SingStar ‘90s is the latest entry into Sony’s popular karaoke series. Known for its high quality microphones and as being the only reason to keep an EyeToy around, the series continues its trend of glossy presentation, artist videos, and cold shoulder to newcomers. Surprisingly, a title that attempts to cover one of the most musically wide-ranging decades finds itself sticking to the edges.

For those who have played any of the other SingStar games, you should be right at home here. Newcomers will find a lack of a good tutorial surprising, and it is unfortunate that one has yet to be introduced – these are all standalone titles, after all, so each is bought to bring new people to the series.  You will also note the fine microphones that you now have in your possession. Keep those handy, because no other mic will work with the series. That isn’t a big deal, really, because the build quality is absolutely superb and they are far better than using a headset (ala Karaoke Revolution). I found them essential to the experience and noteworthy for their quality – much better than I was expecting.

Despite its lack of a true introduction, the series is brimming with great features. Sessions are automatically recorded and accessible once the song as ended – they can be played back or saved for later embarrassment – and the EyeToy can be used to put the action on screen. Unlike other karaoke titles, SingStar ‘90s uses the actual music videos to deliver the song and lyrics, meaning that you are getting the real artists and not an eerily similar knock-off. The videos can be a bit grainy, especially for those with larger sets, but the trade-off is worth it. Other hand features include the ability to swap SingStar discs in game and multiplayer with duets, battling, teams. Like most karaoke, the lyrics can go a little fast and are confusing for those unfamiliar with the songs, but a lovely display that has color-coded lyrics and an unobtrusive display of lyric length and pitch goes a long way.

To help facilitate song discussion, I’m going to go ahead and toss in the track listing. But, I am also going to indicate the date that the songs were released in North America (from Wikipedia):

Arrested Development             "Tennessee"  -- 1992

Boys II Men             "Motownphilly" -- 1991

Chumbawumba             "Tubthumping" -- 1997

Color Me Badd             "I Wanna Sex You Up" -- 1991

Divinyls             "I Touch Myself" -- 1991

En Vogue             "Free Your Mind" -- 1992

Extreme             "More Than Words" -- 1991

Gin Blossoms             "Hey Jealousy" -- 1993

Hootie and the Blowfish             "Only Wanna Be With You" -- 1995

Jesus Jones             "Right Here, Right Now" -- 1990

Len       "Steal My Sunshine" -- 1999

MC Hammer             "U Can't Touch This" -- 1990

Natalie Imbruglia             "Torn" -- 1997

New Kids On The Block             "Step By Step" -- 1990

Nirvana             "Lithium" -- 1991

Paula Abdul             "Opposites Attract" -- 1989/1990

Poison             "Unskinny Bop"  -- 1990

R.E.M.             "Everybody Hurts" -- 1992

Santana ft. Rob Thomas             "Smooth" -- 1999

Savage Garden             "I Want You" -- 1997

Seal      "Kiss From A Rose" -- 1995

Sir Mix-a-Lot             "Baby Got Back" -- 1992

Sixpence None The Richer             "Kiss Me" -- 1999

Soundgarden             "Black Hole Sun" -- 1994

Spin Doctors             "Two Princes" -- 1993

Stone Temple Pilots    "Plush" -- 1993

Technotronic ft. Felly     "Pump Up The Jam" -- 1989

The Cranberries             "Zombie" -- 1994

Vanilla Ice             "Ice Ice Baby" -- 1990

Wilson Phillips             "Hold On" – 1990

Do you notice anything odd? Well, if you thought the listing was strange before seeing the dates, there is a reason for that: the early ‘90s dominate the game. I mean, who knew New Kids on the Block were still popular in the ‘90s? Out of the 30 songs, 7 were released in 1990. One of those was actually released in the last week of 1989 – “Opposites Attract” – which I’ll give, but “Pump Up The Jam” was already a hit in 1989. The rest of the breakdown includes 5 songs from 1991, 4 from 1992, 3 from 1993, 2 from 1994, 2 from 1995, 0 from 1996, 3 from 1997, 0 from 1998, and 3 from 1999. That is only 8 songs from 1995-1999.

I can’t get around the fact that I, like many others, find most of the music from the ‘90s to be tough to listen to now - hell, it was tough to listen to then. But in a decade where rap went from “U Can’t Touch This” to “Gin and Juice” and rock from “Unskinny Bop” to “Freak on a Leash”, I can understand that there will be problems trying to capture that sort of bell curve from pop to anger to polished productions. I think it would’ve helped had the title spread itself out more – there were no songs from ’96 or ’98 worthy of inclusion? And a lot of these songs aren’t the kind that you will want to listen to after a few rounds.

Although, there are some gems in there. I have much more respect from MC Hammer after trying to tackle his ode to his untouchableness; and “Kiss From A Rose” never gets old. I will admit to finding “I Wanna Sex You Up” as hilarious today as I did 17 years ago – ahh! I feel old! – and one that is always a crowd-pleaser. The choice to sing between two parts in a couple of the songs is also a nice touch, and will allow someone that rare opportunity to fulfill their dream as MC Skat Kat.

Overall: 7.5/10