============================================ Lips FAQ & Guide V. 1.0 ============================================ By: typhlosion5555 (Typh) Copyright 2009 Jorge Eduardo Gomez This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. This guide may ONLY be posted at: www.gamefaqs.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents: 1. Welcome to Lips! (LIPSINTRO) 2. Game Modes (LIPSMODES) 2.1 Sing! (LMODESING) 2.1.1 Original Video 2.1.2 Virtual Music Video 2.1.3 Time Bomb 2.1.4 Kiss 2.1.5 Vocal Fighters 2.2 Jukebox (LMODEJUKE) 2.2.1 Faves 2.2.2 Playlist 2.3 Get Music (LMODEGETM) 2.3.1 DLC 2.3.2 Import Songs 2.4 My Lips (LMODEMLIP) 2.5 Options (LMODEOPTN) 3. Strategies (LIPSSTRAT) 3.1 Medals (LSTRATMED) 3.1.1 Pitch 3.1.2 Rhythm 3.1.3 Performance 3.1.4 Party 3.1.5 Stability 3.2 Infinity Rank (LSTRATINF) 3.3 Star Power Multiplier (LSTRATSPM) 3.4 Vibrato (LSTRATVIB) 4. FAQ (LIPSFAQXS) 5. Song List (LIPSSONGS) 6. Lips Patch History (LIPSPATCH) 7. Achievements (LIPSACHVM) 8. Credits (LIPSCREDS) 9. Version History (LIPSVERHI) 10. Contact (LIPSCNTCT) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- =================== 1. Welcome to Lips! (LIPSINTRO) =================== In an attempt to compete with Sony's famous Singstar platform, Microsoft along with Japanese developer Inis, launched a singing platform exclusively for the Xbox 360 on November 2008. While received with mediocre ratings, Lips has been constantly improving in the form of patches and upgrades. What this guide plans to achieve is to show the aspects of the game that seem unknown to everyone, such as how to get certain medals or how to get the coveted Infinity rank. =================== 2. Game Modes (LIPSMODES) =================== Obviously, the main beef of these type of games is singing, but Inis went one step above that and provided gamers with many fun challenges tailored especially for party themes. ------------------ 2.1 Sing! (LMODESING) ------------------ In this mode, all songs are presented inside a grid which you can sort by song or artist with the Y button. You can also manage playlists by pressing the back button. If you select a song, you can choose either to sing it, add to a playlist check your ranking online, rate it, or delete it temporarily. All modes can be played with one player or 2 players. All songs have the option of using different noisemakers, attempt to reduce the singer's voice, apply an audio filter... or apply a timing offset. By choosing to sing it, one is presented with 6 different options: 2.1.1 Original Video Sing it without any gimmicks, just plain old Lips fun. Similar to Rock Band or many other rhythm games, Lips has what it calls Star Power. By singing correctly or shaking the mic, the meter is filled. Once it's full, you can use it to turn the karaoke line into a bar full of stars, which give you a score boost. The rank you get at the end depends on your performance, but songs do not have the same score cap, so you'll need different scores to reach the maximum rank in all songs. For example, it is very easy to score more than 1.5 million points on Young Folks, and even then, your rank will be lower than if you score 900,000 points on Where Did Our Love Go, which has a lower cap because it is a shorter song. Ranks: Biscuit Rock Meteor Asteroid Planet Star Super Nova Galaxy Universe Big Bang Infinity For more details on the coveted Infinity rank, (and some strategy insight to boost your scores) please check Section 3. That's it for the plain singing mode, now let's review the gimmicky modes that Lips offers. 2.1.2 Virtual Music Video Perform gestures with the motion sensing Mic to change the background color and the dancers movements. Great for parties, I guess. There's nothing special in this mode. 2.1.3 Time Bomb Attempt to stop the time bomb by pouring water at it. In this mode you must fill your glass of water by singing at a correct pitch, then pouring it by shaking the mic. Timing and cooperation with your singing partner are the key to win this. When you use your star power, you fill your glass faster and the effect on the bomb lasts longer. 2.1.4 Kiss See how compatible you are with your singing partner! Both of you must fill your star power bar so that you unleashed it at the same time to kiss. Do it the other way around and well... the couple will not be that happy. At the start, each singer is randomly presented with a character that will represent him or her on the Kiss mini-game. This is just a fun mode, nothing special about it either. 2.1.5 Vocal Fighters In this mode, all songs are divided in several rounds. The goal here is to beat your opponent in a truly special VS Match. It is not about points, it is about the number of 'rounds' you win. If you win the next round when you use your star power, it will count double, giving you an edge against your opponent. ------------------ 2.2 Jukebox (LMODEJUKE) ------------------ Jukebox Mode is Inis' attempt to provide a party environment in which, if someone like the song that is currently being played, he or she just needs to shake the mic to start singing it. However, this mode is poorly executed, because songs will only play for 20 seconds before they fade and start to show another song. There are two options in this mode: Faves and Playlist. 2.2.1 Faves Faves will play only the songs that have the same rating or higher than the setting you choose. For example if you choose the 2 star rating, it will play all songs that have been rated 2 or higher. 2.2.2 Playlist As the name implies, this shows the playlist that you created in 'Sing!' mode but in Jukebox mode. It's impossible to choose this mode if you have not created a playlist. ------------------ 2.3 Get Music (LMODEGETM) ------------------ Get Music serves as the Song Import function, but it is also the place where DLC is displayed. If you deleted a song in Sing! mode, it will also appear here in case you want to import it again. By pressing the back button, you can select which source to use to import songs: -CD -Hard Drive (Downloaded DLC songs) -DLC Songs -External Media If you select the CD option, you're able to re-import songs that you may have deleted in the past. The hard-drive option will select your downloaded content (DLC). 2.3.1 DLC The third option of the 'Select Source' option will show all songs currently available for purchase. This option is turned on by default. The price of songs ranges from 160 to 180 Microsoft Points. Here's a list of the current DLC available (plus April's upcoming songs): *Please note that all available DLC will sometimes overlap with a country's on disc songs, in those cases, it is not available for purchase in that respective country. Example: a-ha's Take on Me in the United States. *Holiday songs are no longer available for purchase. The Sign Ace of Base Take on Me a-ha Bust a Move Young MC Chasing Pavements Adele Violet Hill Coldplay No Substitute Love Estelle The Remedy (I Won't Worry) Jason Mraz All Star Smash Mouth Give a Little Bit Supertramp A Thousand Miles Vanessa Carlton Blue Christmas Elvis Presley Hannukah Blessings The Barenaked Ladies The Dreidel Song Sister Hazel It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year Andy Williams Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Gene Autry Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree Brenda Lee A Holly Jolly Christmas Burl Ives The Christmas Song Nat King Cole Santa Baby Kylie Minogue White Christmas Bing Crosby Over My Head (Cable Car) The Fray Every Little Step Bobby Brown Prisoner of Society The Living End Virtual Insanity Jamiroquai What's Love Got To Do With It Tina Turner New Shoes Paolo Nutini What Is Love Haddaway Somethin' Stupid R. Williams & Nicole K. Where Did Our Love Go The Supremes Be Good Johnny Men At Work Let's Groove Earth, Wind and Fire Superstar Jamelia People Are People Depeche Mode Suddenly I See KT Tunstall You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' Righteous Brothers Erase/Rewind The Cardigans When I Grow Up Pussycat Dolls Thnks fr th Mmrs Fall Out Boy Look What You've Done Jet Hate That I Love You Rihanna ft. Ne-Yo Sunday Morning Maroon 5 Take a Bow Rihanna Water Runs Dry Boyz II Men In My Place Coldplay Fallin' Alicia Keys Building a Mystery Sarah McLachlan Buttons Pussycat Dolls Magic Olivia Newton-John My Happy Ending Avril Lavigne How to Save a Life The Fray Swing Life Away Rise Against Speed Up Funkerman In the Shadows The Rasmus The Adventure Angels and Airwaves Amber 311 Shake It Metro Station Hook Me Up The Veronicas Lips of an Angel Hinder The Scientist Coldplay Speed of Sound Coldplay The Great Escape Boys Like Girls Down on the Corner Creedence Clearwater Revival Won't Go Home Without You Maroon 5 Reunited Peaches & Herb Who'll Stop The Rain Creedence Clearwater Revival I'll Make Love To You Boyz II Men Bound for the Floor Local H Sugar We're Goin Down Fall Out Boy Bad Moon Rising Creedence Clearwater Revival Wish You Were Here Incubus Looking Out My Back Door Creedence Clearwater Revival Closer Ne-Yo So Sick Ne-Yo Kryptonite 3 Doors Down All My Life K-Ci & Jojo Sing Travis Love Today Mika Ocean Avenue Yellowcard Linger The Cranberries Dance Floor Anthem Good Charlotte Why Does It Always Rain On Me? Travis Hard to Handle The Black Crowes You Get What You Give The New Radicals Turning Japanese The Vapors Clocks Coldplay Take Me Home, Country Roads John Denver Mr. Telephone Man New Edition Cool It Now New Edition If It Isn't Love New Edition Lollipop Mika Achy Breaky Heart Billy Ray Cyrus 100 Years Five For Fighting I Miss You Blink 182 Life is a Rollercoaster Ronan Keating Chasing Cars Snow Patrol I Alone Live Somewhere Only We Know Keane Joey Concrete Blonde Shake the World ForeverGirl Love You Anyway Boyzone Freak Like Me Sugababes Spiraling Keane Take Back the City Snow Patrol Radar Love Golden Earring Love Like This Natasha Bedingfield Ice Ice Baby Vanilla Ice I Want You to Want Me (Live at Budokan) Cheap Trick Shut Up Black Eyed Peas Baby Got Back Sir Mix-a-Lot The Next Movement The Roots Get The Party Started P!nk Don't Let Me Get Me P!nk So What P!nk Just So You Know Jesse McCartney Hey Mama Black Eyed Peas Can I Get Get Get Junior Senior For a more comprehensive list of songs, visit Lips' wikipedia page. 2.3.2 Import Songs With the help of an external media player (PC, Mac, iPod*, Zune), you can import songs to your Lips playlist. These songs must not have copy protection in them (DRM). *except iPhone or iPod Touch When the songs are imported to the Sing! mode, you get to sing them but with certain limitations: -You are unable to be ranked online. -No medals are awarded for your performance. -Performance evaluation is kinda sketchy. -You are not able to see the lyrics. -The music video is replaced with a custom video tailored for the songs' genre (make sure to have the correct genre of the song in the database the game is going to use). -You cannot unlock achievements this way. However, you're able to play any of the 6 game modes with your custom songs. ------------------ 2.4 My Lips (LMODEMLIP) ------------------ 'My Lips' is kind of a statistics area of the whole game and its community. 'My Profile' offers you a brief description of how many stars and medals you've gained, as well as how many songs you've played and how many challenges you've won. 'My Friends' shows a list of your XBL Friends. You can challenge them in Lips by selecting their name from this list and then choosing a song to challenge them in. It's a simple score challenge. 'Top 10' shows your 10 most played songs as well as how many times that song has been played worldwide. As of July 2009, two most played songs are Take on Me and Coldplay's Yellow. (Checked this on another profile as I do not have Yellow on my Top 10 played) Yellow - 465,115 Take on Me - 414,565 ------------------ 2.5 Options (LMODEOPTN) ------------------ You can change the game's theme if you're tired of hearing the same song over and over again. You're also able to change the color of the mic's LEDs or to turn the lights off. Miscellaneous options include deactivating SFX, Noise Makers and Help Display, as well as the game's credits. Lastly, as of April 2009, the game now includes an Automatic Mic Calibration tool. =================== 3. Strategies (LIPSSTRAT) =================== Below are some of the most eficient ways to boost one's high score as well as getting the seemingly impossible Infinity rank. ------------------ 3.1 Medals (LSTRATMED) ------------------ Since it is impossible to fail a song in Lips, iNiS rewards players by fulfilling certain conditions on a song. Some are very easy to get, such as pitch and rhythm, but some are confusing to most of the player base, such as the party medal. 3.1.1 Pitch Medal How to obtain: Stay on the correct pitch more than 50% of the time. Tip: If you are unable to reach the pitch in a song, sing on a lower octave. That, or try to use your falsetto. Falsetto is a singing technique commonly used by males to fake a very high voice. Example: Coldplay's lead vocalist. 3.1.2 Rhythm Medal How to obtain: Start to sing in synch with the karaoke bars. 3.1.3 Performance Medal How to obtain: Shake the mic for an ungodly amount of time (at any time). Tip: Try to do it at the beginning of the song or when there is a pause/instrument solo. 3.1.4 Party Medal How to obtain: Listen carefully to the song and shake the mic with the same beat as the song's. Tip: It helps if you use the noisemakers on a controller at the same time. 3.1.5 Technique Medal How to obtain: Use vibrato constantly. Tip: Vibrato is a singing technique which delivers waves of sound instead of a single burst of sound. Think of it like this... instead of singing: 'OOoooooh', you must 'cut' that sound and sing: Oo-oo-oo-oo-oh very fast. If you still don't know how to do it, just mimic any American Idol contestant, lol. 3.1.6 Stability Medal How to obtain: Do not sing when you are not supposed to. Tip: Don't even talk to the mic! ------------------ 3.2 Infinity Rank (LSTRATINF) ------------------ Infinity Rank requires the following: -95% of bars filled with the correct pitch. -Mostly 'Cool' ratings on all pages. -All 6 Medals -Have more points than the previous rank, Big Bang. As far as I know, Infinity Rank is very hard to achieve. I did it on Take on Me. Here's a list of songs people have managed to reach it: ------------------------------------------------------------------ Artist Title Points Threshold ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1) Songs Available Worldwide: ------------------------------------------------------------------ Coldplay - Yellow N/A Roxette - Listen To Your Heart 1,700,000 ------------------------------------------------------------------ 2) Songs exclusive to a region, but available as DLC worldwide: ------------------------------------------------------------------ a-ha - Take on Me 2,500,000 Young MC - Bust a Move 4,000,000 ------------------------------------------------------------------ 3) Songs exclusive to a region ------------------------------------------------------------------ American Songs: Taylor Swift - Only When I'm With You N/A R.E.M. - The One I Love 3,000,000 Not available in certain regions: Sheryl Crow - Soak Up the Sun 2,750,000 ------------------------------------------------------------------ 4) Songs available as DLC worldwide ------------------------------------------------------------------ The New Radicals - You Get What You Give 3,000,000 Coldplay - Clocks 2,200,000 Hinder - Lips of an Angel 2,600,000 Boys Like Girls - The Great Escape 3,000,000 Cheap Trick - I Want You to Want Me 1,600,000 ------------------------------------------------------------------ 5) Songs no longer available as DLC ------------------------------------------------------------------ Brenda Lee - Rockin around the Christmas Tree 2,000,000 Andy Williams - It's the Most Wonderful Time ... 1,750,000 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Full credit goes to pseudotsuga over at the Xbox Forums for helping me compile information in regards to the Points Requirement on all songs listed here, except for Take on Me. If you've gotten this rank and would like to share how many points you needed to get it, please let me know via the Contact section. ------------------ 3.3 Star Power Multiplier (LSTRATSPM) ------------------ Tips for getting Star Power quickly: 1. Perfect Pitch -Sing with perfect pitch. 2. Shake it! -With one hand, grab a controller and press A to the beat of the song. -If possible, at the same time that you're singing, shake the mic at the beat of the song. -This will make you earn a lot of star power once you have gotten the beat of the song (noted by the red light at the top of the screen). Note: This will also earn you the Party and Performance Medals. Additional tips If playing co-op: 3. Star Power 2x Multiplier: -Get the beat going by shaking both mics at the same time (you can also use a controller as well to speed up the process). 2. Once you're both full, unleash your star power by wiggling both mics hard once, at the same time (don't try to do the gesture that's shown on-screen). 3. If done correctly, you'll earn a multiplier that will earn you double the stars while the power is in effect. ------------------ 3.4 Vibrato (LSTRATVIB) ------------------ Vibrato is a singing technique which delivers waves of sound instead of a single burst of sound. By using this technique in Lips, you are able to gain a multiplier. *Easy way to practice Vibrato: -Sing the following in any pitch 'Ooooooh' -Cut that sound by saying it many times 'oo-oo-oo-ooh' -Cut it further and sing it faster 'o-o-o-oh' If you are unable to do it or my poor explanation did not help, check some Vibrato videos on Youtube. *Fake Vibrato Trick: Sing an octave higher, then immediately sing on a lower pitch the same note. Remember, the longer the phrase, the more points you'll earn with the multiplier. The following are some examples in which you can use it to gain a lot of points: ----------------------------------------------------------------- Verse Song ----------------------------------------------------------------- 'I'm' (coming up) - Get The Party Started (Hey) 'Oh' (Here I am) - The Adventure 'Hook' (Hook Me Up) - Hook Me Up 'Yeah' (how long must you wait for it) - In My Place 'Your skin' 'Turn Into' - Yellow 'You Know' 'Oh, oh' 'No sleep' - In the Shadows 'They say' 'Sometimes' (I) 'Want' (You to want me) - I Want You to Want Me (I) 'Need' (You to need me) ----------------------------------------------------------------- Before the patch, one was able to get the Vibrato Multiplier going to more than 10x, now it is almost impossible to get more than 4x. =================== 4. FAQ (LIPSFAQXS) =================== 1. How can I get the Infinity Rank? You must fulfill these conditions: -95% of bars filled with the correct pitch. -Mostly 'Cool' ratings on all pages. -All 6 Medals -Have more points than the previous rank, Big Bang. 2. What's the easiest song to achieve Infinity? People say Young MC's Bust a Move. I got it on Take on Me. 3. How do I get the party medal? Shake the mic at the same pace (beat) of the song. Using controllers as noise makers (pressing buttons) at the same time as you shake it helps. 4. Help! My iPod is not being recognized... what's wrong? iPod Touch's and iPhones do not work. 5. Will the Lips sequel, Number One Hits, support DLC from this game? Yes, DLC is crosscompatible between both titles. 6. Will I be able to play songs from Lips in Number One Hits? Yes, similar to Singstar, Lips will offer a hot-swap feature if it recognizes data from the first game on your hard drive. 7. What is Vibrato? How can I get it in Lips? Vibrato is a singing technique which delivers waves of sound instead of a single burst of sound. Search for vibrato videos on YouTube so you can learn how to do it. :) 8. I want to challenge you! How can I contact you? My gamertag is Portalbox. =================== 5. Song List (LIPSSONGS) =================== Due to the nature of the game, 7 different versions were released worldwide. Some songs are featured in all locales, but some are exclusive to a certain country or region. For a comprehensive view of all versions, check Wikipedia's chart: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_in_Lips =================== 6. Lips Patch History (LIPSPATCH) =================== Lips was heavily criticized for its extremely lenient ranking and the lack of a mic calibration tool, which affected HDTV's consumers. In April 2009, Inis released a Power Pack DLC, which, along with a new patch, introduced Leaderboards and a new ranking style, which relies heavily on pitch and adequate star power usage. Additionally, it is now impossible to trick the voice recognition into picking white noise. Vibrato is also harder to achieve and has a lower multiplier. =================== 7. Achievements (LIPSACHVM) =================== 100x Medalist (30) Awarded 100 total medals 500x Medalist (40) Awarded 500 total medals Battle Tested (10) Played VS mode 10 times in different songs Been to Get Music (5) Entered Get Music for the first time Big Name in Lips (40) Achieved a Grand Ranking of "Hit Maker" Call Me Superstar (40) Achieved a Grand Ranking of "Superstar" Clap Your Hands Noisemakers were perfectly in sync (Awarded Everybody (25) to all signed in players) Defending Champion (25) Got 20 challenge wins Fan Service (35) Participated in a Vocal Fighters game with a 4 point difference (Except in Freestyle mode). Fight for the first time (5) Sent a song challenge to a friend for the first time Figure 8 (25) Got 8 medals total in one song (Awarded to all signed in players) First Kiss (35) Participated in 2P Kiss game ranked as "Match Made in Heaven" (Except in Freestyle mode) Full Medal Panic! (40) Got 12 medals total in one song (Awarded to all signed in players) Gotta Have More Cowbell (30) Used the cowbell 50 times (Awarded to all signed in players) Ham Star (30) Awarded 30 Performance medals I Got You Babe (5) Participated in Co-op mode for the 1st time I'm full of stars (40) Gained 50,000 total stars I'm Kind Of A Big Deal (40) Achieved the rank of "Infinity" In Synch (25) Scored 1,000,000 pts in Co-op mode (Awarded to all signed in players) Let's Get This Party Activated Jukebox mode. Started (10) Life of the Party (30) Awarded 30 Party medals Like A Rock (30) Awarded 30 Stability medals Lips Anthology (30) Sang 40 different songs Nice Duds (35) Successfully stopped the bomb from exploding in Time Bomb (Except in Freestyle or Short mode) One Giant Leap for Added 20 songs to Lips from external sources Mankind (10) One Hit Wonder (5) Sang 1 song in short or full One Small Step For Man (5) Added a song to Lips from external sources Perfect Pitch (30) Awarded 30 Pitch medals Platinum Artist (25) Sang 10 different songs Rebirth of Cool (30) Got "Cool" 10 times in a row Rising Star (40) Achieved a Grand Ranking of "Lounge Act" Superstar! (40) Gained 100,000 total stars Technician (30) Awarded 30 Technique medals This is madness! (20) Added 300 songs to Lips from external sources Throw Your Hands Up (5) Triggered a gesture in the Virtual Music Video Time Machine (30) Awarded 30 Rhythm medals Try Freestyle Mode Out (5) Played Freestyle mode for the first time Welcome to My Lips (5) Entered My Lips for the first time What's Cooler Than Got "Cool" in every page Being Cool? (30) Wishing on a Star (30) Gained 5,000 total stars Notes: Freestyle Mode is the Song Import Mode. =================== 7. Credits (LIPSCREDS) =================== -CJayC: For creating Gamefaqs. -SBAllen: For continuing the legacy. -Inis: For creating awesome rhythm games such as Elite Beat Agents and this. -pseudotsuga: Thank you over at the Xbox Forums for helping me compile the Points Threshold section for Infinity Rank. =================== 8. Version History (LIPSVERHI) =================== 1.0 - April 5th, 2009: First revision of the FAQ. 1.1 - July 13th, 2009: -Added May, June and July DLC. -Added Strategy Section -Added Point Requirements for Infinity rank for certain songs. -Added questions to the FAQ. -Expanded most sections with song examples. =================== 9. Contact (LIPSCNTCT) =================== Have any questions? Comments? Do you want to contribute? If I missed something or you just want to say hi, contact me at jorgom(at)gmail(dot)com with the subject: Lips Guide |Copyright 2009| Jorge Eduardo Gomez End of Document