Britney's Dance Beat
Britney is coming to the PS2, and frighteningly enough, she looks like she's brought a pretty darn entertaining game with her.
Published: April 11, 2002
"A Britney Spears dancing game? Good Lord, that's going to suck."
Boy did I eat those words. Not only that, but it was a perfect reminder of why I shouldn't pass judgment on a game before I've actually played it. Well, I've played Britney's Dance Beat (and played, and played, and played…), and even in its unfinished state, it's easy to see that if you can stomach Britney, you're just going to have to try it out.
It shouldn't be all that surprising that Britney's Dance Beat impresses. After all, it was crafted by the masterful minds over at Metro Graphics, the same folks that have kicked out a couple versions of Bust-A-Groove (or Bust-A-Move if you happen to be reading this from Japan and feel the need to buy every game I mention). As fun as Bust-A-Groove games are, though, they are starting to feel a bit stale. I fired up the second iteration with a friend the other day and marveled at how amazingly… similar it was to the first game. Not that I don't love tapping directions and a random face button – especially when playing against a friend, but it's essentially the same game with new music and flashier graphics every time something with the Bust-A-Groove moniker is released.
So where does this leave Britney and her game? At the focal point of a whole new input design scheme and plenty of interesting twists to what could have been a very familiar 2-player game. We'll save all the juicy details for our microscopic nitpicking of the final code when the game hits stores next month, but a quick n' dirty description of the main game should suffice for now. Metro ditched the increasingly antiquated d-pad and face button combo for a more streamlined circular interface that melds the familiar shape and direction buttons into an all-in-one getup that lets you strut your stuff with one of six dancers (three guys, three girls) on your way to snag the title of official backup dancer for Ms. Spears.
Being that this IS a Britney Spears game, you're going to have to like the oft-buxom starlet to really get into it. You're assaulted six ways till Tuesday with Britney images, music and video, so if there's an inkling of disdain in you for the girl, the game will work it out in no time. However, if you happen to be a fan, there's plenty to love. The preview build THQ sent us was nearly complete, and boasted shortened and full-length versions of "…Baby one more time," "Oops! I Did It Again," "Stronger," "Overprotected," and "Slave 4U." Again, if you can stomach bubblegum pop, there's a good mix of old and new stuff, and for raving uber-fans like my roommate, former IGN Editor Dave Zdyrko, lots of goodies.
We goofed around a bit with some of the extras that were unlocked from the start, giggling like schoolgirls as we watched some backstage and concert snippets slickly cut with a few remixes of popular Britney songs. It was the concert footage that was the most intriguing, however. Using a camera that films full speed (read: not choppy) video in 360º, you can actually move the camera, tracking Britney or her dancers as they gyrate across the stage, or even turn it around to check out the crowd. The video quality was impressive, though not exactly DVD caliber. Then again, the DVD the game was burned onto was filled to capacity, so the videos don't exactly weigh in on the light side – even at the quality they were displayed in.
There's still a few minor tweaks Metro has to do to the game before it's completely finished, but the build we received not only showed promise, it was incredibly fun and addictive. It can't be stressed enough that you have to actually like Britney to be able to play the game for any extended amount of time, but the payoff is a game that looks like it'll actually use a license in a completely original and effective way. Britney's name and image isn't just a gimmick to gloss over a sub-par game; she's the focus of a genuinely great gaming experience. We'll have the full skinny on Britney's Dance Beat in a few weeks, but for now take a gander at a handful of screens to tide you over.
Boy did I eat those words. Not only that, but it was a perfect reminder of why I shouldn't pass judgment on a game before I've actually played it. Well, I've played Britney's Dance Beat (and played, and played, and played…), and even in its unfinished state, it's easy to see that if you can stomach Britney, you're just going to have to try it out.
It shouldn't be all that surprising that Britney's Dance Beat impresses. After all, it was crafted by the masterful minds over at Metro Graphics, the same folks that have kicked out a couple versions of Bust-A-Groove (or Bust-A-Move if you happen to be reading this from Japan and feel the need to buy every game I mention). As fun as Bust-A-Groove games are, though, they are starting to feel a bit stale. I fired up the second iteration with a friend the other day and marveled at how amazingly… similar it was to the first game. Not that I don't love tapping directions and a random face button – especially when playing against a friend, but it's essentially the same game with new music and flashier graphics every time something with the Bust-A-Groove moniker is released.
So where does this leave Britney and her game? At the focal point of a whole new input design scheme and plenty of interesting twists to what could have been a very familiar 2-player game. We'll save all the juicy details for our microscopic nitpicking of the final code when the game hits stores next month, but a quick n' dirty description of the main game should suffice for now. Metro ditched the increasingly antiquated d-pad and face button combo for a more streamlined circular interface that melds the familiar shape and direction buttons into an all-in-one getup that lets you strut your stuff with one of six dancers (three guys, three girls) on your way to snag the title of official backup dancer for Ms. Spears.
Being that this IS a Britney Spears game, you're going to have to like the oft-buxom starlet to really get into it. You're assaulted six ways till Tuesday with Britney images, music and video, so if there's an inkling of disdain in you for the girl, the game will work it out in no time. However, if you happen to be a fan, there's plenty to love. The preview build THQ sent us was nearly complete, and boasted shortened and full-length versions of "…Baby one more time," "Oops! I Did It Again," "Stronger," "Overprotected," and "Slave 4U." Again, if you can stomach bubblegum pop, there's a good mix of old and new stuff, and for raving uber-fans like my roommate, former IGN Editor Dave Zdyrko, lots of goodies.
We goofed around a bit with some of the extras that were unlocked from the start, giggling like schoolgirls as we watched some backstage and concert snippets slickly cut with a few remixes of popular Britney songs. It was the concert footage that was the most intriguing, however. Using a camera that films full speed (read: not choppy) video in 360º, you can actually move the camera, tracking Britney or her dancers as they gyrate across the stage, or even turn it around to check out the crowd. The video quality was impressive, though not exactly DVD caliber. Then again, the DVD the game was burned onto was filled to capacity, so the videos don't exactly weigh in on the light side – even at the quality they were displayed in.
There's still a few minor tweaks Metro has to do to the game before it's completely finished, but the build we received not only showed promise, it was incredibly fun and addictive. It can't be stressed enough that you have to actually like Britney to be able to play the game for any extended amount of time, but the payoff is a game that looks like it'll actually use a license in a completely original and effective way. Britney's name and image isn't just a gimmick to gloss over a sub-par game; she's the focus of a genuinely great gaming experience. We'll have the full skinny on Britney's Dance Beat in a few weeks, but for now take a gander at a handful of screens to tide you over.