SingStar belts out encore

For those times in life when people just feel like they have to break into song on their games consoles, there's SingStar. Released in 2004 for the PlayStation 2, the original game saw sequels tapping into new musical territories with titles such as SingStar Bollywood, SingStar Amped, and SingStar '80s.

The PlayStation 3 version of the game, developed by Sony's London Studio, was released in Europe on December 7, 2007, but remains unreleased in North America. SingStar PS3 brought with it the online SingStore, which allows crooners to browse an ever-growing library of songs and purchase their karaoke favourites.

Despite an increasing amount of downloadable content, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe today confirmed the release of SingStar Volume 2 for the PS3. As well as new tracks, the new title will add a Harmony Duet mode and enable remote play functionalities via the PlayStation Portable. The PSP features won't allow wannabe singers to serenade the public on their portables, however, as the service just allows for browsing of the SingStore and My SingStar Online. A "slick new look" to the SingStar carousel will also be added.

According to the announcement, there will be 30 songs on the Blu-ray disc, which will include the "ace" Paul McCartney and The Frog Chorus number "We All Stand Together," and the Mamas & the Papas' "California Dreamin'," both of which will be singable in the new Harmony Duet mode.

There will also be tracks from The Killers, Eminem, the Kaiser Chiefs, Gorillaz, and "many many more," according to Sony. The game has not yet been dated, and it is not clear if the new tracks or features will be made available to owners of the first volume via the SingStore.