Lo and behold, just in time for the Christmas rush, is SingStar Party, bringing some up-to-date tracks to the PS2 karaoke set up. SingStar was reviewed on pocket-lint back in May and I though that it needed a few extra songs. Again, as this is the second coming, you get the option of buying just the game, or if you are a starter, the game and the mics.

For those who haven’t experienced Singstar before, I recommend reading the original review on this site here, so that you see the complete picture - I won’t repeat it all again here. So I’ll move onto the differences - what makes this a party? Well, it is aimed more at group singing, with some of the individual features missing. We tested SingStar Party with a collection of 20 somethings that we had conveniently doused in alcohol - the way to enjoy all karaoke and rhythm action games.

There is a collection of multiplayer options and if you jump for the team options, you’ll be disappointed to learn that it won’t support more than two mics - so you can’t all hang onto a mic and sing when you are told to. But apart from that, the multiplayer functions are well realised - set up a battle and sing against each other or sing a duet together. If there are lots of you, make sure you get the names in at the beginning of the game - or you’ll be trying to remember who was player 7.

I suspect that most people who buy this will get it for the extra tracks. Personal favourites include Busted’s "Year 3000", Maroon5’s "This Love" and Spandau Ballet’s "Gold". One thing you notice is that it’s not all pop like a sing along of Now6000 - there is a mixture of modern and vintage classics, like Tiffany’s "I Think We’re Alone Now", which all 80s children will remember.

Our quick take

Overall, you're looking at the same thing as the original SingStar game in reality. There are a few small changes, but it's basically a new set of songs to sing, and just in time for Christmas. I'd point newcomers to the original as well, but check out the song listings and see what you fancy. The original caters for the individual slightly better. It is a really good laugh, if karaoke is your thing.

Close

SingStar Party - PS2 - 4.5 / 5

To recap

It is innovative and excellent fun, but could be tweaked further