scene; a term that was recognized in the 1980s in Western culture. Technopop was first introduced to Japanese culture in the 1980s by Japanese band
Yellow Magic Orchestra Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO for short) is a Japanese electronic music band formed in Tokyo in 1978 by Haruomi Hosono (bass, keyboards, vocals), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums, lead vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards, vocals). The group is cons ...
, who employed the genre in their studio album '' Naughty Boys'' (1983). Alongside this, Nakata incorporated his post-
Shibuya-kei is a microgenre of pop music or a general aesthetic that flourished in Japan in the mid-to late 1990s. The music genre is distinguished by a "cut-and-paste" approach that was inspired by the kitsch, fusion, and artifice from certain music styles ...
sound which he had initially used for the songs produced with Perfume during their time as an indies idol group, into the tracks from ''Game''.
English translation
Perfume admitted that they didn't know of the techno genre prior to ''Game''; A-Chan stated in an interview with Bomb magazine "Well, we have just gotten to the point where we got to like techno music. But we are on the level that we ‘like’ it, and we don’t know the depth of it beyond that. I don’t think it is good to go to the next step without learning anything. So I want to know techno to the full first. It may be hard but I want to try at least." Nocchi felt that techno music, at the time of the release of ''Game'', represented Perfume. ''Game'' is Perfume's first album to feature an
English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...
song; the track "Take me Take me".


Songs

The album's opening track, "Polyrhythm", is influenced by technopop and dance-pop music that was noted for its "summery" vibe. "Plastic Smile" is a "retro" technopop song that was noted by critics for its "cheap" and "simple" production. The album's title utilizes
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
instrumentation over a heavy bass and
trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...
-inspired synthesizer; Ian Martin an
Asian Junkie
editor Random J noted by critics for its similar comparisons from the work of French duo and producers
Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. Widely regarded as one of the most influential acts in dance music history, they achieved popularity in the late 1990s as p ...
. "Baby Cruising Love" is a technopop song that fuses musical elements of dance-pop and
pop ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner.J. M. Cu ...
; Martin labeled the song "comparatively inoffensive and characterless J-pop...". "Chocolate Disco" is an upbeat dance song that was noted by critics for its "cute" appeal. According to a staff member from Channel-Ai, they noted live instrumentation of drum machines in the sixth album track "Macaroni". The song was noted by critics as a mid-tempo techno-pop song with elements of
lounge Lounge may refer to: Architecture * Lounge, the living room of a dwelling * Lounge, a public waiting area in a hotel's lobby * Lounge, a style of commercial alcohol- bar * Airport lounge, or train lounge (e.g., AMTRAK's Acela Lounge), a premium ...
and
house music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...
. The album's seventh track, "Ceramic Girl", was noted by critics as a "high energetic" electropop song with musical elements of 1980s
disco music Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric piano ...
. "Take Me, Take Me" is a house track with elements of downtempo music. Nia from Selective Hearing commented, though it was a "sensual" track by Perfume, it "divided opinions amongst fans; some think that it’s a great song and others think that it’s too repetitive to be interesting." "Secret Secret" starts with a "dreamy" intro and builds up with electronic dance synths. The song was highlighted by critics as the album's most "diverse" track, noting that it offered an "atmospheric composition" and "high powered dance song". "Butterfly" incorporates the ambient and non-diegetic sound of rainforest and animal calls. An
electro house Electro house is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by heavy bass and a tempo around 130 beats per minute. The term has been used to describe the music of many ''DJ Mag'' Top 100 DJs, including Benny Benassi, Skrillex, Steve Aok ...
song, it incorporates live instrumentation of string arrangements and instrumental sections. "Twinkle Snow Powder Snow" was noted by critics as the album's "least favoured song"; while Channel Ai labeled it a "cheerful danceable and catchy techno tune", Nia commented "'Twinkle Snow Powdery Snow' is a bit of a mood whiplash with its perky melody and wintery instrumental. It’s not a bad song but probably my least favorite on the album." The album's closing track, "Puppy Love", was noted by critics for its "light and delicate" production, and was labeled by Nia as a very "sweet" track.


Release and packaging

''Game'' was released in three different formats on April 16, 2008 by
Tokuma Japan Communications is a publisher in Japan, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. The company was established in 1954 by Yasuyoshi Tokuma in Minato, Tokyo. The company’s product portfolio includes music publishing, video game publishing, movies, anime, magazines, m ...
. The standalone CD format features the fourteen tracks in a jewel case, with first press editions including an obi and a bonus poster. The CD and DVD format feature the fourteen tracks and a bonus DVD with the music videos to "Macaroni" and "Secret Secret". The DVD also included two live performances in Japan and three individual music videos to "Macaroni" recorded by the Perfume members separately. It was published in a jewel case with some editions with a cardboard sleeve; First press editions included an obi. The final format was a digital release that was released in Japan only that same release date. Two cover sleeves for ''Game'' were photographed by Japanese photographer and designer Mari Amita. The standalone CD artwork has Perfume inside a four-by-four room, floored with synthetic
grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns an ...
and powered by strong ceiling lighting. The album's title is superimposed on the ceiling. The standalone CD booklet features shots of Perfume inside that room, with no other picture otherwise. The CD and DVD artwork feature Perfume in a dark room, holding several
LED lamp An LED lamp or LED light bulb is an electric light that produces light using light-emitting diodes (LEDs). LED lamps are significantly more energy-efficient than equivalent incandescent lamps and can be significantly more efficient than mo ...
s with the album's title superimposed them. The CD and DVD booklet features different shots of Perfume in the four-by-four room and shots of Perfume in the dark room. The digital release uses the standalone CD artwork. The booklet and photo shoot was designed by Mayuko Yuki. In February 2012, the group had signed a record contract with
Universal Music Japan , often referred to as just Universal Music Japan or UMJ, is a Japanese subsidiary of the Universal Music Group founded in 1990. It is the largest subsidiary for a foreign company in the country regarding music distribution. The company is resp ...
after leaving Tokuma Japan Communications to record their third album '' JPN''. They signed a global record contract with
Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
to release ''JPN'' globally but received rights by Tokuma Communications to release their discography globally, and ''Game'' was subsequently released worldwide in March 2012 digitally. In November 2015, Perfume and Universal (with publishing rights from Tokuma and Crown Tokuma) announced the re-release of all their studio albums, including ''Game'', on 12-inch vinyl LPs in a collective vinyl box set. The vi''me'' waLP s released in two editions; part of the box set entitled ''Perfume Complete LP Box'', and a limited edition singular release on February 17, 2016. The artwork for the viLPses the CD and DVD cover, with a slip-in case of the standalone CD artwork.


Promotion


Singles

''
Fan Service (Sweet) is Japanese pop group Perfume's ninth single. It was released on February 14, 2007. ''Fan Service weet' was the group's first single for the year 2007. The release date coincided with Valentine's Day, a theme present in the song "Chocolate Disco ...
'' was released as the album's
lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...
and first and final
extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.
single on February 14, 2007. The EP consists of two single tracks; "Twinkle Snow Powder Snow" and "Chocolate Disco", alongside a bonus DVD with a music video for each single. Upon its release, ''Fan Service (Sweet)'' received mixed reviews from music critics. Many music critics commended the production of "Chocolate Disco", and favored it more over "Twinkle Snow Powdery Snow". ''Fan Service (Sweet)'' was moderately successful in Japan, peaking at number 31 on the Japanese
Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track download sales. In J ...
, and sold over 10,000 units in that region. After its release, "Twinkle Snow Powder Snow" and "Chocolate Disco" was released promotionally through
airplay Airplay is how frequently a song is being played through broadcasting on radio stations. A song which is being played several times every day (spins) would have a significant amount of airplay. Music which became very popular on jukeboxes, in n ...
in Japan. "Chocolate Disco" charted at number 24 on the
Japan Hot 100 The ''Billboard Japan'' Hot 100 is a record chart in Japan for songs. It has been compiled by ''Billboard Japan'' and '' Hanshin Contents Link'' since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at Billboard-japan.com ( JST) and every Thur ...
chart and 76 on the RIAJ Digital Track Chart in Japan. Both singles received a music video; "Twinkle Snow Powder Snow" features Perfume dancing to the song in a futuristic city whilst walking through a snow-storm. The music video to "Chocolate Disco" featured Perfume singing and dancing to the song in front of several laser lights and in several divided mirrors. "
Polyrhythm Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music ( cross-rhyt ...
" was released as the album's second overall and first singular single on September 12, 2007. It was released as a standalone CD with the bonus track "Seventh Heaven", and a CD and DVD bundle featuring the music video to the single. Upon its release, "Polyrhythm" received positive reviews from music critics. Many critics commended the composition of the track, Nakata's production, and the group's "vocoder" vocals. "Polyrhythm" was a commercial success, reaching number seven on Japan's Oricon Singles Chart and stayed in the top 300 for 58 weeks, the group's longest spanning charting single to date. "Polyrhythm" has sold over 77,000 units in Japan and was certified gold by the
Recording Industry Association of Japan The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969. The RIAJ's activities include pr ...
(RIAJ) for digital and physical shipments of 100,000 units in that region, tallying up to 200,000 shifted units. A music video was shot for "Polyrhythm"; it features Perfume singing the song in a white room, with additional computer-generated imagery of various objects and living figures. "
Baby Cruising Love "Baby Cruising Love" (stylized as "Baby cruising Love") is a double A-side single release by the Japanese group, Perfume Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and ...
" and " Macaroni" were released as the album's third and final overall and first
a-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...
single on January 16, 2008. It was released as a standalone CD, and a CD and DVD bundle featuring the music video to "Baby Cruising Love". Upon its release, "Baby Cruising Love" and "Macaroni" received positive reviews from music critics. Many critics commended both the tracks dance melodies and the group's vocals. Charting together, "Baby Cruising Love/Macaroni" was a commercial success, reaching number three on Japan's Oricon Singles Chart and stayed in the top 300 for 18 weeks. "Baby Cruising Love/Macaroni" has sold over 65,000 units in Japan to date. A music video was shot for "Baby Cruising Love"; it features Perfume dancing to the song in front of LED lamps, and holding a light orb.


Other charted singles

Album tracks; "Ceramic Girl" and "Secret Secret" both charted on the Japan Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 49 and 54 respectively. Neither of these tracks served as a promotional single or received any physical release. "Secret Secret" received a music video that was broadcast on Japanese television; it features Perfume dancing to the song on a studio set. Each chorus features Perfume wearing outfits from their singles that were included on ''Perfume: Complete Best'' and was based on Perfume's growth in popularity and concept in Japanese advertisement.


Advertisement and commercials

Before release, the album, on July 1, 2007, the commercial for NHK's national recycling campaign aired, featuring Perfume and their single, "
Polyrhythm Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music ( cross-rhyt ...
". The commercial was the group's first commercial release inside Japan. Subsequently, their next live show sold out, and Perfume became the first idol group to perform at the Summer Sonic music festival. The group managed to receive commercial endorsements with the usage of their songs from the album. "Butterfly" was used as a commercial theme for Infinite Frontier for
Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tan ...
and "Secret Secret" was used in an Eskimo Pino commercial. All three singles including "Ceramic Girl" received a commercial endorsement feature, including deals with
NTV NTV may refer to: Television * NTV (Bangladesh), a Bengali-language satellite television channel in Bangladesh * NTV (India), Telugu regional channel * NTV (Kenya) * NTV (Mongolia), a television channel based in Mongolia * NTV (Newport Televis ...
and theme songs (both ending and opening). "Polyrhythm" was featured on the soundtrack of 2011 American animated film ''
Cars 2 ''Cars 2'' is a 2011 American computer-animated spy comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel to '' Cars'' (2006), the second film in the ''Cars'' franchise, and the 12th animated film from ...
'', which marked the group's first entry into the western market. In response, Perfume was invited to attend the movie premiere in
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. The director,
John Lasseter John Alan Lasseter (; born January 12, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, animator, voice actor, and the head of animation at Skydance Animation. He was previously the chief creative officer of Pixar Animation Studios ...
, was happy to see the girls there and said: "The moment I listened to Polyrhythm, I loved it, it was like falling in love."


Concert tour

To promote ''Game'', Perfume went on two promotional tours; the Seventh Heaven tour at the Liquidroom in Japan, and the Perfume Socks Fix Makes Tour in Shibyua, Tokyo. For the Seventh Heaven tour, the album tracks: "Polyrhythm", "Chocolate Disco", and the b-side track "Seventh Heaven" were included on the set list. The tour received positive reviews from music critics; Tetsuo Hiraga commended the tour, praising certain tracks and the overall stage production. For the Socks Fix Makes, the album tracks: "Baby Cruising Love", "Twinkle Snow Powder Snow", "Macaroni", "Chocolate Disco", "Polyrhythm", and the b-side track "Seventh Heaven" were included on the set list. The tour received positive reviews from music critics; Hiraga felt the Shibuya concert was an improvement from the Seventh Heaven tour and commended the sufficiency in the material. After the album's release, the group had officially announced that their 2008 Game Tour would commence in late April 2008. The group toured 10 cities in Japan and sold out all tickets to each concert. For the Game tour, the album tracks: the title track, "Twinkle Snow Powdery Snow", "Take Me Take Me", "Secret Secret", "Macaroni", "Chocolate Disco", and "Ceramic Girl" were included on the set list. The tour received positive reviews from music critics; Hiraga felt the Yokohama concert was "impressive" in sound diversity and production, and commended Perfume's vocal abilities and stage presence. On the final date of the tour, Perfume announced that they would be doing a 2-day show at the prestigious Nippon Budokan in November 2008 as well as the release date of their next single, "
Love the World "Love the World" (stylized as "love the world") is Perfume's 7th major single. It was released on July 9, 2008 and debuted at number one on the Oricon chart, becoming the first electropop song from an electropop act to do so, Yellow Magic Orchest ...
". The concert tour was released on October 15, 2008 as a
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
. All performed album tracks were included on the DVD. The DVD reached number one on Japan's Oricon DVD Chart, Perfume's first number one DVD; it spent over 30 weeks in the top 300 chart. The DVD was certified gold by RIAJ for physical shipments of 100,000 units in Japan.


Critical reception

''Game'' received mixed to favorable reviews from most music critics. A staff reviewer from Channel-Ai awarded the album four-and-a-half stars out of five, labeling the album as "interesting." The reviewer felt that while the album was more a "Yasutaka Nakata album featuring Perfume’s vocals," he concluded, "Nakata’s detailed production of Perfume’s sweet, charismatic vocals creates an irresistible listening experience." Nia from Selective Hearing praised the album for featuring tracks that she had liked altogether. Nia commented, "Personally, I think that’s a perfect balance to have when making an album and one of the strongest aspects of ''Game'' is that each track has its own unique sound and style...". She praised Nakata for creating a "perfect balanced" album that, he has since never done.
Asian Junkie
editor Random J reviewed the album on his blog and awarded the album six-and-a-half stars out of ten. Random J stated "If you don't mind disconnected electro pop and techno, then you'll like this album. But if you like something with more to it, then you'll find these songs lack too much person-ability for your tastes." Random J concluded, however, "But for what it is, and those who are into this kind of music - it's a solid album. Perfume fans will not be disappointed. My love of electro pop and all things Daft Punk-esque is what has me really liking this album more than I thought I would. Definitely my guilty pleasure." Tetsuo Hiraga from '' Hot Express'' was positive in his review, commending Nakata's production and composition. Despite commending Perfume's image and vocal abilities, Hiraga went on to praise the songwriting for projecting "alive", "warm hearted" and "witty" themes to the album's tracks. Ian Martin from
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
awarded the album 3.5 stars out of five. Martin felt the production was "overwhelming" by commenting "There are also a number of occasions where the production completely overwhelms the sometimes flimsy melodies on offer, and it's hard to escape the impression that producer Yasutaka Nakata's attitude to the three members' vocal contributions is basically one of damage limitation." He did, however, commend the album's catchiness and complimented the mixture of dance genres. Zac Bentz from Japanator.com gave the album a mixed review. He criticized the album's lack of development and personality and felt the album didn't have a diversity of musical genres outside of electronic dance music. He commented, "If Perfume doesn't start expanding their sound, maybe moving out of the cyber-dance cage Yasutaka has built up around them into, say, more real-world territory, their remaining time may be limited."


Accolades and recognition

''Game'' won the Best Female Band/Band with female lead vocal Album of the Year award at the DBSK in French J-Pop Awards 2008. At the 1st Annual CD Shop Awards, ''Game'' was first-equal runner-up with Ohashi Trio's ''This is Music'' for the Grand Prix award. The winner of the night was
Sōtaisei Riron is a Japanese rock band formed in Tokyo in September 2006. Summary The band consists of Etsuko Yakushimaru ( lead vocals, producer, original instruments, artwork), Seiichi Nagai (guitar), Masaru Yoshida ( bass), Motoki Yamaguchi ( drums). The ...
's ''Shifon Shugi'' (2008). The album won the Album of Excellence Award at the 50th Japan Record Awards; it shared its recognition with ''Beyond Standard'' by Hiromi Uehara, Keiichi Suzuki's ''Hate Captain and Love Officer'',
Namie Amuro Namie Amuro ( ; ja, 安室奈美恵, Amuro Namie, label=none; born September 20, 1977) is a Japanese former recording artist, producer, songwriter, dancer, model, actress and entrepreneur who was active between 1992 and 2018. A leading figure of ...
's '' Best Fiction'', and Fuyumi Sakamoto's ''Masterpiece Song Spelling''. In July 2010, ''Game'' was featured in ''Music Magazines Best Top 100 Domestic Albums of 2000, ranking the album at number nine. As of February 2016, Ian Martin from AllMusic recognized ''Game'' as Perfume's best studio album and highlighted the album as the top pick from their discography. Martin highlighted the album tracks: "Baby Cruising Love", "Chocolate Disco", "Macaroni", "Polyrhythm", and "Twinkle Snow Powder Snow" as some of Perfume's best tracks from the album and their entire career. Julie from Go Boiano listed ''Game'' at number 12 on her 15 Awesome Albums for Beginners of J-pop; she stated "Pulling from techno trends even before Hatsune Miku made it cool, the girls have built up a considerable fanbase with their skilled dancing, catchy songs, and unique electronica vocals. Game showcases them at their best, and if you're a fan of Miku or techno doujin music, why not check out the original masters of electropop?".


Commercial performance

''Game'' debuted at number one on the Japanese Daily
Oricon Albums Chart The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Oricon originally published LP, CT, Cartridge and CD charts prior to the establishment of the Oricon Al ...
, staying there for an entire week. This resulted in the album debuting atop the Japanese Weekly Oricon Albums Chart, with an estimated 154,000 sold units in its first week of sales. This became the highest selling album by a female group for first week sales of 2008. ''Game'' became Perfume's first studio album to debut atop the Oricon Albums Chart for both Daily and Weekly rankings. ''Game'' became Nakata's first produced number one album, whilst Perfume's future albums handled by Nakata; ''Triangle'', ''JPN'', and ''Level3'' continued this streak. Perfume was Nakata's first and only project to have reached number one until Japanese singer
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu Kiriko Takemura ( Japanese: 竹村 桐子, born January 29, 1993), known professionally as Kyary Pamyu Pamyu (Hiragana: きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ), is a Japanese tarento, singer, and model. Her public image is associated with Japan's '' kaw ...
reached the top spot with ''
Nanda Collection is the second full-length studio album by Japanese recording artist Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, release on June 26, 2013, by Warner Music Japan. The album debuted at number one in the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart, becoming the first chart topper release of ...
'' (2013) and ''
Pika Pika Fantajin is the third studio album by Japanese singer Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, officially released on July 9, 2014. The album's official title is a portmanteau of the words "fantasy" and "person" (jin), as officially referenced to the album covers. The songs "Sl ...
'' (2014). It slipped to number three the following week, shifting 59,552 in Japan. It stayed at number three of three weeks, in the top 10 for five weeks, and the top 300 with sixty-nine weeks overall. To date, ''Game'' is Perfume's longest spanning album in the Oricon Albums Chart. ''Game'' entered the Billboard Top Albums Sales Chart at number two, Perfume's first album to reach the top ten. It fell to number three the following week and stayed there for three consecutive weeks. ''Game'' was certified double platinum in April 2009 by the
Recording Industry Association of Japan The is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved in the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969. The RIAJ's activities include pr ...
(RIAJ) for shipments of 500,000 units. To date, this is Perfume's only album to shift over 500,000 physical units in Japan. At the end of 2008, ''Game'' sold over 391,439 units in Japan; this ranked the twenty-third best selling album in Japan, and Perfume was the best selling girl group of that year. As the end of 2009, ''Game'' was placed 144th and sold over 61,415 units in Japan, ranking them the second best selling girl group behind Speed and Perfume's own entry with ''Triangle''; ''Game'' sold over 10,486 in 2010. As of February 2016, ''Game'' has sold over 477,000 units in Japan.


Legacy

Following its release, ''Game'' has been cited as one of the most successful technopop albums of all time. Martin from AllMusic commented about Perfume; "That erfumeare not like other Japanese manufactured idol groups is evident from the trio's popularity among not only traditional pop fans but also large numbers of indie and electronic music fans." He concluded that the album "revealed a further refined version of the template of cute idol pop coupled with the more sophisticated dance music influences that had made them so successful." Martin had listed the album as their best album to date, citing it as an AV album highlight. ''Game'' and its accompanying singles marked the beginning of their rise in becoming not only a large factor in Japanese music but launched them into the Western market. Daniel Robson from ''
The Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by ...
'' commented "The sound akataperfected for erfumewith 2008′s breakthrough album ��Game”caused a resurgence in demand for off-kilter electro-pop, at that time a niche genre, with labels rushing to release similar artists such as
Immi Mayu Nakazawa (中澤真由 ''Nakazawa Mayu''), known by the stage name immi, is a Japanese Electronica singer and songwriter. She is signed onto DefStar Records. While she writes and composes her own music, she is also regularly produced b ...
, Sweet Vacation and Urbangarde." He said Japanese pop acts including Perfume and
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu Kiriko Takemura ( Japanese: 竹村 桐子, born January 29, 1993), known professionally as Kyary Pamyu Pamyu (Hiragana: きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ), is a Japanese tarento, singer, and model. Her public image is associated with Japan's '' kaw ...
had "suddenly exploded in popularity" because they were "interesting." After the album peaked at number one on the Oricon chart, the album became the first technopop album to reach at number one since
Yellow Magic Orchestra Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO for short) is a Japanese electronic music band formed in Tokyo in 1978 by Haruomi Hosono (bass, keyboards, vocals), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums, lead vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards, vocals). The group is cons ...
did so with their album '' Naughty Boys''. According to Tokyograph, this makes Perfume only the second technopop group ever to achieve this position. The album is currently the group's highest selling album, as well as Nakata Yasutaka's highest-selling produced album or material in his career. After ''Game'', Perfume released more studio albums: ''
Triangle A triangle is a polygon with three Edge (geometry), edges and three Vertex (geometry), vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC. In Euclidean geometry, an ...
'', '' JPN'', '' Level 3'' and ''
Cosmic Explorer ''Cosmic Explorer'' (stylized as ''COSMIC EXPLORER'') is the fifth studio album by Japanese girl group Perfume. It was released on April 6, 2016 by Universal Music Japan, Universal J, and Perfume Records. It is Perfume's fifth consecutive album to ...
'', all peaking consecutively at number one on Oricon and were all certified platinum respectively. A book about the album and the trajectory of Perfume's career was published in the 33 1/3 Japan book, Perfume's Game (2018) by Japan-based journalist Patrick St. Michel. In 2020, Jonathan McNamara of ''
The Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by ...
'' listed it as one of the 10 Japanese albums worthy of inclusion in ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
s 2020 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, writing that the infectious grooves found on 'Game' and the immeasurable impact it left on both J-pop and electronic music make it essential listening for every pop music fan".


Track listing


Formats

* Standard CD – Consists of twelve songs on one disc. * First pressing standard CD – Consists of twelve songs on one disc. First pressing issues include a bonus obi strip. * CD and DVD – Consists of twelve songs on one disc. Includes five music videos and two live performances on the second disc. * First pressing CD and DVD – Consists of twelve songs on one disc. Includes five music videos and two live performances on the second disc. First pressing issues include a bonus obi strip. * LP – Consists of six tracks on one analog LP, and another six tracks on the second. * Digital download – Consists of twelve songs on one disc.


Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Game''. *
Ayano Ōmoto , nicknamed , is a Japanese singer and dancer. She is known as one of the members of the Japanese electropop group Perfume. Biography Ōmoto was born and raised in Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture, and attended Actor's School Hiroshima wit ...
(Nocchi) – lead vocals, background vocals *
Ayaka Nishiwaki , nicknamed , is a Japanese singer and dancer. She is known as one of the members of the Japanese electropop group Perfume. Biography Nishiwaki was born and raised in Hiroshima, Japan, where she attended Actor's School Hiroshima with friends ...
(A-Chan) – lead vocals, background vocals *
Yuka Kashino (born 23 December 1988), nicknamed , is a Japanese singer and dancer. She is known as one of the members of the electropop group Perfume. Biography Kashino was born and raised in Hiroshima, Japan, where she attended Actor's School Hiroshima wi ...
(Kashiyuka) – lead vocals, background vocals *
Yasutaka Nakata is a Japanese DJ and music producer. He formed the band Capsule in 1997 with vocalist Toshiko Koshijima and himself as composer and record producer when both were 17. The band debuted in 2001 with the song "Sakura". He is known for being the ...
– songwriting, producing, composing, arranging, engineer, mixing, recorded by *Iku Aoki – album director *Masahiro Nakawaki – album director *Satoshi Hasegawa – promotion planning *Hideo Tanaka – sales promotion *Momoko Takimoto – product co-ordination *Atsuko Okuzono – super desk planner *Hiromi Okawa – management *Shiro Yamamoto – management *Yusuke Iwai – management *Kayoko Takimoto – management *Takeshi Fukuoka – management *Nozomi Ishimoto – executive producer *Masahiro Shinoki – executive producer *Yokichi Osato – supervisors *Sumio Matsuzaki – supervisors *Tatsuro Hatanaka – supervisors *Shingenori Nishino – supervisors *Kazuaki "Triple-O" Seki – art direction *Mari Amita – photographer *Mayuko "Triple-O" Yuki – designer *Ken Uchizawa – clothes stylist *Hatsuhiro Nozawa – hair stylist *Masako Osuga – make-up artist *Kiyoe Mizusawa – design coordinator *
Tokuma Japan Communications is a publisher in Japan, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. The company was established in 1954 by Yasuyoshi Tokuma in Minato, Tokyo. The company’s product portfolio includes music publishing, video game publishing, movies, anime, magazines, m ...
– Perfume's distribution and record label *
Universal Music Japan , often referred to as just Universal Music Japan or UMJ, is a Japanese subsidiary of the Universal Music Group founded in 1990. It is the largest subsidiary for a foreign company in the country regarding music distribution. The company is resp ...
– Perfume's 2012–present label; distribution co-rights *
Contemode Contemode, stylized in all lowercase, was a Japanese record label founded by Yasutaka Nakata in 2003. The label was based in Shibuya, Tokyo and specialized in a variety of music styles including electropop, Shibuya-kei, lounge, dance, and har ...
– Nakata's distribution label, co-rights *Yamaha Music Communications – Nakata's distribution label, co-rights


Charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


See also

* List of Oricon number-one albums of 2008


Notes


References


External links


''Game''
– Perfume's official website.
''Game Interview''
– Hot Express website. {{DEFAULTSORT:Game (Perfume Album) 2008 albums Japanese-language albums Perfume (Japanese band) albums 2008 video albums Tokuma Shoten albums Albums produced by Yasutaka Nakata Electropop video albums