SingStar ‘90s

PS2 Review
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Players: 1-2

I’ve always been a fan of karaoke and singing along to songs, as well as 90’s music. So when SingStar ‘90s shows up, I was immediately intrigued. SingStar ‘90s is the fifth release in the series on the PS2, featuring some catchy tracks and lyrics. SingStar has had troubles in the
U.S. though, facing tough competition from other music offerings including the Karaoke Revolution series, and even Guitar Hero.

The idea behind the game is to basically sing your heart out. You jump in, choosing a song from the 90’s by bands such as
Savage Garden and others, and you are off. The track will start with a music video, or a live video feed of you if you have the EyeToy camera.

The lyrics scroll across at the bottom part of the screen, with a colored bar showing how well you did. As you sing and hit the right notes, the bar will fill up, allowing you to gain more points. The more you get correct in a row, the higher the bar will go. Miss a line or two, and your score will drop back down.

The set-up behind SingStar ‘90s is the same as all of the other releases. They use the same exact menu system, scoring mechanism, etc. It works well, and has been seen in the past in a similar style with the Karaoke Revolution games.

That doesn’t mean that the game is not fun, because it definitely is. It relies on the same tried and true singing mechanics from the past SingStar games, and includes the new soundtrack. Solo singing, two-player battles, duets, as well as a Pass the Mic mode are all included for up to eight people to take part in.