Weekend Gaming: Dance Party Club Hits and Dance Party Pop Hits

Oh do spare a thought for the poor visitors who happened to pop around this weekend.

We all know that I am prone to forcing people to partake in singing games (I refer you to my We Sing review) but now these dancing Wii games have had us prancing around the front room (after removing the coffee table) all weekend.

Like other Wii games more fun is had when group participation is involved. I have both Dance Party Club Hits and Dance Party Pop Hits, which means two Dance Party Dance Mats and the ability to compete/distract another player. You can imagine the party atmosphere, especially when you throw in a bag of crisps and a bottle of wine. I strongly believe that Wii games are the new parlour game and with the right attitude and with the right dose of ‘let’s not care and make fools of ourselves’, then genuine fun can be had. So, with dance mats on the floor and shoes off, then fun can begin… (I will not add that G keeps beating me, because clearly there is a fault in the scoring…)

I LOVED playing these dance mat games (as did my children, especially Littlest). As a former (oh so long ago) clubber I really enjoyed the music and advise any player to turn the volume up loud and let themselves have fun. I’m not sure if (in my case), it’s about showing off dance moves, but rather about having a laugh, enjoying the music and getting sweaty!

There isn’t a playlist for either game on Amazon (but it isn’t hard to find it online) and I can see how this could anger some people (but seriously folks, why not research a game before buying it!). I think some would read the ‘Pop Hits’ without seeing that these pop hits are within the ‘Dance’ genre. These games are not for someone who is expecting to be dancing along to Abba or Take That. I also don’t think that this is so much about the lyrics or wanting to sing along (I tried and ended up in a right spin), as you have to focus on the rhythm and moving your feet (and not falling over, in my case). Both of these games are about moving yourself into ridiculous positions as quickly as possible and in time with the music. So I guess that ultimately it’s about keeping fit in a fun way.

Dance Party Pop Hits has tracks from Sugababes, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Nicci Hall, Vicki Young, Soozy Q and so many others. Dance Party Club Hits features Sam Sparro, Camille Jones Britalics feat. Manuela, Cayo Blanco,Rio and Mars and so many more. There are 45 individual dance routines on each game and 3 progressively difficult levels, culminating in a super hardcore mode. There is the chance to go ‘Head-to-Head’ in a 2 player dance off or to challenge up to 8 of your friends with the Party mode. Another feature, for the more hardcore dance mat fans, is the chance to think of your own moves and to record them to your favourite tracks. But my own personal favourite, for when the house is all mine and no one (not even slightly anyone) is watching, is the workout mode (which tells you how many calories you burn off). That is my idea of a fun way to get fit.

Dance mat games are a laugh. They’re like a wonky version of Twister (but to music) and they’re perfect for parties, especially if your friends are as silly (but lovely) as mine.

(You can buy Dance Party Pop Hits HERE and Dance Party Club Hits HERE)