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THE COMPLETE UNOFFICIAL DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION SERIES FAQ
Version 0.573
Written by GurtyGurt/GG@RTF (gurtygurt@dancegames.com)
Last Updated: 20 November 2001
I am a member of the DDR Team 'Ranking Task Force' (http://rtf.genxer.net)
I am also a member of the 'Bemani Order of Madness' (http://gurt.50g.com)
This FAQ covers the following DDR games extensively:
Dance Dance Revolution (PSX, Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 2nd MIX (DC, Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 2nd ReMIX (PSX)
Dance Dance Revolution 2nd MIX Link Version (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX (PSX, Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX Korea ver.1 (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX Korea ver.2 (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX Plus (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution Solo Bass MIX (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution Solo 2000 (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX (PSX)
Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX Plus (Arcade)
NEW! Dance Dance Revolution 5th MIX (Arcade)
NEW! Dance Dance Revolution 5th MIX (PSX)
NEW! Dance Dance Revolution: DDRMAX (Arcade)
Dance Dance Revolution GB (Game Boy Color)
Dance Dance Revolution GB2 (Game Boy Color)
Dance Dance Revolution GB3 (Game Boy Color)
Dance Dance Revolution Best Hits (PSX)
Dance Dance Revolution Extra MIX (PSX)
Dancing Stage (Arcade, PAL markets release)
Contents:
_____________________________________________________________________________
0.0 Introduction
0.1 FAQ History
0.2 Announcements and Notices
1.0 Basic Info
1.1 Frequently Asked Questions
2.0 Arcade Operation
2.1 Using your Memory Card on 3rd MIX Arcade
2.2 Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX Korea ver.
2.3 Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX
2.35 Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX Operator Settings
2.4 Dance Dance Revolution 5th MIX
2.5 DDRMAX
3.0 Console Operation (PSX, DC and GBC)
3.1 Dance Dance Revolution
3.2 Dance Dance Revolution 2nd ReMIX and 2nd MIX
3.3 Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX
3.4 Dance Dance Revolution GB
3.5 Dance Dance Revolution GB2
3.6 Dance Dance Revolution GB3
3.7 Dance Dance Revolution Best Hits
3.8 Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX
3.9 Dance Dance Revolution Extra MIX
3.10 Dance Dance Revoltuion 5th MIX
3.11 Extracting Stuff From DDR CD's
3.12 Pocketstation guide
3.12.1 DDR 4th MIX NS Order Editor
4.0 Physics, Ergonomics and General DDR Advice
4.1 DDR Illness Guide
4.2 DDR Mat Review
4.3 Physical vs. Mental
5.0 Step/Scoring Guide
5.1 DDR, Dancing Stage and 2nd MIX songs
5.2 3rd (Re)MIX Songs
5.3 4th MIX Songs
5.4 5th MIX Songs
5.5 DC Edit Data and PSX 3rd MIX Konami Edit Data
(including 3rd and 4th MIXes on Arcade)
5.6 Techniques Glossary
5.6.1 Play Styles
6.0 Competition Guide
6.1 Performance Play
6.2 Perfect Attack
7.0 Myths, Legends and Trivia (as well as questions)
7.1 Different Group Name, Same Artist?
8.0 Codes and Cheats
9.0 Outroduction
9.1 About the Author
9.2 Links
9.3 Credits
9.4 Disclaimer
9.5 Future Versions
9.6 Requests
_____________________________________________________________________________
0 . 0 I n t r o d u c t i o n
_______________________________
Welcome to my Dance Dance Revolution FAQ! This FAQ covered the entire DDR
series of games. I started this FAQ quite simply because it's my favourite
game of all time! I usually play games for 2 weeks tops. Gran Turismo 2
lasted for 1 week. Zelda 64 lasted for 6 days. DDR games, especially 2nd
ReMIX, has lasted 8 months and counting! (My old favourite game was the old
Commodore 64 game, Monty on the Run, in case you wondered.) There's a few
DDR FAQs around, and most contain gameplay/menu information. Some contain
some stepping information. I think one contained a few performance hints.
While getting good at DDR is something best done by yourself in my opinion
(I had no such FAQs to turn to!) this FAQ will point you in the right
direction. For more information on this, see section 4.0.
This FAQ is based on the contents of my old DDR page at www.emutech.net/ddr/.
I've left it up for historical purposes, but I'm working on a new page, which
for better be...better! Or else!
This FAQ is based equally on the arcade, PSX, GBC and DC versions of DDR.
If you have something to contribute, don't hesitate to email me! This
includes DDR sites. If you email me edit data, I'll post it on my own
site if you so wish.
I might restart my DDR site from scratch soon, based on this FAQ...
0.1 FAQ History
---------------
v0.1 > The first version. (31 May 2000)
> Began the FAQ cos' I lost my NeoGeo Pocket Color while playing DDR
and thus was unable to finish my Sonic Pocket Adventure FAQ. Isn't
that ironic?
> Since the PSX version of 3rd MIX comes out tomorrow, I expect
there will be a small update within a fortnight.
v0.2 > Released 19 June 2000.
> Added further 3rd MIX arcade details after the arcade machine tried
to eat my memory card.
> Extended section 3.0 and of course, added 3rd MIX PSX info.
> Performance section introduction extended and new performance trick
added!
> Double mode tips added to 3rd MIX score info. Step/Score Guide
extended.
> Confirmation of the 'hackers version' of DDR in Myths/Legends.
> 3rd MIX GameShark codes added.
> I musta added a lot, because this version contained just under 2000
lines compared to just over 1200 or something for the last version!
Sheesh! (1976 lines)
v0.3 > Released 29 June 2000.
> Added ratings system for each difficulty level of song!
> Brief guide to announcer's sayings added in part 3.3 to help players
indicate where their health is if they aren't looking at the screen.
> Added hints on Official Edit Data!
> Begun techniques glossary!
> Added DDR Illness Guide!
> This version 3220 lines long and 185kb! Sheesh again! If I type
another 100 letters it'll be 186kb long! Oops! Now it is, isn't it?
Damn! And it's 3222 lines long now!
v0.4 > Happy New Year! Released 01 January, 2001!
> Added more song info!
> Added info on DDR GB, DDR GB2, DDR 3rd Mix Korea ver., and DDR Best
Hits.
> Expanded on DDR Illness Guide! Note 'Giddiness' and similar illnesses
can be avoided now no matter how long you play!
> Added mat reviews!
> Added some info on DDR Best Hits (esp. the PAL Speedfix code!)
> This version isn't really finished, but it's been so long since the
last update that I really should release it as is. Nonetheless,
I found a Korean DDR 3rd Mix machine (ie has all the extra songs),
so I'll give guides to the Korean version as best I can...keep
in mind that most of the new song titles are in Korean :) (NB: Not
all the band names are, though - so if in doubt...they will be listed
under the band name)
> A side note: Part of the reason why this FAQ hasn't been updated in
6 months is because I was in hospital for a while with a collapsed
lung. Doctors said it was spontaneous, as I don't smoke or anything,
but I have to wonder...marathon runners get collapsed organs a lot;
is it possible DDR caused my collapsed lung? A scary thought... (no,
it isn't a serious problem and the only permanent effect it has is
I can never go scuba diving. Boo hoo. :P)
v0.43 > Released 04 February 2001.
> Called version 0.43 for no apparent reason. I just like the sound of
it!
> In for a penny, in for a pound: Upon failing to find some DVD's I
wanted, I brushed past the ol' 3rd MIX hangout in hope of their
Daytona USA/Daytona USA 2 machines being vacant. Lo and behold, I
found DDR 4th MIX! And nobody was using it!
> Thus added info on 4th MIX and 4th MIX song guides.
> Added one technique for Gradiusic Cyber ~AMD G5 MIX~ which makes it
incredibly easier! (NB: in my opinion :P)
> And myths/legends/etc on 4th MIX.
> Added small descriptions of each different mix with the song guides.
> 90% of emails I get are asking for help with getting 3rd MIX started.
In section 8.0 I've clearly marked out some basic help for it.
> Added section 4.3.
> Added section 7.1.
> Added section 9.6.
> Totally rewrote the Author Profile thingy at the bottom end of the
FAQ that nobody reads anyway (I know because nobody submitted what
I requested in the 'in the next version part', and lord knows every
man and his dog would have if they saw it :P)
> This FAQ is exactly 5000 lines long now. Woohoo :P
(yes, I deliberately rounded it off cos' it was only 2 lines short)
v0.47 > Released 1 April, 2001. No April Fools jokes (honest!)
> Added even more and more 4th MIX song info!
> Consequently added 4th MIX PSX info!
> And DDR GB3 info!
> Great new DDR 3rd MIX PSX GameShark codes! Play the game at 75-150%
speed! And the music slows down/speeds up too!
> And don't forget the DDR 4th MIX PSX PAL Sync Code! Essential for PAL
users! Verified to be 100% correct cos' I got an AA on 1,2,3,4, 007
with it!
> Extremely detailed Operator/Settings info for 4th MIX Arcade! Great
for people who happen to own or have unrestricted access to a
machine's operator box and don't know what anything does!
> Oops. Forgot to list the 4th MIX arcade info in the index!
> Important update to DDR 4th MIX Internet Ranking.
> Added section 1.1.
> No more emails about getting DDR 3rd MIX started, but I added
a genuine FAQs section to the FAQ - section 1.1. Many of my emails
now are about unlock codes or PAL sync codes for DDR Disney's Rave.
It suprises me people actually bought this game in such vast
quantities!
> "GurtyGurt has equipped the Boots of Sluggishness." - put on big
loose-fitting sheepskin boots to find hidden techniques for harder
songs, and to find how easier songs might be hard for novice and
intermediate level players once again. The boots dull your reactions
so you require technique, namely not using the same foot twice in
a row for different steps...suprisingly, it worked. Not only did my
stamina rise massively, but my technique increased too! I recommend
you try it!
> Added 'recommendations' to song info, one list of recommendations for
each mix. Sorted into categories for every type of DDR player.
> Added detailed information on 'recommendations' to the very start of
section 5.0, including how to distinguish each type of DDR player.
See which one you fit in best!
> Added the most important DDR guideline of all to section 4.3 -
not being afraid to face new challenges, even if it means losing
a credit or two.
> This FAQ is getting a bit too big (it's over 360kb now). I don't
know if it IS too big yet, but in the future I may divide this into
two parts. Over 5000 lines long. Over 50,000 words long too,
apparently. I type too much!
> Joined a DDR team (see links). This will allow me to expand on info
a lot more.
> I got DDR: Disney's Rave but I haven't been able to find a PAL speed
sync fix code thing. I could slow down the music, but it'd require
a multitude of codes as it seems to switch between them a lot, and
it wouldn't really be fixing the problem, it's just be altering the
problem, wouldn't it? Don't expect a sync code...
> Added a few links & credits!
> Released in a bit of a hurry and is still messy. I couldn't delay it
any longer - I've been withholding this for a week now.
v0.5 > Released 1 May, 2001.
> An excellent method of checking the condition of the sensors in your
local arcade's DDR platform has been suggested by Andrew Campbell!
See the 'actual' Frequently Asked Questions section a few pages down.
> Much more detailed and much more accurate medical bits, thanks to
Vince Yim!
> 4th MIX PSX Bugs reported. Many thanks to H.Edward from Ranking Task
Force (the DDR team I'm in, plug plug :P) for the information on
these undocumented 'features'! All this information originally comes
from Konami's Message Board, but it's in Japanese, of course...
> Excellent contributions and feedback on 4th MIX Arcade technical
info from Dvae Van Horn!
> Section 8.0 and 8.1 condensed into one section, and made nice 'n'
neat. Some never used 2nd ReMIX code info removed to save space...
> Renamed section 1.0.
> Added section 0.2 for important notices and DDR news...it's sorted
by reigon (World, North America, Europe, Oceania). Hope this helps!
This info will be erased once it is obsolete. Info will not be
repeated.
> This is just so everyone notices: I have changed the trivia bit about
the 'swastika' X on Orion.78 AMeuro MIX (and Hero KCP Happy Grendale
MIX) because I was half asleep when I typed it up and forgot that I
knew all about backwards swastikas and stuff. I received umpteen
corrective emails about this, so I learnt my lesson...thanks to
everyone who snapped me out of it! :)
v0.5a > Released 2 May, 2001.
> Urgent news update. A few other things have been added and corrected
too to make it worthwhile re-uploading everywhere...
> One or two things I may have forgotten in the rush to release this
version: Giving credit where credit is due. If you gave me some info
and I forgot to mention your name, and you believe it should be
mentioned, email me...I've been awfully busy lately with RTF team
affairs and the launching of DanceGames.com, and I've had very little
time or motivation to write the FAQ. Email replies have been first
priority!
v0.51 > Released 31 May, 2001. First anniversary issue!
> H.Edward of Ranking Task Force informed me shortly before his trip to
Melbourne that Konami actually require a fee for the password to
unlock hidden songs. Not that any of the Southern Californian or
Japanese sites with the code mention that. But Konami's site don't
mention the code - he must be right. Oops. My bad. Sorry Konami! It's
gone now...
> Dans Dans Revolution from Melbourne pointed out to me that not all
DDR machines have the degaussing feature. I know they're on 3rd MIX
machines, but I'm not sure about 3rd MIX Korean or Dancing Stage ones
so remember that before you harass attendants to degauss it!
> Quite large step update for 4th MIX and Solo 2000/Extra MIX songs!
Nice to know since Extra MIX is coming soon!
> Results of RTF competition displayed now!
> Umpteen minor fixes on the step guides and tech info.
v0.53 > Released 23 June 2001.
> Webpage up the top changed. The site it points to now UPDATES! My
god! Shock! Horror! Go there if you want some really nasty Edit Data
or something! And please, submit your own edit data! The old URL will
no longer work as the domain expired (well it hasn't but it's gone
anyway and nobody knows where, but it's due to expire anyway soon).
> On the webpage up the top, perhaps the first DDR comic ever is
available... "The Adventures of Microphone Eating Guy and Clapping
Man", who feature in the background of some 4th MIX songs (eg Dream
a Dream). Absolutely zany antics, but I must warn this isn't a kids
comic or an adults comic...it's more of a DDR/Konami fan comic...
I would not recommend it for children, though! Sorry! Episode 2
should be coming in a few days...
> Arcade Operator Settings/Memory Card Options updated with more
specific details, as a lot of people don't know this extremely useful
feature exists! As our arcade is still waiting for 5th MIX (customs
detain our stuff a lot, apparently) it is unclear if it's on that
or not yet...
> Extra MIX info redone, now the game is out.
> Solo 2000 songs added a bit again, as well as a few 4th Plus and
due to Extra MIX, some 5th MIX songs as well.
> A lot added to the 'real' Frequently Asked Questions (section 1.2)
> FINALLY updated the Official Edit Data step guide section!
v0.573> Released 20 November, 2001. I have a twisted sense of humor.
> NOTE: My email address changed from .net to .com. The difference is,
it's not Yahoo! Mail anymore. This changed because of yahoo
frequently coming up with 'this page has not responded' when I reply
meaning I don't know if the email got through or not (it appears to
go through but I don't know). This affected emails after October 28
and in early-mid September mostly. Please redirect all traffic to
the .com address! Also note now you should specify you're talking
about DDR as I write FAQs for other Bemani games now.
> Release synchronized with the first releases of my Drummania and
Guitar Freaks FAQs.
> Come visit our new DDR and Bemani team, the Bemani Order of Madness!
See the link at the top of this FAQ!
> Added important PAL sync code info. Thanks to Anthony Cheng for the
email...
> Plenty more 5th MIX info as our machine arrived now!
> Make A Jam! info added to...
> Oops! I took so long releasing this, thanks to umpteen PS2 delays for
my other 2 new FAQs, that the planned simultaneous release got put
back almost two months! My bad!
> Consequently, a lot of 5th MIX PSX info is in this FAQ too.
> Added to censored names list, new total is 98!
> Added one more bit to 3rd MIX PSX info about the intro movie (same
movie as in the arcade, of course).
> Just so everyone stops emailing me about it, the .59 info has been
updated. Make it stop! Pleeeeeeease!
0.2 Announcements and Notices
-----------------------------
World
* DDRMAX, the latest incarnation of DDR, has been released. It is to DDR
what Beatmania IIdx was to Beatmania - a well timed revamp. See in the
FAQ for details...
North America
* DDR Disney's Rave was to be released on the September 18th. Thank you to
Daihaikusei(@)aol.com for the info! I think it was released, but I'm not
sure. Please don't email me to tell me or I'll get 50 billion emails
again! I'll ask someone soon!
Europe
* Dancing Stage: Disney's Rave was released in Europe and consequently can
now be found across the PAL market...or so I'm told. I avoid local games
shops so I don't know 100%.
Oceania/Australasia
* No competitions for the time being.
* For especially crazy DDRers in my neck of the woods, I'm pleased to
announce a new Bemani team has started - the Bemani Order of Madness. If
you're a crazy wierdo who likes to do edit data with all down steps,
endless spins or you like to do stupid moves when freestyling on purpose,
or you simply just mock DDR as much as you enjoy it with fake lyrics or
whatnot - feel free to check out our page at http://gurt.50g.com ! It
launched today (20 November) also, in fact. At the time of release we have
4 members and expecting 2 more very soon! Watch us step! We're sober!
(don't ask what that means, I don't know!)
1 . 0 B a s i c I n f o
___________________________
Dance Dance Revolution is a Dancing simulation, sort of. Unlike Bust-a-Groove
or even the old 8-bit breakdancing games of the early-mid 80s, Dance Dance
Revolution requires you to play with your feet. A 1 minute long series of
arrows scrolls up the screen in time with some music. The arrows point in
the 4 principle directions - up, down, left, right. When these arrows get
near to the top they go under some greyed out arrows - this is the moment
you step on the corresponding arrow button on the pad below you. Depending
on your timing, you can score 'Perfect!', 'Great!', 'Good!', 'Boo!' and
'Miss!'. You can score combos by getting 'Perfect!' and 'Great!' steps in
succession - getting one of the others breaks this combo. An energy bar is
located up the top of the screen. Getting 'Perfect!' or 'Great!' increases
this, getting 'Boo!' or 'Miss!' decreases it. If it empties, you lose. At
the end you are given a rating based on your stepping accuracy. An E is
a fail. D is almost a fail. C is an average score. B is a good score. A
means you made one or two mistakes and got a lot of great steps, or made
several mistakes but generally got perfects. S means you missed one or two
steps. SS means you got all perfect/great steps. This scoring system changes
slightly in 3rd MIX - SS and S both mean you got all greats and perfects,
however if you got mostly perfects you get an SS as opposed to an S for
too many great steps. An A means you missed one or more steps. If you pass
the song, you get to choose another. You ultimately get between 3 and 5
songs (depending on what the settings are, and that's if you aren't playing
two player on one credit).
As you progress, the game's difficulty level will automatically become
tougher - by the last stage, missing a step will penalize you severely. If
you play in two player mode, only one player is required to pass the chosen
stage for both of you to progress. If one player loses all his or her energy,
but then gets a combo of around 40 or more, they will gradually start to
receive energy back (but will most likely get a D or E overall). This means
that if one player fails, but revives then the other one fails, you still
continue playing. Each song is graded on the difficulty of the steps with
a rating system which indicates the difficulty by footprint symbols. Songs
are ranked between 1 foot 'Simple' songs and 8 foot 'Exhorbitant' songs (in
3rd MIX, there are also 9 foot 'Catastrophic' songs and in 2nd MIX link
ver. or on consoles, there are 'Step battle' songs given no rank. In these,
each player creates their own step sequence of about 8 steps, then repeats
it, then the first and second player's created sequences swap over and
each player has to do the other player's sequence twice). The pace of the
steps and the speed of the song can not be configured.
1.2 Frequently Asked Questions
------------------------------
Q. Do you know the lyrics to (insert song title here)?
A. I might, but I suggest you check another FAQ for these. They are not
included here because they're a waste of space, the FAQ is big enough as
it is, and more often than not the lyrics freely available on the internet
are horribly inaccurate (especially in the case of Jam Jam Reggae and
Strictly Business!). This really irritates me for some reason. So I won't
include any.
Q. The Gameshark code to make DDR 3rd MIX work doesn't work! What's wrong?
A. Two possibilities: One is that you're putting the code in as the master
code - that won't work. The second is that you may need to put the code
C1000000 0000 at the top of that code.
Q. The Disc Swap mode doesn't work for me on any MIX! Why not?
A. Disc Swapping does not work with an external modchip/gameshark device -
you need a real modchip.
Q. Why did Konami release the arcade style platforms only in limited
quantities instead of mass producing them for cheaper?
A. Note this answer isn't a fact, but it's a theory: The platforms are in
actual fact the lighter Solo Bass platforms (apparently), and they may
have had a few thousand spare machines. So where did the actual cabinets
go to? Probably they were made into Para Para Paradise cabinets, which
use the exact same design. DDR 4th MIX Solo machines may have been made
seperately or only to order.
Q1.The DDR platform at my local arcade seems a little dead and sometimes I
could swear I got the step, but the game says I didn't! How can I fix
this?
Q2.The DDR platform at my local arcade has a mind of its own! Sometimes it
gets steps on its own, and sometimes when I push the (insert direction
here) arrow, nothing happens at all.
A. Both of these questions are regarding similar problems: As you might
expect, DDR platforms aren't invincible. Each floor panel has 4 sensors,
one for each side. If one of these starts to wear out, it'll start saying
it's being pressed when it actually isn't. This is the case in problem #2.
If the button is already held down (or rather, the machine thinks it is),
that means if you press the panel, it won't register the step. Meaning
you'll miss. Usually a hard stomp will temporarily fix this.
Problem #1 is similar: Some arcade operators will remove permanently
crippled sensors altogether. There is an easy way to check for this, as
suggested by Andrew Campbell: Simply with your hand, finger, foot, or
whatever, lightly press on all 4 sides of each panel. If one side has no
reinforcements, the sensor has been removed. This means if you step on
this side while playing, nothing happens! Of course, it's usually the
lower side which breaks first since it gets the most friction on it. If
this is the case, there's little you can do but play on Player 2's side or
play on another machine.
NOTE: DDR Solo tier machines (Solo Bass Mix, Solo 2000, Solo 4th) have
two sensors per panel, not four...because of this, they feel springier
and register some steps differently.
Q. The PSX DDR 4th MIX unlock code doesn't work! I've tried everything you
suggested.
A. Sorry, but that's just a small problem which hasn't been solved yet...
for some people it just won't work like it's supposed to. As I don't have
this problem I can't fix it. I suggest you try the following:
* Try it on a friend's PSX using your cheat cart
* Try it on your PSX using a friends cheat cart
* Buy another cheap cheat cart from somewhere
* If your PSX skips regularly, that's probably the problem, not the code
Ultimately, the game is so buggy and the bugs seem to appear randomly in
different copies, so it's quite possible that it's related to that.
Unfortunately I cannot fix this if none of the above ideas work. Sorry!
Q. My First MIX/2nd ReMIX edit data won't work in the arcade! Why not?
A. The original PSX version of DDR and DDR 2nd ReMIX used a type of edit data
called 'TYPE1'. All future versions INCLUDING 3rd MIX arcade and onwards
use 'TYPE2'. To convert the data to 'TYPE2', load it up in DDR 2nd ReMIX,
then re-save it as 'TYPE2'. 2nd ReMIX can save it as either, so always
save as 'TYPE2'!
Q. How do you get Emi to have no hat?
A. It's a 25% random occurance. I've managed to get over 20 consecutive
normal Emi's without getting hatless ones, though. For 4th MIX, you can
use my GameShark code (see waay down the bottom of the FAQ), but it won't
work on Extra MIX and I don't plan to convert it. It took hours to make as
it is!
Q. Petit Love doesn't appear to be in Extra MIX. Where did it go?
A. Nobody knows, but the old rumor of Smile(.dk) not wanting their songs in
DDR anymore resurfaced about the time of release. These last surfaced when
3rd MIX came out in arcades, so they're probably no more true now than
they were then...you got Dancing All Alone in 4th MIX, so consider it a
trade-off.
One thing though: Konami didn't properly remove Petit Love from the game.
A CD carousel image of it still exists on the DDR Extra MIX CD. If you
dump the VRAM on the song select screen in all music mode, you will notice
there are 51 CD's, not 50! It's probably not unlockable as Konami often
leave useless supposedly removed graphic data in DDR's. In 4th MIX, the
data bank was hidden in the VRAM. in 3rd, it was the 3 removed songs.
It's highly unlikely that the audio and steps remain in the game.
(this also explains why it isn't in 5th MIX! Don't say I didn't tell you
last time!)
Q. Will the Korean songs ever be in a home DDR game?
A. No. The PSX versions are domestic Japanese releases, the arcade ones are
domesticated in Japan, Korea and other places. Why would Konami include
songs from Korea if it's not going to be sold there? They were only
included to fight back against Pump It Up, anyway. Now Konami's lawsuit
against the Andamiro corp. was successful, they're totally useless. Sorry,
I'd like to have played them at home too, but they just have no reason to,
being a corporation and all.
Q. Will third party memory cards work on DDR?
A. Yes, both on PSX and Arcade. As long as they are not bad quality, they
will function great. Since Sony manufacture their memory cards rather
poorly nowadays, it is seriously worth considering the cheaper alternative
if there is one. Both my PSone style memory cards screwed up in less than
a week. I'm still using two memory cards I got for $15 (about US$8) and
I've never had a problem with them (they're by Joytech, if you want to
know). I personally recommend not having two memory cards that look the
same or you do tend to mix them up.
Q. Is 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You (70's Mix) in DDR 3rd MIX?
A. No. Often sites list this song in the 3rd MIX lineup for some reason,
and I've even seen the MP3 around so it must be widespread. My only answer
to how this occured is that someone mistook Bu Dam (from DDR 3rd Mix Korea
ver.1 and onwards) for this song, as the two sound similar (ish) OR that
it was removed from Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX at the last minute. As
CTMYOY (70's Mix) is on a DanceMania CD - one of the ones used for 3rd MIX
nonetheless - it's highly possible that it was in DDR at one point. But
then again, who knows?
Q. Will there be more song unlock codes for 5th MIX?
No. The secret songs have been known since the game came out in Japan,
thanks to hackers. Some people even hacked out the steps and made step
charts for the songs, without knowing what song they went with.
Unfortunately when I first learnt of the secret songs well before anyone
else I know or any website be it in Australia or SoCal, no other songs
were mentioned. For your information, my source was/is www.nissie.com.
Q. Is there an English version of Dive?
A. Yes - in Beatmania IIdx 6th Style, there is a song named Dive ~Into Your
Heart~ sung by Paula Terry - however, it's rather lame in comparison to
the Japanese version. Lyrics and even the music itself have changed
dramatically, resulting in it feeling rather 'tacked on' (ie, like it
wasn't supposed to be that way - even though it was composed before it
was written). Could have been better, but Paula Terry's voice is barely
audible in it!
Q. Are there any songs from any other Bemani games in DDR?
A. Yes. 20 November, The 4 hidden songs in 3rd MIX, all the hidden songs in
4th MIX and all the hidden songs in 5th MIX are from Beatmania IIdx.
Broken My Heart and Afronova Primeval both were in DanceManiaX (I'm pretty
sure Broken My Heart was in Beatmania IIdx first, but Konami says DMX, so
I won't argue...). Luv This Feelin' was in Guitar Freaks, but was
different to the DDR version and it was in DDR first. Finally, Hypnotic
Crisis is a remix of Hypnotica (also from Guitar Freaks).
2 . 0 A r c a d e O p e r a t i o n
_______________________________________
The arcade machines feature 4 arrows to step on per side, 2 selection buttons
per side, and a start button as standard. This type of setup is featured in
the US, Europe and World versions of DDR (such as Dancing Stage, the Europe/
World version). Some of the Japanese cabinets also feature memory card slots
(such as 3rd MIX) - you can insert PSX memory cards in here and save your
data. Also, DDR Solo and DDR Solo 2000 feature a single platform to dance on
and have 6 arrows instead of 4 - they feature 2 upward diagonal arrows. The
basic operation is as follows: You insert your coin. Use the selection buttons
to input any codes desired (more on those later). Press the start button.
On Japanese versions of the game, select a game mode using the selection
buttons and the start button. Then, on all versions, select your song using
the selection buttons and the start button. Codes must be entered using
the arrows if you wish to use them. On most DDR machines in the US, Europe
and Australasia, you get 3-5 songs per game (this is preset by the operator),
and the game will not end instantly if your energy bar is fully depleted.
On most Japanese versions of the game, you -do- end the game instantly upon
losing all your energy unless if someone else is playing. The game costs
the same to play as most sit-down or special cabinet games (Sega Rally 2
and so forth).
2.1 Using Your Memory Card on 3rd MIX Arcade
--------------------------------------------
If you have access to a 3rd MIX machine and you own 2nd ReMIX, you will
want to bring your memory card with you when you play it. You can save
your scores to it, for one. Also, using 2nd ReMIX, you can create Nonstop
mode data for 3rd MIX in the Non-Stop Order menu on 2nd ReMIX. (see the
GameShark code section for some extra info on this!) Also, if you save edit
data in _2nd ReMIX format_, you can use that on the arcade version if you
play in 2nd MIX mode. Holding down Start when you select a song on 2nd MIX
will show special edit data stored in the machine - these steps are also
hidden in the Dreamcast version. Well, most of 'em. They begin with 'PF-'
and the description is something like 'House Edit Data'. No new data is
shown on 3rd MIX songs with the exclusion of Let Them Move, Keep on Movin'
and 20, November, which allow you to do the steps from their 2nd ReMIX
equivilants. Also, if you have paint data, it finally has a use -
press both selection buttons and start, and hold them down when the
game loads from the memory card. You can press the selection button/s in
the game to change the arrows to the ones you set if you do this. The
memory card has no further use. When inserting the card, watch the bottom
left corner - it should say 'INSERTED' then 'READY' in white text if the
slot works and the memory card is not corrupt. It will also indicate if you
have removed it. Do not remove then insert the memory card too soon or the
game will not register it. After you have saved the data to the card
(it will say in english 'Now SAVING to Memory Card' down the bottom, I
believe), another screen entirely in Japanese comes up - this is just
reminding you to remove the card before you leave the game. Oh, one last
thing - DDR 3rd MIX does NOT save your Nonstop mode records. Bummer. At
least it saves 2nd and 3rd MIX data, as well as SSR...also note, do not
insert your memory card during the game or even the music select screens.
This will freeze the game...at least until you remove the card. (perhaps
it is reading from the card when it freezes?) If you see 'MEMORY CARD ERROR'
appearing in white text in the corner where memory card info is displayed,
remove the card. Do NOT reinsert it for the duration of the _current_ game.
Trying to do this will result in the word 'DANGER!' appearing in red text
in the bottom corner. Although this may not do permanent damage, it's not
a good sight.
Any edit data made for The Race or In The Navy '99 with 2nd ReMIX
will work in the 3rd MIX mode of the 3rd MIX arcade machine. Finally,
3rd MIX on PSX has almost no features to use with the arcade version. You
cannot view your arcade records on the PSX 3rd MIX. You CAN edit Nonstop
data. You CAN make new steps for 3rd MIX and some 2nd MIX songs. You CAN use
the paint feature. But that's all...
2.2 Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX Korea ver.
---------------------------------------------
The Korean version differs from the regular Japanese version in the
following ways:
* It says "Korea ver.' on the title screen.
* Charmy has allumiunium tights, presumably cos' her panties were visible
in the Japanese version (and aren't now).
* Many Korean songs added, most of which were in the Pump It Up series.
(many people in Korea think DDR isn't as good because it doesn't have
modern hit songs in it, only old stuff like That's The Way (I Like It).
Obviously the people who think that haven't played it recently!) The
Korean songs are situated between the special song you get based on
your character, and Upside Down.
* It's worth noting that there are more Korean songs in this than in
3rd MIX Plus or 4th MIX - many more! (they're roughly on par with
2nd MIX song difficulties, but they don't get anywhere near as hard)
* The writing on the cabinet is in Korean, not Japanese.
* The warning screen is in English (albeit poor English).
* Step Step Revolution mode seems harder to access, although the code
is the same (it seems to need you to push it faster)
* Xanadu was removed from the game as the artists (The Olivia Project)
were not happy with the mix (or so I heard). It Only Takes a Minute
~Extended Remix~ and Follow The Sun ~90 In The Shade Mix~ are still
in the game. Also, Get Up and Dance, and Get Up were removed. There's
probably more I haven't noticed.
* Nonstop mode was changed a little bit.
* The memory card slot is gone (is this only on some cabinets? Or did
some arcades just upgrade 2nd MIX?), but the software hasn't been
reprogrammed accordingly and trying to access edit data reports
a 'no memory card found' type error. Was this removed due to the
Korean songs being there, or since DDR on PSX isn't sold in Korea?
* Two versions of the Korean DDR appear to exist. The most common version
these days is caled 'Korea ver.2', although many places in the past got
ver.1 as a cheap alternative to the Japanese DDR 3rd MIX. The only
difference in the two is ver.2 is full of Korean songs as well (some of
which made it into 3rd MIX Plus, 4th MIX and 4th MIX Plus, obviously).
Thanks to Inuki for reminding me of this...I had long since forgotten
ramblings of SoCal players a year ago...hehe...
2.3 Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX
----------------------------------
The latest arcade version (4th MIX Plus has been announced, so this'll
sound really stupid in a few months time because I -will- forge to change
that line, you watch!) has quite a different interface. Here's some of
the changes:
* ALL menus appear to now run in high resolution (like the 3rd MIX PSX
menus). This provides an interesting effect. The in-game resolution remains
unchanged, although on It Only Takes A Minute (Remix) I noticed the
background shrunk to then 1/8 of the normal size...which suggests that
it is high resolution, as it didn't become pixelated.
* Two versions exist: The most common is the regular DDR 3rd MIX style
cabinet (4 arrows, 2 players), but a 'solo' style cabinet also exists
(ie 6 buttons, 1 player unless linked). The 6 button one may be linkable
with other 6 button machines (I haven't seen one, but if so, I assume this
would be done via your usual 10base2 cable or ethernet cable or whatnot).
If this feature is in the game, netplay might also be available for
tournaments (a feature becoming common in games: A T1 connection is usually
required).
* Single, Double and Versus can be selected from the same menu which asks
you if you'd like link play. This is good because you're far less likely
to end up playing Versus mode by yourself instead of Double! (I did find
that I didn't have enough time to put in more tokens for double mode once)
But it's still possible, though. I've done it already. :)
* SSR is called Maniac again. Song difficulty is selected after the song,
a lot like how you could hold in the button to choose memory card data
before. Another is also named Trick, like in the World versions of DDR 1.5
and the Korean version of 3rd MIX. All former SSR songs are now called
Maniac.
* Holding down the button as mentioned above still chooses memory card data.
Choosing PF-BITCH is quite nasty because it prints the data title in
MASSIVE letters now.
* Most obviously, the songs are catorgorized now into groups of 30 or so.
No 'All Music' mode appears to exist, but may in 4th MIX Plus.
* 136 songs total. (source: my memory card with nonstop data on it)
* Less obviously, the catergory determines who the dancing 'model' is. Two
new types of Konsento seem to exist, both for Konami Original songs...
but one has a deceiving name, like 'Robo2000' or something. Devil Zukin is
still in this, but there's also a 'Maid Zukin'. Cute :P (NB: The Konsento
for Konami Original Side B (or whatever the course is called) is actually
'Konsento 3'.)
* A personal favourite: The trippy background effects are a LOT trippier.
Trip Machine Climax made me nauseous. Seriously! (so did Paranoia :P)
* Banners for Korean songs are in English, however the backgrounds themselves
remain unchanged. Some still are in Korean, actually...but most aren't.
* Xanadu is back in the game, as are It Only Takes A Minute ~Extended Remix~
and Follow The Sun ~90 In The Shade Mix~, and anything else removed for the
Korean version, but Strictly Business is gone forever :( (I liked that
song! Good for performance play!)
* Another song has been removed too: So Many Men by Me & My. Big whoop. :P
* The announcer voices are almost identical to 3rd MIX, however some phrases
are re-recorded and it features a few 'new' ones, some definately stolen
from the DDR 3rd Mix Nonstop Megamix CD. ("You're a dancing hero!") Also
note that there are now phrases even lamer than "Your dance was so great!
It's like sunshine on a cloudy day!" - there's one that is REALLY bad...
"I can see a dream in your dance. I can see tomorrow in your dance! We can
call it, our hope!" - I mean, $@*$#@$#*&!!! WTF are Konami trying to do?
Make us vomit? It sounds like it's from a _really_ bad movie. Like maybe
R.O.T.O.R. (don't ask :P). Is it just us or do Japanese people find this
corny stuff repulsive too?
* The scoring method is similar or identical to 2nd MIX (I can't tell). This
may mean the high scores are back to in-game totals, not nonstop totals,
but I didn't see any high scores... (the scoring system SEEMS to be more
generous than 2nd MIX, but like I said, I can't tell!)
* Likewise, the rankings are changed. It appears to match the US and Euromix
versions: I got a lot of B's when I only got one good and the rest were
great+perfect (and a large percentage of perfects, too). A replaces
S/SS/SSS. It's very hard to get a D. I don't know what replaces SSS, but
the difference between S/SS is non-existant once again. A is one and the
same.
* The announcer seems to give 3rd MIX S/SS type praise for B's and C's as
well.
* The songs are easier overall. These 3 factors put together (see the two
above) make this game MUCH easier for beginners, and drastically reduce
the lifespan of the game.
* I have no idea why, but some built-in edit data was removed! It only seems
to be alternate steps from previous versions of DDR (I noticed Kung Fu
Fighting's old 'hard' mode steps were gone, for example). 2nd MIX data is
still there (ie Keep On Movin'), as does Club Mix data (Paranoia Max and
Brilliant 2U). All the 'PF-*****' data remains, however. Thank god! :)
* Some Naoki songs appear to be performed by two entirely different people
to before - except for the ones from the Solo series (Can't Stop Fallin'
In Love, Hysteria) and Love Again Tonight (which is by Naoki featuring
Paula Terry). There's a perfectly obvious explanation for this. See section
7.1.
* Nonstop mode is accessable through Link mode.
* Couple/Unison mode is replaced by Battle mode. In this, a single set of
arrows (like Unison mode) splits into two columns (like Couple mode). Only
one set of Battle songs are available for each song, though. To get Battle
mode songs, choose versus mode then push the down arrow twice when you
select the difficulty of the song.
* Internet Ranking will give you a password if you have no memory card. If
you have one, it saves to the memory card. The game won't give you one if
you aren't good enough. (see the memory card info below)
* How does paint data load? To my knowledge, it doesn't...
* You can create edit data for any song in 4th MIX or 4th MIX Plus by editing
a saved edit data set from 4th MIX manually. 4th MIX has unique checksums,
like 3rd MIX did, so you can't just use 3rd MIX saves. By editing it
manually you could make edit data for, say, Drop Out!
* Exactly of the time, Emi has no hat.
Since the 4th MIX memory card feature is so damn confusing (and annoying -
Konami, why is there no arcade records anymore?), I'll save everyone the
confusion and tell you all here how to use the memory card on 4th MIX!
(Note: The machine constantly loads from the memory card slot to check a
memory card is still there or still not there.)
1. Save some data from DDR 3rd MIX on PSX to your memory card. Anything at
all.
2. Take it to the arcade and shove it in the 4th MIX machine. The game will
default to link mode with the memory card in it, as only this mode uses
it (damn! You can't play for Records anymore!). Play anything in Link mode
and um...I think you're not allowed to get Game Over, either. It'll load
the memory card then briefly save to it once and only once. For now, the
only purpose the memory card has is for edit data. It's okay if you
insert the cards on the mode select screen (link/main mode, that is) - it
doesn't load until you select single, versus or double.
3. Take it back home and shove it in your PSX. Go to Options, then Memory
Card Option(s), Then Create Link Data. Also note it's added some info
in Information - this just tells you to do what I just told you to do.
Note that even though you could unlock Create Link Data with a Gameshark
code, it wouldn't work alone - it appears that the arcade machine does
something else to the saves too. Probably some kind of 'flag'.
4. Take it back to the arcade again. And do something there. Anything should
work, as long as it's in Link Mode. After the game ends, it'll save for
a while, load for a few seconds, then save for another second or so.
It's then safe to remove the memory card. It SHOULD save all Internet
Ranking scores, but it doesn't seem to for me...
5. Take it back home and shove it in the PSX and now you can make Nonstop
courses! For me, the 'Create Link Data' option appeared as 'NEW!' again,
as well as the same page in information, however in the information page
it said some info about what to do with your newfound data, which is all
about the Nonstop feature. It mentions the number 136, which I assume is
the total number of songs in 4th MIX...also, with edit data, you can use
both memory card slots for a 1 player game, however, Nonstop order only
works with one memory card per player.
6. Take it back to the arcade and shove it up the machine again. I'm in a
very shoving mood today. You can now play Nonstop stuff, at the expense
of 3 days and travel costs!
7. Whenever you do an Internet Ranking game, and you get an A on a song or
an otherwise high score, the game will save the IR password to your card
at the end of the game, along with the date, score and mode
(single/double). This is view in the Information menu under Link Data. I
don't know what Records does - it has some requirement that I don't know
about. However, to get an Internet Ranking password/save, you require
approximately 80% of the maximum _SCORE_. This means if you break the
combo up, do it near the beginning or near the end! There is no mimimum
score like 100 million for each song. It's about 80% of the maximum per
song. (on some of the easier songs you won't get near 100 million if you
get all perfects even)
NOTE! To get all the songs for Nonstop Data, you have to play in link mode
for a while. The more songs you do, the more that becomes available (no,
it's not do each song and you get it; more like play once and get 30 or
something big like that)
The Pocketstation can be used to bypass most of these steps with the use
of some software. The most up to date version of this software can be found
at www.nissie.com in the 'PK Room' link. A similar program exists for 3rd
MIX, but I don't have software for it nor can I test it because there's no
3rd MIX Japanese machines for 50km! The convenience of having this means
you can set your order at the arcade without having to go home - not to
mention you probably don't need to play the game repeated times to get all
the songs.
All that's required to use this Nonstop Order Editor is the Pocketstation,
and both saves for 3rd MIX (or 4th MIX?) and the link data on the
Pocketstation. The menus are in English, but the Pocketstation isn't. See the
Pocketstaiton guide in this FAQ for info!
2.35 Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX Operator Settings
-----------------------------------------------------
An arcade operator or someone else with access to the settings menu (which
is basically software dip-switch settings) can reconfigure the game, as
well as other things. To access this menu, open up the operator box above the
coin box (the coin slot is built into the box you want). There's a service
button inside here which activates the menu. Make sure you don't push the
coin trigger by mistake! (note I haven't actually seen or done this myself,
but it's a common arcade game schematic) A large amount of this info has
been contributed by Dvae Van Horn, so thank you very much for that!
I know from the bootup sequence that the game HAS got a CD/CD-ROM in it,
and I also know this from upgrade kits, however I'm fairly certain it's just
used to store data en masse...DDR takes about 3-5 minutes to initialize,
and the music never skips...one section uses the traditional Konami countdown
sort of (first used in Gradius probably because it stored on a tape drive or
something). Except the game counts UP, and not to 99, but to about 160 or
something.
Main Menu
I/O Check
- Controller check. Allows operator to manually check all 4 directions
on both sides, the select buttons, the start buttons, the coin1
trigger, and the test and service mode buttons (which probably work
if you got into this :P). Note the directional buttons have 4 sensors each
in them, so when checking the buttons, check all the sensors work (one on
each side). It will display if they do or not on screen. Like most arcade
machines, especially ones without joysticks, this is probably the screen
you'll be looking at most.
NOTE: Solo machines have only 2 sensors per panel. Normal machines
definately have 4. If a left/right panel has the left/right sensor broken
(the outside one), don't worry about it unless if you need it for double.
There is also a slight delay between the steps and the screen update -
this is immediately obvious if you test the selection buttons! Pressing
both start buttons exits this menu.
Screen Check
- The generic screen alignment hash pattern test which is in all Konami
games. I thought it was identical, but in actual fact it's SLIGHTLY more
fancy than the generic Konami one. Braaaaaaaavooooooo!
* Also note that the test button should act as a degausser in case you get
screen burn. This feature works on Solo and Normal machines, but not in
all models. It is present in 3rd MIX machines and onwards, as well as
perhaps older ones. Very useful!
Color Check
- Displays a RGB color palette to allow operator to check for monitor
malfunction (manually).
Flash ROM Check
- Checks to see if Flash ROM is available and/or corrupt. See Memory Card
Options for related options and information. (Flash ROM is similar to
RAM; a user can write to it. In DDR, edit data is stored on it)
Dip Switch Check
- Reports status of all hardware dip switch settings. (dip switches are
a series of switches on a PCB which are set to on/off, and their positions
can define some essential options such as reigon, control type, etc) If
it's possible to access (and safefly at that) the dipswitches while in
this menu, you could check their effects in realtime.
CG Check
- Displays two texture mapped 3D rotating cubes.
Memory Card Options
Game Options
Difficulty Level [def. 4]
- 1 (Easiest) to 8 (Hardest)
Max Stage [def. 3]
- Number of stages in main game (1 to 5)
Max Stage(Nonstop) [def. 4]
- Number of stages in nonstop game (2 to 5)
Clear Player's Tendency
- Resets the songs in the "Player's Best" category, which is generated
from the 30 most popular songs (20 of which must be new songs, the
other 10 are from previous DDRs). Songs picked in Internet Ranking/
Link mode do not accumulate in this counter.
Sound Options
Atrract Mode Sound [def on]
- Disables/enables sound on demo screens.
Sound Scale Check
- Runs a sound scale through the speakers.
Stereo/Mono [def Stereo/Stereo Only]
- On some machines appears to be locked to Stereo (Solo machines?)
Coin Options
Free Play [def. off]
- Allows game to be played for free. Enabling this disables the other
two options (on/off)
Coin Slot1 [def. 2 coin/1 credit]
- Defines how many coins it takes to get how many credits.
(16 coin/1 credit - 1 coin/1 credit - 1 coin/4 credit)
Joint Game Premium [def. off]
- Allows two players to play for the same price as one and get the same
number of stages. Also affects double mode.
- Not present on Solo machines
Bookkeeping
- Records the income the machine has generated on a day by day basis. Resets
when the machine is turned off.
Lamp Check
- Tests the 4 lamps up the top, the neon tubes in the bass speakers, the
stage lights and the select/start button lights.
All Factory Settings
- Restores all settings to what they were when manufactured (ie, default).
Game Mode
- Returns to the game itself (exit menu).
Memory Card Options
Memory Card Check
- Checks if a memory card is present in the 1P slot, and if it's
correctly formatted.
Flash Card Check
- Checks for a flash card. Probably also checks if it works.
Use Memory Card [def off?]
- Does the game check if a Memory Card is in? (This should be turned
off if the cabinet has no slot for it! Probably set off by default
because of this)
Use Flash Card [def on]
- Enables any edit data stored to the Flash Card.
Store Edit Data
- Stores edit data from the 1P memory card slot (if a card is
inserted) to the machine. If it has trouble detecting it, it
will request if you wish to try again (def no). Press any of the
2P start/select buttons to change to yes and keep hammering
1P start until it accepts, because it's a bit dodgy. After it's
loaded, it's as simple as highlighting your edit data and pressing
start. Wait 3 seconds for it to work...you can store up to 8
edits per song, however I have never seen more than 4. WARNING:
Do not save any over existing Konami edit names (eg PF-PARAS for
Paranoia MAX). It will load that one instead of the real one
when selected! This can be a very evil trick to play on people
though!
Delete Edit Data
- Deletes any edit data on the Flash Card. Allows you to select what
to delete. All edit data is categorized by song. You are asked
for confirmation as well.
Clear Edit Data
- Erases all edit data on the Flash Card.
Factory Setting
- Resets everything to default.
Save And Exit
Exit
- Cancel changes.
Edit steps can take up as little as 8kb each, so it's unlikely
the machine will ever fill up. The machine only scans the memory card in slot
1. If you go to 'Add Memory card' (or something like that) another menu
will come up displaying the songs, the data's name, and if it's single or
double. The rest is pretty easy to figure out.
(Note that you seem to need some kind of memory plugin to save data, and the
machine might not be standardly sold with it)
The secrets menu allows you to unlock the following songs:
- If You Were Here ~B4 Za Beat Mix~
- Dam Dariam (KCP Mix)
- Hero (Happy Grandale Mix)
- Let's Talk It Over
- Leading Cyber
- .59
- Holic
- Era (nostalmix)
- Never Let You Down
- Make Your Move
- Don't Stop! ~AMD 2nd MIX~
- Get Me In Your Sight ~AMD Cancun MIX~
You will require a password - I used to provide it here, but I've since
been informed that Konami require some sort of fee for this. If you want to
know it, it's on heaps of websites so it's not hard to find. But don't ask
me for it cos' I haven't got a clue what it is...that's why I wrote it here,
see! The codes are not on Konami's site, therefore they are not here.
2.4 Dance Dance Revolution 5th MIX
----------------------------------
Finally our arcade got the machine so I've gotten a decent look/play at 5th
MIX. Here are the changes:
* Many songs from 1st MIX-3rd MIX Plus are gone, only about 15 remain. A poll
was taken to decide which ones would stay - Dynamite Rave came first, and
thus became one of the long versions of the songs. (Dam Dariam came second)
* Higher framerate due to no transparencies or similar tricks used - note
that the 'Demonstration' screen which has 'Demonstration' blinking with
transparancies has a nasty mysterious black bar down the bottom. Thus, 95%
of the old images used transparently are gone. The game is NOT in high
resolution contrary to popular belief...
* You cannot select Double mode or Versus mode on one credit anymore. This
might be an option in the settings menu...
* Rankings are changed once again. It is now like 2nd MIX in a way - D-A
means you missed a step or more, AA means you max combo'd the song. AAA
means you missed no steps and got all perfects.
* Songs are all in one category, and can be sorted. You only have 17 seconds
to choose a song, but if you change song intermittantly before the timer
can count down, you can get a lot longer out of it!
* Song order can be rearranged by holding down the selection arrows (< and >)
and pressing start ([]). The top left corner displays the sort method.
* The Beats Per Minute (BPM) is displayed next to the song sort method as
mentioned above. If it is red and changes, the song changes speed during
the song. It does not appear to indicate if it stops. If it is red, it will
change through the maximum and middle speeds, and NOT speeds in between!
* Easy songs (1-2 foot Basic) are marked with a yellow and green icon. This
I believed is a Japanese Learners Permit or similar icon indicating a
Learner Driver (as seen in Gran Turismo 2 when you import a Gran Turismo 1
save).
* High scores are saved to the machine once again. Unfortunately there is
no Nonstop mode or anything, meaning you could do Matsuri Japan over and
over and get the highest score simply by being good at one song.
* Scoring is now done in a manner similar to 3rd MIX and 2nd/4th MIX:
there is a maximum overall score, not a multiplier based on combo. However
the maximum score is different for each song (not 10 million like 3rd MIX).
If you missed a step in the middle of a hard song and max comboed it, you
would get more points than if you max comboed an easy song. The Max Combo
is given as a bonus - Kupster@RTF thinks this bonus is based on the length
of time that your energy bar was full for the song. This theory has yet to
be proven or disproven.
* Scores and ranking can be saved to memory card like 3rd MIX. Kupster@RTF
points out that the high scores will save an A over an AA if the _score_
is better, not grade. If scores do not save, see bugs below. When you get
a new score, it flashes "It's new record!" (sic) in your bottom corner.
Your current score and rank are displayed in the bottom left corner and
next to the song title respectively. The first player's score is green/blue
and the second player's is orange.
* You can save your initials to memory card so the game automatically inputs
them for you.
* The memory card has to be inserted before game mode is selected.
* Saint Goes Marching (Remix) has been removed.
* An event mode is concealed in the Operator Settings and cannot be selected
unless if you do something... (I won't tell you how to get it so there! It
is a secret, I'm afraid!)
* Only one code for hidden songs was released this time, however it is not
private and is freely available on Konami's website!
BUGS:
* 5th MIX songs in Extra MIX have slightly different timing to the arcade
counterparts and are 1-2 bars early. This is unnoticable unless you make
edit data, which will be massively desynched in the arcade. This bug does
not affect 4th MIX Plus songs, but may affect Wild Rush as an identical
bug was present in 4th MIX/Extra MIX for this song. In 5th MIX though,
this appears to be little more than a method of making you want to buy the
PSX version of 5th MIX when it comes out! Here is an up to date list of
songs, and how much slower they are on the arcade. Move the song steps up
this much to fix them.
Broken My Heart - 1 bar/s slow
Dive - 1 bar/s slow
Remember You - 1 bar/s slow
Sky High (Lucyfer) - 2 bar/s fast
Wild Rush - 1 bar/s slow
Regarding Sky High, on the PSX the arrows start as soon as the music does,
but in arcade they start a little later.
* THE FIRST TIME YOU PLAY WITH A MEMORY CARD, DO NOT REMOVE THE MEMORY CARD
UNTIL YOU ARE CERTAIN IT IS DONE SAVING! The game saves the song list to
memory card, and if you remove it, not all songs will record names and
thus you cannot get scores for them! If this happens, you must wipe the
save. This may also screw up your automatic initials.
* On Double Mode, instead of displaying 'STAGE FINAL' up the top during play
it displays 'STAGE FIN'. This is just a programming bug and does not affect
gameplay.
2.5 DDRMAX
----------
Also known as Dance Dance Revolution 6th MIX, but this title is probably
incorrect. DDRMAX is an overhaul of the DDR series, like Beatmania IIdx did
when it introduced the 7 keys to Beatmania's 5 (or Beatmania III's 5 and 1
pedal - which makes it Finger Drummania!). DDRMAX introduces the following
gameplay changes (a question mark indicates this is _suspected_, not known):
* Selectable arrow scroll speed
* Optional speed boost for song (?)
* The Freeze arrow: Similar to ParaPara Paradise and Keyboardmania, it
requires you hold down the arrow until it stops!
* Similar to DDR 2nd MIX, harder songs are only playable if you do well
earlier on
* Option to make arrows scroll down instead of up (like DDR Solo)
* An Extra stage a-la Drummania and Guitar Freaks - do well enough (machine
difficulty dependent) and you get an extra song, MAX 300, which is 300bpm,
full of freezes and scrolls down by default
* Songs are ranked similar to Drummania (1st MIX) and to this FAQ: instead of
a foot rating, a graph is displayed showing the randomness of the steps,
jumping technique, freeze steps, etc. in that difficulty of the song.
* Other than that and the latest Be For U song, no new Konami Original Mix
songs are present - but all songs 4th PSX and 5th PSX are in it.
3 . 0 C o n s o l e O p e r a t i o n
_________________________________________
All console versions are played via a plastic mat roughly of the same size as
the arcade version's platform pad. These weigh quite a bit besides being
completely foldable, and will cost a fair amount in postage. The game is
essentially operated in the same way, however there are no selection arrows
and the start button is located on the mat. Also, all codes are entered via
a special popup menu which appears if you push Select/the Konami button,
which is located on the top left of the mat. The Menus are straightforward.
Also note in the controller settings, in one menu ('Dance Play Settings' I
think) it has the options 'Controller 1' and 'Controller 2' which can be
toggled off. These do NOT disable the controllers themselves - just the
X, O, triangle and square buttons. This may be of immense help to ameteur
DDR players. Any questions regarding the menus are welcome - email me at
the address at the top of the FAQ. The following are some home version only
features:
3.1 Dance Dance Revolution
--------------------------
The original DDR game features 'Arrange Mode' where you are penalised for
standing on arrows if there is no arrow on screen. This 'Ouch!' damage is
more damaging to your energy than a 'Miss!', so beware! Some songs in this
are not in the older/original US and UK arcade versions. It's quite dated
now, and the only reason to buy it is if you either want the whole collection
of DDR's or if you _really_ like Strictly Business. And fair enough if you
do. This version has a nasty feature where if the CD skips, you automatically
fail! In 2nd ReMIX the music just stops but the game continues, and in 3rd
MIX it tries to reload the music (and it doesn't become out of sync either!).
This can be VERY annoying if your Playstation is old like mine. Also, there
are only 9 combinations of modes which require codes to be put in to enable
them. There's no hidden, sudden, stealth, vivid or shuffle modes. The Records
menu is cumbersome. 'Arrange Mode' is more annoying than fun. Still, a decent
package in its own right, but better options are available. Buy it if it's
the easiest one to get or the cheapest one to get.
3.2 Dance Dance Revolution 2nd ReMIX and 2nd MIX
------------------------------------------------
Both versions feature Edit mode, Paint mode, Endless mode, Non-Stop
Revolution mode, Bonus Tracks, some songs not in the arcade versions,
and add-on disc support. New songs include 'Think Ya Better D', 'Trip Machine
~Luv Mix~ and 'Love This Feelin''. US and UK version players will notice
many 'new' songs. The PSX version features 2 'Trial' songs. The DC version
features 8 songs from 3rd MIX (including the 2 'Trial' songs in the PSX
version). The DC version also has special edit data built-in the game. DDR
2nd ReMIX saved data can be used with 3rd MIX in the arcade and scores
will be recorded to your memory card if used on that machine.
Tips and Tricks:
* The 'User Support' option in Memory Card will enable all hidden features
in the original DDR game.
* In Dance Play settings under Controller Options, disable Controller 1 if
you use a mat in that port - it'll turn off X, O, Triangle and Square.
(or, on the DC, that's X, Y, A, B)
* Dreamcast users: When you get an option called 'DC Edit Data', enable it.
Every so often you'll unlock new steps for the songs - some hard, some
easy. All different. (the edit data for Little Bitch is an absolute bitch!)
* PSX Users: If you play 3rd MIX arcade on Nonstop mode on a Ranking course,
and get a good score, it'll save your score to the memory card along with
the date and the number it gave you!
* Your overall mark for the song loosely depends on these factors:
SS: All perfect and great steps.
S: Mostly perfect or great steps. Not -too- many greats, though. Too
many is probably about 30-40% or more.
A: Mostly perfect or great steps, with less perfects/greats than
required for S, or maybe a few more Boos/Misses.
B: Good mark. Given for a flawed dance which you kept under control
(more or less).
C: Typical mark. In between B and D, basically.
D: Nasty mark. If you got this you screwed up at least one part of
the song! You probably only barely made it to the end, too.
E: Fail.
* Difficulty can be selected via two ways: Push D, D or U, U before you
select game mode (Easy, Normal, Hard, All Music), or by pushing Select (or
the Konami logo/Analog stick on the DC mat/joypad) and selecting difficulty
on the top option by pushing left and right.
* The second option down on the above mentioned menu is Little mode (on/off).
This removes all half and 1/4 steps, even if there's no other steps before
them. The third option down is sequence pattern modifiers (left mode, right
mode, shuffle mode, mirror mode, off). To find what these do, check the
arcade version commands in section 8.1. The last option is Hidden mode
(on/off). This makes arrows disappear halfway up the screen.
3.3 Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX
----------------------------------
The first thing to note is PAL users will have trouble with this game -
due to technical details, the steps will be slower than the music on a PAL
machine. This also features Diet mode, Endless mode, a lame PocketStation
feature, special optional backgrounds, 3rd ReMIX mode and you can play the
previous DDR games using their CD's with the graphics from this one. Also
features 16 songs from 2nd MIX, 4 new songs and 2 'Trial' songs. 3rd MIX
saved data works with 4th MIX arcade in 'link' mode, as 2nd ReMIX had done so
with its arcade successor (3rd MIX Arc), however it will also show additional
information, and possibly more features yet to be discovered.
One interesting note that nobody's noticed - in the intro movie, two
sentences flash up on the screen occasionally. Everyone sees the first one
- "Can you feel it?" - because it's in the background music too. Nobody has
ever noticed the second one which says "you can play Let's enjyoi!" - which
is about as funny as 2nd MIX Dreamcast Edition's "Give me a cool stuff!"!
Tips and Tricks:
* Try the 'User Support' option to unlock all hidden features on the
previous DDR games if you haven't gotten them all.
* If you have Konami Edit Data switched on in the music menu, you can play
special versions of some songs (the original Butterfly steps for Butterfly
~Upswing Mix~ for example). (flashing blocks in the top left when choosing
a song indicate it's got Konami Edit data - black blocks indicate there's
data in another mode (Double or Single/Versus, that is)
* Konami Internet Ranking scores are all around 99 million, so if you don't
get that much, don't bother looking to see if it's good enough. (possible
exception for SSR mode - I didn't check)
* In Dance Play settings under Controller Options, disable Controller 1 if
you use a mat in that port - it'll turn off X, O, Triangle and Square.
* If you go to the arcade or have some edit data for 2nd ReMIX, load it
up in 3rd MIX and resave it. You can set a number of feet and difficulty
level (Basic/Another/Maniac/SSR). I haven't tested this on 2nd ReMIX to
see if the steps still work with that...so...next version :) (note that
the number of feet and difficulty will NOT show up on the arcade version!)
* Your energy bar can be seperated into 4 sections:
1. Awful - Red section. Announcer says things like "Your moves are
lame!", "You're not following the music!", "Danger!
DANGER!", "Oh no! You're dangerous!" and "No good!". You
will get booing sounds at this point.
2. Poor - Light blue section. Announcer asks rhetorical questions a
lot like "Are you having trouble with your feet?", "Did
you have breakfast today?", "Are you okay?" and "Are your
legs okay?". Also says "Not good!" - don't mix this with
"No good!" which is said if your bar is in the red. There
probably won't be any booing (I never had any). If you go
up into this from the red part (Awful), then you'll get
a cheer. (the announcer's sayings are same in both
home and arcade, however he seems to say the same things
more often on the home version)
3. Good - Green. Announcer says things like "I'm getting excited!",
"Everybody is cheeeerinnnnng!", "The crowd LOVES you!",
"You are awesome!", "Yeah, do it!", "Amigo!", "Take my
heart away!" and so forth. You'll get cheering sounds
often.
4. Great - Yellow portion of the bar. The announcer says things like
"Fujiyama!", "You're a dance animal!", "What technique!",
"You suprise us all!", "Wow! You are too cool!", "This is
the best show I've ever seen!" and "I was moved!". You
also get regular cheering.
5. Great - On SSR mode only, sometimes the announcer will say "Are
you an alien?" when your bar is full. (I don't know if
this occurs on SSR songs in 3rd ReMIX mode on PSX)
While 3. and 4. might be the same, during testing I got different sounds
for both. (I'm 100% certain the announcer indeed says "Fujiyama!" because
I recorded the sound without the music playing and it was unmistakable.)
* Your overall mark for the song loosely depends on these factors:
SSS: 10,000,000 points (You scored perfect for every step)
SS: Required score varies from machine to machine, depending on
settings. At level 4/5 or so, you require 8,700,000 or more. On
level 4 on the PSX version, the figure is more like 9,200,000
or more. Mostly perfects with a few greats (about 10% max)
S: Too many greats, but mostly perfects still.
A: You require about 7,900,000 points or more on the arcade version
at difficulty level 4 or equivilant. At home, you require about
8,200,000 points at the same level. Other factors include how
many goods, boos and misses you get.
B: A score between 7,000,000 or so and the minimum for an A. If
you have many misses but no goods, this may also affect it.
C: A score in the mid to high 6 millions or so.
D: You must have screwed up regularly to get this.
E: Typically a fail, or in versus mode, both players ended with
no energy (or both lost their energy completely at different
points. You CAN still finish a song with both players having
no energy. I witnessed two players both get E's personally).
* The Pocketstation feature definately sucks. It's a mailbox program. Why
you'd need this or what it has to do with DDR is beyond me. I do think it
has a Nonstop Order rearranging program, but it's a bit dodgy and I think
it's for the home version. Why did they bother?
* Select your difficulty by pushing D, D or U, U on the song select screen.
(this should be obvious, but some people may not know!)
* You can access a hidden menu by pushing select on the Music Select screen.
The first option is Vivid/Flat mode (off/flat, off/vivid, depending if
you're on 3rd MIX/3rd ReMIX or SSR mode). These change the patterns the
arrows flash in - Vivid makes 1/4 and 1/2 beat steps flash differently to
normal steps. Flat makes them all do the same flashing pattern (ie 2nd MIX).
The second option down on the above mentioned menu is Little mode (on/off).
This removes all half and 1/4 steps, even if there's no other steps before
them. The third option down is sequence pattern modifiers (left mode, right
mode, shuffle mode, mirror mode, off). To find what these do, check the
arcade version commands in section 8.1. The last option is arrow visibility
(off/hidden/sudden/stealth). Hidden mode makes the arrows disappear halfway
up the screen. Sudden makes them appear 2/3 up the screen (harder than
it sounds!). Stealth makes the arrows totally invisible!
* Auto Music Select is stupid. Basically you pick songs by pressing the
triangle over them and then it randomizes. I think. If you don't pick
several songs you end up doing the same one over and over and it's stupid.
Waste of a mode. I prefer just holding down an arrow, closing my eyes,
then stepping on start. It's much more chaotic.
* Wanna know how to get on the high scores table? This goes for the arcade
version too - complete a Ranking couse in Nonstop mode. (3rd MIX or SSR
only - not 3rd ReMIX or 2nd MIX in the arcade)
* In Unison mode, try doing the other players steps too if possible to
increase your combo. If they have one at the same time as you, do it as
a jump and you'll increase your combo by two, because it's not one jump,
it's two steps!
* An interesting note: The backgrounds for the three songs removed (ie
Xanadu, It Only Takes a Minute ~Extended Remix~ and Follow The Sun
~90 In The Shade Mix~) are still on the CD! Links to utilities to rip
these graphics and the music will be in future editions of this FAQ, but
you can save time and look for 'THV' and 'YU_RI' yourself! This trick also
works on 2nd Remix. I haven't tried it on the original or Best Hits yet.
* A special option is unlocked when you play with this game's memory card
save on a 4th MIX machine: 'Create Link Data'. After a bit of messing
around, you can create Nonstop data for 4th MIX and other stuff. (See
DDR 4th MIX in the arcade section for precise info)
* You can also edit 3rd MIX nonstop data, should you wish to. All 3rd MIX
stuff is always mentioned in sections named 'DDR 3rd MIX(Arcade)' (or
similar). I assume 4th MIX is under 'Link Data' because they hadn't named
it yet...
* Edit Data from the original DDR will no longer work. The same goes for the
arcade machine; in 2nd ReMIX there are two types of edit data formats you
can save in, 'type1' and 'type2'. 'type2' works on 2nd ReMIX and up. You
can use 2nd ReMIX to change any edit data you saved from the original so
it'll work in this one.
3.4 Dance Dance Revolution GB
-----------------------------
Same game, unusual format. The game comes with a finger pad apparently, or
in the very least one is available (there's pictures of it around), but
I've only played it in emulator form currently. I plan to buy it since
it's good. Before I start, I'd just like to say DON'T ask me for the ROM. I
know it's hard to find (at least considering it's just released), but I am
not gonna be a tool for piracy. Go buy. Anyway, this version is based on
2nd Mix, however features what may be Bonus Tracks from 3rd Mix, or just
something to fill the game out. DDRGB has:
AM-3P
Bad Girls
Boom Boom Dollar
Brilliant 2U
Butterfly (Normal and Hard)
Dam Dariam
Dub-I-Dub
El Ritmo Tropical
Have You Never Been Mellow
Hero
I Believe In Miracles
If You Were Here
La Senorita
Love
Paranoia
Paranoia MAX
SP-Trip Machine
On the title screen there is an option - this simply is the special finger
controller option (on or off - leave it off if you don't have one). Other
options are just typical of DDR - difficulty level, amount of songs for
various modes, etc. - two puzzle me though: 'Tough' mode for Free Play Mode.
It seems to make no impact on any songs - not even the two 3rd Mix ones. The
other option which confuses me is couple mode (press select on the select
game mode screen). 1P Couple mode might be just 1 Player with Couple mode
steps (I didn't look), but 2P Couple mode had no effect at all. Perhaps it's
cos' I wasn't playing a link game, but then why did it let me pick it in
the first place? Wierd.
In smaller itty gritty details, DDR is a 16mbit cart (both Beatmania GB carts
are 8mbit), it's a Color only game (once again, Beatmania GB carts work on
old GB's too), and it doesn't have a save mode or password mode.
ADDENDUM: I've since bought this game, and let me tell you DDR GB1 is pretty
poor. It tries and it fails. The main problem is with the music - the bass
totally disappears after a little bit on most songs. I believe this is
because the programmers unintelligbly change the intruments or use the
sound channel for something else. It sounds insignificant, but try playing
DDR on some of those really poor speakers you get in $2 shops and you'll
know what I mean. If it weren't for this, the music would be fine. This
problem is 10 times more noticable with earphones.
3.5 Dance Dance Revolution GB2
------------------------------
See above. GB2 is essentially the best songs (in Konami's opinion) of
DDR 3rd Mix and DDR Solo (2000?), and is heavily based on DDR 3rd Mix
in graphics and such (the title music is 'Can You Feel The Rhythm'). It
has Nonstop mode, as such. These are the songs:
Afronova
Can't Stop Fallin' In Love
Club Tropicana
Dam Dariam
High Energy
If You Can Say Goodbye
I'm Alive
In The Navy '99
La Senorita
Love Machine
Mr. Wonderful
Operator
Paranoia Rebirth
Silent Hill
So Many Men
Sky High
Together & Forever
Turn Me On ~Heavenly Mix~
Typical Tropical
Vol 4
It has more songs, of course, and for what it's worth, this is a HUGE
improvement over the first DDR GB. The bass problem is more or less fixed -
it still happens, most noticably (by me :P) in I'm Alive (which I hate
anyway), but overall, it's a great port. The only question to ask yourself
before you buy it is, do you love DDR for the physical interaction or for
another reason? After all, there's not many different ways to push buttons
with your fingers - especially while holding a GBC!
As for playing advice - without the finger step controller is the hardest
way to play, as B becomes the up arrow and A becomes the right arrow (so
you can do jumps). I suggest you learn to use these buttons for these
directions only - if you try to push up and right on the directional pad
too, you'll confuse yourself. Also, like the PSX, press select to get any
hidden game modes once you're on a song select screen.
As for playing on an emulator, pressing several directions at once tends
to 'lock' keyboards and thus nothing happens. Beware of this. This probably
has been corrected with USB keyboards, though...
3.5 Dance Dance Revolution GB3
------------------------------
DDR GB3 once again uses the seemingly rushed DDR GB1 engine. Here's the song
list:
1,2,3,4, 007
1,2,3,4, 007 -HARD-
Celebrate Nite
Don't Stop! ~AMD 2nd MIX~
Dream A Dream
Eat You Up
Eat You up -HARD-
Higher
Holiday
Hypnotic Crisis
I Don't Want To Miss A Thing
In The Heat Of The Night
Kiss Me (KCP Remix)
Love Again Tonight (For Melissa Mix)
Luv To Me ~AMD Mix~
Luv To Me ~AMD Mix~ -HARD-
My Summer Love
Never Gonna Make
Pink Dinosaur
Trip Machine Climax
Upside Down
Walkie Talkie
Luv To Me ~AMD Mix~ -HARD- actually plays significantly faster than it does
normal. It's 200bpm, I estimate. 1,2,3,4, 007 -HARD- on Maniac would be
actually easier than the normal Maniac if you were playing the real game, as
there are more steps like triples but less off-beat ones or sixteenth/ steps
like normal. It's harder with the GB controls, though...it still uses the
now incredibly outdated looking DDR 2nd MIX numbers for the score, as well
as the way outdated 2nd MIX ranking system (E-A, S-SS and maybe an SSS but
I haven't gotten one). D-A are displayed as they look in 4th MIX. E and the S
ranks are unique to this game in look (ie they've been drawn from scratch).
Also note that all songs are available initially and there are no categories
like 4th MIX, except in Nonstop Mode which seems to be catergorized exactly
like some of the 4th MIX main mode categories! (Konami Original A/B, Pops
A/B, Covers and Classics)
Overall, this game is still disappointing. The audio isn't too clear and
sometimes bits which you usually can't hear in 4th MIX can be heard over
the main instruments. This means the song could be unrecognisable and it
will not help you follow the beat! Basslines disappearing seems to no longer
be a problem. However, some songs sound way different...especially My Summer
Love. Hypnotic Crisis, Eat You Up, Upside Down and Dream A Dream don't escape
either. Every other song, except maybe Trip Machine Climax, is perfectly
recognisable. Like DDR 4th MIX on Playstation, Solo 2000 and Korean tier
songs are absent. Personally I think they coulda got rid of some of the
other songs they decided to add, like the junky 3rd MIX songs they added. I
wouldn't say it's an improvement over DDR GB2, and I wouldn't say it's worse
than DDR GB2. It's just different. It's definately better than DDR GB1.
3.7 Dance Dance Revolution Best Hits
------------------------------------
A spick 'n' span mix of all of the 'best' DDR songs using the DDR 3rd Mix
engine. As such, it has the same de-synced steps problem for PAL users.
See the Gameshark code section for the fix I've made. This has less songs
than 3rd Mix, and less features. It has a 'shareware' feel to it. You
get roughly 30 songs from DDR mixes 1-3, including every song from the
original DDR (excluding Strictly Business, which was removed from DDR
games after DDR 3rd Korean Mix/before DDR 2nd Mix DC, and the original
Trip Machine, for reasons unknown to me as I liked it!), a large chunk of
2nd (Re)MIX songs (alternate mixes are all gone except Paranoia Max and
SP-Trip Machine ~Jungle Mix~), and a few 3rd Mix songs (the only
Catastrophic songs in it are ol' Captain Jack and Dynamite Rave!). It
also has Drop The Bomb and After The Game Of Love. I doubt it has any
hidden songs, as so far, I've found no hidden features at all! (there
is no Information menu) The only new features are Maniac Double mode
for pre-3rd MIX songs (also note SSR is just named Maniac here), a
shortcut menu in options to allow you to default to certain characters and
a mode every time which you specify yourself, diet records in the record
menu, and 2 new characters which don't suit DDR well at all and are
probably inspired by Pump It Up or something. Small details for small
detail fans include the numerals for scores changed, Charmy has alluminium
tights now like she has since DDR 3rd Mix arcade (in 3rd Mix arcade/PSX
she had none - I presume this was changed since you could see her panties.
3rd Mix Korean arcade was the first one with this change), the background
in the song select screen is a bluey-green similar to the 2nd Mix mode
on 3rd Mix arcade, and the options menu looks a lot like the original
DDR but it's much less detailed. It also features no built-in edit data
like 3rd MIX arcade or PSX, or 2nd MIX DC, but you can still load all of
your own edit data. Nonstop mode is still in, but it has only about 8
or so selections, and two difficulty levels (you can't put all songs on
Maniac/SSR, for example, or all songs on Basic). There is no paint mode,
but there is edit mode, diet mode, learning and training mode. Another
utterly useless feature is that Soft mode has become Beginner mode, and
shows you a picture of the DDR arcade floor panels in the background so
you can mimic the steps they do and all songs are only 1 foot! I hear
this is in DDR USA/DS Euromix too. Also, the intro loops through the intro
movies from all 3 DDR mixes, but they're still lower framerate versions,
unlike on DDR 2nd MIX DC. Overall, a lot of stuff has been removed from
DDR Best Hits, and it's a blatant showcase for the other games in the
series. For westerners, its only advantage is it has 2nd Mix songs with
3rd Mix graphics, as many people seem to have problems with the disc
switch mode, and it isn't just people who pirated the game. I believe it's
because the disc switch mode is a seperate .EXE on the DDR 3rd MIX CD, and
thus the protection is invalid - as for Maniac Double mode, the mats slip
too much for that! (it's also worth getting if you want the original DDR
but cannot find it anywhere.)
DDR Best Hits has no edit data, yet Konami didn't remove the Official Konami
Edit Data distinguishing code from the engine - wierd. DDR Best Hits has
NO secret songs, NO edit data, and basically NO frills. The only improvements
over 3rd MIX are Maniac Double mode (if you can call it an improvement!),
Diet Mode's new alternate modes and a flashier edit data engine. But only
slightly flashier. For your interest, here's the song list:
Reminder to self: unfinished and unverified...
After The Game Of Love
Boom Boom Dollar
Butterfly
Brilliant 2U
Dam Dariam
Drop The Bomb
Have You Never Been Mellow
I Believe In Miracles
If You Were Here
Get Up'N Move
Kung-Fu fighting
La Senorita
Let's Get Down
Little Bitch
Make It Better
My Fire
Paranoia
Paranoia MAX
Put Your Faith In Me
Silent Hill
Stomp To My Beat
That's The Way (I Like It)
Wonderland
Because of the song list, it's also the game most similar to the original
US/UK version of DDR/Dancing Stage!
3.8 Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX
----------------------------------
Like 3rd MIX, the first thing to note is for PAL users only: The steps will
be out of sync with the music yet again. The code to fix this is in the
Gameshark section along with the modchip protection removal codes.
For changes from 3rd MIX to 4th MIX, check the arcade info. The first thing
to note is the differences from the arcade version and 3rd MIX PSX's unique
additions, including the many bugs:
* The 7 or so DDR Solo 2000 tier songs have been removed (Drop Out, Paranoia
Evolution, Hysteria, Let The Beat Hit 'em!, Super Star, Can't Stop Fallin'
In Love, and Wild Rush). Also, the 7 or so Korean songs from 3rd MIX Plus
are not in this.
* 1 4th MIX Plus song was added along with about 5 all-new songs, including
a new mix of Orion.78.
* Link Data for use with 4th MIX Arcade and 5th MIX Arcade can be generated.
You can also fiddle around with both too.
* All Music mode and Event Mode are enabled/disabled in Game Options.
* 'Solo Mode' is added, which puts the game on 6 panel mode (like the Solo
arcade version of 4th MIX). Only one version of the game exists with both
Solo and normal modes in it
* Like 4th MIX Plus, 'Ninzaburo' is now known as 'Furuhata's Theme'. (as
Ninzaburo is the name of the show the song is from)
* The 3 songs not found in 3rd MIX - Follow The Sun ~90 in The Shade Mix~,
It Only Takes a Minute ~Extended Remix~ and Xanadu, are in this game.
* Song Categories have changed drastically.
* Currently, no option to switch discs with older DDRs seems to exist.
* No 'User Support' option seems to exist. (ie, you cannot use 4th MIX to
get all the goodies in 3rd MIX)
* 'Challenge Mode', which is like 'Training' in 3rd MIX and Best Hits in
that there are 3 initial modes (Basic, Trick, Maniac) with 10 challenges
each, but obviously it's more than just a tutorial. Tasks might include
getting an A (formerly SS) on the song, or not using the up arrow. You
have to unlock this feature by playing a small number of times.
* A Pocketstation feature is included for 4th MIX arcade. It's that junky
mailbox program from 3rd MIX again by the looks of it...yes, it edits 4th
MIX Arcade NS Order. But it's cumbersome and it sucks and it looks like
a ZX Spectrum program (that's bad).
* Unlike DDR Best Hits, Lesson Mode has been redone from scratch. In other
words, it doesn't have the N.M.R. songs playing - which weren't in Best
Hits except for Lesson Mode :)
* The 'timing' option in Sound Options allows you to make the music faster
or slower than the steps. It does not change the actual speed of the music
or allow you to get more perfects.
* The announcer no longer says "I can see a dream in your dance. I can see
tomorrow in your dance! We can call it, our hope!". I think Konami did the
same thing that Sega did with Daytona USA's corny lyrics - which are now
considered cult classics. Konami ruin all our fun! :(
* The announcer doesn't even say 'oh god! oh god!' when you get an AA (the
equivilent of SSS).
* Endless mode no longer lets you pick specific songs. You don't seem to be
able to set when the stage break appears, either. No frills endless mode,
I guess...
* BUG: If the CD skips, the game pauses briefly but the music doesn't - and
thus becomes desynchronized. This probably isn't isolated to PAL machines.
This only occurs occasionally, other times it'll pick right up again like
3rd MIX. The Game Shark unlock codes may cause this...
* BUG: The song 'Dancing All Alone' by Smile.dk appears to be a trial song
for 5th mix but appears in the normal setup with the following difficulties
(Basic/Trick/Maniac): 2/1/1 4 panel, 1/1/1 6 panel. Obviously it was never
supposed to be seen on Trick/Maniac. Much less a bug than Konami being
lazy coders yet again. (note: The steps are identical on all difficulties.
Try getting A's on all of them!) Info does say to play it on Basic Single/
Double only, but since when is that an excuse for poor programming?
* BUG: 6 panel mode does not always work in Challenge Node using a mat.
Challenge Mode seems to automatically enable the controller setup, even if
you pick that you have a mat and have Controller 1 off in options! This
bug may be fixable by trial and error, but nothing fixes it every time.
Very serious bug. Fix it by selecting you have a normal controller in
Challenge Mode, quit out of Challenge Mode, enter Challenge Mode again,
then select mat. This may only occur on copies of the game - this is
unverified as it doesn't occur 100% of the time.
* BUG: 'Danger' doesn't seem to appear on the screen, although an option
for it is in the graphics options menu - yet you still get booing, which
indicates it should be showing if switched on. This may be only occuring
on copies of the game too, and you may be able to fix it somehow - I think
'Danger!' only works with Event Mode off.
* BUG: Often the next stage won't load after it's selected. This bug appears
to be widespread and ISN'T caused by a GameShark unlock code as first
suspected (hence it was not mentioned earlier). Letting the game run a bit
seems to fix this problem sometimes. Save often...
* BUG: Sometimes scrolling through the songs really fast causes some of the
banners to flicker. This is probably just a sprite overload. Konami are
famous for that (remember Gradius 3? :P). This seems completely random.
It seems to be caused by pressing twice in the same direction too fast.
The cause is undetermined, though!
* BUG: In some versions, any edit data for Leadin Cyber has invisible
arrows. Even if you get a full combo, you always get 23 misses at the end.
This bug appears to affect originals and copies. (thanks to H.Edward from
RTF for this)
* BUG: In some versions, any edit data for Era(nostalmix) with twelfth beat
steps in places where the speed changes, the song automatically clears.
(thanks again to H.Edward from RTF for this)
* BUG: Sometimes the Internet Ranking password won't show after a stage has
been beaten when it should (ie if you get a max combo). This appears to
happen most often on Love Again Tonight. Once again, it doesn't affect all
versions and isn't isolated to pirated copies of the game only. (thanks to
H.Edward from RTF again :P)
* BUG: In Solo Mode, using 4 Panels, the 4 controller buttons are enabled
no matter how many times you switch Controller 1/2 on and off again.
* BUG: Shuffle does not appear to randomize properly. Out of 10 turns of
Hypnotic Crisis Maniac, it had the same shuffle pattern (beginning with
L-U D-U, - indicating a quarter beat). Note the song was deliberately
failed most of the time but passed once and it still happened. This was
tested on multiple songs on multiple copies and it definately isn't just
mine.
Here's some tips, too:
* Secret songs are unlocked every 5 songs, including the following non-4th
MIX songs:
5 songs SYNCHRONIZED LOVE (Red Monster Hyper Mix)
10 songs Challenge Mode
15 songs DANCING ALL ALONE
20 songs HERO (HAPPY GRANDALE MIX)
25 songs DAM DARIAM (KCP MIX)
30 songs IF YOU WERE HERE (B4 ZA BEAT MIX)
35 songs Never let you down
40 songs Share My Love
45 songs .59
50 songs era(nostalmix)
55 songs Let's talk it over
60 songs Make Your Move
65 songs GROOVE
70 songs Don't Stop! (AMD 2nd MIX)
75 songs Get me in your sight (AMD CANCUN MIX)
80 songs Holic
85 songs LEADING CYBER
90 songs Midnite Blaze
95 songs ORION.78 (civilization mix)
100 songs Endless Mode
Total number of songs: 54 (this is confirmed to be all their is!)
(source: KCET)
* Challenge Mode doesn't unlock any songs unless you haven't unlocked them
all already, in which case it unlocks them all.
* Endless mode can be unlocked by letting the demo loop! At least, that's
what I did and that's what I got! (Konami says it's unlocked by playing
100 songs, but I got this whilst watching the demo, honest! Another bug?)
* Info on Arcade Link can be gotten by saving the game about 10 times.
* Xanadu and Follow The Song were among songs which, in 4th MIX Plus, had
new, harder official '4th MIX Plus' edit data. The edit data is in 4th
MIX PSX and replaces the original Maniac data...
* Enabling All Music mode and disabling Event Mode allows you to get an
alternative ending for the game, which plays "Let the beat hit 'em! -
Classic R&B Style", a song now in Extra MIX (AKA bmIIdx version, or
something like that)
* You can get the other steps for Dancing All Alone by playing 5th MIX. At
least that's how it sounds on Konami's site...obviously, you need a memory
card for this.
* To get an Internet Ranking password for Endless mode, play with Break Stage
turned off, Little mode turned off and get 100,000,000 points or more (note
the score multiplier is different in this, which means you have to last
for a while to get this high)
Essentially, this game is as accurate a conversion as 3rd MIX was - but that
is one of the biggest problems, because it ISN'T 4th MIX arcade. Obviously
the missing 3rd MIX songs are...er...found again, so that's a bonus. However
this has NO append mode. This is probably because of Extra MIX, or because
game players would expect too much in the append mode - ie Maniac Double AND
Solo Mode (This would take up a lot of memory...here's the math: 1 edit data
save block =8kb, 4 new sets of steps per song x 56 for 3rd MIX, gives
you 1.792mb, which is most of the PSX's RAM. Sorry if I'm wrong but I suck
at math). Actually, it's most likely because Konami were too lazy (as the
amount of bugs shows). Still, even though it's smaller overall than 3rd MIX,
it has more new songs and the total number of songs is only 3 less than 3rd
MIX had. This game is ideal for beginners as it's basically a lot easier
than 3rd MIX was. Intermediate level players will probably also find that
they'll be able to progress to harder songs easier with 4th MIX, but any
advanced players will be a little disappointed here. None of the songs offer
any real long-term challenge, except maybe Leading Cyber. Challenge mode
does add an interesting new bit of variety in gameplay and is addictive yet
frustrating.
One big, and I mean BIG problem is the song categories. By default, you have
the usual number of categories from the arcade (about 8 or so), except they
are way different, some misspelt ('veriety'), and most of all, almost
empty. One category had 9 songs in it! Why bother? Even Konami Original's
shrunk waaaaay down. Now, granted, their is an all music mode with about 35
songs to start with...but the problem is, the menus all run at high res. And
this is technically a menu. You are presented with a 3rd MIX style carousel -
except it's almost microscopic! You may have to get closer to the screen to
see the titles. Also, the background for this is a very ugly...black. Yep,
no background. Honestly, Konami, what were you thinking? Nothing? All Music
mode just plain sucks. Link mode is still here, and
Overall, although DDR 4th MIX is excellent as far as conversions go, it's
just too much of a straight conversion. It's missing a lot. Only about 3/4
of the CD is used, so obviously the Solo 2000 and Korean songs weren't
included for another reason...also, if Konami actually PLAYTESTED the @#$(&*!
game, they would have found the bugs, as they're OBVIOUS. They've obviously
just been too lazy to even debug their game. If the arcade machine were as
buggy as this, I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot barge pole.
Other Info:
Challenge Mode has some of the instructions in Japanese. Song, 4/6 panels
and which sections/modes can be viewed on the right side of the screen.
The bottom of the screen gives more specific info. Here's what I've found
so far (C=Challenge, PA=Perfect Attack (perfect/greats only):
PRACTICE:
C1: No misses allowed
C2: PA
C3: PA
C4: End the song with the energy bar maxed out, starts empty
C5: Must score over 1 500 000 points - doesn't have to be in 1 combo
C6: Must get more 50% or more perfects (easy - 25% is average for most
players anyway, and I usually get 10% or less myself)
C7: PA
C8: PA
C9: PA. Note the steps are different to normal. Use a controller to save
time if you suck too much...but it's a really good way to get good at
6 button mode, albeit VERY annoying...
C10: Score must not exceed 1 million points, max combo must be over 50. Best
way to do this is get one 51 combo then keep combos below 8 or so for
the duration of the song - 51 combo will bring you to about 400k, then
for the rest of the song try to get as many goods as you can - anytime
you step a bit off it'll alternate between boo's and perfect/greats...
which will keep your energy high.
BASIC
C1: PA. The 6 greyed out arrows up the top are not in this one, so read
the Perfect Attack hints here in this FAQ if you have problems!
C2: No jumps allowed. No other Boos/Misses allowed.
C3: PA. Hidden mode. All half steps, but all in the same direction. Just
be glad you only have to do the EASIEST part of the song...I've never
seen anyone break the combo here in the arcade.
C4: Combo must never go over 10.
C5: No up or down steps allowed. No other boos/misses allowed. Diagonals
don't count as up steps.
C6: Steps for Baby Baby Gimme Your Love/Trick, music is Shooting Star.
You can only get one good/boo/miss.
C7: Keep your energy bar below halfway. There's another requirement too,
but I dunno what it is.
C8: You must get 50 or more Perfects. (more or less the same concept as
Perfect Attack) Only 62 steps in the song, though...very tough.
C9: Score must end between 3 million and 3.1 million. Work your score up to
2.9 million or so, then break the combo immediately and concentrate on
getting goods, until you know the last few steps are coming up - by
then your score should be nearly 3 million, so just balance it out.
C10: Energy bar must be reaally low - no more than the first bar filled.
Less seems to be ok.
TRICK:
C1: Do not do any jumps. Greyed out arrows up the top are invisible. All
non-jumps must be good/great/perfect!
C2: Only do jumps. All jumps must be perfect/great. Hidden mode enabled!
Still fairly hard! Tap to the beat in the middle if you have problems.
Keep your feet together when idle! See C1.
C3: Pass with full combo (only first 8 bits of the song tho)
C4: Grey arrows up the top are missing. Must get 70% Perfect or better.
This normally is fairly easy, but Sudden mode is on! Any less than 50
or so is ok...
C5: Music is different to steps (Shake Your Booty). 1 good allowed, no
boos or misses allowed. Beware because the BPM is slightly different
between the songs...only slightly...
C6: Must get 30 combo or greater. Must not get over 50% energy bar. To pass
this, allow yourself to ALMOST fail first, then try to get a few greats
to begin with, then just either freestyle or play properly. DO NOT try
to get too many greats for too long, or you'll get a good and mess it
up. If you do it right, you'll barely scrape a 30 combo before you get
50% energy. Then allow your energy to drop and play like an idiot for
the rest of the challenge.
C7: Pass with a full combo. Start with right foot.
C8: All perfects required! 31 steps total.
C9: Full combo needed, but the song is in stealth mode! All steps are up
except for a jump in the middle (which you'll know once you miss it,
or you could just do C8...
C10: Never step up (up-left and up-right okay). Every other step must be
good/great/perfect! Very confusing!
MANIAC:
C1: Clear the sections with a max combo. You also have two bars of the
song after it speeds up, so be careful!
C2: Pass the song. The catch is, your life bar doesn't recover...
C3: Clear the skipping section with a Max Combo.
---
C10: Clear the section. Using original edit data that basically goes in a
L-D-U-R-D-U-repeat pattern. Afronova facing forward, basically. Note
the pattern does not change when it speeds up. You need a max combo.
(NB: This section will be updated a lot next time)
3.9 Dance Dance Revolution Extra MIX
------------------------------------
The game is now out. Here are some small details on it:
* As far as I can tell, every Solo Bass MIX/Solo 2000 song is included.
This includes Drop Out, Paranoia Evolution and so on from 4th MIX and
Celebrate Nite and Sexy Planet from 4th MIX Plus (even though they were
in DS feat TKD already).
* The 'original' version of Together & Forever by Captain Jack and I'm Alive
by Cut & Move (also the original) are hidden songs. The reason for this is
probably lack of original content for secret songs so soon after 4th MIX...
* Noticably absent from the 4th MIX Plus lineup is Petit Love. Rumors say
that Smile (smile.dk) do not want their songs in DDR anymore. Of course,
we all heard this rumor back when 3rd MIX came out, didn't we? And remember
the Xanadu one about them being unhappy with their mix?
* A suprisingly large list of 5th MIX songs included. Dive is the first song
unlocked, and other songs include Remember You (NM feat. Sunny - the
'artists' (ie Naoki Maeda) who did Higher in 4th MIX), Broken My Heart
(Naoki song from Beatmania again), and Afronova Primeval (which appears to
be easier than the original on every difficulty. Gee! I am so suprised!)
* Konami have included a 'Data Bank' choc-a-bloc full of DDR edit data which
you can save to your memory card and play in old mixes - and presumedly
there's some for Extra MIX as well. This feature WAS in 4th MIX, and was
removed. The graphics are still there...I'll try to find out if the code
is as well when I get the chance...
* Challenge mode is back.
* Lesson mode was apparently gone according to Konami, but appears to be in
the game. I may have mistranslated...sorry! All the same, something is
amiss: Lesson 1 is 20, November. Lesson 2 is Higher. Lesson 3 is Baby Baby
Gimme Your Love. None of these are in Extra MIX...and why Lesson 1 was
replaced with 20, November is beyond me...
* For DDR purists, the graphics are redesigned (not vastly new though) and
more importantly, the song categories are more faithful to arcade
incarnations of DDR (DDR Solo Bass MIX, DDR Solo 2000, DDR 4th MIX Plus to
name but three). Also, most of the sounds are from Solo Bass/2000, which
does include the female nurse announcer. The intro movies are from both the
Solo games.
* The Super Star banner is now the one from Solo 2000, not 4th MIX and
its sequels. The background is still the 4th MIX version, though (it has
text). Also, Wild Rush's preview sound plays from the second last section
instead of the very last section.
* The I'm Alive (Cut 'n' Move) banner and background have changed completely;
originally they featured the Playmobil type figure thingies which pop up
at various intervals in songs like 1,2,3,4,007 and Saint Goes Marching
(Remix) on 4th MIX. It now features cartoonish drawings. The drawings are
wearing the same clothing the figurines were in the original.
* The background animations in various songs are changed. For example, in
Drop Out in the arcade the background animations were of a mechanical theme
mostly featuring cogs and gears moving. In Extra MIX, it features the
missile things (as seen in One Two (Little Bitch)), and the jumping men
(as seen in Holic).
* The DanceMania promotion is no longer a video file like 4th MIX - it now
uses the one from Best Hits, with more up-to-date CD's shown and the song
played is now "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing (Planet Lution Mix)".
* Although the space is far from 100% utilized again, it's slightly better
used. Oh, and you have to do more than just 100 songs to get all the
secrets this time!
* If the game is completed in Main Mode, the ending features a Be For U
video (which is yet more shameless self promotion really, something this
game has way too much of). In Link Mode, you're rewarded with a nice
starfield background with DDR arrows instead of stars, and a new mix of
AM-3P! Hopefully this will be in 5th MIX Plus!
* No Korean songs, as I expected.
Here is the list of bugs/flaws found to date:
* Let the beat hit 'em! & Let the beat hit 'em! (BMIIDX version) have
identical steps. This would be ok if the music followed the same basic
pattern, or was faster. I'd assume that this was due to lack of time, only
that the inclusion of the BMIIdx version and Classic R&B Style was
announced about a month ago...and I managed to make edit data for it in
15 minutes.
* BUG: Wild Rush edit data doesn't seem to function properly. Some
edit data I made on PSX works fine on PSX was massively desynched for large
portions of the song on 4th MIX arcade. This problem has also been reported
in Japan, so I am assuming that it is not specific to 4th MIX machines. To
fix it, after you have finished making your edit, move everything 1 bar up.
For example, my edit, GG-2DIE4, starts at block 3. If I move it all up to
start at block 2, it will be out of time on PSX, but perfectly times in
the arcade!
Other songs also may be affected by this, so be careful!
* FLAW: 5th MIX songs only use the normal 4 panels in 6 panel mode. The steps
are ranked one foot less than they are normally because of this (why?).
Also, Solo songs (not Solo tier ones - ie the ones in 4th/4th Plus) do not
have double steps. Trying these will result in getting the steps on one
side only. Any song which is not supported in the mode you are in is
highlighted purple.
Some undocumented things:
* In the Data Bank, data entitled 'From VM007' is from the Dreamcast version
of 2nd MIX. 'PF-' data is the performance ('pafo') data which was in the
Dreamcast version, as well as all arcade machines from 3rd MIX onwards.
(Japanese and Korean editions only) 'KCET' signifies the data first appears
in Extra MIX. The 'Challenge' data might also be that, however there is
a chance it's in 5th MIX as well.
3.10 Dance Dance Revolution 5th MIX
-----------------------------------
As usual, most of the information from the arcade still stands. Here's some
of the changes:
* Like the arcade, your top ranking and scores for songs are displayed on the
song select screen, however both players use the one memory card and one
set of scores only.
* Event Mode allows you to choose songs freely, even long versions, and all
songs take up one stage only. This is in the arcade version of the game as
well, but I'm afraid that's a secret!
* As well as the hidden Naoki and N.M.R characters from the arcade version,
there are also hidden U1-ASAMI and 2MB characters (Naoki and N.M.R being
the two main arcade music arrangers, U1-ASAMI and 2MB being the two main
home version music arrangers). They're not very good, though.
* The difficulty is toned down somewhat - more specifically, the game is less
accurate than previous mixes with step accuracy and it's easier to get an
AAA (all perfects) than before. This is because in the arcade, it's way
harder to get perfects - for Perfect Attack competitions, no less. As
nobody really has the right to run comps like that on PSX, the difficulty
was altered with somewhat disasterous results.
* The Data Bank is back - this time, Konami asked every DDRer in Japan to
send in their edits. A lot of them did (I don't recognise any names though)
and Konami didn't waste any space - there are over 3,700 individual edits!
Some of the programmers did some too, they get unlocked when you get some
of the new songs (a comment on one of Naoki's: "MUSIC IS MY LIFE")
* The Data Bank is now sorted into 8 sections (date order, from before Extra
MIX's release to the closing date) and a 9th 'Best' section. Favourite
Edits are marked with a shimmering effect (there are literally hundreds of
edits for Dynamite Rave, B4U, Dead End, the Paranoia's, era and Drop Out!)
* There is a gallery featuring various DDR Art (scrolling backgrounds, reject
or beta backgrounds, DDR merchandise from comps and screencaps from the
FMV's of the first 4 games, as well as the 12 original gallery pics from
3rd MIX)
* New songs (and later, features) are unlocked every 5 stages passed.
* Hidden songs are yellow, hidden new songs are blue (in the arcade, older
songs are blue). The Beatmania tier hidden ones are unlocked in arcade
(difficulty/basic) order (Abyss first, Electro Tuned last)
* Petit Love is not in the game.
* DDRMAX sample songs only have one difficulty. Like 4th MIX, you're just
not supposed to pick them on lower difficulties but you can if you like!
Note that every new 5th MIX PSX song has been announced to be in DDRMAX now
(but it may be untrue).
* Most of the introduction sequence (note: no FMV still) is windowed.
* Edit Data use/loading has to be turned on or off (like 3rd MIX). It's off
by default (like 3rd MIX).
* The Edit menu itself has been changed again cosmetically but still is
functionally the same as it has been since Best Hits or so. Both this and
training do NOT have song 'banners' like previous MIXes - just pictures of
the titles from the selection menus.
* Songs are scrolled through by pressing left/right, difficulty is changed
like 3rd MIX (U-U or D-D) and edit data is selected by pressing X (and not
holding it!). Song is changed by pressing start (again, don't hold it!).
Songs can be sorted in normal (difficulty) order, alphanumeric, BPM or
Player's Best (and it gets it right! Sana Morette Ne Ente and Absolute at
the top, Oops! I did it Again and Never Ending Story at the bottom!)
* Unlike Extra MIX, there's no damn Be For U promotional junk! Well, there's
some. But you unlock it with a song as well, so that's alright.
* After a long time, a 'Total Score' item will unlock in Information. The
pre-requisite is unknown, but it isn't points (I got it at about 1.9
billion points)
* The only thing unlocked by playing many times is songs and the 2 sets of
hidden characters. No modes, info, features or gallery items will be
unlocked.
* Records notes the number of times you pass a song. Player's Best notes the
number of times you've played a song regardless of if you fail or do edit
data or not. (on mine, Sana Morette Ne Ente is #1 at 6 plays but I aborted
it umpteen times, Insertion is #2 with 4 plays but I did edits and aborted
it many times, and Absolute is #3 at 6 plays, but I usually do edits with
that...Mr.T.(Take Me Higher) is #4 with 5 plays, which I also use edit data
a lot on)
* Once you have all A's or better on a difficulty, an indicator of how many
you have for that difficulty/mode in total appears in Information.
GALLERY
* There are 228 items in all (no extra ones). The last 5 are Be For U pics
(Konami are very predictable!)
* As I said, Konami are very predicatble. To unlock the last 5 pics, move
the cursor over #224 (even though you haven't got it) and press Up, Up,
Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, X (cancels out), O (returns to the
screen and makes a coin insert sound). This unlocks all 5 pics. For those
of you who don't know, UUDDLRLRBA was the old 'Konami Code' frequently used
on Konami's NES games, sometimes on SNES games and very rarely since. It
probably originated in the NES version of Gradius.
* Gallery art usually seems to be unlocked purely randomly. I've tried
getting AA's and AAA's, finishing certain numbers of stages, etc - and then
I did one game where I tried out an edit, and passed rather poorly, and got
several at once! You definately do not get them for doing certain numbers
of stages. You even can get pics (more than one) by failing!
* If you get an AAA, when you save you will get 3 new pics.
* The Gallery items unlocked are random.
* For the record, I think some of these gallery items are about as drug
inspired as the Guitar Freaks/Drummania animations.
INFORMATION
* There are 47 categories in the information menu.
* 6 of the categories are for your total grades (unlocked by getting an A or
better in that difficulty/play mode). A 7th is unlocked when you have A's
or better in all difficulties.
* If you get an AAA, you get another one.
* If you pass training, you get another one.
* There are a second set of Be For U pics - 4 categories, with identical pics
to the ones which are unlocked normally.
* One is unlocked by completing the gallery.
* At about 180 million points a total score category is unlocked.
* Other similar categories are most used characters, most used play mode,
most used difficulty.
SCORE MULTIPLIER
* The bonus given for songs is larger on lower stages - eg, an AAA on Nori
Nori Nori/Basic is 30,490,105 on the 3rd Stage and 15,490,105 on the 4th
(final) Stage. (this needs further investigation)
BUGS
* Sometimes the YES/NO options seem to disappear from menus.
* See the Difficulty note in the version changes - it's a sort-of bug.
* Like 4th MIX and Extra MIX, the music skips like hell. I can full combo
Sana Morette Ne Ente 90% of the time in the arcade, but have not managed
at all yet on PSX as slower songs skip worst!
* The edit data indicators to the left of the song banner/background on the
song select screen (the 4 dots) do not light up if there is edit data
present.
* Like 4th MIX, 'DANGER' never appears on the screen when you're failing, and
it doesn't flash.
* 'GAME OVER' doesn't appear on the demo, thus defeating the purpose of the
big black borders (to improve framerate as the GAME OVER object is
transparent)
3.11 Extracting Stuff From DDR CD's
-----------------------------------
Yes, the DDR CD's have many wonderful things for you to extract! Go to this
site for starters:
http://niigata.cool.ne.jp/r7038/ddr/ddr3_cd.htm
It lists (in Japanese) which programs rip what out of whatever. For example,
Obviously XaPlay plays the CD-XA Audio in XA.STR (everyone has probably
tried this). All you'll find is shorts (song previews), so it's not too
useful. This info is specific to DDR 3rd MIX, however most of it is
applicable to older mixes as well (as well as Best Hits, which uses the same
engine as 3rd MIX). Don't bother trying to use these programs on 4th MIX if
you have a pirated copy cos' the files are hidden anyway, and it serves you
right :P
READ_DT.BIN stores the graphics. Yu-ri is a nice extractor of these. All the
backgrounds can be extracted, and I think some memory card icons too or some
junk like that. Good for windows backgrounds but little else. Note that ALL
the removed 3rd MIX arcade songs from 3rd MIX PSX have backgrounds on the CD.
Of course, there's no music...(NB: This program did not work on 4th MIX or
Extra MIX!)
STR.BIN holds all the audio. This includes music, sound effects and the
announcer that you love to hate. If you click on the link you'll find two
files. thv is 4 or so EXE files which are to be run in DOS. Each has a
specific purpose. There's a converter/batch file on the link below. Beware
though because extracting these will take up several gigs of space on your
hard drive!
3.12 Pocketstation Guide
------------------------
DDR seems to be one of the main reasons Pocketstations sell in Japan. That's
what I figure cos' when I looked up 'Pocketstation game' in Google I mostly
found DDR stuff. So if you've bought one (I got mine from www.lik-sang.com
but that's the only place I knew that sold 'em! So don't ask!), you'll
probably find it hard to figure it out cos' the manual is in Japanese. Well,
not all that hard to figure out. But there's a few things you should know:
* Obvious enough: Remove the tab from the battery cover when you first want
to use it. This is so it doesn't turn on accidentally before purchased!
* The reset button is under the control panel, right next to the big button
at the back. Push it with a pin or something.
* Pushing the enter button (the one with the hard to see <- on it) on the
main menu brings up some other stuff.
* The Pocketstation goes into 'sleep' mode after a minute. Push enter to
restart it on the last screen you were on.
* Pushing the up button on the first menu alters the volume level
(mute/low/high).
* Holding the down button on the first menu lets you view the memory card
icons. In the lower right of this first menu, you can see the second
counter.
* Obviously, the date scrolls along the top of the second menu. Hold up to
set the time/date again. Hold down to set the alarm.
* Push left or right to select mini games (if available).
* The lifespan of the battery is 1-2 months of moderate usage. It uses the
lithium battery type 'CR-2032'. The supplied battery has a PSX logo on it!
3.12.1 DDR 4th MIX NS Order Editor
----------------------------------
First of all, this program is available at www.nissie.com under 'PK dev'.
Secondly, I didn't make it. Finally, what the program is used for is to
change the order of your nonstop courses in 4th MIX Arcade. This means you
don't have to run home and do it, basically. Also if your machine doesn't
have the beatmania songs unlocked you can use this to play them. It also has
a 'roulette' feature which randomizes all the NS Order songs (and their
settings - make sure you turn stealth off! ;P), an Internet Ranking score
viewer, and if you push left when selecting a song, you can view the
song info. For example, for La Senorita Virtual:
,--------.
| 1-5 BC | 1-5 = Order #, Stage. BC = Song ID# (HEX). Ignore this!
|La Senor| (Song title scrolls (La Senorita Virtual))
| SP:788 | SP = Single Play. Difficulty on Basic/Trick/Maniac mode.
| DP:678 | DP = Double Play. Difficulty on Basic/Trick/Maniac Double mode.
|BPM: 181| BPM = Beats Per Minute (obviously).
`--------'
That's all you really need to know. It's entirely in English and you don't
need a manual.
3.12.2 DDR 2nd MIX Edit Player
------------------------------
First of all, I'm not sure of this program's homepage location, but it's not
too hard to find. I think it's on http://www.psxsaves.f2s.com/ incorrectly
listed as DDR itself...
This program allows you to view edit data on your Pocketstation. This can be
done two ways: either viewing it, which shows all the individual sections,
or by 'playing' it, where the Pocketstation automatically plays the edit data
as if it were a DDR machine itself. Note that you cannot control this - its
purpose is similar to that of training mode; to show you the edit data at
the real speed of the song (it works with 3rd MIX and 4th MIX edit data too!)
as well as to help you identify the beats, which it does so by making a dull
'thud' and flashing the LED at you.
Controlling the Edit Player is simple - After starting it, it defaults to
the first edit data block and to 'play' mode. Note that if you have 3rd MIX
to 4th MIX link data on the Pocketstation, it'll also be listed as 'link4to3'
but loading it will crash the Pocketstation, requiring you to reset it and
thus set all the dates again! Very nasty bug. It won't damage your
Pocketstation, but it makes lots of loud and horrible screeching noises and
flashes the LED violently. It probably wears your batteries out. If this
happens, reset ASAP to save your batteries.
4 . 0 P h y s i c s , E r g o n o m i c s a n d G e n e r a l
D D R A d v i c e
_____________________________________________________________________
First of all, the arcade version and the console versions require different
tactics. The mat is touch sensitive and the platform in the arcade is
pressure sensitive! Secondly, your main enemies in DDR are physics and
endurance. Sometimes it's physically impossible to reach the next step if
your position is wrong. Sometimes you have to balance your weight in a jump
so that you land with a certain foot first. And so on. Endurance is important
because if you wear out, there is a chance you could collapse if you are in
ill health. If you've just had flu, give yourself 5 days to recover. If
you have food poisoning, don't play! After suffering 95% or so loss of my
vision, getting heavy breathing, overheating and almost collapsing, I should
know. If you feel even slightly ill or uncomfortable, don't attempt to play
because even the slightest illness will affect you severely - even at home.
Also note that in the arcade, you have another enemy to contend with:
Blisters. It is VERY common to get blisters since you wear shoes and socks
usually. If you play for extremely long periods (5+ hours), these WILL burst.
It doesn't even take that long sometimes...beware of blood blisters! I
personally suggest that you live with 'em. They don't hurt that much. Think
of them as proof of your endurance. But if you REALLY find them painful or
ugly...wear thick, smooth socks. The less friction, the less blistering.
(socks like these still will make old blisters from harsher socks swell.)
Also the best shoes to wear are definately sandshoes or sneakers. You need
thin-feeling shoes. I recommend having ones with minimal tread, myself, but
a lot of people hurt themselves like this. A compromise might be to get some
smart business type black leather shoes with no fancy treads but plenty of
grip. Boots don't work - they have so much cushioning in their soles, that
you wear yourself out far too quickly in an effort to actually make the
steps! That is IF you actually use enough pressure to depress the button!
One problem with the console versions is that the mat slips. Most people
don't want to ruin their floor by sticking the mats down. If you really hate
it, get some rubber foam grip from your local kitchen needs shop or some
cheap 2 dollar shop if they sell it. But it doesn't really matter. If it
slides...step lighter. In fact, step lightly as you can and if you're doing
hard songs, take small steps. Bigger steps wear you out and it's a lot
harder.
One last note: The ergonomics rules for the arcade can basically be reversed
for at home. DON'T wear minimal tread light shoes. They're good for being
light on the feet, sure...but your mat will slide like all hell has broken
loose! Even with the forementioned grips! Big, solid boots are better. Try
to find something manouverable, but heavy enough. Sheepskin boots work
wonders in comparison to shoes - and since there's no laces on 'em, you can
keep them near your mat and put them on whenever you feel like playing
without wasting any time! Don't try to do Catastrophic or songs with many
rapid steps with socks, either - without the larger area that a shoe presses
down, you have to make bigger steps, not to mention you can't HEAR your
steps.
4.1 DDR Illness Guide
---------------------
I assure you that this section is not a joke. It's utterly serious. In fact,
all of these illnesses are pretty horrid. Don't laugh at them. Most people
will not know about these ailments until they get them, so that's why they're
here.
Also note that I am in no way a trained medical professional and this is
merely as accurate as gossip. In other words, it works for me but it might
not work for you!
BLISTERS
Symptoms: Sore feet consisting of localized pain in one particular area of
the foot, including toes and arches.
Affects: Most of your foot.
Occurance: Playing for 2-6 hours.
Diagnosis: Take off your shoes. Look at your feet. When playing DDR, blisters
generally appear on the sides of your feet, just on the inside
bottom half of your foot (barely up from your heel), on the
insides or your toes and on the area under your toes. Basically
they appear where your feet aren't firmly pressed into the ground
and of course, where the most friction is. The big toe and the
inside of your little toe are the most common places, I find.
Also see BLOOD BLISTERS, CALLOUSES and LARGE BLISTERS.
Treatment: Ignore them if you can. You probably won't notice them anyway.
Wearing smooth socks and comfortable shoes helps this, however
it won't eradicate the occurance of blisters altogether. One day
you'll get a big ugly callous where these blisters appear. If you
pop them, you could end up with some sort of infection, which
could be harmless or could be very very bad. Just ignore it,
blisters weren't made to be popped.
Vince Yim says:
For the most part, they should be left alone to heal by
themselves, but for blisters 1 inch in diameter or more, then
draining them is suggested (rather than _popping_ them). To do
so, sterilize the blistered area and a needle (rubbing alcohol is
ideal), and put a small hole on the side of the blister (pierce
only the top layer of skin). Gently press the blistered skin to
push the fluid towards the hole. DO NOT TEAR THE BLISTERED SKIN
OFF (unless it is extremely dirty...gently clean it with soap and
water otherwise). Apply antibiotic ointment (rubbing alcohol and
iodine actually kill off growing skin-cells, hence slowing down
the healing process). Apply a bandage the area.
If the blister has been opened, leave the skin attached, as it
will also act as a natural bandage. It will turn into a callous,
though.
BLOOD BLISTERS
Symptoms: Extreme pain in foot in centralized area. Sticky feeling in socks
or shoes.
Affects: Your feet again.
Occurance: Playing for 2-6 hours nonstop.
Diagnosis: Take off your shoes and look at your socks/shoes and feet. Look
for a smallish red mark where the pain is and, if it's recent,
blood may still be there.
Treatment: It's best to stop now. These occur rarely, but they occur. Playing
for long periods with no breaks seems to be the main cause,
followed by how much you play. The best treatment is to not touch
the blister or anything, but to just leave it as is.
BRUISING
Symptoms: Localised pain on a body part which occurs when touched.
Affects: Pretty much anywhere. Typically hands, knees, elbows or head.
Occurance: Hands bruised when arrow pads are literally slapped, or missed and
metal is accidentally slapped. Knees bruised when 'knee drop'
performance moves are performed incorrectly, esp. when the metal
triangle shaped part on each corner of each arrow is accidentally
contacted with. Head bruised when screen or buttons on cabinet
are headbutted too hard (as DDRers commonly crash forward onto
the perspex screen after finishing a song, esp. when exhausted).
Also may occur if a player accidentally trips off stage or gets
his/her fingers caught in the sharp groove between both stage
platform thingies.
Diagnosis: I think everyone knows how to diagnose a bruise. This is mostly
here in case you wonder how you got it!
Treatment: You might not want to bother treating it, but if you got a nasty
bruise somewhere, it can't hurt...honest!
Vince Yim says:
Ice is a common treatment after the initial onset to help reduce
swelling. Later on (about 2 days afterwards), apply heat (ie:
heating pad). Gently massaging the bruised area does help, at
least in my experience.
CALLOUSES
Symptoms: Large blisters on your feet. Tough patch of dead skin.
Affects: Mostly the toes, but can affect most of your foot. Affects the
same areas as Blisters. They don't hurt (unless disturbed), but
they do disfigure the surrounding area.
Occurance: When LARGE BLISTERS burst.
Diagnosis: Look at your feet (obviously). DDR Callouses are similar to most
Callouses, but they aren't always permanent. They're often just
flaps of dead skin - they appear when Large Blisters are popped
during play. Often the area near and under it is yellow.
Treatment: The best treatment is not getting them in the first place. Of
course, this isn't always possible. Either cut off the flap
carefully (it IS connected to live skin, so beware) or tear it
off carefully - preferrably in the shower, bath, or when your
feet are soaked. Dead tissue is easier to remove this way, like
soggy paper. If you leave it, it should fall off eventually. Much
of the dead tissue will remain, so that's what will happen
anyway.
Vince Yim says:
I do not recommend tearing them off, regardless of how wet the
skin is, as you mentioned, it is attached to living skin. I get
them a lot from weightlifting (mostly on my hands) and I find a
better alternative is to gently sand them off with a pumice stone
or a skin file (within reason, though...stop when it hurts!).
These are available at your local drug store...best to ask your
dermatologist. Keep your skin moist with skin moisturizer.
ENERGY DEPLETION
Symptoms: Faintness, loss of awareness. Lack of physical motivation to play
even if you want to. No strength. Able to do a song until one
becomes confused, starts stepping in a swaying, stunned kind of
motion, and generally feels unhealthy. A general feeling of loss
of energy.
Affects: The ability to play decently or comfortably.
Occurance: Usually but not strictly at home. Continuing to play could cause
GIDDINESS, or possibly even cause one to pass out.
Diagnosis: Either do an easy song or try to walk. If you feel a loss of
equilibrium or severe giddiness without dehydration, exhaustion,
excessive flatulence or any other similar condition, you have it.
Treatment: Sometimes, eating can help this, however this is not caused by
lack of eating - other things which can inflict this ailment on
you include nervousness (trying to get an SSS, maybe?). Because
there's no single cause, there seems to be no single cure. Of
course, rest helps everything. But do you really WANT to rest?
GIDDINESS
Symptoms: Partial loss of vision. Overheating. Extreme exhaustion.
Excessive flatulence (seriously). (Two or more of these symptoms
should pretty much be enough proof you have it) Dizziness.
Affects: You.
Occurance: Most commonly when weakened by an illness - eg common cold, flu,
diarrheoa, food poisoning. Usually occurs within the first 10
turns instead of STAMINA DEPLETION (A type).
Diagnosis: No diagnosis needed.
Treatment: Take a rest and drink lots of fluids. Go to the toilet if you
can - sitting there with your pants down will cool you down a
little. Otherwise, find a ledge or seat nearby (Driving games
are good to sit at. I recommend a Daytona USA 2 Cabinet or
Whack-a-Croc.) Rest for about 10 minutes. Note doing easy songs
will NOT help this and it will intensify still.
Vince Yim says:
In my experience, the symptoms you describe usually come about
from extremely low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). This sometimes
comes with nausea and cold sweats. Prevention is the best
solution: proper balanced diet and exercise (ie: going to the gym
regularly and staying away from fast food).
I say:
It's worth considering both the things above. I've heard of a few
other DDRers since I originally wrote this bit say, after a bout
of flu, that it 'came back' after going to the arcade...I'm no
doctor, but I imagine your immunity is still low after only just
recovering. Be careful. Play in moderation.
NOTE: This can vary in severity via a number of factors: How much you've
ate, what you've ate, how much you've drank and how recently it
was. Any illnesses you have or had within about 3 days of the
time when you play could hit you hard. If you haven't been to the
toilet to do a number two in the last few days, it increases the
chance of this occuring dramatically. If you haven't played the
game at the same or a similar venue on the same format in the
past few days, you're also more vulnerable. Generally if you've
eaten enough and drank enough and pooped enough, you'll be okay.
Good Food: * Healthy stuff
* McDonalds Nuggets
* KFC Nuggets
Okay Food: * 2 Minute Noodles
* Twix Bars
Bad Food: * McDonalds Sundae (especially Chocolate or Caramel)
* KFC Chicken
* Anything chocolately (except maybe the Twix Bars...dunno why,
maybe it's me!)
Basically, if you don't eat anything too greasy you'll live. Once
again, this ailment isn't a joke and it happens a lot.
Vince Yim says:
I was really alarmed by your placement of McDonalds products next
to "good food" (partly because I worked there when I was a
teenager). Maybe you're just used to it, but I find that anything
deep fried (especially McDonald's fries and nuggets) actually
slows me down.
Given the amount of physical exertion that comes into play with
DDR, one should approach it much like one would prepare for any
sort of sports or athletic activity (people tend to ignore this,
thinking it's like playing a game of Mortal Kombat). Proper
nutrition is essential. Nothing beats fresh fruit and fruit juice
for a quick boost of energy. If these are too inconvenient, bring
an energy bar and an energy drink (ie: Gatorade, powerade).
Stretch your muscles every regularly (this will also help avoid
muscle cramps).
NB: A chocolate bar is not the same thing as an energy bar.
Learn to tell the difference!
MUSCLE CRAMP
Symptoms: Not being able to lift legs properly. Not being able to walk.
Affects: Calves muscles, thigh muscles, chest muscles.
Occurance: Playing for 4+ hours without adequate breaks.
Diagnosis: For calf muscles, sit on the bar at the back of the platform on
the machine and lift your legs as far up as they will go. If you
have a cramp, you may fall off in intense pain. So try to fall
backwards. (note intense pain isn't always associated with this)
For thigh muscles, sit on a chair and untie your shoelaces
or something by bringing your feet up over you knee. You will
scream and start clutching your leg in pain if you have cramped
thighs.
For chest muscles, there is no easy diagnosis - this will most
likely afflict you when sitting down.
Treatment: No treatment except rest.
LARGE BLISTERS
Symptoms: Same as BLISTERS.
Affects: Typically the big toe, the pad of your foot immediately below it,
and the flesh immdiately above the heel.
Occurance: Playing for 4-9 hours.
Diagnosis: Look at your foot. LARGE BLISTERS are fairly larger than your
thumb.
Treatment: Same as BLISTERS. Beware, as if these burst, they will most likely
become CALLOUSES.
NERVE PINCH
Symptoms: Mild shaking or twitching when sitting, standing or lying down.
Affects: Whole body.
Occurance: Playing for 6+ hours without adequate breaks, or playing for 30
mins or more nonstop when still new to the game. The more
experienced you are at the game, the more resistance you seem to
have to this ailment.
Diagnosis: Hold out a limb and try to keep it still. In severe cases, you
could also try to lie down and you'd suffer from severe twitching.
Treatment: Get some sleep or at least take a decent sized break.
PNEUMOTHORAX (Collapsed Lung)
Symptoms: Extreme pain in one lung. Difficulty in breathing (when bending
over or lying down?). Inability to exhert yourself (ie play DDR).
Affects: The ability to play. Period.
Occurance: Seemingly random, and maybe not caused by DDR at all. These are
basically caused by coughing, or something like that - I'm no
doctor, but it seems to me that it is stress on the lung that is
the cause. There is no way to avoid this and it can affect healthy
people as much as unhealthy people. It usually strikes suddenly
with absolutely no forewarning.
Diagnosis: See a doctor. You'll probably require X-Rays. The symptoms I felt
personally along side the traditional ones were, one week prior
to the main attack, what felt like palpitations (loud heart beat,
like when one is nervous) and what felt like indigestion (I could
not burp). Once the pain had begun, I could not run - attempting
to do so gave me a feeling of something being inside my lung
and rattling about. In reality this was my lung itself I was
feeling! I also found myself generally clutching my heart for
no reason at all - although I doubt it is my heart that I was
clutching.
The main thing with this is don't take chances...don't continue
playing, don't wait 'til later, go see the doctor, or better yet,
go directly to hospital if you can. This can be sheer hell.
Treatment: In most cases, you will require bed rest for a week or so. If the
symptoms become severe, you may require hospitalization to get
your lung pumped. If you suspect you have this condition, see a
doctor immediately as it is quite serious! (in most cases, it
shouldn't become complicated. Early diagnosis helps a lot.)
(note: This may or may not be DDR related, but DDR is probably a
contributing factor to this and people should know these sorts of
things, right?)
Vince Yim says:
DROP EVERYTHING AND HAVE YOUR FRIEND TAKE YOU TO THE ER. This is a
potentially life threatening condition.
(nobody ever told me that when I went! in any case, don't take
risks, like I said...it's serious, and your body isn't a piece of
rubbish!)
STAMINA DEPLETION (A type)
Symptoms: Exhaustion. No strength remaining. Able to do a song for a while
before physically becoming unable to do it without experiencing
too much pain or simply cannot move legs fast enough.
Affects: The ability to move at a decent rate.
Occurance: Almost always at the arcade, or when one is wearing clothing and
footwear unsuited for DDR. Usually occurs within the first 10
turns.
Diagnosis: Attempting to do a song which is extremely challenging for your
skill level or which requires a lot of stamina (Dead End SSR is a
good example for a typical expert DDRer, or perhaps Paranoia KCET
for an intermediate level one) will result in you finding yourself
unable to reach the arrows quick enough towards the end, if not
giving up outright. Or perhaps you could just ask yourself...which
songs COULD you do? Could you do anything which requires a
reasonable amount of energy?
Treatment: There are several ways to treat this. The obvious way is to take
a break. Drinking lots of fluids (I prefer Coca Cola myself) helps
too, since you're sweating a lot and your throat is bound to be
dry (it's a sign!). If you don't wish to take a break, choose
songs which require little stamina. This FAQ also rates songs
on how much stamina they require (in my experience) - ones with
a negative stamina rating are the best to do. At the very least,
choose a neutral stamina rating song.
If you expect this, make sure you have a friend on standby who
can take over for a stage. :)
Vince Yim says:
You mentioned Coca-Cola as a good fluid replacement. I am more
prone to disagree because caffeine is actually a diuretic (makes
you whiz more often), meaning that you will be dehydrated that
much faster. While it may appear that you have more energy as a
result of downing a Coke, it is more the result of a quick boost
of sugar (20 teaspoons per can, you know) and the caffeine (by the
way, caffeine is addictive). On top of that, soda pop has a
tendency to leach nutrients and minerals from your body (ie:
calcium, the stuff that your bones are made of). Stick to real
fruit juice, plain old water (although the stuff coming out of the
tap has a tendency to taste really bad), or if all else fails, an
energy drink (but remember, Gatorade has a lot of sugar in it too)
(I think it's worth pointing out that the most popular DDRer drink
after Coke/Pepsi and mineral water/spring water seems to be
apple juice for some reason...not Gatorade/Lucozade...go figure)
STAMINA DEPLETION (B type)
Symptoms: Complete exhaustion. Pain through whole body.
Affects: The ability to play at all without severe pain.
Occurance: Typically in arcades after playing for many hours, or playing in
arcades and ignoring STAMINA DEPLETION (A type). Not too
uncommon in performance players or those who try to satisfy a
crowd.
Diagnosis: Try to do an easy song. Something with jumps in it, preferrably.
On 3rd MIX, try Holiday or on 2nd MIX, try Boys. If you find doing
the jumps especially causes a lot of pain, as well as steps in
general, you may have this. Generally, you'd rather not be
playing right at that moment either - even if you have 50 dollars
worth of tokens left.
Treatment: This is a sign to give up for the day. If you have excessive
injuries as well (bruising and blisters, for example) you may
want to take a days rest, too.
The following conditions were provided by Jonathan Verrall
(verrall(at)xaxix.com - and pardon the spam filter!). I edited the email
below slightly, of course...
------
Hi!
First of all, let me say that you've compiled an excellent FAQ. I'm Jon
Verrall, from (omitted just in case! All sorts of people I don't know come up
to me in the arcade since I first wrote this thing!), Canada; it was your FAQ
that kept me in the game, and I'm breaking into Maniac now.
However, I have some suggestions for your injury/illness section, if you
like.
MUSCLE CRAMPS
Treatment:
Muscle cramps are caused by a build-up of lactic acid in the muscles, which
naturally accumulates during exercise. To help flush out the lactic acid, you
need to make sure the circulation in the muscle is good. Massage the affected
area, or warm it (while warm baths aren't available at arcades, they are at
home). If you get a cramp in your foot, pull your toes towards your shin. You
can usually find a comfortable position for your leg if your cramp is in your
shin or thigh; keep it there, and move it a little to keep blood flowing.
NON-DDR SPECIFIC (BUT STILL APPLICABLE)
FLAT FEET
Symptoms: Pain when jumping up and down; pain when walking; aching incalf
muscles, can be debilitating. Apparent loss of endurance.
Affects: Your feet.
Occurance: Most often, you're born with it.
Diagnosis: No arch in the foot. This can be permanent (flat feet) or the arch
could collapse when weight is on the foot (flexible flat feet). If your
footprints in bare feet don't have a "curve" to them, you have flat feet. If
the bottom of your foot is universally dirty (and not just a part of it), you
have flat feet.
Treatment: Here's the deal: you're at a disadvantage, but you can overcome
it. Contact a podiatrist or an athletic specialist about getting orthotics
(if you need them)_an insert to wear in your shoes which prevent your foot
from falling all the way. It's important to develop endurance in your calfs,
which will take a beating. At home, you may find it easier to play barefeet,
but you may feel you need to keep your orthotics.
------
4.2 DDR Mat Review
------------------
Many third party mats are great. Some are not. As mats are very expensive,
it can be quite troublesome and very off-putting to find your $200 shipment
from Hong Kong is nothing better a plastic sheet. Below are some simple
reviews on various mats. If the maker makes more than one model, or several
models exist with the same name and one is bad and one is not, I will make
mention of that - this is not intended to defame the makers...but I can
honestly say that having a bad mat can be very upsetting. Note that bad mats
CAN be repaired rather simply...but only if you can be bothered and don't
mind the tacky look of a mat with electrical tape around where you cut it
open. A repair guide may feature in a future version of the FAQ if some
people care to send information on it. I may even try it myself to see how
good it works!
* Topway - (no name) - PSX
A simple but very well constructed mat. Has the two extra buttons not on the
Konami mat. Low slippage. Very durable. Mine lasted 11 months before it
started to malfunction. The surface may wrinkle a little through the first
few months. Most of the Playstation information in this FAQ was compiled
using these mats. Used to be sold at Lik-Sang but current availability is
unknown. Topway are a major manufacturer so I doubt they aren't being made.
* Homas - Dancing Street - PSX
Like the Topway mat, a very well constructed mat. Appears to look thinner
than most mats, but I think it's just the underside - it's quite see-through!
This may be bad in the future because something sharp could puncture it, but
it passed the performance and catastrphic tests with flying colours. The
quality is possibly as good as the Topway mat - only time will tell. Although
the box indicated it had a different design logo on the center part (the
front showed it with 'Dancing Street' on it, the back with 'Homas') the mat
is a duplicate design of the Konami one. It of course has the two buttons the
Konami one doesn't. This mat was purchased in Australia in a regular gaming
specialist shop and can be found in several of these in my local city's area
retailing for $59.95. Check http://quote.yahoo.com/ for current exchange
rates between the AUD and the USD.
UPDATE: The underside definately is thinner. It has massive rips in it!
I may have to tape it up soon...
* ? - Dancecast - Dreamcast
Unfortunately I lost the manufacturer of this one. It is a poor quality mat.
It is clearly a Playstation mat with the PSX plug cut off and a new DC
plug spliced onto it. Unfortunately it's wired poorly - select does not
operate the analog stick, as it does on the Konami mat (it's called the
Konami button on that, though). Up is Y. O is up. X is left. Left is square.
It operates fine during the game itself, but menus are hard to operate.
The biggest problem is the surface - on both mats I tried it had no 3rd, hard
layer which stops the good mats from slipping and bending and generally
being not flat. One mat wasn't so bad except if you tried to do triple
steps. I barely passed Paranoia with it. The other mat was so horrible,
it was like ice - it was baggier than an elephant! It was so horrible I
managed to get a D on Have You Never Been Mellow. This mat however is a riot
at parties now - drunks love to act like idiots on it. Still, it cost me
about $200 to get both mats and they weren't worth it. I recommend a
PSX mat and a converter - Select won't control the analog stick still, but
at least it works and it's got more than one purpose!
4.3 Physical vs. Mental
-----------------------
To the casual observer, DDR appears to be a game of endurance, reactions
and most of all, strength. It isn't. Here's an example: Me. I'm very light,
not strong, and in general, I look weak. However, when I first played the
game, I did the following:
- I saw the DDR machine and thought it looked like fun to play.
- Nobody was at the machine. For all I knew, nobody played the game. So I
put some money in.
- Chose the song ranked 'Simple' (Have You Never Been Mellow), noticing that
the number of feet indicated the difficulty.
- Immediately began to tap my feet to the beat between steps, realising
before starting. Also realised the aim was to push the appropriate step
when the arrow passed under the greyed out shadow arrow up the top - all
before the steps started.
- Passed the song, but had difficulty on the spin bits. I got a D overall.
- Chose 'Boom Boom Dollar' next. (The only 2 foot song in the initial Western
releases of the game).
- As a rule of thumb I always sucked at things where I had to alternate left
and right (this began with Don Flamenco in 'Punch-Out!' on the NES!). So I
failed because I lost my timing and position. Tried 'Butterfly' in hope
that it may be possible to skip BB$, but I failed.
- By chance, some people in an IRC channel I was on had played the game too
(and liked it). I was pointed towards a simulator. I practised the steps
by outputting the simulator to my TV. I had no mat, of course.
- Went back to the arcade and beat Boom Boom Dollar first go. Attempted
'Butterfly', which I had also practiced at home, but the simulator was out
of sync with the music and therefore, so was I! Took a while to beat it,
but I did.
- Next attempted 'My Fire'. Sucked in the arcade at it, but I noticed songs
were harder on the final stage. With that knowledge, I tried a simulator.
Came back to the arcade and beat it as my SECOND song (so I at least got
one go if I failed, of course). By now I had spent a whole week on the
game. (I stopped at 'My Fire' because by beating 4 songs, I could play the
game and get my FULL MONEYS WORTH, and use the songs I -could- beat to
guarantee I could learn the ones I could NOT.) Unfortunately, I wasn't
strong enough to continue and my legs were totally crippled. Limped all
around work for a week. I couldn't run or walk down or up stairs without
severe pain. Had a break, and came back in a week good as new - and
impervious to the pain which had ruined me before.
- One month later, I beat Paranoia. (to me, Paranoia is the 'rite of passage'
and if a DDRer can beat it, they have the potential to go all the way and
probably will. Anyone else is liable to give up after a while.
If you watch someone play first, note what they're doing. In fact, watch
everyone play, even if you're waaaay better than them. You learn tricks from
the least likely of people! Most good players get good by watching others!
The following are things I've observed people do on their first go. I know
some of these people, I don't know the rest. No names will be mentioned
(unless they request it!)
- A kid after watching me play decided the game was fun and after
contemplating it for a while, he decided to play. He picked a Korean song
ranked 3 feet and didn't even get one step right (even though the start was
easy enough). He was stepping on the steps too late. He had the right idea;
he picked the Korean song as it was the first thing that came up, not cause
he liked it. (DDR 3rd MIX Korean ver.)
- Same as above, but an adult female who picked 'Boys'. (DDR 2nd MIX)
- Same as above, but an adult male who picked 'Butterfly ~Upswing Mix~'.
Obviously a raver. (DDR 3rd MIX)
- Adult male, picked Have You Never Been Mellow but expected the buttons to
push themselves. Stood there, then realised, but didn't try to push the
buttons until they were already under the shadowed arrows up the top -
too late. (DDR)
- Same as above, but a kid. (two kids, two times each) One eventually
passed Have You Never Been Mellow. (DDR)
- Adult female repeatedly picked 'Dub-I-Dub' despite failing. Repeatedly.
Successfully beat 2-foot songs earlier. (DDR 3rd MIX, 2nd MIX mode)
- Two adult males picked Brilliant 2U. The one on the left stood still. I
saw him move his foot once. Slowly, at that. The other tried to get the
steps, and kept the game alive for about 16 seconds.
This is conclusive evidence that DDR is as much a mental game as it is a
physical game. Most of the people who make the boo-boos up the top probably
end up as Speed players - those who pick the Speed course in 4th MIX, those
who pick Turn Me On/Paranoia Rebirth/Dead End/Do It All Night/Boom Boom
Dollar K.O.G G3 Mix in 3rd MIX, those who had little to do in 2nd MIX after
they beat Paranoia Maniac because Make It Better ~So-Real Mix~ was (and is)
'impossible'. Some people can be both a 'Speed' player and a 'Technical'
player. In fact, most technical players can play speed style (I can but I
wear out soon enough). I also noticed the majority of 4th MIX players do
not play new songs - except sometimes the speedier versions of Hero, Dam
Dariam, and if they feel REALLY brave, If You Were Here. (I don't see why
that one is so dangerous to them!) They DO pick 'Drop Out', and DO pass,
but Drop Out is neither a speed song or a technical song in the normal
sense: It's physical AND mental. (most speedsters 'drop out' in the middle
part of the song with the single steps. Why this is, I don't know)
Also, don't bother complaining that there's no kids who are good at this
game. There are some, maybe not many, but with the release of DDR USA in the
arcades around America, it seems that its popularity _is_ growing among young
video game enthusiasts. Their skill level is no better or worse than the
average American adult (or an adult from any non-eastern country, for that
matter). Having grown up with video games myself, and, while we're on the
topic of kids and video games, knowing from first hand experience that
violence and things like that has no effect on your average person's
childhood or adulthood, (I played games where people got shot or their heads
chopped off, and we're talking 5-8 years before Mortal Kombat first outraged
parents around the world - And I was also 5-8 years old when this happened)
I would say the physical side of this game would be much more appealing to
kids than it would to adults (including their parents). With the outcries
from parents groups about games like Time Crisis because of the gun
controller (the gun actually does strengthen arm muscles fairly fast and of
course improves coordination, as many games do including DDR), and lots of
other physical video games which can cause injury (including Mario Party -
several kids have been hospitalized because some of the mini-games apparently
have worn holes into their palms. Having seen pictures of this, I must say
it looked very painful!), there's not many 'different' video games for kids
to try these days. Hype surrounds a lot of games (Nintendo seem to be the
main culprits here - Pokemon _is_ a good game, with several strategic
qualities, but Nintendo definately seems to entice kids into wanting all the
various different versions of the game simply to be better than their peers!)
and in Japan DDR is one of them (every 2nd arcade game is a clone now, and
Konami's defence with these games seems to be lawsuits, lack of cooperation
in other projects and general 'grey' tactics). The point is, kids love
playing games, kids love physical activity if it's fun, and as I remember,
light gun games generally leave you wanting more. DDR isn't quite what an
ideal kids video game is (such a game doesn't exist, but would be something
like a cross between DDR and a Zelda game for boys), but it's close, and as
such, kids are likely to be playing the game as good as experts in a much
shorter timespan!
Why is this, you ask? Kids these days have grown up with video games accepted
as a part of everyday life. When I was growing up in the 80s, they were a
luxury item that a few lucky people would have. Probably most people asking
this wouldn't have gotten into video games or computers until at least age
12 or 13: Personally, I started from when I was around 2 (which was very
early, especially back then). Because of this, I have a general understanding
of how computers 'think'. This is where it becomes interesting; out of all my
friends who are roughly the same age as me (some are younger), most of them
do _not_ understand how computers 'think'. This general sense of logic is
applicable to many circumstances in life, and one of them is also the
techniques required to advance in skill in DDR at a faster rate. People with
no such skill (generally older people) tend to experiment to pass a stage, or
they repeat it a lot. Kids these days and people with this skill note what
they're doing and determine the next most logical course of action. If they
miss a step, they remember why and focus on it, for example. This kind of
thinking allows people to progress in DDR faster - and hence kids are more
likely to learn faster. Learning this trick usually is pretty much dependant
on your own will, but a suggestion is that rather than asking other people to
fix small problems with your computer, ask them what to do or read a help
guide on the problem (that is, unless you do that already, in which case the
problem is something else!). If you're viewing this on a Dreamcast, or some
other similar format, then most games have patterns in random things. DDR
is a bad example. RPGs are better examples. Since I'm not some kind of guy
who goes around telling people how to think, I can't help other than by
saying it's possible.
I'm not saying a speed player is a lesser player: This tip is for beginners
to experts (experts being those who can beat most Maniac songs and play on
that difficulty by default. SSR being included in the equation). Try these
following ideas out for size:
- Watch others play and watch their technique accordingly. This goes without
saying, but it's amazing how many people just watch and don't really pay
attention to what the player is doing.
- You may like the song but odds are that you'll suck at it at first. Do
yourself a favour: DON'T jump the gun. Choose 'simple' songs first. Get
4 songs done that you can do (or whatever amount is required to 'win' the
game on your local machine). THEN you can screw around. Survival is always
priority, especially in the early days!
- I've said it a billion times in this FAQ already: Use the pivot foot
technique to begin with. Anchor your left foot on left (or vice versa, if
you like, but I'm going for the left foot cos' I'm a left handed wierdo).
Use your right foot to step on up, right and down, and if you need to push
left, just shift your weight and step on it then shift it back. Once you
improve, you can easily switch weight to the right foot and _not_ switch
back immediately - this is an important step in DDR technique! Don't forget
you don't have to remove your other foot for the next step - you can hold
one button and push another and it'll still work. I think, however, you are
not allowed to push 3 arrows at once - to prevent people cheating. In any
case, the pivot foot technique is also useful for your first attempt at a
song you've never seen before. Don't use it once you beat Paranoia.
- A lot of easy songs have big gaps between steps. Tap to the beat. If you
strike out at the last minute, you'll use up heaps of stamina and you will
certainly lose. Tapping makes the game a LOT easier. You shouldn't need
this once you get up to 5 foot songs or so.
- Likewise, you may like Paranoia, and if you play it enough, you will beat
it, regardless - but you'll take 5 times longer to earn the skills you
would have gotten if you had done the songs in the logical order. And I bet
you still won't beat Trip machine or AM-3P until you do!
- Drink lots of fluids. Have a healthy supply of a drink accessible to you.
Try to eat something before you play, it helps your score a lot. Eating
during gameplay may or may not be helpful depending on yourself (I find
playing DDR gets rid of any appetite I have)
- Every step logically has a foot which you must use with it so the next
step is accessible. Re-positioning in mid-song is bad. Sometimes, however,
this is almost impossible (ie End of the Century), and the smartest thing
to do is use a technique (and turning/pivoting isn't a technique in this
situation). Foot slides, heel flicks, 180 Michael Jackson style spinning
heel presses - they all work if you train in them.
- The easiest songs on Maniac/SSR are the ones which require some techniques
but little else to make them really hard. In 4th MIX, the 'Covers and
Classics' course is the best for Maniac learners (including Maniac Double)
- And you should train in them. Just because a song seems impossible doesn't
mean it is. Watch others play it if you can, but if they're all speed
players, don't. Watch the steps closely as they come up. And follow the
advice in the individual song help instructions in this FAQ!
- If you want, mimic the steps that someone's doing in the game. Do it next
to the machine, or behind it, or if they let you, on the spare panel (if
they aren't playing two player).
- Team up with someone experienced on your first go. They can jump on and
recover your energy bar if you start to lose. (If you are the experienced
one, it looks good to play alongside next to the machine and in theory it
would help you when you jump on, but in reality, it helps more to
concentrate on that first step!)
- If you're only playing one player (usually you aren't on your first go if
you plan it like you are if you're reading this, but still), get someone
else to play who is good at the game, and get them to play and act as a
'safeguard' - if you fail, at least you get to continue (unless they fail
as well) without losing your credit. (make sure they don't do anything
stupid like something they can't do or might not do - safety above fun!)
- With tricky jumps, remember a short hop is better than a big jump.
- Learn not to use the balance beam thing on the back of the stage. It's
perfectly safe, and it doesn't even look that lame if you do use it, but
it's usually either got someone else leaning over it watching you or it's
just slowly lowering your skill like a parasite. I recommend falling
fowards onto it if you're really puffed, though. It's saved me a dozen
times!
- But on the other side of the coin, with songs like Hysteria, do the reverse
and you'll go far. Observe my crappy diagram:
/ \
<---- ---->
\ /^\ /
\|/ |
V
/ \
<---- ---->
\ /
Yes, it really sucks. Anyway, in this, without being specific to this song,
you have two choices: Either jump and turn after the first one, and land
awkwardly, then complete the sequence (this is good, but it burns stamina),
or deliberately try to land a split second earlier so you have a bit more
time to get the following steps. (this works really well for me when the
down arrow comes first) This isn't a technique section, or instructions for
the song, so take my advice: In situations like this, don't just try to
step up like it's a regular fast song. It's not.
- The single most important rule of DDR is completely mental and has no
physical actions required whatsoever. It's also the most simple: No matter
what happens, you must not stop trying to face new challenges. People
who dive in the deep end sometimes are the ones who progress fastest, but
that doesn't matter - more often than not, they stop. Why? Perhaps they
think Another/Trick mode will be too hard, and they want to stick to
Basic. Perhaps they think beating a 9 foot song is the end of the game.
I'm at a stage now where I breeze through 9 foot songs. I got this far
by not being afraid to lose a few dollars on songs I haven't done before.
What's more, I haven't stopped - what I do now is I find edit data on the
web, download it to my memory card, and play it in the arcade. If the
edit data is ranked less than 8 feet, I don't try it. Sometimes the
author ranks it at 10-12 feet. Sometimes I make my own. Basically, the
quest to better ones self never ends - until you stop. People who stick
to fast songs all the time may impress an audience, but they don't
impress me - when I was doing 6 foot songs, they were doing the same
songs, and now I'm better than them because they didn't try new things.
Whatever you do, don't make the same stupid mistake.
I think the main thing to remember about DDR is that it's not about showing
off, or just being able to beat everyone else at a game, or being the best
at something...it's about fun. That was the first thing that popped into my
head when I saw a DDR machine - that it looked like fun! If you think this
game looks 'gay', or is too embarassing, then this game is probably not for
you. I don't know that for sure, though...
5 . 0 S t e p / S c o r i n g G u i d e
___________________________________________
This information was written down when I was learning each song. Therefore,
it's very accurate and the advice is given in the easiest terms possible.
It's exactly what I did to beat the songs! This guide will help you if you
are new to the game, if you're struggling in the game...or you simply
want better scores. Some scoring information is less accurate cos' I wrote
it specifically for this FAQ after I had done the song ages ago. (This mostly
applies to 3rd MIX)
PAL PSX owners who have 3rd MIX, please note: Playing DDR with the steps
out of sync WILL improve your gameplay dramatically! It'll not help
performance players one bit - you may be doing your routine perfect and
you'll never know until you hit the arcade. But scorers - if you're trying
to get an SSS, you should consider playing without the speedup codes
sometimes. Not because when it's slower it's easier to get an SSS - because
playing at that speed will improve your step timing skills dramatically.
Finally, people, please note - although steps are (usually) identical
between the PSX/DC and arcade versions, the environment is not. In fact,
the arcade environment is dastardly. Although arcades have air conditioning
usually, it won't help. Nor will your outfit - ultimately, you won't be
able to play with arcade shoes at home and vice versa. (or socks) What this
means is although you might ALWAYS be able to get a decent score on Paranoia
on Maniac at home, you might not even pass it on Basic mode in the arcade!
Not until you've gotten used to playing it there as well, anyway. Keep this
in mind when you're thinking about choosing a 9 foot song for the first time
in 3rd MIX arcade. (FYI, the main differences in environment are the raised
portions of the stage, the bars at the back, the surface weighs 100kg so it
won't slide around as much, and if you don't wear shoes you'll most likely
injure yourself on the raised bits/bars) (NB: Some people do better in the
arcade, some people do better at home...some people do better at none in
particular and just do some songs better at home and others at the arcade)
For songs in double mode, in most cases there is advice on if or not mats
will slip significantly enough to ruin gameplay or cause harm if you're
using them. To minimize slippage without using any kind of gripping
substance, you might wish to overlap the touching edges on each mat so one
is slightly over the top of the other. (this could cause you to trip over,
though, so do so with caution if you choose to use this trick!)
KEY
Speed: .......... Steps: ..........
Jumps: .......... Overall: ..........
Stamina: ..|.....
These are the 4 ratings given for each song. Below is a summary of each
type, and examples of what marks could mean.
SPEED: How fast the song is. -100bpm or so is 1 or 0 marks. 215bpm+ is 10.
Average speed is between 2 and 4 marks.
STEPS: How tricky the steps are. 1 mark = almost no grouped steps. 3 marks =
all steps single but varied OR lots of spaced out repeated half steps.
4 marks = triple steps. 5 marks = lots of triple steps or 1/4 steps.
9 marks = lots of rapid steps in non flowing directions.
JUMPS: How tricky jumps are (both in direction, timing and frequency).
0 marks = No jumps. 1 mark = one or two straight jumps. 4 marks =
a few diagonal jumps. 5 marks = regular diagonal jumps. 8 marks =
lots of fast jumps possibly mixed in with single steps immediately
before or after. 9 marks = rapid half-beat jumps in diagonal and
straight directions.
STAMINA: In the arcade, there's usually inadequate air conditioning and you
aren't in the most DDR-friendly clothing. Because of this, some
songs will exhaust you - however a few can be utilized to recover
lost stamina. This guide is based upon you being skilled enough to
pass the song, and possibly having done it before so you know the
steps. If you're underqualified or you have no idea what will happen
in the song, it will require more stamina. The marks before the |
indicate the song may relieve some stamina - the other bar shows
the opposite. If the bar remains blank, it means it has little or
no effect. When you feel totally exhausted, I strongly advise you
do not select songs with a positive stamina rating (Note: TOTALLY
exhausted, not almost completely)
ON RECOMMENDATIONS:
Each mix is different. Nobody knows what to expect from the newest one. Hence
I have added 'recommendations' for each version of DDR. Since the step guides
are sorted by each mix, I simply added recommendations to the very top of
each mix listing. Here's some info on each catergory:
Novice level players:
* If you never played DDR before, or aren't very good, then this is for
you. Since a large number of people who read this are looking for
clear, consise info (and this FAQ is growing out of proportion!), this
FAQ can be very messy for someone not familiar with DDR. Look here if
you want to know about easy songs in general, rather than specifics.
Then look up that individual song's hints if you want to.
Intermediate level players:
* Once a DDRer passes Paranoia, they are now considered to be an
intermediate level DDRer. This has always been the case. Consider it
a 'rite of passage'. Some easier songs are often skipped along the way
so they're listed too. An intermediate level DDRer is someone yet to
master 8 foot songs. (by master, I mean pass them safely regularly -
not get SS's or A's on them) Some Intermediate level players seem to
excel in one type of song...some are good in fast songs with single
steps and these usually beat Paranoia first...some prefer songs which
require more technique (and thus usually beat Jam Jam Reggae on Trick
first). This doesn't reflect what their favourite song type in the
future will be, as it's quite possible that once they get good at the
other type, they'll be excited by the possibilities...
* When a DDRer _does_ pass a few 8 foot songs they can usually be sorted
into one of three groups:
Expert Speed players:
* A DDRer who is best suited to playing fast songs with lots of half
steps. These songs generally will require lots of stamina and are
fast and/or have many steps, with few tricky parts. Technical players
usually would get exhausted after doing a few of these songs and
stand no chance of passing the harder ones on their first go. Most
speed players don't move their arms much, and 'shuffle' their feet -
that is, they barely lift their feet off the ground. Speed players
often grow into 'score' players, who aim for getting the highest
possible score.
* Most common speed song: Paranoia Rebirth - SSR
Expert Technical players:
* A DDRer who has learnt a lot of techniques and has since learnt how to
find new ones. Technical players may play fast songs, with some rapid
steps, but generally do songs with lots of 1/4 steps, jumps coming out
of rapid steps or vice versa, and basically recognising the arrows
long before they come up. Technical players move their arms and legs
a lot. They are in between a speed and a performance player. Technical
players often grow into either performance players, score players or
mentors/trainers for other players.
* Most common technical song: Era (nostalmix) - Maniac
Expert Performance players:
* A DDRer similar to a technical player who knows many techniques and
wishes to use them in an impressive fashion (not to mention develop
elaborate performances based on them). Differs to the technical player
primarily in the way that the techniques they develop are always less
practical than fancy. Often grows into a technical player, a team
performance/technical player and rarely ever becomes a score player.
* Most common performance song: Butterfly - Another/Trick
The following aren't given any recommendations, but just in case you don't
apply to the above, see here to see why:
Professional Score players:
* A DDRer who plays simply get perfect scores on everything. Often grows
from expert speed players. Generally good at every song, but usually
has one song they avoid - not because they can't beat it, but because
they can't beat it _perfectly_. Often seen walking away from a machine
which is still going because they missed one step. Not nessecarily
rich though! Their weakness is their tendancy to waste money, and
their ego can often become an obsticle to other players.
Professional Performance/Technical players:
* A DDRer who is most skilled in technical songs, who often does fancy
things in them - but more often than not this is out of habit or just
a reaction or instinct, not because they are showing off. A player in
this catergory will try to beat a song perfectly usually, however, as
they regularly fail to do so, since score no longer matters, they make
the most of it by experimenting with new moves or just having fun.
These players often do songs which they know performance tricks to,
with the intent of doing them if they make a mistake score-wise. A
similar concept to freestyling, however zero thought goes into the
moves. Their weakness is they can fail a song by going absolutely
stupid in it for no good reason.
Professional Mentor/Trainer players:
* Often seen in groups of novice/intermediate level players, or if alone
they may have a notebook to write down things (like you'd find in this
FAQ, but I never took notes once for this). Rarely challenges people
but accepts all challenges for the sake of friendliness if not fun.
May or may not enter competitions, but more than likely will try to
organize them. Generally nice people to know. These players subtlely
fit into one of the other professional categories, but their true
nature is to pass on their skill to others - directly or indirectly.
These people are quite rare. Their weakness is probably that they
don't play the game as much as they watch it and thus require getting
'in the mood'!
Professional General players:
* A mix of all the other types. This DDR player is least likely to get
bored of the game because they're always looking for new challenges.
Always friendly (they got this good by being friendly). A great
source of information, be it tips for the game or just release dates
for new MIXes. These players have no real weakness as they can pretty
easy adapt to any situation.
Professional Ranking players:
* Mysterious DDRers who say nothing, but like to challenge people who
are approximately on the same skill level as themselves to see who is
better. They probably aren't aiming for accuracy or to perform, just
to see who is better overall. More often than not will enter
competitions, but some prefer not to (as competitions are less than
fair). Still, these players are formidable and despite the fact that
they sound gothic, or brooding, or just plain unfriendly, they are
actually good challenges and actually make great teammates for
competitions if they do challenge you - as your skill level is equal.
Their only weakness is that they just don't socialise enough - which
in a game like DDR is a big enough weakness.
5.1 DDR, Dancing Stage and 2nd MIX songs
----------------------------------------
The songs for the original DDR games differed a lot to their successors.
The very first version (often called DDR 1.0 or DDR 1st Mix, although it
was simply called Dance Dance Revolution) featured many easy songs. In
fact, only Make It Better, Paranoia and Trip Machine would be any challenge
to many DDRers today - even on Maniac mode! 2nd Mix saw many more songs
being added to the batch, and by this time Maniac mode had begun to live up
to its name. With all of the songs in this era, most of the difficulty in
them was due to the technique required - meaning the learning of these songs
was more dependant on mental intuitiion than physical endurance. Many Basic
mode songs would be considered very tough by current standards, as they
featured half-beat steps and triples right from 2 foot songs upwards. Trick/
Another mode featured more constant triples, adding a mighty challenge to
anyone who'd try to make the step, as well as the beginning of what would be
more technical sequences - in other words, they led the player soundly to
Maniac mode.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Novice level players:
* Boom Boom Dollar - Basic
* Butterfly - Basic
* El Ritmo Tropical - Basic
* Have You Never Been Mellow - Basic
* Keep On Movin' - Basic
* Let's Get Down - Basic
* That's The Way (I Like It) - Basic
* Think Ya Better D - Basic
Intermediate level players:
* AM-3P - Basic
* Paranoia - Basic
* Trip Machine - Basic
Expert Speed players:
* AM-3P - Maniac
* Boom Boom Dollar - Maniac
* Paranoia - Maniac
* Paranoia KCET ~Clean Mix~ - Maniac
* Paranoia Max ~Dirty Mix~ - Maniac
* Trip Machine ~Luv Mix~ - Maniac
* Trip Machine ~Jungle Mix~ - Maniac
Expert Technical players:
* Dub-I-Dub - Maniac
* I Believe In Miracles - Maniac
* Make It Better ~So Real Mix~ - Maniac
Expert Performance players:
* Brillaint 2U ~Orchestra Groove~ - Another
* Butterfly - Basic
* Butterfly - Trick
* Hero - Maniac
* Little Bitch - Basic
* Strictly Business - Maniac
AM-3P
Misc: The full version of this song may be heard in 2nd ReMIX and 2nd MIX
Dreamcast Edition on the 3rd MIX records screens.
Speed: *.........
Basic: The steps are in time with specific beats and there's little rhythm
to this song. Difficult for beginners. You won't be able to do it
until you have very good foot co-ordination and timing. Once you've
beaten other stuff such as Paranoia, you probably won't have any
difficulty at all with this. That is, if you try this a few times
first.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: **........ Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: -empty-
Maniac: Practice will make perfect for those struggling to pass the first
part. "It looks hard but once you get your timing right you'll be
fine." - that was my original comment about it when I took the above
record screenshot. Note I hadn't DONE it yet :P The technique is...
start with left foot on down, right foot on right. When the steps
start, step to the left facing left and back facing left. So you're
essentially jogging the steps facing left. Turn right when needed to.
Switch sides when needed to. That's how you do it - this is the time
to learn how to flow with the steps! The old pivot foot trick just
doesn't work on this! (this seems easier to do in the arcade) In
fact, despite how hard this looks, it's not very hard to get an S
or SS on. For some reason, people do a lot better at this in the
arcade...
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *****..... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|***..
BOOM BOOM DOLLAR
Speed: ***.......
Basic: The easiest technique on the alternating left and right sections is
to put one foot on each pad, and stomp (lightly - you don't want to
break anything!) - trying to jump with one foot landing in the
middle and the other foot on the nearest side also works, although
you are a lot more likely to over/underjump and mess up your
co-ordination. It also wears you out quicker, but you probably
won't notice at this stage. Stick with the stomp.
Steps: **........ Jumps: .......... Overall: **........
Stamina: .*|.....
Another: There's a few multisteps - all in sets of three. This holds no
suprises. Do this before you think of doing it on Maniac, though!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: .......... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|*....
Maniac: Many of these multisteps join together. Towards the end you're doing
about 16 multisteps at once! But, probably the arrows leading up to
them are harder for you (patterns like D, D+L, D, rest, D, D+R, D) -
in this case, it's best to just jump on both pads needed to press
several times. You don't lose points or anything, so why not try it?
If you want to learn how to do the 16 multistep patterns on maniac
mode...go to the arcade if you can! Everyone does it! Or...
basically, right foot goes on up or down, left foot goes on left or
right.
Steps: *******... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|**...
BRILLIANT 2U
Speed: ***.......
Basic: Traditionally, you learn to do this song after Put Your Faith In Me.
There's more triple steps and more jumps, and it's faster - but it's
still pretty similar. Make sure you utilize both of your feet for
triple steps. If the sequence goes (U-R-L), step left foot on up,
right foot on right, then left foot on left. If the sequence goes
(R-L-D), step right foot on right, left foot left, then right foot
down. The jumps might appear to be difficult at first, but they're
still rather basic. There's just more of them. The end sequence is
entirely made of repeated rapid steps. Don't expect to be instantly
good at them - many people aren't until they've well and truly
beaten Paranoia. Keep in mind that heavy taps aren't the best and
that you don't have to lift your foot very high to do taps. In fact,
the lower, the better (more or less).
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Another: Pretty much the same as in Basic mode, however there's a lot more
jumping, and some of it is pretty tricky. The jumps are mostly
diagonals, too. Don't try this until you can do Brilliant 2U on
Basic mode and you are fairly good at doing diagonal jumps. This
is not a good song for training at diagonal jumps on because the
jumps are fairly frantic.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
Maniac: -empty-
Stamina: ..|***..
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
BUTTERFLY
Speed: ****......
Normal
Basic: -empty-
Hard
Basic: Appearances can be deceiving. On the main parts which require
depressing both L and R pads at once, use the same technique as
Boom Boom Dollar, that is, stand with one foot on each pad, TAP the
corresponding pad, and to press both, HOP onto both pads, do NOT
try to do a larger jump. It's a waste of energy and will lapse your
concentration. During the 2 sections which go (D, R, D, R, D, L,
D, L)/(L, D, R, D, L, D, R, D) it is best to use whichever foot you
use most as the pivot foot on the corresponding pad (ie I'm left
handed/footed, so I use the left pad as the pivot) - attempting
anything else before this is mastered is pointless. Later on, you
might find it easier just to move from the left side to the right
side when it's the right time.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|.....
Another: This varies slightly with U/D steps as well followed by the typical
L/R steps. Sounds harder than it is.
Steps: **........ Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|.....
Maniac: This should pose absolutely no problem (shame) and is similar to
the Basic mode steps rather than the Another mode steps.
Stamina: ..|**...
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
DUB-I-DUB
Basic: -empty-
Another: A good introduction to continuous rapid steps. Also, those of you
struggling with Paranoia KCET ~Clean Mix~ might find this useful -
Just before the end segment is a part which has combinations like
(D-L-D, L-U-L, U-R-U, R-D-R) - Note these are all spinnable, like
the identical steps in Paranoia KCET ~Clean Mix~. If you need to
practice those, practice on this!
Maniac: Slightly more complex than Another, but much harder. Requires a lot
of techniques involving footslides and skipping. Playing this on
2nd ReMIX will be hard due to the skips being almost impossible to
see if you don't know what skips are or where they are. A fair
challenge.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ********.. Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
HAVE YOU NEVER BEEN MELLOW
Misc: Third and fourth lines of this song are not heard in this version.
Speed: **........
Basic: In the second half, it's best to stand with your left foot on the
left pad and operate from that side for the first sequence, then
exchange your pivot foot to the right foot (in the middle or right
pad) for the second sequence. On the (L, U, R, D, L) sequences,
simply press the left pad with your left foot, the next 3 pads
with your right foot, then switch the pivot foot to the right foot
(on the down pad) and press the left pad with your left foot. This
song is easy and I did it on my first go (and I chose this first)
however most people I witness can't do this first time. You don't
really need help with this anyway, you need practice!
Steps: *......... Jumps: .......... Overall: *.........
Stamina: **|.....
Another: More of the same. The steps are pretty much continuous, but slow!
You really don't need to do this as you won't learn much. It's
just another notch on the belt, really...
Steps: **........ Jumps: .......... Overall: **........
Stamina: .*|.....
Maniac: Regular triple steps and one or two tricky bits. But relatively
easy.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: *......... Overall: ****......
HERO
Speed: ***.......
Basic: Probably the hardest song involving jumping/hopping on basic level.
You won't succeed until you have good jumping coordination and
until the arrows register in your head in time for you to do the
jumps (harder than it sounds). Note that the hard part in the
middle is also probably the hardest part in Paranoia 190 Dirty Mix
- at least the first half, so MEMORIZE IT! You won't be able to on
Paranoia 190 for a fairly long time!
Another: Pretty easy. Basically, it's a toned down version of the Maniac
version. There are no 'skips' in it.
Maniac: This one is pretty hard! Just in case you can't figure it out
yourself, treat the jumps like normal jumps but land with one foot
first. This will take a while to be comprehendable...think of it
as a sort of 'skip'. Look before you leap!
I BELIEVE IN MIRACLES
Speed: ***.......
Basic: Relatively easy for those who are at this song difficulty level,
however confusion may be inflicted by the steps towards the end.
This means you're memorizing the steps. You'll have to learn to
read them as they come about now. Otherwise make a mad steppin
craze type manouver and you'll probably make it by a stroke of
luck.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: **........ Overall: *****.....
Another: -empty-
Maniac: This is ranked 'Exhorbitant' - and is probably the easiest
(*cough!*) dance ranked this in 2nd MIX. The steps at the end on
Maniac mode are 1/4 beat steps! They go in time with the music...
if you don't realise this, you could VERY easily lose! But if you
do...you can get a A or B here if you can do 'Paramount' songs.
(I just wanted to say 'Paramount'. It sounds cool. But it's true -
if you can do 7 footers, you can do this)
Also note that if you're trying to get a max combo on this for the
bits at block 22 where the background vocalist goes "doo-dodo doo!"
which is a short while before the main vocalist sings "I believe
in miracles...I believe in miracles...I believe in miracles...don't
you?" - some steps are slightly off beat here. The first 3 are on
beat, the next is a half beat, then 3/4 of a beat later you have
a down arrow with a right arrow folowing 1/4 beat after - a skip
leading into a half-beat, to be precise. It's ALMOST in time with
the lyrics - the skip would be the "dodo" bit, but if you push down
then right with it, you'll be too early. Delay a split second.
Use your eyes! All in all, tough to SS, but far from impossible!
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
IF YOU WERE HERE
Speed: *****.....
Basic: Relatively incomplex for most of the song, however the last bit is
an absolute killer for people who try to memorise what to do.
DON'T try. You have to just see the steps and react naturally. In
the end...it's easy!
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
Another: -empty-
Maniac: Not THAT hard. Not that easy, either. Learn the patterns.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
KEEP ON MOVIN'
Misc: Is this song a cover song? I swear Eddie Murphy referenced it in
one of his comedy routines once...
Basic: Pretty easy. This is more or less a training dance, so there's no
tips I can give for Basic mode.
Another: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
LOVE
Basic: Not too tough. Once you know all the manouvers, which are pretty
simple, you're going to breeze through this.
Another: -empty-
Maniac: Along with Tubthumping, probably the easiest song in Maniac mode in
2nd ReMIX! Most of the steps are off beat. More or less goes with
the music.
LITTLE BITCH
Speed: ******....
Basic: A good performance song. The main problem here is this song is
fast. Otherwise, it's no threat. No triples. No diagonal jumps.
If you can do Boys and fast songs, you can do this. It's that
simple, really. I thought it may be too easy for a 4 foot song,
but upon making 2 people who was learning 3 foot songs attempt this,
both failed miserably. It's definately the speed that kills you.
Steps: **........ Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: What are Konami playing at? This is about as hard as Maniac mode!
The only real change is the lack of vanilla triple steps (ie normal)
and that doesn't help. You HAVE to be pre-emptive here. with
sequences like R-D-vertical jump, you must start with your right
foot and begin to lift it IMMEDIATELY for the next step, which
will be on up with that foot and down with the left. The end
sequence features some tricky jumping (it gave me a headache
when I wrote this, but I already sorta had one), so if you fail
here, try Maniac. I think Konami are the real maniacs this time.
I'd say it might possibly easier. Some people disagree though...
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ********.. Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|**...
Maniac: The name says it all. This song is a bitch. Ok, well that isn't
quite the name of the song...but all the same, do Paranoia on
Basic first. Then you only have two tricks to learn, and they both
involve jumps: Jumps followed by two rapid steps in the same
direction, and two rapid steps and a diagonal jump with the rapid
steps making up the same direction you jump (usually). The first
one is just a matter of practice makes perfect, and that's all
there is to it. The latter trick, however, requires a bit more skill
than you may have. Using the rapid step principle helps - that is,
rapid steps are a lot easier if you don't push the step with the
whole of your foot or too much pressure. Just tap the pad! Do that,
then jump so lightly that you barely leave the ground. Don't force
your feet into the ground, or you'll end up in a position like
you've just been kicked in the guts - ie, practically winded - and
you'll not successfully perform the steps following this. If you
are only on the first such jump, this is lethal!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *******... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
LOVE THIS FEELIN'
Misc: A hip-hopish version of this song may be heard on the Solo 2000
NS Megamix soundtrack.
Speed: ********..
Basic: Very hard and very unique - about 20 seconds into the song, the
speed increases from very slow to very fast. The dance is mostly
composed of triple and double multisteps. The steps at the start
aren't all in time with the music. On the part which goes ('Love
This Feelin'', *boom-cha*), on the *boom-cha* sound effect thing,
there is an up folowed by a down step which is a half-beat - stand
with one foot on down as well so you don't have to quickly step
over! It's also interesting to note that most of the steps in this
song rotate in one direction or another (and sometimes, then reverse
so you walk backwards to the starting point). This song is a good
song for freestylers to put a little movement into their dance.
It's less useful for performance players, though.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ******....
Another: This song is roughly just as hard as Basic mode, however its
probably easier than Paranoia in Maniac mode.
Maniac: Fairly hard, but once you get into the swing of it...it's no harder
than Another mode. Do them both at the same time if you can!
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ******.... Overall: ********..
MAKE A JAM!
Speed: **........
Note: The 'MAKE A JAM!' background for this song features a very well
disguised Konami logo, and the Basic mode step pattern regularly
features the old 'Konami Code' - Up Up Down Down Left Right Left
Right (B, A, Start)! Even the chorus sections are based on a rarely
used Konami jingle!
Basic: Fairly easy. A good song to choose if you're up to 3 foot songs.
Try it before Brilliant 2U.
Another: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
MAKE IT BETTER
Speed: **........
Basic: Lots of diagonal jumping, but it's straightforward - it's from the
top corner to the bottom corner of the same side for that sequence.
Most people who are at this skill level should make it by. This
song can take quite a lot of physical endurance.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: -empty-
Maniac: The sequences at the end are nuts! I recommend just jumping through
the whole part. It is easier than ~So Real Mix~, however it's much
harder to beat this version perfectly, so therefore I would say they
are of the same or of a similar difficulty. The jump sequences
are generally friendly to lesser players because although they can't
do them perfectly, they can do them good enough - unlike ~So Real
Mix~.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *********. Overall: *******...
MAKE IT BETTER ~SO REAL MIX~
Speed: **........
Basic: Sounds the same, trickier jumping. lots of rapid tapping (LOOK WELL
AHEAD! There are a lot of places you can get caught out and the
taps aren't that complex!), and there is now tricker jumping (ie,
U+L, U+D, D+R) - make sure you recognise what's happening first,
because it's very easy to slip and lose on these parts. Some tricky
sequences near the end might appear too tough to do for people only
just starting out on this song, but the sequence is easy IF you turn
your body to go with the steps.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: -empty-
Maniac: The last few seconds the most challenging part and will probably be
their downfall if their is one. (and there probably will be one).
I don't have any advice for this except look at the steps closely -
once you have a basic understanding of the sequence there, it's
not so hard! (try playing Jam Jam Reggae in 3rd Mix on Another or
SSR modes if you have access to it)
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *********. Overall: *******...
MY FIRE
Misc: Remix of a song named 'Relight My Fire' by some 70s guy whose name
escapes me.
Speed: **........
Basic: Practice is the best way to beat this. Once again, HOP on the
L+R/U+D bits. It'll take practise to get you to switch to perfect
vertical switchovers. Toe tapping may seem hard, however I've
found that when I'm nervous I'm a lot more prone to not lifting
my foot off the pad properly and thus not tapping, only
raising/lowering the heel end of my foot. Build your confidence
with practise taps. You may want to practice something like Put
Your Faith in Me (Jazz Mix) which has multistep taps (in other
words, taps on 2 or 3 different pads). It doesn't matter if you
don't - I didn't.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|.....
Another: -empty-
Stamina: ..|.....
Maniac: Sadly, the steps change drastically and are too easy - like
most DDR songs from the original game. No need for advice here.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
4th + I've been corrected! Now the steps are too damn hard. They are
Maniac: humanly possible - I managed on my first go - but most people don't
and the only reason why I did is I'm accustomed to reading horribly
bunched up/random steps like this. Konami received many complaints
about this in Japan. My advice is to make edit data of your own in
similar style for a while, get used to reading bunched up steps like
this, get used to doing the songs then try it. It's the best way to
tackle it, unfortunately. Sheer insanity/stupidity (the latter being
Konami, not you).
Steps: ********** Jumps: ****...... Overall: **********
Stamina: ..|**...
PARANOIA
Speed: *******...
Basic: No tips, however if you find yourself doing rapid toe taps or
shuffles awkwardly in other songs, try this - after a round, you
will lose (unless you're not reading this to learn :P) but at the
very least you'll be a lot more confident. However, as hard as it
looks, it's not impossible - once you have good co-ordination, it
will become a lot easier. On basic mode, it's easiest to stand on
the left side during the rapid steps towards the final quarter or
so of the song.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: Much the same as Basic mode, so give it a try if you beat it on
Basic. This doesn't mean it's the same difficulty - it's much
harder!
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
Maniac: A formidable challenge! Especially in the arcade! In Dancing
Stage, Paranoia on Maniac mode is the hardest song in the game,
probably (including AM-3P Maniac). My advice? Don't use the old
turning sideways trick for left/down/right or right/down/left or
similar triple steps towards the end. Flick your right/left foot!
Turning your body will put you at risk to making one mistake and
failing completely, not to mention flicking your foot still allows
you to get through this without missing steps. On the part after
the music stops and there's the bass hits (boom, boom boom, boom
boom -music starts-), make sure you DO turn your body with the
steps. Use the 'walk' and 'moonwalk' techniques. You have little
chance without them of passing if it's the last stage and you're
in the arcade! (but it CAN be done without 'em)
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *****..... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|***..
PARANOIA MAX ~DIRTY MIX~
Speed: ********..
Basic: This is mostly a megamix of other 2nd mix/2nd remix songs,
stepwise. And it's faster than all of them, too. Well, probably
all of them. This is harder than Paranoia and Paranoia Clean Mix.
The only tip here is to practice all the other songs first, and
that the hard part in the middle before the Boom Boom Dollar
shuffle bit is from Hero - practice that, because it's slower and
easier. Making sure you jump steadily is important here as much as
making sure you jump on the right buttons because you may land in
a position where you can't possibly jump onto the next set of
buttons!
Steps: *******... Jumps: ******.... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|**...
Another: Watch out for the rapid step part near the end! If you aren't ready
you'll flop!
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ******.... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|**...
Maniac: Yowch! No advice here! It all depends on your skill! Just watch out
after the 61 or so random steps near the end...players including
myself have a tendancy to move too fast after all of that meyhem
and end up breaking combos here.
PARANOIA KCET ~CLEAN MIX~
Speed: *******...
Basic: Harder than Paranoia, easier than Paranoia Dirty Mix (in my
opinion). You'll probably have more luck with this than with 190.
Probably the most active one of them all because it requires a fair
bit of hopping/jumping, and opens up with one (and very quickly,
too - make sure you're ready because this is the second fastest
starting song!). In the middle or so there is a part on all modes
that goes (U-L-U, L-D-L, D-R-D, R-U-R) or something like that.
The only way you can possibly get all these steps right is by
TURNING AWAY from the screen. At least face away for the 3rd part
of it then turn around for the last - or you won't pull it off.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *******... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|**...
Another: Throws a few new jumps and triple steps, but otherwise, the same
as Basic. Honest. There is little new challenge here.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *******... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|**...
Maniac: I call this the KO'er because if you haven't done it before...it
could easily KO you. One of the few songs which has almost knocked
me out (when I was in full health). So get to it! Easier than a lot
of 3rd MIX songs, though...
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *****..... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|*****
PUT YOUR FAITH IN ME
Speed: *.........
Basic: This is essentially an introduction to your typical triple steps and
diagonal jumps. I've given instructions on triple steps for Put
Your Faith in Me ~Jazz Mix~ - if that's where you're stuck, look
there. otherwise, my advice is practice, practice, PRACTICE! You
WILL get the feel for it and it WILL be possible in the end. If
you're REALLY stuck...do couple mode. It halves the difficulty,
pretty much. But frankly...you won't get any better doing that!
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|.....
Another: Pretty much the same. Nothing exactly spectacular...
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Maniac: Compared to the previous two it's still not much harder than Another
mode...much harder to SS, though. The steps are all rather flowing
so as long as you move about and turn a bit, you'll pass.
Steps: *******... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
Basic.D: Underrated. The speed of this song only hinders ones skills. The
single steps lead you into awkward positions for triple steps. It's
generally one big trap. The steps are roughly the same as they are
in Single Another mode, apart from the fact that it's Double mode,
of course.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: .......... Overall: *****.....
Anthr.D: I personally find this easier. There are a few places where you'll
need to use the 'moonwalk' technique. If you use mats, be prepared
because they'll slide a lot on this song. There's only one jump,
and I don't know why they bothered putting it in because it's not
even tricky. This is a good song for improving skills, but be
careful, Because it's also risky in Double mode no matter what the
difficulty is!
Steps: *******... Jumps: *......... Overall: ******....
PUT YOUR FAITH IN ME ~JAZZ MIX~
Speed: *.........
Basic: This is fairly complex. The best way to get the (U-L-R, U-R-D)
parts is to put your right foot on the U, quickly switch your
left foot to L, then pivot with the left foot and depress the R
button with your right foot. However, this presents you with a
problem - you can either (a) tap the remaining sequence using your
left foot as pivot, pressing buttons with your right foot ONLY
(can be hard), or (b) turn 45 left and press your right foot on
U, turn another 45 left and press your left foot on R, then turn
a final 45 left and press your right foot on D. Perhaps (c) left
foot U, right foot R, left foot D might work for you however this
leaves you stumbling and unlikely to get the next few moves right.
This problem will one day be seen as absolutely no challenge at
all. Once again, practice! (Don't try to do this until you're
fairly decent at doing the normal version of this song)
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Another: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
THINK YA BETTER D
Misc: The lyrics of this song are entirely cliched from other famous song
lyrics!
Speed: ***.......
Basic: Probably the easiest 3 foot song. I don't recommend playing it too
much because it isn't in any of the arcade versions except 3rd Mix
Plus (and I'm not counting the different step version in Solo 2000).
It's great for getting good at playing DDR on, and by all means do
it - just don't do this ONLY. (beat Boys or Butterfly!)
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: **........
Another: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
TRIP MACHINE
Speed: *****.....
Basic: The easiest of the three Trip Machines. Easier than Paranoia, too.
Sort of a poor man's Paranoia - hence it's the default last song
on Normal mode. Most of the steps go in time with the music and
the rest follow strict patterns. Learn them. The 4 half steps which
appear twice at the start (ie R-D-L-U) can be incorportated into
a half spin if you're finding them difficult to press. At the end
your back should face away from the screen. The next step will be
U, by the way.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
Another: Relatively the same, except the harder sequences start earlier. The
middle part is comprised completely of fast spins. I recommend
you don't actually try to spin on them. It's possible (barely),
but it will dizzy you up, not to mention once the pattern ends
you'll be confused.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
Maniac: Harder steps even earlier! But still pretty easy. The middle part is
comprised of spins followed by tricky three steps in the opposite
direction! (I actually find these easier) Overall, this IS tricky
on Maniac - but not for long. Once you've played it a few times,
it's no problem.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
SP-TRIP MACHINE JUNGLE MIX and
TRIP MACHINE LUV MIX
Speed: ******.... Steps: *******...
Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
Basic: Two of the hardest songs. These two will probably be the last ones
you do on each difficulty level, with exception to Paranoia 190
possibly. Jungle Mix is most likely to thwart you out of the two.
Use the breaks between patterns to reposition yourself if you can.
Another: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
STOMP TO MY BEAT:
Speed: ***.......
Basic: -empty-
Another: -empty-
Maniac: No advice except for those trying to get an SS or equivilent on
this: Around blocks 30-33 there are some wierd steps. They look
normal at first. You'll know them if you try to do them. Probably
my advice is, for example, on block 30 (the first one), use your
right foot on right (note it is not on a half beat, it is on 3/4
of a beat), then hop-skip so your right foot lands half a beat later
on down, then on the next 1/4 beat it lands on left. 3/4 of a beat
later is the next step, then 1/2 a beat later for the next. It ends
on a 3/4 of a beat once again. This takes practice...If you have
Best Hits, turn step color to 'notes'. Watch out for the very last
wierd step because it doesn't quite go with the words - it's a wee
bit faster.
STRICTLY BUSINESS
Misc: Remix of an 80s hip-hop song. (EPMD was the original artist)
Note: Strictly Business was removed from DDR Best Hits, DDR 2nd MIX (DC)
and every arcade version after and including 4th MIX. The most
likely cause is either Mantronik or EPMD did not want it in DDR...
Speed: *.........
Basic: A few sets of triple steps in this song, but they're all in the
same direction. Therefore, this is a great song for you to learn
them on! The entire song consists mostly of spins (which do reverse
from time to time), so if you know how to spin, this is your chance
to look like err...a spinning guy. Obviously the last part of the
song is also in Paranoia, so do this before you do Paranoia (unless
you're playing a newer incarnation of DDR where Strictly Business
was removed from, ie 4th MIX, in which case, forget it!)
Steps: ***....... Jumps: .......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: -empty-
Maniac: Trip Machine in slow motion. About as hard, too. Or at least I think
so. It's fast, but like all DDR 1st Mix songs, it's underrated in
terms of difficulty. Lots of rapid steps in short bursts. (Actually,
Paranoia's infamous '3rd act' steps (the right-down-left steps in
Basic mode, for example) are all borrowed from this song, and the
same goes for Maniac mode.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
TUBTHUMPING
Speed: ..........
Basic: Very slow paced and an ideal place to learn toe taps on. Typical
mistakes include not getting the last bit
(right-down-down-down-horizontal jump).
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Another: Cross between Basic and Maniac mode.
Maniac: This or Love will probably be the first tune you complete on Maniac
level. If you're using DDR 2nd ReMIX, anyway. Lots of triple steps
and a fairly hard part at the end. Probably the first Maniac song
you'll SS, too. One of the earliest songs used to 'freestyle' in.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
5.2 3rd MIX Songs
-----------------
Third Mix Songs are based less on technique and more on sapping your
stamina. Basic mode features mostly only single steps, Trick/Another mode
features a mix of those and triple steps, and Step Step Revolution (SSR)
mode, the new (albeit temporary) name for Maniac mode, features lots of
rapid steps. Very few songs in this require technique, however portions of
the songs still do, and thus the FAQ still has its purpose in 3rd MIX...
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Novice level players:
* Xanadu - Basic
* Get Up And Dance - Basic
* Silent Hill - Basic
Intermediate level players:
Expert Speed players:
* Afronova - SSR
* Boom Boom Dollar ~K.O.G.G 3 Mix~ - SSR
* Dead End - SSR
* Do It All Night - SSR
* Paranoia Rebirth - SSR
* Turn Me On - SSR
* Wonderland ~UKS Remix~ - SSR
Expert Technical players:
* Captain Jack ~Happy Grandale Mix~ - SSR
* Dynamite Rave - SSR
* Luv To Me ~AMD Mix~ - SSR
Expert Performance players:
* La Senorita - Another
* Follow The Sun ~90 In The Shade Mix~ - SSR
AFRONOVA
Speed: *********.
Basic: Several parts in this are steps every 2 beats. This song is VERY
fast, so it helps. If you can keep up with the speed in the whole
song, you should be able to in others too, because this is THE
fastest, with a possible exception to La Senorita Virtual because
nobody's measured it yet (but it feels slower). The bit just after
the start with several jumps is probably the hardest part. The
same pattern is repeated 4 times, so get used to it. It's simple
enough - the problem is, it sucks the energy right out of you!
Don't choose this song if you're close to exhaustion unless you
are well and truly above the skill level required for this 5 foot
song. When your stamina is full, it's quite easy to SS this song.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|**...
Another: This song has a lot of jumping. It's also THE fastest DDR song to
date. Don't pick this song thinking it'll be an easy alternative
to Paranoia - it WON'T be. On the second half, there is several
triple steps. Make sure you don't put yourself in a position where
you will use up valuable time recovering (ie facing away from the
platform to the left or something). This will break your combo.
The steps halfway and at the end go with the music. The jumping
part near the start is repeated identically 4 times.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|**...
SSR: As far as Catastropic songs go, this is pretty damn hard. Actually,
the hardest part is the part immediately before the start...the
steps are extremely hard to do because they don't flow in a standard
manner. If you don't actually look at the steps in edit mode or
using a tool of some sort, you won't see it. After you do the normal
rotating steps (for the first 16 repeating steps), turn left.
The steps go like this: L-U-R-L-D-R-L-U-R-L-D-R-repeat. The best
way to do this, of course, is as I said. You'll probably be facing
left already. So do this: Left foot on L, Right foot U, Left foot
R, Right foot L, Left foot D, Right foot R, then repeat. Remember
you'll be facing left, so you'll start with your left foot on the
arrow directly up from you, which is left. Confusing? Use training
mode. It helps. A lot. In any case, the rest of this song is
pretty much easy (for Catastrophic), until the last 1/4 or so of
the song (the one with triple steps in Another mode). There's a few
tricky looking bits here (all half steps). Turn 90 right. This
is the best position for making the steps - although it may be
a little uncomfortable at first. There is NO trick to getting the
steps at the end. Go to the arcade and you'll see anyone who can
do the song well just ignores them and walks away at this point.
If you want that SS...my only advice is that those steps are
'twelfth' notes. Almost all the steps in DDR are quarter, eighth
or sixteenth notes - that is, there's 16 to every four beats
maximum. But what if the song didn't follow the standard 4 beats
to each section of the music? I'm no musician, I don't know the
term for it. A friend asked me if there were any songs like that
in this game. Afronova is as close as you get - the notes at the end
are to the beat with the steps, ultimately. Go to one of the sites
in the links, view the end pattern, memorize it and DO IT! What do
you think Training Mode is for? Here's a tip: Small jumps are the
best, but don't use shoes on the mat for this! It won't take it!
For reference - The (L-U-R-L-D-R-repeat) step sequence can be
found in bars 12-17.
Stamina: ..|****.
Steps: *********. Jumps: *********. Overall: *********.
Basic.D: Fairly tricky. Requires you to switch sides twice during the jump
parts and the end series of steps goes from one side to the other.
It's very easy to make a costly mistake, but generally if you
aren't exhausted and don't have a problem with the speed, this
won't cause too many problems. Oh - don't pick it if you're not
in an active mood either.
Anthr.D: This one will wear you out pretty quick (so will SSR Double!). If
you choose this song, you should be decent when it comes do doing
double mode techniques - you should be able to do two-sided diagonal
jumps and to be able to reposition yourself decently. This is sort
of like it is in Another Single mode, but not completely. The jump
sequences feature a double steps before the jumps each. These
might even be easier to perform than the normal jumps in Basic
Double mode! When you use a mat, the mats will probably start to
slide apart at the end, so beware when you have the 7 steps at the
end.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
BOOM BOOM DOLLAR ~K.O.G.G 3 MIX~
Misc: A portion of the song removed from the original BB$ can be heard in
this mix.
Speed: *******...
Basic: At the start, the steps mimic the original Boom Boom Dollar.
They get harder towards the middle. Still, it's all single steps
up until this point - and isn't this song a 5 footer? This features
nothing spectacular except the bit at the end, which is completely
made of up arrows (in time with the guy saying ("GO!") mostly,
however a few are just echoing the parts where he says ("GO GO GO!")
. Don't look away - I did and I found the pattern wasn't as I
remembered it. And I remember patterns VERY well!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: .......... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: The first part mimics Boom Boom Dollar on Another mode slightly.
Most of the song is easy, but the last bit is potentially lethal!
Make a mistake as simple as facing the wrong direction - and you
will lose! This is made entirely of rapid steps. VERY hard due
to the speed. You cannot stand facing forward and do this without
breaking your combo and giving yourself plenty of blisters, not
to mention exhausting yourself (but it IS possible). I recommend
facing right and basically run onto the steps. Look at the
screen though, of course! I personally believe that this is
easier on SSR mode because of this last part (which seems easier
on SSR mode)
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|***..
SSR: I believe this is easier on SSR mode than it is on Another mode,
myself! The start mimics Boom Boom Dollar on Maniac mode, pretty
much. It differs, but not much. This is pretty typical of a SSR
8 foot song. At the end, you're moving around a lot less and
you won't need to turn around until the end. Face whichever
direction you please for this one!
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ****...... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|***..
Basic.D: As far as Double mode goes, not terribly challenging. The steps
are slightly harder than the Basic Single mode version. If you're
still not good at Double mode, avoid this. However if you're trying
to get good at 5 foot songs in Double mode, do this!
Anthr.D: -empty-
BUTTERFLY ~UPSWING MIX~
Speed: ******....
Basic: Firstly, notice this RESEMBLES the original Butterfly, step wise...
but is also way different. Essentially, if you can handle the pace
AND you can do Butterfly, you will pass this one - as long as you
don't foolishly try to do all the stunts you did on Butterfly.
You can do the dual 180 Jump trick on the second half, second
part. But that is all. This is essentially butterfly if it wore
a lot of makeup, took a lot of trippy drugs and then tried to see
if it could outrun a speeding car to the end of the road. Or
something like that.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Another: -empty-
SSR: Once again, appearances can be deceiving! 8 feet may seem harder on
SSR mode than it did on Maniac...but all the steps in this song go
in time with the words. A good introduction to 8 foot songs, and
it is VERY impressive to an audience, too ;P beware, however - this
song will wear your stamina down VERY quickly. It's honestly not
that hard to get an A on this song, even. If you're having trouble
with it, you have to actually get more experienced at DDR as there's
not any technique to this song. Watching other people play it is
just a waste of time.
Steps: *******... Jumps: ******.... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|****.
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
CAPTAIN JACK ~GRANDALE MIX~
Misc: Much faster than the original song (which would be about 140bpm)
Speed: ******....
Basic: Fast but not furious. Those who find DDR difficult will not do too
well in this song, but those who have gotten this far pretty quick
should have no trouble here. No diagonal jumps. But it's not
that fun, to be honest...
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
Another: Now we're talking! This is pretty much the same as SSR mode but
there's only half steps...no 1/4 steps. The beginning is in time
with the background music. The ("Left right left!") parts are
all made of 5 steps. The ("Left go right go pick up the step go
left go right go left!") parts are all half steps, of course.
They're also easier than they look. The rest is pretty much
easy to pick up.
Steps: *******... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|**...
SSR: This dance is EXTREMELY difficult when using mats! If you can, use
both the mats and the arcade machine! You'll get better faster!
You shouldn't attempt this until your dexterity is extremely high.
Once you've mastered 1/4 step jumps (doing In The Navy '99 SSR
helps), rapid steps (Captain Jack Another mode will suffice, you can
do rapid steps followed by jumps (most 6-7 foot SSR songs have
these, ie Upside Down), and you're not even SLIGHTLY puffed, you
are ready to attempt this. (If you're at home, using socks on this
will be a big advantage, but I use sheepskin boots myself at home)
Don't start this until you have a nice breeze/fan and a drink handy.
Of course, if you've done it before, you can ignore that. Home users
that use mats, beware because this is one of the few songs where the
mats will slide far enough to actually possibly cause injury! When
playing, my mat started as close to the screen as I could be, when
I ended, I'd slid almost 2 feet back into a chair (which had caused
many errors RIGHT at the end).
Steps: *********. Jumps: ********.. Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|***..
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: First of all, beware if you're using mats: This song will cause a
LOT of slippage, especially at the end, and can be very dangerous!
If you can do 6 foot songs, you should be alright on this, as far
as technique goes. You should also be able to pass this on Single
Another mode. Features two-sided diagonal jumps and several triple
steps. And lots of regular jumps. The steps themselves aren't as
complex as on Another mode normally for this song. If you can do
other songs of similar difficulty this should be a breeze.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
CUTIE CHASER
Misc: The first and so far only song which has 3 beats to a bar instead of
4 (3/4 instead of 4/4 - thanks to Michael Storey for clearing this
up, cos' I can't read sheet music too well!)
Speed: *.........
Basic: Pretty easy. Similar to Mr. Wonderful in step patterns, but with
more jumps. Of course, it's way slower. Two or four out of beat
steps, but they're in time with the music, and there's a long pause
before and after them, so if it weren't for Vivid mode, you'd quite
possibly never notice. A good song to practice if you have trouble
with jumps, as a matter of fact - no diagonals, but plenty of
verticals and horizontals. This song is pretty safe to select as the
slow pace and occasional pauses give enough time for sloppy dancers
to recover.
Steps: **........ Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
Another: -empty-
SSR: -empty-
Basic.D: Very easy. A few double steps, a few jumps, but nothing technical.
and it's all flowing, single step, slow and overall, very basic.
And very 2nd MIX. Tsk, tsk. Naughty Konami. Just beware of the
halfway point - the steps immediately following it look like they're
the same length apart, and maybe they are. But you DON'T have time
to rearrange yourself. The very last step is SLIGHTLY before the
last note. (I think. I have a PAL copy and I'm using the speedup
code. But it's right on everything else! Just watch the arrow,
okay?)
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: **........
Anthr.D: -empty-
SSR.D: -empty-
DAM DARIAM
Speed: ***.......
Basic: Slightly similar to Love in DDR 2nd MIX, however harder still
because it has a few diagonal jumps. Mostly spaced single steps,
linked single steps, spins followed by jumps, spaced out jumps -
the same type of thing as Love. But there's also horizontal jumps
(2 of them) followed by diagonal downward jumps (2 again) which
occur twice in the song. Also note this song is faster than Love.
Not that hard, really - try it if you want to get started on 4
foot songs or need to improve your diagonal jumping, because there
isn't a terribly great risk of failure - especially with all the
long pauses in between sequences.
Steps: **........ Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Another: A few jumps, including diagonal ones, followed by triple steps.
Some parts have steps which follow the words. ("How, can-I-look-in-
your-eyes, when-I-feel-I-could-die...") Know the song and you
can't go wrong. I'm only saying that cos' it rhymes, but if you
know how the music and the lyrics go, it's a lot easier.
SSR: Most people exclaim a swear word when they see these steps on
a website. Pretty simple really - the starting steps are in time
with the background music. The rapid step part may look confusing,
but spell it out and it's a lot simpler - (U-R-D-U-L-D-U-R-D-U-L-D)
and so on. See? Not confusing at all. If you are ready for this
skill level, this isn't that hard if you don't assume things.
Beware of the steps right near the end. They seem to be in time
with NOTHING! Not the music, not the words, not the beat! But still,
the steps in this song are relatively incomplex, and there's not
much of a random factor to it. Relatively easy to SS. A popular
song with speed players.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|***..
Basic.D: The steps don't stop, and there's regular jumps (including a few
two-sided diagonals), however the steps are incomplex and ultimately
this song is typical of a 4 foot song for Double mode. You won't
even learn anything by doing it. It's just another notch for you
to add on your belt, or something. This song is perfectly safe to
use with mats.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Anthr.D: The song still consists of mostly single beat moves, apart from
some semi-tricky triple steps near the end. However, many of the
steps which change sides in this are preceded by a jump of some sort
on the other side...meaning you have to recover from the jump,
then catapault yourself over to the other side. Typically, you'll
have to follow the jump with a down step on the other side. People
with mats that aren't stuck down will experience minor slippage
during this song (but enough to cause problems).
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
DEAD END
Speed: ********..
Basic: Most of the song features single steps, with the occasional set of
steps out of time with the rest of the steps! This can be annoying.
Towards the end some odd jumps appear, then right at the end there
are several triple steps, jumps (including diagonals) and other odd
things. This song is fast, too. Roughly as hard as Afronova, so if
you can do that, do this and vice versa. This is far from easy
though...
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|.....
Another: Tough. Very tough. A lot of fast sets of half steps, however they
aren't as continuous as SSR mode. Use this to practice for SSR
mode because the similarities are definately plentiful, and you
WILL need to be able to pass this first. Possibly the hardest
song in Another mode.
SSR: Nasty work. It's 9 feet and deservedly so. Don't do this until you
are fairly confident you've mastered how to do a series of half
steps. This one feels as fast as Afronova in the thick of it, and
maybe it is. The first part isn't THAT hard (but it IS hard) and has
some dastardly jumps/half steps, but the end part is where it's
REALLY lethal. If you are even SLIGHTLY puffed and are afraid you
might not be up to it, DON'T PICK IT! It simply won't work! Also,
if you misread one step wrong, you can stick your head between your
legs and kiss your ass goodbye. And whatever you do, don't panic!
Keep in mind that once you do songs a couple of times, even if they
wear you out initially, after a while they won't have anywhere
near as much of an effect on you. Observe a beginner/intermediate
player on Paranoia, then an advanced player on Paranoia. You'll
understand what I'm trying to say! This song gets a lot easier
after you've beaten Dynamite Rave SSR. In my opinion.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ******.... Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|*****
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
DO IT ALL NIGHT
Speed: ***.......
Basic: -empty-
Another: -empty-
SSR: A common choice in the arcade. It's the same in concept to Turn
Me On, but it's slightly harder at the end. To make up for that,
the start is easy. Beware of the end part, because you will have
to turn at more than 90 angles if you turn...less energy consuming
than on Another mode probably.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: **........ Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
4th + Harder. The steps at the beginning and the end go with the music
Maniac: well, so use it as a guide. In the middle they consist of a quick
skip followed by half-beat steps. This pattern repeats every two
beats. This pattern doesn't progress into anything harder, so
ultimately, it's still not hard to beat - or to get a max combo on,
for that matter. It's very energy consuming, though...
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ********.. Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
Basic.D: Very easy. Many of the steps are seperated by a whole beat! There
are some jumps, including ones across both sides, but in general,
this song is risk-free. If you can do all 3 foot songs and some 4
foot songs in Single mode, you should be able to pass this with ease
as it requires next to no technique. This one is absolutely
risk-free when it comes to using mats - it's an easy song to SS.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: ***.......
Anthr.D: -empty-
SSR.D: -empty-
DYNAMITE RAVE
Speed: ****......
Basic: This consists of a LOT of jumping. It's also a great song for
stunts and perfect for learning techniques involving parts of the
body OTHER than feet. Fairly lethal for beginners. It's fast,
jumps of all sorts are regular, and it follows patterns. Not
that complex, but if you're not that good at jumps, avoid this.
There's no triple steps, though...in fact, there's no half beat
steps at all. Keep it in mind.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: Like Captain Jack, this is a toned down version of the SSR mode
steps. Mostly half steps, triple steps and half jumps! If you need
to learn how to do continuous streams of half steps, try Jam Jam
Reggae on Another mode or Captain Jack on Another mode. They're
slightly easier.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|***..
SSR: Ever been to hell? Well, this is hell. Welcome. Probably the hardest
SSR song unless you do small steps, because it requires so much
stamina! You'll probably notice the pattern is similar to Captain
Jack SSR (rapid steps with a few 1/4 rapid steps in between then
a break). During the chorus parts, you'll need to jump instead.
Be prepared. The steps go SORT OF in time with the words, but are
slightly out. Do this and it's all downhill from now on, because
you're on the verge of becoming a DDR master! If you have trouble,
all I can suggest is the steps are more constant than the words.
If you got the PSX version, play a few easier songs with the sound
off. Play Another mode too a bit more, because it might just click
in your head when you're playing SSR mode and you'll find it just
a little bit easier!
Once your technique is good enough, as is your attention to detail,
you'll find that most of the difficulty from this song goes and it
actually becomes quite easy, not to mention not very depriving of
stamina. People still avoid it in my arcade hangout, though, so if
you're a speed stepper, don't expect any success here. :)
Steps: *********. Jumps: *********. Overall: **********
Stamina: ..|*****
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
END OF THE CENTURY
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Another: -empty-
SSR: Oh, the pain! This is considered one of the hardest DDR songs
(above several 9 foot songs) by most experts. The rapid steps
can not be done by turning a mere 90 either way...it's either
180+, or only turn when you know it's safe and just tap the rest.
Toe tapping is a technique which can drain you quickly, so it's
best to mix it in with some other stuff and don't stay pinned to
one corner! The main bits have 2 rapid steps followed by jumps
(typically, not strictly), then this flows onto more rapid steps
and more jumps eventually. There's no way to beat this on the first
go, in my opinion. Avoid it until you've done Oh Nick Please Not
So Quick and Rock Beat. Also do Follow The Sun in the arcade if
you can.
One technique makes the stamina draining rapid steps a LOT easier:
sliding your foot to the next step. This is REALLY useful if used
properly in combination with normal techniques.
Steps: *********. Jumps: *********. Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|****.
FLASHDANCE (WHAT A FEELING)
Misc: Much faster than the original version of the song. Only the main
(and most famous) part of the song is played twice.
Speed: *****.....
Basic: Pretty bland. No half steps. No diagonal jumps. No vertical jumps.
Fairly continuous and pretty fast. There's about 6 spins if you
can find them - if you have a keen eye, you should find them as they
all begin with up arrows. The speed could be a problem, but it's
a good song for getting used to speed on! (It's fast, but it's not
TOO fast - you could do rapid 1/4 steps on it)
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|.....
Another: The first part has steps which are alternating left and right. They
SORT OF go in time with the music. This is fairly easy and once
again, if you've played 2nd ReMIX to death, you won't find any
new challenge in this - but you will find enjoyment.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|**...
SSR: Argh! This is also hell. Do Rock Beat SSR and End of the Century
SSR first if you can. The hard parts are the rapid steps followed
by jumps (like the other two songs I mentioned). Learn them BEFORE
you play the song in the arcade...at home, training mode is better.
Some people reckon this should be 9 feet. I dunno if I'd agree, but
I'd say that may be true...
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *********. Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|****.
Basic.D: You'd think this would be hard due to the pace of the song, but it
isn't that hard. Just remember your Single mode tricks won't work
here...sometimes you'll have to risk crossing your legs, and
sometimes the best strategy is to just walk rather than jump!
Slightly harder than Boom Boom Dollar K.O.G.G 3 Mix on Double Basic.
Some of the triple steps past halfway will require noticing before
they come up, and a technique or two to get past...if in doubt,
jump about. Jumping works wonders on this song, but you'll look
rather unimpressive and you won't learn anything...
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Anthr.D: -empty-
FOLLOW THE SUN
Misc: The original version has a lower pitch. Well known Happy Hardcore
song.
Speed: ******....
Basic: Essentially similar to Upside Down, but faster. Lots of left/right
steps and horizontal jumps. A few vertical jumps and one diagonal
jump in the last part of the song. This is fairly easy. It's
probably easier than Butterfly ~Upswing Mix~ Basic. (yet to be
tested on someone not as experienced as I) Similar to Gimme Gimme
Gimme on the 3rd Mix PSX Bonus Tracks.
Steps: **........ Jumps: **........ Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|.....
Another: -empty-
SSR: First, beware of the jumps with steps coming out of them at the
start! This is probably the hardest part of the song. Then you have
mostly jumps and triple steps for ages. If in doubt, use Vivid mode.
There's a rapid step sequence towards the end. Survive that and the
only thing you'll need is a bit of stamina. The rest of the song
is all 1 beat diagonal jumps! Face left and just hop and move your
right foot foot forward and back if you're low on energy. Basically
if you survive the first part, you'll make it through the whole
song. Unless you make a boo-boo.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: *******... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|**...
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
SSR.D: -empty-
GENTLE STRESS ~AMD SEXUAL MIX~
Speed: ***.......
Basic: -empty-
Another: -emtpy-
SSR: Considered by many to be one of the hardest tunes in 3rd MIX, and
possibly worth 9 feet, however I'd disagree here. It's a matter of
timing and some simple sliding techniques which you can afford to
fail on anyway. This song can be immensely stamina sapping if you
jump too early on parts. Beware of that. Generally, as long as you
know how to the tune goes, and you know how to read steps accurately
and can distinguish the arrows well enough, you'll pass. The
uninformed will not pass, though...
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|**...
Basic.D: Rather tricky, jump wise. Several off-beat jumps. No two-sided
diagonal jumps, however the actual positioning of the jumps can
be very tricky to perform accurately. To add to this problem, you
have to deal with the mats slipping big-time if you're using mats
and they're not fastened down to anything. The rest of the song
features slow single steps which pose no problem at all. This
is a good crowd pleasing song in the arcade (but I don't know why -
I got applause for it several times though)
Steps: ****...... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
Anthr.D: -empty-
SSR.D: -emtpy-
GET UP AND DANCE
Speed: ..........
Basic: The next easiest after Xanadu. Thank god beginners have a song
to do after Xanadu which isn't as hard as Boom Boom Dollar seemed
to be after Have You Never Been Mellow! ('nuff said) Beware though,
because the beat and steps are slightly off throughout the song.
A very slight bit, anyway. (don't expect anything worse than finding
out you got all greats instead of perects and you only get an S)
Steps: **........ Jumps: .......... Overall: *.........
Stamina: **|.....
Another: Repeats the 'harder' sections from Basic mode, adds a few half
steps later on in the song. Still follows the basic left-down-right-
down pattern, even with the half steps. A good song to learn half
steps on, in my opinion.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *......... Overall: ***.......
SSR: This song may be slow, but the steps here are all constant half
steps. There's -3- 1/4 steps right after the start sequence. There's
a half step right after 'em. Only 3 1/4 steps, though. Ok? Ok. Then
it's all half steps. Slow ones. In an easy pattern. In the parts
which go ("Groovin', groovin', groovin', to the funky beat"),
note there's 4 1/4 steps right before it which basically go with
the stuff the drummer does in the background of the music. It's
actually easier than it looks! And very fun! Just be sure the jumps
at the end don't spoil your combo. This is an easy song for
experienced players to SS.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
Basic.D: ARGH! THIS SONG IS TOO SLOW! Almost entirely single steps with a
whole beat between 'em. Absolutely no challenge BUT it's SO slow
you get a LOT of 'Great!'s instead of 'Perfect!'s! Here's a tip:
the steps are in sync with the claps, NOT the beat. Damn Konami.
If you step in time with those, you'll get an SS fairly easily.
Step in time with anything else and you'll get 8.0-8.8 million
points and a lousy S. (You'll need to get no more than about 12
Greats to get an SS) In short, this sucks.
Steps: *......... Jumps: *......... Overall: **........
Anthr.D: -empty-
GRADIUSIC CYBER ~AMD G5 MIX~
Misc: Despite what I said before, it may be a remix of a Gradius song! The
voice at the start before the music begins is from Gradius II
(known as Vulcan Venture in some places) and says something like
"I am the strongest throughout the empire of Bacterion" - it is hard
to understand.
Speed: ******....
Basic: Very similar to the original Trip Machine or Paranoia. A few triple
steps occasionally, a few jumps occasionally, but mostly single
steps. This is by no means cakewalk, but this is also by no means
Paranoia Rebirth.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
Another: Fairly unorthodox and plays rather dirty. Mostly triple steps at
the start, this then becomes double steps towards the end. Several
half steps followed by jumps. This will suck the endurance right
out of you, especially in the arcade, however it is easier than
some 8 foot songs, all the same. (But not all of them) Don't pick
this for your first 7 foot song, in fact, if you're unsure, maybe
it's worth putting it off if you're in the arcade - don't risk
your money.
SSR: Maybe the easiest 'Catastropic' song in 3rd MIX. At least, that's
what I thought, but people disagree! Similar to Another mode, but
a few out of beat steps, as well as extremely furious 1/4 step
frenzies towards the middle make it harder. These are pretty simple,
however being careless will cost you dearly. If this is your first
time, don't be afraid to stamp! I recommend using the pads of your
feet rather than your heels, because you need to be able to switch
around. Be careful. This song will actually be harder for some
people than, say, Captain Jack or Dynamite Rave. (This song doesn't
wear you out physically, however the rapid 1/4 step parts could
cause muscle cramps) If you listen to your steps carefully (if you
do them correct!) you'll notice that there's a repetitious beat to
them and they make drum beat like patterns. Memorize these noise
patterns and this song will be significantly easier! The rapid 1/4
step parts are hardest on the PSX version using mats, curiously -
in the arcade with a good pair of shoes, you could even find
yourself getting large combos during this part of the song!
(seriously - this song is a LOT easier in the arcade and I don't
know why! Of course, if the buttons are covered in sweat...you're
in deep trouble. I have verified that sweat/water causes people who
CAN do this song to screw up)
NEW!: One thing I learnt that made this song drastically easier
and reduced my margin of error tenfold: In the part with the 1/4
steps (the hard part), it's a common mistake to think that they
always start with the left or right foot FIRST. I don't know why,
but a lot of people think this, and so did I! But you'll notice
SOMETIMES, the sequences may go, for example, U-R-U-R-U, R-D-R-D-R.
This makes this song a LOT easier and you'll be getting A's in no
time if you combine this with the skills you already have (presuming
you didn't skip ahead from 5 feet or something :P). If the rapid
steps become too difficult and you just can't ever get them, step
faster. Prescision won't help!
Steps: *********. Jumps: *********. Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|***..
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
IN THE NAVY '99 ~XXL DISASTER MIX~
Speed: ****......
Basic: If you've done this in DDR 2nd ReMIX on PSX, good news: The steps
are easier! The rating is still the same, as it was definately
overrated before. 4 feet - pah! It was worth at least 5! Anyway,
most of the half steps are gone. This leaves ONE problem - the
("We want you! We want you!") parts. They aren't (U-D-U, U-D-U) or
(D-U-D, D-U-D)...they're (U-D-U, D-U-D) or (D-U-D, U-D-U)! So don't
reposition yourself after the first triple steps! Those ARE the
only triple steps now, anyway...oh yeah. Dreamcast 2nd MIX owners,
the steps you have match the 3rd MIX arcade steps. All of them.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Another: This is a painful lesson for students of 2nd ReMIX. Wonder where
those triple steps went to? Many of them ended up here. So did
many more. DON'T do the same tricks from 2nd ReMIX - they just
don't work and you'll lose. Learn from scratch! Otherwise, this
is pretty straightforward.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
SSR: On the other hand...this is potentially lethal. Notice most of
the steps are jumps? Then you're not looking properly. They're
like the steps in Hero on Maniac mode - One arrow followed
IMMEDIATELY by another 1/4 beat arrow! There's a trick to getting
these arrows. Basically, jump and land one foot first, but don't
jump straight up. Jump forward slightly. Swing your arms a bit.
Keep your momentum going because if you find yourself stopping
involuntarily, you're screwed. Even if you accidentally do the
wrong jump, continue. You have a 1 in 2 chance of getting the
right next one right even if you don't look at the screen. The
jumps follow set patterns. The ("WE WANT YOU! WE WANT YOU! WE WANT
YOU IN THE CAPTAINS CREW!") part is probably the trickest one.
The actual first verse of the song part is very easy - at least for
SSR mode. Plan to do this song carefully, as it uses up a LOT of
your endurance as at least 90% of the steps seem to be jumps!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ********** Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|****.
Basic.D: I don't think this has changed from the PSX version's Trial mode
at all. If you need to learn 4 foot songs in Double mode, this is
a good choice. All triple steps are easy and the patterns don't
trick you. But do it on Basic mode first...this one is heavily
based upon it.
Anthr.D: -empty-
JAM JAM REGGAE ~AMD SWING MIX~
Speed: ..........
Basic: Many people complain about the speed of this song being far too low
and say because of that, this song is hard. If you think you could
be one of these, don't do this until you're up to...about 4 feet.
Otherwise...no challenge really. It may be a lot of half beats...but
they aren't hard. It's only like that because if it was a fast
song they might not be on the screen long enough for slow people
to react! Don't think this will teach you how to do half beat steps
at all, because it won't. If you're in the arcade, don't pick this.
Too hard for beginners, too lame for anyone else. And it won't
even save your score to the memory card!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *......... Overall: **........
Stamina: **|.....
Another: This is mostly full of diagonal jumps and half-steps. In fact,
there's a lot of half-step diagonal jumps. The main thing with
this song is keep your timing right! This is a good training song.
Utilize it well! Oh...beware when jumping from one diagonal corner
to the opposite. It's very easy to miss the step on such jumps.
Even an expert can! This song is rather easy, and the skills you
learn from it probably won't help you anywhere else, but at the
very least you'll improve your agility.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *******... Overall: *******...
Stamina: .*|.....
SSR: First order of business: Put Vivid mode back on! It's basically
essential until you pass the song once or you'll confuse jumps with
the umpteen rapid left and right 1/4 steps! Be sure you see and
identify these VERY early, and what's more, IDENTIFY THE END OF THEM
TOO! It's easy to screw up coming off them! Also note the patterns
diagonal jumps go in. Memorize their positions. Read ahead on those
too. This song is slow, you have no excuse to be careless! There are
only two real threats to experienced players in this song - not
recognising the rapid 1/4 steps soon enough because you're playing
in flat mode, or choosing this for the last song and accidentally
losing your timing. Keep both in mind...if you're physically
stunned from excessive play, this might prove hard to do. But maybe
not. Depends, really...but I've seen people yell out in fright
when someone picked this song...then for the next song they did
Dead End!
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ********.. Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|*....
Basic.D: The problem with this is it's FAR TOO SLOW! Since the main technique
in surviving in Double mode is to keep on moving and to keep your
body flowing, this song is a real bastard because to pass it you'll
require to do the antonym - position yourself ahead of the next move
then make a short, sharp jab at the button. Do some movements in
between steps, though - like pretend you're doing the chicken dance
or something. With a technique like this, you're at risk of stepping
too early because of an incorrect calcultation of your body/weight
distribution (that means you lean over too soon :P). When you get
halfway (if you do), you'll have to start some jumping. THIS is
the hard part. After this is the end sequence which is like the
start and has no more jumping. This song is a good one to learn a
new technique on - Moonwalking. At the start and at the end, for
most of the sequence, you can just turn to your right and walk
forwards and backwards! It's dead easy. If you're not going for an
SS, you might very well find this easier, because it ultimately is -
just there's more of a risk of missing steps if you're not used to
it. It sure as hell is less pressuring, though! Oh, one last tip -
if you try my short jab technique, I recommend you remember to use
BOTH feet. If you have to go (left side R, R, right side D, D, R, R)
use your right foot for the R's and your LEFT foot for the D's. It
is a HELL of a lot safer.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: ****......
Anthr.D: Pretty annoying since the steps at the start are in time with the
beat, but not synchronised with it. In fact, most of the song is
like that...however, the difficulty is still pretty low. Due to
the speed of the song, you'll easily have enough time to find your
position and so forth. It's a shame this isn't remotely as hard
as Another mode is on Single...but here's a word of advice. Don't
wear boots. You will undoubtedly tangle your feet with sequences
like this!
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
LA SENORITA
Speed: *******...
Basic: People find this hard because of the speed alone and say it should
be 5 feet. If you have problems coping with speed, skip this until
later. Otherwise, read on. This song consists mostly of single
steps. There are several horizontal jumps, but mostly they are just
4 after each other. The start has a step every 2 beats so you can
get with the pace. There are no half steps in this song. This song
is perfect if you have problems with speed and wish to beat them
because if it were slow, it'd be only 2 feet for sure!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Another: This song is about as unique as a DDR song can get. For the parts
which have a U/L/R step followed by L-D or R-D, I'm sure it's
pretty easy to see the best way to do that - the first step is
easy. The second step is basically a jump with the foot matching
the side the arrow is on onto that arrow and landing with the
next foot on the down arrow. VERY fun to do that trick, too.
Just after the first time you do this, there is some steps which
seem out of beat - these just go with the music. They're just
left-right-left, anyway. Remember on the second one you need
to follow up with a jump. Also, there are two parts which
require a lot of jumping ("When - she - leaves - you - want to
fo-llow her anywhere"). If you miss a jump, DON'T STOP! 3rd MIX
is a lot less forgiving than 2nd MIX.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
Stamina: .*|.....
SSR: Pretty nasty. The thing is, there's no strict pattern for the
steps. Sometimes it's in time with the words, sometimes with the
beat, sometimes with the music, and quite often, in time with
nothing at all. The steps themselves require little technique to
perform. There's really no tips I can give you to help you on this
one - it really depends on experience. If you can do other 7 foot
songs, you have a chance on beating this, but the truth is you could
very well not pass it until you've already beaten several
Catastropic songs. It all depends on you (and not just your skill -
it also depends on how quickly you adapt to things in general!)
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|*....
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: Owch! This can be very tricky for players who try to play Double
mode like single mode. It also can be VERY tricky with mats that
slide in double mode - mine ended half a foot or more apart and
I'm suprised I passed! There's quite a few triple steps, some are
trickier than others (like those that go R-D-D). At the halfway
point when you have the 6 steps which in Another Single mode go
(L-R-L-R-L-R, pause, jump, jump, jump) in time with the music, you
will have to go from the left arrow on the left side to the right
arrow on the right side. Start facing to the right, then do the
usual triple step 'walk' technique for the first three, then turn
to the left and push the left arrow on the right side with your
RIGHT foot. Finish the sequence facing to the left. This is pretty
safe to do. If you aren't good at doing these type of steps, this
may be a good song to get good at doing them on.
Steps: *******... Jumps: .......... Overall: ******....
LA SENORITA VIRTUAL
Basic: The equivilant of Paranoia KCET ~Clean Mix~ in the past DDR games
(although it's in 3rd MIX too). Also the first Basic level 7 foot
song. The main trick to this is the jumping and the speed. It's
on par with the forementioned Paranoia, so most of the tricks
needed for that apply to this too. A few triple and double steps
may throw you off. This song is relatively incomplex - one could
even do it with your shoelaces untied safely. The only thing moving
exceptionally fast is the arrows...not that tricky, even if it has
7 feet.
Another: -empty-
SSR: Utter bastardisation. Close to a 9 foot song, and definately harder
than Another mode (but not _that_ much). Many of the steps lead you
in the wrong direction then dummy to the opposite side of the stage,
leaving you exposed - even if you see them coming, it's usually very
hard to not break a combo up. The steps aren't continuous, and there
are many half steps - Do this after Trip Machine ~Luv Mix~ and it
won't be so hard. Even professionals are likely to miss a few here.
Far from impossible to get an SS on, though - it's no harder than
Trip Machine ~Luv Mix~ suprisingly when it comes to that!
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
LUV TO ME ~AMD MIX~
Misc: Based on the English language version. A Japanese language version
of the song existed before this and was in Beatmania, of course...
Speed: *****.....
Basic: Fairly simple. There's no difficult sequences and all the steps are
single. No diagonal jumps, just horizontal and vertical. If you have
the skills required for a 4 foot song you should breeze through
this, so I won't bother giving any new or specific advice as you
won't need any. I also believe this song is a good choice for
someone looking for a song to learn a performance dance on. If you
are a performance player, why not check it out? I'm sure with a
little creativity, you'll have an awesome routine worked out in
little time with these steps!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Stamina: .*|.....
Another: Similar in patterns to SP-Trip Machine ~Jungle Mix~. Several rapid
steps in time with the music, but they're all segmented so won't
be terribly hard. There's some points with some 1/4 steps in time
with the words, however they aren't rapid 1/4 steps - just don't
tap the steps to the beat by mistake. These are just past the middle
somewhere. This is pretty much borderline in difficulty between
6 and 7 feet, I'd say.
Steps: *******... Jumps: .......... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
SSR: At first, the rapid step sequences in this look very much like
Gradiusic Cyber. And they are. They're shorter and easier, however -
the whole song's step sequences are very unorthodox. You'll probably
have to do this a few times before you can pass it, even if you
have the skills and experience nessecary to beat this song. Don't
quit just because you can't beat it the first few times and it
looks hopeless. Don't try to do the jumping technique from In The
Navy for the parts which have double 1/4 steps. It's best to just
step them for this song. Be careful as these 1/4 steps aren't
constant and sometimes they're actually half beat steps! Many of the
steps in this song are in time with the MUSIC, not the words. Play
Beatmania if you can't hear the music (seriously - it's in 3rd Mix
which is in most arcade, it's the 'Euro Beat' song, although it IS
the Japanese lyric version). If you have enough technique, you'll
survive a lot easier here than in Gradiusic Cyber, and that is
why this is 8 feet instead of 9...
Steps: *********. Jumps: ******.... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
Basic.D: It's all single beats, however some are the kind which deliberately
try to make you screw up. There are some slightly complex jumps,
including two-sided diagonal jumps. There are several ways to play
this song including jumping around a lot (the lamest way), stepping
like in Single mode and hopping over to the other side in a sort
of jump when nessecary (works but risky on harder songs), and
the 'mirror' technique (facing the middle of the play area - ie
look right if on the left) are all ways to play this. This is a
good song to improve your Double mode coordination and stepping
technique in general. The speed might prove a difficult factor to
some beginner players.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|**...
Anthr.D: -empty-
MR. WONDERFUL
Speed: ***.......
Basic: I'd only barely call this a 3 foot song. It's dead easy. All single
steps, in fixed patterns and groups, with breaks between, and a
solitary single diagonal down/left jump at the very end. It might
be a good song in the arcade if you just want value for money,
but you won't learn from this experience - unless you have trouble
with following continuous sequences. El Ritmo Tropical in 2nd MIX
was harder than this (in my opinion). If you need confidence
building, then perhaps this is good too. But like I said - you
won't learn anything from this unless continuous single steps are a
problem for you. If they are, go for it! You'll need this!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: **|.....
Another: A cross between Basic and SSR mode (how often do you hear that? :P)
which can be nasty if you forget the patterns. Pretty much always,
in the ("Hey, Mister Won-der-ful") sections, you're doing single
steps. In the part following that, you USUALLY have one step,
followed by a half-second or so pause (1.5 beats I think), then a
series of rapid steps. Quite simple.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|.....
SSR: After how brutal Another mode seems at first on this song, you'll
be disappointed by this. Easy pickings. Follow the same rules as
above, except the ("Hey, Mister Won-der-ful") sections now all
require you to step in time with the words. So do the ("Ooh-la-la")
parts. Basically the whole dance is in time with the words now!
Steps: *******... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|.....
Basic.D: This starts with broken up figure-8 patterns. Then it randomizes
more. Up until halfway you're pretty safe...then the triple steps
come. If you use mats, they may be seperated by the end - if they
are, beware! You'll find it very hard to get the end sequences! If
not, a intermediate level player should breeze through this. (but if
they do...beware! Double mode with mats is incredibly hard!) Here
is a performance tip: On the steps at the end which go with the
words ("A miracle to me") every time it's repeated, try to do a
spin out of the second step to the last step. It's...err...fancy.
Keep in mind that these patterns aren't too straightforward and
people just starting on Double mode could easily screw up on them.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: .......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|.....
Anthr.D: -empty-
OH NICK PLEASE NOT SO QUICK
Speed: **........
Basic: You know what? This song is a good introduction to 4 foot songs.
The steps are similar to Boys in 2nd MIX, the speed is fairly slow,
and it's quite challenging. By similar to Boys, I mean its steps
resemble Boys - not the difficulty matches, because it doesn't.
You get a fair amount of rests and basically this song is a good
one to aim to beat. This also is almost certainly a great song for
simple performance play. There's many places where you can do a
spin (even though they're not simple spins - you may have to walk
backwards into the first step!) as well as other stunts. As far
as performance play goes, this song is best left to true performance
players and not technical performance players (that is, people who
do kneedrops, handstands and other such stunts - there's little room
for them here, plus they don't suit the song!). Try adlibbing steps
while you play - it'll give you ideas.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|.....
Another: This one isn't that tricky. There's a few double and triple steps,
but if you read your arrows quick enough - which you should by now -
then you'll pass. This is more of a 'get it over with' song.
SSR: This song does the old DDR 2nd MIX trick, with steps such as
(U-R-DR) - there's no trick to these. Just be sure you see them
early. That's the only 'trick' to them. This song requires you to
be rather pre-emptive and anticipate certain steps...on the parts
which go ("Nicky!" "*Nicky!*" "Nicky!" "*Nicky!*"), try to use
as little effort as possible. It's actually easier to get
the moves that way!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *******... Overall: *******...
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: Very cool, but also kind of tricky, Some of the patterns involve
you basically walking a big eliptical pattern on both mats. This
song may look tricky, but actually it's kind of easy. Still, if you
aren't ready for songs of this rank, don't touch it. Probably one
of the best songs, step wise, in Double mode.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
OPERATOR
Misc: In 3rd MIX Arcade and PSX, it is called OPERATOR (TWO GEES MIX),
however it is in actual fact the original version, not the version
from Dancemania X3.
OPERATOR (TWO GEES MIX)
See OPERATOR.
PARANOIA REBIRTH
Speed: ********..
Basic: Argh! Assuming you've done Paranoia Max before...which this is
most similar to...this is quite different. It's probably the worst
Paranoia ever. That is...it's the one that sucks the most. Not
the hardest. On the part which follows the 4 rapid step bits
on the original Paranoia (this IS a remix), beware! WATCH THE
STEPS! The music is unpredictable. Unless you've heard it many
times before, you will not make it. And the rapid steps here have
nothing in common with the original steps for Paranoia. Even the
music doesn't match. So KEEP WATCHING THE STEPS! The end bit,
thankfully, is a bit better - but don't lose your cool.
NOTE: Paranoia Eternal in 5th MIX sucks even more, apparently.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
Another: Suprisingly, this is nothing special. If you can beat other songs
at the same difficulty level, you can beat this. Also, a LOT more
predictable than on Basic mode. Mostly because the majority of
the patterns are from other songs, a-la Paranoia Max.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ******.... Overall: *******...
SSR: Pretty tricky. Do NOT do this unless you've done Dead End several
times. It definately is harder than 8 foot songs. Having said that,
however, I'd like to point out that it's honestly not as hard as
it seems. If you can do Dead End, Afronova, Wonderland, Butterfly
~Upswing Mix~, Boom Boom Dollar ~K.O.G. G3 Mix~ and Get Up and Dance
you're all set for this. For most of this song you'll require to
do flowing rapid steps, however they're FAST - you can't simply
trancend from AM-3P to this! Sometimes the step patterns are
fairly random, however this is uncommon so even if you don't have
the skills to do those, you should be able to attempt them and
still survive. With the PSX version, this song causes EXTREME
mat slippage...so be warned. This is an extremely chaotic song!
Oh yeah - Vol. 4 is another good warm up song. The rapid repeating
steps are also present in Paranoia Rebirth...
Steps: *********. Jumps: ******.... Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|*****
Basic.D: The first portion of the song is all flowing single steps, so apart
from their speed, it's easy. Then you have the two-sided diagonal
jumps. Sometimes you have to do two after one another, so watch
the arrows rather than trying to decipher the pattern. There's no
real challenge until you get to the last third or so of the song.
That's when the triple steps come out as well as the tricky jumps.
use the 'walk' and 'moonwalk' techniques. They really aren't that
tricky until they start appearing in other directions too right
before the end. If you have enough energy, you should still make it
at this point (enough being a fair amount, like 7 bars or so).
Otherwise, you may find this last section a bit out of your skill
level! There's no technique to do it. You'll require experience and
skill to get past it. This song is relatively comfortable to pass.
Easier than Paranoia was on the original DDR in Double mode, anyway.
That's my opinion.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ******....
Anthr.D: -empty-
SILENT HILL
Misc: Semi-cover of some George Michael Xmas song and absolutely nothing
to do with the Konami game of the same name.
Speed: **........
Basic: Another song which is essentially a training song. Since it's two
feet, it's obviously harder than Xanadu - the steps are pretty
much constant.
Steps: **........ Jumps: *......... Overall: **........
Another: Getting tougher now. Pretty constant stepping with regular jumps
and a few triple steps, but there IS something which will stump
people in this! YES! Some rapid step parts go (vertical jump-
vertical jump-horizontal jump, left, left, left, L-L-vertical jump)
and I'm pretty sure these are merely in there to break your combos!
Also, the part immediately before one of these is basically constant
rapid steps - about 13 of them. If you are ready for this song, you
will not have any trouble with them. Oh yeah - just before the
first set of rapid step/jump patterns mentioned just before, there's
some slightly confusing rapid half steps. These are the only ones
in the song. I won't give you any hints on these because frankly,
you should be using this set to get better anyway - there's very
little risk of losing just because you missed them, and if you
get good at them, hooray! You can do slow rapid steps!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
SSR: -empty-
Basic.D: These steps are roughly similar to Xanadu in Another Double mode.
They're not hard, but not easy. These steps are sort of a medium
difficulty. This is one of the easier 4 foot songs. It will imrpove
your coordination techniques. It's also rather easy to SS, so make
sure you do it at some point.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Anthr.D: There are a lot of triple steps in this, and some cross from one
side to the other. You have to learn two techniques for this. One is
the 'walk' triple step technique. You should know that from Single
mode. The other is the 'moonwalk' triple step technique. It's the
same, but backwards. It's not harder to do, just many people never
think of doing it. Those are all the techniques you'll need to do
this song, though. Learn the normal 'walk' technique before trying
this as the other is easy enough to pick up. Don't pick this for
your last song if you aren't used to it.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
SSR.D: Don't even attempt this if you have mats and they aren't pretty damn
secure. You won't even make it halfway. I managed to complete this
like this, but the mats were almost a foot apart! You will require
the same techniques from Another Double mode in this, as well as
the skills to be able to do rapid half step successions. Boom Boom
Dollar Maniac Single is a good song to train on for this. The
starting step sequence follows a repeating pattern which is easy to
learn. This is why I recommend getting good at Boom Boom Dollar
Maniac first. It's a very similar to the old 16-step rapid sequence
from that, however you'll have to 'moonwalk' when you switch to the
other side (or start moonwalking, if you prefer). Just past the
middle, you'll have to deal with patterns which mix jumps with
triple steps. The sequence before this is extremely tricky and there
is no real technique to be done here. It requires skill. Near the
end there is a sequence which has you alternating left and right in
the middle of the playing field. This ends with a jump, so make sure
you see it in time. This song is difficult, but is an excellent
learning experience.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *******... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
SO MANY MEN
Misc: Removed from 4th MIX for unknown reasons.
Speed: **........
Basic: -empty-
Stamina: **|.....
Another: -empty-
SSR: -empty-
Basic.D: Starts off simple but gets trickier towards the end. Continuous
single steps and horizontal/vertical jumps are here to contend with.
Trickier than Upside Down. A good training song for 3 foot songs.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
Anthr.D: -empty-
SSR.D: -empty-
THE RACE
Speed: ****......
Basic: Fastish, but it's 3 feet and deservedly so. Easier than Boys on
2nd MIX. PSX owners of 2nd ReMIX will be glad to know that this IS
the same as their version. There's a few jumps in this, however my
friends, who can dance at a 3 foot level or so, find this a lot
easier than Boys. It's also a good song for putting a bit of swing
into your step, but that's another story.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: .*|.....
Another: I actually found this harder after playing 2nd ReMIX. I dunno why.
The steps seem slightly reminiscant of SP-Trip Machine ~Jungle Mix~
or, probably even more accurately, Trip Machine ~Luv Mix~. Watch
the steps. That's my advice for the day. But it still doesn't help
when I play.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
SSR: Once again, there's no set pattern for the steps in this song. Be
ready for anything - there are no specific dirty tricks.
Basic.D: VERY similar to Do It All Night in Double mode. There's plenty of
gaps between most steps, a few jumps, but the main difference is
there's some trickier side switching. There's one sequence at the
end where you have to tap left on the right side then do a vertical
jump on the left. It's good practice, and, like Do It All Night, it
is pretty safe to say that it's not too hard to SS. The odds on the
mats slipping if you're not in the arcade is fairly likely, so be
careful.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Anthr.D: -empty-
TURN ME ON ~HEAVENLY MIX~
Speed: *******...
Basic: Most of the song features streaming (and fast!) single steps
however MOST of these can very easily be done. In fact, you can just
alternate between your left and right foot to step the steps for
most of it without having to turn away from the screen! This is fast
but that's it. It's not hard. The middle part doesn't even have two
steps in a row at one time.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: .......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: .*|.....
Another: Most of the song features triple steps. They can be pretty hard.
You'll need to know the walking technique as well as the moonwalking
technique if you wish to get these perfectly. The bit after the
starting patterns has off-beat steps. They're in time with the
music, of course. The middle section features streaming steps, and
all of them can be done by alternating which foot you use. Easily.
The steps at the end go (D, D, D, D-U) - an easy (and fun!) way to
do this is to hop on the last D step with one foot and step forward
with the other foot to press U. Try it! (It works on Flashdance in
Another mode, too.)
Steps: *****..... Jumps: .......... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
SSR: Now the song is made up mostly of sets of seven steps. Not much
harder as Another mode - 7 steps IS just 2 sets of 3 steps with a
new step in the middle, really. All the steps are easy to do as far
as rapid steps go. The sequence after the beginning patterns now
has every step in time with every note and beat. The middle bit
consists of single steps with a few triple steps. It's still fairly
comfortable to do. This song is more or less describable as a poor
man's version of Dead End - learn to do this before you tackle Dead
End. If you're especially good at this and you're looking for a
Catastrophic song to try - why not try Dead End? You may not get it
first go, but you may. (Dead End is easy to get a decent mark on -
it chiefly wears out your stamina, that's where the difficulty is!)
This song is a good choice if you aren't afraid of losing some
stamina.
Steps: *******... Jumps: .......... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|***..
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: Literally IMPOSSIBLE with mats, unless they're fastened down. The
steps in this song are designed in such a way that you force the
mats apart no matter what! I'll put tips in when I get to the
arcade...
SSR.D: -empty-
UPSIDE DOWN
Misc: Some of the in-game lyrics are drastically wrong.
Speed: **........
Basic: This is probably as close as you'll find to Boom Boom Dollar Basic
mode - it's slightly harder, though. Mostly linked single steps,
but they're mostly the same direction twice or more. A few
horizontal jumps, too. Use the old 2nd MIX positioning technique
and you'll live to play another day.
Steps: **........ Jumps: **........ Overall: **........
Another: Mostly this has the same old quadrupled half steps - ie (R-R-D-D)
followed by one last half step in another direction. There is
one jump. This is one of those songs you'd love to draw in
roulette mode if you're going for a combo...because it's incomplex!
There's nothing which could accidentally suprise you! (in fact, this
song is quite easy to SS)
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
SSR: It is very important in this song to not expect patterns. At the
start it's fairly incomplex for SSR. Towards halfway you have heaps
of half steps mixed in with a diagonal jump somewhere in the middle
of all of the half steps. Be VERY wary of these. These continue to
the end. Jam Jam Reggae ~AMD Swing Mix~ on Another mode is a good
practice run for this. So's the SSR version to an extent...even if
it is rated more feet than this. If you can read the screen fast
enough the steps ARE easier than Jam Jam Reggae's on SSR.
Basic.D: The steps are all pretty basic, and there's no triple steps. Pretty
similar to the basic mode steps. There's two jumps or so in the
entire song: Right near the start and somewhere close to the end.
This song is really not very difficult at all. But it still is
Double mode, so it's no cakewalk. At least, this song isn't. (that
is merely because most of the steps are continuous!)
Steps: **........ Jumps: *......... Overall: ***.......
Anthr.D: -empty-
VOL 4
Misc: Obviously based on 'Popcorn', the 70s synthpop song by Hot Butter,
but some people actually don't know this!
Speed; *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Another: -empty-
SSR: Not hard, not easy. Of course, all the steps in the Popcorn bits
mimic the note sequence. If you know Popcorn, you'll breeze through
it. There's some parts towards the end with diagonal jumps followed
by half-steps out of the jumps. It's best to just hop on that foot
to that site and fall onto the next step in the pattern with the
other foot. If you have trouble, try this in songs like Holiday -
they're slower and are good for warming up.
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: -empty-
SSR.D: -emtpy-
WONDERLAND ~UKS MIX~
Misc: Remix of 'Boogie Wonderland' by Earth, Wind and Fire (a 70s disco
group). Obvious, but here for the same reasons as stated for Vol 4.
Speed: **........
Basic: -empty-
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Another: Many of the steps near the start repeat themselves. Utilize this.
Do something fancy. This is pretty straightforward on Another
mode. Konami have set out their songs pretty well in 3rd MIX...
a good training song for this is Brilliant 2 U on Another mode.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
SSR: This can be tricky. There are two ways to do the bit at the start
with the rapid steps: Use your left foot on down and left and
your right on up and right. That's the hard way. Of course, there's
the part which goes (U-R-U-R-U-R-U-D) which can be a bit like
playing Russian Roulette (but I can do it this way). Probably
the best way is to stand on up with your right foot and use
your left on everything else. At least until the end of
that section. Other than this, the half steps in this song are
pretty linear and won't throw you off guard. It's pretty easy to
score an A, even. An SS isn't too hard, either...
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ****...... Overall: *******...
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: Mat users will experience some difficulty because the mats will
seperate an inch or two, but otherwise, not too hard. Some triple
steps might catch a few people off, and some jumps will require a
lot of power to do. There is one two sided diagonal jump nearish
to the end. If you want an SS, make sure you don't mistake it for
something else. This song is pretty similar to the Single Another
mode version, which is good because it gives you something to
practice on safely (and cheaply, in the arcade) - unlike the SSR
version.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
SSR.D: Not that hard. You'll require to be able to do short sequences of
half steps, but not long ones. You WILL have to use both mats for
these sequences, but the best way to do these is so you end facing
away from the side you started the sequence on. There is only one
real problem for players here who are at this level of difficulty:
If you're using mats, and they slide, they will slide a LOT on this.
They're most likely to overlap at the top and to be up to 6 inches
apart at the bottom or so. It's still possible to play and complete
the song satisfactorily like this, though. The end sequence is
made of alternating diagonal half-beat jumps and half-beat steps.
Make sure you see which are which. The exception to this is the last
two steps which are opposing diagonal half-beat jumps.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|.....
XANADU
Misc: Rumored to be removed from 3rd MIX Korea ver.2 and PSX 3rd MIX due
to cover artists not being happy with the mix, but appears once
again in 4th MIX (Arcade and PSX) and onwards...
Note: Xanadu is in 4th MIX on PSX, not 3rd MIX.
Speed: **........
Basic: Cakewalk. The equivilant of Have You Never Been Mellow in the
previous versions of DDR. Let me put it this way: I played this
in 2 player mode in the arcade, and I got an S on the left side
and a B on the right side. That's right, I played 2 player by
myself. ACCIDENTALLY, THOUGH!
Steps: *......... Jumps: .......... Overall: *.........
Another: A nice training song. No half steps. Several jumps in obvious
patterns - most follow a spin. If you're low on songs, try
this because it's got to be done sometime if you want to get
a score on everything...
Steps: **........ Jumps: *......... Overall: **........
SSR: Similar to Another mode, however mostly filled with flowing half
steps. The steps don't really try to trick you into getting messed
up, so think of this as a warm-up. This should be your first song
you attempt on SSR mode. This, Get Up and Dance, Wonderland or
Dam Dariam will probably be the first songs you get an SS on in
SSR mode, too. Honestly, if you can't do this, I suggest that you
quit SSR mode now, and don't come back until you can do Captain
Jack in Another mode, maybe Dynamite Rave, definately Paranoia
Rebirth...or at the very least, Mr. Wonderful because the SSR
version of that is not much harder (except it's considerably harder
to get an SS on. SS this song dammit!)
Steps: *******... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
Maniac: In 4th MIX Plus and onwards (Including 4th MIX PSX), Xanadu has
new steps on Maniac. These steps are significantly harder than
normal and have very little rhythm. There was a lot of complaints
from Japanese DDRers about the 4th MIX Plus Maniac steps for songs
such as this. It's good practice if you're already good, and would
like to improve your stepping technique even more, because the steps
have little rhythm as I said. This means you need to use your eyes
more than your ears and your instinct. Other than that, the new
steps for this quite honestly suck compared to the old ones, harder
or not! This is significantly easier in the arcade, though. Try
saving this from 4th MIX PSX and play it on an older version of DDR
in the arcades for a laugh...
Steps: *********. Jumps: ***....... Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|*....
Basic.D: -empty-
Anthr.D: You'd think this'd be dead easy, but it's actually fairly hard.
Why? Because you're changing sides almost constantly. Fortunately,
it never has anything rediculously hard, and thus is a good song
to do if you're trying to improve at Another Double mode.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
5.3 4th MIX and Solo 2000 Songs
-------------------------------
In 4th MIX, the songs are generally easier than before. It seems the game
is designed like the original - ie, to let new people get good at it. Most
of the harder songs here are from Solo, but a few, like Ninzaburo, are not.
Basic mode is incredibly easy on 4th MIX and many 4 foot songs are about as
hard as 2 foot songs in its predecessors. Another/Trick mode is slightly
easier, also. Maniac mode is roughly what it always was, however some of the
lower difficulty songs are disgustingly easy for their ranking.
Also note that Maniac Double is mostly Double created from the steps from
regular Maniac mode. In fact, it requires little double play technique at all
in my opinion - most of the steps are designed so you DON'T cross your legs,
and thus the challenge is ruined - oh well. At least 3rd MIX Maniac Double
stuff still is hard... (FYI, I had no problems with any Maniac Double songs
up to 8 feet, including things like B4U, Orion.78 and Era~nostalmix~ - and
when I first picked double internet ranking mode, I thought "oh $#!+! I can't
possibly make this!" and I played for _survival_)
I've already finished all the songs (honestly, they ARE that much easier
than 3rd MIX's were to 2nd MIX!), so if anyone is struggling, email me and
I'll offer you advice. :)
NOTE: Unless specified, the tips are for 4 panel mode. At the time of first
writing this section, 4th MIX on PSX was not available yet. Also this means
any Korean and Solo 2000 songs mentioned here are in reference to the ARCADE
version. This does not mean they are hidden in the PSX version. Also, the
BPM for some songs is present. These are from various sources, so since they
are widespread, I won't wast time crediting...but they are often verified by
the Pocketstation 4th MIX Arcade NS Order editor by H.Nissie (www.nissie.com)
which has all the bpm info hard-coded.
This section is also what you want if you own Extra MIX...but 5th MIX songs
will be in the 5th MIX section below.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Novice level players:
* Anything on Basic mode (just about)
* I'll ask some beginners what they recommend...it's just too broad a
question on such an easy incarnation of DDR...
Intermediate level players:
* Gotcha - Trick
* Shake Your Booty - Trick
* Almost anything in Covers & Classics
Expert Speed players:
* B4U - Maniac
* Drop Out - Maniac
* Hero (Happy Grandale Mix) - Maniac
* Paranoia Evolution - Maniac
* Saints Go Marching (Remix) - Maniac
Expert Technical players:
* Trip Machine Climax - Maniac
* High Energy - Maniac
* Leading Cyber - Maniac
* Ninzaburo/Furahata's Theme - Maniac
* Orion.78 - Maniac
Expert Performance players:
* .59 - Maniac
* Hypnotic Crisis - Maniac (try learning it backwards! Easy! Ish...)
* Super Star - Maniac
* Love This Feelin' - Maniac
.59
Misc: Many Japanese sites refer to this song as 'Tengoku', which means
paradise/heaven (in Japanese, obviously!). This is because in
Japanese, ten means point (.), and 59 can be shortened to go-ku.
Speed: ***....... (yes, it DOES slow down at the end - 135-124bpm)
Basic: Starts off every easy with all single steps. Then you get some
horizontal jumps (but nothing for ages before them, so you have
time to get ready). Then a few half-steps (which are easy...
left-right type stuff). Then there's 5 rapid steps (left-right
again). That's the hardest part! Just before the end there's two
or so vertical jumps. Overall, this is very easy.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: ***.......
Stamina: **|.....
Trick: This features some small rapid step patterns that make it about as
hard as Boom Boom Dollar was on Trick/Another mode. Some of the
steps at the start are off beat. Nothing special. Similar to the
Maniac version of this song but obviously has all the tricky bits
removed.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
Maniac: Not hard, but fun and sort of good for training. Some rapid step
type parts, but they're short and far apart. Most of the song
features patterns which go with the music, for example a triple
step, then a In the Navy '99 style uneven landing jump (one foot
first), THEN comes the trick. the repeating steps here could throw
an unwary player off. The best trick is to basically hop on one
foot. Hop onto the button, hop a bit, then switch feet. The added
bonus is this adds some style to your play! The only tricky part
here is the off-beat jumps, but it's still not easy...a decent
recovery song though if you're puffed.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *******... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
B4U
Misc: 'sequel' to Brilliant 2U.
Speed: *****.....
Basic: Disgustingly easy for a 4 foot song. Lots of singles. A jump or two.
It'd say it's easier than Boys or Butterfly even, because there's
massive gaps! This is definately not worth 4 feet. I seem to recall
El Ritmo Tropical was roughly as hard...
Steps: **........ Jumps: **........ Overall: ***.......
Stamina: **|.....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Like the Brilliant 2U's before it, this features regular triple step
patterns and a few off-beat patterns (in the 'chorus' for lack of
a better word in my vocabulary. Can music like this have choruses?)
which follow the music and are quite easy. Definately not an 8 foot
song. Barely even a 7 footer! As for tactics, it would be wise
Steps: *******... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
BABY BABY GIMME YOUR LOVE
Speed: .......... (95bpm)
Basic: One foot hell! A lot of steps are two beats apart. If this song
was Dead End, that would be 4 beats. Which is an eternity! It's
VERY hard to max combo this song because your brain reacts by moving
as slow as the song is. While you obviously WON'T need advice for
the song in general, here's my tip on Max Combo-ing the song: rather
than tapping to every beat, tap to every HALF beat. SWAY with every
half beat. Act like the song is 190bpm instead! It helps a lot!
Steps: *......... Jumps: .......... Overall: ..........
Stamina: **|.....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: No tips, except watch out at the end - the last 5 steps or so are
not strictly following the beat! Look carefully!
Steps: ****...... Jumps: *......... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: .*|.....
BUMBLE BEE
Misc: The artist 'Bambee' who performed this previously performed Typical
Tropical, from DDR Solo 2000 (and Solo Bass Mix, probably).
Speed: ****......
Basic: A little tricky. Although the steps are all single steps or jumps,
some of them lead in confusing directions. All in all, this is just
another brick in the wall and isn't exceptional and thus, I have
nothing to say on it, really...
Steps: ****...... Jumps: **........ Overall: ****......
Stamina: .*|.....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Nasty. Most of the steps go with the words, or with the strange
rhythm of the instruments in the background (this is especially
evident at the start and the end). This song is most similar to
Cutie Chaser and it's from the same era, so if you can't pass this
then try Cutie Chaser. If you have to do any skips, make sure you
fall back on the right foot, because they repeat in the same
direction.
Steps: *******... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
BURNIN' THE FLOOR
Speed: *****.....
Basic: Too easy. Mostly single steps, some jumps (vertical and horizontal).
Konami overrate songs too much in 4th MIX...
Steps: *......... Jumps: **........ Overall: **........
Stamina: **|.....
Trick: Getting trickier. Single steps, some triples, often in succession of
each other, and a few diagonal jumps. Ultimately no harder than
Brilliant 2U ~Orchestra Groove~ - even the hard parts are followed
by single steps so you have an excellent chance of getting back
lost energy, unless you pick this as your last song.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Maniac: This song has one pattern that is consistant throughout the song:
Most of the steps go in a figure 8 pattern (up, left, down, up,
right, down, repeat). When they don't, the pattern is remarkably
similar. This allows you to put a lot of style into your dance, but
it also may mean you will use up more stamina. Just past halfway,
the steps match the generic Naoki chord sound (see Love Again
Tonight for more info - same type of sound, near identical step
pattern!). In truth, this song might be worth 8 feet, but maybe
not quite. No _real_ long step sequences.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
CAN'T STOP FALLIN' IN lOVE
Speed: *****.....
Basic: Mostly single steps with some horizontal jumps thrown in the middle.
The single steps are designed to confuse people who stay in the
middle when they play. So DON'T! You'll end up doing the cossack!
If you can handle that, there's nothing to it. The end features
a few triples, but they're very straightforward and you'll see what
they are. If in doubt, ignore them! There's so few that unless you
screwed up bigtime earlier, you won't fail. Another problem you
might face is the steps don't feel very rhythmic because most of
them are every SECOND beat - tap or sway to the beat in between
the steps if this applies to you.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: ***.......
Stamina: **|.....
Trick: Several triples are in this. That's your main opponent here. They're
right after jumps, too, so if you can't do them yet...learn first!
This is not a good song to learn on! There's some off-beat steps
near the end which you can safely ignore and probably not lose the
stage, but they're also good experience.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: **|.....
Maniac: The start and end of the song are the hardest bits. The easiest way
to pass these without missing a step is to turn sideways. Facing
forwards means you have to spend time reposiioning. That is bad.
This song seems to sap the living daylights out of your stamina,
like some sort of parasite! I don't know why. Make sure you have
a good step technique. Some jumps are not with a steady beat (but
do follow the musical beat). This song is far from impossible, so
don't let the first impression put you off...
Steps: *******... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|***..
Maniac Very little has changed between the 4 panel version and this. It
6PANEL: seems that this was made for 4 panel, not vice versa which is often
the case in Solo 2000 songs. If you can pass this on 4 Panel Maniac
and you have decent 6 Panel skills, you can pass this. Beware the
jump at the end - plan it ahead because coordination is of the
utmost importance! Mis-balance, mis-distribute your weight or just
plain miss, and then you've lost your combo!
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *******... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
DO ME (H.I.G.E.O. MIX)
Misc: The image of Afro in the background appears to have him wearing his
5th MIX outfit. 'Do' is in bold so people do no misread the title
as 'Dome', and perhaps because that's supposed to be a moustached
Boldo saying it.
Speed: ***....... (about 130bpm)
Basic: Fairly simple overall, but there are a LOT of spins - 24, to be
exact. There are 3 sections with a ton of spins in them each, so if
you want to get dizzy as hell, do 'em - most of them end with an up
step. Other than this, there's nothing really complex about this
song. As spins require you to reposition your feet a lot, if you're
not completely comfortable with doing single steps yet and you think
you may trip up, you should either avoid this song for now or try it
for the last song - it's excellent practice. But don't spin unless
if you want to get dizzy!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|*....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
DROP OUT
Misc: Fastest song in DDR (duh :P).
Speed: **********+ (260bpm, as the name of the band implies. MAY speed up
towards the end to 300bpm)
Basic: Unlike other difficulty levels, this is consistant in how hard it is
throughout the song. There's only two things you really need for
this: To be comfortable with the speed (and see the arrows in time!)
and to know how the music itself goes. Being good at triple steps
helps too. Otherwise, this is easy eough! But still hard to get a
max combo...
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|***..
Trick: Mostly just singles. Once again, your main enemy here is the speed.
It's not that tricky, but sometimes there is a vertical jump with
two horizontal rapid steps a beat later. Face left or right to make
these bits easier. Not knowing what the step patterns are might be
enough to fail you on the parts with lots of singles.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
Maniac: This is so fast that you feel like you're about to be in a car
crash! It is imperative that you learn to READ the steps AS they
come up the screen, otherwise the nasty jumping parts will blow
you away! (they're leg killers!) I also suggest you PRACTICE
triple steps at this speed, because the first few times you play
this, if you don't, the end bit WILL kill you. No kidding. You
will see the steps, but your legs will be out of time and you'll
end up stepping in the wrong places. Gotta hate that! (this song
was ranked 8 feet originally because it was in the DDR Solo series
first). Only the end part takes any stamina. If you appear only to
be getting SOME of the steps at the end, you're stepping too slow.
Just go nuts. Also note that knowing the patterns for the single
steps is a HUGE advantage - one guy I met was good at the jumps
and the rapid steps, but not the singles! With the right technique,
this song won't take up any more stamina than usual. I suggest you
Devote a whole credit to Drop Out only.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *******... Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|****.
ERA(nostalmix)
Misc: A full version of this song exists. Don't ask me for it though...
check the links in this FAQ.
Speed: *********. - *......... (varies) (NB: 180-90bpm)
Basic: Actually _useful_ unlike other 4th MIX Basic mode songs! Perfect for
learning tricky elements such as off-beat steps (They follow the
music quite clearly so after a few goes you won't miss), and of
course, the speed halves. Nothing tricky in the slightest - no jumps
or half steps (excluding the off-beat steps). Recommended if you
have not tried these two things yet.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: .......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: .*|.....
Trick: Nothing more challenging than a triple step. I have no idea why it
is ranked 6 feet, but it shouldn't be. Some (about half) of the
triple steps are in positions which will be awkward to a triple
step novice, however about half of these awkward triples are perfect
for learning tricks like turning sideways to do them. The rest
require nothing more than a faster response time.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: .......... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Maniac: Lots of Rapid steps, so speed fans will enjoy this until the song
goes to half-speed. Many people lose here. If you know the song, it
won't be a problem, and you should get good combos here for sure.
There's no trick - just know the song. Once learnt, this song is
very easy and thus, a favourite of speed players as it LOOKS more
impressive to the untrained eye (plus it's also a sort of "can you
do this?" kind of goal you should reach).
Steps: ********.. Jumps: .......... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
FURAHATA'S THEME
See NINZABURO.
GOTCHA
Speed: **........
Basic: Dullsville. Mostly similar to Boom Boom Dollar except for the very
large empty space 3/4 of the way through which is ideal if you
dropped your wallet on the stage or something. It lasts at least 10
seconds, so feel free to have a drink while you're at it. Hell, you
almost have enough time to buy one! (I will test this theory some
day...I will!)
Steps: **........ Jumps: *......... Overall: ** .......
Stamina: **|.....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: A good song for intermediate level players. Wierd timing, a lot of
spins, slow rapid steps and a few /16th steps. Memorize the music,
play the song a few times, and you'll do fine unless you are WAY
not cut out for this yet. Pretend it's a drumkit or something!
HIGH ENERGY ~JOHN '00' FLEMING REMIX~
Misc: Who the hell is John '00' Fleming? Wasn't James Bond created by
Ian Fleming? I'm not sure, but it sure as heck wasn't John!
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Trick: Similar to Maniac, but less jumps, basically. Especially on bits
with wierd timing.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|**...
Maniac: Many of the steps will require you to reshuffle your positions. If
you know how, the footslide works wonders for these bits. The
problem with this song as far as playing it is concerned is that
the parts where you have two half-beat steps, a jump, then a pause
then a jump. The jumps are slightly off beat. A lot of the time, you
end up lingering in the air. The only way around this is to practice
as unfortunately, there's not much way of keeping time if you've
already jumped for the second jump! Keep the beat mentally. It
works better in this case. Unfortunately, these jumps make the
song live up to its name...the best advice I can offer is, know
the song! Even an expert will suffer a bit here if they don't!
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|***..
HYPN0TIC CRISIS
Misc: A VERY heavy remix of Hypnotica from Guitar Freaks/DrumMania. Don't
bother disagreeing because it's very hard to tell - just listen to
some of the sound effects and it becomes obvious.
Speed: *.........
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Like Leading Cyber, but not as hard. Starts with about two off-beat
jumps which you can do in a number of ways (jumping, dragging your
foot, etc), followed by a simple sequence of half steps, jumps
and so forth. This repeats once, then the steps follow the music.
This is fairly simple, but it may be hard if you haven't heard it
before. Try it on another difficulty first if you're in doubt, or
you could just try the song anyway if you're confident...these two
types of pattern repeat once each before another pattern comes.
The first set of arrows will have two 1/4 beat steps at the start
with half steps after, the second set will have two 1/4 beat steps,
then a 1/2 beat break and another two 1/4 steps after that. Some
of these steps are in tricky patterns, so some skill may be
required, but generally, all you need to pass this is the ability to
react in time. The rest of the song is simple...severely overrated.
A good stamina recovery song, though.
Steps: *********. Jumps: ***....... Overall: *******...
Stamina: .*|.....
HYSTERIA
Speed: ********..
Basic: Lots of single steps and several horizontal and vertical jumps. It
for that reason is a good stepping stone. If you've done songs with
similar content (ie Boys), try this - it's fast, but it's a
strategic stepping stone which leads the way to the mighty steps of
Paranoia. Some of the jumps can be tricky, and could wear you out
(one I noticed was horizontal jump, vertical jump, horizontal jump),
so if you want, practice these moves before you play. Also, I'd say
this song would be good for performance play...but I'd also say
the Maniac version is as well :)
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|*....
Trick: Tricky. Lots of triple steps and jumps, although nothing TOO
complex. There are gaps between triples, but not big gaps, so
be prepared. Jumps tend to be a lot closer together towards the
end. Dub-I-Dub on Basic mode is good practice for the jumps,
Brilliant 2U on Trick/Another mode is good practice for the triples.
Maybe even Brilliant 2U ~Orchestra Groove~. Probably harder than
Paranoia on Basic, so be prepared!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|**...
Maniac: The speed combined with the tricky jump-step-step-jumps in the
choral part combine to make this song a bit of a bastard. You have
three options for this section. The first one is pure illogic: it
requires the most technique to date for this manouver...all you have
to do for this is DON'T relax. Relaxing usually helps but this time,
FORCE your foot to the next step. For effect, stomp the horizontal
jumps with your fists clenched and your arms pointing straight
down. I find it looks cool and it makes you feel kinda powerful :)
Technique two is good for the ones where the first step after the
jump is up: Jump the horizontal step, then jump and turn 90 left
and land with the left foot first. Then jump back. Simple! This
works poorly on the parts with down steps first (these are near the
end). Perhaps it's just because I'm left handed/footed. So here's
technique three: Jump so you land slightly earlier. You may still
get a perfect, but a great is fine. Then simply slide a foot back
to down!
Another thing you must watch out for is some steps are off-beat.
Most of these steps are just past the start. so follow the music
(if you can hear it). Of course, if you look close enough you'll
know in the first place!
Steps: *******... Jumps: ********.. Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
I DON'T WANT TO MISS A THING ~PLANET LUTION MIX~
Misc: One of a few Solo 2000 songs in DDR GB3. Cover of an Aerosmith song
of the same name which featured in the movie Armageddon.
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Listen to the music a bit before you play it. The beat screws around
a LOT, but the steps are otherwise incomplex. I max comboed this
on my first try. I didn't max combo much else, though, due to the
dodgy stage! There are no really fast steps at all. A good song to
dance to!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|.....
LEADING CYBER
Speed: *.........
Basic: Tricky. A few wierd-seeming eighth (half-beat) steps just past the
beginning. These are more likely to break combos than to make you
fail. Then everything is fine until you get to some spins...4
counter-clockwise, 4 clockwise, 4 counter-clockwise, 4 clockwise.
Whatever you do, if you're not just trying to get dizzy on purpose,
DON'T TRY THE SPINS! They are GUARANTEED to make you dizzy, and you
do NOT want that for what comes up afterwards...using your right
foot first, basically 'walk' the steps, walking backwards and
forwards. You should turn your body 90 each way but no further.
The spins are the main thing, though...they lull you into a false
sense of security!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: One of the few challenging songs in 4th MIX, I'd say! For starters,
make sure you either watch someone else play AND know the music, or
even better, learn to play the game by watching the steps EXACTLY -
the best way to do this is play something on shuffle SSR/Maniac with
the sound OFF (obviously this should be done at home), or if you
have a PAL machine, don't use the speed fix code! It helps your
skill ENORMOUSLY not to! In any case, I can't give much advice other
than that as this requires less skill than it requires good
identification of the arrows, especially at around the minute mark
(2/3 of the way through the song), where the arrows basicaly spew
out everywhere. The steps match the beat almost perfectly, so
listen to the beat as these steps come up. You won't get them
perfectly first go, but if you don't at least do this, you will lose
just like most people (so don't feel too bad about it when you do
cos' I did first go - the only song apart from Drop Out that I
-did- lose, actually!). After this there's no 1/4 steps so you can
relax somewhat. Beat Gradiusic Cyber and Hypnotic Crisis first cos'
if you can't, you are not going to pass this...
Steps: ********** Jumps: *******... Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|..
...
LOVE AGAIN TONIGHT
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Some parts are tricky. The very start matches the generic Naokiesque
instrument in the background (I have no idea what it is but it's
in EVERY Naoki song, and some which to my knowledge aren't Naoki...)
And then comes one of the trickiest parts in the whole song: A
messy bunch of 1/3 notes, possibly with 1/2 notes inbetween. The
pattern roughly goes: boom-boom, boom-boom, boom-boom,
boom-boom - like the music, more or less. It is VERY IMPORTANT to
note that the first two steps in this pattern (right left) are NOT
actually in the pattern - they are in the previous 'follow the Naoki
type chord' thing I mentioned earlier. The first step is the SECOND
right you see. Knowing this may not help- you may be able to get
these steps by just pretending they're half steps, but if you learn
the exact pattern (which is hard to describe), it makes it a lot
less messy. The notes immediately after follow the beat exactly. In
the main part, the sequence goes [down-up-horizontal jump] a lot.
Common DDRer practice here is to face left to do the steps and then
turn forwards to jump. Next you have steps which go left-down-right
and repeat like so. Doing a foot slide here is the best way, but
if you don't have the skill to do this, face right. This is just as
easy, but it scuffs your shoes a lot and it's generally exhausting.
Note that in the second 'Love, love, love, love' part, the second
'love' is said a bit later than the steps. Step early here! Konami's
mistake, obviously, but it really screws up your game. The rest of
the song is obvious enough, providing your skill is adequate. I'd
say this is the only _underrated_ song in this mix...
MAKE YOUR MOVE
Speed: *.........
Basic: -empty-
Trick: If you're not just skipping ahead because you beat it too easily on
Basic and you're not that good anyway, then if you have problems
here it'll either be on the left-down-right style triples, or cos'
you're stepping too fast on the other triples. If it's the prior,
then you just need practice because you can either do a foot drag
like most beginners try to do, or you can turn sideways to do it,
like the rest will do. Also make sure you're not stepping out of
time in the 'Make Your Move' bits. Once again, practice makes
perfect.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|.....
Maniac: -empty-
MY SUMMER LOVE
Speed: *.........
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Essentially the same concept as Jam Jam Reggae, but slightly
trickier. It has a lot of bits similar to Dynamite Rave...so use
this to learn how to do Dynamite Rave on Maniac/SSR! It's a lot
slower and in the majority of the song, you can afford to screw up.
The steps are nigh on constant, but are so slow that it doesn't
matter. The middle part which sounds disgustingly similar to the
Macarena is the hardest part, with constant fast 1/4 steps. Practice
makes perfect, and vivid mode is a must for first timers (cos' they
are NOT jumps!). Screwing up here probably is a death sentence. My
tip is don't face right and try the steps. Useless tip, I know. But
the hard part is seeing what they are, not doing the steps! And I
cannot show you how to _see_! I hear a lot of people say this is
THE hardest song in 4th MIX. This is absolutely false. I failed it
the first go but that's it. I failed Leading Cyber at least two
goes. This was the first 9 footer I got an A on.
Steps: *********. Jumps: ******.... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|.....
NEVER GONNA MAKE (FACTORY DANCE TEAM MIX)
Speed: ***.......
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Fairly straightford left/right feet switching at a fairly low speed,
but there's one thing to remember which makes this much easier:
stand on the right side facing 45 left. Almost all of the fast
bits will flow in your favour then! Once again, another easy song.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ****...... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
NINZABURO (aka FURAHATA'S THEME)
Misc: Renamed for 4th MIX Plus and 4th MIX PSX. Ninzaburo is a Japanese
detective show of some sort. (like Dick Tracy perhaps?)
Speed: *****.....
Basic: Mostly single steps. No challenge in those at all, but there's a
few tricky diagonal jumps towards the end. This song is a little too
fast to be learning them on probably, but if you're good at other
jumps, try it here!
Steps: **........ Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
Stamina: ..|*....
Trick: The first half of this song is single steps, mostly off beat, but
they match the music perfectly. Lots of tricky parts. Some jumps
towards the end, and some triples. One of the few underrated songs
in 4th MIX. Easy for seasoned 9 foot song players. Hard for anyone
else. Like Captain Jack, speed players may prefer this to the
9 foot version, as it is quite challenging on its own. As far as
techniques go, the most important thing to know is how the music
goes. Otherwise, it's a great learning song. No real techniques
are needed here - just familiarity with the song and probably the
steps.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *******... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|***..
Maniac: This song has a lot of tricky techniques to it, so beware of the
placement of jumps in the parts like the first part. The main thing
to worry about with them is not that you won't make it, it's that
they will smash up your legs so the rapid step sequence not long
after will be much trickier! The odd-timed rapid steps just before
the seemingly eternal rapid steps mentioned before more or less go
with the music, however it's safe to screw up here as long as you
generally do the right thing. You'll get several 'good's but that's
about all. The rapid step technique for the large portion of rapids
is tricky, as it switches regularly, however never does it put you
in a hard to reach place (like Paranoia MAX and Trip Machine ~Luv
Mix~, and even End Of The Century). Apart from turning around a lot
to make the steps possible, you will need one other rarely used
switching trick - simply stepping over to the other side. This trick
is useless in previous DDR's and thus was never mentioned. (actually
it's slightly useful in Boom Boom Dollar KOG G3 Mix) Your main foe
here is stamina loss, though - like most catastrophic songs.
Handling the speed of the steps is no problem if you're ready for
this level. handling the stamina loss always is a problem...but,
if your technique skill is high enough, you won't be caught
off-guard, and on completion of this song you won't even be out of
breath. Technique, not speed, is the key to this song. All rapid
steps flow perfectly into each other IF you have the technique for
it, otherwise, they're absolutely tricky to do. With a bit of
practice, a speed player could learn the tricky parts and accomplish
this song - with a slight possibility of losing every now and then.
Lastly, remember this: this song has nothing that Get Up'N Move did
not have in 2nd MIX.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ********.. Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|*****
ORION.78 (105bpm)
Misc: A traditional Okinawa folk song of some sort.
Speed: ..........
Basic: I refuse to give any technique advice for this. All single steps,
all horrendously slow, and it's 3 feet?! The only issue here is it's
damn slow, and if you have trouble with slow songs...well, you can
learn how to get better on this and Jam Jam Reggae, right? Watch you
don't fall asleep on this one. I nearly did.
Steps: *......... Jumps: .......... Overall: **........
Stamina: **|.....
Trick: A tip for the song in general which helps tenfold: This song is
_close_ to half the speed of Afronova. The steps are much more close
together, that's all! This is very easy as it's mostly single steps
(at about 100bpm!) with a few triples (at a very slow speed making
it hard to miss and very easy to learn from!), and...yeah. It's
repeditive. The end is trickyish, as it features about 8-12 rapid
steps followed by an immediate horizontal jump. Your best chance at
this point in the game is to memorize them!
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *......... Overall: ****......
Stamina: .*|.....
Maniac: A tip for the song in general which helps tenfold: This song is
pretty close to half the speed of Afronova. The steps are closer
together, that's all! As for on Maniac, it's important to train your
eyes to see the different steps, but also keep in mind this is a
very fast dance, and the steps seem to have very little or no
rhythm. But they do. Oh yes, they do! Most of them are in sets of
3 1/4 steps with a 1/2 step gap between each set (ie, it would go
taptaptap-taptaptap-taptaptap). Near the end this sequence changes
slightly: 2 1/2 steps then 3 1/4 steps and then a 1/2 step gap (ie
tap-tap-taptaptap-tap-tap-taptaptap-tap-tap-taptaptap). Knowing this
will decrease your error ratio to single digits in a single go!
There's not much other advice I can give, as it depends largely
on your own perception of the situation...it's quite easy to go
too fast or too slow in parts without realising it (usually too
fast!), but knowing the trick should resolve this. Ultimately, once
you play this song a bit and realise the facts I've given you,
this song is nothing short of cakewalk. If you REALLY want to make
this easier, make some edit data of this song in Afronova and
space out all the steps twice as wide. You'll probably won't even
have to play it to find out how easy it is now.
Steps: ********** Jumps: ****...... Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|**...
ORION.78 CIVILIZATION MIX (210bpm?)
Speed: **********
Basic: To pass this, I highly recommend you pass Paranoia KCET ~Clean Mix~
first. It's fairly unique in 4th MIX. Very fast. Very tough. The
quiet part in the middle with the off-beat steps is easier if you
more or less 'skip' and if you know how the regular Orion.78's music
goes. Playing La Senorita Virtual might help if you have access to it
in 3rd MIX or 4th MIX arcade.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
Trick: To pass this, you'll have to know Orion.78's music fairly well, have
played La Senorita Virtual to understand the elements that 2mb use,
and be very good at 8 foot songs. This is on par with the difficulty
of Paranoia Evolution - if you can play that, do so. Speed and steps
which aren't with the beat are the main obsticles here. Don't mess
your timing with the alternating steps at the start!
Steps: *******... Jumps: *******... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|***..
Maniac: After hearing stories of a song in 4th MIX PSX of a song which more
than made up of the absence of Drop Out, and of a new mix of Orion.78
I had my doubts. Well it's certinaly not as fast Drop Out, but it's
still insanely fast! Yes, good ol' 2MB is back again with a remix of
what is probably DDR 4th MIX's signature tune (after their remixes
of previous such signature tunes for each mix). This is undoubtedly
the toughest 2mb song yet! I wouldn't say it makes up for Drop Out
because it's not as fast and has totally different elements. I'd
say it makes up for Paranoia Evolution's absence instead. It's the
nearest comparable song, but this is MUCH harder! To pass this, your
FEET, not just your head, are going to have to be almost pressing
the next step for every step you take! The timing of many parts is
off, so use your eyes. I might be being pre-emptive, but this is
the toughest DDR song yet. So to make it fun...you're on your own!
But don't try it unless you're good at every other 9 foot song...
Steps: ********** Jumps: *******... Overall: **********
Stamina: ..|*****
SAMBA DE JANEIRO
Misc: I hate this song. I've heard it's also in Samba De Amigo.
Speed: *******...
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: This song's main weapon is its speed. It's quite fast for its age,
so fortunately seasoned 3rd MIXers should breeze through this. There
is never any really tricky step patterns as it is more suited to
6 panel mode. Pass Paranoia before you consider it, of course.
Obviously I didn't play this much though, so I may have understated
a little! I was busy trying not to throw up...
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
SAINT GOES MARCHING (REMIX)
Misc: Commonly mis-labelled to be 'Saints Go Marching', as that was the
original name. In fact, it was spelt like that here for a while and
nobody noticed! Neener neener!
Speed: (varies) *......... - ********.. (NB: 115-175bpm)
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Mostly speed is the trick here. If you're a speed player, you'll love
this. If you're the type who gets exhausted easily...well, this isn't
as bad as Paranoia Rebirth or Dead End, because it's not so frantic.
Yes, the steps are just as fast and consistant, but you move less
in this, so you will find it a lot easier. The only tricky parts
are the jumping at the start before the song slows down, as they're
In The Navy '99-esque one-foot-first jumps (not true jumps), and
the part where the song slows right down and you have to jump around
a bit. This is only tricky because people tend to jump too early,
then have to tuck their legs up so they don't land too soon, then
they land too hard. This in itself is fine, but what's bad is this
SEVERELY drains your stamina and it's a technique you should NOT
use. At all. Force of habit causes almost everyone to do this,
because it 'flows' like that, so make sure you're fully aware of
what you're doing! Otherwise...this is barely a 9 foot song, in my
opinion.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ********.. Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|**...
SKY HIGH (DJ MIKO/Solo 2000 version)
Misc: Totally different tune to the DDR 4th MIX Plus version. Apparently
a cover of a song by Simply Red (thanks to Kupster@RTF for this info)
Speed: ***.......
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: The steps right before the song 'starts' are slightly slower than the
beat. Allow for this. The first 1/4 of the song goes more with the
backing instruments. The next portion goes slightly off-beat on
purpose, but they're mostly single steps. The choral part of the
song is where the difficulty rises; there are 1/4 steps here, and
while they're not that hard, they can break combos. Of each such
bar, the first 3 steps are half-steps, then the next half-beat
has a skip, followed by a half-beat pause, another skip and then a
half step to finish. Find the stepcharts for this if you do not
understand. Ultimately, this is easy.
SKY HIGH (LUCYFER/4th MIX Plus version)
Misc: Totally different tune to the DDR Solo 2000 version.
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
SUPER STAR
Misc: The DDR Solo 2000 version does not feature the name of the song on
the background image (and the song banner is slightly different - the
background, obviously!). In Extra MIX, the song has the original
banner but the 4th MIX background!
Speed: *........
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Much easier on a Solo stage for some reason. Footslides just work
easier, I think. Most similar to Let The Beat Hit 'em!, so pick that
first if you have problems. All steps are 1/8 (half beat), except
for a few which are obviously 1/16 (quarter beat). Read ahead, don't
trip, and you should be okay. The biggest mistake you could make
is not reading ahead, though!
TOGETHER & FOREVER (Captain Jack version)
Misc: Annoying semi-cover of the Mickey Mouse March. "C-A-P, T-A-I,
"N-J-A-C-K!"
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Fairly confusing, but a seasoned DDR player will have absolutely
nothing to fear here. Starts with simple left-right up-down type
running patterns, before going into skipping. Playing this in Solo
mode (in Extra MIX or just using a Solo 2000 arcade machine) will
have its advantages because yu can differentiate the steps. This
is basically a party mix of Captain Jack style steps from 3rd MIX.
It never gets harder than In The Navy '99 or The Race on SSR.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *******... Overall: *******...
Stamina: ..|*....
TRIP MACHINE CLIMAX
Speed: ********..
Basic: Nothing but single steps, a few horizontal jumps, and the occasional
double half-steps. One easy triple step as well. No hints nessecary,
I'm sure of that. This is about as hard as Think Ya Better D! If
that! Why on Earth did Konami give it 5 feet?
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: .*|.....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: One Japanese DDR site when translated in Babelfish described this as
"Foot destructive type high-speed Trip Machine.", a good description!
Which is a unique thing when it comes to Babelfish!
Before you try this song, beat all the other Trip Machines on Maniac
and at least -try- La Senorita Virtual (and compare it to normal La
Senorita). It has the same 'insane steps' feeling that La Senorita
Virtual has; the steps are flowing, but not logically or like the
normal version(s) of the song. Also, This has a lot of tricky parts
where rapid steps flow into 'insane' jumps (ie they don't match well
but are flowing enough), then continue to be rapid. If you are only
used to fast 9 foot songs like Paranoia Rebirth, Dead End and Saints
Go Marching ~Remix~, you're in a bit of trouble here. This requires
a lot of technique too. The steps are about on par with the original
Trip Machine or SP-Trip Machine ~Jungle Mix~ without them. Keep in
mind the song is fast, too. This song essentially combines the
features of an 8 foot rapid-step song with the features of an 8
foot technique song (ie Dub-I-Dub), and speeds the song up while it's
at it. By no means does this song wholely require technique OR
speed skills, so specialists in either of these are screwed. You
need to be a pretty good all-round player for this. Once you're
ready for it, though, this is not much of a challenge (but still
exhausting). No need for me to give hints other than that...overall,
if you're pretty good at techniques, there's nothing which is next
to impossible in this...unless you aren't prepared for the steps.
Nothing exceptional in itself and in fact, I'd dare say it's quite
easy compared to songs like End of the Century SSR or maybe even
Upside Down SSR! (my personal record is something like all perfects
and greats, 3 goods and 2 misses - and it's probable that the misses
were due to a lack of foot pressure or something, not bad timing or
lack of coordination) This song is commonly avoided due to its
tricky jumps. This song is far from impossible...
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ********.. Overall: *********.
Stamina: ..|****.
WALKIE TALKIE
Misc: The only other reasonably well known song by King Kong & D.Jungle
Girls (although they did make other songs).
Speed: ***.......
Basic: Like a slightly harder version of Boom Boom Dollar. Unlike its
2nd MIX counterpart, it has a roughly even number of left/rights and
up/downs. This means the player has to roam more. There are also one
or two jumps. There is no real pattern to this song, so it is kind of
hard for beginners...
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|*....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty
WILD RUSH
Misc: Speedup might occur at different places in different MIXes, however
the timing remains the same somehow. This requires investigation...
Speed: (various - increases from 80 to 180bpm)
Basic: Couldn't be easier. All single steps, except the last 3 before it
speeds up every time.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: .......... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: ..|**...
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: The first part is straightford. The 'fast' parts go with the piano.
On the second part, the steps are slightly off - the pattern you
must do is 'step step skip', all single beats (excluding the skip, of
course). Skip leading into the step, not coming out. The next part
is all single steps. The fourth and fifth have a few half steps but
are generally there in case you step too fast or slow - to throw you
off in other words! The final section is fast, but has easy patterns
and if you made it this far, you should pass.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: .......... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|.....
Maniac The first part is identical to 4 Panel mode - see above. The second
6PANEL: part just has a few diagonals - nothing big, but they are laid out to
confuse you, so beware! The next part brings out the evil intentions
of whoever designed the 4 panel steps - they look easy, sure, but
you end up walking along the top row, and the machine is usually so
close that you end up walking on your own feet or falling over. The
patterns are otherwise generally the same until the very end pattern
which is a lot like the other one - diagonals and horizontal
steps in the same relative direction make it nasty. Don't fall over!
One of the harder 6 panel songs!
Steps: ********.. Jumps: .......... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|**...
5.4 5th MIX and Extra MIX Songs
-------------------------------
Although we're still waiting for 5th MIX at our arcade, it's definately
coming soon. It's on a ship somewhere as I type this...the songlist from
1st-3rd MIX Plus has been drastically cut in this to just 15 songs...sadly
hidden songs from the PSX 4th MIX like Orion.78 Civilization Mix are not in
5th MIX, but might be in 5th MIX Plus...
At the moment, this section is based solely on 5th MIX songs in 4th MIX and
Extra MIX on Playstation.
AFRONOVA PRIMEVAL
Misc: Originally from DanceManiaX. First DanceManiaX song to be put in DDR.
Speed: *********.
Basic: Not harder or easier than the original Afronova, but different.
Lots more single steps than before, but less complicated jumps and
no 12th (1/3) steps at the end. No real tips to give here. No
triples or half beat steps, either. The steps will mix your legs
up a bit, though.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
Stamina: ..|*....
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
B4U GLORIOUS STYLE
Misc: Sometimes referred to as 'B4U ORCHESTRA GROOVE'.
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
BE TOGETHER
Misc: For some reason, this song is also in Beatmania GB Gattchamix 2!
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
BROKEN MY HEART
Misc: Originally a Beatmania IIdx song, although listed as 'Konami Original
Remix' on the Extra MIX song select screen. This is because it is in
DanceManiaX as well (and it's listed as such on the 5th MIX song select
screen!). Sounds identical to both the originals.
Speed: ****......
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
DANCING POMPOKOLIN
Misc: In Japanese, the title is 'Odori Pompokorin'. 'Pompokolin' has no
meaning in any language that I can find!
Speed: ***.......
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
ECSTASY
Speed: ***........
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Essentially the same as Abyss is on Maniac. The only hard part is the
parts where the music stops - this is easier for some people, but for
the most part, it's hard. I suggest you just tune yourself into being
ready for the right time to step on the arrow, and then LOOK
CAREFULLY as it's quite easy to step too early by accident. Look
before you leap! I also suggest you watch your step near the start...
Steps: ******.... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|.....
FESTIVAL JAPAN
See MATSURI JAPAN.
HOT LIMIT
Misc: For some reason, this song is also in Beatmania GB Gattchamix 2!
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
LET THE BEAT HIT 'EM! (BMIIDX VERSION)
Misc: Has the same steps as the original version (but they don't match well).
Song banner is identical to normal one, only with a blue tint.
Speed: *.........
-see LET THE BEAT HIT 'EM!.
MATSURI JAPAN
Misc: Literally translates to 'Festival of Japan'. As far as I know, there
is no such festival, however there is many other Matsuri's held for
things like the blooming of the Sakura and the Summer Matsuri. Also a
DanceManiaX 2nd MIX song.
Speed: *****.....
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
MOONLIGHT SHADOW (New Vocal Version)
Misc: Often confused with the classic song 'Moonshadow' which sounds
identical in parts, but has obviously different words ("I'm being
followed by a moon shadow, Moonshadow Moonshadow...").
Speed: ***.......
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
NEVER ENDING STORY
Misc: Obviously a remix of the Limahl song used in the movie (and I hate the
original song more than any song - imagine how mad I was when I found
it was in 5th MIX!). The verses might be mixed up.
ODORI POMPOKORIN or ODORU POMPOKORIN
See DANCING POMPOKOLIN.
REMEMBER YOU
Misc: Probably the slowest DDR song to date at about 80bpm. Slows down at the
end to near 60bpm (maybe?), then drops to _10bpm_! The reason why it
takes so long to go from the last step to the cleared screen is
because it takes 6 seconds to get to the end of the bar on PSX!
Speed: ..........
Basic: Absolutely no advice, except beware that it might be TOO slow for
some people, and watch out of the step at the end!
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
SANA MOLLETE NE ENTE
See SANA MORETTE NE ENTE (below)
SANA MORETTE NE ENTE
Misc: The title is Spanish, but all I can translate is 'Sana' being health
and Ente being Entity. The lyrics are in Japanese and and the girl is
singing about (to) her boyfriend who plays DDR too much (or Beatmania,
in the Beatmania version) and doing things like double and sudden.
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: Immensely hard at first, but with decent sightreading skills, a bit
of practice and knowing how the music goes, you should pass. Often
features skips in between half-steps, which can be hardish to see.
Take advantage of the low speed and read well ahead so you're always
in the next position required. On the section that goes L-D-R L-D-U
L-D-R L-D-U L-D-R L-D-U L-D-R-D-L, face right to do the entire
section and use plenty of power to make it a lot easier. This song
is actually quite easy and leaves a lot of room for mucking about in!
Steps: ********.. Jumps: ******.... Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|*....
THE CUBE
Misc: It may be me, but this sounds suspiciously like the work of Tim Follin
(a games musician from the 80s, famous for making tunes on the
Commodore 64, Nintendo and SNES and was somewhat revered as a god in
both the UK and Japan through the first half of the 90s!). It's not
entirely impossible that it isn't his work, and it sounds eeriely
similar to the C64 version of Ghouls 'n' Ghosts.
Basic: -empty-
Trick: -empty-
Maniac: -empty-
5.5 DC Edit Data and PSX 3rd MIX Konami Edit Data
(including 3rd and 4th MIXes on Arcade)
-------------------------------------------------
The Dreamcast version features 'DC Edit Data', special steps for most of the
2nd MIX songs. Most of these steps and a few new ones feature in the arcade
version of 3rd MIX when you play in 2nd MIX mode. These are accessed by
holding down the start button when selecting the song. These and some more
are featured in the PSX 3rd MIX as well. In both versions, flashing boxes
in the top left of the screen indicate if there is any data for that song
or not (sometimes, in the arcade especially, the top and bottom of the
screen is slightly cut off and you'll only see maybe one line of the graphic
up the top. This occurs in many games, some worse than others - perhaps
it's a PAL/NTSC issue?)
Also note 4th MIX machines can have edit data added to the machine's flash
ROM (or something similar) from a memory card. This means the built in edit
data on your 4th MIX machine might not be built in at all. At this stage no
non-built in edit data will be mentioned, but sometime in the future, maybe
I might add the old DDDRC Edit edit data (which hasn't updated since March
2000 or something like that).
If one of these isn't in your arcade machine, odds are it's home version
only edit data.
BOOM BOOM DOLLAR ~K.O.G.G 3 MIX~
Speed: *******...
GOODIES1: Based upon the Basic mode steps for the original Boom Boom Dollar.
Only the start bit and the bit before the second set of alternating
left/right steps has been removed. And there's a harder bit on
the end. If you can cope with the speed, the new section won't hurt
you. It's slightly trickier, but still all single steps. And for
the most part of it, it's just repeating the left/right alternating
steps in the pattern that happens for the last half in the original
Boom Boom Dollar. I scored 99 million on my first go, so it's
pretty easy.
Steps: **........ Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
GOODIES2: Based on the original Boom Boom Dollar's Another mode steps. Most
of it remains the same, however the new section (when the original
steps run out) is completely different to the normal set of steps.
They're non-flowing triple steps, mostly. Sequences like L-R-L,
or R-U-R. It is, of course, dead easy, but does spoil the nature
of the song. Unfortunately, there's no set of steps based on
Maniac mode, but it's easy to make your own. In the future I might
put an edit step save of my steps based on Maniac mode (and the
end sequence is entirely U-L-D-R-D-L-rpt!).
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ***....... Overall: *****.....
BRILLIANT 2U
Speed: ***.......
CLUB2-SB: Dead easy. Easier than the normal Basic steps for Brilliant 2U -
and it's ranked 5 foot instead of the usual 4! The steps are
similar to normal, except many triple steps and streamed jumps are
gone. These are replaced with steps every two beats and sets of 4
horizontal 1 beat jumps. Towards the end there's some vertical
jumping. This, rather than being tricky, will help you get good at
doing them since missing a few has no real consequences. The end
steps alternate from left to right or up to down, rather than
being right tapped over and over, thus once again making the song
actually easier instead of more complex. Slightly more difficult
than Put Your Faith in Me. I scored 9.8 million on my first go in
3rd MIX!
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ***.......
Stamina: .*|.....
CLUB2-DB: This song is hardly different from CLUB2-SB. Apart from the fact
(Double) that it's in Double mode, of course. There are no tricky two-sided
diagonal jumps, but some horizontal two-sided jumps as well as the
end sequence being right in the middle, too. There is ONE triple
step which requires both sides, and there's plenty of warning and
it's quite easy to do. All other triple steps, or close to all of
them, flow from one side to the other. That is, there's some single
steps before it on the other side, then the triple steps come up
on the next side. This song might teach people new skills but it
won't develop existing skills further. People with mats might
experience some slippage, however the mats won't totally seperate.
Steps: ****...... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ****......
Stamina: .*|.....
CLUB2-SA: The steps go more in time with the music. Places where triple steps
normally are become rather tricky 5 step sequences (sometimes more)
And the jumps are definately trickier than the normal Another mode
steps. In fact, the whole sequence is significantly harder. Harder
than Paranoia in Basic mode, even.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
CLUB2-DA: First of all, the mats WILL slide in this song if you don't have
them fastened down or something like that - and quite severely.
You won't injure yourself if you _aren't_ in socks, however the
gap I got whilst trying to find information to put on this song
was regularly about a foot wide! Don't attempt it if you can't
do it on a secure surface. Otherwise, there ARE rapid steps from
side to side - and regularly! You have a fair chance of passing
this if you can't yet do these, so it's worth trying this song -
but don't leave it to the last stage. That's just dumb.
Steps: *******... Jumps: ******.... Overall: *******...
CLUB2-SM: Technically harder than Another mode, however the steps are more
flowing. The triple steps are back again, and there's more of 'em
than on other modes. Like the regular set of steps for Maniac mode,
there are 1/4 steps in time with the music in this mode, however
they are MUCH easier to get. In my opinion, anyway. Like CLUB2-SB,
these steps are definately overranked. Note that although the
step patterns are easier, like I said at the start, the technique
required to do them is beyond most people who can only barely pass
CLUB2-SA. Ends with the traditional rapid steps, but the last beat
is a jump (following half steps, of course). It's probably best
to be facing right and just jump your right foot forward a little
and stretch your left leg back so you depress the left arrow with
your toes. That's what I found, anyway.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *******...
BUTTERFLY ~UPSWING MIX~ (PSX only)
Speed: ******....
GOODIES1: This is based on the original Butterfly steps (of course). This is
near identical, in fact. All of the steps are just rearranged to
match the music (the steps from the end of the original are in
the middle of this, for example). If you had a routine for the
original Butterfly like mine, it'll work perfectly in this. Well,
after you take consideration of the new order of patterns, anyway.
(NB: I forgot to point out I meant the original Butterfly steps on
HARD mode. DC owners, Your Butterfly is put in Hard mode only by
default and the Normal mode steps are under DC Edit Data)
Steps: ***....... Jumps: **........ Overall: ****......
GOODIES2: Based on the original Butterfly steps in Another mode. Once again,
the steps are the same, just rearranged. And yes, 'the routine'
works fine still ('the routine' = the routine EVERYONE does on this
which involves basically doing jump spins on the verse parts of
the song, but nothing fancy on the chorus or any other part of the
song!). This and the Basic mode based steps are just as hard now,
in my opinion!
Steps: **........ Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
GOODIES3: Based on the original Butterfly steps when in Maniac mode and yes,
once again, they're identical but rearranged. They even skip the
first few steps like they do on the original. I don't know any
Butterfly Maniac routines to test on this. :) All the same though,
the speed adds a lot more difficulty to these steps now. If you
need practice and can do the original steps, it's good training
to do this.
Steps: *****..... Jumps: ***....... Overall: ******....
LITTLE BITCH
Speed: ******....
PF-BITCH: Performance Data my ass! This is hard! Lots of rapid steps and it
pulls out every trick in the book almost. There's nothing like it
in 2nd MIX. Come back to this after everything else in 3rd MIX if
you can. There's very little advice I can give on this, except it
has a lot of rapid steps which will confuse the hell out of 2nd
MIX players. If you're playing this on 4th MIX, play One Two,
the crappy Bus Stop cover of the song, first. It's got some
inspiration from this I'd say. Except One Two is way easier.
(I used to rank this 9 stars overall, but with the passage of time
compared to stuff now, it seems easier...barely!)
Steps: *********. Jumps: ********.. Overall: ********..
Stamina: ..|***..
MAKE A JAM!
Speed: ***.......
DC-JAM01: Semi-tricky. The main parts feature non-stop half steps which go
in semi-confusing patterns. These are alright if you aren't afraid
to turn away from the screen briefly. Start with your right foot
facing right on the first bit, for example. Walk backwards and
forwards alternating feet for each arrow. Swing around when you're
supposed to, and do it again when you have to go back around. Now,
you can either tap the remaining steps facing foward, or be risky
and do the final spin. You won't be facing away for more than a
split second if you do because you'll end up facing left again
anyway! If you can handle this, the rest should be okay...
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ******....
Stamina: ..|*....
MAKE IT BETTER
Speed: **........
PF-MAKE: Despite the name of the data indicating this is performance data,
(Double) I seriously doubt this because this is way too hard to perform to!
There's a lot of side switching, however none of it is too fast so
if you're using unsecure mats, it's safe. The mats will hardly
move in this song. Also note that the steps just before the
chorus parts (the ones that go la-de-da-de-da, "Yeah, yeah, yeah!")
that the steps aren't all half steps or jumps. They're 1/4 steps
in time with the notes. This song is a good choice for those who
have difficulty using both sides at the same time.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *****..... Overall: ******....
PARANOIA MAX ~DIRTY MIX~
Speed: ********..
CLUB2-SB: The first half is dead easy. Easier than Paranoia normally is,
anyway. No double steps appear until the usual fast stepping
part, which is different. Past halfway you will have a series
of tricky jumps - all single beat, but fast and they'll wear you
down. Towards the end there's some really tricky steps involving
repeating half-steps. This is an acquired skill, however one
rarely used (thankfully). This isn't an easy solution to beating
a Paranoia song.
Steps: ******.... Jumps: ******.... Overall: ******....
CLUB2-DB: This song only tries to confuse you with arrow patterns. many of
(Double) the jumps are the kind where you push left on the right side and
up on the left side (as an example). There aren't strict patterns
to this. The normal wierd stepping part from Paranoia Max has some
tricky jumps, so if you're using mats...make sure they don't slide
like mine. Following this are triple steps. Some require you to go
from one side to the other, so if you're using mats at home, and
they slip, DON'T TRY THIS. This song is TOO FAST. You will
undoubtedly injure yourself. At this point I had to stop, so until
I get to an arcade, you're own your own.
Steps: *******... Jumps: ******.... Overall: *******...
CLUB2-SA: Relatively easy. The trick here is, that all the steps require
new tricks to do them! It's easy to get a high combo on this song
if you adapt to the pattern quickly (for the record: initial max
combo was 167), and basically, it requires you to rotate at 90
angles a lot and to be prepared to step back on your rear foot
after you've stepped forward - and possibly for rapid repeating
steps. There's a few out of time jumps, too. This is different,
but roughly just as hard as the normal Another mode steps for
Paranoia Max.
Steps: *******... Jumps: *******... Overall: *******...
CLUB2-DA: -empty-
(Double)
CLUB2-SM: Without a doubt easier than the regular Maniac mode steps, however
still goddamn hard! Requires less technique than CLUB2-SA, but you
will need a lot more dexterity since there's a lot of fast rapid
steps in this! If you slip and miss a sequence, try to pick it up
quick because due to the speed of this song, you can lose in about
1 second. It's a slight relief that there's not so many jumps
in this version as there are in CLUB2-SA. Very slight indeed.
Steps: ********.. Jumps: *****..... Overall: ********..
DC-MAX01: (AKA 'From VC007') Very hard. Features twisting step patterns,
more twisting step patterns and twisting step patterns leading into
several repeating steps before twisting another way. Fortunately,
if you have this you have to either have the Dreamcast version of
2nd MIX, or Extra MIX. Meaning you can practice. Do not attempt
this until you are extremely proficient in twisting moves, are
able to sightread a full screen, and are willing to learn new
techniques only found in edit data such as this. Only those good at
playing really hard edit data will pass this the first time - this
edit has unhinged some of the best players out there!
Steps: ********** Jumps: ********.. Overall: **********
Stamina: ..|*****
PF-PARAS: Performance data. Designed for players to do performance play on.
Thus, the steps aren't terribly complex. There's a few tricky
jumps past half way, but the song features no half-beat steps. The
jumps are trickyish due to their speed. If you're good at jump
sequences, you should try this. Consider it a sort of warm-up for
trickier songs or something like that.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: *****..... Overall: *****.....
PF-PARAD: Performance data. Once again, all single steps with a jump here
(Double) and there. This song isn't the kind which tries to cross your legs,
although the jumps are tricky sometimes. All you'll require for
this is the ability to play at this speed, the technique to get
diagonal arrows (in single mode even), and enough coordination to
stay on the playing field.
Steps: ***....... Jumps: ****...... Overall: ****......
5.6 Techniques Glossary
-----------------------
At this time, these techniques are for scoring only - not performance. Also
note this section is far from finished and was basically a last minute
addition, which is why it's rather messy and rushed for this version of the
FAQ.
Jump-Out: Used for steps which feature for example a horizontal jump
followed by a down step in the next half beat. Basically, you
hop out of the jump by, in this example, hopping on your left
foot to the down button and lifting your right foot clear of
the play area, possibly towards the next arrow if it's on the
right side.
Moonwalk: The same as the 'walk' technique, however in this technique you
'walk' backwards. If the steps were L-D-R, you would face left,
step right foot left, left foot down, right foot right. Not to
be confused with the double mode technique where you actually
moonwalk like Michael Jackson. That's performance, anyway.
Pressure
switching: In the arcade, you can simply abuse the _pressure_ sensitivity
of the pads. For example, place your feet on the left and right.
Without lifting your feet, force your left foot down more and
lessen the pressure on your right foot. Then reverse this. This
will result in delayed action steps, so do them early. You can
also do jumps using this same technique. Good technique for the
lazy or for performance players.
Switch: Sometimes, a series of steps may require you to stand on the left
for ease of stepping, but then, will suddenly require you to be
on the right - to swap focal sides over like this is what I call
'switching'.
Walk: A technique which is similar to walking or jogging the steps. For
example, if the steps were L-D-R, you would face 90 to the right
and step left foot left, right foot down, left foot right.
5.6.1 Play Styles
-----------------
BEGINNER
Tethered: Keep your left foot on the left arrow or vice versa. Use the
right foot (or vice versa) to tap up, left, or down. Use the
left foot to press left still. Suitable up until 4 or 5 foot
songs.
Switching: Similar, however you switch from left foot tethered to right
foot tethered at your convenience. Bare minimum playstyle
for Paranoia. Suitable for up to and 6 foot songs. Learn 1 foot
songs before you try this.
INTERMEDIATE
Pivoted: Triple step technique. If the sequence is L-D-R, you would keep
your left foot on L and press D and R with the right foot by
'flicking' it. Learn 'Switching' before you try this.
Roaming: No pivot or tethered foot. It is inadvisable to memorize steps
with this technique. Learn 3 foot songs before you do this.
Suitable for all songs up to 8 feet.
Flowing: A tricky technique, however essential. You don't need to learn
this until you get to 9 foot songs, however it helps if you
learn it early. Learn the 'Walk' technique in Section 5.4 and
incorporate this into the Roaming technique, then basically
don't stop moving. Step extra steps if nessecary. Essential for
9 foot songs.
ADVANCED (Inc. Performance)
For more info on performance play, see section 6.0.
Kneedrop: Performance trick. Rather dangerous so use in moderation. Only
use in sequences like this: The sequence is R then U. Use right
foot on R, then kneedrop your left knee on U. NEVER do this:
The sequence is a horizontal jump followed by two U's. Left
kneedrop U, right kneedrop U. It looks great, but the danger is
increased dramatically.
One Footer: Literally use one foot. Useless at home, but a great crowd
pleaser in the arcade. Get off the stage and stand to the left
(if you're P1 - otherwise stand to the right) and literally only
use you right foot. I recommend jumping on when a jump comes up,
though. Try this on AM-3P Maniac or Wonderland SSR. It's great.
Yes, it's performance play again.
6 . 0 C o m p e t i t i o n G u i d e
_________________________________________
6.1 Performance Play
--------------------
Some DDR players like to do stunts instead of going for high scores. Keep
in mind that performance dancers don't often actually get an S or SS or
whatnot in their routines - because it isn't their goal. Their goal is to
entertain the crowd, and the only people who will say "Yes, but they're
missing all the steps!" is DDR score players. The first step to playing
for performance is to either get extremely good (6 feet or more, I'd say -
if you can beat Paranoia IMO) or you memorize a song. The next step is
to make sure you're doing all your moves properly...if you just stand on
the left and tap buttons, or hardly lift your feet as you play, try
pretending you really are dancing. Songs like The Race are great for this.
Next, you'll want to choose a song to try to develop a routine for - the
below chapters will help somewhat by introducing you to two of my routines
(a variation on the common Butterfly routine, and Paranoia). You'll probably
want to choose a song in basic mode, however things like Boom Boom Dollar
in Maniac mode aren't out of the question. Also consider you need to
practice in the arcade a lot for these - the bar behind the stage both
helps and hinders. If you find yourself unable to improve enough to do
performance dancing, play in Double mode a bit. Resist the temptation to
jump around a lot and just step on the buttons with any way possible.
Jump if you have to...just try not to cross your legs. That's not a
common performance trick (but can be used in jumps...eg Dynamite Rave: if
you had 4 horizontal jumps, you could do 1 normal, 1 reverse, 1 reverse back
to the normal/forward position, and a cross legged jump. No, I don't know
how it looks so I don't do it much :P). Xanadu Another Double and Oh
Nick Please Not So Quick Another Double should get you up to speed...do
those, and you're just about ready to learn some fancy pants moves! Here
is a guide FROM THE START of what to do. By that, I mean it starts with
THE easiest song...
1. Basic Positioning and Technique
Beginners need to know two things to speed up their learning process
tenfold: First, always keep one foot on an arrow rather than standing in
the middle. For example, you have your foot on the left. You can tap the
other 3 directions with his right foot. In Have You Never Been mellow, your
right foot would tap up, right, down, then you'd shift weight to the right
foot and tap the left pad with the left foot for the 4 step clockwise spin.
This goes for all dances - only lift the left foot when needed. The next
basic technique is to tap to the beat. Basically, you tap the middle part
with your foot in time with the beat of the song, then step after the beat
which precedes it. Interestingly, This can be incorporated into an actual
dance later on - by 'hopping' with the beat and using your arms, you can
dance at the most basic level this way. It may not sound like much, but
the crowds love it. Learners should not try to do stylish technique until
they're pretty good, though, as it will be costly in overall performance.
2. Have You Never Been Mellow: Learning the spins
(PSX DDR2nd owners should substitute with Let Them Move)
Most of the dance is comprised of very simple steps. The key is to step on
the pad in time with the beat as outlined above - not too early, not too
late. Timing is important. But one major part of Have You Never Been Mellow
is where it goes left (or right), pause, up, down, up, down, up (repeat)...
so here is the technique you'll need...left foot on left if that's your 'key'
foot (see part 1)...step with your right whilst keeping your left foot on
the ground. Try to sway or bob your head, or something to keep with the
beat. Beginners often lose their timing. After you repeat this once, there
is a clockwise spiral step - it goes up, right, down, left (there might be
an up after this, I forget) - once again, tap the first 3 directions with
the right foot and left with your left foot. If you want to be FANCY,
though, and you know this dance well...step right foot on up, left foot
on right, right foot down, left foot left...unfortunately, the downside
is that people who haven't actually played this game too much and haven't
gotten past Paranoia 180 or thereabouts, they will probably get dizzy,
lose timing, and after the first spin, end up missing the buttons totally!
People more fluent at DDR will manage to spin at least twice, though - and
the only dances which require more are Little Bitch and Trip Machine. And
Stomp to my Beat. Oh heck, there's plenty. :)
3. Butterfly: Doing reverse 180 jumps
(PSX DDR2nd owners should substitute with Boys. I guess.)
Butterfly is full of potential spins and jumps. Learn how to do the song
before you try performance stuff. The information is in the scoring
technique guide. When you are ready...read this. In the parts which go
(R, pause, R, JUMP, L, pause, L, JUMP)...try this. Tap right with your
right foot. Lift your foot and do something fancy. Just keep it in the
air until you step the next right step THEN jump 180 so you face away.
Once again. tap your right foot on right and do the fancy stuff again and
do another 180 jump. THEN do the spin you learnt earlier. Remember...start
with right, end with right. Then immediately step left and jump and repeat
from the start. Then when you've done that twice, you have the song
'chorus'. This part goes - U, U, JUMP...then spin anticlockwise with the
right arrow first, ending with down, then step up, then down, then left.
Then do the next 3 steps normally. Then repeat...but when you end with
down this time, step up, then down, then right. Then follow as normal. For
the little ditty in between you can either face left/right and walk it,
or shuffle. At the end of the song, the ditty goes (D, R, D, L, D, R, D,
L, etc) - you can either 'walk' this...or do it like this...left foot down,
right foot right, left foot down, left foot left, right foot down, right
foot right, left foot down, left foot left, right foot down...and so
forth. So you 'shuffle'. It looks great when you're in motion. What I do
is do the 'walk' first...then since the last step is my right foot on the
left arrow...well, I follow the next moves and jump facing forward. Then
I do the shuffle. Then I finish with a 180 jump. That's it!
4. Paranoia: The Knee Press
This is a lot trickier. Basically, my performance dance for this goes like
this: On the third part from the start, I turn around so I tap down facing
forward, then jump and turn around, then tap up, up, blah. The tapping
parts are straightforward - do what's easiest. Swap around your pivot foot
for each side. When you get to the bit where you do U/D and L/R jumps
followed by a series which, for example, might be, U, pause, D, R, L...
jump right then right again so you face away from the screen in the end.
This trick works on Butterfly on Another mode, also. Make sure you turn
right for the first two. On the second two, turn left but do the same thing.
On the rapid stepping part, turn left and step facing to the left. When you
have done the first 2 rapid step bits and it goes to all single steps,
face the middle and prepare to face RIGHT now. Then, do the same 2 rapid
steps and face the middle again. Do the last bit as normal...and get ready
for the finale. Stand on whichever side you feel like standing on, and
on the last seven steps/notes/beats (you know the ones :P), where it goes
(U, L, D, R, U, L, D)...step on U with your LEFT foot. Then L with your right.
D with your left. R with your right. L with your left...then get ready.
Face away from the screen and do not get ready to turn. Stand on the left
arrow with your right foot and drop to the ground, and press down with
your LEFT knee. Tada! The next best thing to a handstand! Well, maybe not.
5. Doing breakdance/crab type spins
Here's a crude diagram of two controllers or two arcade platforms. Yes, I
know my ASCII art sucks. Yes, I hope you know what the platforms look like.
But just in case you don't, here's my diagram:
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
| | ^ | | | ^ | |
:___;___;___;___;___;___;
| < | | > | < | | > |
:___;___;___;___;___;___;
| | V | | | V | |
:___;___;___;___;___;___;
If you wish to do a horizontal jump followed by a vertical jump, you would
do this: Left hand <, Right hand ^, Left foot V, Right foot >. Make sure
that initially, you start with your body facing DOWNWARDS. Left hand and
Right foot touch when you are supposed to hit them (after you practice this!)
and then, lift your RIGHT hand and put it on V, and of course, put your left
foot on ^. You must rotate so your body is facing UPWARDS for this. Repeat
as nessecary. Note this move generally requires planning, however it is
appliccable for several things - including spins. Make sure you move your
right arm AROUND your back, not between your legs. It's also theoretically
possible to use knees instead of feet. Also, keep in mind that in the arcade
there's a bar behind you. Don't headbutt it. That would be bad. (but to be
honest, you should not have any trouble doing these moves - you don't even
need to go off the mat!)
Here's some examples of ways to do this move on certain songs that I've
observed in DDR videos, or found myself:
3rd MIX Training, Lesson 3/7: Right foot up, left hand right, right hand down,
left foot left. Face upwards to start.
Wonderland Basic: The reverse of above. Right hand down, left hand right,
right foot up, left foot left. This is for one of the spins at the start.
This one's hard because if you don't keep flowing, you have to pause for a
second to reset your position - and that doesn't work. In fact, it's very
hard. Hopefully I'll have a better technique soon...in which case, it'll
be mentioned right here.
Dynamite Rave Basic: On the part which goes ("Jump, jump, do your thing,
this be the bomb, try to sing"), try this: Slap up, up with alternating
hands, then right foot down, left foot down, right hand right, right foot
left, left foot down, left foot up, then return to normal and continue
the next steps as you please. This can be shortened to just right foot up,
right foot up, left foot down, left foot down for the first 4 steps, if
things are too hectic/confusing. I suggest on the right foot left step,
you hop up a bit and do the next few teps backwards - at least until you're
good at it. (in training mode, choose bars 40~43 to practice this) One
of the rather well known A-Team videos demonstrates this more or less, in
fact, the video shows some rather easy to do moves for those who can't do
handstands or otherwise somehow have a fear of being upside down. I'll
probably print the URL for this somewhere in the next version of the FAQ,
but I believe the gamers.com site in the links down the bottom may have
a link to this video - at least, it has links to some A-Team videos. Be
warned, though - they're over 10 megs each!
At this time I am not looking for submissions for fancy pants DDR moves -
there's practically an infinite range of them. I do believe there is a
moves dictionary at http://www.dancegames.com/, however these moves are
out of most peoples range. Most people who read FAQs, anyway. And mine.
Things like running at the bars from 10 feet back, then turning around,
run backwards a few steps, jump, vault over the bars and land on some arrows
are...well...I don't think I want to encourage people to do that because
someone's bound to crack their skull open and sue me :)
6.2 Perfect Attack
------------------
A common feature in competitions is 'Perfect Attack' - where the aim is to
get as many 'Perfect!'s as possible. There are a few tricks to make this
infinitely easier:
* Don't follow the music TOO closely. It more often than not is out of beat
and it doesn't help you one bit. A good example is In The Navy '99. This
is most evident on Trick/Another.
* Watch the arrows just before they go under the greyed out arrows.
* If you own a PAL machine, don't use the speedfix code sometimes - you'll
get sick of it, but you'll get waaaaay better at getting perfects!
* Most songs don't change tempo. Try to match the TRUE beat - not what you
hear, but what you feel with your moves.
* This is synomynous with the PAL desync trick: watch the arrows closely.
this is especially useful with off-beat steps.
* Don't look at your combo or your score when playing!
* As it's Perfect Attack, it doesn't really matter if you get goods or greats
but you still want to avoid boos and misses. But still, your main priority
is keeping a combo - even if there's some greats there too. Once the combo
is broken, be more defensive.
* Sometimes Perfect Attack has a different scoring system. Ideally, you don't
want to break the combo or get any Greats. Keeping the Combo is first
priority. Since there's about 3 different scoring systems which differ
depending on where you are located, then you might want to check which one
your local competition is using first.
* There is one skill completely invisible to any DDRer trying to learn
Perfect Attack, whether they watch others do it or read this. This skill
has no name, no special manouver, nothing to remember and it comes with
experience. The only way I can describe it is this: You'll slow down and
speed up your foot as you make the steps. Usually the first time you do
this is around when ygu get an AA/SSS. It will come naturally.
* Although I have not reached such a skill level yet, I believe there is
a second level to the above unnamed skill. This applies to half steps. It's
a theoretical skill level where you suddenly become able to do rapid series
of half steps and get high combos. The largest evidence of this skill
existing is the various records for 2nd MIX (less sixteenth steps) and
Paranoia (no sixteenth steps) songs.
7 . 0 M y t h s, L e g e n d s a n d T r i v i a
(a s w e l l a s q u e s t i o n s )
______________________________________________________________________
I know people like to nitpick at this section. I know I do. It's the
section you either love, or love to hate :)
Myths:
* "Japanese people are so good at DDR because of their high energy diets."
I assure you this is a myth - I'm very good at the game and I don't have
a high energy diet. In fact, I don't even have anything RESEMBLING a
high energy diet. I eat fast food and I drink Coke! Also note that
as long as you're not obese, you can physically do any song in this. I
have seen tubby people do better than myself even. And I'm skinny! This
also goes for performance as well - you only need practice and, for
things like handstands...enough upper body strength. Generally the Asian
people who do so well at the game and don't get puffed hardly move their
body, while people in the western world do. At least when they first
play it. Mind you, I've never seen any Asian people in the arcades eating
anything vaguely resembling 'high energy diets'. I have no idea where this
idea started. If you want to be able to move fast and not get puffed,
either eat a HEALTHY diet and drink juice at the arcade (orange, apple,
take your pick), or just build your endurance up like a boxer. Wear heaps
of wooly clothes, a backpack full of schoolbooks or something, and play
DDR on difficulty 8 at home. You will be suprised how much it helps
you! As for their playing ability, that is because THEY'VE PLAYED THE GAME
FOR A LONGER TIME THAN YOU! Duh! :P
* You can NOT get the 4 new songs in the PSX 3rd MIX, save the data, then
go to the arcade and play the songs. That's why the 4 songs come under
'3rd ReMIX'. Because they're NOT in the arcade. (likewise, the 3 songs
removed aren't in the PSX one, but their banner things are - for Nonstop
mode, anyway. This may sound daft, but some people actually believed this!)
The songs ARE in 3rd MIX Plus and 4th MIX though - and you don't need the
memory card to get them.
Legends:
Trivia:
* The fastest song in all the DDR universe is Drop Out, at 260bpm. Drop Out
is in DDR Solo 2000, DDR 4th MIX and onwards.
* The maximum score attainable technically in 2nd MIX is
29,4967,2952,94967295. Odds are you'd never get a combo long enough,
though. That's in 2nd MIX. The 29 section of the score is in blue,
by the way. Of course, in 3rd MIX, it's much easier to get a score in
excess of 294,967 billion (which I believe is what the number is in
the European format - or it may be simply a few trillion :P), because
the score multiplies based on what STAGE you are on, not the combo. The
Max Combo seems to run well into the thousands so I don't know how high it
goes. I suppose for all intents and purposes it never ends.
Likewise, a 4th MIX counter for steps/max combos/etc cannot exceed 9999
or it loops indefinately. You are unlikely to get this unless you make
5 rounds of Drop Out with every step being down, though. Don't forget
quarter beats!
* This is not a boast, but for beginners: It is 100% possibly to SS/A every
song, even in Maniac mode. I have done this for 2nd MIX and haven't tried
in 3rd or 4th MIX yet. I always promised myself I'd do it for 2nd MIX...
* A special hacked version of the original Playstation DDR game is in
circulation in South East Asia. Apparently there's a "strange remix of
Butterfly on it", as well as several other asian pop songs (possibly
Cantonese - have you ever heard a Cantonese pop song? Scary!), and
Have You Never Been Mellow is 'replaced with' Paranoia. Thanks to
Gendou Ikari for this information! (he also has his own DDR USA FAQ now,
I noticed - check it out, cos' I wrote this FAQ in a way so that it does
not repeat information found in other FAQs!)
* A second hacked version of DDR 2nd ReMIX seems to be going around. People
often complain their songs are replaced by really wierd songs with things
like people swearing...this problem has been reported many times in recent
months. A lot of PAL users complain 2nd MIX is out of sync, only to find
they have this...
* Just so you know, most of the background effects from Follow the Sun
~90 In The Shade Mix~ from 3rd MIX arcade ended up in Bumble Bee in 3rd
MIX PSX. Including that guy on the lawnmower.
* Gradiusic Cyber ~AMD G5 MIX~ plays a speech sample from Gradius II at the
start of the song (see song info for details)
* It doesn't appear that any of the Dance Dance Revolution games's save data
will be detected in Metal Gear Solid by Psycho Mantis. Didn't think they
would, but it woulda been extremely funny if they had...oh well, if Konami
rip off Metal Gear Solid in MGS2 as much as MGS1 rips off Metal Gear 1
and 2 on the MSX, we can look forward to it if a PS2 port of DDR ever
comes about...
* Speaking of MSX, upon my late night searches for a...'project' I am working
on, I discovered a page which showed photographs of a MSX DDR 'clone'...
which used the actual PSX mat (adapted, of course) and played just like
the real one! Its name appeared to be Tansu Tansu Revolution...
* I already said this in the 3rd MIX console info, but I shall repeat: ALL
of the backgrounds from the arcade DDR are present in 3rd MIX PSX, which
does include the 3 songs which were removed! (but not 2nd MIX) While I
mention this, I must say that the songs are NOT hidden in the game either.
Konami were just too lazy to remove them. Probably. (no undiscovered songs
are hidden in the game, I checked)
* DDR will censor the following names (in DDR Best Hits - odds are older ones
will only censor some of these). If anyone is easily offended, look away,
but these 'names' don't mean much to the uneducated:
XXX
SEX
ASS
AHO
JAP
FUK
FUC
KKK
AUM
IRA
LSD
I have absolutely no idea why LSD is soooooo _damn_ offensive to people and
other drugs aren't. I can think of plenty 3 letter racist words more
offensive than 'JAP' also, including anti-Japanese ones - not that I'd
ever use them myself. Come on, this is not the place to put such stuff is
it? :) I was told (I forget who by - sorry!) that AUM had something to do
with the Tokyo Subway thing years ago. Also note that this list of naughty
names also seems to apply to Konami's other titles in recent years, as well
as games by other manufacturers...Marvel vs Capcom 2 rejected AUM as well!
So did Street Fighter Alpha! Whatever it is, it's taboo...so quite odd,
actually, that Beatmania and ParaPara Paradise don't censor your name at
all...
* In 5th MIX PSX/DDRMAX the list of censored names expanded to include:
(I censored the blatantly offensive ones. Basically if it's not insulting
by itself and not said on primetime TV, it's censored. Only the very nasty
racist ones have been censored, regardless of race)
/ spaces \
ETA WOP T*T PUD PK PK JEW GAY
FAG 666 YAH WAD RIM PEE NUT NFG
LOO JAY GOD FUD CUT CUM CAN SNK^
765
TYON ROUA OSHI F**K EATA ETTA C*CK CHON
BUSU WOPS T*TS SUCK S**T P**S PAKI NAZI
KYKE KILL JEWS JAPS GAYS FAGS D**K DEAD
DAMN C**T C**N WUSS WHIZ TWA* T*RD SL*T
SCAT RACK QUIM QUAD POOP PLOW MEAT KIKE
JUGS JOHN JI*Z HUNG HORK HERB HELL HEAD
HAVE GROE G**K FISH FART ERSE DYKE DRAG
DORK DONG DINK KOEI^ ENIX^ SEGA^
While some of these are just plain stupid, once again (HERB is banned but
nothing similar to it is - not to mention FISH, NUT, CAN, JOHN..poor John!)
it is interesting to note that 4 other games companies (marked with carets)
are censored. Especially since DDR 2nd MIX was on Sega Dreamcast! If anyone
finds these names _too_ offensive, tell me and I'll censor them more. For
the record there was 11 before, but now there is 98!
The irony is that some of their own songs feature some of the words above -
in Beatmania IIdx 3rd Style, the song Schlagwerk (by TaQ) not once, but
twice has a guy unmistakably saying "This is f**ked up!" in the background!
* One of the wierdest things in the DDR community is all to do with Boom
Boom Dollar. Many websites had Boom Boom Dollar song 'banners' (ie the red
colored emblem for the song on the music select screen) with the artist
credited as 'King Kong & D.Jangle Girls'. However, this has widely been
known as incorrect, at least in the western world, as 2nd ReMIX on the PSX
identifies them as 'King Kong & D.Jungle Girls', which makes more sense
(and I think I searched for them once and found them as _the_ Jungle Girls,
which messes it up even more). However, things change - in DDR Best Hits,
the song banner credits them as 'King Kong & D.Jangle Girls'! Note that in
4th MIX Arcade, the song banner credits them as 'King Kong & D.Jungle
Girls' once again for both Boom Boom Dollar's and Walkie Talkie...
* The X in Orion.78 AMeuro MIX is a swastika. If it looks backwards, then you
are thinking of the Nazi swastika instead of the real one. This form of
cross has been used in many religions all over the world for thousands of
years. Also note this can be seen on Hero (Happy Grandale Mix) as well.
Thank you to the umpteen people who emailed me correcting this, but I knew
it anyway. I just forgot (it was late at night like it is now...)
* Solo 2000 songs may have been removed from DDR 4th MIX on PSX, but there's
a few seconds of Can't Stop Fallin' In Love there when you beat a Challenge
Mode course!
* According to Konami's info on DDR characters on their website:
- Emi has no hat one quarter of the time
- Izam dislikes Rage (and is related to him?)
- Ni-Na is a hippy
- Rage watches wrestling (I think) and is so named cos' he's a grump
- Rage works in a liquor store
- Emi is in an electricians course or something. Her parents own an
electrical store
- Afro is 42 years old!
- Robo2001 (the Konsento type in 5th MIX) is made by NASA and can fly in
outer space, and is kept in the Smithsonian institute!
* During the introduction movie on DDR 4th MIX, for roughly 2 frames of
the intro you can see Devil Zukin's silhouette quickly swish in front of
the camera from the right side out of the bottom of the screen. Where
abouts is this, you ask? I'm not telling! Pretend it's a game!
* The 'Data Bank' option from Extra MIX _was_ going to be in DDR 4th MIX,
but Konami removed it at the last minute, probably because they knew they
would make more money adding it to Extra MIX. How do I know this? They
forgot to remove the 4th MIX style graphic for it from the VRAM in the
Edit Data menu. Oops.
* 'Konsento' is Japanese for 'electrical outlet'.
(RHETORICAL!) Questions:
* What IS that little drip shaped thing which appears in the background of
Hero and has a caption which says 'Eat Me' above it? It scares me. (2nd
[Re]MIX, 4th MIX?, DDR GB2)
* I've been looking high and low for cameo appearances by Konami characters,
but I've found nothing! (I thought I saw Konamiman once, but it was just
some other guy. I think he flies into the screen in the background of
'Hero' when you play in 3rd MIX, as well as another 3rd MIX song - maybe
Upside Down, I forget) Maybe there's a Vic Viper on Gradiusic Cyber or
something. Actually, there are some of those Easter Island type statues in
the background for Xanadu...the 'Moai' statues as Konami calls 'em...or
something like that. Maybe. (it's not DDR related really, but I noticed in
Beatmania European Edit, the background of 'Changing the Asia' blatantly
_recycles_ the waterfall background from Yie Ar Kung Fu (circa 1985)!
NEWS FLASH! I've found one! There's one in 4th MIX, and it's kinda sneaky,
but definately a cameo! It's found in the background of some stages, in
an animated tiled pattern. Know what it is? It's the belly dancer lady
from Parodius! Yes, of all characters to make a cameo, she seems to be the
first! And yes, she stomps up and down in the same wierd pose. And she's
ugly. I know that character is a parody of the spidery thing in Gradius 2/
Vulcan Venture, and that her face is significantly uglier in DDR. I didn't
understand who is the crackhead who came up with the idea for her back in
the early 90s, and I don't get it still! This all comes together with my
'Konami uses inspirational drugs' theory. Maybe 5th MIX will contain the
other lady of Parodius, the honey girl or whatever her name was (the one
who blew bubbles and was covered in a sheet and went "AAH!" and "OH!"
in a really non-painful kind of way when shot)
UPDATE: The Gradius start jingle and a generic Konami sound effect used
in games including Jikkyou Oshaberi Parodius (Parodius 3) is found in
DDR Solo 2000 on a hidden menu. It's strange that every cameo in the game
so far is Gradius or Parodius themed...unless if you count that 'Solid
Snake' lookalike in the background for Smoke. If that character had the
right clothing, I might assume it WAS supposed to be him, but no...
7.1 Different Group Name, Same Artist?
--------------------------------------
There was so much possible artist swapping going on, that it became evident
to me that I needed a special section on it or it'd BECOME the rumors section
itself! So, behold!
Artist: De-sire/Re-venge
- I don't know of many real bands that spell their name in this way. I
would give a 99% chance that _neither_ of these bands are real, and
that they're a front for another DDR artist. (not to mention that,
in the case of SP-Trip Machine ~Jungle Mix~, how many artists remix
their own music? In DDR there's a few, but that's all I can think of.
Come to think of it, which DDR artists clearly remix their own music?
Uzi-Lay, Mitsu-O! and Naoki are all I can think of.)
- I've _heard_ from numerous sources that Naoki had something to do with
Re-venge, and both of these 'groups' are credited as Naoki Maeda on
the 3rd MIX Soundtrack. Since Naoki Maeda is the sound director,
does that mean anything?
Artist: Naoki
- Many assume the name Naoki is the woman who sings the songs. This is
false. Naoki Maeda is the composer of the songs and the sound director
of the (arcade version of the) game...note that all the Naoki songs
have one thing in common: A fuzzy chordish sounding instrument. This
is especially prominent in Brilliant 2U, B4U, Can't Stop Fallin' In
Love, Love Again Tonight and Dynamite Rave. (it can be heard either at
the start or the main parts of these songs) It is probably not in
Hysteria, Burn The Floor or Broken My Heart (which is in the Beatmania
IIdx series or something).
- Other songs NOT credit to Naoki with the same or similar effects in
prominent places are Gentle Stress ~AMD Swing MIX~ (obviously),
Gradiusic Cyber ~AMD G5 MIX~ (which sounds nothing like the original),
Luv To Me ~AMD MIX~ and possible Dead End and La Senorita as well.
While Naoki didn't make any of these songs it's quite clear Naoki
did the remixes.
- Why am I sure that Naoki isn't the woman singing in the songs? Well
apart from the obviousness that the vocalists changed in 4th MIX,
there's one factor that changes everything: The fact that it's almost
always Westerners who assume the vocalist is Naoki. In Japanese,
'Naoki' would pronounced differently to how most foreigners would say
it, or at least from what I learnt years ago in Japanese class, it
would be (feel free to correct me). Most Westerners would say it
like they say Naomi - 'Nay-oh-kee'. The correct pronounciation I
_think_ is 'Naoh-kee'. Two syllables. Not three. Those factors, and
the factor that I checked a few Japanese sites to put the nail in the
coffin :P
- So who IS the lady who sings in the Naoki songs? Paula Terry! Who else
could it be? I seem to recall she was credited for Dynamite Rave for
some reason...and at the time I thought 'What? Who?'...hehe...
- I am told by neil of dancegames.net that the guy singing in the Naoki
songs is some guy named 'Aaron G'. So there you go :P
Song: Can You Feel The Rhythm (DDR 3rd Mix title song):
- Paula Terry obviously sings. Naoki probably did the music too.
Song: Jam Jam Reggae ~AMD Swing Mix~:
- Original most probably severely contributed to by DJ Nagureo (I think
Queen's Jamaica and Boa Boa Lady in Beatmania are by this artist, and
they use many of the same samples, same audio patterns (signatures?)
and of course, the incoherant Jamaican babbling. :) (oh, all three are
Reggae, of course :P)
- All the AMD Mixes in 3rd MIX are done by Naoki Maeda.
Song: Luv To Me ~AMD Mix~:
- Naoki. Definately. And Paula Terry does the vocals.
- Interestingly enough, the original Luv To Me sounded very DJ Nagureo
styled.
- All the AMD Mixes in 3rd MIX are done by Naoki Maeda.
Song: End Of The Century:
- Also by Naoki Maeda. Paula Terry and the male vocalist is there too.
(note 'Terry' is one of the people credited for the song)
Song: B4U, Burnin' The Floor:
- Obviously both songs feature different vocalists. The lyrics for B4U
seem o have been changed on purpose...
The bottom line is, Konami didn't have many artists at their disposal at all
for in-house songs. Naoki composes about 50% of the songs, while the rest
are subdivided between DJ Nagureo and all the rest. My only question is:
Does the Konami Kukeiha Club compose any DDR songs, and if not, WHY THE HELL
NOT? :) (I want the Antartic Adventure music in DDR dammit!)
8 . 0 C o d e s a n d C h e a t s
____________________________________________________________________
Here's the basic codes for people who wish to transfer them directly to
their cheat cart. Simply copy this to your codes file, compile and
transfer it.
Note that although I call the GameShark Codes 'GameShark Codes', GameSharks
are not sold in countries which need these codes! The equivilent is the
Action Replay, sold by Datel. I call them GameShark for the benefit of people
who order from Hong Kong (it is far cheaper than Datel's Action Replay that
way!)
IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE WITH THE GAMESHARK/ACTION REPLAY/CAETLA CODES:
Make sure you are not entering these codes as Master Codes. They must be
entered as normal ones. Also, if the code does not appear to work, try adding
'C1000000 0000' to the top of the code. This should fix 90% or so of problems
people seem to have with the codes.
REGARDING PAL ONLY CODES:
On PAL machines, the following games play out of time with the music: DDR 3rd
MIX, DDR Best Hits, DDR Disney's Rave, DDR 4th MIX. Some people report that
2nd MIX is out of time too, but this problem is not widespread and I myself
have not got this problem and therefore cannot fix it. These codes will
speed up the STEPS (not slow down the MUSIC) to make the game play as normal.
These codes will not convert the NTSC signal into a PAL color one. Using the
codes on an NTSC system will probably not work. No codes to slow down the
music instead of speeding up the game will be made as the music is not played
faster than normal on a PAL machine. PAL games commonly slow down the music
and speech to synchronize the game, though...but in the case of DDR, it
ruins the game and is completely avoidable!
FURTHER INFO FOR PAL USERS:
If the PAL sync code changes the speed but doesn't match it perfectly, please
change the value for the code that begins with 1xxx (1024 or 1026 is what I
usually put below), set it somewhere between 1022 and 102A and see if it
fixes it. It will require tweaking. One e-mail I got said the value was in
fact '1338', which indicates it could be very wide indeed! Basically, if the
code doesn't fix it, change the number! You should know if it's higher or
lower! Thanks to Anthony Cheng for the '1338' advice, by the way...I would
have never guessed the code could be so far off!
Dance Dance Revolution (1st MIX, PSX):
Regular Codes:
At the title screen:
To change player models (the dancers appearance), press L OR R
while you press START.
To play in versus mode, the second player must join in whilst
pushing D.
All other codes must be inputted at the difficulty select screen.
Push U or select before you input the following:
To enable Another mode, push U, U, D, D, U, U, D, D.
To enable Maniac mode, push L, L, R, R, L, L, R, R.
To enable Double mode, push U, U, D, D, L, R, L, R.
To enable Mirror mode, push L, R, L, R, L, R, L, R.
(there is no Shuffle, Little or Hidden mode)
These codes are only required to be inputted once.
Gameshark Codes:
"Modchip Protection Remover"
D001E160 FFF2
8001E160 0001
D01B6F20 0003
801B6F20 0001
D01B76A8 DE07
801B76A8 DDFE
D01B6414 6424
800101DA 0101
"Edit mode Selection" .off
3001046D 00FF
"Training mode all songs selection" .off
8001047C FFFF
3001047E 00FF
"All songs selection" .off
800103F0 FFFF
"Unlimited bar for Player 1" .off
8008CCFA 03E8
"Unlimited bar for Player 2" .off
8008D5E2 03E8
.end
Dancing Stage (UK)/Dance Dance Revolution (US):
Regular Codes:
At title screen:
To change player models (the dancers appearance), press < OR > while
you press [].
To select other modes, hold < & > together, then press [] and let go
of all 3 buttons. Note if only one player pushes [] and you pick
Couple, Double or Versus, you will only be able to play one stage and
only one credit will be used. (only one player needs to do this
code)
On the song selection screen:
To get Another mode, push D, D, D, L, L, R, R. This only works if
done before selecting the first song - it will not work later.
This feature is essentially an intermediate difficulty level.
To get Maniac mode, push D, D, D, R, U, U, L. This only works if
done before selecting the first song - it will not work later.
This feature is essentially an advanced difficulty level.
To get Hidden mode, push U, D, U, D, U, D, U, D. This makes the
arrows disappear halfway up the screen.
To get Left mode, push L, L, L, L, L, L, L, L. This works anytime.
This rotates all arrows 90 to the left.
To get Right mode, push R, R, R, R, R, R, R, R. This works
anytime. This rotates all arrows 90 to the right.
To get Shuffle mode, push U, D, L, R, D, U, R, L. This works
anytime.
This randomizes the steps, however the number of steps and the
time at which they occur is the same.
To get Little mode, push L, D, R, D, L, D, R, D, U. This works
anytime. This gets rid of all half and 1/4 steps.
Pushing U, U, U, U cancels all codes except Another/Maniac.
Dance Dance Revolution 2nd MIX (Arc):
Regular Codes:
- See Dancing Stage/Dance Dance Revolution
Dance Dance Revolution 2nd ReMIX (PSX):
Regular Codes:
- Press select on the song select screen to change modes, etc.
- Raymond Lorica
also informed me of this
code for 2nd ReMIX:
"In the psx ver of DDR 2ndRemix. If you press select and start
simultaneously on the dance mat or controller before the jap
text warning sign or just after the black psx boot logo
disappear.You will here a sound confirming you have unlocked
all the songs ,modes and information in the game. I am doing
this code since March and i am amazed that the code is not
posted on any cheat website. If the code doesnt work ,try
doing it in repeatedly. This code is 100% accurate. "
This code appears to be some sort of debug code. The intro
sequence is skipped, scores are wiped and everything, including
junk information pages, is unlocked. So a big thanks to Raymond
Lorica for this info!
Gameshark Codes:
"Modchip Protection Remover"
D00200A6 1040
800200A6 1000
D0020D64 FFF2
80020D64 0001
D01C1BE4 FFF2
801C1BE4 0001
D01C1C7A 0C07
801C1C7A 3002
D01C2936 1040
801C2936 1000
"Infinite Sp P1" .off
8009A986 0500
"Infinite Sp P2" .off
8009B296 0500
"Enable All Modes" .off
80010C0A 0000
300103E1 0000
"Information Mode-Have All Selections" .off
80010C0C 0000
80010C0E 0000
80010C10 0000
80010C12 0000
"Have 3 Secret Songs" .off
300103E0 0000
.end
Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX (Arc):
Regular Codes:
At title screen:
To play in 2nd MIX mode, push <, <, >, >.
To play in Step Step Revolution mode, push <, <, <, >, >, >, <, >.
To play in 3rd MIX mode (default), push <, >, <.
To select other modes, press < and > at the same time as []. If
only one player pushes [] and you pick Couple, Double or Versus, you
will only be able to play one stage and it only uses one credit.
On the character select screen:
To get the 2nd MIX characters, push D. Pushing it again brings back
3rd MIX characters. Which character you select will change which
BeatMania song you will have the option of playing (ie Konsento-3 =
Jam Jam Reggae ~AMD Swing Mix~, Dread Snake = Luv to Me ~AMD Mix~)
At the song selection screen:
Pushing D, D increases the difficulty (Another, Maniac (on 2nd MIX))
Pushing U, U decreases the difficulty (Basic, Another (on 2nd MIX))
To get Hidden mode, push U, D, U, D,. This works at anytime.
this makes the arrows disappear halfway up the screen. Repeating
this code changes it to Sudden mode, where the arrows suddenly
appear 2/3 of the way up the screen. Repeating the code yet again
changes this to Stealth mode, where the arrows disappear altogether!
Repeating the code again disables all 3 codes.
To get Left mode, push L, L, L, L, L, L, L, L. This works anytime.
This rotates all arrows 90 to the left.
To get Right mode, push R, R, R, R, R, R, R, R. This works anytime.
This rotates all arrows 90 to the right.
To get Shuffle mode, push U, D, L, R, D, U, R, L. This works anytime.
This randomizes the steps, however the number of steps and the time
at which they occur is the same.
To get Little mode, push L, D, R, D, L. This works anytime. This gets
rid of all half and 1/4 steps. Also, some jumps appear to be
eliminated.
All of the above codes can be cancelled by repeating them.
To enable Flat mode, push L, L, L, R, R, R. This changes all arrows
to a single flashing color, as they appear in 2nd MIX/2nd ReMIX.
To enable Vivid mode, push L, R, L, L, R, R, L, R. This changes half
and 1/4 so they flash at a different interval to single steps. This
is on by default in 3rd MIX and 2nd MIX mode (but not Step Step
Revolution mode)
Hold down [] when you have selected a song to see if any edit data
stored in the machine itself. Some 2nd MIX songs have this. Much of
the special edit data found in 2nd MIX songs is in the Dreamcast
version!
During the game:
To disable/enable the lyrics, push []. Lyrics are only shown on some
3rd MIX songs (and no 2nd MIX songs).
If you have paint data loaded (see section 2.1), pusing < or >
will enable/disable your design of arrows. (on the PSX, select does
this instead of the paint data is loaded)
Dance Dance Revolution Solo 2000 (Arcade):
Regular Codes:
On the song select screen:
To change difficulties between Basic, Trick (Another) and Maniac,
press down, down, down to go up a difficulty or up, up, up
to go down a difficulty.
To enable secret modes, on the stage (not the select buttons) push
left, right, left, right. The game will make the start sound from
Gradius (!) and a menu will pop up which allows you to select
arrow speed (Slow = half normal speed, Fast = arrows move twice
as fast, Special = arrows accelerate from slow to fast), as well
as the usual modes - hidden/sudden/stealth, left/right/mirror,
little/flat. Note the other sound effects used in this menu are
generic Konami SNES sound effects used in Contra 3/Super Probotector
with less echo and Jikkyou Oshaberi Parodius (Parordius 3) with as
much echo as found in this (which is probably why it's there!), and
probably other Konami games as well.
During the game:
To make it so the steps scroll down instead of up (it's hard!), push
start at any time. Do it again to reverse it to normal.
Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX Korea Ver.(2) (Arc):
Regular Codes:
- Identical to 3rd MIX (Arc).
Dance Dance Revolution 3rd MIX (PSX):
Regular Codes:
- You can enable SSR/3rd ReMIX mode by using the same codes to get
SSR/2nd MIX in the arcade version.
- Press select after meeting the requirements to get SSR and 3rd
ReMIX mode.
- Press select on the song select screen to change modes, etc.
Gameshark Codes:
"Required to Work!"
D00C1998 FF52
800C19A2 1000
"EDC crack"
D00C42D8 10BA
800C42CE 1000
D00C3B60 E9A0
800C3B5A 1000
"EDC crack (1st Mix)"
D0029344 A4D5
8002933A 1000
"EDC crack (2nd Mix)"
D0029364 A4DD
8002935A 1000
"Unlock all features" .off
800BC008 FFFF
800BC00A FFFF
800BC00C FFFF
800BC00E FFFF
800BC010 FFFF
800BC012 FFFF
800BC198 FFFF
800BC1A0 FFFF
800BC1A8 FFFF
800BC1B6 FFFF
"Always get an SSS" .off
8006A11E 8EA2
8006A12A AEA2
8006A874 008C
8006A884 008C
* "PAL Speed Fixer Upper"
80028158 1024
8002815A 2402
* "75% Speed"
80028158 0C20
8002815A 2402
800A04E8 0C00
* "87.5% Speed"
80028158 0E23
8002815A 2402
800A04E8 0E00
* "112.5% Speed"
80028158 1229
8002815A 2402
800A04E8 1200
* "125% Speed"
80028158 142B
8002815A 2402
800A04E8 1400
* "137.5% Speed"
80028158 162F
8002815A 2402
800A04E8 1600
* "150% Speed"
80028158 1832
8002815A 2402
800A04E8 1800
.end
Dance Dance Revolution Best Hits:
Gameshark Codes:
"Remove Modchip Protection"
D01002D6 1040
801002D6 1000
* "PAL Speed Fixer Upper"
80027DC4 1026
80027DC6 2402
.end
Dance Dance Revolution Disney's Rave:
Gameshark Codes:
"Remove Modchip Protection"
D019020A 1040
8019020A 1000
.end
Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX (Arc):
Regular Codes:
To use these codes in main mode, select a song then do it on the
difficulty select screen. They should work on the first (and only)
screens in Edit Data and Nonstop Order mode. Input them using the
stage as normal:
Hidden/Sudden/Stealth: L U R
Shuffle: U D L R D U
Mirror: (U?) L R L R (only reverses L/R arrows on 6 button
machines)
Mirror U/D: (U?) L L R R (6 button machines/solo only)
Left: U L L L L
Right: U R R R R
Little/Flat: L D R
Dance Dance Revolution 4th MIX (PSX):
Regular Codes:
- Press select on the song difficulty select screen to change modes,
etc.
Gameshark Codes:
* "PAL Speedup Fix"
80027C00 1026
80027C02 2402
"Type A Unlock Code" .off
D00E82D6 1040
800E82D6 1000
"Type B Unlock Code" .off
D00E8A12 1040
800E8A12 1000
"Unlock all songs" .off
800E4E18 00FF
(NOTE: You must play the game once for this to work)
"Glowing icon thingy" .off
800E4DF0 00FF
(NOTE: This just makes the cursor on the main menu glow funny.
This is what it normally looks like in Extra MIX)
"Max Stage" .off
800E4E38 0x00
(NOTE: x = 0-F - this code sets how many stages in a game. Put it
above 5 (6 stages) for strange results!
"Emi is always hatless" .off
800B4834 0001
(NOTE: Perverts asked me for this!)
.end
Dance Dance Revolution Extra MIX (PSX):
Regular Codes:
- Press select on the song difficulty select screen to change modes,
etc.
Gameshark Codes:
* "PAL Speedup Fix"
80027C2C 1026
80027C2E 2402
.end
Dance Dance Revolution 5th MIX (PSX):
Regular Codes:
- To unlock the last 5 gallery items, move the cursor over #224 and
push Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, X and then O.
It will make a different sound and the pictures will be unlocked!
Gameshark codes
* "PAL Speedup Fix"
80028CF4 1026
80028CF6 2402
.end
* = Works on PAL PSX only
9 . 0 O u t r o d u c t i o n
_______________________________
9.1 About the Author
--------------------
I've removed the old info as it's mostly been mentioned again in the
Physical/Mental section, so I've put a bio here instead. This is also so
anybody reading this who happens to be local to me can spot me in the
arcade. Enjoy! :)
Real Name: Peter Hegedus
IRC/BBS/Message Board Nick: Gurt/GurtyGurt
DDR Team: Brisbane Sub-Leader of Ranking Task Force (http://rtf.genxer.net)
Big Cheese of the Bemani Order of Madness (http://gurt.50g.com)
DOB: 19 August 1980
Weight: Not Much (I won't tell cos' it ain't much :P)
Height: 5'8"
Hair, Eyes, Race: Black, Brown, Caucasian
Location: Brisbane, Australia
First Played DDR: 05 October 1999
(NB: Found in an email sent from work to home on this date:
"Dance Dance Championship ($2/1c/2p) 9/10"
9/10 would be my first opinion of the game, as I review
games in my spare time it was a short note I made.
Obviously I also remembered the name slightly wrong, as
the marquee had the European name but posters on the walls
did not at the time!)
Skill Level: Able to beat all Single mode songs (1-4 MIX). Able to beat all
8 foot and a most 9 foot Double mode songs (1-4 MIX). Usually
playing very hard edit data or normal stuff on Sudden Stealth.
Also can beat every Maniac song with a Max Combo (1-2 MIX).
Trademark Moves: The headbutt (headbutts the stage - usually faked)
The 'stupid jumping pointy finger thing' (jump pointing
outwards and looking stupid on purpose)
The bottom-powered pelvic thrust (thrust forward holding
ones bottom, not called an bottom thrust in case if someone
misunderstands it)
The 'dance of lust' (step left/right with hands waving
like they're pulling up the legs...sort of. Not very lustful
but what's in a name anyway?)
Adopted Moves: 'The RTF Move' (Jump with hands on top of head, usually in
Only You - everyone stole this one from H.Edward@RTF so it's
an inside joke now!)
Dancing Style: Professional General player (as I always say, most games last
about a week at most with me. Gran Turismo 2 lasted 4 days,
Parappa The Rapper lasted 6 hours, WWF Smackdown! lasted 4
days, Zelda 64 lasted 2 days...any game that lasts 1 years
is something special, and I'm not going to get bored of this
for many years yet...if ever!)
(see 'recommendations' in section 5.0)
Best Effort on DDR Song: 4th MIX- A on Trip Machine Climax (Maniac), B on
Ninzaburo (Maniac, Shuffle, Sudden), C on Boom Boom
Dollar (Basic, Shuffle, Stealth), AA on Xanadu
(Basic)
Favourite DDR Game: DDR 4th MIX Arcade (it's what we have!)
Current Favourite Songs (4th MIX): Keep On Movin', Never Gonna Make, Never
Gonna Let You Down
Favourite Songs (3rd MIX): Dynamite Rave, Gradiusic Cyber, Luv To Me
Favourite Songs (2nd [Re]MIX): Paranoia, Trip Machine ~Luv Mix~, Strictly
Business
Songs Most Disliked: Silent Hill, Dub-I-Dub, Tell Me Tell Me, The 7 Jump
Most Money Ever Spent On Arcade DDR In A Day: AUS$120 (approx US$70)
Lifetime DDR Spendings: Over $3,000 (AUS)
Most Time Ever Spent On Arcade DDR In A Day: 14 hours
Most Time Ever Spent On Console DDR In A Day: Unknown
Most Time Ever Spent On Endless Mode In A Day: 7 hours
Worst DDR Injury: Collapsed Lung (beat that! :P), also a punch in the head
by a guy trying to steal my mobile/cell phone
(unsuccessfully mind you, and it didn't hurt), and lastly a
fractured finger (don't ask)
Won't Play DDR Without: Coca Cola!
Other Games I Like: Monty On The Run (Commodore 64), Gyruss (Arcade,
Commodore 64), Parodius (SNES, GB)
Favourite Movies: Robocop. That's about it :P
Likes: * Anything good or funny
* Junk Food
* Fun! Yah!
Dislikes: * Negative attitudes. If you constantly try to have a positive one
you really do learn to dislike them...
* People who jump on the 2nd player side in the middle of your
performance (but if you're not performing it's okay...freestyle
is a grey area :P)
* Games with annoyingly massive spiders in them with horribly
squirmy legs (even if they're 2 colored Speccy/MSX/C64/Amstrad
games)
Other Notes: * Absolutely no musical skills
* I Analyse many things (hence the FAQ, hence I found out some
of the dip settings...)
* Collector of old video gaming computers/consoles/software
* Non-smoker, non-drinker
* Left-handed
* I often put a silly animated icon of a stick figure dancing
on when I put my Pocketstation in a DDR machine, and whenever
it reads from the PK, it comes up with 'busy' for a bit...as
that goes on and off, it results in a very freaky animation
of what ends up looking more like a stick figure getting
electrocuted! :) My current animation is of 'The RTF Move'
(see above)
9.2 Links
---------
http://www.konami.co.jp/ - Duh!
Just in case somene forgot the URL...DDR's page is on something like
http://www.kcetokyo.co.jp/am/4th/. or something. That URL is definately
wrong though. Just look in 'Whats New', there's always a DDR related link
there...
http://rtf.genxer.net/ - Ranking Task Force
Since I'm now a member of this team, I thought it was only fair to create a
link there. It's (unofficially :P) the best and biggest team in Australia.
Above all, we have fun! (For those of you looking for Step Scores, you can
find them here also)
http://www.dancegames.com/ - Dance Games
A site covering the whole Bemani series, more or less, with an emphasis on
DDR, Para Para Paradise, EZ2Dancer and Pump It Up. Hence the name. :) I'm
a staff writer here now, so if a new DDR game comes out and you want info on
it direct from me and feel shy about emailing me...like the 4th MIX sync code
which I found days before I updated the FAQ...you might want to check here.
I'm a technical aspect of DDR person, see! That, and the content is all good
and very slick/professional...this may mean a new email address in the next
version of the FAQ. Take note now!
http://www.sutv.zaq.ne.jp/thomas/ - Thomas Howard's homepage
Just for those who want to know more about Thomas Howard :P
http://www.metropolis.co.jp/lifeinjapanarchive249/233/lifeinjapaninc.htm - ?
Appears to be an interview with THE Paula Terry. All the facts are correct
(Singer, Tokyo). Can't be many Paula Terry's in Tokyo.
http://www.ddr.sh/ - DDR Stompin' Grounds
An excellent DDR site with clear and conscise information on the whole
series. The English version of the site closes on the 31st of March...err
I'll probably forget to remove this before the next version, won't I?
http://www.beatgamer.com/ - BeatGamer (formerly www.dancestage.net)
A site covering the whole Bemani series and other rhythm action games.
Also has RealAudio recordings of many DDR songs with the words! The
correct ones at that!
http://djbad.uhome.net/ - dj BAD's Music Store Room
Lots of DDR MP3's from all mixes, including Solo 2000, Disney's Rave and
4th MIX. It even has full versions of the DDR songs like Boom Boom Dollar -
no need to use Napster anymore!
http://web.twin.ne.jp/~seno/ddr/index.html - ?
A pretty good collection of edit data is located here. I can't read the
rest, though...
http://ddr.magisystems.net/ - Dance Dance Revolution - Las Vegas
An excellent page for regular DDR players in Las Vegas, including guide
to machine locations, local player biographs and a DDR survival guide for
people playing in the harsh Las Vegas conditions! Living in a similar
climate myself, I must stress that some of this information is very
important to those living in equally bad conditions!
http://heinesen.info.sophia.ac.jp/~shugai/game/ddr/ - DDDRC Edit
It's in Japanese, but you can download some edit data here including some for
3rd Mix. Beware though - all the steps are incredibly underranked (the lower
ones to a lesser extent)
(Might be down)
9.3 Credits
-----------
All contributors shall get their names shone in big flashy lights if
they convert this text to ANSI then make it flash. But I can't be bothered
so you get it in regular text like the rest of the document. So here are
the credits!
Thanks to Gendou Ikari for confirming the rumor about the hackers version
of Dance Dance Revolution on PSX and rewording the mode select code in a much
easier to understand way (I was tired when I wrote that code bit and I didn't
realise how daft 'press <, > and [] at the same time' sounds...gah!). Honest.
I can picture someone frustratingly trying to push them all at the EXACT
same time and ending up playing versus mode by themselves like I did once
(see my tips for Xanadu :P)
Thanks to Chris Lord (Dancingstage-maniac at breakdancer.co.uk) for making
the PAL Slowdown Fix code thingies!
Thanks to Dvae Van Horn for clarifying any unclear points, correcting
mistakes and giving additional info as far as 4th MIX arcade machines are
concerned. The info is probably valid for other machines as well...
Thanks to Vince Yim (vinceyim at hotmail.com) for pointing out any medical
inaccuracies and giving strong, positive criticism on the medical section.
An excellent contribution!
Thanks to Elf@RTF elflord@faerie.cyber.com.au for offering heaps of advice on
his techniques for songs. Probably some of it's ended up here as alternative
techniques. I don't like to include other peoples ideas but if they're
majorly different to mine, they're useful! Wheee!
TNT Blast Dynamite (unholymight at mailcity.com) pointed out Afronova wasn't
the fastest song. And he's right - I'm blind and didn't see that one on the
list at DDR Stompin' Grounds. (I also now realise Paranoia Evolution's steps
are just as fast. But the music isn't ;P) So thank you for pointing out my
mistake :)
Thanks to Raymond Lorica for the hidden DDR 2nd ReMIX cheat code thingy! I'm
sure a lot of people will love that code!
Thanks to GameFAQs for having an FTP for me to upload this to so I can
share my knowledge with the world!
Thanks to Konami for making probably the best game of all time!
Thanks to Saber for the information regarding the protection removal code's
effect with a 3.3 Gameshark (if anyone cares to know, it's on a stealth
modded 9xxx series PSX)
Thank you very much to H.Edward from Ranking Task Force for organizing the
DDR competition here which provided me with much of the 4th MIX operator info
and the Competition Section! He also sold me a spare copy of 4th MIX on PSX,
which ultimately lead to the info on that here...so hooray!
Thanks to Jonathan Ng for pointing out Emi's full name on Konami's site!
Thank you very much to everyone else who's indirectly contributed to the
FAQ, especially people at the arcade!
9.4 Disclaimer
--------------
This document is copyright 2000-01 by Peter Hegedus. Nor this document or any
part of it may be printed in magazines or sold for profit either by
itself or on a form of media bundled with other things (ie CD-ROMs) without
my written permission. You may, however, put this FAQ on websites, give it to
friends, or use it for your own personal use. This FAQ may only be
distributed if it is un-edited - nothing may be replaced or removed. And you
don't need my permission to put this on websites. And feel free to print it
out if you don't mind carrying several hundred pages to the arcade with you.
I suggest you edit out the bits you don't want. Anyway, SPREAD THIS FAQ! But
not for commercial purposes - you may not sell this FAQ, give it free with
something you sell, or otherwise trade it for goods or services! This FAQ is
free. If someone is breaching this rule, tell me!
Dance Dance Revolution is a trademark of Konami, and all that musical mumbo
jumbo probably remain the registered trademark, trademark or copyright of
their authors, although I could not find anything in the majority of cases in
their respective manuals since they're all in Japanese. I can read the prices
of things in yen, but that's it.
I STILL will offer my help personally to people stuck in a particular area.
No really, I will. If you have questions regarding any incarnation of DDR,
I shall try to answer the question and if I an unable to, I shall place
your question somewhere in here for other people to answer. Comments,
flames, praise, etc. can go to the normal address up the top. If you wish
to criticise, I suggest you make it positive criticism instead of just
abuse and then I'll probably read it. Yes, criticism is welcome.
9.5 Future Versions
-------------------
Coming soon to this FAQ...er...near you:
* More Single and Double mode hints.
* Competition info needs expanding still.
DDR Disney's Rave GB is supposed to be out. Where is it?
* Hopefully I'll find a way to make DDR more fun for you, next time! Again!
* Expect the next version sooner than later.
* Now the Drummania and Guitar Freaks FAQ are out, I'm working on another
even more ambitious one! What is it? It's a secret!
* More everything!
9.6 Requests
------------
Contribute to the FAQ! Send info on this stuff!:
* If anyone owns a ParaPara Paradise machine (any version), some operator
settings info would be appreciated.
* Does anyone know what system hardware DDR runs off? Please don't say "a
Playstation" or "a modified Playstation" unless you can prove it, that's
almost certainly incorrect, as it appears the graphics are deliberately
kept simple to make conversions easier...not to mention the memory card
slot is much slower to register than on an actual PSX.
* NOTE: I believe it runs off 'System-573' hardware, but am unable to
confirm it. I have verified System-573 hardware exists.
Have fun playing DDR! That's what counts the most!
-GurtyGurt
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