Support NeoGAF

[Tntnnbltn]

Only just re-read the press release I posted earlier. (I was woken up in the middle of the night here when it was released :lol) Looks like they might be dropping the "Vol 4" part of the title. Press release only makes mention of the upcoming game as "SingStar Pop Edition".


Also, more SingStar stats coming out of Australia today...

Top SingStore songs - Australia (as of 20/02/2009)
1. Shannon Noll – "What About Me"
2. Don McLean – "American Pie"
3. Men At Work – "Down Under"
4. Billy Joel – "Piano Man"
5. Survivor – "Eye of the Tiger"
Source: Daily Telegraph

For reference's sake, here's the last update we had...

Top SingStore songs - Australia (as of 01/05/2008)
1. Men At Work – "Down Under"
2. Cyndi Lauper – "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun"
3. Bonnie Tyler – "Total Eclipse Of The Heart"
4. Pink – "Just Like A Pill"
5. The Fray – "Over My Head (Cable Car)"
6. Europe – "Final Countdown"
7. Silverchair – "Tomorrow"
8. The Fray – "How to Save A Life"
9. Delta Goodrem – "Born To Try"
10. Len – "Steal My Sunshine"
Source: PALGN

 

[lupinko]

I updated PAL SingStar Vol. 3 today with patch 2.40, and tried out disc swapping with my NTSCU/C Singstar 80s on my NTSCJ PS3, and no go. =/

I'll try either NTSCU/C SingStar Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 later when I update those, but I'm not optimistic about it.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

I updated PAL SingStar Vol. 3 today with patch 2.40, and tried out disc swapping with my NTSCU/C Singstar 80s on my NTSCJ PS3, and no go. =/

I'll try either NTSCU/C SingStar Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 later when I update those, but I'm not optimistic about it.

It's up? What does the edit history in the update file say. My blu-ray drive died Wednesday night so I can't check myself.

Also, the mention of region-free was finally removed from the Australian notice.

 

[lupinko]

It's up? What does the edit history in the update file say. My blu-ray drive died Wednesday night so I can't check myself.

Also, the mention of region-free was finally removed from the Australian notice.

It was this morning (PST), I didn't check the edit history as I had no time (was getting ready to go to work).

Hope your BD drive gets fixed soon. =)

 

[nny]

I updated PAL SingStar Vol. 3 today with patch 2.40, and tried out disc swapping with my NTSCU/C Singstar 80s on my NTSCJ PS3, and no go. =/

I'll try either NTSCU/C SingStar Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 later when I update those, but I'm not optimistic about it.

oh. :\ I'll try later a NTSC/U PS2 game on my PAL PS3...but I guess it really was too good to be true.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Someone from the US boards also confirmed non-working for Japanese console + US PS3 game + US PS2 game.

Still haven't had any confirmation either-way for PAL and US consoles, but it's not looking good.

 

[BoilersFan23]

I just updated and the history doesn't say anything new.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

And here come the global stats...

The most important aspect of social gaming is social bonding, explains Mike Haigh, development director of Sony Computer Entertainment's London Studio.

"Regardless of age, everyone enjoys performing and competing in some way," he said at the DICE Summit in Las Vegas Thursday. What were once passive experiences like listening to music are now part of the interactive world.

"The proliferation of social gaming in this generation has been massive," adds Michael Denny, SVP of Sony Computer Entertainment's Worldwide Studios Europe. Currently, social games account for 14 percent of the European market.

SCE Europe's social initiative, so to speak, started in 2003 with the release of EyeToy. To date, the install base is 10.5 million units and has revenues of $450 million. The quiz game Buzz has sold 7.5 million units, and users have uploaded 100,000 quizzes to the attached social site My Buzz.

Its most successful social franchise is SingStar, which has sold over 17 million discs sold and has a microphone install base of 7 million. The SingStore sells one track every 10 seconds, and players have uploaded 135,000 performances to the SingStar network.

Sony's success in the social arena is because it recognized a few key patterns. Social games, at their heart, are designed to be played in groups by all ages and genders and should be fun to watch as well as play. And for most new gamers, the biggest barrier to entry is the controller, says Haigh. One of the keys to appealing to a broader audience is finding intuitive and innovative solutions to control, he says.

1 song per 10 seconds ≈ 8,640 songs per day ≈ 60,480 songs per week.

 

[lupinko]

Well getting Singstar 80s wasn't a total waste, I can always just use my parents' NTSCU/C PS3 for that. :lol

 

[Returners]

And here come the global stats...



1 song per 10 seconds ≈ 8,640 songs per day ≈ 60,480 songs per week.

 

[nny]

Yeah..doesn't work. (tested a US PS2 game on a PAL PS3).

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Well, well, well. I'll be the first to confirm some partial good news for you all.

The update now changes the region swapping requirement to the following:

Region of console + PS2 disc have to match. Before, the PS3 disc, console AND PS2 games all had to match. In other words, this makes it so that regardless of whichever region PS3 disc you use, you will be able to swap to PS2 games that match your console's region.

(Link)


So yeah, looks like the press release was a slight miscommunication.

What they said: "PS2 discs can now be played if their region doesn't match the region of the PS3 disc and the region of the console."

What they should've said: "PS2 discs can now be played if their region doesn't match the region of the PS3 disc and the region of the console."

Sorry for getting everyone's hopes up. :-/

 

[Cheech]

Singstar Country PS2 still doesn't work with the disc swap. My wife is *pissed*. She's been waiting for this patch for months now.

Does anyone have a contact at SCEE I can get in touch with to find out if it's ever going to happen? She might as well just sell the game if they're not going to fix it.

 

[pje122]

So this might not be the right place to ask, but here goes...

Does anyone know if there are any more PS2 NTSC Singstar games on the way? I already own all the ones released here in the US, and I hope there's more coming. I would import them from the UK/EU if I could, but I'm pretty sure they won't work properly if I do that. Thanks for your help, guys.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Here's a breakdown of SingStar's LTD sales, based on figures from recent press releases... All numbers approximate, of course. Take the US figure with a grain of salt; I derived it from comparing worldwide sales with the most recent PAL sales figure.

(Ref: 17 mln worldwide as of 19/02/2009, 2 mln Australia as of 6/02/2009, 15 mln in PAL territories as of 2/02/2009)

Does anyone know if there are any more PS2 NTSC Singstar games on the way?

Next is SingStar Queen, but we don't know anything after that.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Wireless microphone pricing info coming out of Australia...

The wireless mics are compatible with the PS3 and PS2 and will retail for $79.95 (for a pair), while SingStar Pop (game only) comes in at $59.95.

Assuming similar pricing plans worldwide (cost of solo game + 33%), here's what approximate prices we are looking at...

AU: $80
UK: £30-35
US: $50-55

 

[Vinterbird]

Has it been confirmed that the wireless mics will be using a dongle, like every other wireless thing on the PS3?

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Has it been confirmed that the wireless mics will be using a dongle, like every other wireless thing on the PS3?

Yes. That's how they made it backwards compatible with PS2. The wireless dongle emulates the current USB converter.

(You had no chance, BoilersFan23. I'm like a hawk )

 

[BoilersFan23]

Has it been confirmed that the wireless mics will be using a dongle, like every other wireless thing on the PS3?

Yes, they use a dongle. Pictures showed it. They use a dongle partially because (I remember hearing in an interview once) that getting two bluetooth mics to work together on PS3 was quite difficult, and I wouldn't be surprised if they wanted the mics to work on PS2/PS3.

 

[pje122]

Next is SingStar Queen, but we don't know anything after that.

I'm having a hard time finding confirmation about a SingStar Queen NTSC. Australia I can find just fine... but for the US...?

OK, I guess this might be sort of a confirmation:

http://ps2.ign.com/articles/950/950436p1.html

Its an IGN AU article, but in the right-hand box it does say US: March 17, 2009. So I guess that's good news if true.

 

[Returners]

(Link)


So yeah, looks like the press release was a slight miscommunication.

What they said: "PS2 discs can now be played if their region doesn't match the region of the PS3 disc and the region of the console."

What they should've said: "PS2 discs can now be played if their region doesn't match the region of the PS3 disc and the region of the console."

Sorry for getting everyone's hopes up. :-/

So basically means UK Version of Singstar can read US version PS2 discs on US console?

 

[Tntnnbltn]

So basically means UK Version of Singstar can read US version PS2 discs on US console?

Yes.

I'm having a hard time finding confirmation about a SingStar Queen NTSC. Australia I can find just fine... but for the US...?

The PS2 version is listed on some US online retailers, and has been rated by the ESRB.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

UK SingStore Update, 26th February 2009

English:
Atomic Kitten - "Eternal Flame" (Preview)
The Blow Monkeys - "Digging Your Scene" (Preview)
The Blow Monkeys - "It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way" (Preview)
Börni - "Scream My Name" (Preview)
The Divine Comedy - "Becoming More Like Alfie" (Preview)
Dizzee Rascal feat Calvin Harris - "Dance Wiv Me" (Preview)
Donots - "Saccharine Smile" (Preview)
Donots - "Stop The Clocks" (Preview)
Frankie Goes To Hollywood - "Relax" (Preview)
LFO - "Summergirls" (Preview)
Mario Biondi - "This Is What You Are" (Preview)
MGMT - "The Youth" (Preview)
Paul Mccartney and Stevie Wonder - "Ebony and Ivory" (Preview)
Roy Orbison - "Blue Bayou" (Preview)
Suede - "Europe Is Our Playground" (Preview)
Sunrise Ave - "Romeo" (Preview)
Vanilla Ice - "Ice Ice Baby" (Preview)

Finnish:
PMMP - "Tässä Elämä On"

German:
Joy Denalane - "Was Auch Immer"
Mondscheiner - "Das Was Wir Sind"
Mondscheiner - "The Silence"

Swiss German:
Patent Ochsner - "W.Nuss vo Bümpliz"

Spanish:
Chambao - "Ahi Estas Tú"

 

[Returners]

UK SingStore Update, 26th February 2009

English:
Atomic Kitten - "Eternal Flame" (preview)
Vanilla Ice - "Ice Ice Baby"

please please come to US.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

please please come to US.

I did a label check...

Atomic Kitten - "Eternal Flame"
* AU: Virgin Records Ltd
* UK: Virgin Records Ltd
* US: Virgin Records Ltd

Vanilla Ice - "Ice Ice Baby"
* AU: Capitol Records Ltd
* UK: Capitol Records Ltd
* US: Capitol Records Ltd

Doesn't look like there should be anything holding back a worldwide release from a licensing point of view.

 

[MadFuzzy]

Atomic Kitten - "Eternal Flame" (Preview)

They should unbundle the Bangles version from the Love songpack as it's miles better.

Good to see Ice Ice Baby on the store.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

They should unbundle the Bangles version from the Love songpack as it's miles better.

It would probably have better note-charting, too. I don't like the way that they charted some of the songs for earlier releases (Atomic Kitten was on the 2004 original version).

 

[lupinko]

English:
Frankie Goes To Hollywood - "Relax" (Preview)
Paul Mccartney and Stevie Wonder - "Ebony and Ivory" (Preview)
Vanilla Ice - "Ice Ice Baby" (Preview)

Instant buys for me!

And E&I is a rebuy for me (it's already in my Vol. 3).

 

[Coen]

What's with all the Suede love lately? Not that I'm complaining, just wondering why they'd pick half a dozen songs by a low profile, split up band instead of doing something a bit more original.

Also, MGMTs The Youth instead of Kids or Time to Pretend?

 

[Tntnnbltn]

What's with all the Suede love lately? Not that I'm complaining, just wondering why they'd pick half a dozen songs by a low profile, split up band instead of doing something a bit more original.

They've probably hammered out an agreement with Suede's label Nude Records, and have received licensing approval for a whole bunch of Suede's songs. Now they are going about releasing stuff as they do it up.

 

[agm2502]

Really liking this update especially Ice Ice Baby! will probably get 4-5 songs as I don't have volume 3.

 

[Remy]

I'm down for The Youth, only because Eric Wareheim directed the video and it's hilariously weird.

 

[MadFuzzy]

Wireless microphone pricing info coming out of Australia...

Assuming similar pricing plans worldwide (cost of solo game + 33%), here's what approximate prices we are looking at...

AU: $80
UK: £30-35
US: $50-55

HMV UK are now taking pre-orders for them at £35.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

My PS3 is still down from it's blu-ray drive failure, so I'd appreciate it if someone could keep an eye on the store for updates today and post the US release list when (/if) it's up.

 

[lupinko]

My PS3 is still down from it's blu-ray drive failure, so I'd appreciate it if someone could keep an eye on the store for updates today and post the US release list when (/if) it's up.

Will do. =)

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Nevermind...

Unfortunately, due to technical issues, today's SingStore update will be slightly delayed.
The SingStar team are working hard to get the problems resolved as quickly as possible.
We will keep you updated and will let you know as soon as the new tracks are available.

 

[MadFuzzy]

HMV UK are now taking pre-orders for them at £35.

And now Play are doing them for 30 quid if anyone is interested.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Britney Spears song pack tracklist
* 1999: "(You Drive Me) Crazy"
* 1999: "Born To Make You Happy"
* 2000: "Stronger"
* 2000: "Oops I Did It Again"
* 2002: "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"

Source: Your's truly. ;-)


No confirmation on the price, however all song packs to date have been the same price (£4.49 / AU$11.45 / US$6.99). Also no confirmation on release date. The Britney Spears song pack has not officially been announced yet.

Edit: The song will be part of this week's update, and in fact is available right now.

 

[Toy Soldier]

Britney Spears song pack tracklist
* 1999: "(You Drive Me) Crazy"
* 1999: "Born To Make You Happy"
* 2000: "Stronger"
* 2000: "Oops I Did It Again"
* 2002: "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"

Source: Your's truly. ;-)


No confirmation on the price, however all song packs to date have been the same price (£4.49 / AU$11.45 / US$6.99). Also no confirmation on release date. The Britney Spears song pack has not officially been announced yet.

Oh fuck yeah. Not a bad selection in the batch - great pack.

I'm especially psyched about Stronger and BTMYH.

Thanks for the heads up! I'd still prefer a 25-track disc release, but this is the next best thing.

 

[agm2502]

The EU singstore has been updated now and includes the Britney Spears songpack.

 

[lupinko]

NA store has about the same things as the EU update, was only able to check quickly before going to work this morning, I could post a list later if no one else will do it.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

The EU singstore has been updated now and includes the Britney Spears songpack.

Awesome. Glad it came out this week. I figured it might, but wasn't sure seeming how it wasn't announced with the SingStore update or mentioned by Facebook, etc.

Now to get that PS3 fixed so I can actually play it. :-/

 

[Returners]

Britney Spears song pack tracklist
* 1999: "(You Drive Me) Crazy"
* 1999: "Born To Make You Happy"
* 2000: "Stronger"
* 2000: "Oops I Did It Again"
* 2002: "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"

Source: Your's truly. ;-)


No confirmation on the price, however all song packs to date have been the same price (£4.49 / AU$11.45 / US$6.99). Also no confirmation on release date. The Britney Spears song pack has not officially been announced yet.

Edit: The song will be part of this week's update, and in fact is available right now.

I might just have to bite.

 

[StalkingSilence]

Did this come to North America yesterday as well? Haven't fired up the game in a while.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

Sometimes my Google News checks for "SingStar" lead to strange results...

WOMEN are flooding strip joints and brothels for work in the wake of increasing unemployment as the global financial crisis bites home.
But even those doing the hiring are saying the jobs come with a lot of guilt and "can do your head in".

With the chance to earn between $1500 and $8000 a week, Rachel Love (yes, it's her real name) from the Gold Coast's Pentagon Grand brothel said she had never seen such an influx.

In Brisbane, the B Confidential gentlemen's bar is getting 10 to 15 applications a week for women prepared to do lap dances, pole dancing, stage and private shows. Normally they would get one or two inquiries.

But the job isn't just dancing and taking your clothes off, owner-manager Lisa says.

"Our VIP room is interesting because very rarely do the girls even get their top off. The guys go in there and play Twister, they play the Wii game and PlayStation. Our most popular game is Singstar."

 

[StalkingSilence]

Sometimes my Google News checks for "SingStar" lead to strange results...

haha this is ridiculous! And really? Your VIP room is mainly for board games and video games? Lame strip club.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

haha this is ridiculous! And really? Your VIP room is mainly for board games and video games? Lame strip club.

It's like it was custom-built for GAF.

 

[Remy]

US also got the DJ Bobo track we missed last week, meaning my DJ Bobo collection has grown to 2.

The Britney pack is up on the US store as well. The video montage on the store is great since you can't actually tell they're changing songs.

 

[Tntnnbltn]

This was in the email inbox today:

Wonder if it'll be new songs or old? Could go either way...

Coldplay songs on the SingStore:
2000: "Shiver"
2000: "Yellow"
2002: "Clocks"
2002: "The Scientist"
2005: "Speed of Sound"
2005: "Fix You"
2006: "Talk"
2006: "The Hardest Part"

Coldplay songs not on the SingStore:
2000: "Trouble"
2001: "Don't Panic"
2002: "In My Place"
2003: "God Put A Smile Upon Your Face"
2008: "Violet Hill"
2008: "Viva La Vida" [SingStar Vol 3]
2008: "Lost!"
2008: "Lovers In Japan"
2009: "Life in Technicolor II"

 

[agm2502]

I had a feeling we'd get a Coldplay song pack soon. Hopefully it'll be new songs along with viva la vida from Vol. 3 but it's probably going to be a best of the store selection.