The pop group
ABBA certainly had a great run from 1972 until 1983. The group really hit is
stride in the mid-70s with a bevy of catchy little tunes that had enough hooks
that once stuck in your brain, it would take a crowbar, or a lot of shots of
strong drink to get them out.
But the
popularity of the band has endured. Not only did it have a movie that was based
on its music, but the Sony London studio, the team behind the SingStar
franchise, has decided to dedicate the first SingStar expansion that features
one group to ABBA.
The main problem with this is that unless you are a fan of ABBA, the title will
have limited appeal – which, to be fair, is the case with most song lists (and
that is what this is; it does not alter the fundamental gameplay of the
franchise at all – it only adds new songs to sing) that feature one band. But
part of the problem with the PS2 game is that it only has 20 tracks, as opposed
to the 25 featured on the PS3 version.
Let’s cut
straight to the chase with this title, and that is the song list.
The PS2 lineup
includes: Chiquitita, Dancing Queen, Does Your Mother Know, Fernando, Gimme!
Gimme! Gimme!, I Do I Do I Do I Do I Do, Knowing Me Knowing You, Mamma Mia,
Money Money Money, Ring Ring, SOS, Summer Night City, Super Trouper, Take A
Chance On Me, Thank You For The Music, The Name Of The Game, The Winner Takes
All, Voulez-Vous, and Waterloo.
The production
values are very solid and the dev team has done a good job of taking the older
videos (including studio videos) and incorporating them into the game with crisp
pitch meters and easy-to-read words. This is nothing new for the franchise, but
rather a continuation of what we’ve come to expect from the series. Actually,
all this release does is merely add in more songs to the SingStar library. In
that regard it is an expansion, not a reinvented idea.
For the
uninformed, you have a microphone and you are challenged to sing on pitch to the
videos. The game features a pitch meter and the words scroll across the screen.
You get a score depending on the percentage of notes hit. You can play
multiplayer in several different modes that amount to one player – using the
SingStar mics, which are not included with the release – trying to outscore the
other.
The graphical
quality, as mentioned, is solid, and so is the sound. Two younger girls, one 14
and the other 12, who had seen the feature film Mama Mia, where given the
opportunity to play the game on both the PS3 and PS2 platforms. They were both
of the opinion that the PS3 was better because it offered more songs, but
neither was that interested in an ABBA-only karaoke night. And that may be the
telling point of this title. The selection and target group is a bit too finite.
With other SingStar song lists, you might find a couple of songs that really
appealed to you. If you are not a fan of ABBA chances are very good this
expansion will not appeal at all.
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Gameplay: 7.0
Same format, and
though it works, it’s hardly unique now. The game may also have limited appeal
with the song groups.
Graphics: 7.0
The format here is
the same as well – grab some videos and plunk the pitch meter and lyrics on the
screen as well. It works, but the videos ABBA made were not that compelling to
begin with.
Sound: 7.5
The sound quality is
very good for a PS2 title.
Difficulty: Easy/Medium
Concept: 6.5
Nothing new here,
just different songs and it just does not feel to be enough music here.
Multiplayer: 7.0
Decent modes, but
again, it’s been done before.
Overall: 7.0
ABBA fans should
like this collection. Non-ABBA fans will not. The quality of the game is solid;
it just comes down to taste in music.
