We store cookies, you can get more info from our privacy policy.
Wii

Ubisoft Dance Off

by Grant Buell - January 15, 2011, 4:20 pm EST
Total comments: 3

Just Dance 2 vs. Michael Jackson: The Experience

Far be it from me to claim to know even the first thing about dancing.  My sole dancing experiences have been a pair of awkward proms in which I jumped up and down to the fast songs, hoping no one would notice my indisputable lack of game as I waited desperately for the occasional slow song to roll around. Those I could handle.

As you can tell, I rocked prom. Hard.

Slow songs certainly aren't on the roster for the latest pair of dance games from Ubisoft, Just Dance 2 and Michael Jackson: The Experience. Both games have you bopping and bouncing to fast-paced pop tunes with Wii Remote in hand. As embarrassed as I feel dancing alone in my living room trying to match the motions of colorful onscreen characters, at least there aren’t a hundred of my high school peers in the same room with me this time around. Within the relatively pressure-free environment of my apartment, with the blinds shut and the doors locked, I felt able to dive in and give these games a try.

Just Dance 2 and Michael Jackson: The Experience (from here on out, JD2 and MJ:TE) are extremely similar from a structural point of view; in fact, if not for the tracklists, they could almost be the same game. In both titles you stand with the Wii Remote in your right hand as each song starts, mimicking the dance movements of an on-screen avatar. Marginally helpful pictograms scroll by as new dance moves approach. The avatars and environments are stylish, colorful silhouettes, with the right hand brightly highlighted so you know which hand’s movements are actually being detected by the game.

Since the only thing you're using to control the games is a single Wii Remote in one hand, and since the motion detection of the Wii Remote isn't all that advanced in the first place, all the fancy footwork, twirling, weaving, and pelvic thrusting of the on-screen characters is largely optional if you're in the game simply to earn a score. Each game relies heavily on the honor system. If you want to have fun and play the games as intended, just try to match the dancing on screen, even though the games have absolutely no way to verify that you really are. Needless to say, once you figure out how easy it is to game the system, it's extremely tempting to fall back on that once you get tired or your embarrassment quota is reached, which for me happened very quickly. This even turned out to be true for my fiancee and her sister. Both of them were interested in trying the games out once they heard I was going to be getting them, and both of them were either tuckered out or frustrated/disinterested fairly quickly.

Despite their overwhelming similarities, JD2 and MJ:TE have good and bad points that set them apart from each other. Unsurprisingly, JD2 has a great amount of musical variety, with songs ranging from 70's disco to 60's soul to current dance and top 40 tunes. I actually love several of the tunes in the JD2 tracklist, though most of them are as disposable as you might expect. Highlights for me included tunes from Junior Senior, Jamiroquai, Beastie Boys, Supergrass, and James Brown. JD2 also features more variety in terms of visual styles; yes, most of the game looks like a slightly flashier iPod commercial, but there are some amusing variations on the theme sprinkled throughout. The Junior Senior track features a lot of 8-bit style pixel art in the background, and a Digitalism track has your avatar shooting lasers from his/her hands while dressed like a Tron character. Also, if you just can't get enough, JD2 features a store where you can buy new tracks for 300 Wii points each. There are currently 17 tracks available, and none of them look particularly intriguing save perhaps "Crazy Christmas", a multi-genre medley of Christmas songs with a dancing Santa Claus avatar, which looks intensely ridiculous.

Tron rules

JD2 has several downsides in comparison to MJ:TE. First and foremost, the dance moves in most of the tunes are simply lamer. There's more repetition and more simplistic hand waving, twirling, and pseudo-robot moves. Some of them are bad enough to border on self-parody - if you've seen the cringe-worthy dance moves of Joey from Friends, you get the idea. 

Of course, there are a heck of a lot more vapid, boring pop songs here than in MJ:TE, which, as a Michael Jackson fan, I fully expected. I also found it nearly impossible to play any song in which the on-screen avatar is female, at least not without seriously doubting my sense of self.

MJ:TE is generally more challenging - though it's still plenty susceptible to "gaming the system" - and the music is generally better overall, assuming you are a Michael Jackson fan. Luckily, I think he was brilliant for a time, and that era is very well-represented in this game. Many tracks from Thriller and Bad are here, as well as 1979's ridiculously charming Don't Stop Till You Get Enough. Much of his less compelling 90's material is here as well, but that stuff is still plenty danceable. I found Thriller to be a particularly fun track, with dance moves pulled straight from the classic music video, though the entire routine isn’t replicated, which is a shame. The game also offers a bit more customization, with multiple difficulty levels in several of the songs. Honestly, unless you simply aren't a Jackson fan, I can see no reason not to go for MJ:TE over JD2 (and I'd say it's a fair bet that anyone who enjoys dancing enough to consider buying a dancing game for Wii is probably a Michael Jackson fan).

Smooth.

Overall, these Ubisoft dancing games can be fun diversions if you're willing to play along and perform the moves the games want you to do, despite the meager meaningful feedback they are able to provide. But if this is sort of thing is up your alley, you can't go wrong with Michael Jackson: The Experience. The music is tighter, the moves are cooler, and, if you can locate a launch copy, there's the one huge advantage that I've yet to mention:

It comes with a white glove.



Images

Talkback

I appreciate hearing an experienced gamer's perspective on these games, especially since you got to play it with more casual gamers as well. The MJ version is appealing to me, but I'd be more interested in a next-generation version (either Super Wii or maybe Kinect) with more advanced feedback.

NWR_pap64Pedro Hernandez, Contributing WriterJanuary 16, 2011

Quote from: Jonnyboy117

I appreciate hearing an experienced gamer's perspective on these games, especially since you got to play it with more casual gamers as well. The MJ version is appealing to me, but I'd be more interested in a next-generation version (either Super Wii or maybe Kinect) with more advanced feedback.

There IS a Kinect version of MJ: The Experience coming soon. But rather than seeing MJ on screen, you see yourself dancing and singing as well.

gbuellGrant Buell, Staff WriterJanuary 17, 2011

Yes, MJ on Kinect has a ton of potential, but if it really does accurately judge your dancing, it'll probably be RIDICULOUSLY difficult.

Got a news tip? Send it in!
Advertisement
Advertisement