SongPop

From Justapedia, unleashing the power of collective wisdom
Jump to navigation Jump to search
SongPop
File:SongPop icon.png
App Store icon
Developer(s)FreshPlanet
Gameloft
Platform(s)iOS, Android, Windows, Facebook
ReleaseMay 2012
Genre(s)Music trivia game

SongPop is a series of head-to-head music trivia games developed by FreshPlanet and published by Gameloft. The first title in the series was released as a free app in May 2012 and was available for iOS, Android, Windows, and Facebook.[1] By 2015, the app had been downloaded 100 million times.[2]

A sequel titled SongPop 2, featuring over 100,000 songs and 1,000 curated playlists, was released in July 2015[3] and is free-to-play with in-app purchases.[4] As of June 22, 2021 SongPop2 has over 200,000 songs on over 3,400 playlists. A third game, SongPop 3, was released on March 18, 2021. It includes features to play live one on one in real time, join teams, listen to the full playlists with Spotify and Apple Music integration, and many advanced customizations. SongPop 1 was shut down in November 2018, due to compatibility issues with iOS 12, with users being advised to move over to SongPop 2.[5]

A fourth game and spin-off, SongPop Party, was released on April 2, 2021, as part of the Apple Arcade subscription service. Unlike other entries in the franchise, SongPop Party allows up to eight players to compete together through both online and local multiplayer.[6]

FreshPlanet, the venture-backed, NYC–based startup who developed the SongPop franchise, were acquired by Gameloft in December 2018.[7]

Gameplay

The game is played much like the popular TV show Name That Tune.[8] After selecting a themed playlist, five songs are played. Players compete against each other to be the first to select the correct song title or artist from a choice of four. iTunes links are provided for each song.[9] The faster a player guesses, the more points they get. Players can remove two songs by using song note chips.[10] In SongPop 2, users can play alone for the first time, competing against a computer-controlled opponent.[11]

Critical reception

SongPop was awarded Best Facebook Game 2012, Social Gaming People's Voice Winner 2013, and Best Online Game 2013 by the British Academy Games Awards.[12] Soon after its release, Mark Zuckerberg posted on Facebook "Song Pop is one of the most fun Facebook games I've played in a while."[13] Some songs may include explicit lyrics. For this reason, iTunes rates the game 12+[10] and it is rated 16+ by Common Sense Media.[2]

The game has come under criticism from fans because of the existence of bots. Typically, players are challenged by an opponent who appears to be a woman from New York with the same playlists as the player and 86% compatibility. On the surface, they appear to be real people but will model the player's style, scoring similar to them but never mastering a playlist. Some suspect there are bots in party mode to stack the odds against the player and persuade them to buy tickets in order to defeat the bots.[14][user-generated source]

References

  1. ^ Dredge, Stuart (4 July 2012). "Mark Zuckerberg's favourite social music game Song Pop gets Premium iOS edition". Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  2. ^ a b "SongPop - App Review". www.commonsensemedia.org. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  3. ^ "SongPop 2: FreshPlanet Launches Music Trivia Game on iOS". www.adweek.com. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  4. ^ "SongPop sequel aims to build on 100M fans of the original music trivia game". VentureBeat. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  5. ^ "SongPop 1: Has been discontinued for iOS 12 Devices and PC". SongPop 2. We Love Music!. Retrieved 2021-04-02.
  6. ^ "SongPop Party now available on Apple Arcade". Apple World Today. 2021-05-28. Retrieved 2021-08-17.
  7. ^ "Gameloft acquires SongPop music trivia game maker FreshPlanet". VentureBeat. 2018-12-19. Retrieved 2021-04-02.
  8. ^ "SongPop Shooting For The Top Of The Charts On Facebook". www.adweek.com. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  9. ^ Davison, Pete (Jun 7, 2012). "Song Pop review". Inside Social Games.
  10. ^ a b "SongPop on the App Store". App Store. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  11. ^ "FreshPlanet follows up its mobile song-trivia hit SongPop with a sequel". VentureBeat. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  12. ^ "SongPop - FreshPlanet". freshplanet.com. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  13. ^ Knowles, Jamillah. "Zuckerberg Loves Song Pop, What Better Endorsement?". The Next Web. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  14. ^ Purple2di4 (October 24, 2017). "Bot players" – via Songpop.
Retrieved from "https://justapedia.org/index.php?title=SongPop&oldid=1119069689"