Technologies

I Played People of Note, a Unique Musical RPG Blending Final Fantasy With Pop Songs

People of Note blends musical performance, rhythm and turn-based combat in one of the most creative games coming in 2026.

It’s been a while since rhythm mechanics moved beyond Guitar Hero and Rock Band to empower neat versions of action games, like Crypt of the Necrodancer, BPM: Bullets Per Minute and Hi-Fi Rush. Rarely does it grace role-playing games, and then only in quick-time events to make attacks or defenses stronger. But People of Note is an upcoming RPG that doesn’t just implement rhythm into combat — it weaves music through the whole package, from the combat and items to the characters and world around.

People of Note’s story is set in a fantasy world split into lands themed around musical genres. The game kicks off with Cadence, a singer dreaming of global stardom who must leave the pop land of Chordia to form a band if she has any hope of winning a Eurovision-like dream competition. Like any good RPG, she’ll have to travel to other lands (in this case, those of Rock, EDM and Rap) to form unlikely allies to make a harmonizing sound that breaks barriers and beats enemies on their path to stardom.

I got to play a short demo exploring about 90 minutes early in the game, which launches on April 7, and it’s definitely unique. Less revolutionary in mechanics than in marrying RPGs with the trappings of music, People of Note seems tailor-made for performers and musical theater nerds who want to see their art represented in fantasy games for a change. It’s more Kingdom Hearts than a hardcore stat-grinding RPG, but that makes it more accessible for the music novice (like me).

The gameplay revolves around classic RPG staples of turn-based battles and gaining levels; the game’s creative director Jason Wishnov cited Final Fantasy 9 and Chrono Cross as inspirations.

But People of Note has a ton of music, including in-game musical performances. Some of the voice acting of the main characters is split between spoken and singing talents, like main character Cadence (voiced by Heather Gonzalez, sung by the artist LEXXE). Others have one performer for both, like party member Fret (voiced and sung by Jason Charles Miller of industrial rock band Godhead).

That blend seems like it’s setting up People of Note to be more of an experiential journey, but there are some hints of depth. People of Note has borrowed some neat mechanics from the best RPGs out there, turning Final Fantasy’s ultimate move Limit Breaks into Mash-Up collaborations between characters (feeling more like Chrono Trigger’s double and triple techs). Skills and skill-augmenting gems can be swapped in and out like Final Fantasy’s Materia.

Most of People of Note’s innovations lie in remixing staple RPG elements with musical flair. In combat, turn order is visualized on the bottom of the screen as a musical stanza, which shows how many actions players and enemies get. Most of the time, a stanza will offer an attack bonus that rotates between musical styles, giving different party members alternating boosts. (The best songs let band members take turns to show off their stuff in solos.)

A short jaunt in rock-and-roll town

My preview opened just after Cadence leaves Chordia for the land of rock, Durandis, which is a dusty frontier town that would fit in a western. She finds it split between different subgenres, with punk and grunge fans sticking to their neighborhoods rather than blend with each other.

Soon enough, Cadence finds herself sticking up for the locals to defend against raiders (who twang away on banjos and do a bit of soft-boot line dancing). To her rescue comes Fret, a former rocker, who she wants to join her band.

But Fret’s got his own history as he laments the splintering of rock into so many divisive categories gatekeeping each other. He reluctantly joins Cadence as they seek an audience with the biggest local rocker who can protect the town — naturally, he’s also Fret’s old bandmate.

As that intro suggests, People of Note has a lighthearted tone, referencing music fan culture with jokes and jabs. Mostly this comes across in the unending avalanche of puns — an NPC named a Fretful Man, a bird cage with a sign that says Free Bird, Cadence joking that a raid has torn Durandis to “shred,” and so on. Fret’s old bandmate is a local metal star that he knew as Freq (pronounced “freak”) but goes by Quincy these days.

I can see how that torrent of dad jokes could be wearying over time, but the jokes landed just fine with me. They fit with the game’s general perspective that music should be playful, experimental and fun — not rigidly locked by rules and precedent.

In their quest to speak to Quincy, Cadence and Fret must pass through his lair, adorned in heavy metal skulls and flames. Players need to solve the puzzles found here, though these can be turned off in the game’s settings.

Players also have plenty of hard rocker enemies to defeat. These fights weren’t too challenging, especially given how the game omits some common RPG friction by, for instance, fully healing between battles. Given the demo’s position early in the game, I hope fights get a bit more complicated and vary in difficulty.

At the top of his lair, Quincy waited for us as a boss battle, getting in multiple attacks and messing with the player’s party. Midway through, he hindered damage done during the first action taken during my turn, forcing me to shift my strategy.

I also saw one of the game’s better innovations: Bosses power up every few turns, ratcheting up the tension and forcing players to end fights more quickly lest they be overwhelmed.

With Quincy humbled and his fans pledging to protect the town, Cadence and Fret go on their way to the next musical land to acquire another band member, seeking to further complexify their sound with EDM and rap to craft a truly iconic blend.

Many games have jokes and pop culture references, but People of Note feels fully committed to bringing a musical fantasy land to life, top to bottom.

Midway through the demo in a cinematic, Cadence launches into a song to get Fret to join her, transporting both to a stage where they trade verses expressing their positions before she wins him over and they harmonize. Like any good musical, conflict is expressed and resolved in song, with characters emerging changed and ready for the next part of the journey.

As I watched the cinematic, I noticed Cadence’s pop star-styled jacket has a bass clef weaved into its front, while Fret’s boot spurs look like guitar string tuning pegs — slight touches that speak to a lot of vision. The game’s streamlined RPG combat didn’t seem like it would satisfy fans of more hardcore games in the genre looking for a mechanical or strategic challenge, but for those who are willing to see the game’s playful blend of two worlds, it’s shaping up to be one of the more novel games of 2026.

Technologies

Trump Maintains US‑Iran Negotiations Continue Amid Tehran’s Denials of Duplicity

President Trump insists that US‑Iran talks are ongoing despite Tehran’s denial of any negotiation plans, while warning that only a deal or total surrender will allow passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Conflicting statements from both sides have heightened uncertainty as the conflict enters its sixth month.

On Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that negotiations between the United States and Iran are still taking place, even after Tehran stated it has no intention of engaging in direct talks with Washington.

In a fiery Truth Social post, Trump labeled Iran’s leaders “unbelievably duplicitous,” claiming they are lying about ongoing peace talks “whether Iran wants to admit it or not.” He repeated his assertion that the United States completely controls the Strait of Hormuz, despite maritime traffic through the crucial route lingering at only a small fraction of pre‑conflict levels.

He wrote, “Nothing reaches Iran unless we allow it, and nothing will pass unless a deal—or total surrender—is achieved.”

Earlier that day, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters there is no imminent plan for U.S.–Iran negotiations, contradicting Trump’s earlier comment that talks would resume Monday afternoon. Baghaei added that Iran’s only current discussions are with Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflicting statements have heightened uncertainty over the peace‑talk process and the broader conflict, now in its sixth month.

Trump’s assertion about new negotiations came a day after he said on Truth Social that he had agreed to cancel a massive strike against Iran “subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL.” He said in the same post that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked him to hold off on that attack because “the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

Trump has claimed dozens of times throughout the more‑than‑five‑month‑long war that a deal is at hand. No permanent deal has been signed, and a temporary ceasefire reached in June has fallen apart.

Trump has also repeatedly threatened to launch devastating strikes against Iran before backing off. After the latest example, oil prices on Monday fell and stocks surged.

BMI, a research unit of Fitch Solutions, said in a note Monday that a broader diplomatic understanding on reopening the Strait of Hormuz is still achievable this quarter, while raising the probability of its escalation scenario to 35% from 25%, citing mounting military, diplomatic and economic signs of rising U.S.-Iran tensions.

“Diplomatic progress is likely to be punctuated by periodic military flare-ups, while miscalculation by either side could trigger a renewed escalation,” BMI analysts wrote in a note. The firm said the key issue to watch is the future governance of the strait, as the Iran-Oman talks — potentially backed by Gulf states, China and the U.S. — point to efforts to build a post-conflict shipping framework.

Shipping risks persist even as diplomacy appears to be advancing. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it received a report of an incident 20 nautical miles (23 miles) northeast of Khasab, Oman — at the mouth of the strait — with a tanker’s master reporting an explosion in close proximity to the vessel at about 20:37 UTC Sunday (4:37 pm ET). The vessel and crew were safe and authorities are investigating, UKMTO said, advising ships to transit with caution.

The proposal Trump announced over the weekend calls for the U.S. and Iran to return to negotiations and continue ironing out some of the thorny issues that had derailed diplomatic efforts, according to The Associated Press, citing a regional official involved in the mediation efforts.

The official said the proposal also includes a reopening of the Hormuz Strait and halting attacks across the region, including by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq on the Arab Gulf countries and Jordan.

The U.S., for its part, will end its naval blockade on Iran and allow Tehran to export its oil, the official said, adding that no deal has been reached, although the mediation efforts remained underway.

Trump’s weekend reversal has lowered the temperature after days of escalating attacks across the Gulf. Kuwait said Saturday that Iranian forces launched a wave of drones within its airspace, with its military destroying multiple aircraft after Iran targeted critical infrastructure in the country’s north.

A parallel track with Muscat is also advancing. Iranian diplomats said Tehran was close to reaching a new arrangement with Oman to manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a deal critical to preventing the war from escalating further, according to the Financial Times.

Iranian officials said negotiations over future management of the Hormuz Strait with Oman, which sits on the opposite shore of the waterway, are in their final stages. The agreed shipping route would be different from those used before, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Baghaei, adding that the new route was separate from the issue of the strait’s reopening or continued closure.

Technologies

Oil Prices Slide as Trump Halts Planned Iran Strike

Oil prices dropped after Trump cancelled a planned strike on Iran, with WTI down about 5% and Brent near 5% lower. He said the move followed requests from Tehran and regional allies for a pause while a deal shaping the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program is negotiated.

Oil prices fell on Monday after President Donald Trump announced he had cancelled a planned strike on Iran. WTI futures dropped roughly 5% to $80.34 a barrel, while Brent slipped about 4.7% to $83.77 a barrel.

Trump said early Sunday he called off the strike after Iran and several Middle Eastern nations asked him to hold off, noting that the outlines of a deal had been agreed upon. He added that the prospective accord would entail the immediate, full opening of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, according to his Truth Social post.

The president had been considering another round of strikes as diplomatic hopes waned since the conflict began on February 28. He said the U.S. and Iran would meet for talks on Monday, but Iran denied any scheduled negotiations with Washington, citing PressTV. Iran’s foreign‑ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei clarified that Tehran was only discussing shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz with Oman. In a follow‑up Truth Social message, Trump insisted that, regardless of Iran’s acknowledgment, the United States is indeed discussing a solution to a long‑standing problem created by Iran.

Technologies

Oil Prices Drop as Trump Cancels Planned Attack on Iran

Oil prices fell sharply after President Trump announced the cancellation of a planned strike on Iran, citing a new deal that would open the Hormuz Strait and end Iran’s nuclear threat.

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after President Donald Trump announced that he had called off a planned strike on Iran.

West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. benchmark, slipped roughly 5% to close at $80.34 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, declined 4.7% to settle at $83.77 a barrel.

Trump made the announcement early Sunday, saying he had canceled the strike following requests from Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries.

In a Truth Social post, he wrote: “We have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

The president indicated that the proposed agreement would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, as well as an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.

Trump had been weighing additional strikes amid diminishing prospects for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict that began on Feb. 28. He stated that the U.S. and Iran would hold negotiations on Monday.

Tehran denied that talks were planned with Washington, according to state news outlet PressTV.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was only holding talks with Oman regarding the routes ships can use through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump added that whether “Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking of a solution to a problem that they have caused for decades.”