
Put on that leather jacket and slap on some grease, because we are taking a trip into the past. Back when rock n’ roll was the devil, people fought in time with music and we feared the A-bomb. Back to where the Pink Ladies and the T-Birds ruled Rydell High. That’s right, I’m talking about Grease.
Grease needs no explanation, since it’s the forefather of the high school musicals that have been springing up as of late. With its lively cast of characters, catchy and iconic musical numbers, turning Grease into a dance game seemed like a good idea. But in a sea of widely popular dance games, can Grease make itself the highlight of the sock hop?
Licensed Music From the Movie - The greatest thing about Grease is the music. All of it has been licensed for use and are the original songs that were used in the movie. In other words, these are the original tracks to the movie and not some crappy covers. This covers both the musical numbers in the movie, like "Greased Lighting" and "You’re the One that I Want", and the songs from the 50’s, such as "Rock Around the Clock", "Jail House Rock" and many others. I am a really big fan of 50’s rock n’ roll, so it was great to hear the songs untouched and in their original form. And although I’m not that big of a Grease fan, I did enjoy the musical numbers in the movie and it was great that the songs used were the originals.
Sing For a Long Time - Grease, if you care to admit it or not, has some very catchy tunes, so catchy that many may find themselves singing along to the song during the musical number. In Grease, the game provides a Karaoke mode that lets you channel your inner T-Bird or Pink Lady. As for what kind of modes there are, there are singles, duets and a sing off. If you don’t know the words, the on screen prompts will help you along.
IT'S SQUAREZ-VILLE, DADDY-O!
Seems Slow - Compared to other music games out there right now, Grease seems a bit slow and the dances outdated for a modern audience. That’s not to say that the dances are bad or anything, I just think that younger players won’t understand how different dance was back then.
Not That Accurate - It may sound unfair comparing Grease to Dance Central, but in terms of actually capturing the movements of players, DC did set a high standard. While the dancing in Grease is fun, it doesn’t pick up on the players’ movements too well. By that I mean, you can improve the original move that it shows and it will still pick it up. During "Hound Dog" I was felling lazy and didn’t want to raise my arms in one section so I raised them half way and it let me get away with it.
For Grease Fans - Now this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, the game is being targeted to its intended audience, which are people who love Grease. Here lies in the problem. Not a lot of the younger generation of gamers will know what Grease is (unless they’re hipsters). These kids grew up on Glee and High School Musical, so to them Grease is just something that old people like.
Grease, for the most part, is a really fun party dance game that is along the lines of Just Dance 3, except with great songs and musical numbers from a great musical movie. This game might not be for everyone since it's Grease heavy and not many of the younger generation will know the songs. Aside for having the real licensed music and musical numbers from the movie, the only problems I found with the game were it feeling a bit slow, a bit light on the extras and having motion capture isn’t that acurrate. For what it’s worth, Grease can be a great kick start to a gaming night for those who want to lighten up the mood and have fun. If you just want to stroll down memory lane, or feel like rocking around the clock, give this game a rent.
*This review was based on the Xbox 360 version of the game with a review copy provided by the publisher.*
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