Singstar

[PaleDavid]

Gonna be a star

I agree that Sing Star is pretty funny. But you've got to admit that compared to the sheer gold-plated revelation of EyeToy, this is a bit of a poorly-thought-out gimmick.

I admit that's not a fair comparison, but that's really what Sony would like us to think about this: another accessory for your PS2 that's as essential as the power cord.

But it's not. This is less fun that the bongo drum game on - what was it, Dreamcast? - and actually more like a light gun game. You're being judged on carefully refining your luck. I bet you if Debbie Harry took on "Heart of Glass" on this game she'd be scored exactly the same as, well, anyone. It rates out of tune singing pretty highly as long as you're consistently out of tune. Now I know that's a skill of sorts but frankly god help us all.

Interesting fun to be had though if you have a harmonica, a kazoo or a "swanny-whistle"...

[Squirtle]

If you can't croon in tune to Elvis then you shouldn't be crooning. And it has a free mode where you don't score so you can sing what you like. Next, you're gonna be saying that the DDR games aren't fun because you can't hit whatever pad you like. It's a game based around singing tunes. The scoring is based on how accurate you can hit the notes present in the songs provided. Why should it encourage improvisation and then how would it rate it? What you're asking for makes no sense.

[PaleDavid]

I'm not asking for a scat singing game (actually, I would like one, but that's another topic) but I'm saying that accurate singing is not that fun a thing to test. That's all. The game is not all bad; actually the songs mainly are. I'm just not jumping around screaming about it, in tune or otherwise.

David

[Soi]

@PaleDavid: Singstar like a light gun game? I think that needs some further exaplanation.

I agree with your other points though. The one go I've had on Singastar was sober and doing Heart of Glass. Not being the most confident about my singing voice, I couldn't really give it my all.

[PaleDavid]

Like a light gun game in the sense that playing Operation Wolf (okay, even something more up to date) is not going to make you any better at shooting people. You're just figuring out how the game would like you to point gun-shaped gadget at a dongle on the screen. Maybe that's all computer games, but in this case it applies to a real world activity. Getting good at Bomberman is not going to make you run around slim tunnels blowing up walls and eating skulls, but getting good at SingStar might make you sing in public. Just a thought.

Not you personally Soi. You have an admirable warble - like a cross between Elvis and Jimi. Admittedly that's Elvis Costello and Jimi Tenor, but that ain't so bad relly.

[mid]

Costello is ten times the artist that Presley was, anyway.

Personally, while I'm vaguely interested (despite my complete lack of singing ability), I'll be waiting to see what happens in terms of expansion discs and the like - there are only about three tracks on this disc that interest me. Give us some Moz, Brett, Jarvis and Damon and we're in business, but I rather suspect that this is going to be stuck on promoting people from Sony labels rather too much.

edit - actually, thinking about it, there is a surprisingly even-handed approach on this disc to labels; a-ha are on Warner for a start. A lot of the modern stuff is Sony though.

[Soi]

Some Moz would be ace. I often find myself singing Smiths songs after a few.

I would like to see a Vib Ribbon-esque mode in which you could put your own cds in and sing along to those. Then I could play the Vib Ribbon music on Singstar: "There's no time, hurry up, everything's so fantastic.."

[Soi]

Not you personally Soi. You have an admirable warble - like a cross between Elvis and Jimi. Admittedly that's Elvis Costello and Jimi Tenor, but that ain't so bad relly.

I've always been more of a Bez than a singer.

I get your lightgun idea now too. At least I think I do. Are you saying that Singstar has as much relevence to actual singing as House of the Dead has to shooting real life zombies? I can see that.

[Soo Denim]

@ Soi and PaleDavid,

You start being nice now or no more toys for either of you (and yes Soi that includes your birthday present!) Oh and as for Davids rendition of My Bloody Valantine, the technology to do so is not that difficult to produce problem is the legal world of pain you then enter.

On a seperate note what you doing over the weekend either of you feel like popping round?

P.S. David the bongo game is on the gamecube (as you well know) the f***ing Donkey Kong images I thought should at least give you a hint!

[Darwock]

I don't think I could make much comment on what's been said on this thread without coming across as very rude.

But honestly, have you considered having that stick removed from your collective ass? I don't know anybody who has played this 'clinically' looking for accurate pitch and sustain... round my house we stick it on and have a total laugh. We did a duet on Careless Whisper but sung it like we were Motorhead. The fun is that you are *NOT* being watched by a whole bunch of strangers, so you can arse it up however you like. I also can't believe people are judging it by the songs that are included and who they might appeal to. I bet you'd be like those people you see on Pop Idol who think they're the bees knees and can't take the slightest criticism of their godawful performance. It's about FUN.

As for the Eyetoy comparisons, my Eyetoy has already found more use through this game in a week than it did in all the months since the official launch. This is the kind of application it needed.

[Soi]

@Soo Denim: Hey! I wasn't winging about Singstar. I think it is great, and look forward to having a copy. It is fair to say though that it suits my skill set less that failing my arms to Eye Toy's ninja swating game.

I'm certainly looking forward to butchering songs in the privacy of my own living room.

[E. Randy Dupre]

But honestly, have you considered having that stick removed from your collective ass? I don't know anybody who has played this 'clinically' looking for accurate pitch and sustain

Why is this apparently *so* difficult to understand? The game marks you on pitch and accuracy, for ****'s sake. That's. The. Point. Of. It. If you're going to play it in any other way then yes, great, good for you. I'm happy you're getting something out of it. Last time I looked, though, we weren't completely ignoring the developers' scoring mechanisms when evaluating games.

Hell, there's fun to be had going thw wrong way around a track in a **** racing game to see how many crashes you can cause. That you've found an alternative way to play something doesn't suddenly stop it being a **** game when played the way it's supposed to be.

[Darwock]

Not hard to understand at all. I'll bet your parties are a riot ;-)

[E. Randy Dupre]

I don't do parties. I'm too busy trying to get my voice to sound just like the kids out of Westlife

[teddles]

I don't do parties. I'm too busy trying to get my voice to sound just like the kids out of Westlife

Jeez man relax and take a deep breath. So much bile for a game you admit to having a quick couple of goes on. I think we all know you dont like it.....now move on before you do yourself a falsetto related injury.