Amidst a drawn-out struggle to get its game back on Apple’s App Store, Twinkle Star Knights publisher DMM Games has replaced a bunch of characters illustrations and scenes in the iOS version of the game with blacked out silhouettes. This makes the current version playable on Apple devices after a long suspension, and is meant to be a temporary measure while the developers carry out design revisions to comply with Apple’s regulations.
The iOS version of Twinkle Star Knights first ran into issues in August 2025 (it had operated without issue for two years prior). After a planned update failed its App Store review, the platform’s reviewers pointed out issues with some in-game animations and illustrations. Publisher DMM Games would enter discussions with Apple, whereupon workarounds and corrections for the affected assets were made.
An updated version offering fixes to the issues was submitted but ultimately declined upon re-review, with DMM Games being informed that potentially all metadata (character illustrations and animations) since the game’s 2023 release may require corrections as they could include “content that may offend some users.” The publisher apologized to all iOS players, preparing a cloud version of the game that’s playable but doesn’t include new events and features.
Twinkle Star Knights would run into problems again in September 2025, when DMM Games announced that the new build they were working on alongside Studio Kumasan had been declined by Apple upon review. Even after replacing and altering the artwork of all the Star Knights female characters (which they believed were the cause of the issues), Apple still judged the game to be “in violation of guidelines.”
Given that iOS players have had to endure more than two months without updates, DMM Games found a temporary solution that makes the current version playable on Apple devices. Completed revisions of artwork that has been approved by the publisher’s operations team will be displayed in the game. Metadata that is currently being revised or under review has been replaced with their respective silhouettes. The silhouettes will be replaced with their final versions once they have been approved.
It may not be the prettiest solution (Twinkle Star Knights’ iOS version currently feels like a prolonged segment of “Who’s That Pokémon?”), but Apple users will at least be able to play the game while the developers and publisher sort things out. According to EXNOA, a DMM subsidiary, a complete revision of the game’s metadata will take a “significant amount of time.”
An interesting fact is that Twinkle Star Knights passed its App Store review around October 8, whereupon it failed to pass once more around October 21 (source: Game*Spark). DMM Games says it will continue to engage in discussions with the iOS review team to better meet players’ expectations.
Twinkle Star Knights is available on the Play Store and App Store, with a separate adult version hosted on Fanza.
