This musical turn-based RPG hits all the right chords, and you can play the free Steam demo right now

People of Note key art cropped to show pop singer Cadence and rocker Fret — (Image credit: Annapurna Interactive)

As a notorious sucker for musicals – from High School Musical to The Book of Mormon – and turn-based role-playing games – I don't want to talk about how many hours I've spent in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, thank you very much – the musical turn-based RPG People of Note from developer Iridium Studios and publisher Annapurna Interactive is basically designed to play me like a fiddle.

I'd thought as much after seeing the reveal trailer late last year, and reading our own reporting from Tokyo Game Show 2025, and now that I've spent about 90 minutes roaming around People of Note's brightly colored world filled with strikingly cartoonish characters and backgrounds, I can already tell that I'm going to be obsessed with the game once it releases in early April.

The other side

People of Note | “Mashup” Official Song Clip - YouTube

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The basic premise of People of Note sees protagonist and pop singer Cadence looking to win the Noteworthy Song Contest and deciding she can't go it alone; thereby necessitating the gathering of musicians to fill out her band (aka RPG party) by traveling around the world. But this is no ordinary world! Note (that's its Proper Noun™ name) is a place defined by its musical genres.

Functionally, this means there's a rock town (Durandis) and an EDM city (Lumina) and so on for Cadence to explore while taking on enemies and the mysterious "Harmonic Convergence" that's causing trouble. If that's sounds not altogether different from the hit 2020 animated film Trolls World Tour, first of all: congratulations on being a person of taste. Second of all: yeah, it's not not that.

The demo specifically drops me into the game's second chapter to explore Durandis, which also just so happens to be under attack by Homestead, which is apparently the country-aligned musical faction. While they're a bit much to take on by my lonesome as I belt out rhythm game-style pop attacks, rocker Fret quickly joins the party to help out.

People of Note screenshot showing Cadence standing below a giant metal bird statue in the desert town of Durandis — (Image credit: Annapurna Interactive)

People of Note only really gets going once you have multiple party members, which makes sense given the musical theme and harmonies and so on. Turns are played out across a stanza – basically a music-themed action bar at the bottom of the screen – so you have some idea of what's coming as well as how long you have to act before it. Do you build up action points to perform abilities or do you smack the enemy directly? Do you rest to build up said action points? And here's hoping you have rhythm because several abilities and attacks are tied directly to how well you can eyeball a closing circle.

This is further complicated by equipment across, both items and skills. You can equip various "stones" that represent skills in and out to change your combat lineup, and there are additional modifiers you can then use to further tailor your kit. Actual items are traditionally associated with stat increases – more Defense or so on – with the occasional more significant advantage. For example, I've come to enjoy a modifier that includes a passive heal on Cadence for her big damage-dealing skill that only gets better when used in the first action of a stanza while Fret runs around with the Rolling Stone accessory, which has him start combat full up on action points.

It's these mechanics that I experience most alongside a healthy helping of the game's particular brand of humor during my demo. A chance encounter with Weird Owl (yes, you read that correctly) featuring polka music and an accordion dog you can pet will stay with me for a long time. Also, one of the merchants is a shop with a big sign that reads "3 Stores Down," so, you know. You're either going to be constantly chuckling or groaning, but I found myself doing much more of the former than the latter.

People of Note | Reveal Trailer - YouTube

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There's also a light environmental puzzle element to People of Note, which is maybe my least favorite aspect. The demo area includes several puzzles of basically lining up lines of energy by turning emitters that then bounce to and fro to (hopefully) eventually hit a trigger. The first puzzle was novel, the second was less so, and by the time I had to do it a third time I was over it.

And while music is clearly infused throughout, and there's even a non-gameplay interlude of sorts with a lovely sequence where Cadence and Fret learn to work together, it's hard to get a read on how that all comes together in the end. With just two members of the band, the tone and vibe doesn't feel quite right when I know without a doubt at least two elements – DJ Synthia and rapper Vox – are missing.

The overwhelming impression of People of Note I'm left with, however, is that I want to see, hear, and play more.

People of Note is set to release for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch 2 on April 7, 2026. A demo is now available on Steam. If you're hungry for more games using turn-based mechanics, be sure to check out our ranking of the best RPGs.