Review Dance Praise Developer: Digital Praise Publisher: Digital Praise Genre: Dance Arcade Release Date: October 2005 Platform: Review by Karla Munger January 25, 2006		Buy this game at Trade for this game at:

Okay, so this isn't exactly an adventure game. In fact, it isn't really a game at all, at least in the traditional sense. It's more like an activity. But hey -- this site isn't called Just Adventure+ for nothing. I'd say that Dance Praise definitely qualifies as part of the "+" aspect of what we do here.

To keep things simple, however, I'll be referring to it as a game in what follows. But no matter how one chooses to categorize it, I can tell you one thing for sure: Dance Praise is pure, unadulterated fun.

What we have here is another outstanding offering from Digital Praise, the same folks who are responsible for the wonderful Adventures in Odyssey series. As its name would suggest, Dance Praise involves, well, dancing -- plus a lot more. What a great way for us computer junkies to pick up our Pillsbury Doughboy bodies and work off those holiday cupcakes we shouldn't have eaten, eh?

So here's how it works. The software operates in conjunction with a dance pad that connects to one's system via a USB port (a PS2 to USB adapter is available from Digital Praise, if needed). Appearing on the pad are the directional arrows used in dancing, and symbols used to navigate through the game's screens. Dance Praise can accommodate either one or two dance pads.

I run WinXP Home, and setting up the pad couldn't have been easier. After installing the software, all I had to do was plug the pad into my computer's handy USB 2.0 port, and violà! Otto Execbat IV (that's my computer) immediately told me he'd found a computer-human interface device -- sort of sounds like a Borg thing, doesn't it? -- and asked me if I'd care to dance. No driver installation was necessary. (Yes, I give my computers names, and yes, that's a weird thing to do.)

The software and pad are also compatible with Windows 98, 98SE, ME, 2000 and XP Pro, along with Mac OS X. A User's Guide provides dance pad hook-up instructions for each operating system. If you already have a dance pad, the Dance Praise software -- which includes a program for configuring non-Dance Praise pads to work with the game -- can be purchased ala carte.

Once everything is set up, you simply choose a mode, style, difficulty level and musical accompaniment, and you're off. Your primary objective is to follow the dance steps that are displayed on your monitor without breaking your neck. (I'm kidding!! Just a bit of senior humor, there...)

Okay, your real objective is to follow the steps as closely as possible using the pad's directional arrows until (a) the song you've chosen has finished playing, or (b) your score sinks to zero (don't cry -- you'll have infinite chances to improve!). Points are awarded for accuracy depending on whether your steps are Perfect, Great, Good, Almost, or Miss. Scores are recorded on a "Hi Scores" screen that enables you to track your progress.

Did I say this isn't an adventure game? Hmmm...I may have spoken too soon. Dancing with my computer to rock, rap, and hip-hop tunes actually proved to be quite an adventure for me (not to mention a great floor show for my cat). And making screenshots for this review while dancing not only added to the exercise I was getting, I'm sure it was a sight to behold.

Not having engaged in this particular type of activity before, it took me a little while to get the hang of it, and my downstairs neighbor must have wondered what in the world was going on up here. Once I did, though, look out. I was transformed into an honest-to-goodness dancin' fool!

Dance Praise can be customized in many different ways, and offers plenty of options. For starters, activities come in four different modes: Dance, Arcade, Exercise, and Shadow Dance.

Dance mode is self-explanatory -- music plays and steps appear for you to follow. This is the game's most straightforward activity.

Arcade mode ratchets up the stakes a bit by offering steps that will double and triple your score, as well as hazards such as smoke bombs, rapidly flickering strobe lights, and steps that will result in your actually losing points. Needless to say, this kind of selective stepping requires more attention to the display than just plain dancing does.

In Exercise mode, you can choose between two goals: the amount of time you want to exercise, or the number of calories you want to burn. This is the only mode in which points aren't awarded; instead, the total number of minutes danced or calories burned are recorded.

Calorie-burning offers a food animation option that I think is a real hoot. Let's say that you've worked off 65 calories, which also happens to be the number of calories contained in your average orange. When that number is reached, an orange with wings on it appears on the screen and flies away!

Shadow Dance requires two participants, each with his or her own dance pad. In this activity, Dancer #1 creates steps that Dancer #2 must follow after a set number of beats have passed. The User's Manual has this to say to the dancer who is leading: "Be kind, because next time you might be the follower." A great piece of wisdom, that.

Dance Praise also offers a choice of three dance styles: Solo (again, self-explanatory); Duel, in which two dancers compete and scores are compiled separately; and Duet, in which two dancers cooperate and share a mutual score.

Obviously, a second dance pad and participant are required for Duel and Duet. Not having anyone except Otto to dance with (sniff), I was only able to take advantage of the Solo option. I suppose that's just as well, though. In my exuberance, I might have accidentally smacked a second dancer in the face or something. (Just kidding!)

Difficulty levels consist of Easy, Medium, and Hard. I got real brave and tried all of 'em.

Once I got used to the moves, I was relatively successful at keeping up with things at the Easy level. Medium was a little trickier, particularly when I discovered that I'd have to leap into the air and try to land on two arrows at once (oh, man...). I found Hard to be flat-out difficult -- I'm talking remove-all-life-forms-and-breakable-objects-from-the-dance-area difficult (I guess that's why they call it Hard). So much goes on at this level that I could have used several extra pairs of legs. To say that it presents a challenge is an understatement!

As with the Odyssey series, Dance Praise has its basis in Christianity. Here, all of the game's music is by Christian artists. And what incredible music it is, folks!

Fifty-two songs are included, and they sure don't sound like anything you'd hear in church. Featured are such performers as ZOEgirl, Audio Adrenaline, PAX217, The Benjamin Gate, Out of Eden, and Steven Curtis Chapman. To be honest, I'd never heard of any of these artists before, but their music just blew me away. An enormous amount of talent is represented in the tunes you'll be hearing in this game!

To enable folks to sing along, Dance Praise also includes an option to display on-screen lyrics while songs are playing. Unfortunately, I found it somewhat difficult to watch pointers, lyrics, and my feet all at the same time, and it's a little hard to sing when you're so out of breath that you can barely talk. (Kidding again! Well, sort of, anyway...puff, pant.)

Among the game's other options is something I think is pretty cool. Called "Tune Into You," it enables the program to select the most appropriate music for you based on your current skill level. This option worked just splendidly for me, particularly as I was getting used to the game.

The songs in Dance Praise can also be set to play at random or in sequential order as they appear in the playlist. Or, if you prefer, you can select all of the music yourself on a song-by-song basis.

In addition, the game offers a choice of over 20 screen backgrounds. If desired, a different one can be selected for each difficulty level. And the on-screen pointers that indicate the direction of dance steps come in four varieties: Arrows, Compasses, Triangles, and Feet.

Don't feel much like dancing? Not a problem! The folks at Digital Praise have included an option that enables players to use the arrow keys on their keyboards instead of jumping around on dance pads. For me, though, the keyboard option offered only a fraction of the fun I had while dancing.

Okay, it's time for a little confession, here. When I was first given the opportunity to review this game, I wondered how much fun it could possibly be. Man, do I ever feel silly now.

I ended up having the time of my life with Dance Praise. It was nothing like I imagined it would be (a lot of things aren't -- funny how that works), and I found every part of it to be thoroughly enjoyable. So much variety is offered that I doubt it could ever become routine or boring. And if the tunes don't get your feet tapping, you might want to check to see if you still have a pulse.

The screens in Dance Praise are filled with wonderful, vivid colors and flawless animation; the music is simply fantastic, and the sound quality is exceptional. For me, everything worked without a hitch. And while I was unable to try the options requiring two dancers, I can't help but think they're also of the highest quality.

The Solo mode in Dance Praise provides enough variety to engage a single dancer indefinitely. The addition of a second dance pad and participant coupled with the wide choice of settings also makes this an ideal activity for children and other children, adults and children, and even adults and other adults. Aside from people who have physical conditions that preclude this kind of exercise, I'm unable to think of anyone who wouldn't benefit from this game

The folks at Digital Praise have hit an unequivocal home run with Dance Praise -- in fact, they've knocked the ball clean out of the park! Not only is the game tons of fun, it offers a great aerobic workout. Just think: it's actually good for you. Whoa!

To sum things up, Dance Praise is first-rate in every respect, and I give it an unqualified "A," across the board. This puppy is so much fun that I have a feeling I'll be getting a lot of use out it. Along with all of its other benefits, Dance Praise lifts your spirits and leaves you feeling just plain good. A big amen to that!

So c'mon y'all -- what are you waiting for? Get off those butts and start dancing!

Final Grade: A
(find out more about our grading system)

System Requirements: