Kidz Bop Dance Party: The Video Game

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Heavy on branding but very well made.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Not yet rated

Kids say

Not yet rated

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Kidz Bop Dance Party: The Video Game works pretty hard to push the Kidz Bop brand. But frankly, if your kids want to play this game, they're probably already familiar with the Kidz Bop brand. The game asks players to dance along to recent pop hits sung by kids with edited lyrics (though some of the songs still contain somewhat mature themes). It's worth noting that the clothing you can use to dress your avatar is all age-appropriate.

  • The positive message of the game is that music and dancing are fun. Some of the songs have less positive messages (stalking, paranoia, sex -- though nothing spelled out too explicitly).
  • The Kidz Bop kids, who are introduced in bio videos, appear as wholesome, earnest kids who love music. When they pop up in the game, they are there to encourage and cheer on the players.
  • The motion-sensitive controller, which is supposed to pick up the accuracy of your dance moves, actually works quite well. The moves themselves are demonstrated very clearly onscreen by your avatars, making them relatively easy to mimic.
  • Not applicable.
  • Despite the lyrics being cleaned up for youthful consumption, there is still innunendo in some of the songs. "Hey Ya," for instance, still says "I want you in my Caddy" and "Give me some sugar." Mild, certainly -- but worth noting.
  • While several of these songs contained profanity in their original versions, any genuine swear words have been replaced in the Kidz Bop versions.
  • This game is a tie-in to the long-running and popular Kidz Bop series of children's CDs. On the game disc, kids can watch videos from Kidz Bop DVDs. The game's packaging is stocked with ads and coupons for Kidz Bop CDs and DVDs.

What's it about?

KIDZ BOP DANCE PARTY: THE VIDEO GAME is a music-based rhythm game that challenges you to follow along with on-screen choreography while dancing to modern pop hits sung by children. The moves are represented by both your dancing avatar and by onscreen arrows that show you which ways to move the Wii remote. Each song you complete earns you points that you can spend on new clothes and accessories for your avatar.


Is it any good?

 

Kidz Bop Dance Party: The Video Game is what other less successful dancing games, like Just Dance, hoped to be. Basically, all you need to do is hold the Wii remote in your hand as you follow along with the onscreen choreography -- but what's different here is that the moves are very clearly demonstrated for you (in two visual ways) and the controls really work well at picking up your movements. It's much more fun to play a dance game like this when the game can actually register your moves. It's relatively easy to earn points, and fun to use them to buy either fashionable or whimsical outfits for your avatar. The game is not without flaws, though. For one thing, the career mode doesn't let you skip any songs. And then there's also the music itself. This is subjective, of course, but many of the cutesy kid renditions of these pop songs may grate on adult ears.


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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about marketing. Does this game work as an advertisement for Kidz Bop? Would it be just as good of a game if it didn't have the Kidz Bop brand on it?

  • Families can also talk about active video games. This one is well designed to get players up and moving. Can (or should) you consider this real exercise?

  • This game allows you to customize your own avatar. Why did you create the avatar you did? Do you want your avatar to look like you? Or completely different?


This review was written by Christopher Healy
Kid, 11 years old
January 28, 2011
 
Recommend for everybody!
Wonderful! Very good role models , it's easy to play, it teaches you how to dance , it's good and fun exersise, and it has fun music ment for everybody!

Flag as inappropriate 
Kid, 12 years old
September 25, 2010
 
I WILL DESTROY KIDZ BOP
IT OFFICALLY HURTS SONGS AND MAKES THEM WORSEZ!

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This review was written by Christopher Healy
Platforms:Nintendo Wii
Available online?Not available online
Genre:Music
Developer:D3Publisher of America
Release date:September 21, 2010
Price:$39.99
ESRB rating:E for (No Descriptors)

This review was written by Christopher Healy

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

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