Are Dream C Club’s Hostesses Clones Of Idolm@ster’s Idols?

D3 Publisher’s hostess dating sim Dream C Club is without a doubt inspired by the success of The Idolm@ster, but the link between the two titles may be even deeper. Let’s take a look at character art from both games.

Hachimaki points out idols Makoto, Ami, and Chihaya appear remarkably similar to Nao, Setsu, and Reika from Dream C Club. The Dream C Club staff vehemently deny the speculation in an interview with Gamespot Japan.

What do you think? Did D3 Publisher borrow Namco Bandai’s idol archetypes or is this a coincidence? Either way, Namco Bandai wins since they own D3 Publisher.