7 /10 1 Votes7
Designer(s) Keiichi Yano Developer iNiS Genre Music video game Platform Xbox 360 | 71% Metacritic Initial release date 18 November 2008 Publisher Microsoft Studios Mode Single-player video game | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Similar iNiS games, Music video games, Other games | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lips is a 2008 karaoke video game for the Xbox 360. Lips was developed by iNiS and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The game features the use of motion sensitive wireless microphones and supports the use of songs already owned through a Zune or iPod. The game was released on November 18, 2008 in North America and on November 21, 2008 in Europe and has received generally average reviews. Lips has spawned three sequels: Lips: Number One Hits, Lips: Party Classics and Lips: I Love the 80's. Localized versions of the game and sequels have been released in several countries, including Lips: Canta en Español (Lips: Sing in Spanish) and Deutsche Partyknaller (Lips: German Party Hits).
Contents
On April 3, 2009, it was announced that the Lips' microphones will be compatible with Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero: Metallica due to a patch that was released in summer 2009.
Gameplay
The gameplay in Lips is similar to the gameplay of SingStar and Karaoke Revolution. In addition to supporting single-player, the game allows two players to sing duets or play competitively in various multiplayer modes including "Time Bomb", "Kiss", and "Vocal Fighters". Unlike most other music games, players cannot fail out of a song if they sing badly (or even if they don't sing at all). The game does not have a difficulty setting but rewards players for their singing in six categories including rhythm, pitch, and vibrato.
Players can connect a digital music player (such as an iPod or Zune), or use a USB flash drive, to sing along to their own music. The game will perform vocal reduction and score player like the included songs, except that the game will not display song lyrics. Players can also connect their Xbox 360 to a computer running a compatible media sharing service, such as Windows Media Connect 2.0, Windows Media Center, Zune PC software with sharing, or PVConnect to access their own music from a network share within the game.
Lips is bundled with two motion-sensitive wireless microphones (one white, one black). A second player can seamlessly join in the currently playing song by picking up the microphone and shaking it. The microphones can also be used to perform gestures dictated by the game, plus the standard game controllers can also be used to add overlays such as hand-claps and crowd noise.
In February 2009, Microsoft announced a title update for Lips. This patch addresses most of the issues with the game, namely it introduces a new algorithm for voice recognition and vibrato pick-up, claiming that the game was 'too easy' before, and the ability to synchronise the microphone timing, a cause of regular negative feedback. This update also introduces the use of global leaderboards to track high scores. Minor tweaks were also made to the user interface.
Additionally, following the April 2009 title update, song packs were also introduced for purchase, offering bundles of songs for a discounted price.
As of October 2014, the store and server for Lips have been shut down.
Reception
Lips has received average reviews. Reviewers have praised the wireless microphones and multiplayer experience but criticized the single-player modes and the song import feature which many people have had issues with. In addition, the import feature does not support lyric downloads but the game does make an attempt to reduce the real singers voice volume while playing in this mode.
Wireless Microphone compatibility list
The games listed below support the Xbox 360 Wireless Microphones.