Opinions on Extra Stage (arcade)

So I've been fortunate to pass many ESes and EESes in the arcade now, and despite the pressure, I think these stages helped me to beef up my game even when I'm not in those stages. It's especially helpful that nowadays I'm playing on an SN2 which lets me dodge its six boss songs with Random [until I'm ready for them], although sometimes I'm not any better off using it.

What are your opinions on playing Extra Stage in the arcade, for any mix?

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If the Extra Stage lets me play whatever I want and with whatever mods I want, then I'd care.

The only extra stages chances I happen to enjoy would be in Extreme and Supernova since all you have to do is get AA on the final stage on heavy/challenge and you get to choose the extra stage.

Max and Max2 are fine even if I can't do those Max songs on 1.5 reverse.

The rest are frustrating but I still bother to get the Extra Stage in DDR X2 since Kimono Princess is one of my favorite songs.

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Playing on any of the newer mixes and regressing to Max or Max 2 for ES is annoying, since if you get ES you're stuck with the boss song. If you don't want to play it, too bad. The game tells you how much you suck. SN2 and X are also kind of annoying for extra stage, since you basically have to sacrifice your last stage to play it (and not making ES requirements amounts to a wasted attempt).

X2 has it right, at least the most right it's been since supernova. For once the player has to really work for Extra stage again, and there's a reason to go for OMES more than once!

But yeah, Extreme and Supernova had the best ES system. AA whatever, you get one more song. Go for the hard songs (of which you get a few options), get a final challenge. Straightforward but classy.

Personally, Supernova has the easiest Extra Stage system out of all of them since all you need to do is pass a boss song on extra stage to get Chaos.

Easier than AAing a 10.

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You just have to pass it, not get an AA? I didn't know that

It's a shame FaxX and FELM are equally shitty charts, in my opinion.

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I'm pretty sure you need to get an A on Faxx or Felm to get OMES.

Then again, it's pretty hard to get a B and still pass.

You can also get it by passing Healing D Vision, though you have to restrict yourself to the easy / medium songlists to even get that.

You have to pass it on an Oni-style lifebar, IIRC. Unless that's just SN2.

I KINDA like SN2's best; because it gives you a selection of boss-level songs you can play with instead of just one, and it does let you use RANDOM to fulfill any requirements. You could also do it on or , too. The fact that DDR X (US/PS2) used that system with it's selection of boss songs led to quite the delightful and challenging experience; and once you're on OMES/EES, you can play that on ANYTHING - so it's not like you have to one-shot Pluto Relinquish FC or anything; although you can still push yourself to do that if you want to.

With that in mind... DDR X (PS2/NA) is probably my favorite of the bunch; but technically it's still "the SuperNOVA 2 system."

Second favorite would be Universe 3's, if it at least gave you 3 songs to choose between for the BONUS/EXTRA stages. It's a cool touch that you can be given a BONUS song that you're free to fail in the course of your gameplay (rather than just at the end), and the EXTRA stage with it's Oni-style lifebar, and deceptive combination of Reverse + Mirror can catch good players off guard even with gems like PARANOiA Rebirth. It's pretty smart, and about the only ES system I've ever seen that utilizes Hidden or Sudden (although somewhat randomly).

Third favorite is my StepMania setup: All of my official DDR simfiles are in one category together, bear in mind. But the ES chooses a random boss-level chart (X's equal of 15..20), and the OMES/EES chooses a random CHALLENGE chart - which can range anywhere from those absurd + Shock Arrow charts all the way up to Valkeryie Dimension - but still allows you to free-select your ES if you don't care to play it for the OMES/EES. (Far as I can tell, you can't "free select" the OMES/EES though.)

Yes, sometimes it gets me outcomes like Trigger > Trigger , but not that often, and when it does, it's actually kind of cool. About the only fully-repeated chart I get is I'm so happy or Xepher as both, and that's REALLY rare; considering how many higher-level songs I have.

I kinda miss my old DWI setup, because it worked like that, but I could list 3 songs on extra1.crs; and choose any of the three to play! (For fulfilling OMES/EES conditions, I mean.)

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Seeing as I've never played an Arcade mix past SN, I like pretty much all ES stages except for Supernova's.

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What're the requirements to get it? Just play on the Easy/Medium songlists or is there something else you have to do as well?

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Play on Medium and AA any song as the final stage.