Michael Jackson The Experience game: Preview

Ubisoft appear to have gone dance crazy over the last couple of months, due to be released in a month's time (Friday 26th November) is Michael Jackson The Experience.

I'm going to apologise in advance for this but...

If you're looking for a "Thriller" of a game that hopefully isn't "Bad", and want to learn the skills that will make sure you don't leave "Blood On The Dance Floor", then "This Is It" it's time to "Beat It" to the competition.

Phew, hope you forgive me for that! More details once I get a review copy.

Just Dance 2: Preview

So soon I'll be getting an actual copy to review but if you can't wait for our review Just Dance 2 was released last week and is available to buy now.

The original Just Dance sold over 3 million copies and Ubisoft are hoping the updated sequel will be even more popular.

Just Dance 2 will feature tracks from classic hits and legendary songs to today’s chart-toppers. Players will enjoy dancing to a wide selection of musical genres, including Pop, Country, R&B, Disco, Funk, Rock etc. Each track features its own choreography and dance enthusiasts will be moving for hours on end. From Rihanna’s SOS to Donna Summer’s Hot Stuff, from I Got You (I Feel Good) by James Brown to When I Grow Up by the Pussycat Dolls, Just Dance players will come across songs and routines that will make them want to move their feet. And if they still want more, they will be able to download tracks from an expanding catalogue of new hits.

There is also a new mode called 'Just Sweat' where you can keep an eye on you calories burned whilst dancing.

Above you can see a screenshot of I Got You (I Feel Good) by James Brown.

The game looks better visually than Dance on Broadway which I recently reviewed and I'm hoping the improvements have also been applied to the gameplay.

Will let you know more once I receive my review copy.

Dance on Broadway Wii review

So this is my first ever attempt at a game review, I don’t even know where to start. I suppose first of all I should thank Ubisoft for sending me Dance on Broadway to review.

Not having played a dance game on the Wii before I thought I best play through the tutorial first. Looks like it’s a similar concept to Guitar Hero (performing the required action at the specific time) and I’m looking forward to seeing how it works in practice.

The tutorial is just a quick explanation of the controls and onscreen notifications, would possibly have been nice to have a brief trial go, but no looks like I’ll have to go into the main game and give it a go.

The songs/dances included in the game (not sure if that’s in entirety or whether there are any unlockable ones yet) are:

All That Jazz - Chicago
Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In – Hair
Bend And Snap – Legally Blonde
Cabaret – Cabaret
Dreamgirls – Dreamgirls
Fame – Fame: The Musical
Good Morning, Baltimore – Hairspray
I Just Can’t Wait To Be King – Lion King
Luck Be A Lady – Guys and Dolls
Little Shop Of Horrors – Little Shop Of Horrors
Lullaby of Broadway – 42nd Street
Money, Money – Cabaret
My Favourite Things – The Sound of Music
One Night Only – Dreamgirls
Roxie – Chicago
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious – Mary Poppins
Thoroughly Modern Millie – Thoroughly Modern Millie
Time Warp – Rocky Horror Picture Show
We’re In The Money – 42nd Street
You Can’t Stop The Beat – Hairspray

Hopefully I’ve got all the correct musicals but let me know if I’ve got any wrong!

Well I may as well start at the beginning with All That Jazz…first of all you’re asked to pick a character though to be honest they all look the same except for slightly different poses and colour dresses.

Suddenly it occurs to me, how can the Wii pick up both my arm movements with only one controller? Couldn’t they have utilised the nunchuk and Wii board to make it a more immersive experience?

Thirty seconds into the game and it seems pointless to do anything with my left hand or feet, though I think what the hell and try and do all the movements onscreen – much to the hilarity of my wife and sister-in-law.

However I soon get bored of trying the movements and discover that unfortunately I can play sitting down, which kind of defeats the object of the game.

I ask my wife if she wants to have a go but she doesn’t show any interest at all, not a good sign in a game that I would imagine is aimed more at the female and casual gamer.

Wanting to give it another chance I decide to try a dance I might actually know (well the only dance here that I know) and attempt the Time Warp from Rocky Horror.

And so we come to the main problem of the game. You’re not really given enough warning about the moves, and whether you should keep doing the moves in between moves, and which way you should be facing etc. I found that I would be exactly copying the moves onscreen yet constantly getting ‘X’ to indicate I had failed to do the movement.

Unfortunately this game just doesn’t excite me or make me want to play it again, and both my wife and sister-in-law said they can’t see the point of standing and ‘waving a stick around’.

Whilst I’ll find this useful for when I have to choreograph numbers from musicals, or run a hen party session, I doubt we’ll pick it up to play it again.

It’s a shame as I feel the game had a lot of potential, I know I’ll use it in the future as a reference point but I can’t see what is going to make the average gamer come back for more.

There’s definitely potential there Ubisoft but I don’t think you’ve quite hit the jackpot yet. I look forward to seeing what comes with Just Dance 2.