DESCRIPTION

Capitalizing on the popularity of the Fox network's 2002 summer smash TV program, Vivendi Universal brings "The Search for a Superstar" to the PC with American Idol. Fans can seize the moment, grab the spotlight, and produce a primetime stage performance. Players select a star from a variety of performers, design outfits, and pick a song they'd like to take to the final competition. If you're the "biggest star" at the end of a round, the song is unlocked for use in the TV Studio where you record your own version, using the microphone provided with the game.

During the game, players choose outfits, attend parties, give dance and singing performances, conduct press interviews, take free glamour trips, volunteer for community events, help others, and try to earn money by making wise decisions on good days and minimizing losses on bad days. The more money spent on preparing a performance, the tougher the challenge, but the higher the payoff in star power points. Earning 1000 star power points opens up the final competition, "wins" the song you're playing for, and gives you a chance to hone the performance in a TV studio (special effects, stage backdrops, camera angles).

American Idol contains 20 hit songs by performers such as The Jackson 5, 98°, Smash Mouth, James Brown, 3 Doors Down, Enrique Iglesias, Gloria Gaynor, Shaggy, Mya, and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy among others. Players can compete with other wannabe stars by uploading their finished performances to www.AmericanIdolGame.com (requires Internet Explorer 5.5, Macromedia Flash 6, and Windows Media Player 7 or better). ~ Michael L. House, All Game Guide