The James Logan Courier

By Cait Baca, Courier Staff Writer

January 9th's "Let it Rock" Winter Ball didn't quite live up to everyone's
expectations.

"It was fun. But it thought it was going to be better. The DJ didn't
play a lot of good dance songs." said Senior Raquel Ortega.

By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune News Service (MCT)

Many thousands of new Wii owners got their first taste of "Wii Fit" this holiday season. And over the course of the next few weeks, most of those people will realize not only that the wait wasn't justified, but that they'll need some closet space for that Wii Balance Board until more worthy software comes along.

In the meantime, the original gaming workout sensation remains, 10 years and umpteen editions later, the best way to burn calories and game at the same time. And while the newest round of games does little to set the franchise on fire, they'll still make you sweat off pounds in ways Nintendo's trendy peripheral can't.

If this is your first go-round with "DDR" and you have an Xbox 360 handy, "Dance Dance Revolution Universe 3's" arrival couldn't be timelier.

Following two near-identical iterations of the same core game, "DDRU3" significantly ramps up the accessibility quotient, complementing an already-loaded collection of single- and multiplayer modes with a set of tutorials that not only makes the game friendlier to new players, but teaches them how to excel in ways previous games never bothered to do. The single-player quest mode, a source of aggravation in past games, is exponentially more approachable, and the game's most enjoyable multiplayer mode grades you on competency but lets you and your opponents dance as gracefully or poorly as you please.