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System:
Arcade
Genre:
Music
Publisher:
Konami
Developer:
-
Players:
1-2
Release date/year:
2000
Other systems:
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- Dance Dance Revolution USA
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2000 Konami - Arcade
- With the steady release of these machines, it really is hard to find differences in each of them outside of the different songs that you can play to. In this version of Dance Dance Revolution, you have something that is drastically changed from the other versions in which Konami does most of their own music for the game and leaves original songs in the dust for the most part. The scoring system has also been toned down and it seems as though the game is geared more for the younger players to work with rather than the more experienced players!
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Different Features in Dance Dance Revolution USA:
-Reduced Scoring System {Perfect, Great, Good, Almost, Boo}
-Reduction of Song Selection
-Smaller Dancing Platform
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The Game Play
As with other Dance Dance Revolution games, the name of the game is to keep your rhythm and keep the beat with the arrows on the screen. This has not changed from any other US release of the Dance Dance Revolution machines and there really is no end in sight. As before, through a selection screen, you start the game with a series of arrows at the top of the screen and merely have to work with the game and step on a corresponding pad direction when the arrow is in the right spot. This will start a chain combination that is vital for you to get a top score.
The control interface is what will get most beginners to the game, in which you don’t use your hands, but more your feet and the rhythm of the game in order to get through. The song listing works with several different types of skill levels that range from easy one step maneuvers to the multiple stepping combinations that take a true expert to get the feel for. Probably one of the most challenging aspects that the game has to offer is not only the timing that you have to use with the game, but more with the fact that you’re doing this in front of a crowd of people. As long as you keep your eyes on the game and don’t worry about who is watching, you can amass quite a high score and make yourself out to be a DDR champ!
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The Visuals
The visuals that you find here have been downgraded a little bit with the release of the USA version. For the most part, you’ll be looking at mid-life Play Station visuals that are full of flare and tripped out colors as well as some pretty impressive dance moves from the characters on screen. However, what you will be missing is anything truly exciting and with the lack of finer detail in the characters, there is little here that will impress you or keep you away from the other DDR machines! This small downgrade makes a difference simply because half of the fun is watching your character go ballistic!
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The Audio
Another downfall in this version is that the game is lacking a true library of songs to listen to. While most of the music that you find here is all original recordings, they tend to blend together for something that doesn’t give you much of a selection and in the end, once you’ve played through all of the different tracks, there is nothing left for you to hear. Unlike most of the other Dance Dance Revolution games, the sound effects are also toned down, which leaves the gamers with something of a muted audio track which, in turn, leaves plenty to be desired with the selection process!
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Why you might not like this game:
Well, for starters, the music track selection has been downgraded to the point that you only have a handful of songs to choose from and play with. Add this into the fact that the skill level of the game has been toned down for beginners, and you’ll find that all the challenge of trying for a high score is immediately sucked out of the game and thrown out the window. With the smaller dance pad, there are some problems with miscalculated steps which leads into more problems with the overall scoring later on in the game!
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The Verdict
If there are other Dance Dance Revolution machines in the arcade, you might want to work your way over to one of them for some real challenge and leave this one to the beginners. While most of what the game is supposed to be is here, there is a need for more challenge by experts who have moved past the point of ‘given’ ranks and scores. The smaller foot pad is another feature that just doesn’t sit well and when you’re trying to hit a high combination to miss will cause you to dance on over to the service desk and do the Charleston Stomp on someone’s head!
7/10
//KasketDarfyre
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