SingStar is a new video game from Sony for the PlayStation 2 and 3. There is even a new ceramic white SingStar version of the PlayStation 2 console that is still one of the most popular selling game consoles despite the success of the Wii and Xbox 360.
SingStar games are distributed either as the software alone, or bundled with a pair of USB microphones - one red, one blue. The games are compatible with the EyeToy camera, allowing players to see themselves singing.
The game is a competitive form of Karaoke where the better you sing or stay on pitch the more points you score. The microphones detect pitch using digital signal processing, which analyses the frequency of the incoming signal. The frequency is then compared to stored information to evaluate if the note is correct. Regular singing segments do not feature speech recognition, and so humming into the microphones at the correct pitch will also score points. Rap sections use a combination of speech recognition and rhythm detection.
My 17 year old niece got the Pop version for her birthday and it turned out to be a game that everyone (parents and kids ) could play together. It is much more tolerable than regular karaoke because you are listening to the original artist as well as the participants while watching the original video, unless you have the Eyetoy accessory, in which case you can watch yourself.
The game featured songs that were familiar to both parents and teens and it may help some people be better singers. Unfortunately the tone deaf will probably continue to be tone deaf and sing off key and score poorly.I was able to beat my 8 year old nephew singing a song from the Clash which he did not know so well. He prefers Cyndi Lauper and Madonna.
Check out this video to see what the game is like: