DDR X3 VS 2ndMIX (AC) (Japan)

Before ITG they were StepMania mines. And I don't think people are complaining that they "copied" anybody, I think the complaints are that they copied them "wrong". Or didn't copy them closely enough.

It's been my observation that, since Konami absorbed In The Groove, fans have been pleading with them to integrate the unique features of ITG into DanceDanceRevolution.


They can start by getting off the all or nothing train.


Same here. I like that Konami devised a unique penalty for stepping on their "mines". I think it works just as well at having your life bar take a hit, seeing as how it could cause you to miss subsequent arrows reducing your life anyways.


And yet their exclusion in DDR II/HP5, a game with a good amount of songs that already had SA charts, is a bit telling. What that tells us I'm not really sure.


So if you PFC or MFC AAA a song you're actually getting four stars? (three white, and one (off screen) green?)

It mostly tells us the decision to make DDR II into DDR X2.5 was fairly last-minute and they didn't have time to implement shock arrows into the Wii engine as a result. Would they if they had time? Probably, but only NAOKI or U1 could really answer that one.

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what happens if you get a a upgrade kit for x2

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Then your X1 becomes an X2.

but what if it allready and x2 i think the persons might b3e getting it for x3

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I find it difficult to swallow that theory, where did it originate from?

Assumptions.

YAY simfile updates if you haven't noticed. Get them here

Updates:
Amalgamation has a better lineout

New Files:
I/O
New Beginning
REBORN MAGIC
Resurrection
STRAIGHT JET (Nxc Production)
Tribe

Thanks to Darkstorm91 for doing everything new except for straight jet

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They technically already had shock arrows, the only thing they would've had to do was take foot missile, put them in groups of 4 like it is on the arcades, and make it so they're activated when a foot is on the arrow as opposed to having to step on it. The engine had gimmicks like that in it prior, no way you're telling me that they didn't have the time to do it. My guess as to why they were probably not implemented is because softmats SUCK for that and that's all most people playing this are going to have. I tried maybe three easy songs on X2CS with it and unlike the arcade dance panel you just gotta go too far out of your way to keep them from triggering.

And while we're on topic, they were probably planning on this release as early as DDR2010. Why else would the characters all of a sudden "grow up", a screen filter (though not identical) is implemented, and ALL of the gimmicks were removed from standard play among other things. Then to see X3 using parts of DDR2010's interface, along with the reveal of Posession and the acknowledgment that the game was going to have more arcade parity really early on seems to tell me this stuff was planned out well in advance.

I think you meant Foot Destructor.

I think Smoooch is the other shock arrow song you guys are thinking of, because it goes with the dancer routine in the BG movie. And the reason they're all 4 arrows all the time is that they add to a song's "air" rating, implying that they're logically "hurdles to jump over." Finally, OK/NG seems like the only logical scoring option for the shocks, it's not like you're gonna "Good" one of those.

5 of each difficulty having shock inserts isn't too bad; but the course designers need to get on board with this pattern, and design the courses appropriately. It's a great option to be able to play courses with all on one setting, and the (sometimes easier) charts on the other. For instance:

Es / Hd
/ Flight of the Phoenix
/ Waiting 4U
/ Dance Celebration
/ SABER WING
/ Horatio

or

/ IF YOU WERE HERE
/ HERO
/ DAM DARIRAM
/ CAPTAIN JACK (GRANDALE REMIX)
/ smoooch

Mostly because it presents a good option for players, and in cases like the latter's, a good option for players of easier difficulties as well. The bundle of (2008 X-Edits) would work nicely together, too (just stick DUBs and GUM on the end).


But then, what they really need is either:
...an EVOLVED song with only one version that contains shocks
-and/or-
...a really dense shock chart like Horatio (PS2)'s, but appropriately slow enough to actually do... (~115 bpm?)

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Have fun reading japanese (or french, if you get the European upgrade kit) instruction texts! Also, have even more fun with the base songlist while at the same time not have the BeForU revivals, and let's not forget deltaMAX, I'm So Happy and Theory of Eternity.

It's an edition of X2 AC to die for.

/sarcasm

You'll get tired of it fairly easily, unless you've listed down the songs you will be playing or will be playing DDR X songs (which is the only mix which has the most complete amount of songs among other categories).

@e-amuse: One of the things I'm dreading when we get X3 here is that, once again we'll be getting the baseline songlists and with none of the patches. Won't be soon before will be wishing that X4 would arrive so we can play the songs we weren't able to play.

APPEND:
@shock arrows: Eh, owners of the Xbox DDR games would remember that Konami had their own version of ITG mines, named Poison Arrows, which work like you'd expect it to (hit it, lose life). It probably wasn't included into the proper canon because Konami of Hawaii invented it.

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i think he might be getting the x3 one

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It's not unusual for Konami to tie specific gimmicks to specific mini-series. Shock Arrows are exclusive to the "DDR X" series, in the same way 6-panel Mode was exclusive to the "DDR Solo" series and foot notes were exclusive to the "Beatmania III" series.

Even though future versions of the the arcade hardware, and CS peripherals could easily accomodate those features, they wanted to keep them as features that were specific to those sub-series of games, probably to give each mini-series it's own identity.

It's also a good excuse to make feature-packed CS releases, while still being able to say "The Hottest Party series doesn't have shock arrows. If you want this feature, go and play a DDR X game, in your local game center!"

It's too bad then since DDRX AC in the US is a POS.

If you want to go back further, DDR 1st mix CS (JP) in 1999 had Arrange mode where you got an "Ouch!" judgment and lost life if you stepped where there wasn't a step. Slightly different, but the concept of forcing a player not to step goes right back to the beginning (of course, they feature didn't last until later mixes...much like the "F" grade)

On topic, I'm enjoying X3 whenever I can get a chance to play that doesn't involve standing in extremely long lines. It's generally being well accepted for the moment, but I'm curious to see what happens when the entire default songlist + known unlocks through enjoy level are finished for the hardcore crowd (which is a small minority compared to casual gamers it seems). I don't mind that not every song is a 15+ and I know that making it that way would probably kill off the series in Japan, but I wouldn't have minded a few more 13s or 14s to start.

Of course, don't get me wrong, I get a cheap thrill being the only one in an arcade that has PFCd the extra stage while others are struggling to AA it and then get through the Encore. (Last time I played, many of the players there had no idea there was an encore stage at all)

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Or, rather, some real 14s, I bet. Haunted Rhapsody and Amalgamation are definitely not 14s. It's a little weird that KONAMI seems to have forgotten what a 14 is, but then they got Chronos right so who knows.

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Not every song should be a 15+, but some should. There are no new 15+ songs (2 if you count songs new to Japanese arcades). I'm surprised some kind of event or time-based unlock has not started yet. The dedicated machines have been out for a while.

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There should be more 14+ not 15+.
Maybe 13+. Not only for the sort-of-gap-between-hard-songs-and-boss-songs's sake but then plenty of people want more boss songs because A) there aren't a lot of good ones and B) there aren't a lot of really good ones. Or so it seems. At least in comparison to the bunches of good easy charts.
... but I always want that gap filled. :< I'd imagine once finally crossing over into 15s, there's another odd gap between 15s and 16s and so on if there's a lack of variety...

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There's plenty of good 15's. MAX 300 (and SMMM :hea, PARA Survivor, Xepher , roppongi EVOLVED, KIMONO v PRINCESS... none of which are too intense to pass.

SO DEEP, Healing Vision -Angelic Mix-, CARTOON HEROES, CAPTAIN JACK, Blind Justice, DROP OUT, SAKURA , and Across The Nightmare are pretty good bridges. IMHO, all would make decent 14's.

15 > 16 is a hard step. This is usually pure, raw endurance at it's meanest. In fact, from here on, every difficulty is.

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