The eleventh expansion in the series, SingStar fans probably know the drill by now. The game is lacking of any new features, which we’re used to – it’s all about the new track list. This time it’s all R&B, and the track list is indicative of this, as shown by the numerous modern artists (Black Eyed Peas and Gwen Stefani) along with the older, more 80s style R&B legends (such as Whitney Houston and Diana Ross). So, without further ado, here is the list of songs you’ll be rapping to, SingStar style.
]"I can't sing that, it's too complicated!"
- 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 Like To
- 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 Too 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
Once again, we’ve missed out on a local tracklist so there are several tracks on this disc that are completely unfamiliar in terms of what is mainstream, even though the artists are still recognizable. Amy Winehouse and Outkast are both good examples, as they’re both artists that are very popular over here in the land of Oz, yet we’re stuck with songs of theirs that we just don’t know. There are some familiar songs in the game still, some old and some new, but it’s disappointing that we as a country (and one of the games biggest markets) has been ignored once again.
As the game is unchanged in terms of options, we won’t bore you too much with the basics. Sing alone, or sing with a friend as a duet or in a battle. Get a party together, pass the microphone and even choose to sing a medley, which are different parts of several songs thrown together for your enjoyment. There is still no real single player mode to speak of (which hasn’t been present since the first SingStar), so R&B should only be purchased as a party game, unless you’re particularly fond of the songs.
The microphone technology used in the game is also the same as usual. The lyrics mean nothing when it comes down to it, as you can warble out any words you want to and as long as your pitch is right, you’ll get high scores. This means that somebody could essentially hum their way through the song and beat someone who is trying to perform it legitimately, which is annoying.
You? Yes. The rap meter? No.
Another massive issue we have with the game is the dreaded rap meter. It’s broken. There is no other way to describe it. The fact is that some of us take pride in getting high scores, and any song that includes the rap meter makes it impossible. It’s not for lack of trying, either. We know every lyric and melody of some of the rap songs featured on this disc, yet our scores tell us that we’re tone deaf. There’s no indication of what we’re doing wrong, and we score highly on every normal track, so the result is puzzling and extremely frustrating. Unfortunately, this disc is R&B after all, so you can probably tell from the track list and the mere title of the expansion, that the rap meter pops up frequently. When you’re drunk and singing like a fool it won’t matter, but if you care about the competitive aspect of the game at all, it’s tiring to see it featured so prominently.
SingStar R&B is a disappointing entry into the franchise. While we absolutely love SingStar (trust us, we really do), it’s extremely difficult to recommend this disc to fans of the game and newcomers alike. While there are some enjoyable songs on there, too many of them are unfamiliar, and too many other ones use the rap meter as a gauge for talent, which is ridiculous considering how useless it really is. If you’re a collector of the series and aren’t overly fussed on the gameplay being the same, you’ve probably already bought this; after all, it still works well at parties and is reasonably good value. For everybody else, it is highly advisable to let this one go – especially with SingStar PS3 looming.
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