Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: EA Montreal
Multiplayer: Yes (4)
Online Multiplayer: No
Review by Predat0r + Wrecker
EA has tweaked and “fine tuned” its 2007 karaoke dance game ‘Boogie’ with the release of a 2008 sequel ‘Boogie Superstar’. Being only the third karaoke game released for the Wii (along with the original Boogie, and ‘High School Musical: Sing It’), ‘Boogie Superstar’ has also had its target audience “fine tuned” with EA (and the very agreeable official spokesperson, British pop-star Natasha Bedingfield) promoting the game as “self-expression, creativity and empowerment for girls worldwide”.
Gameplay: 7.5
‘Boogie Superstar’ could best be described as a cross between the original ‘Boogie’, ‘Sing Star’ and ‘Australian Idol’. Gone is the ‘Boogs’ character from the original game, and instead focuses on a pop star theme in which players choose to sing or dance to ‘top-40’ songs in a bid to impress a trio of virtual judges.
The core gameplay involves players competing on a ‘Star Show’ which invovlves karaoke style singing using the included wired USB microphone or rhythm based dancing using the wii remote and nunchuck. Players can compete against each other (up to four people or computer players) with the winner rewarded by unlocking additional game content such as songs and character accessories.
The game also includes a ‘star training’ mode to teach new players the basics and an option to create a custom ‘dance routine’. Players can customize their ‘boogie superstar’ character in the ‘Dressing Room’ which tilts in favour of the girls with an abundance of mini skirts and a lack of facial hair!
The songs in the game (which do not stray far from Top-40 pop) are loosely divided into three styles – pop, urban and electro-dance, with each style having corresponding dance moves. To assist the player, each move is detailed on a supplied ‘dance card’, which comes in handy. When ‘dancing’, the player must perform certain moves by moving the wii remote and nunchuck in time to the beat of the song. The on-screen character will indicate if the motion is successful or not (or is too fast or too slow) and onscreen flashing lights help with keeping the beat. By performing dance moves correctly, players earn points which accumulate in a ‘boogie meter’ at the bottom of the screen which, when full, allows players to execute bonus moves such as ‘clapping’ or ‘drumming’.
The singing component of the game is straight forward and is in the form of a side scrolling prompter for pitch, timing and lyrics, similar to ‘Sing Star’ and other karaoke games. The singing element of the game also has a ‘Pranks’ option which can change the players voice or omit lyrics.
Given the obvious target audience we enlisted the help of some females who were not shy about getting straight into the dancing and singing. The singing element of the game is very forgiving in the easier modes allowing you to effortlessly finish a song, but this gets harder in later levels with only the best singers (with the most precise pitch and timing that is) scoring well. The dancing is reasonably good and the controls are more responsive that other rhythm games (like ‘Samba de Amigo’) but some moves still seem to allow you to shake the controller any-which-way as long as you time the beat correctly. The dancing also gets progressively harder by adding complexity including having the player ‘move into the spotlight’ using the D-pad. The dancing was a little confusing in that it wasn’t immediately clear if the character was following your moves or vice versa and having a competing computer player side by side on the screen also was a bit distracting.
‘Boogie Superstar’ was also initially rumored to incorporate the ‘Wii Balance Board’ which we feel could have broadened the appeal of the dancing element of the game (which is quite basic), but unfortunately this did not eventuate.
Although up to four players can compete locally, online play is not available in ‘Boogie Superstar’ and the option to download additional content is also missing. Given that most games in this category feature some sort of online component this was noticeably absent.
Graphics: 7.5
The visuals in ‘Boogie Superstar’ are simple but effective with a graphic style that could be likened to the mash-up of a Jason Brook’s ‘Hed-Kandi’ dance album cover and a ‘Bratz’ cartoon.
The ‘cell shaded’ graphics in the game are well designed and are saturated with color. The intro movie is polished, the character animations smooth and in-game menus well presented.
It would have been nice to see some Mii integration in the game, but admittedly this would probably have been a clash of graphic styles with the Mii’s being perhaps a bit simple (or not ‘cool’ enough?) for the highly customizable and accessorized ‘superstars’.
While not ground breaking, the graphics in Boogie Superstar comfortably hit the mark in terms of the overall ‘feel’ of the game and are well suited to the Wii’s capabilities.
Sound: 7.0
The sound in a karaoke-dance game is arguably the most important feature and ‘Boogie Superstar’ is packed with 42 of mostly modern pop tracks including established divas ‘Paula Abdul’,’ Britney Spears’ and ‘Fergie’ as well as recent music from ‘Katy Perry’ and teen sensations ‘The Jonas Brothers’ and ‘Metro Station’.
Like many games in this genre, the songs featured on the soundtrack are covers and do not feature the original artists. While this practice works well in other games like ‘Guitar Hero’ (and even ‘Samba de Amigo’) with the covers being almost indistinguishable from the original, Boogie Superstar’s songs fall a bit short and you quickly realize that you are not listening to the ‘real thing’. This is more noticeable when you are playing the rhythm component of the game, rather than when you are ‘belting out’ your own karaoke vocals.
Another questionable decision with regard to the game’s sound is the use of a fictional ‘mumbo-jumbo’ language for the character dialog featured in the game. This feature works well in ‘The Sims’ where the speech is more or less a background element, but when the characters are speaking to you directly (albeit with subtitles) this is initially confusing and will make you check the box to make sure you haven’t purchased a ‘grey import’ from another country.
The sound in the game does come together well overall and puts out a good beat, but anyone who has played the current champion of console karaoke ‘Sing Star’ (featuring original tracks) will be somewhat disappointed by the lack luster song covers in ‘Boogie Superstar’. You would be forgiven for thinking EA had the budget and resources to include the original artists in the soundtrack.
Difficulty: 5.0
Boogie Superstar is a game that anyone can pick up and play easily enough. The controls are quite responsive and accurate, (much more so than ‘Samba De Amigo’ for example). The karaoke mode is quite forgiving and after a few goes most will be able to at least get a respectable score. As you progress however the variety and timing of dance moves and songs naturally increases in difficulty, although not overly. To progress to the next level the current level of difficulty must be mastered. The tutorials and training modes are fairly straightforward and seeing the game is aimed at youngsters it seems the overall balance is quite good.
Value: 7.5
With both a singing and dancing component to the game as well as character customisation items, songs and new moves to unlock there is definetly some longevity to the game for those who want to persist. The tween target audience will surely want to master the ultimate aim of the game in becoming a “Boogie Superstar” . Multiplayer modes are great fun as you can go head to head with friends or family for a bit of a laugh. There is also some variety within the various training and practice modes. However, as previously mentioned there is no online component to the game and this would have given it an extra dimension.
Overall: 7.4
All in all, ‘Boogie Superstar’ is surprisingly quite a good game even for male ‘skeptics’. The game can be a lot of fun (particular with several players) and it is amusing to watch the amateur singing and dancing competition unfold. It improves a great deal on the original ‘Boogie’ and holds its place as the best karaoke game currently available on the Wii – albeit with very limited competition.
The karaoke element is still however a poor cousin to the hugely successful ‘Sing Star’ even with the dancing/rhythm gameplay added. For people who take their karaoke a bit more seriously (and some do!) you would probably prefer to wait for some stiffer completion from the likes of the wii-ware karaoke title ‘JoySound’ or for a version of ‘Sing Star’ to hit the Wii.
Having said this, EA has made no secret of the fact that ‘Boogie Superstar’ is aimed at young girls (as well as possibly ‘tipsy’ older girls or the aspiring Anthony Callea) and in this respect the game successfully delivers a solid title to its target audience. If ever need to buy your 10 year old sister a x-mas present, she won’t be disappointed with this game.