I can appreciate that what I am about to say might make people roll their eyes but saying it will also really help make my point. I am an ex-international singer songwriter. I have released 12 albums and published 138 songs. I featured on iTunes ‘Best of 2012’ and have turned down a handful of record label offers in my time. I have a distinction in grade 8 guitar and now run my own private music tutoring business. You are wondering why I am telling you these things, and that is fair. When I was fifteen, I would put a radio under my pillow and fall asleep listening to my local radio station. Every night, without fail, they would play Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen and it mesmerised me. I didn’t know music could sound like that and that one song compelled me to have guitar lessons. It changed my life. Queen has a special place in my heart, so I was excited to see what Let’s Sing Queen was all about.
Developed by Voxler SAS and published by Ravenscourt, Let’s Sing Queen is the latest release in the long-standing Let’s Sing karaoke series, available on PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. They have clearly found a formula that works and there is something deeply satisfying about a game that knows exactly what it is and how to deliver it.
The game features thirty songs from the legendary Queen, between the years of 1974 and 1991. As mentioned, this is karaoke and different game modes include classic single player, let’s party which is two teams of four going head to head in different challenges, and world contest where you pit your scores online for ranking. You perform either with a USB microphone or by downloading an app onto your smart phone, which is what I did. It took less than a minute to set up and simplicity runs throughout this game – all menus and options are wonderfully succinct and smooth. They have done this before. Partnered nicely with the game’s ease of use, is that the game is also completely on your side. You will not fail a song if you hit the wrong note and you won’t be booed off for a bad performance. The worst that can happen is you get a low score, but whatever score you get, it is then converted into experience points that level you up. I got to level ten in my playthrough and the only use I found for levelling up is that it unlocks new avatars. However, these are an afterthought that have no effect on gameplay and they are pretty underwhelming.
Typically, singers have a range of around two octaves, which is twenty-four notes. Freddie Mercury was rumoured to have a four-octave range. The game does accommodate for this and at no point are you expected to rival the world’s greatest frontman – this game is not an audition. I am a professional singer but trust me, I have an extremely limited range and I still scored gold on Bohemian Rhapsody, so anyone can play this. The aim really is about having fun and if you are a Queen fan, you will have a blast.
The downsides are that on many songs, you are singing Freddie’s part along with the backing singers. That is a big ask given that when Freddie stops, the harmonies start – I need to breath at some point. Also, throughout the songs, there are gold stars which give x5 combo boosts, but you get these stars for hitting the higher notes. With my range, I found that tough and would have liked these distributed more evenly. Lastly, as much as I adore Queen, I think I would enjoy this for one evening and that would be it for me. But I’m not normal. If you have friends and access to alcohol, Let’s Sing Queen would make for a memorable evening, maybe even a regular event.
Pros
- Queen fans will love it
- It is exactly what it says it is
- Very accommodating and the focus is fun
Cons
- Singing harmonies on solo mode is an odd decision
- Gold stars were all out of my range which felt unnecessarily unfair
- Fun for one night but not the sort of game I would go back to again and again
