The core gameplay in Dance Central 2 is similar to the first one where players mimic characters along on-screen with flashcards there for guidance. The game has been largely revamped compared to its predecessors, including the ability to allow two players to dance side by side, adding voice commands, and enhancing the Break It Down feature. The Freestyle section, while still available, can also be disabled within the game. If done, additional moves will appear in the game as a replacement, creating one uninterrupted routine depending on the mode used. Songs from Dance Central 1 will always have the Freestyle section enabled, regardless of setting. Crew Challenge is the story mode implemented in the game. It involves the player earning the ability to rep crews throughout the area while underlyingly trying to defeat Dr. Tan from taking over the dancing population.
There are five modes available in Dance Central 2:
Perform It: Gives players a chance to show off their moves and skills while performing a dance routine. This mode can be played with one or two players and allows a person to swap in and out while the other is playing if desired. Both players do not have to play the same difficulty, but the difficulty must be set prior to the routine starting.
Dance Battle: A head-to-head mode between two players to see who is the best. Players go through a song, with two interloops mixed in. One of them focuses on one player doing the routine as the other player is temporarily disabled, and the other involves the players nailing moves from the routine to earn extra points. In that interloop, up to four moves can pop up at any time, and some are marked in gold, indicating more points. Likewise in Perform It, the players do not have to play on the same difficulty.
Break It Down: A training mode that allows the player to learn the routines in the game. The mode has been enhanced from the previous game, allowing the player to pick certain moves to focus on and record themselves dancing to moves to compare how well they are at acing them.
Crew Challenge: A campaign mode that gives a player a chance to reach for the top by impressing the game's in dance crews. Successfully dancing to each crew's challenge song, once unlocking it, gives the player the opportunity to represent them, and the more reps earned, the higher the notability will be.
Fitness: A workout mode that tracks calories, with an indicator of how many have been burned along with the amount of time spent in the mode towards the top when enabled. There are also pre-made playlists available, along with customizable ones that can be made outside the mode for use in Fitness. [1][2][3][4]
Most characters feature alternative outfits separate from the main outfits (known as their "Crew Look") to wear during gameplay. These alternative outfits are labeled as "Street Style", and are unlocked by earning 36 stars within the character's selection of songs from the crew they are a part of within Crew Challenge mode on any difficulty. Additionally, some characters have a third outfit labeled "DC Classic". These outfits are ones they wore in the previous game, and they are unlocked by putting in cheat codes for the game in the "Redeem Code" section.
The game features six venues (High Tide, Set Adrift, Tee Off, Lowdown, Penthaüs, and The Airship) for the player to dance in. All except one are available from the start. Venues can be changed before the player starts a routine.