Harmonix, the studio that popularized the rhythm-accessory video with Guitar Hero and now continues the tradition with Rock Band, are today announcing a new music-based gaming experience for the Samsung Gear VR.
SingSpace was a surprise addition to the demo room of the Oculus Connect 3 virtual reality convention in San Jose. The company had not previously given any indication that it was working on any other virtual reality properties aside from the two it has already announced: Rock Band VR and Harmonix Music VR.
SingSpace is designed to let you croon your favorite hits in an immersive digital karaoke parlor while a mass of robot onlookers react to your performance in real time. The game uses a version of the now familiar Harmonix line-and-arrow system to gauge your vocal performance. Well executed tunes will earn the admiration of the robots in the crowd and failure will lead them to lose interest in you all together.
To start with you will be creating a custom avatar for your performances that can be customized to your liking. You’ll see this virtual representation of yourself on large screens in the parlor as you move through the songs and sources from the company confirmed that there will be a deep variety of different options to make your character your own.
The company also explained that social is going to be one of the driving forces behind SingSpace. Currently, up to four friends can gather together to sing a song as a group or watch one of their compatriots stumble his way hilariously through the routine.
As far as the songs themselves are concerned, Harmonix declined to comment on the show floor on the exact number or nature of the tracks that will come included in the initial release for SingSpace, but they did mention that they are working on cultivating a “deep robust catalogue that contains all of the songs one would expect to see in any modern karaoke bar…but we have yet to finalize those arrangements.”
UploadVR witnessed the power of SingSpace first hand when one of our editors brought the entire demo hall to a complete stand still, prompting some to even pause their demos all together, as he belted out the words to “I Will Survive” with an almost supernatural disregard for his surroundings.
So far, SingSpace seems to be fun, innovative, and a perfect fit for a mobile platform like the Gear VR. Harmonix is targeting a Spring 2017 release date for the game and we will bring you more information on its pricing model and additional features as that date approaches.
