Zumba Fitness VS Zumba Fitness 2 (A Comparison with Video)

I was first introduced to the first Zumba Fitness game by my sister, who purchased the PS3 version. She let me try it out and I loved it. I had been eyeing it on Amazon ever since it had first been released, wondering if I would like it but unable to spend the $40 it cost without trying it first. I probably never would have bought it without trying it, so I can thank my sister for that. 🙂

So anyway, I purchased the Wii version for myself and I really really love it. Its made exercising fun again! In fact, youre not thinking about the exercising aspect at all (which is probably what finally killed my interest with other Wii fitness games) youre too busy trying to keep up with the dance steps.

I was surprised at how much I liked it because well I cant dance. At least, I didnt think I could dance. Ive never really tried. The closest I came to dancing was taking figure skating lessons when I was a kid. And thats different. Theres really no music or rhythm involved. What I didnt realize is that you can learn to dance learn to have rhythm practice being a little bit more coordinated than usual. Im not saying that I look awesome when I dance and that I do all the steps perfectly, but I do well enough that I am having fun and feeling like Im getting it. And thats the point!

The fact that Im getting some great cardio exercise in while Im doing is just a plus. 😉

Im going to say now that Ive tried both Zumba Fitness 1 and 2 and I LOVE the first game and dont love the second. I was excited about the second I actually was chosen by House Party to review and share it with my friends. It just wasnt as fun as the first game for me, though. Disappointing, to say the least. But Im getting ahead of myself. So heres a quick comparison of the two games:

ZF1: There are nine different styles of dance introduced in the 30+ routines including Reggaeton, Merengue, Salsa, Cumbia, Hip-Hop, Mambo, Rumba, Flamenco, and Calypso. It doesnt say in the product description, but there is also some belly dancing that is actually the cool down. Its kind of a combination of belly dancing and stretching.

ZF2: There are a lot more dance styles in this one, which almost feels overwhelming. I dont think I like that so many styles are intermingled in the routines.

ZF1: The Learn the Steps isnt really the best it goes waaay too fast for you to actually catch on to the steps before it moves on. But I figured out that the best way to do that is start it, put the Wii Mote DOWN so that it doesnt register any movement, and then repeat the steps till you have it and move the Wii Mote so that itll move on to the next stage of that step.

ZF2: Learning the steps was SO much easier in this game. I really felt like I had the steps down and appreciated that you are able to control the instructors speed you can speed him up or slow him down. You can move through the steps with your arrow buttons, too. I dont think they had enough tutorials for me to feel confident jumping into their routines, though.

ZF1: The dance routines are separated by classes: beginner, intermediate, and expert segments. There are two different sets of routines under each class with four or five routines in each one. You can also do single routines and choose your favorites. You cant create custom routines in groups.

ZF2: The dance routines are separated in the same way by classes or single routines. You can also create custom classes for yourself.

ZF1: Gameplay. Your instructor is a backlit guy or girl. They cue you every now and again so that you know what is coming up, turn red when you are falling out of rhythm and turn green when you are in rhythm, and encourage you throughout the dance. I like the encouragement and the fact that its not a 3D model youre following. It kind of helps me stay focused and feels more like Im looking at a reflection (I wish) than following an instructor. I found it easy to follow the routines after a couple of times playing its basically memorizing series of steps, and it does get easier after awhile because many of the steps are similar to what youve learned in the beginner routines.

ZF2: Gameplay. There are three different 3D graphic instructors based on real dancers (that I had never heard of, oops). You can customize your instructor by changing clothing. The cueing is better than on Zumba Fitness 1, so thats nice. For some reason, though, I found these routines harder to follow many times because I didnt like the steps. It was partially because I wasnt a fan of the dance styles thrown in Ill explain more about that next. I also didnt like that there is an intro to each routine. The instructor is surrounded by crowds that are applauding and making a lot of noise, and he/she does a little Im so cool, clap more for me thing to get people whooping and hollering. I was just annoyed by that. Overall, I thought all the routines were more showy and missed the layout of ZF1.

ZF1 & ZF2: Im going to address dance style and sensuality now. I personally dont like the overly sensual dancing and wont follow some of the things the instructor does like wiggle her hips or body in a suggestive way. It just isnt me! This wasnt a problem in the first one because it felt more like I think it should be dance aerobics with some different dance styles and steps to learn. The second one I feel the focus shifted. There are definitely more sensual moves in the routines, though. probably due to the added dance types. So thats a big part of the reason why I didnt like the second one. If you dont mind that, then you might really like ZF2! 🙂

Heres a video I created demonstrating Zumba Fitness 2:

Final Thoughts: As I said above, the whole atmosphere of the first game is just more innocent fun, and I found the routines easier to follow than those in Zumba Fitness 2. There were a couple of things in the second game that I really didnt like, the worst being that I wasnt comfortable doing some of the moves, and that there was a longish intro to each dance routine that I didnt want to wait through. I decided to pass the second game on to a friend and stick with the first game myself. If you can possibly try this one for yourself before buying, I know it would be very helpful! If you cant, then watch my demo video above and get an idea of what youll be doing if you buy it.

That all explained, Zumba Fitness 1 is HIGHLY recommended by me go buy it now! 🙂 It is just so much fun exercising in this way it seriously doesnt feel like work at all. Its a nice break from focusing on trying to do certain exercises that will work out your problem areas, etc. Youre exercising everything in these dance routines. I literally wake up every morning and cant wait to do this! So if you have a Wii, Playstation 3, or Xbox 360, you must try this. 🙂

View the Zumba Fitness 1 Trailer here.

Have you played either of these games? I would love to know what you thought!