Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix

Added March 15th, 2004 by Sallizar

Introduction:

My first introduction to the world of Dance Dance Revolution was at a friend’s house on his PlayStation. I was instantly mesmorized by the scrolling arrows and the furious display of footwork I was witnessing. So, with bated breath I stepped on a dance pad for the first time. I realized something that day. I have no innate rhythm. None. At the same time, I had an overwhelming desire to get good at this insane game. It challenged me in a way no other game has. I can twiddle my thumbs around and do all sorts of cool stuff on a console controller, but now I knew I had to get my feet in the game. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a DDR game for the Xbox at the time, so my quest for dancing greatness would have to be put on hold. A few months later, Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix hit stores. A few hours and sixty dollars later, with my shiny new dance pad standing by, I dropped the disc in the drive and started a brand new addiction.

Gameplay:

If you’ve never seen or heard of Dance Dance Revolution, then I really hope they find that deserted island you’re on soon. DDR takes the simple premise of dancing and attempts to make a game of it. At the top of the screen are outlines of left, right, up and down arrows. When the music starts solid arrows scroll up the screen toward the outlines. The player stands on a pad with the appropriate arrow buttons at his feet. The player’s goal is to step on the correct arrow button as the scrolling arrows pass through the outlines. The closer one comes to matching the solid arrow to the outline, the better the score will be. The timing of the arrows passing through the outline follows the beat of the song which gives players an audio cue to go along with the visual cue created by the arrow itself. Consistently stepping on the correct arrows in a row will score combos for dancers. The more steps you combo, the better your score will be.

The fairly simplistic game play is augmented by many different modes. Standard arcade mode lets up to two people play or lets one person play across two dance pads. Battle mode lets you hook up four pads to the Xbox and really shake the floor. For the top-tier DDR players, Ultramix presents you with Challenge mode. Challenge mode features various, incredibly difficult, challenges for those willing to try. We’ve all heard that DDR is the gamer’s workout and Ultramix provides us with a calorie counting workout mode. Does it work? I don’t know, let me put down this pizza and soft drink and go find out. And last, but most importantly for the first time ever in DDR, there is Xbox Live mode in which Ultramix takes you online for a foot stomping duel against other gamers.

Graphics:

So we have a bunch of arrows scrolling up the screen. How can you possibly make that ground breaking graphically? I doubt you can, but Konami takes a decent jab at it. Every song has some sort of animated background movie that ranges from full motion video of real life dancers to exotic CGI wonderlands. I occasionally have a hard time following the arrows on some of the more manic background animations, but luckily, Konami gives you the option to disable or dim the images, which helps a bunch. And last, but not least, gamers are presented with animated, motion captured dancers that get down on the screen while you play. Unfortunately, they run through the same animation loop every time you play and do not dance in relation to the music at all. Yet another “feature” you’ll turn off after a few songs.

Audio:

The first thing I have to say about the sound is “Thank you, Konami.” Thank you for giving me the option to turn off the announcer voices. Without this option I would have scored the audio section of DDR Ultramix a good bit lower. Other than the pitiful announcer voices the audio is superb in this version of DDR. The range of musical styles is fairly broad, though there is a good bit of sugary Japanese pop and lot of techno. With a little over forty-five songs there’s bound to be something for everyone.

Controls:

You can play DDR Ultramix with the controller, but for the sake of America’s rampant obesity problem, this reviewer recommends playing it the “real” way. Controlling DDR with your feet seems simple enough when you watch someone else, but it’s an entirely different story when you try it for yourself. DDR has a relatively steep learning curve the first few times you try it, but keep practicing and you’ll be racking up combos like a master in no time.

Dance pad controls:
A – Select
B – Cancel
Up – Up
Down – Down
Left – Left
Right – Right

Replay:

Ok, I’m getting out my calculator. DDR Ultramix comes with 45+ songs. Each has three different difficulties plus the option to play all three difficulties with two pads instead of just one. That’s over two hundred and seventy possible dance sequences to master! Online play with Xbox Live and the option to hook up four pads directly to your Xbox gives you the option to compete with your friends and other DDR maniacs all over the place. Then there’s the song packs. Gamers can go online and download new songs with their very own new dance sequences for a one time $5 fee. Just when you thought you had done it all, DDR Ultramix let’s you design your very own sequences of steps for any of the songs in Edit mode.

Summary:

If you find yourself tapping your toe to the radio or want a fun way to break a sweat than Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix is for you. Konami takes the simplest thing in the world, pressing a button at the right time, and throws you for a loop by making you use your feet. The best advice I have for someone interested in trying Ultramix as their introduction to DDR is to not get discouraged. DDR is very difficult at first, but as you learn the various patterns and get used to moving your feet instead of your thumbs, you’ll get a wonderful feeling of satisfaction. So, get some friend’s together and get to dancing!