Dance Central 3

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Dance Central 3
Dance Central 3 cover.png
Developer(s) Harmonix
Backbone Entertainment
Publisher(s) Microsoft Studios
Director(s) Matt Boch
Producer(s) Jon Carter
Designer(s) Jim Toepel
Marcus Montgomery
Programmer(s) Ryan Challinor
Isaac Bender
Artist(s) Matt Perlot
Lisette Titre
Writer(s) Helen McWilliams
Series Dance Central
Platform(s) Xbox 360
Release
  • NA: October 16, 2012
  • AU: October 18, 2012
  • EU: October 19, 2012
Genre(s) Rhythm
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Dance Central 3 is a 2012 rhythm game developed by Harmonix and Backbone Entertainment and published by Microsoft Studios for the Xbox 360 Kinect. It is the sequel to Dance Central 2 (2011) and the third installment in the Dance Central series. It was released on October 16, 2012, in the Americas, and October 19 everywhere else. [1]

Contents

A sequel to the game, titled Dance Central Spotlight, was released for the Xbox One Kinect on September 2, 2014.

Gameplay

Two teams of three people posing for crew photos in Crew Throwdown, a gameplay mode in Dance Central 3 Dance Central 3 Crew Throwdown.png
Two teams of three people posing for crew photos in Crew Throwdown, a gameplay mode in Dance Central 3

The core gameplay for Dance Central 3 follows the same formula as the previous games in the series. One or two players must mimic what the dancer is doing on the screen with Flashcards for guidance, players earn points depending on how well they perform each move, and their score determines how many Stars they earn.

Dance Central 3 features a new mode called Crew Throwdown. In this mode, 2–8 players compete against each other. After each team poses for a crew photo, the game will choose a song and one of the four types of modes to play it in. Those modes are:

The game also has a new Live Challenge feature. In this mode, players can compete to beat scores set by other players connected to Xbox Live.

Additionally, the game features a new level system. Points are given based on number of Stars earned in a song. Players can also earn bonus points by playing harder songs and routines, playing new songs, passing gold moves, passing 100% of the routine's moves, and completing story milestones. Leveling up rewards the player with unlockables, specifically new outfits and new characters.

Plot

The player is recruited into Dance Central Intelligence (DCI) by Rasa and Lima to stop Dr. Tan's plans of world domination. Having received intel that he is using dance moves from the last five decades as a part of his plans, DCI has sent dance crews back in time to learn these moves to use them against him. As part of their mission, the player time travels to find these crews and return them back to the present by learning the dance craze of their decade. This is done by collecting Power Moves found in routines and putting them together to unlock a new routine based on the craze. Additionally, they must dance enough to power Boomy, a boombox enabling them to time travel, to travel back to the present. Dr. Tan's armies have spread to the point where the DCI headquarters are the only safe place left, so it is imperative that the crews are brought back as soon as possible.

The player travels to the seventies to meet Lu$h Crew and learn the Hustle, the eighties to meet Hi-Def and learn the Electric Slide, the nineties to meet Flash4wrd and learn the Macarena, and the 2000s to meet Riptide and learn the Cupid Shuffle. In the meantime, DCI investigated the head devices that members of Dr. Tan's army are wearing in search of countermeasures. Additionally, Dare and MacCoy, two DCI agents who had gone missing, were found, albeit as a part of Dr. Tan's army via mind control. While the player is in the 2000s, DCI is attacked by Dr. Tan's army, and when they come back, Emilia and Bodie are forcefully taken away. They, along with all the other crews brought to DCI HQ, were revealed to have been sent to the prehistoric era by Dr. Tan. After freeing Rasa and Lima from his mind control, the analysis on their head devices finishes and reveals their weakness: creative expression. After learning that the craze of the 2010s is the Scream, the player then time travels to the future, where Dr. Tan seeks to dominate the world by controlling everyone's dance moves. He, his new robots, and his mind-controlled son Oblio are defeated by the player in a dance battle using the crazes they previously learned. With the encouragement of a now liberated Oblio, they trap Dr. Tan in the time stream with freestyle dancing and return to DCI HQ.

While the player was battling Dr. Tan in the future, all the dance crews were rescued and brought back to the present, including Dare and MacCoy.

Master Quests

Once the player completes the Story mode, Master Quests become available. These quests contain all the songs each crew is defaulted for in Dance Central 3, and once the player earns all the Stars within each quest, they unlock a QR code, which could be scanned to view art of the in-game characters. This feature is no longer available; scanning the code now redirects the player to the main Dance Central website.

Characters

Dance Central 3 features returning characters from previous Dance Central games as well as new characters. Like in Dance Central 2, characters are divided into pairs as crews. Each crew featured in the story campaign also has a venue associated with them. There are 20 characters total, with 10 being available from the start and 10 being unlockables.

Most characters have two alternative outfits that can be unlocked by leveling up, one being their Crew Look from their appearances in previous Dance Central games and the other being their DCI Agent outfit. Additionally, most characters who appeared in the first Dance Central game have an extra DC Classic outfit based on their appearances in said game.

Soundtrack

Songs

The following 46 songs appear on the Dance Central 3 disc. [2]

SongArtistYearChoreographerDifficulty (Out of 7)CrewDefault Character & OutfitDefault Venue
"1, 2 Step" Ciara ft. Missy Elliott 2004Chanel Thompson2RiptideEmilia – Retro FittedStudio 675
"Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" TLC 1991Frenchy Hernandez4Flash4wrdTaye – Retro FittedInvite Only
"Around the World" Daft Punk 1997Kunle Oladehin6Hi-DefMo – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Bass Down Low" Dev ft. The Cataracs 2010Nick DeMoura5DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Better Off Alone" Alice DeeJay 1998Marcos Aguirre1Lu$h CrewAngel – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Beware of the Boys (Mundian To Bach Ke)" Panjabi MC 1997Ricardo Foster Jr.5Hi-DefGlitch – DCI AgentToprock Ave.
"Boom Boom Pow" Black Eyed Peas 2009Marcos Aguirre3Flash4wrdLi'l T. – DCI AgentStudio 675
"Boyfriend" Justin Bieber 2012Torey Nelson3DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Calabria (2008)" Enur ft. Natasja 2008Chanel Thompson5RiptideEmilia – Retro FittedStudio 675
"Ching-a-Ling" Missy Elliott 2008Frenchy Hernandez5Lu$h CrewMiss Aubrey – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Cupid Shuffle" Cupid 2007Devin Woolridge3RiptideBodie – Retro FittedStudio 675
"Da Butt" E.U. 1988Ricardo Foster Jr.3Hi-DefMo – Retro FittedToprock Ave.
"Disco Inferno" The Trammps 1976Frenchy Hernandez3Lu$h CrewMiss Aubrey – Retro FittedFree Skate
"Electric Boogie" Marcia Griffiths 1982Kunle Oledehin4Hi-DefMo – Retro FittedToprock Ave.
"Everybody (Backstreet's Back)" Backstreet Boys 1997Spikey Soria4Flash4wrdLi'l T. – Retro FittedInvite Only
"Firework" Katy Perry 2010Chanel Thompson3RiptideEmilia – DCI AgentStudio 675
"Get Low" Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz ft. Ying Yang Twins 2003Devin Woolridge5RiptideBodie – Retro FittedStudio 675
"Hello" Martin Solveig ft. Dragonette 2010Marcos Aguirre5Lu$h CrewMiss Aubrey – DCI AgentCrow's Nest
"I Am the Best" 2NE1 2011Frenchy Hernandez5Flash4wrdTaye – DCI AgentCrow's Nest
"I Will Survive" Gloria Gaynor 1978Frenchy Hernandez3Lu$h CrewMiss Aubrey – Retro FittedFree Skate
"Ice Ice Baby" Vanilla Ice 1990Marcos Aguirre3Flash4wrdLi'l T. – Retro FittedToprock Ave.
"In Da Club" 50 Cent 2003Devin Woolridge2RiptideBodie – Retro FittedStudio 675
"Let the Music Play" Shannon 1983Ricardo Foster Jr.4Hi-DefGlitch – Retro FittedToprock Ave.
"Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)" Los Del Rio 1996Frenchy Hernandez2Flash4wrdTaye – Retro FittedInvite Only
"Moves Like Jagger" Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera 2011Devin Woolridge6RiptideBodie – DCI AgentToprock Ave.
"Mr. Saxobeat" Alexandra Stan 2011Marcos Aguirre4DCILima – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Now That We Found Love" Heavy D & The Boyz1991Chanel Thompson6Flash4wrdTaye – Retro FittedInvite Only
"OMG" Usher ft. will.i.am 2010Aakomon "AJ" Jones and Usher 7DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"On The Floor" Jennifer Lopez ft. Pitbull 2011Chanel Thompson5RiptideEmilia – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Samba de Janeiro" Bellini 1999Devin Woolridge5RiptideBodie – Crew LookToprock Ave.
"Scream" Usher 2012Aakomon "AJ" Jones and Usher 5DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Sexy and I Know It" LMFAO 2011Torey Nelson6DCILima – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Starships" Nicki Minaj 2012Torey Nelson2DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"Stereo Love" Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina 2009Marcos Aguirre4Lu$h CrewAngel – DC ClassicStudio 675
"Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" Kelly Clarkson 2012Spikey Soria7Flash4wrdLi'l T. – DCI AgentInvite Only
"Supersonic" J.J. Fad 1988Ricardo Foster Jr.6Hi-DefGlitch – Retro FittedToprock Ave.
"Tan-Step"M-Cue2012Ricardo Foster Jr.5Murder of CrowsOblio – Crew LookCrow's Nest
"Take Over Control" Afrojack ft. Eva Simons 2010Spikey Soria5Flash4wrdTaye – DCI AgentCrow's Nest
"Teach Me How to Dougie" Cali Swag District 2010Torey Nelson5DCILima – DCI AgentDCI HQ
"The Hustle" Van McCoy 1975Marcos Aguirre1Lu$h CrewAngel – Retro FittedFree Skate
"Turn the Beat Around" Vicki Sue Robinson 1976Marcos Aguirre3Lu$h CrewAngel – Retro FittedFree Skate
"(When You Gonna) Give It Up to Me" Sean Paul ft. Keyshia Cole 2006Marcos Aguirre2Hi-DefGlitch – DCI AgentStudio 675
"Wild Ones" Flo Rida 2011Kunle Oladehin5Hi-DefMo – DCI AgentStudio 675
"Y.M.C.A." Village People 1978Marcos Aguirre1Lu$h CrewAngel – Retro FittedFree Skate
"You Got It (The Right Stuff)" New Kids on the Block 1988Kunle Oladehin3Hi-DefMo – Retro FittedToprock Ave.
"You Make Me Feel..." Cobra Starship ft. Sabi 2011Torey Nelson7DCILima – DCI AgentDCI HQ

Importable content

Players can import songs from Dance Central 2 for a set price. If a physical disc is used to perform the import function, the user will also need the unique code from the game's manual; however, if a Games on Demand version of Dance Central 2 is used, then no export code is required.

The import of the original Dance Central songs was previously possible with the same method and for the same price as for Dance Central 2, but since October 25, 2016, new import purchases are no longer possible (old purchases remain intact). If the player has previously imported the original Dance Central into Dance Central 2, it is also available in Dance Central 3. [3]

Downloadable content

All previous downloadable songs are forward compatible with Dance Central 3; however, any new content released on or after October 16, 2012, is only compatible with Dance Central 3. [4]

On March 8, 2013, Harmonix announced that new DLC releases for Dance Central 3 would end after March due to the company shifting its resources to next generation projects. [5]

SongArtistsDecadeChoreographerDifficulty (Out of 7)CrewDefault Character & OutfitDefault VenueRelease DateDance Pack
"Euphoria" Usher 2012Aakomon "AJ" Jones and Usher 5DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQNovember 20, 201213
"Twisted" Usher ft. Pharrell 2012Aakomon "AJ" Jones and Usher 6DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQNovember 20, 201213
"Gangnam Style" [a] PSY 2012Devin Woolridge5RiptideBodie – Retro FittedDCI HQNovember 27, 201212
"Call Me Maybe" Carly Rae Jepsen 2012Spikey Soria7Flash4wrdLi'l T. – DCI AgentStudio 675December 4, 201212
"Alejandro" Lady Gaga 2010Marcos Aguirre3Lu$h CrewAngel – Street StyleDCI HQDecember 25, 201212
"Paparazzi" Lady Gaga 2009Marcos Aguirre4Flash4wrdTaye – Crew LookInvite OnlyDecember 25, 201212
"Sorry for Party Rocking" LMFAO 2012Kunle Oladehin5Hi-DefMo – Street StyleDCI HQDecember 31, 201212
"Whip It" Nicki Minaj 2012Marcos Aguirre5DCILima – DCI AgentStudio 675January 8, 201312
"International Love" Pitbull ft. Chris Brown 2011Kunle Oladehin5Hi-DefMo – Street StyleStudio 675January 15, 201313
"Hey Baby (Drop It to the Floor)" Pitbull ft. T-Pain 2010Torey Nelson7RiptideBodie – Retro FittedDCI HQJanuary 15, 201313
"Glad You Came" The Wanted 2011Marcos Aguirre2Lu$h CrewAngel – Street StyleStudio 675January 22, 201312
"Let It Roll" Flo Rida 2012Ricardo Foster Jr.5D-CoyMacCoy – DC ClassicDCI HQJanuary 29, 2013
"What Makes You Beautiful" One Direction 2011Marcos Aguirre2Lu$h CrewMiss Aubrey – DC ClassicInvite OnlyFebruary 5, 2013 [6] 13
"Beauty and a Beat" Justin Bieber ft. Nicki Minaj 2012Marcos Aguirre5Lu$h CrewAngel – DC ClassicStudio 675February 12, 201312
"All Around the World" Justin Bieber ft. Ludacris 2012Chanel Thompson6RiptideEmilia – DCI AgentDCI HQFebruary 12, 201312
"Lights" Ellie Goulding 2011Ricardo Foster Jr.6Hi-DefGlitch – DCI AgentToprock Ave.February 19, 201312
"Airplanes" B.o.B ft. Hayley Williams 2010Torey Nelson4DCIRasa – DCI AgentDCI HQFebruary 26, 2013
"Take Care" Drake ft. Rihanna 2012Devin Woolridge1RiptideBodie – DCI AgentStudio 675March 5, 201312
"Umbrella" Rihanna ft. Jay-Z 2007Chanel Thompson4RiptideEmilia – DCI AgentToprock Ave.March 12, 201312
"SOS" Rihanna 2006Spikey Soria5Flash4wrdLi'l T. – DCI AgentCrow's NestMarch 12, 201312
"London Bridge" Fergie 2006Marcos Aguirre3Lu$h CrewMiss Aubrey – Street StyleInvite OnlyMarch 19, 201312
  1. This song features the full version, unlike the other tracks in to the Dance Central series, which has the short version.

Awards and nominations

During the 16th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Dance Central 3 for "Family Game of the Year". [7]

References

  1. Conditt, Jessica. "Dance Central 3 announced with a Q3/Q4 launch date". joystiq. Archived from the original on August 8, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
  2. "Harmonix's Critically Acclaimed Dance Franchise Returns this Year with Dance Central 3". Archived from the original on January 10, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
  3. "How do I import my Dance Central songs into Dance Central™ 3?". Microsoft. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  4. "Exciting New Tracks Headed To Dance Central 3 From Psy, Carly Rae Jepsen, And More!". Harmonix Music Systems. Archived from the original on January 21, 2013. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  5. "New Dance Central 3 DLC Releases Ending in March". Harmonix Music Systems. Retrieved March 8, 2013.[ permanent dead link ]
  6. "Dance Central 3 DLC Preview: "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction". YouTube. February 4, 2013. Archived from the original on January 20, 2023. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  7. "2013 Awards Category Details Family Game of the Year". interactive.org. Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences . Retrieved November 26, 2023.