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[Tabs]

I was ordering King of Colosseum II and couldn't pass up a new Beatmania game considering I'm still playing 3rd Style and have only briefly played 4th and 5th. So, my impulse buy happened before I could do any reasearch on modes, songs, and the like. Anyone know if I made a good choice just getting the newest game?

I think I'm going to take apart my official controller and make a new one with new Happ buttons. Seems doable. The only part that worries me is transposing the turntable, but if I leave it in tact and just remount it, I'm assuming it'll be fine.

I was just lurking in the Taiko/Konga drum thread and there was a little discussion on Pop'n Music. Has anyone played this, and would a veteran of Beatmania/Frequency/Amplitude like it? Is it still readily available at import shops? Thanks in advance.

 

[sprsk]

popn 9 and iidx 7 both rule your face.

 

[Belfast]

Pop'N Music >>>>>>>>>>>>>> IIDX, and I like IIDX, too. Its got way more personality, though, and its just as hard, if not harder (its debatable, but a lot of the high-end stuff in Pop'N is pretty insane). Just don't let the "look" of the game deter you as its not any indication of the difficulty.

Even if you don't like it at first, the theme will grow on you.

Like IIDX, having a controller is pretty much the only way to really enjoy it. So if you decide to get it, make sure you get a controller, too (probably the non-arcade style, since ASC Pop'N controllers are nigh impossible to get. Although you could look into some of the fan-made options which are supposedly pretty good).

 

[Tabs]

Wow, I don't know how that slipped under my radar then. I must've just seen the cartoony graphics and bubbly controller and passed it off a long time ago. That will be my very next import I do believe. Now I gotta do a little research on controllers, cause that can make or break these games. Knock off Beatmania controllers would've detered me from the whole series. Luckily I got in on one of the first runs of the official 7-key.

 

[Asskicker064]

If you're going to get a IIDX game, might as well wait until November to pick up 8th style.

 

[Belfast]

There's only 2 official controllers for Pop"N thankfully. The mini-controller which is a cheaper, down-sized version of the Pop'N controller (its about the same size as an official IIDX controller) and the Arcade-style ones which are exact arcade replicas and are quite big, but provide the same experience as an arcade machine. However, they are way too expensive and are made in very limited runs only when there's sufficient demand.

Go over to the Bemanistyle.com forums and they should have links there to the Pop'N Music fan-made controllers (RANSAI seems to be the most popular). They're actually pretty high-quality. In fact, some people have said they're better than the official ones. The only reason why they're made though is DUE to the lack of availability of official arcade-style controllers. But the people who make them definitely put a lot of effort into it.

I think Pop'N Music went under *a lot* of people's radars when it first started. IIDX and DDR were still at the height of their popularity. Now, Pop'N Music is the premiere Bemani game in Japanese arcades. IIDX, Guitar Freaks/Drummania still have decent followings, but PNM has superceeded everything else in popularity.

It probably has the best variety of music, it can get VERY hard, has plenty of songs, options, modes, etc. Its honestly a very good deal.

 

[Tabs]

If you're going to get a IIDX game, might as well wait until November to pick up 8th style.

Too late, impluse buy has already been completed, 7th will have to tide me over (3rd did for this long )

And I took a look at Ransai's controllers. Quite nice, but I don't know if I feel like throwing $250 + $25 shipping out there, although I did pay that almost that much for Steel Battalion . I don't think I'd even want to try the little controller after seeing some arcade vids, wouldn't be right. There just doesn't look to be enough of a difference in the two series to warrant that big of a purchase.

 

[dog$]

Beatmania IIDX Doubles + Auto scratch - 1 white key = Popn Music

It's from this that I say Popn Music is Beatmania IIDX For Pussies.

Popn Music was at first marketed as a more accessible and abstracted version of Beatmania, as reflected by the interface. When considering this and the fact that Beatmania came before Popn, I have no respect for the Popn series. As far as I'm concerned, there's nothing Popn does that Beatmania hasn't done better.