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[Baron Aloha]

I bought a DDR Extreme bundle over the weekend figuring it would be nice to try something different. I actually already owned DDR Max 1&2 (bought them for $5 each) but I never played them because I didn't have a mat. So now I'm trying to play DDR. "Trying" being the operative word.

I don't know how people do it. I was already amazed by some of the people at the arcades but now after playing it myself and seeing how much I suck at it I am even more amazed.

I played it once and boy do I suck at it.

Up and Down at the same time? Yeah...not happening.

Left, then Down, the Right in succession? How am I supposed to do that?

How long does it take to get good at this game?

 

[Suikoguy]

The songs that look really complicated are typically in patterns, once you figured out the pieces, you will then learn to use them in succession then it will all sorta flow together. Of course you need to learn how to read the puzzel pices on the screen. Eventually you won't be looking at each invidual step, rather sets of them.

 

[fugimax]

Up and Down at the same time? Yeah...not happening.

Left, then Down, the Right in succession? How am I supposed to do that?

How long does it take to get good at this game?

1. Jump to them. Jump up a bit and spin your lower-body 90 degrees.

2. Left/Down with left-foot. Right with right-foot. Remember, a foot doesn't have to be on center when it's nto doing anything. Keep the right foot over there, then once you do down/left, right is as easy as lifting your right foot and putting it back down.

3. Depends on what you mean by "good." Give yourself a week or two, and you'll be good enough to at least not be totally embarassed playing in front of someone else. (Unless you embarassed by dancing, of course.)

 

[demi]

I like to dance naked and watch my dong flop around.

 

[Prospero]

JC10001: the most important thing for beginners to know that isn't immediately obvious is that you don't have to keep your feet in the middle of the pad when you're not pressing a button. The game awards points for pressing a button at the proper time, but doesn't deduct points when you have your foot on another button that the game isn't calling for. Once you get that, moves that seem complex suddenly become dead simple.

 

[Belfast]

1) Yeah, as already said, for hitting two arrows at once, jump to them.

2) Keep both the arrows AND song in mind. This seems like a no-brainer, but you'd be surprised how many people only pay attention to one or the other. Once you know the flow of the song, knowing the flow of the arrows becomes a lot easier, since you know when certain patterns are likely to come up and the steps will go along with the beat. And, of course, most songs use the bass/backbeat to determine the flow of the steps. Sometimes its hard to hear in a melodic song where there are vocals and all kinds of other noise, but if you can pick up on the bass, in more cases than not, it will help you.

3) Also as said above, do not be afraid of leaving your foot on an arrow. The KEY thing beginners need to learn is to *flow* and that means NOT sitting in the center of the four arrows or returning to that position after every step. The game doesn't penalize you for having your foot on an arrow when there is empty space on the screen, it only penalizes you for *missing* an arrow. Learning to flow is how you learn to do the combinations, because you aren't wasting time returning to the center. Instead, you're moving your feet immediately to where they need to be. (i.e. > < v combo). Start off with your right foot on the right arrow, then hit the left arrow with your left foot, then slide your right foot from the right arrow to the down arrow and hit it. Once you get the pacing right, its that simple.

4) Reading the arrows. It seems impossible now to read the faster/more complex songs, but with practice, it will come to you. Even if the arrows don't physically slow down, they will looks slower to you with practice, because you'll be reading faster. Hell, after they added speed mods I would NEVER play without using 1.5x because that was comfortable for me.

5) I'm glad you decided to give the game a shot. A lot of people still have an unfair view of it. I can't blame them for hating the community that has sprung up around DDR. Most of them are emo/goth/angsty/punkass little bitches that cause nothing but drama. I was part of that community for a few years, but those of us who were there from the beginning were getting older and pissed off at the young posers trying to act like they were good. I could go on and on, but I won't. The game, despite the community, is still golden though. Its a lot of fun and it IS good exercise.

Anyway, if you have any more questions, post em.

 

[ToxicAdam]

That was the key. Keep your feet out of the middle. Once you get better, you will be able to plan out steps ahead of time.


I pretty much stopped playing once I tried some of the more difficult songs and they had all these 1/16th steps (a series of stutter steps). It was fucking insanely impossible.

 

[Luckett_X]

I entered this thread expecting the terror/elation of a Zelda DDR having been suddenly announced.

Ever since that japanese Zelda dance commerical, i have thirsted for a Zelda Musical.

I shall continue to wait.

 

[WrathOfOtaibah]

Ah DDR. I had Konamix for PlayStation.

I don't have any tips for you because its one of those games you need to play to get the hang of. It took me a week to pass a song and a month to start doing decently in it. Baby steps.

Enjoy the game. I'd like to play DDR again someday but its popularity here in the US is flatlined, just like in Japan. I suppose I can find a MAX, MAX 2, or Extreme machine if I scour the metropolitan area for it.

 

[Ferny84]

I like to dance naked and watch my dong flop around.

<lights up cigarette>

 

[GamerShu]

cant wait for Mario DDR!!

 

[Martini]

I like to dance naked and watch my dong flop around.

hahaha :lol
ahem.

 

[impirius]

Left, then Down, the Right in succession? How am I supposed to do that?

You'll see a lot of "left-down-right-down-left" steps in DDR, so here's an easy strategy:

Press left with your left foot, then turn your body to the right and press down with your right foot. With your body turned, it's then easy to press right with your left foot. In other words, your right foot stays on the down pad, and your left foot alternates between the left and right pads. You end up doing a little 'running' motion as you hit the notes.

One of the keys to the game is to alternate feet. When you have a bunch of notes in a row, there's a good chance that switching between your left and right feet for each note is the best way to go. It's not always the case, and it can get messy if you start on the wrong foot, but try trusting the steps and see what happens. There's always practice mode, too, so you can try out different ways of attacking songs at half-speed and see what works best for you.

(And once you get good enough that you're playing songs where the arrows seem all bunched together, change the speed modifier to 1.5x like Belfast mentioned. You won't get as much warning for the arrows, but they'll be spread out and easier to read.)

Good luck!

 

[Baron Aloha]

Thanks for all of the good advice guys!

 

[Truelize]

I like to dance naked and watch my dong flop around.

ROTF:lol


I've been thinking about picking up a couple of dance pads and a game for the Xbox but I'm not really sure where to start or what game to get. Anything to help me get off my butt every once in awhile would be good though.

 

[dog$]

Oh I didn't notice that lil bit:

In any Konami music game it is imperative to at least use the speed modifiers; I've heard that among DDR fans there's some BS/debate about it but such argument doesn't exist for all the other series. In IIDX, normal un-sped sheet music just looks like a wall of notes that's slowly falling for your doom, and feels like it's damned impossible to accurately time. Use whatever system modifiers help you play.

 

[Tain]

How long does it take to get good at this game?

Took me about a month or two to get to 7 and 8 footers.

I've heard that among DDR fans there's some BS/debate about it but such argument doesn't exist for all the other series.

I still don't get this. People seem to get especially touchy over Bag.

Yeah, don't be afraid to use speed mods.

 

[Mejilan]

I started DDRing for the first time about 2 weeks ago, and boy did I suck ass too. But now, I'm starting to get much more competent. I'm pulling off As and A*s, and even an AA*s on all of the songs I've unlocked so far (Beginner level) and am almost ready to move on up to Light difficulty.

Great stuff. Playing Extreme now. I guess I'll hit up Max and Max 2 once I get profficient.

 

[Asskicker064]

I still don't get this. People seem to get especially touchy over Bag.

It's because Bag is a very easy song when you put it on 3x. It's only a 10 because it's so damn slow. I love my speed mods, though. I 2x 90% of the songs.

 

[Mikazuki]

I don't know how people do it. I was already amazed by some of the people at the arcades but now after playing it myself and seeing how much I suck at it I am even more amazed.

I played it once and boy do I suck at it.

Up and Down at the same time? Yeah...not happening.

Left, then Down, the Right in succession? How am I supposed to do that?

How long does it take to get good at this game?

Remember learning how to use a word processor or a keyboard? You'd figure out a letter you need to type, hover your finger over the keyboard for several seconds, then awkwardly press a key. Nowadays you're much better, right? That's exactly how DDR works...

 

[antipode]

I'll second those who say it just takes practice (and learning not to return to center in the beginning.) I started DDRMax2 a month ago, and it took me maybe 10 hours before I was able to get past Light mode and survive some Standard mode songs. It's really neat to realize your coordination is improving and you're ready to take on some Heavy songs.

I'm excited about Mario (even though I'm disappointed at the difficulty) - but man am I psyched that the Streets of Rage 2 composer (Yuzo Koshiro) is gonna be featured in Extreme 2.

 

[Mejilan]

Yuzo Koshiro is doing some songs in Extreme 2? Oh boy. That's gonna be fucking HOT.

 

[Eric P]

i read the title as Lap Dance Revolution and thought "finally a game even i can excell at"