Continuing from last Friday's post (About the 12 Just Dance levels I despise), here is the first part of my first (and possibly only) multi-part list. I'll be listing off my 24 favorite Just Dance levels. Once again, I may put here songs simply because I like them, or because the level is fun, or because the background and dancer make for a pretty, if not outright artistic, thing to see.
Alright, let’s get to it!
24. Best Song Ever (One Direction) JD2015
These games feature a lot of songs from boy bands.
Deal with it. Don’t be picky. As much as
I hate some current artists and bands geared towards a teenage female
demographic, I’m of the belief that nothing is all good or all bad. Thus, I
believe One Direction’s Best Song ever, not only to be at least listenable, but
also pretty damn danceable. The Dance Crew works very well together and I found
myself surprisingly enjoying the three minutes spent shaking to it. What else
is there to say? Well, “Best Song Ever” is a boy band version of Tenacious D’s
“Tribute”, in that it’s not THE best song ever, but a tribute to it… and now I
made everybody hate me.
23. Macarena (The Girly Team) JD2015
And the hating continues! If you’re still attending
family parties and your baby-boomer relatives dare play some dance music, it's likely that you’ve heard - and possibly danced to – the Macarena at least once in
your life. It’s easy, really; and if you already know the movements, this level
should not be much trouble. Left first, right first; hands forward, palm down,
hands forward, palms up, hands to shoulders, hands behind head, hands on waist,
hands on butt, then you turn 90 degrees and repeat. This level in JD2015 is
extremely colorful and features a Dance Crew of women. Pick one, follow the
rhythm, and prepare to have this ear worm stuck in your head for a long time!
22. Forget You (Cee Lo Green) JD3
A man in a snazzy suit dances to a song about how his
girlfriend is a gold-digger, ultimately dropping a couple of F-bombs on her- oh
wait, right, forget the F-bombs, this is the “acceptable for an E+10 rating”
version. I remember the “Forget You” level and loving every minute of it. I
love the choreography, it’s as cool as the character is snazzy. And it’s great
to mimic. The setting is an old television, and in the second half of the
level, backup dancers appear in the background to make this comedic song look
and feel more epic, more… what’s the old term? “pizzaz”? I’m not up to date on
old slang. Either way, I like this one. Though I prefer the non-censored one
better. Shame it’s unfit for Just Dance.
21. Where Have You Been (Rihanna) JD2014
This song tends to divide some people, because Rihanna
starts it with an excerpt from a Johnny Cash song… but whatever. The rest does
sound pretty good to my not-a-music-reviewer ears. (Seriously, if I was
reviewing music, I’d be far more critical than that.) This song comes in JD2014
in five variations: The regular choreography, an On-Stage version, an Extreme
version, a Battle (against She Wolf, which I also love, but I still hate Battle
mode), and a Mashup unlocked on April. As for the choreography itself and the
ambiance around it, I don’t see how a woman in tribal attire dancing in front
of and later inside a volcano corresponds to the theme of the song… Ring of
Fire isn’t even the Johnny Cash song referenced at the beginning! Oh well, it’s
still great to move to, the controls are very responsive, and it’s overall
enjoyable.
20. Flashdance… What A Feeling (The Girly Team) JD2014
Similar to Macarena, chances are you’ve heard this
song before. If only because there’s a lot of nostalgia surrounding this song.
The level is pretty good, too; it starts with the dancer, a woman in a dress,
with calm movements. Then off goes the fake dress, and we see our dancer, now
dressed as a fitness teacher. Of course, don’t expect insane dance moves here,
moves Just Dance players would be unable to do… but kudos if you pull off the
jumping split! This level is simple, but it’s great. The routine itself is
enjoyable, not too difficult nor too easy, and the song helps a lot towards me
liking this level! I mean, I just hear this and my body wants to dance. No,
foot, stop tapping! Leg, stay calm, will ya? Oh great, my arm’s going at it
now. How the Hell am I typing this?
19. Dynamite (Taio Cruz) JD3
The more this list advances, the more annoyingly catchy
the tunes get. Gotta give that to Ubisoft, they know to pick the best tunes.
…well, most of the time. In the case of Dynamite, we have here another Dance
Crew. I don’t remember explaining that in my review, but Just Dance 3
introduced Dance Crews and had quite a number of those. And they left quite an
impression on the audience, and on me; most JD3 examples on this list are Dance
Crews. As for Dynamite, it was good back in 2011, it was still good today. The
four dancers have different looks, but still work very well as a “team”, or
“crew”, or whatever you want to call them. The result is a great level, one that I replay almost every time I pop the disk into the Wii.
18. Turn up the Love SUMO (Far East Movement ft. Cover
Drive) JD2014
The special alternate choreographies were okay, for
the most part. I found myself hating Seated Dances – thank God they’re rare –
but once again there are some diamonds in the rough. Case in point, the SUMO
Dance Crew on Turn Up The Love. Now, these are not actual sumos, just really
really fat rappers with bling. But they sure shake their lipids a lot. And
they’re singing to someone? Well, that person will have a lot to love. Still,
having overweight dancers sure is a nice change of pace, since just about every
single other dancer in these games is thin… and it’s also funny to watch. The
routine is great, the controls work well... My only complaint is that this
alternate routine for Turn Up The Love costs 50 Mojocoins to unlock… but it’s
worth it.
17. Burn (Ellie Goulding) JD2015
This level is another example of the perfect mix; good
song, great routine (not too complex, not too simple), great character model,
beautiful changing background, and of course, very responsive controls. Why is
it not higher on the list? I mean, I AM pretty much calling it a work of art.
Hell, it’s just another proof that video games CAN be art. Then, why is it not
higher on the list? Well, probably because I’m a geek and I tend to prefer the
Just Dance levels that have more geeky connections. Or a bit of humor. Also,
this level does have a lot of beauty, but it doesn’t quite push the boundaries
of what can be done in Just Dance.
16. Ghostbusters (Ray Parker Jr.) JD2014
A classic theme tune! This one also plays around with
the conventions of the Just Dance series, as there are three Ghostbusters… and
Slimer. Yep, one of the dancing characters doesn’t even have legs. In fact, in
the second half of the song, Slimer possesses the other three and controls
their dance moves for a moment. Needless to say, this song is fun to dance to
if you’re a geek, it’s even better if you’re a fan of the Ghostbusters
franchise (of note, Stay Puft makes a cameo in the background), and it’s even
better if you control Slimer. I like the more gimmicky levels like this one.
15. Built For This (Becky G.) JD2015
Talking about gimmicky, how does an army of robots
sound? I already discussed this one in my review of Just Dance 2015, so I won’t
talk much about it again; however, this level takes “NPC dancers” to its
logical extreme, featuring sometimes what looks like dozens of the same dancer,
as a robot, doing movements exactly at the same time as the actual dancer. That’s
pretty damn impressive; in fact, it must have taken a lot of processing power. I
mean, it’s only normal for a franchise that releases games every year to try
and push the limits of their craft. And the result is impressive.
14. Spectronizer (Sentai Express) JD3
I have to admit to something; I noticed, after writing
my review of Just Dance 2015, that dancers transforming have been in this
series since Just Dance 3. It’s just that, in Just Dance 3, it was much rarer.
One example I can give is Spectronizer, where the teenage members of the Dance
Crew turn into Power Rangers-like heroes partway through. Well, then again,
this IS a Japanese song we’re talking about… Make it another point for “geek
preference” and “gimmick”; after all, dancers transforming mid-song WAS a
simple gimmick back then, it wasn’t yet commonplace.
13. Jamaican Dance (Konshens) Mashup JD3
I love dancing to this song. But in Just Dance 3, the
“regular” choreography for Jamaican Dance was the dreaded “Hold My Hand” mode,
which is the Just Dance variation I despise most. Thankfully, there’s ever been
only three levels like this in Just Dance history. Thankfully, we do have a
variation on Jamaican Dance; the ever-popular Mashup. To compensate for the
absolutely crappy Hold My Hand level, plenty of Just Dance organized a quick
dance-o-thon over Jamaican Dance for the player. …Oh, who am I kidding, this is
just silly. Still, the team at Ubisoft offered an alternate choreography for a
song that much needed it, a song so good it would have been unfair to hate it
due to the mode it’s played in.
Well, it appears that I’m gonna have to split this
list in two. See you Monday for Part 2!
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