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Michael Jackson: The Experience

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Michael Jackson: The Experience is a music video game based on Michael Jackson's songs. It was developed and published by Ubisoft, and was released on 23 November 2010 in North America, 25 November 2010 in Australia and 26 November 2010 in Europe for the Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, and Wii.[2][3] It was also released on 12 April 2011 in North America, 14 April 2011 in Australia and 15 April 2011 in Europe for PlayStation 3's PlayStation Move and Xbox 360's Kinect. The Japanese release on 8 December 2011 only revised the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii consoles. The game features many of Michael Jackson's hits, such as "Bad", "Thriller", "Beat It", "Billie Jean", "Smooth Criminal", "Black or White", "The Way You Make Me Feel", etc. However, some songs like "Man in the Mirror" and "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" are excluded. Initial launches of the game included a limited edition replica of Jackson's sequined glove.[4] It was later released for the Nintendo 3DS on 7 November 2011 in North America and 11 November 2011 in Europe, for iPhone and iPad on 7 December 2011 in North America and for PlayStation Vita on 15 February 2012 in North America, 22 February 2012 in Europe and 23 February 2012 in Australia. It was announced that the game would be released on Mac OS X, and iPad 2.[citation needed] The game sold 2 million units in two months, not including Japanese sales, making it one of the best-selling Wii title games.[5]

Michael Jackson: The Experience
PAL cover art
Developer(s)Ubisoft Montpellier, Ubisoft Milan, Ubisoft Paris (Wii, PlayStation 3)
Ubisoft Montreal (Xbox 360)
Ubisoft Sao Paulo (Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable)
Ubisoft Shanghai (Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation Vita, and iOS)
Publisher(s)Ubisoft
Platform(s)Nintendo DS
PlayStation Portable
Wii
PlayStation 3
Xbox 360
Nintendo 3DS
iPad
PlayStation Vita
Mac OS X
iPad 2
iPhone
Release
November 23, 2010
  • Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, Wii
    • NA: 23 November 2010[1]
    • AU: 25 November 2010
    • EU: 26 November 2010
    • JP: 8 December 2011
    PlayStation 3 & Xbox 360
    • NA: 12 April 2011
    • AU: 14 April 2011
    • EU: 15 April 2011
    • JP: 8 December 2011
    Nintendo 3DS
    • NA: 7 November 2011
    • EU: 11 November 2011
    iOS
    • NA: 7 December 2011
    PlayStation Vita
    • NA: 15 February 2012
    • EU: 22 February 2012
    • AU: 23 February 2012
    Mac OS X
    • NA: 21 October 2012
    iPad 2
    • NA: 31 December 2015
Genre(s)Music, rhythm
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Gameplay

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Wii

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The Wii version of the game features Just Dance-style gameplay, thus serving as a spin-off title. There are three modes of gameplay in this version. The first mode of gameplay is "Classic" where all players follow Michael Jackson's choreographed routine on-screen. The second mode of gameplay is "Duo" which is used for duets (e.g., "The Girl Is Mine") or videos with two main characters (e.g., "The Way You Make Me Feel" and "In the Closet"). Two players take the role of Michael, while the other two play as the other character. The third mode of gameplay is "Crew", which features Michael and two backup dancers. One player dances as Michael, while the other three are the backup dancers, or if optional, all players play as the backup dancers. All pictograms in this game move from bottom to top. After performing songs, players are able to unlock training videos in the "Dance School" where they are taught some of the more difficult moves from several of Michael's music videos and stage performances.

Nintendo DS

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The Nintendo DS version features gameplay similar to Elite Beat Agents. In this version, there is a cartoon version of Michael Jackson on the top screen and the player follows along by tapping the bottom screen with the stylus to the rhythm of the music. Also in the Nintendo DS version, there is an Anti-Piracy/Copy protection feature created by Ubisoft that will freeze the game and replace the audio with the sound of vuvuzelas (popularized by the South Africans in World Cup 2010) if the player is playing a pirated or ROM version of the game.[6]

PlayStation Portable

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In the PlayStation Portable version, the player follows Michael by pressing the action buttons when it hits the circle. The gameplay style and songs are the same as the DS version, but there are more songs than the DS version of the game, such as "Will You Be There" and "Rock with You". There is still the Show Time part of each song, but when the player spins a wheel to light up Michael's stage, it is replaced with the screen telling the player to press the L and R buttons as fast as possible.

Kinect

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The Kinect version of the game includes full body motion technology and judges on how well the moves are done.

The Kinect version of the game features full body tracking, and an entirely different choreography from the Wii version, meaning like the Dance Central series,[7] along with several other changes and additions. This version uses a technology called Player Projection, which puts the player's own image in the game allowing them to star in their own Michael Jackson video. The Kinect version includes two game modes: "Solo" and "Party". Solo mode features one player. Party mode features 2-4 players. There are two options in Party mode: "Co-Op" and "Battle". Co-Op mode is an "every player for themselves" mode as players take turns jumping in and jumping out in order to complete the song. Battle mode is a team mode where two teams face off to get the highest score. Battle mode is a little different from Co-Op mode as each team performs the song together and the song gets broken down into two parts in which one player dances and the other player sings. Party mode only features Dance Mode, Performance Mode and Master Performance Mode. There are four symbols to represent each player: Michael's glove, Michael's hat, Michael's shades and one of Michael's jackets. Several of the songs in the game do not feature any moves to perform, instead becoming "Singing Only" songs, with "Earth Song" being the first song confirmed as Singing Only. There are certain songs that have moves that can be taught in a practice mode called "MJ School". During each performance, a crown pops up above the player's head and the player must hit the crown to activate "King Power" before it fades away. The crown, appearing only once per song, will multiply the score by 8. Similar to the Wii version, the player is scored on how well they sing and dance. The player can get five different grades: "Perfect", "Good" and "OK" increases the player's score, while "Almost" and "Miss" may cause the player to lose their current score. Points add up at the end of each song along with the rating of stars the player receives and a photo the player takes during their performance. Players can either use the Kinect's built-in microphone, an attached mic/headset or the Xbox 360 Wireless Microphone for karaoke (much like the Lips series).[7] The game does include the option, however, to choose a "Dance Only" version of the song, which means the player will not be asked to sing.[7] The Kinect version also features a mode known as Master Performance, which requires the player to both sing and dance to a set of choreographed moves that are harder than the normal moves and "as close as possible to the videos".[8]

PlayStation 3

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The PlayStation 3 version features the same gameplay as the Wii version. In addition to the singing and dancing functionalities found in the Kinect version, this version allows the player to sing or dance at the same time as other players.[9] There is also the option to record the video clips or take pictures of the player's performance, and allows the player to save or upload them to sites, such as Facebook. In this version of the game, all the songs from the Wii version are included, but new songs such as "Stranger in Moscow" and "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" are added, making it slightly different to the Wii version of the game.

Nintendo 3DS

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In the Nintendo 3DS version, there is a CGI version of Michael on the top screen, and the player draws different shapes with the stylus on the bottom screen to follow along.

PlayStation Vita and iOS

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The PlayStation Vita and iOS versions were ported with Improved graphics in HD, Multiplayer (AD-Hoc), Trophy Support, Motion Sensor support, Multi-touch support, and instead of taking off the on-screen notes, it was replaced with the ability to use the rear touch pad for an even harder challenge and since its use the multi-touch, the difficulty has been given an upgrade to increase the challenge. The PS Vita and iOS versions, compared to the 3DS version, have been given a whole new look in graphics and resolution, with the player being able to use their finger instead of a 3DS stylus. The Vita and iOS versions do not have any downloadable content.

List of songs

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Song Album Year Wii DS PSP Vita, 3DS and iOS PS3 and 360 Mac OS X iPad 2 iPhone Difficulty
"Bad"* Bad 1987 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Medium/Medium
"Beat It"* Thriller 1982 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Medium/Hard
"Billie Jean"* Thriller 1982 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Medium
"Black or White"* Dangerous 1991 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Hard/Medium
"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough"* Off the Wall 1979 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Medium/Medium
"Leave Me Alone" Bad 1987 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Easy
"Smooth Criminal"** Bad 1987 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Medium/Easy
"Thriller"* Thriller 1982 Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Inhuman/Hard
"The Way You Make Me Feel"* Bad 1987 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Medium/Medium
"Remember the Time"** Dangerous 1991 Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Hard/Hard
"Ghosts"** Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix 1997 Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Hard/Medium
"Another Part of Me" Bad 1987 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Medium
"Rock with You"* Off the Wall 1979 Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Easy
"Heal the World" Dangerous 1991 Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No No Easy
"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"* Thriller 1982 Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No No Medium
"Speed Demon" Bad 1987 Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Hard/Hard
"Streetwalker" Bad: Special Edition 1988 (recording) 2001 (release date) Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No No Easy
"Who Is It" Dangerous 1991 Yes No No No Yes Yes Yes No Easy
"Blood on the Dance Floor" Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix 1997 No No No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Hard
"Will You Be There" Dangerous 1991 Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No Medium/Easy
"The Girl Is Mine" (feat. Paul McCartney) Thriller 1982 Yes No Yes No Yes No No No Easy/Easy
"I Just Can't Stop Loving You" (feat. Siedah Garrett) Bad 1987 No No No No Yes No Yes No Easy/Easy
"They Don't Care About Us"* HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I 1995 Yes No No No Yes No Yes No Hard/Medium
"Hollywood Tonight" Michael 2010 No No No Yes No No Yes Yes Hard
"Working Day and Night" Off the Wall 1979 Yes No No No Yes No No No Medium
"Dirty Diana" Bad 1987 Yes No No No Yes No No No Easy/Medium
"In the Closet" Dangerous 1991 Yes No No No Yes No No No Medium/Medium
"Money" HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I 1995 Yes No No No Yes No No No Medium
"Earth Song" HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I 1995 Yes No No No Yes No No No Medium
"Stranger in Moscow" HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I 1995 No No No No Yes Yes No No Easy
"Sunset Driver" The Ultimate Collection 1982 (recording) 2004 (release date) Yes No No No Yes No No No Hard
  • A "*" indicates that there is a dance teaching video of that song.
  • A "**" indicates that there is a three-part dance teaching video of that song.

All of the songs from the album Invincible are excluded from the game.

In the Wii version of the game, "Money" is incorrectly credited as a song from the album Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix which was released in 1997. This would be true if the song in the game was the remix but it is the original version of the song, released on HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I in 1995.

"Another Part of Me" is exclusive to copies of the game sold by Walmart.

Development

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Roughly two weeks after Michael Jackson's death in 2009, MJ Productions announced that a Michael Jackson game had been in development for several months.[10]

The game was displayed at New York Comic Con at Ubisoft's booth.

Reception

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Michael Jackson: The Experience was met with generally mixed reviews, with most of them citing the varied differences between the different versions of the game. The reviews for the DS and PSP versions were above average, with a slightly better score for the DS version. IGN gave a 6.5/10 for DS[31] and 5.5/10 for the PSP.[32] Destructoid gave a 6/10 for the DS version.[33]

IGN gave the Wii version a 3.5 saying that it does not give clear instructions on how to dance and also criticized the controls.[32] Metro gave it 5/10, describing it as "perfectly good party fun if you don't care that the controls don't work."[34] VideoGamer.com gave the review a 7/10, stating that the music overplays the responsiveness difficulty.[35] CNET gave the game 5/5, writing that the game is "extremely easy to pick up and play" and "the choreography is amazing"[36] The Escapist gave the game 4/5, noting that the game "is not meant to be played by yourself".[37]

Eurogamer thought that the dance routines in the Xbox 360 game "feel a little slower and more simplistic than those in the PS3 game".[9]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Brudvig, Erik (18 August 2010). "Gamescom: Ubisoft's Michael Jackson Game Uses Kinect". IGN.com. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  2. ^ Frum, Larry (16 June 2010). "Game will let you sing, dance like Michael Jackson". CNN.com. Archived from the original on 19 June 2017. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  3. ^ Fritz, Ben; Martens, Todd (14 June 2010). "Michael Jackson is coming to the video game world". The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  4. ^ Winslett, Ryan (2 November 2010). "Michael Jackson: The Experience Launches With Limited truee Edition Glove". Joystickdivision.com. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  5. ^ IGN STAFF (6 January 2010). "UBISOFT SELLS TWO MILLION UNITS OF MICHAEL JACKSON THE EXPERIENCE". Archived from the original on 29 August 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  6. ^ Davis, Justin (29 April 2013). "Eight of the Most Hilarious Anti-Piracy Measures in Video Games". IGN. Archived from the original on 12 May 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  7. ^ a b c "Michael Jackson: The Experience (Kinect) Hands-On". Everybodyplays.co.uk. 12 March 2011. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  8. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience (Kinect) Interview". Everybodyplays.co.uk. 12 March 2011. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  9. ^ a b c "Michael Jackson: The Experience". Eurogamer. 25 April 2011. Archived from the original on 20 August 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  10. ^ Bailey, Kat (10 July 2009). "New Michael Jackson Game Reportedly Under Development". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 11 July 2009.
  11. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Xbox 360". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 23 November 2011. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  12. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Nintendo DS". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 24 November 2011. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  13. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for PlayStation 3". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 24 January 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  14. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Nintendo 3DS". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 6 January 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  15. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Wii". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 28 December 2011. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  16. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience HD for PlayStation Vita". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  17. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for PlayStation Portable". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 8 August 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  18. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 19 December 2011. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  19. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Nintendo DS Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 27 November 2011. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  20. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 4 May 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  21. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Nintendo 3DS Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 19 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  22. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience HD for PlayStation Vita Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 19 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  23. ^ "Michael Jackson: The Experience for Wii Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  24. ^ http://au.gamespot.com/michael-jackson-the-experience/[permanent dead link‍]
  25. ^ "GameTrailers - YouTube". Archived from the original on 3 June 2012. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  26. ^ "Wii Review: Michael Jackson Wii game review - Official Nintendo Magazine". Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  27. ^ Official PlayStation Magazine (UK), 06/01/11
  28. ^ "The Michael Jackson Experience (Wii) review | NowGamer". Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  29. ^ PSM3 magazine, July 2011, p.94
  30. ^ Ditum, Sarah (9 December 2010). "Michael Jackson: The Experience – review". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 1 October 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  31. ^ Clements, Ryan (7 December 2010). "Michael Jackson: The Experience Nintendo DS". IGN.com. Archived from the original on 26 April 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  32. ^ a b Clements, Ryan (6 December 2010). "Michael Jackson: The Experience Review". IGN.com. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  33. ^ Holmes, Jonathan (10 December 2010). "Review: Michael Jackson: The Experience (DS)". Destructoid.com. Archived from the original on 17 August 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  34. ^ Hargreaves, Roger (25 November 2010). "Games review – Michael Jackson: The Experience is bad". Metro.co.uk. Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  35. ^ Smith, Jamin (6 November 2010). "Michael Jackson The Game Review". VideoGamer.com. Archived from the original on 24 November 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  36. ^ Walton, Mark (10 December 2010). "Michael Jackson The Experience (Wii)". GameSpot. CNET.com. Archived from the original on 12 March 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  37. ^ Tito, Greg (1 December 2010). "Review: Michael Jackson The Experience". The Escapist. p. 2. Archived from the original on 4 December 2010. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
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