LO3 - Task 1 - Video Game Review

Just Dance 2014 - Review by Callam F.

Just Dance 2014 is the newest edition of the dancing game series for the Wii (U), PlayStation (3 & 4) and Xbox (One and 360). Although it lacks a story-line, an important element in most games, it doesn’t stop the game from being clear and fun for the player.

The player joins in with interactive dancing games with instructions given by anonymous ultraviolet coloured dancers that wear costumes appropriate and connecting to the songs they’re dancing too, creating a theme for that level and the allowing the player to easily connect themselves with their character, making it easier to follow the dance instructions.

The game easily appeals to teenagers as it active, fun and features a large variety of new and classic pop songs, going from Careless Whisper to Y.M.C.A., and from Blurred Lines to GhostBusters.

A major downside to the game, apart from being hot and sweaty afterwards, is that the game-play isn’t that good. The sensor bar struggles to pick up the signal from the Wii remotes if the player isn’t standing in the middle, which causes issues with points if 4 or 3 people are playing, as the person in the middle has an unfair advantage and is named as the winner.

Another problem with the game is the instructions given by the stick-men at the bottom of the screen. They show up-coming dance positions but this can easily put of the dancers timing by doing position too early. Due to the stick-men being stationary pictures instead of actual people, the movements aren’t clear so can lead the player to get confused. So, when playing this game, I suggest you ignore the stick-men and follow the instructions given by the human characters.

Despite the game-play not being to a great standard, I still highly recommend this game as it is still enjoyable to play and just as fun to watch others attempting it. This game is the perfect way to encourage people to get involved with fun, physical activities such as dance.