Gamertell

Title: Boogie Superstar
Price: $59.99
System(s): Wii
Release Date: October 14, 2008
Publisher (Developer): EA (EA Montreal)
ESRB Rating: “Everyone 10+” for lyrics
Pros: 38 songs, you get to choose dance or karaoke challenges, comes with a microphone, cute character designs, pretty accurate controls and appeals to target audience.
Cons: Gibberish voice acting gets annoying, the cover artists for the 38 tracks aren’t that good and a lot of unlocking must be done.
Overall Score: One thumb up, one sideways; 83/100; B; *** out of 5

When I heard I was going to be able to review Boogie Superstar, my inner teeny-bobber squealed with delight. The Wii-exclusive follow up to the original Boogie was redesigned and retooled to fix problems found in the original, mainly the lackluster single player mode, the dysfunctional karaoke and the simple dancing controls.

Despite all this, some gamers may choose to criticize Boogie Superstar and EA for choosing to make the sequel appeal mainly to women and going with an incredibly poppy soundtrack. That doesn’t matter though. The important thing is that Boogie Superstar appeals to its target audience. Girls between the ages of 8 and 16 (and women who are young at heart) who enjoy Top-40 music will have fun playing this game. And maybe, if skeptics give it a chance, they’ll develop a fondness for Boogie Superstar as well.

Becoming a virtual idol.

Boogie Superstar‘s main focus is a story mode where you and your friends appear on the Boogie Superstar show, a sort of world-wide American Idol and compete to become the next pop star. You have three challenges, and you choose whether you will sing and dance in each one. Then you watch a Ryan Seacrest-esque announcer announce the show and introduce the players and judges (this part can be skipped). Then you perform. After each challenge, one of the three judges rates you. In order to win (and get the most money to unlock new songs and items), you have to always try to be the best of the four.

There are also some training modes, where you can learn new moves or songs, buy new song and item packs, dress your character and just practice, but the main focus in Boogie Superstar is the story mode. You can play this mode alone or with three other friends. You can also participate in duets if you happen to have two microphones. It is really all very straightforward.

Better than the original Boogie.

If nothing else, Boogie Superstar will succeed because it fixes what the original Boogie did wrong. EA obviously listened to both players and reviewers and tried to make the game more structured and streamlined. It does have some issues, but these are minor and won’t ruin your dancing and singing experience.

One thing I think is a bit strict is the ESRB rating. Most of the songs are played constantly on the radio, uncensored, and I’m sure children have heard the originals. I think, as long as a parent or guardian is familiar with the songs, Boogie Superstar is appropriate for kids ages 8 and up, rather than 10 - especially since songs made famous Radio Disney singers like Ashley Tisdale, The Jonas Brothers, Hilary Duff and Aly & AJ appear in the game. Its awkward how they handled offensive content as well - Maroon 5’s f-word in “Makes Me Wonder” still has a tone marker, but no word below it.

As for the tracklist and unlocking, some people may be quite disappointed. Imagine my horror when I began my first run-through, selected two karaoke challenges and one dance challenge, and then found I only knew four of the open songs (“Pocketful of Sunshine,” “Love Like This,” “Bleeding Love” and “Makes Me Wonder.”) Unlocking itself is quite a task, since you have to earn coins for three different genres - pop, urban and electronic pop. I’d sing tons of coins into Urban and Pop, hoping “Nine in the Afternoon,” “Toxic” or “Please Don’t Stop the Music” (don’t judge me) would open up next, but alas, they still aren’t open. Each reward package includes two songs, some new outfit items and a new difficulty level. With 38 songs, you have to be incredibly patient.

The karaoke has also been fixed. Gone is bluffing your way through a song by humming. Believe me, I tried. After letting the “judges” randomly select a song for me, and being forced to try and fake my way through a Jonas Brothers song (which I’d never heard until it started playing through my TV’s speakers), I can honestly say the game is checking to make sure your pitch and duration are correct. It isn’t checking words though, so you can sing anything as long as its at the right tone and lasts long enough.

The dancing has been fixed as well, requiring players to perform certain actions to fill a star meter and constantly remain in the spotlight. If you aren’t on beat, do the wrong move or don’t stay in the spotlight, your star gauge will decrease, your score will fall and you won’t be able to line up combos. Combos are special dance moves you do in a sequence of three or more to get a point boost.

I only had problems with one move, the basic arm cross. (Hint: Don’t cross your arms, just wave them out and in - worked for me!) What was nice is that, if you’re constantly off beat or you aren’t matching the move shown in the icon, a little ghost figure will appear in the bottom left corner, showing you the proper move. Since there are over 20 dance move positions, its an incredibly helpful aid.

Boogie Superstar gets a solid B.

Boogie Superstar is a step in the right direction, and hopefully the next entry in the franchise will improve even more and, perhaps, be designed for all players rather than girls and young women. That being said, the girls and young women who do pick up this game will likely adore it. It features stylish characters they can customize, songs they probably listen to and a storyline that mimics a show they might watch.

Older gamers (especially men), may not find much to like about Boogie Superstar, but this is a game that will probably make a lot of little girls happy this holiday season.

Site [Boogie Superstar]