If American Idol has taught us anything, it’s that some people should stick to singing karaoke at home. They really shouldn’t be allowed out in public places, trying their darndest to mimic the vocal stylings of Whitney Houston. They just shouldn’t do it. That’s why there are games like Lips for the Xbox 360 to satiate our desire to sing our favorite songs.
Now, it’s not like Lips is the first of its kind. If you have a PlayStation 3 (or even a PS2 for that matter), you may have already enjoyed the fun associated with the SingStar franchise. There’s also Karaoke Revolution, including an American Idol edition. So, how does Lips for the Xbox 360 stand up against these alternatives? Let’s have a look.
Two Wireless Microphones with Motion Sensors
One of the first things that I noticed about Lips is that it comes with not one, but two wireless microphones. Given the party-oriented focus of this karaoke game, it makes sense to take full advantage of the multiplayer aspects. This package is nowhere near as extensive as the full band experience that you’d get with Guitar Hero World Tour and Rock Band 2, but it’s not about playing in a band. It’s about singing.
Even though Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour both have vocal portions to their gameplay, I did notice that the microphones that come bundled with Lips are actually quite different. For starters, they’re wireless. This is so much more enjoyable than the wired microphone that came with Guitar Hero World Tour.
You’ll also notice that the microphones are a fair bit bigger than the Guitar Hero equivalent. This may partly be explained by the need for a pair of AA batteries for each wireless microphone, as well as all the additional components required to do the wireless thing. Further still, both the Xbox 360 text and the “dots” near the bottom of the mics actually light up during gameplay.
Unfortunately, the mics do not have any Xbox 360 controls on them, so you still need to use a regular controller. I also found the sync process to be not obvious enough, because I was unsure whether I had successfully connected the mic to the system until I started singing.
Possibly taking a page out of the Nintendo Wii, the included wireless microphones also have motion sensors. These are used for a few novelty gameplay elements and I’ll discuss these further a little later in the review.
Real-Time Price and Stock Check – Find More Xbox 360 Games Here
The Eclectic Track List
It seems that Lips for the Xbox 360 is trying to be all things to all people. While games like Rock Band focus mostly on the “rock” side of things, the track list for Lips is all over the map. You’ve got country, hip hop, pop, and even quirky songs from the 80s. I guess this goes with the karaoke theme, but this has to be one of the strangest track lists that I have ever seen in a music game.
To give you a sense of what to expect, here are a few of the songs featured in Lips:
- Take On Me – a-ha
- No One – Alicia Keys
- Personal Jesus – Depeche Mode
- Superstar – Lupe Fiasco
- Another One Bites The Dust – Queen
- Walk Like An Egyptian – The Bangles
- Umbrella – Rihanna
- Bust A Move – Young MC
If you have somewhat specific musical interests, you will only find a small handful of tracks that interest you. I have a burning suspicion that fans of Trace Adkins are probably not as inclined to sing Lip Gloss by Lil Mama. I could be wrong, but when there are only 40 tracks included with the game, you’re going to get tired of singing the same stuff over and over again.
Yes, I realize that you can get more songs via the DLC route on Xbox Live Marketplace, but if the developers tossed in an extra 20 or songs as part of the disc, it would have made a world of difference.
Upon selecting any of the songs, you will be given the opportunity to choose your “backstage.” Probably the most popular choice would be the original music video (Take On Me is a classic!), but you can also choose a Virtual Music Video or some other game modes.
Perpetual No Fail Mode
The gameplay itself will feel pretty familiar to anyone who has played any of these karaoke-style video games in the past. The lyrics appear on the screen, along with lines to indicate your target pitch and timing. Match them as best you can and you earn points.
It might be the competitive spirit in me, but I find it very strange that it is not possible to fail from any song. It doesn’t matter how bad you are or how off-key you happen to be singing, because they’ll let you get all the way to the end of the track regardless. There’s also no real sense of progress, because you don’t have to unlock any of the songs. They’re all available right off the bat.
Because there is no “career” mode, I really didn’t get any sense of accomplishment or progress. That said, I can see that Lips was designed from the beginning to be a party game and not one that you play alone and not one that you try to “finish.”
Real-Time Price and Stock Check – Find More Xbox 360 Games Here
Star Scream, Noise Makers, and Kiss
Probably in an effort to bring a little innovation to the karaoke game genre, Lips offers a few things that are a little different. First, instead of “Star Power” or “Overdrive” like how you find the certain rhythm games, Lips has something called “Star Scream.” This works in a much the same way, except you have to make a certain movement with the motion-sensitive mic to activate it. To build up your meter for “Star Scream,” you can sing well or you can shake that microphone like a maraca. That’s right. It’s a noise maker and this builds up your meter as well.
Other novelties include some of the slightly different game modes. There is a Kiss Mode where you sing co-operatively with a friend until the two on-screen characters pucker up. In Time Bomb mode, you have to make sure you sing well enough to douse the fuse. With Vocal Fighters, you face off against another singer for ear-piercing supremacy. These add a dash of freshness, but they’re not enough to make me go “wow” in any way.
Importing Your Own Music
When I first heard about Lips for the Xbox 360, one of the features that really caught my attention was the ability to import your own DRM-free tracks. This sounded like a great way to circumvent the need for downloadable content, because if you already (legally) downloaded some music online, why can’t you use it in the game too.
My assumption was that this song import function would connect the Xbox 360 to some sort of server, grabbing lyrics if they were available through some kind of resource. You’d be able to sing along to these tracks just like the ones included with the game and this would easily overcome the shortcomings of the existing track list. Unfortunately, this dream is far from the truth.
Yes, you can import your own tracks, but there are incredibly severe limitations. You don’t get any lyrics, nor are there any lines produced to represent timing and pitch. You just blabber in the microphone in “freestyle mode” as your DRM-free MP3 plays in the background. The backdrop is some generic virtual music video. This is really not much better than singing in the shower, except only more embarrassing.
Real-Time Price and Stock Check – Find More Xbox 360 Games Here
Final Thoughts and Conclusions
You have to approach Lips with the right set of expectations. If you’re hoping for a similar experience as Guitar Hero or Rock Band, you’re going to be incredibly disappointed. You’re not going to find anything that remotely resembles a career mode and you’re not going to find anything that really gives you any sense of accomplishment or progress. There’s nothing to unlock, nothing to earn (other than Gamerscore points).
However, if you are looking for a simple party game that anyone can pick up and play, you may find some value with Lips. The track list is incredibly varied and using the Jukebox mode keeps the songs flowing without too many intermissions. This game is meant to be played at parties, just like SingStar and Karaoke Revolution… except there is no real grading and you can’t fail. It’s about having fun.
For me, a few simple changes would have made all the difference in the world. For starters, the track list is extremely limited by today’s standards. I’d hate to bring them up again, but Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour both come with many more songs than this offering and they have to take care of three additional instruments to boot. Since you only have to sing, Microsoft Game Studios and iNiS could have easily included an extra 20 or 30 songs.
Further still, the track list is a little too eclectic, showing that Lips wants to be all things to all people. The result is that it’s kind of lacklustre for everybody. Maybe Lips is meant to introduce a new franchise and that’s why it’s all over the map. Maybe in the future, they’ll have Lips 80s Edition, Lips Hip Hop Edition, and Lips Pop Stars as separate titles. That would be much more effective, especially if they keep the prices reasonable.
Pros
- Motion-sensitive wireless microphones are neat
- Easy pick-up-and-play gameplay
- Super eclectic track list offers something for everyone
- Authentic original music videos
Cons
- Absolutely no career mode of any kind
- No real sense of accomplishment
- Limited number of songs available on disc
- Song import feature is totally bunk
- Some “Star Scream” motions are ambiguous
Overall Rating: 6.5/10.0
Discuss This Review in the Futurelooks Community Forums
Real-Time Price and Stock Check – Find More Xbox 360 Games Here
Lips for Xbox 360 Review Photo Gallery
Real-Time Price and Stock Check – Find More Xbox 360 Games Here