By Anthony Swinnich on April 22nd, 2006

Karaoke Country Revolution uses the same exact engine as the recent Karaoke Revolution Party, so it does nothing to progress the gameplay in the Karaoke Revolution series. This isn’t a bad thing since Karaoke Revolution Party played as well as it did, but those looking for a true sequel in this game will be sorely disappointed. The song list is limited only to country songs, so it’s limited appeal is also suspect for fans of the series that may not be into this style of music. While country wasn’t heavily represented in the previous entries, Konami has more than made up for that with this release.

There are over thirty-five songs available to perform when everything is unlocked. Veteran country fans will know most of the songs available, but only a few key tracks will stand out to those who don’t listen to this style of music regularly. The songs run the gamut from the ever-popular drunken-karaoke favorite "Friends in High Places" by Garth Brooks, to "I Walk the Line" by Johnny Cash. Most people might recognize a few cuts by Kenny Chesney, and some by the Dixie Chicks, but otherwise the songs are for Country-fans only. Take note that while none of the songs are the actual versions by the actual artists, you’d be hard pressed to notice unless you knew the songs that well.

For those not in the loop, the Karaoke Revolution series plays simply enough. The player chooses a song to perform, then sings it into the microphone. The microphone measures the tone of the notes sung. The more accurate the tone, the more points the player will get. While the words scroll across the bottom of the screen, knowing them is unimportant since the game only measures the vocal tone. The object is to sing the song as faithfully as possible according to the music, which will give the player a high score and hopefully open up some of the games hidden goodies.

These "hidden goodies" come in the form of new songs, or costumes for the on-stage avatar the player can choose to customize. The main problem with this is that there aren’t very many hidden songs, so after unlocking all the music you’re left only with clothes to unlock. Playing dress-up with a basic character model loses its charm fast, especially when the best options available make your character look like Kid Rock on a bad day.

Special modes are fairly limited as well, offering up nothing truly enticing for those interested in doing more than just singing the songs. Players can choose to play the single-mic games with friends, or if they have access to another mic, take part in the dual-mic modes. Single-mic modes include the regular arcade-style competition, and a medley mode. The dual-mic modes include the standard duet settings, the volatile Beach Volleyball pong-type game, and the terrible "Yo, Dude, Rock" game as well. All of these modes were in Karaoke Revolution Party. There is a new mode called "Knock Out," though all it does is have two players compete at the same time. Other than that, it’s your standard Karaoke Revolution special mode fare.

Either way, CMT Presents: Karaoke Country Revolution will be a blast for those who love country music, but a total letdown for those who aren’t interested in that genre of music. The extra modes add practically no value to the title, and there’s little to do once all of the songs are unlocked. If Konami wants the Karaoke Revolution spin-off titles to be successful, it should explore making them appealing in some way to all fans of the series, which is where Karaoke Country Revolution fails.