Just Dance 4 Wii U Review
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Follow the hand.
Just Dance 4 will pull you, sweaty and breathless, through a drug-induced marathon across the world. From the streets of South Asia, alive with moving graffiti, to the dizzying innards of a pinball machine, the tonal inconsistency of Just Dance 4 pushes disorientation to its limits. This successor to the legendary dance brand continues to promise accessible play and a hip soundtrack, but falls victim to familiar ills. It's less a video game and more a dissonant, audio/visual experience designed for media-savvy parties.
The only thing that Just Dance 4 succeeds at is catering to gamers that "just don't care." Most of this group contains newcomers to gaming and the socially ? . With no way to fail out of songs and no progression system outside of an ever-growing Mojo meter, Just Dance 4 is designed to keep party-goers on their feet and laughing. But that's a shallow achievement. It's like showing up to the party with really cheap beer; it serves a basic purpose, but lacks the richness and flavor of better brews.
From the beginning, Just Dance 4 masks its psychedelic journey in a harmless menu with only two options: Just Dance mode and Just Sweat mode. In an era of overcomplication, such simplicity can provide a much-needed oasis for weary gamers. Just Dance mode facilitates a quick jump into play, while Just Sweat mode strings along songs and stretches for an adjustable workout routine.
But when the dancing begins, Just Dance 4 starts to unravel in both quality and sanity. As with past Wii entries in the series, the Wii U version bends to the will of the mighty Wii Remote, restricting possible motion detection. Although Just Dance 4 encourages you to dance along with the on-screen guide, the only dancing that really matters is your right hand (congrats, Tutters, you've won).
For example, a well-danced, enthusiastic attempt at Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" -- you may have heard of it -- net me about 9,000 points (a personal average from three attempts). An attempt with isolated hand movement, mimicking the dance moves with my right hand only, scored an impressive 10,656 points. And just shaking the Wii Remote to the beat racked up 7,289 points.
It's imprecise technology at best, though in Just Dance 4's shallow pursuits it services the happy, screaming crowd well enough.
Somehow, one of the more 'normal' backdrops.
Of course, shortly after a few songs have been played, and depending on the order of your selection, you'll start to notice the hysterical, mind-bending visuals used as backdrops. Some match the songs' themes with grace and a smiling nod. Others stretch reality like a hearty dose of lysergic acid diethylamide. "Call Me Maybe" and "Good Feeling" paved the way for "Asereje," where a pair of senoritas danced on orange slices in a giant cocktail. This shocking playlist tumbled into a European town with electro-powered plazas, then wound its way to pink-colored cloudscapes. One song even stretched into the heavens, where entire galaxies pulsed with the rhythm.
And who's to say why Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" features a costumed superhero and a full-fledged Godzilla attack? Perhaps this is an abstract form of rickrolling.
Even if the audio/visual experience was more consistent, Just Dance 4 still stumbles in its actual play, repeating poor systems that have disrupted previous dance games like a bad sense of rhythm. The choreography employed by the on-screen dancers is impossible to deconstruct without an extensive, pre-existing knowledge of dance. Instead of repeatable, patterned choreography, the dancers string together elaborate sets of techniques that no amateur will ever understand on a first, third, or even fifth attempt.
Barry White in an elevator? Sure.
This stands in stark contrast to Just Dance 4's wide-eyed promises of accessibility and party-friendly entertainment. The routines will render even a comfortable dancer twisted and confused, laughing perhaps, but unable to follow along.
The "pictograms" which slide by the bottom of the screen don't alleviate this issue as they poorly convey upcoming dance moves and, on rare occasion, even contain incorrect information that clashes with the on-screen dancer. Having one pictogram with a silhouette pointing to the left just doesn't help when the following dance includes a 15-second flurry of moves with no further instruction.
Completing songs will fill a Mojo gauge that unlocks additional content like battle mode songs and extra routines. The constant acquisition of precious, precious Mojo does bless Just Dance 4 with a modicum of satisfying level progression, but it's ultimately a trivial system. The same can be said of the newly toted Puppet Master mode, which allows the holder of the Wii U GamePad to select routines for other players. While this hints at a potential, mischievous fun, it doesn't overcome the problems inherent to Just Dance 4's design.
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The Verdict
The bizarre artistic direction of Just Dance 4's audio/visual components, coupled with its absurd choreography, ? the player experience found within. This dance party game may illicit a few laughs, but nothing more worthwhile.
Just Dance 4 is a generator of awkward moments, an engine powering missteps and ? mayhem. Whether this is frustrating or fun will often come down to the blood alcohol level of the participants.
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Just Dance 4 on Wii U:
5.3 Mediocre
Just Dance 4 staggers over old mistakes, stumbling through a bad acid trip of shallow laughter that fades fast.