Just Dance 3

Game review by Marc Saltzman, Common Sense Media
Just Dance 3 Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 10+

Social game encourages exercise, but mild cussing in lyrics.

Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 2011
Rate game

Parents say

age 9+

Based on 4 reviews

Kids say

age 7+

Based on 34 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this game.

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What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Just Dance 3 is a dancing game and one of the better picks for kids. Not only does it promote exercise and social interaction, but it also teaches kids to appreciate both music and dance. Some lyrics have mild cussing and sexual themes. Parents should know, however, the Xbox 360 version's online mode might expose users to unrated user-generated content.

Community Reviews

Oddball20
Oddball20 Adult
January 13, 2020
age 9+

Just Dance 3

The third game in Ubisoft's hit dancing game franchise once again challenges players to mimic moves of professional dancers. As with past games, the Nintendo Wii version of JUST DANCE 3 has you hold the motion-sensing Wii Remote in your hands as you perform the onscreen dance moves to rack up points. But for the first time, Xbox 360 gamers can also get in on the fun by using the hands-free Kinect for Xbox 360 peripheral; body moves are captured by the sensors and camera to judge your rhythm compared to the onscreen dancers. The game is also available on PlayStation 3 via the PlayStation Move peripheral and PlayStation Eye camera. For all three versions, there are more than 40 tracks to dance along with, spanning a wide range of musical genres, such as pop, hip-hop, rock, country, disco, R&B, Bollywood, and Reggaeton. Example of popular songs from today and yesterday include "Pump It" by Black Eyed Peas, "I Was Made For Lovin’ You" by KISS, "California Gurls" by Katy Perry and the no. 1 spot on music charts during the summer of 2011, "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO. More songs will be available via optional download. — Minor Language - Some lyrics might be suggestive, such as Nelly Furtado's Promiscuous ("you're teasing me") or KISS's I Was Made For Loving You ("In the darkness...there's so much I wanna do"). The words "hell," "damn" and "sexy" can also be heard. Minor Sexual Movements - Some of the dance moves require you to rotate your hips or shake your buttocks, but there's nothing too graphic here. Retails for $39.99

This title has:

Too much swearing
ChristineMoon
ChristineMoon Adult
July 6, 2012
age 10+

Love the game, but some of the songs aren't for kids...

I own and love all 3 Just Dance games (along with the Smurfs and Michael Jackson). The variety is great, it's exercise, and it's mostly good clean fun. I'm very hesitant about a few things that are on the game though. For examples: Boom: Full of thrusting hips and shaking your rear - not suitable for a young adult in a club, much less a small child! Promiscuous: Lyrics include: "You expect me to just let you hit it but will you still respect me if you get it. I can see you with nothing on feeling on me before you bring that on" In between there are a few drinking references (I don't understand why Kesha can say she has beer, but they edit drunk out), I do play the game a lot with my kids, but they know they're not allowed to play a few of the songs within the game.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
See all 4 parent reviews

What’s It About?

The third game in Ubisoft's hit dancing game franchise once again challenges players to mimic moves of professional dancers. As with past games, the Nintendo Wii version of JUST DANCE 3 has you hold the motion-sensing Wii Remote in your hands as you perform the onscreen dance moves to rack up points. But for the first time, Xbox 360 gamers can also get in on the fun by using the hands-free Kinect for Xbox 360 peripheral; body moves are captured by the sensors and camera to judge your rhythm compared to the onscreen dancers. The game is also available on PlayStation 3 via the PlayStation Move peripheral and PlayStation Eye camera.

For all three versions, there are more than 40 tracks to dance along with, spanning a wide range of musical genres, such as pop, hip-hop, rock, country, disco, R&B, Bollywood, and Reggaeton. Example of popular songs from today and yesterday include "Pump It" by Black Eyed Peas, "I Was Made For Lovin' You" by KISS, "California Gurls" by Katy Perry and the no. 1 spot on music charts during the summer of 2011, "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO. More songs will be available via optional download.

Is It Any Good?

With this third version of the Just Dance series, Ubisoft has retained its accessible and fun gameplay -- ideal for all ages, both genders, and varying skill levels -- but has added new consoles, songs, and new features for each of the three versions. For example, the Nintendo Wii game now has four-player support and dynamic, colorful environments. The Xbox 360 version, on the other hand, has the new "Shout Out!" feature, which lets you score extra points by singing along with the tunes (captured by Kinect's microphone) and the option to create your own choreographies.

As with its predecessors, the game has very basic visuals -- simply showing colorful silhouettes of its dancers rather than detailed characters (like MTV Games' Dance Central) -- but the game isn't about great graphics. It's a very fun social game with great music, numerous modes; and it gets gamers on their feet instead of lounging around.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about whether Ubisoft did the right thing by keeping the gameplay essentially the same as its best-selling predecessors -- but adding new music and modes -- or do gamers prefer when developers change the gameplay more to justify the purchase?

  • Do you like getting your exercise by playing games that give you a physical workout?

Game Details

Our Editors Recommend

  • Just Dance 2 Poster Image

    Just Dance 2

    Better than original, but lots of suggestive songs, moves.

    age 10+
  • DanceMasters Poster Image

    DanceMasters

    Dancing done light for Kinect; rhythm not required.

    age 11+
  • Dance Central Poster Image

    Dance Central

    Extraordinarily fun dancing game for Kinect.

    age 11+

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