Nerdly » ‘Let’s Sing 2021’ Review (Nintendo Switch)

03rd Dec2020

‘Let’s Sing 2021’ Review (Nintendo Switch)

by Phil Wheat

Now in it’s 2021 iteration, the RavensCourt/Voxler Let’s Sing franchise is now seemingly the only karaoke game left in a market that used to be completely saturated… Thankfully Let’s Sing 2021 is STILL flying the flag for a genre that, only a few years ago was flourishing. So what happened? Well I blame TikTok… I joke of course, but as a super-fan of karaoke games I can’t understand why we can get a myriad of Need for Speed games no one wants, a ton of Assassin’s Creed titles that are – essentially – all the same game yet it’s the karaoke genre that’s dying out; a genre that can be revitalised every year given the right set of songs and the right game mechanics. Though judging by the traffic our reviews of Let’s Sing still get years after debuting, a LOT of other people love these game too! So again, why do game developers still ignore the genre? And bring back old-school Guitar Hero while you’re at it too! Sorry… rant over.

As with previous iterations of the franchise, Let’s Sing 2021 made its debut digitally BEFORE coming to retail later this month. Thankfully my worries that the series would be facing a digital-only future is not on the cards. As I stated previously, going digital only would not bode well for the future of the series or the genre as a whole (though I still think more consistent digital-delivered updates SHOULD be the future of the series). However what worries me is the seemingly small amount of physical copies of the Let’s Sing franchise actually available at retail – especially on the Nintendo Switch. I had to pre-order both Let’s Sing Presents Queen AND Let’s Sing 2021 from an online retailer as my store – part of the countries biggest video game store franchise – weren’t stocking it; even if you pre-ordered it! Which essentially means you have to get copies from places like eBay once it sells out; and honestly, have you seen the secondary market prices for the previous Let’s Sing games?!

Sorry. I’ll stop complaining. After all at least we got TWO Let’s Sing games this year! With that being said, lets crack on with the review of Let’s Sing 2021. Which we’ll break down in the same manner as ALL our previous ones (we’ve reviewed a lot of these games by now!)

The Songs

With Let’s Sing 2021 the basic track list follows a similar format as last years, i.e. it’s a little more well-rounded – yes the the line-up of songs still feature current radio-played songs but these are balanced out a handful of with older tracks. Hell, we even get a Disney song this time round too! Of course the game did launch with PLENTY of extras songs available as DLC – which, FYI, costs almost as much as the game if you buy everything – which means said balance is multiplied ten-fold with such a wide variety of tracks (including some songs repeated from previous years DLC mind you). Making this, in my opinion, THE perfect multi-generational karaoke game!

Check out the Let’s Sing 2021 tracklist below:

Justin Bieber – Yummy
Tones and I – Dance Monkey
Billie Eilish – bad guy
Selena Gomez – Lose You to Love Me
Ariana Grande – thank u, next
Dua Lipa – Don‘t Start Now
Jonas Brothers – Sucker
Imagine Dragons – Thunder
Maroon 5 – Memories
Shawn Mendes – If I Can‘t Have You
Lewis Capaldi – Before You Go
Ava Max – So Am I
Nea – Some Say
Marshmello ft. Bastille – Happier
Rita Ora ft. Liam Payne – For You
Trevor Daniel – Falling
Panic! at the Disco – High Hopes
Katy Perry ft. Skip Marley – Chained to the Rhythm
Sam Smith – Too Good at Goodbyes
Lizzo – Good as Hell
Major Lazer & DJ Snake ft. MØ – Lean On
Calvin Harris ft. John Newman – Blame
James Bay – Hold Back the River
The Lumineers – Ho Hey
KT Tunstall – Black Horse and the Cherry Tree
Linkin Park – Somewhere I Belong
Seal – Kiss from a Rose
Genesis – I Can’t Dance
Kim Wilde – You Keep Me Hangin‘ On
The Lion King – I Just Can‘t Wait to Be King

Not only is the track list balanced between old and new, it’s also well balanced in terms of difficulty, with songs ranging from easy to hard, which means there’s plenty of challenge this time round for even seasoned Let’s Sing players… Especially if you want to get on those worldwide leaderboards – which I do (and am)!

Controls

Nothing much has changed when it comes to the controls in Let’s Sing 2021 – the motto “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” springs to mind. Once again you have the USB mics that you can re-use from previous versions of the game or get with this latest edition. And there is, as per last year, the opportunity to use your mobile phones as a mic by downloading the FREE Let’s Sing mic app for the game and connecting your phone to your console over wi-fi. Which means there’s also more opportunity for playing – players can join the game through a combination of USB mic or phone app. Thankfully the “sing to activate the mic” option once again appears within the latest Let’s Sing game, which means players can jump in and out of the fun, choosing to partake in a particular track or not on a song-by-song basis.

And on the Switch using your phone as a mic is definitely the best way to play – really fitting with the “mobile” gaming aesthetic of Nintendo’s console. The fact you can choose between within maximum of 4 Smartphones, 2 USB-Mics and 1 Headset means there’s PLENTY of scope for throwing karaoke parties (once the global pandemic is over of course).

Gameplay & Presentation

Not much has changed in Let’s Sing 2021: avatars; a global-asynchronous-versus-multiplayer-mode; and a new “Create your own Mix Tape” mode, are all present here along with the same clean look and feel for the menu system. It’s all pretty much the same as last year… The global-asynchronous-versus-multiplayer-mode – or “World Contest” as its known in the game – is back as are the unlockable avatars and the updated score multiplier from way back in 2019’s Let’s Sing And there’s still plenty of trophies (and in turn avatars) to collect too, along with bronze, silver, gold, platinum AND diamond records. Which means – as usual – for trophy hunters there’s plenty to go at in Let’s Sing 2021.

The biggest change this year is the addition of the “Legend Mode” – which is a brand new long-term solo experience. The goal of which is to give the players a sense of progression. The in-game avatars have now been given personalities and pose as antagonists for players; setting challenges which get more and more difficult as the player progresses. With 16 challengers and three challenges per opponent, you’ll have to step up your singing game to be prepared for the final battle against each of the antagonists!

Conclusion

Honestly, Let’s Sing 2021 isn’t much of a change from last years iteration but when that game was without a doubt THE best karaoke game ever made. RavensCourt and Voxler know what works and they’ve stuck to the winning formula… It seems that, at least for now, there’s no way to improve on perfection (which the last game was), merely the ability to tweak things slightly for a smoother experience. But – like I said in the intro – why not offer year-round digital-only updates rather than having to wait a year between releases? Now THAT would be a huge improvement to the franchise and prevent each release from becoming sale. After all, who’s still playing a Let’s Sing game 9 months after release? With constant updates I feel this would be a constant go-to in my household and probably yours too!

Ultimately, if you like these kinds of karaoke games (like I really, REALLY, do) you owe it to yourself to grab a copy of Let’s Sing 2021 now. Right now.