Next-gen SingStar at Leipzig

By Tom Bramwell Published 17 July, 2008

Reeves reacts to Lips announcement.

Sony Europe boss David Reeves has told Eurogamer to expect "the next generation of SingStar" at Games Convention.

We were speaking to Reeves at an event in Santa Monica today and asked for his views on Microsoft's new karaoke game Lips.

"If you come to Leipzig, you will see the next generation of SingStar," he told us. "That's all I will say."

And it really was, even when we coaxed him to say something more dramatic about what a massive rip-off - albeit an impressive one - iNiS' upcoming Xbox 360 singing game seems to be.

SingStar, we heard at Sony's E3 conference on Tuesday, has now sold more than 15 million units worldwide, with nearly 2 million songs downloaded via the PS3 versions.

Games Convention is just over a month away, so tune in then to find out what Sony has in store.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (35) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • spazmo #1 4 years ago

    8! 8 articles now of PS3 (s)news delivered by 'David Reeves'...

  • Steroyd #2 4 years ago

    Singstar now to feature guitar and drums?

  • keyboardmonkey #3 4 years ago

    I've put this through the bullshit extractor 2000 and what he is really saying is:

    "We didn't expect to have to release another singstar so soon. What were going to do is wait for the release of Microsofts game and then any feature that Singstar doesn't have that Lips does were going to build it into the new all improved Singstar"

  • tobi #4 4 years ago

    I enjoy Singstar PS3 a lot but God help you Mr Reeves if wireless mics aren't included, if Buzz can do it why can't Singstar?!

  • betahoven #5 4 years ago

    Post deleted at 09:36:16 17-12-2011

  • Steroyd #6 4 years ago

    It might be the next step for Singstar which would be... instruments.

    I'M CALLING IT NOW.

  • tonynibbles #7 4 years ago

    Microsoft have got a long way to catch up.

    SingStar is THE console karaoke game. I shouldn't think they've got much to worry about, it's like Scene It vs Buzz.

    Great to hear there are new features on the way though and well, looking forward to the wireless mice. But PLEASE, no more dongles...

  • oreillymj #8 4 years ago

    Out of interest, how are the MS wireless mics connecting to the XBox. Surely there's a dongle involved.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #9 4 years ago

    Out of interest, how are the MS wireless mics connecting to the XBox. Surely there's a dongle involved.

    Yes, just like the dongle that the wireless controllers connect to, that have Xbox Live headset microphones plugged into them.

  • rick_x #10 4 years ago

    Thought SS PS3 was supposed to be next-gen, well apart from the lack of content, wireless mics, etc...

    Oh and for god's sake make the wireless mics bluetooth, the fact that the buzz wireless controllers need a dongle is ridiculous. For a so-called next-gen console my PS3 has more than half its USB ports filled with PS Eye, Singstar and Buzz dongles. (If you own a 40GB, you need a hub or you're boned)

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #11 4 years ago

    Microsoft have got a long way to catch up.

    Well... there seems to have been general murmurs of dissatisfaction with PS3 Singstar. Also, PS3 isn't anywhere near as cheap as PS2 was when Singstar first came out. But a £150 Xbox 360 Arcade is.

    It might be the next step for Singstar which would be... instruments.

    I think instruments would ruin Singstar. The difference between it and other music games (except perhaps drumming ones) is that the singing is real, not some plastic toy abstraction. It's just karaoke with a scoreline. Turning Singstar into rockband will put a lot of people off.

  • sanctusmortis #12 4 years ago

    So, Bungie Halo announcement at Leipzig then. The. Shock.

  • tobi #13 4 years ago

    They'll ruin the game if they include instruments, not point competing with GH and RB in that department, just stick to the singing.

  • LazyDan #14 4 years ago

    I'd like to see more of this David Reeves character, why aren't EG covering him a bit more?

  • kangarootoo #15 4 years ago

    "I enjoy Singstar PS3 a lot but God help you Mr Reeves if wireless mics aren't included, if Buzz can do it why can't Singstar?!"

    That makes no sense.

    1. Buzz! doesn't have microphones.
    2. All platforms ALREADY have wireless controllers, which is all Buzz! buzzers are.

  • miiiguel #16 4 years ago

    I loathe any form of karaoke. But that's me.

    Please continue.

  • FladgeMangle #17 4 years ago

    Perhaps the next step for Singstar is a free paparazzo and eating disorder in every box?

    @keyboardmonkey
    You trying to drag the old "sony steals" cliche into this? Sony steals from a company that copied something they invented? That's not the best way for you to show off, is it?

  • miiiguel #18 4 years ago

    That "steal" thing is also kinda stupid...

    I mean VW stole the 4 wheeled car from Ford ?


    Rubbish. I do hope all companies cotinue to use and improve ideas of each other. All patents must die!
    Edited by 1 at 17/07/08 @ 10:19

  • Moz #19 4 years ago

    Well we know that they've been working on wireless mikes for a while now, who know's why it's been taking so long.

    But yes there is an element of "Oh bugger we weren't expecting lips to be any good now we need to get off our arses and do the stuff to Singstar we should have done when we first launch the PS3 version"

  • yupyup #20 4 years ago

    So Singstar PS3 wasn't next gen after all? Well colour me surprised.

    Interesting to see what they do to combat Lip's importing of songs.

  • BastoJ #21 4 years ago

    I can't see why everyones arguing about companies stealing off one another. The Xbox 360 didn't have a Karaoke game so Lips came along to fill that gap in the market. It's good that they're both trying to make the better product :)

  • Ryze #22 4 years ago

    What the hell are Sony doing now? Singstar PS3 was already supposed to be the next gen version.

    Fools. Glad it's not my dough they're wasting.

  • Zander #23 4 years ago

    my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard...

  • iancognito #24 4 years ago

    +1

  • penhalion #25 4 years ago

    Do Sony realise they already released Sing Star? Seems to me no-one told David Reeves..wha wha wha whaaaaaaaaaaaa.

    What they gonna do? Knock up a demo of the next singstar just so that they can announce it for what..let me guess...spring 2009 perhaps.

  • Eighthours #26 4 years ago

    Are they admitting that the present incarnation of Singstar is lazy, then? (Music store aside.)

  • Les #27 4 years ago

    Please, no instruments. Wireless mics is all I want.

  • keyboardmonkey #28 4 years ago

    / I thought Sony had already released 2 versions of singstar for the PS3.

    Wireless Mic's should be in the new version, along with a lot more content. I'm not sure how many different types of modes you could make from singstar that works well e.g. The rap thing, (i am totally pants at it and haven't seen anyone be really good).

    @FladgeMangle
    Nope not trying to say they will steal it, just that i am quite surprised that this bit of news appears after the main E3 presentations and he won't give any details as to what's new in it. I jumped to the conclusion it was a bit of a panic announcement and that they are waiting to see of the Lips offering.

    I hope the new version has no old songs on it that have already been released on other versions of singstar.

  • miiiguel #29 4 years ago

    Still, in the "stealing" thingy, it's very, very bad that the consumer is taking sides with the companies and asking them to not improve good ideas.
    In a semi-related analogy, the medicines industry is hurting civilization big, big time with the patents for the AIDS medicines, which are in control of one or two companies which put astounding prices to their products and don't let others compete with them and therefor lower the prices.
    I'm not taling about Chinese kinda patent infrigement though.

  • oreillymj #30 4 years ago

    @miiiguel - I agree


    Microsoft Lands Milestone 5,000th Patent
    http://ww w.microsoft.com/presspass/press...

  • johnnybrn #31 4 years ago

    miiiguel,

    Drug companies would argue that the high costs are due to the fact that they have to recover R&D costs and the patents expire after 10 years at which point generic medicines are introduced to the markets.

    In a similar vain, Sony has passed on the high costs of BR development onto the consumer in the form of the PS3

  • miiiguel #32 4 years ago

    @oreillymj:
    see..., you, and some fellow gamers mistaken my undenied passion for my 360s with the passion for the brand Sony (or MS) some have.

    johnnybrn: I agree with all that, but higher values are a stake (that's my socialist side talking, but I read a lot of Marx...).
    Edited by 2 at 17/07/08 @ 12:08

  • Arwin #33 4 years ago

    Well one thing I'm willing to put money on that will be in the next Singstar update is something more with EyeToy. We already have the very funny videos online, but I'm sure these will be able to be directly uploaded to Youtube from within the game next, as this was added to the Sony SDK recently and among others announced for another Sony producted game (MLB 09).

    But it does indicate that the stuff we've been missing from E3's conference, among which for me personally more EyeToy stuff, may well have been saved for Leipzig!

  • SpaceMidget75 Verified Senior Software Developer, Minerva Computer Services #34 4 years ago

    We use our PS2 Singstars a lot at parties and there are only 3 things that this demographic would really like:

    Wireless Microphones
    Import/Use own music library
    Downloadable songs

    That's it and MS have fixed two of them (if it works). No doubt Sony will do the same but they'll pretty much be the same products then. Any other innovations would just not get used by most SingStar users.

    The thing that WILL make one better than the other is how many tunes are available and for what price. If I was MS I would capitalise on Sony's slow start to DLC and flood the bloody thing with just about every song you could think of for 70p a pop.

    That shit right there would sell 360's to about 4 different friends of mine.

  • SeesThroughAll #35 4 years ago

    Where are the bluetooth mics, Reeves?

    Can anybody here tell me if people can use BT headset with the PS3 singstars already?
    Edited by 1 at 17/07/08 @ 16:32