There can only be one American Idol. That's what Fox tells us every season. Five have already gained the title. I try to ignore the hoopla, I really do. But with 24 at the top of my viewing schedule, it's impossible to avoid the onslaught of ads promoting the series.

Like it or loathe it, you've probably seen an episode. If you're a gamer, chances are you've heard of the Karaoke Revolution series. Knowing how well the two could work together, I was not at all surprised to hear that Fox and Konami had joined forces. Their mission: to ensure that every lousy singer has a shot at stardom, even if it's limited to the confines of your living room.

Karaoke Revolution – Idol Style

The game works the same as before. Pick a song and do your best to sing it accurately. Accuracy is based on your highs and lows, as well as your ability to carry a tune. You are not expected to be the next Carrie Underwood. The game was designed to be accessible to as many people as possible. I don't have that powerful of a voice, and I doubt I could pull off Fall Out Boy's "Sugar, We're Going Down" in a studio. But the game allows me to keep up, with cheers from the audience and smiles from Randy to encourage your performance. (Simon looks bored most of the time, but don't worry – just have some smelling salts ready in case he passes out.)

Vocal performance is judged in two ways: in real-time during the song, and afterwards by the judges. The latter is an accumulation of your performance. Make a few mistakes in a song that was otherwise perfect and you'll get the Dog's approval. There's a new girl in town replacing Paula (I'm guessing she didn't want to be a part of the game?) who sits in between Randy and Simon and tends to be more of the middle-ground judge. Simon, of course, will mostly judge your mistakes over your accomplishments. He did compliment me a couple of times. Apparently I have what it takes to be the next American Idol. Who would have guessed!?!?

Real-time judging is visible on the bottom of the screen. Note tubes appear, and if your singing matches their position, the pitch arrow will follow the note accordingly. The phrase meter, located just above the note tubes, fills with every successfully sung note.

In the first Karaoke Revolution I discovered that, if I didn't know the words to a song, I could generally mumble through it. The trick was keeping my mumbles with the tone of the song. The developers haven't changed this aspect. Though it lets you cheat, it's good to have a little freedom. I only listen to rock music on my own time, so while I might know the style of a top 40 pop song, I rarely know the lyrics. (Lyrics are displayed below the note tubes, but I'd still rather mumble through songs like "Do I Make You Proud" – you know, the way Taylor Hicks did it.)

Idol Journey

Start the game by choosing a pre-made character or by creating your own. Homemade characters are built using the EyeToy Cameo software, which is accessible inside the game but is considered to be separate from Karaoke Revolution.

The technology is the same as before: snap a couple pictures of yourself (using the EyeToy of course), then apply a few cut points (for the game to sculpt your 3D face), test out the expression options, and click finish. The loading process takes a while, so be patient. Also be sure to have about a megabyte's worth of space on your memory card.

Whether you choose to make a character or select one that's available, this version will let you get into the game. Keep the EyeToy pointed in your direction while you're performing. Now take a look at the screen behind your polygon character. Who's that singing their hearts out? The players. Or in this game, the virtual American Idols.

Idolizing Unlockables

Since this is the American Idol edition, many of the songs chosen were selected based on their Idol status. For example, "Build Me Up Buttercup" was performed by Clay Aiken a few years ago, and is featured as one of the playable songs. His performance is hidden in the game. To unlock it, perform the song for the Idol judges and earn a Platinum score. It isn't that hard to do – I did it in one try and I kind of suck. The Platinum score also unlocks the song for use in other modes.

There are other performances to unlock, and a few zany moments from the show's past. Watch a guy's mom cry so hard she falls to the floor, and be amused as people with no talent get passed through because Fox believes it's what "America" wants. I suppose it's interesting as bonus footage, but only to a certain kind of Idol fan. Those who play this game because they love Karaoke Revolution (like me), as well as those who play because they love the Idol winners, are not likely to be excited by the footage.

Full Track Listing

All My Life

Alone

(Always) Something There to Remind Me

Be Without You

Breakaway

Build Me Up Buttercup

Can’t Help Falling In Love

Crazy Little Thing Called Love

Dilemma

Do I Make You Proud?

Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me

Don’t You Want Me

Easy

Every Rose Has Its Thorn

Flying Without Wings

Heartbreaker

Heaven

Hungry Like The Wolf

If You Don’t Know Me By Now

It’s Not Unusual

Just The Way You Are

Let’s Stay Together

Love Will Keep Us Together

More Than Words

Photograph

Piano Man

Proud Mary

Rock With You

Saving All My Love For You

She Bangs

Stand By Me

Stickwitu

Straight Up

Sugar, We’re Going Down

The Real Thing

Total Eclipse of the Heart

Unwritten

What a Girl Wants

You and Me

You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling

Gameplay: 8.0
I don’t necessarily feel like I’m playing while singing, but no matter how you look at it, Karaoke Revolution is a good time. The Idol edition doesn’t offer any mind-blowing additions. But you’ll still want to own it. With hits like “Photograph” (Nickelback) and classics like “More Than Words,” this game will have you singing for the next several months.

Graphics: 7.9
At about the same level as the other KR games. Simon and Randy’s character models look great until they open their mouths. Facial expressions – a key part of Simon’s criticism – are barely noticeable.

Sound: 7.9
Great music, but as with the others, none of the songs are performed by the original artists. I know there are legalities that keep the developers from using original recordings. But while some of the remakes are pretty good, others are terrible.

Simon and Randy’s performance critiques should be amusing to Idol fans.

Difficulty: Medium
Despite my experience with the series, Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol isn’t any easier than the previous titles. It has easy songs – all the versions do. But they also have some really tough tracks that are hard to pull off.

Concept: 7.0
New songs, new presentation, new complaints from Simon Scowl…er…Cowell. New stuff aside, this is the same as the rest.

Multiplayer: 8.5
Get an extra mic and invite some friends over for the best party game experience you’ll ever have.

Overall: 8.0
Still a blast. Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol must be the fifth or sixth edition. The series has made baby steps toward growth since its conception. But when new songs make the experience fun again, you can’t blame the developers for not changing an effective formula. The game rocks, whether you love Idol or not.