Karaoke is set to be the craze of videogames in 2004; Nick Ryan gives us the low-down on Sony’s attempt…

SingStar invites players to step into the spotlight and exercise their vocal chords in what looks like a real fun product from Sony! Developed by Sony London, the studio responsible for EyeToy, SingStar offers an engaging, entertaining experience that encourages even the most reticent singer to unleash their inner rock star. SingStar’s groundbreaking technology analyses the player’s vocal skills, based on their pitch, tone and timing as they sing into the USB microphone, and provides feedback based on how well or badly they have sung.

SingStar features three gameplay modes that allow for between one and eight players to join in together. Sing Mode encourages players to simply pick up the mic and start singing, either alone or battling against a mate. Pass the Mic is the ultimate party game, encouraging duets and team competitions; and Star Maker allows budding stars to follow their dream from singing in the bedroom to performing in a sell-out concert for their adoring fans.

TotalVdeoGame spoke with Nick Ryan, Lead Designer, on SingStar to find out more.

TVG: How did the team think up this concept and what possibly has been the hardest aspect of putting it all together?

Originally the technology for the game was created by our internal prototypes group for use on a number of different project ideas but a singing game was always the number one choice.

I think proving the pitch detection technology worked and was accurate was the biggest hurdle we faced but creating a game like this has thrown up some interesting challenges for all of the team. For example, obtaining all the original music and videos, especially on some of the older songs, was difficult and coming up with an interface that was clear and worked for every song was also a big challenge.

TVG: Although SingStar is meant to be fun, how precise is the program in registering the player’s pitch, tone and rhythm and what kind of testing have you done? For instance, if you took a great singer would it then give perfect scores?

The timing and pitch detection is very accurate but we have built a little leniency into the scoring system so that we could provide three difficulty levels in the game. These cater for those of us who are less gifted singers right through to the true Super Stars. In order to help us balance the difficulty levels we brought in some professional singers and also did a lot of testing with singers of all abilities. Although I’ve seen some very high scores I’ve never seen anyone get a perfect score yet; but theoretically it is possible!

TVG: What kind of rewards – fun factors - does the program present? For the ‘rubbish’, tone deaf, singer what kinds of incentives are there especially early on?

One of the great features in SingStar is that you can record your performances and listen back to them. You also have some control over the playback mix, which allows you to adjust the volume of your voice and add some great effects to it. If you love the sound of your own voice then this is the game for you!

Also if you have an Eye Toy camera you can watch your performance on TV and even replay short video clips showing the highlights. It’s a lot of fun.

TVG: Please will you inform the readers about the mode - ‘Pass the Mic’? What ideas and sub challenges are on offer?

‘Pass the Mic’ is a great Party Mode. You can set up a competition between two teams and the players take turns on the mic to try and out sing their opponents. The competition is split into rounds with each round setting the team a different challenge or target. There are lots of different round types. For example, sometimes you have to simply beat your opponents score, in others each team member gets to sing small sections of the song or members of a team can choose an opponent and the song they have to sing and so on. The team with the highest score wins and can gloat as much as they like. TVG: With the Singalong part is this straightforward singalong or are there karaoke elements, etc?

Sing Mode allows players to choose their favourite song from the 30 available and attempt to get the best score they can. You can watch the video as you sing or watch your own performance using eye toy and you also have the option to choose whether or not you wish to sing along with the original vocal or, if you think you can do better, replace it with your own.

It’s quick and easy to get into. You can sing solo, a duet or choose to battle it out with your friends. It’s up to you how you play. You simply plug in your mic, select your favourite song and go for it!

TVG: Please tell the readers about Star Maker – a career mode that allows you to become a singing star!

Star Maker mode allows the player to attempt to go through the various stages of a singing career from being an Unknown to being a Super Star!

The player has to sing their way around Harmony City and is tasked with performing at a number of different venues. Every time they sing the player creates ‘buzz’ and the more buzz they create the sooner they will make contacts and get opportunities to take their career onto the next level.

There are a number of key events that the player will have to complete, such as singing gigs, recording a demo, landing a record deal, getting in the charts and so on. All the player has to do to make it to the top is to put in the effort and sing.

TVG: What kind of professional expertise – be it technical - did the team bring in to assist them?

We have an excellent Audio Department at Sony with incredibly talented and technical musicians who were crucial in ensuring the audio features of the game were as good as they could be.

At various stages in development we also brought in professional singers and musicians to offer a fresh pair of ears and check everything was working, sounding and feeling right. I believe it’s really important that the player feels they are being fairly judged by the game and I think we’ve got this just right.

TVG: Sum up the essence of the product in one sentence!

Get together with your friends, sing your favourite songs, and prove you really are a Star!

THANKS!

SingStar’s expansive track list features a wide variety of well-known songs from world-class artists. Each track is the artist’s original recording and SingStar also includes the original music video for many of the songs.

SingStar International Track List:

• Liberty X – Just a Little
• Mis-Teeq – Scandalous
• The Darkness – I Believe in a Thing Called Love
• A-Ha – Take on Me
• Pink – Get the Party Started
• Jamelia – Superstar
• Motorhead – Ace of Spades
• George Michael – Careless Whisper
• Avril Lavigne – Complicated
• Petula Clark – Downtown
• Sophie Ellis Bexter – Murder on the Dancefloor
• Daniel Bedingfield – If You're Not the One
• Carl Douglas – Kung Fu Fighting
• Rick Astley – Never Gonna Give You Up
• Westlife – World of Our Own
• Ricky Martin – Livin La Vida Loca
• Bill Withers – Ain't No Sunshine
• Madonna – Like a Virgin
• Roy Orbison - Pretty Woman
• S Club – Don't Stop Movin’
• Deee-Lite – Groove is in the Heart
• Sugababes – Round Round
• Elvis – Suspicious Minds
• Busted – Crashed the Wedding
• Village People – YMCA
• Good Charlotte – Girls and Boy
• Blondie – Heart of Glass
• Dido – Thank You
• Atomic Kitten – Eternal Flame
• Blue – One Love