I rarely feel threatened when testing a video game. But I’m rarely trapped between teens and games they really, really want to play.
My limited vocal talents convinced me to take "Lips" — a new karaoke-style game for the Xbox 360 from Microsoft Game Studios — to a youth event. I knew I could find kids eager to try it, but I wasn’t aware of how eager until a few tested their chops and others decided they, like, um, HAD to try it, too. What won them over? Good presentation, co-op singing, the ability to add vocal frills and a great song selection.
The basics of "Lips" are pretty familiar: You sing the lyrics that stream across the screen while the original track plays in the background. Each word’s pitch and duration are indicated by a thick, colored bar. There’s really no score, or anything else that would guide a "real" vocalist, so it’s pretty easy for almost anyone to jump in and play.
The game tracks your performance and awards points for hitting the right notes for the right amount of time. You can earn bonus points by maintaining the right rhythm, adding vocal frills, such as a vibrato, or waving the wireless, motion-sensitive microphone when indicated.
You can sing a solo or a friend can join in a duet or other co-op modes. If you’re feeling a little competitive, you can face off in the "Vocal Fighters" mode in which each vocalist takes turns singing and whoever earns the most points wins that round.
In most cases, you can sing along to the song’s original video, but "Lips" also offers other visual options, such as animated clips and custom music videos.
The game comes with 40 tracks — ranging from Johnny Cash’s "Ring of Fire," to Rascal Flatts’ "Stand" to Duffy’s "Mercy." There seems to be something for everyone — country, pop, rock, oldies, fast, slow, low, high.
However, it won’t be long before you’re looking for more music. You can download additional tracks from Microsoft for a fee. Although many of the tracks currently available are Christmas songs, the fledgling service looks promising.
You have another option if you own a Zune, iPod or other supported MP3 player. You can hook it up to your Xbox 360 and link your favorite tunes to "Lips" — as long as they don’t have digital rights protection. Of course you also better know the words because it’s unlikely any of your tracks will have "Lips" lyric support. However, it’s still fun to sing along to your favorites.
Platform: Xbox 360On the Web: lips.xbox.com
