Title: Dance Central 2
Publisher: Harmonix Music Systems
Developer: Harmonix Music Systems
Platform: Xbox 360, Kinect Only
Genre: Dancing Sim, Music, Rhythm
Release Date: October 25, 2011
Price: $59.99
Rating: T
Dance Central 2 is the sequel to the best selling dance game for Xbox 360 Kinect. Also the Dance Central series continues to be one of the best, if not the only reason, to purchase a Kinect.
Back when the Kinect first was being shown at E3 2010, a lot of people were saying that the original Dance Central was the only game worth owning. To be completely honest, I laughed at this statement. This was however before I had played it. After playing the demo, I immediately purchased DC1 and had a blast with it. Here we are just shy of a year later and Dance Central 2 has jumped up on stage to shake its proverbial “thang”.
As stated, I will be the first to admit that I thought Dance Central was just a gimmick and couldn’t possibly be as fun as people lauded it to be. However, Dance Central impressed me. So much so that I knew I had to get my hands on the sequel to see what changes could be made to make it better, and quite possibly, make me a better dancer. Though the latter is still yet to be determined, the game surely has made some much needed improvements.
The biggest and easiest improvement to spot is the (almost literal) jump in, jump out, co-op mode. In the original you were relegated to dancing alone and then comparing scores in a sort of “pass the controller” kind of way. No more. Even if you are in the middle of a song, player two can walk on screen, raise their hands, and start dancing. It’s that simple. This allows for player one to concentrate on the dancing and not have to worry about breaking their rhythm just to have a second person embarrass, I mean dance, with them.
Not only can you now dance WITH your friends, but you can dance AGAINST them as well. There is also a robust two player “Dance Battle” mode now. Simply pick your crew, pick your dancer and jump into a song. The difference here is that instead of the “Freestyle” segments that were in the original and still in the co-op mode, you now have “Free For All” sections. This will give both dancers the opportunity do certain moves from the song and gain extra points. Even more points are allotted to the specific moves shown in gold. It’s a fun way to score during an almost free style mode, and create not only a way to keep the song going but a way for players behind a bit to jump ahead in score.
In addition to the new two player modes, Harmonix has added a sort of single player story mode called “Crew Challenge”. Here you will need to dance for each of the dance factions, of which there are now five. Perform well enough and you can move on representing the previous crew in [dance] battle. It’s thin on actual “story” but at least it allows you to have some sense of purpose for dancing to these songs. There is also an improved “fitness mode” that tracks how many calories you should be burning, based on level of play and the songs that you dance to. It probably won’t replace a work out routine, but it’s an excuse to get up dance a while.
If you can’t be bothered to move your arms to select things in a Kinect game, Kinect works with voice control and Dance Central 2 seamlessly. Don’t want to worry about menus? You can verbally say the song, the mode, and the level and jump straight to the dancing. It also can hear you during a song, so you can pause it from there as well. I hesitate to say it’s revolutionary, but it does make it simple to get things going quickly. Voice control actually works quite well with the “Break It Down” mode as well. This implementation allows you to control the tempo and other variables in this mode a bit easier.
Visually not a whole lot has changed with Dance Central 2 over its predecessor. There are a couple newly added venues, a few more additional characters but the rest seems relatively unchanged. This isn’t really a bad thing. Stylistically, there isn’t much else you will play on your 360 that looks like Dance Central. The way the game is presented to the player is full of neon and flash, and that is perfect for the subject matter. The one good thing that was added, especially given the addition of two player mode, is the ability to see who is performing well and who isn’t keeping up. Instead of the venue dimming the lights or glowing brighter depending on your performance, you will be able to easily see the visual cues actually attached to the player. If you are on a streak and dancing well, you will see multicolored “ribbons” attached to your hands. As they move it leaves a kind of trail on the screen. It’s hard to explain why exactly this makes it seem cool, but seeing it in motion makes you feel like you are actually “dancing”.
The biggest part of the Dance Central series is of course the dancing, and the music. The dancing once again is as hard as you want to make it. Break it Down mode is a bit more customizable and you can now jump to whatever level of skill you are comfortable with. There is a wide variety of dances and individual dance moves to learn and enjoy. From the “Frat Step” to the “Cabbage Patch” its all there, and it’s all fun. Pack a room full of girls (which I did) and set this up and you will not be disappointed. The music is just as varied. Tracks from current hits like B.o.B. “Nothin On You” to some real old school stuff like Digital Underground’s “The Humpty Dance” are, quite frankly, a blast to listen to again as they are to dance to for the first time. It also bears mentioning that you can import all the tracks from Dance Central one over to Dance Central Two, much like with Rock Band.
My wife, her friends, and I all had a blast playing Dance Central 2. As with the first one, it is hard not to enjoy making a fool of yourself in front of a bunch of friends. The visual style, sound, and overall appearance of the game are just as much (if not more) fun to watch someone else play, as they are to play yourself. Seeing as how there really isn’t a lot out there for the Kinect that is either original or enjoyable, Dance Central 2 is the rare gem that makes the Kinect worthy of a place on top of your television set. While it may not reinvent the wheel, it has enough new in it to be a worthy purchase.
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