Joysound Wii Karaoke U Pre-installed on System

WiiU

by Danny Bivens - November 7, 2012, 4:49 am EST
Total comments: 14 Source: Nintendo Direct

A USB microphone is also on the way for karaoke lovers!

A singing package called Nintendo JoySound Wii Karaoke U will come pre-installed on Wii U consoles in Japan. The application, which is a joint effort between karaoke service provider Xing and Nintendo, allows players to enjoy over 90,000 songs in the comfort of their own homes. While the application is free, it does cost players to sing. The cost breakdown is as follows:

1 hour – 100 yen
24 hours – 300 yen
30 days – 1,000 yen
90 days – 2,000 yen

The karaoke app will give players a wide range of control over the song, including changing the tempo, adjusting the volume or adding an echo to the microphone. During the songs, players will have the option of seeing a standard video for their song, their Mii performing the song or their own previously uploaded pictures in a slide show. Each user's Mii will have their own profile for the game, where they can store their favorite songs and custom settings.

Nintendo will also be releasing a special USB karaoke microphone that can be used with the game. The microphone will be sold as a standalone microphone and in a bundle with a trial disk containing 50 songs that can be accessed for 30 days.
There is currently no word as to whether Nintendo will bring this game to Wii U consoles outside of Japan, pre-installed or not.

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Talkback

lennyNovember 07, 2012

Wow that sucks we get 50 stupid songs for $60 but they get 90,000 :'(

geoNovember 07, 2012

Quote from: lenny

Wow that sucks we get 50 stupid songs for $60 but they get 90,000 :'(

Karaoke is way more popular over there, though. I also don't see american users paying money to play a karaoke game for a set amount of time. But who knows.

the_dan_xDanny Bivens, Associate Editor (Japan)November 07, 2012

No pricing was discussed for the bundled mic or the stand alone. It's actually pretty freakin' cheap to do it, actually. 100 yen (basically $0.80!) for an hour! 300 yen for 24 hours? Karaoke places here are significantly more expensive than this. A microphone might be initially expensive (I don't see it being more than $30), but it would be a long term thing. This is targeting the same kind of market that Tvii is in North America.

leahsdadNovember 07, 2012

This thing smacks of "Japan Only"

TJ SpykeNovember 07, 2012

Quote from: lenny

Wow that sucks we get 50 stupid songs for $60 but they get 90,000 :'(

What are you talking about? There is no mention of how much the game by itself will cost, and the article only mentions it being released in Japan.nand the article mentions that the 50 songs are part of a free trial, gamers pay to get the full 90K songs.

Bman87301November 07, 2012

I seem to recall Reggie specifically being asked in an interview if Wii U would have any pre-installed software like 3DS did (Face Raiders, Find Mii) and his answer was "no". Based off that, we should probably assume this will be exclusive to Japan.

I'm still a little confused by this news though... It says it'll support the USB microphone-- does that mean it'll require the USB mic, or will it just be optional and otherwise support the mic feature built-into the GamePad?

Also, is there anything special about this Wii U USB mic (which is apparently the same one bundled with SiNG Party), or will any USB mic also work? I'd normally assume the SiNG Party microphone would just be a standard USB mic, but from looking at the pics, its design is noticeably different than the one I already have from Guitar Hero: World Tour-- it's longer and has a power switch (which gives me the clear impression it'll be using batteries), which seems odd since it's apparently not wireless.

leahsdadNovember 07, 2012

I think the pricing, from a Japan standpoint, is a pretty good deal, considering how much Karaoke costs, either at a Karaoke establishment or to purchase a Karaoke machine that hooks up to your TV (which is, of course, ridiculous in Asia, paying hundreds of dollars for something which we can easily replicate with a USB microphone, a computer, and an internet connection).

the_dan_xDanny Bivens, Associate Editor (Japan)November 08, 2012

@Bman, that's kind of up in the air right now. They didn't say anything at all about support of previously released mics from the Wii or any USB mic. For right now, we know for sure that this is the only mic that works with the game/system.

I don't expect to see this going outside of Japan, at least not for free being preinstalled. Like I mentioned, this might be NCL's answer to what gamers in the West get with Tvii. Unfortunately, in Japan, there just aren't enough streaming services for it to be worth it...Though Hulu is getting to be pretty awesome here believe it or not.