One of the most shocking gifts I ever received was the game Singstar. Specifically, it was Singstar: Rocks! and Singstar: Pop. It was not the karaoke set I expected to get as a kid, but it ended up being something greater than I could have anticipated. 

My time playing Singstar was always exciting. It was a family game, primarily played by the many family members who would come over to the house and visit. We played every chance we got. The competitions would be epic and always end with everyone having a genuinely good time. I still think about many of those memories to this very day. 

In this article, I will talk about both games and give an objective review of the Singstar franchise based on my experience with the games. Although the world has so many options for music, videos, and karaoke, Singstar was a trendsetter for its unique genre.

Overview

Singstar is a karaoke-styled game developed by Sony that originally came out in 2004 for the PlayStation 2. However, I did not hear about the game until 2007. The two versions I received had a list of songs to sing along to, many known and some unknown. It was a great way for me to get introduced to music from around the world. 

Eventually, the game grew, expanding into non-English versions of the songs in different languages. With millions of copies sold, Singstar seemed to grow exponentially until it started to slow down. This slowdown was met by the closure of the Singstar servers, effectively cutting circulation from the series in its entirety. 

Singstar is a relic of the past, with its offline versions still appearing here and there in households around the world. While it was more or less taken over by the likes of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, the game still lives on in the memory of the community who sang along to the franchise hits.

Singstar: Pop

Singstar: Pop was the version of the series I found to be average compared to Singstar: Rocks!. The game itself had some great songs, many of which were done by incredible artists, including Rihanna, Britney Spears, and Alicia Keys. 

I do not remember too many intense sing-offs in Singstar: Pop, but that doesn’t mean it was not as much fun. I think if I were a little older, I would have probably appreciated a lot more of the songs on the game. 

Overall, the game was fun. While I love many pop songs, there is something about doing karaoke to songs with a bit more soul in them that brings out the best in me as a karaoke singer. This leads me to talk about the version I prefer more, Singstar: Rocks!

Singstar: Rocks!

I could talk forever about Singstar: Rocks! Out of the two games, this one takes the cake by far. I still remember many of the songs, like “Love Shack” and “Respect,” which goes to show how much I loved the game. Between the two versions of the game, Singstar: Rocks! introduced me to a larger number of artists.

Some of my favorite aspects about Singstar: Rocks! involved the competition within the game. The game’s cover art shows two singers going head to head, which was the epitome of gameplay. From Elton John to The Rolling Stones, my family constantly turned our living room into a stage. 

I never had the chance to play other installments, but, in my opinion, Singstar: Rocks! is still the best. It offered everything a family looking to play a game together could have asked for.

Closing Thoughts

Looking back at the series as a whole, it deserves a 4 out of 5 stars. I loved the games and had many great memories, but it was always missing something. It felt interactive for its time, but just not like its counterparts that allowed players to utilize instruments. 

The fate of the series is also an example of why it deserves 4 out of 5 stars. If it were perfect, it would have prevailed through supply and demand pressures. 

I am grateful for the memories of the game, even if it does not have a perfect rating. Maybe it is my love for karaoke, but this game remains in my fondest childhood memories.

By Thomas Hernandez

My name is Thomas James Hernandez, and I am a storyteller from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania! My entrance into gaming started with playing Call of Duty and Yu-Gi-Oh! alongside my older brother. My current interests in gaming are action-adventure games, tabletop games, and new gaming technology!