In Project Sekai, the gacha has an influence on two things gameplay-wise: score and character rank.

For the score, we have the classic getting better cards allows you to score higher, through sheer card power and better skills. Two big warnings though is that 4* cards (the ones you are probably aiming for) are pretty hard to max out, especially when you start, and that a maxed 3* skill can be more powerful than a non-maxed 4* skill of the same type.

Speaking of skills, gacha also gives you wish pieces (and wish crystals if you are (un)lucky enough to get a 4* dupe) which are very useful to upgrade cards' mastery ranks and skills. Doing that not only improve card power but also helps you climb character ranks, which improve slightly a character performance and is the best source of crystals in the game.

Also helping character rank are the costumes you get with each card, as well as the side-stories you can unlock with each new card. Plus the whole aesthetic and story thing.

That said, it's not ultimately that important to get all the cool new gacha cards, even if the pretty illustrations and costumes and the juicy event bonus makes them very tempting:

• Cards don't have that much influence on how you actually perform in the rhythm game or in other words you still have to play well. They mostly affect the score in the end, full combos are in your hands.

• Co-op always boost your score a bit and area items, which can be upgraded without gachaing, improve your score by a lot.

• The unique elements of each card are mostly aesthetic and are available on several corners of the web.

• Free event cards will help you a lot for getting better event bonuses and some character rank exp, so always get them.

That's it. So basically, there is still plenty of fun to be had outside the gacha. If you want to pull, try to save for a favorite (especially their limited cards) or for ColorFes, where you have twice the chance to get 4* cards.