SingStar R&B review (PlayStation 2)

This could be it; The final chapter of a legacy stretching across the globe from Bollywood to the Spice Girls. SingStar R&B could well be the final SingStar game I have to review for the PS2. It’s been a long ride, from the original career mode of the first SingStar, through the almost obligatory classic 80s pack, to the Indie stylings of SingStar Rocks, and all of them (well, all but one) share the same principles. 30 new tracks, a load of party options, and a requirement for us at Boomtown Towers to host yet another party to truly play the game as it was intended. Because we need an excuse to have a party.

After the release of SingStar PS3, we all assumed we’d not need any more of these reviews. Regular updates… over 300 songs on the store from day one. Typically it didn’t happen, but while you’re waiting for the (apparently) bi-monthly updates, the next of which should be online today, perhaps it’s worth checking out the last (currently) of the PS2 crop. As usual, I could probably simply post the track listing here, tell you guys to read it to judge if you’ll like it, and leave it there, but playing the game gives a greater understanding of which songs are transposed well to the SingStar notes and perhaps whether the style of music lends itself to accurately scored karaoke.

You need to buy a game to sing?

Christmas is coming, so the gimmicky party games have a big marketing push, and Sony’s trump cards of the Eye Toy and SingStar combine to form this new entry. For those of you perhaps new to gaming, finally got the cash together to be able to buy a PS2 (don’t they pay you to get one now?), SingStar provides you with two microphones to sing into, while the game does clever pitch and rhythm judging to see how well you’re singing, scoring you for your troubles. There’s no real incentive to play besides the pleasure of singing, but the value of the game comes around when you get a group of friends together, the party atmosphere, multiple rounds of competition and team based randomness combining to spruce life into any event. Plug in an Eye Toy and you can see yourselves singing, and through the songs the game will record certain aspects to play back to you later if you desire.

Don’t even think about playing this game on your own unless you’re really just trying to learn all of the songs (a task achieved best by the first SingStar game and its Career mode, sadly missing from all further incarnations) or practise. The tracks are presented with music videos playing in the background where possible, or some kind of alternate edit of video or pictures of the artist edited together by the SingStar crew if no video exists. Underneath are the lyrics to the song, while the series of notes telling you how to sing and showing you how well you’re doing is overlaid on top of the videos. In terms of presentation, it’s simple enough to be playable and this simplicity lends itself very well to being able to set it up easily to play how you want.

Party

It’s all about the party modes, and SingStar’s Pass The Mic is the headliner of choice. Giving you a standard of seven rounds varying from a simple battle to a duet between team members, to the infamous micro-medleys that change song every line or two. Ultimately the best performers gain points for their team, and the winning team gets the satisfaction of winning. Then you can randomise the teams again and try it all over until your favourite songs have all been sung.

The only issue with a big party is which SingStar to play, as undoubtedly everyone will have a preference for different track listings. A couple of people out of the group have fallen in love with SingStar R&B above all other versions, and while I’m more of a Rock/Indie appreciator there are enough songs here that I know and enjoy to make it the clear choice of the moment. Mark Ronson’s ‘Stop Me’ was a welcome surprise for me, backed up strongly by some classic tracks like ‘Dancing In The Street’ and ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’.

Stylistically similar

Having experienced SingStar Party and Pop World, generally genre free outings of the series, a lot of similar tracks exist within R&B, but compounding the tracks together in a common theme seems to work better to ensure that provided you enjoy the theme, then most of the songs won’t be a disappointment. Group favourites that didn’t bother me as much include Amy Winehouse ‘Back To Black’, Will Smith’s ‘Summertime’ and even Beverly Knight with ‘Come As You Are’, but as soon as something you don’t like comes out you’ll run into Edwin Starr’s ‘War’, Luthar Vandross with ‘Never Too Much’ and even ‘Alright’ by Jamiroquai (who is the most widely loved party music in my experience).

However, nothing is going to get me to sing Gwen Stefani, ‘Hollaback Girl’. Unfortunately, the odd hit or miss Rap song is present that in themselves are songs you might want to sing (Salt’N’Pepa, ‘Push It’ for anyone?) but as usual, giving no indication of the timing or which beats you’re actually missing leads it to be a more tricky and unreliable style that none of us have ever really got our heads round. They are definitely ridiculously hard to attempt without knowing the songs very well.

And now, the end is near

Apparently Sony will still be supporting PS2 versions of SingStar for the foreseeable future (yes they all still work on the PS3) although once the PS3 version is in your hands, why buy a track pack that contains some music you might not like. Perhaps the only benefit is the fact that they work out slightly cheaper to buy 30 songs for £20 than at the 99p price tag set for individual tracks. That said, won’t we all be very annoyed to find the songs we know and love to sing will have to be repurchased for the PS3. In all honesty, unless you absolutely have to own every version, if you’re planning on grabbing the PS3 version or already have it, save your cash and use it to buy the tracks you actually like. All of these should eventually turn up on the SingStore. If you can’t wait, and love all of these tunes however, it’s an easy purchase.

So again, I’m turned from games reviewer to music reviewer, just because of the prevalence and success of music and rhythm games. (We’re still waiting for Rock Band) Fortunately, this track listing is certainly a strong one. Nothing particularly special is present in the package, and they’ve clearly become too lazy to include short video clips on loading the games any more, but the songs that are there are a good variety, and work well to sing within the game, despite the fact that it seems like merely a track expansion pack now. I’m just glad I never had to review that High School Musical Karaoke game… purely because I’d have to admit that I knew the songs.

Track Listing

• Amerie - 1 Thing
• Amy Winehouse - Back To Black
• Anastacia - I'm Outta Love
• Beverley Knight - Come As You Are
• Black Eyed Peas - Pump It
• Chris Brown - Yo (Excuse Me Miss)
• Christina Milian - AM 2 PM
• Corinne Bailey Rae - I'd Liked Too
• Destiny's Child - Bootylicious
• Diana Ross & The Supremes - Baby Love
• DJ Jazzy Jeff And The Fresh Prince - Summertime
• Edwin Starr - WAR
• En Vogue - My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)
• The Four Tops - Can't Help Myself
• Gwen Stefani - Hollerback Girl
• Inner City - Good Life
• Jameila - Thank You
• Jamiroquai - Allright
• Luther Vandross - Never To Much
• Mark Ronson feat. Daniel Merriweather - Stop Me
• Martha Reeve & The Vandellas - Dancing In The Street
• Marvin Gaye & Tammii Tarrelle - Ain't No Mountain High Enough
• OutKast - Idlewild Blue (Don't Chu Worry 'Bout Me)
• Pussy Cat Dolls - Buttons
• Rihanna - We Ride
• Salt N Pepa - Push It
• Sugababes - Ugly
• The 411 - Dumb
• Whitney Houston - Your Love Is My Love
• Womack & Womack - Teardrops