For players looking for a challenge, the new Camera Controller mode in “Just Dance 2026 Edition” offers an opportunity to crank up the difficulty.
The latest version of “Just Dance” came out on October 14 for the PlayStation 5, Xbox and Nintendo Switch. Like past editions, “Just Dance 2026” allows players to dance along to a selection of popular songs from the past and present, using their smartphones — or Joy-Cons — as motion controllers. In the 2026 version, the game also includes a Camera Controller mode, giving players the option to use their smartphones’ cameras to capture and score their movements. This function has been available as a beta test for certain songs since 2023, but “Just Dance 2026” represents its official rollout.
I had a blast playing “Just Dance 2026,” and found that the Camera Controller mode worked well once I downloaded the official app to my iPhone. As seamless as the experience was, though, I found myself switching back to traditional motion controls after only a few songs. I’m not the best dancer — and normally, “Just Dance” helps me forget that fact. The Camera Controller mode in “Just Dance 2026” reminded me of my dancing deficiencies, for better or worse.
My issue was directly related to the Camera Controller mode’s increased ability to capture my movements. “Just Dance’s” typical motion controller mode simply tracks the movements of the player’s right hand — allowing me and presumably millions of other players to ignore details like footwork and hip movements almost entirely. Camera Controllers take in the entire body, invalidating my typical “Just Dance” strategy of focusing on my right hand above all else.
“We always joke that some people play ‘Just Dance’ by sitting on their couch and mimicking the movements with their right hand. All of a sudden, you have to really get up and do it fully to get the points,” said Ubisoft score level designer Leo Gammel in an interview with GamesBeat. “So, it is different in that sense — but we’ve worked to make it a similar difficulty to the controller. We didn’t want the camera to be more difficult, or easier, than the controller.”
Personally, my scores did get worse when using the Camera Controller mode — but I’m willing to chalk that up more to my own lack of dancing ability rather than blaming the game. Camera controls are additive to the overall gameplay experience of “Just Dance,” creating a more challenging option for skilled dancers looking to put their abilities to the test. The official rollout of “Just Dance 2026’s” Camera Controller mode fills a void that has been present since the 2023 edition of the game dropped its support for the Kinect, PlayStation Camera and PlayStation Move — which Gammel said was “hugely popular” in previous editions of the series.
“We’ve had really positive feedback from the community on the feature, which is very encouraging, because people really missed the feature since we had lost the Kinect — so they were happy to see it back in the game,” Gammel said.
Exposure of my subpar dancing aside, “Just Dance 2026” was a good time, with a fun mix of songs — including my old favorite, LilDeuceDeuce’s “Beep Beep I’m a Sheep” — and a running calorie counter that made me feel slightly better about pairing the game with a bottle of wine. For most casual players like myself, the new Camera Controller mode is a cool diversion, but unlikely to replace the primary motion controller functionality. But for players who have been hankering for more in-depth camera controls since the deprecation of the Kinect, Camera Controller mode is a worthy and welcome addition to the “Just Dance” experience.
Disclosure: Ubisoft provided this reporter with a console and a copy of “Just Dance 2026 Edition” ahead of the publication of this review.