Karaoke Revolution Volume 2 allows fans to sing along to or over the songs, for better or worse, of over 35 chart-topping hits. The judging is on not only the accuracy of the pitch, but the timing of each word as well. The judging has a few levels of difficulty you can choose. For the “shower only” singers I suggest the easy level, while the self-proclaimed professionals may want to bump up the strictness if you want to see how good you really are. The difficulty of each song varies, as does the genres. In order to sing though, you need a headset microphone, or Logitech’s new hand held version. Either is a good choice and you can find them at your local game shop. If you need to know which to choose, it is all based on whether or not you want to hear yourself in an earpiece, or though your stereo or TV speakers only. Most online gamers or owners of the first Karaoke title, will already own the headset. The main reasons to buy the handset are simple. The frequency, feedback levels, and even accuracy all adjust better for this game on the handset. You get a better feel for the game without a lot of distortion or missed lyrics that you might get in the headset. Either way, you cannot play the game without one or the other, so the choice is really yours.

Thankfully, the Karaoke Revolution 2 is not just a bunch of text scrolling by the screen as you sing, but there actually is a fun game here. You choose a character model from a wide cast of characters and outfits, a Goth chick, a cowboy, a thug, a robot, and even from a man in a teddy bear outfit. The selection is noticeably larger than the last, with some old favorites returning to please their fans. The models have already had the mouth movements arranged that correctly mimic the mouth fluency of the actual song, which adds to the virtual realism. While you sing many things happen on screen and it all depends on your performance. If you sing badly, you will have your fans decimate, be marred with boos, and eventually kicked off stage. If you sing well, expect more fans to flock, they will cheer you on and get excited, and even a special angelic glowing effect will become the norm if you hit your pitch and timing well enough to merit a crowd boost. To add to the competitive spirit, you also earn points on your routine. This adds to the addictiveness as you fight for high scores and bragging rights.

There are a number of modes to play in, which helps keep the game fresh and exciting. For the single player, you can choose from Showtime (the career version of the game), Medley (choose from 3 to five songs that not only start on different points, but end quickly as well), or Karaoke (no scoring). Multi-player is where the game really shines, as what a better way to spend an evening than listening to the praise or ridicule of your friends. For multi player you have, Medley (the random start and finish chaotic mode), Arcade (Sing with 2 to 8 players to see who can score the most points and win the most rounds), and Karaoke (you be the judge…no scoring). To keep the games engaging you have 35 songs to choose from which range from the known to the unknown depending on your age and demographic. Thankfully, if you have never heard a rendition of a particular song, there is a singer, whose voice level is adjustable, who provides the correct lyrics and timing you need to master that song.

For those curious, the full song list is as follows; Baby one more time, Born to be wild, Cry, Drift Away, Every breath you take, Friends in low places, Genie in a bottle, Heartbreak Hotel, Here without you, Hot stuff, I believe in a thing called love, I hate everything about you, I will survive, I’ll make love to you, I’m with you, Irresistible, It’s my life, I’ve got you under my skin, Jessie’s Girl, Lady Marmalade, Let’s get it on, Miss you, My Girl, Papa don’t preach, Perfect, Rich Girl, Rock and Roll all Nite, (Sittin’ on) The dock of the bay, Sweet home Alabama, The first cut is the deepest, The Joker, Toxic, Virtual Insanity, We are family, and White Flag. Did you find a song you like? Which generation are did you grow up in? It is nice to see the variety is wide open this time around and I personally like this song selection better.

If you played the first Karaoke Revolution to death and you are reading this review, you may notice the only true real additions are the songs and the Medley mode. Why Konami chose against releasing expansion discs for the first game still puzzles me, as in Japan there are over 20 right now. My only fear, being a fan of the game, is that I have to wait another year for a so-called sequel, to get more songs. Otherwise the game is a great buy for fans of the first, newbies, or just people who like to hear themselves sing (whether the world likes it or not).