As an avid user of Konami's Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party games for the Wii, I was very excited about the original Just Dance when it first debuted -- only to find myself frequently frustrated by the extremely poor motion tracking, which led to constant "misses" even when I hit the moves exactly right. With games like this, I don't feel that the aim is necessarily perfect scoring, just having fun -- but it gets frustrating to consistently get negative feedback when putting in your best effort.
OVERALL: With the new Just Dance 2, it's like a whole different game. The motion tracking is VASTLY improved, making for a much more rewarding gameplay experience. It's still not spot-on (in large part thanks to the limitations of the Wii's own motion-tracking system), but if you have played Just Dance 1, you will absolutely notice the difference. The track list is extensive (about 40 songs included), and the choreography more interesting, complex, and full-body. The graphics are more elaborate and detailed, though that was never a major point of interest for me. Frankly, in comparison, my beloved DDR is pretty boring and static -- and lately the DDR mat is gathering dust in the closet while I happily flip on the Wii every day for a few songs of Just Dance 2. The dance experience is just much richer, and -- for someone who is not a hardcore DDR fan & into the J-pop songs on DDR (as I am not) -- the song selection is leagues better than that of DDR.
SONGS: There's a nice selection of recent pop hits (Avril Lavigne, Vampire Weekend, Ke$ha, Ting Tings, etc.) and older favorites (some great 80s numbers like Madonna's "Holiday" and Wham's "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" -- and "Proud Mary" will give you a whole new respect for Tina Turner), and I am particularly excited about the ability to download songs from the new and expanding Just Dance online catalogue. I am, however, deeply disappointed that there is no way for Just Dance 1 owners to unlock the contents of the first game via Just Dance 2, as DDR Hottest Party offers, and I don't understand why this was not included as an option. I would really like to see this implemented, and I think the addition of challenges to unlock new songs (as in the DDR games) would add more long-term interest to the game.
PHYSICALITY: The new "Just Sweat" gameplay option is a nice addition, though its peculiar point system doesn't directly correspond to calories burned or anything so convenient. To my best estimation, 1000 "sweat points" is equivalent to roughly 100-150 calories. Do be warned that if you decide to change your workout level (there are three options of goals to aim for: easy, intermediate, intense -- intense is about 6 songs per day), it will erase all of your workout data thus far, which is annoying. Every song indicates the difficulty of choreography (on a scale of 1 to 3), and the intensity level as far as aerobic effort (likewise on a scale of 1-3). The game offers an option to sort songs by choreography difficulty and intensity level, which is really useful if you want to warm up to more intense songs, and/or keep to songs that are simpler in their choreography. The two don't always go together -- there are some songs with complex choreography that rate low on the effort scale, and some that are "simple" but will get your heart pumping. I find this helpful, as my willingness to sweat it out definitely outstrips my ability to correctly execute complicated dance steps. ;)
MOTION-TRACKING: You do need to hold the remote as indicated, as it's sensitive to the angle, and you'll get better results by really putting your oomph into the move -- regardless of what people say about playing the game on the couch. It's sometimes taken me a few tries through a song to figure out what angle they *really* want my arm at, or what slight imprecision in the non-action part of a move is throwing my score off, but it's actually surprisingly easy to work it out, if the game is sometimes a little...precise in its demands. Even so, the scoring is a bit more generous than in Just Dance 1, and you won't find yourself as heavily penalized for not getting it *exactly* right as in the previous versions -- high scores can be yours, even with occasionally imprecise motion tracking!
I've had the game for a few weeks now, and Just Dance 2 has quickly become my favorite game purchase of the year, and probably my favorite game for the Wii. With the improvements made in this version, I already can't wait to see what Just Dance 3 will look like.
Buy this product as Renewed and save $2.25 off the current New price.
Just Dance 2 - Nintendo Wii (Renewed) $28.74
(234)
Works and looks like new and backed by the Amazon Renewed Guarantee
(234)
Works and looks like new and backed by the Amazon Renewed Guarantee
See the world for less with virtual tours
Amazon Explore Browse now
Frequently bought together
- +
- +
![Just Dance 3 [Nintendo Wii]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51IljtYfUbL._AC_UL116_SR116,116_.jpg)
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Choose items to buy together.
Videos
Page 1 of 1Start OverPage 1 of 1
Videos for this product
0:15
Click to play video
Customer Review: It was making creepy sound
Cliente de Amazon
Videos for this product
0:35
Click to play video
Just Dance 2--Trailer
Merchant Video
