Dance Central 2

If there's one genre of gaming Kinect has proved an undisputed success, its the dance genre. Whilst in the past we've had to strut our funky stuff whilst standing on bespoke dance mats or holding a chunky wiimote and its tethered nunchuk companion, Kinect freed the dancing gamer from all of that and let them loose in their front rooms. 

 

Last year's Dance Central was one of the more notable contributions, partly because it was developed by Guitar Hero and Rock Band alumni Harmonix, partly because it had a well thought-out sense of progression, and partly because it was bloody good at recognising your moves and giving you feedback on them; you couldn't just wiggle your arms around and score points (I'm looking at you, Just Dance). 

 

And so the inevitable sequel was, well, inevitable, and it's no surprise to find Harmonix back on the dance floor a year later with the imaginatively titled Dance Central 2, which takes all the features of the first game and tweaks them, expands them, and enhances them. It also brings in a brand new soundtrack (though owners of the first game can import Dance Central's songs, and all DLC works with the sequel) which encompasses a slightly broader range than its predecessor. Dance Central 2 also introduces two brand new game modes, in the form of Rival Battles and Crew Challenges, as well as completely overhauling the Work Out mode from the first game. 

 

The biggest addition is that of simultaneous play for two players, a feature sorely missing from the original. Now you and a buddy can take on songs together, or battle it out head-to-head, in a feature that persists through all the game modes. Crew Challenges are the other biggie, in which you have to score a certain number of points across a selection of songs in order to impress a dance crew. Earn enough rep with each and you unlock other crews to impress, until you reach the Glitterati. Its a nice sense of progression with rewards doled out in the form of new costumes and characters, which helps elevate Dance Central 2 beyond being a mere party game.

 

The fitness / work out mode has seen a dramatic reinvention as a complete standalone game mode. In Dance Central, the fitness element was pretty sparse - a basic calorie counter overlay of existing songs. In Dance Central 2, you're instead offered a series of fitness routines, where selections of tracks are banded together into timed workouts, ranging from the brief but energetic 'Sprint' at 10 minutes to the exhaustive 58-minute marathon. Its never going to be a replacement for a full fitness game, but the dance-based routines are demanding enough to feel like a workout.

 

Elsewhere its pretty much business as usual for Dance Central 2, so returning players will know what to expect. Those new to the game will find it welcoming enough thanks to the clear presentation and smart design ethos, but basically it comes down to you mimicking the movements of your chosen on-screen dancer as you both perform a song. Crucially, Dance Central has an ingenious 'move list' mechanic that puts it one step ahead of its contemporaries, as a scrolling list on the right of the screen shows you what dance moves are coming up. That means that, with only a little practise, you can keep absolutely in-time with the routine without having to wait to see what move the dancer does next and try to copy it, as you have to in most other games. You don't actually need to learn the whole routines of Dance Central to do well, just the individual moves, with many appearing in different tracks making it easy to switch between songs and still do okay, provided you know the basics of reading the move list. And for those really stuck, you can try each song's Break It Down mode, which guides you through each move one by one.

 

Feedback is given slickly, with the limbs of the on-screen character glowing red if you're not moving your corresponding limb properly, and a pulsing circle beneath their feet helps keep you on the beat and tracks your accuracy. There's also a stylised digitised version of you in the top of the screen so you can see how daft you look, and be warned that the game will take photos of you whilst you dance - especially in the freestyle section - unless you toggle these options off. Each of the 14 selectable dancers has their own personality and style, and you'll probably find yourself favouring one of the dance crews over the others - for me I stick with Lu$h crew's Angel and Miss Aubrey.

 

Those brilliant swipey menus return from the first game- you just raise your hand up or down to select an option, the sweep across your body to select it - which feels far more intuitive and responsive than the usual Kinect hover-your-hand-until-a-circle-fills-up menu system, though you can also use a controller or voice commands to navigate through menus as well, giving you plenty of ways to access the content - which is so clearly presented it's hardly a challenge to do so anyway. The track list of Dance Central 2 is pretty exceptional - 43 tracks are included on-disc, and you get a mixture of modern electronica with Lady Gaga's Born This Way, Daft Punk's Technologic and La Roux's Bulletproof, classic pop with Bananarama's Venus and Donna Summer's Hot Stuff, recent urban hits like Rihanna's Rude Boy, Missy Elliott's Ger Ur Freak On and Far East Movement's Like a G6, some cheesy goodness in the form of Justin Bieber's Somebody to Love, O-zone's Mai Ai Hee and Willow Smith's Whip My Hair, and best of all some classic dancefloor ch00ns like Haddaway's What is Love and Sir Mix-a-lot's Baby Got Back. Its an eclectic selection, certainly, but its one that's hard to find fault with.

 

The only real criticism we can level at Dance Central 2 is that it could really do with some more multiplayer options, as the dance rivals mode - whilst fun - isn't necessarily enough for full-on party play, especially with Just Dance 3 boasting 4-player simultaneous play. Okay, so you'll need a huge living room for that to work, and the Just Dance's movement tracking is considerably less accurate than Dance Central's, but its still something we'd like to see. Not everyone will like the stylised look of Dance Central's visuals either - though I have to confess that I do.