Singstar Pop Vol 2 review

There are four Singstar games coming to PS2 this fall: Pop Vol 2, Legends, Country, and ABBA (dammit Sony, where%26rsquo;s the Bollywood pack for the US? We%26rsquo;re not kidding. The UK got it and we want it too). We%26rsquo;re going to use the same review text for all three. Not because they aren%26rsquo;t good %26ndash; they are. And not because we haven%26rsquo;t played all three of them %26ndash; we have. Rather, it%26rsquo;s because there%26rsquo;s just no more to say about the Singstar series on PS2 that we haven%26rsquo;t already said. This franchise has honed its hit-making craft for several games now and stubbornly refuses to deviate from its established formula.

If you%26rsquo;ve played ANY of the previous Singstar games on PS2 (Pop, Rocks, Amped, %26lsquo;80s, %26lsquo;90s, and more in the UK) you know what to expect: Karaoke, and lots of it, with the videos playing onscreen. And it%26rsquo;s good.

The usual bells and whistles are all here as well, with the caveat that this is a PS2, so the tech is dated. For instance, there%26rsquo;s no downloadable stuff, but you can swap the disc with other Singstar titles without rebooting. And the EyeToy support enables you to save low-grade video replays of your performance %26hellip; to a memory card. Bleh. Especially when compared to the PS3%26rsquo;s giant online store of individual songs, this feels ancient and archaic. Granted, we can%26rsquo;t really fault the games for the fact that the PS2 is old enough to be in second grade now, but it feels like someone at Sony HQ isn%26rsquo;t even trying any more.

At any rate, your best bet is to choose your game by track list. Pop Vol 2%26rsquo;s 30-track lineup is listed below. It%26rsquo;s strong, though we%26rsquo;d suggest it commits the series%26rsquo; typical sin of trying to appeal to fans of too many genres.

3Doors Down - When I'm Gone
Lloyd - Get it Shawty
Ashlee Simpson %26ndash; Boyfriend
Maroon 5 - Makes Me Wonder
Avril Lavigne - My Happy Ending
Matchbox Twenty - Far We've Come
Boys Like Girls - The Great Escape
Michelle Branch %26ndash; Breathe
Cartel - Lose It
Nelly Furtado %26ndash; Promiscuous
Colbie Caillat %26ndash; Bubbly
Norah Jones - Don't Know Why
Dixie Chicks - Not Ready To Make Nice
P!nk - Who Knew
Duran Duran - Ordinary World
Peter Bjorn and John - Young Folks
Evanesence - Bring Me To Life
Plain White T's - Hey There Delilah
Fall Out Boy - Thnks Fr Th Memrs
Rihanna %26ndash; Umbrella
Fergie - Big Girls Don't Cry
Santana feat. Chad Kroger - Into The Night
Gwen Stefani feat. Akon - The Sweet Escape
Steriogram - Walkie Talkie Man
Jennifer Lopez - Jenny From the Block
Sum 41 - Fat Lip
Lifehouse - First Time
The Hives - Tick Tick Boom
Lily Allen - Littlest Things
The Outfield - Your Love

Nov 7, 2008