OH and if this isn't enough for you, why don't you learn how to you can keep up with Carbone who is a master of this thing.
HOW TO MASTER DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION
Ever seen that crazy dance game in arcades? That's Dance Dance Revolution, and with a little practice, you can be a master at it. Here's how to dance your heart out!
BEGINNERS
- Choose your song wisely. Look at the number of "feet" displayed on a scale of 1 to 10 at the bottom of the screen. The higher number of "feet" the harder the song will be.
- Recognize that different songs have various BPM (beats per minute). The higher the BPM, the faster (and thus potentially harder) the song will be. Determine what speed you are the best at. Some songs change BPM during the course of play. All of these factors are displayed on the screen where you select songs.
- Vary your selection. If you pick the same song every time, it usually annoys other players. Only do this if you're brand-new to the game. To really improve once you start playing Light (yellow) and Standard (Pink) difficulty, you should play a larger variety of songs to learn new patterns.
- Use your knees to bounce with the character on the screen, or as the lights flash on the machine. Once you've gotten that down and you've moved to Light, you can begin to actually dance along with the beat before you finalize your song selection.
- Don't return to the middle! This is very important. The tutorial shows the character standing on the middle (metal) platform, but to play any song harder than about 3 feet, your "ready" stance should stand mainly on the Left and Right arrows. The game does NOT penalize you for stepping on an arrow if there isn't one on the screen; with this posture you'll be much more prepared for the arrow patterns.
- Learn to shift your weight as you step. For instance, suppose you are given the steps "Right Right Right." The best way to do this is to keep your weight on your left foot, while tapping the right button three times with your right foot. This avoids the common beginner mistake of shifting one's weight onto the right foot after the first step, causing one to have to hop to hit the right button again, and often throwing one off balance. Similarly, suppose one is given the steps "Right Left Right." This is best done by "walking" on the arrows, shifting your weight to each step as you hit it. This avoids the mistake of keeping your weight on the right arrow the whole time, which would make it easy to tap the left button but would force you to hop to hit the last right button. So if you were given "Right Right Left Left Right" and you started with your weight on your left foot, you should do the following: tap the right arrow, step on the right arrow (shift weight), tap the left arrow, step on the left arrow (shift weight), and step on the right arrow. Most of the beginner songs consist of steps that can be done by some combination of "walking" from arrow to arrow, and tapping an arrow if that step is repeated, and these are the techniques you need to learn before you can do harder songs.
- While other people are using the machine, if there's space for you, try to copy the steps they're doing. This will let you get practice without spending any money (or worrying about failing a song)!
STANDARD
- Use speed multipliers. Hold down the main button when you select your song, and an options screen will be displayed. If you like your songs fast, do 2X. If you like your songs average/fast, do 1.5X. Some players frown on speed mods just as some players frown on using the bar for support. It is important to remember that speed mods and the bar are there for your assistance; try not to use them but don't make yourself suffer.
- Learn the difference between the steps. 1/8 Steps are twice as fast as the "normal" beat of the song. (Say to yourself, "one and two and three and four and...") A common step pattern on Standard are three notes at double speed. (Think, "one and two," "three and four.") You'll definitely need to be off the middle of the pad to get these steps (see above). Try to listen to and use the rhythm of the song, and gradually you'll master it.
- Work on mastering 1/16th notes. These are even faster than 1/8th notes and are usually packed tightly together on the screen. Using Speed Multipliers to spread them out will greatly help your ability to "read" their rhythm. (A straight run of 1/16th notes is counted "ONE-ie and ah TWO-ie and ah THREE-ie and ah FOUR-ie and ah," although you'll rarely see this pattern on Standard. Usually, what appears are groups of three 1/16th notes in a row. Count this pattern as, "ONE-ie and, TWO-ie and," etc.
- Crossovers are steps where you either have to turn your body sideways or cross one leg over the other to successfully "walk" along the steps. For instance, if you must hit "Left Down Right Down Left Down Right Down Left ..." then you should switch feet, using your left foot to hit the left and right arrows and your right foot to hit the down arrow (or vice versa). This will require either crossing your legs or turning your whole body 90 degrees to the right (making the steps analogous to "Down Right Up Right Down Right Up Right Down..."). Crossovers are the first of the more sophisticated stances.
- Galloping is where you well...gallop. It's rather like skipping forward. These are technically 1/16th notes, grouped 2 at a time. (Think, "ONE, ah TWO, ah THREE, ah FOUR." You only have to step on the beat and the "ah", like "RIGHT - - Right LEFT - - Left RIGHT ...") *** You jump in the air and once you land one foot, you land the other on the opposite arrow immediately afterward. TSUGARU APPLE MIX is a great song to master this. (DDR Extreme version only.)
- Sometimes it's hard to see gallops in the middle of a stream of arrows. Using speed mods will make them easier to read, as will changing the noteskin to solo. The home version also has an option to use different colored noteskins, called Type2. These different colors making picking out gallops trivial.
EXPERTS
- Progress to even harder songs. Once you're comfortable with a lot of Standard-difficulty songs, start doing some 6-foot Heavy songs. As you master the new moves that are required, you'll be able to move your way up to 8 footers, to 9, and then 10 eventually.
- On really hard songs, using the bar behind you to balance can help a lot. However, most DDR players frown on this as a crutch. For Beginner, Light, and Standard, this really isn't required.
- For your final song, try a hard song that you might not normally be able to finish. If you keep doing that, you will eventually be able to finish a new song, and increase your repertoire!
- Try to learn some of the most complicated step patterns that you can do while "walking", or always switching feet. The song Rhythm and Police (4th mix) is an excellent one to learn slowly and work up - it contains most of the complicated step patterns that require no more than crossovers. The song Afronova (3rd Mix) is good for teaching more complicated stances, such as having to turn 90 degrees to the left to be able to hit "Left Up Right Left Down Right Left Up Right Left Down Right..."
- Learn to use your heel as well as the ball of your foot. This technique is sometimes called playing flat footed. For instance, have the ball of your right foot on up, and the heel of your right foot on right. Now, assume you have the step pattern Up-Left-Right. Hit up with the ball of your right foot, left with whatever part of your left foot is easiest, and right with the heel of your foot. Since you move your feet a shorter distance, you expend less energy and move more quickly.
Tips
- Challenge yourself. The only way you can get better is if you consistently attempt more challenging songs and levels. Always play songs that are hard (like 1 foot above your normal level) so you can get better at it and eventually jump up to the next foot.
- For extra practice, buy the home version game for Xbox or PS2.
- Don't be afraid to ask other players for advice. Most DDR players are nerdy and love helping out others to show off their amazing prowess at the game!
- When Playing Dance Dance Revolution, use the arrows as a guide, and sometimes let your own intuition tell you when to step on the arrows according to the beat of the music. If you try to just time when the arrows reach the top, you'll never develop an enjoyable beat or be able to master the tricky rhythms that are in difficult Standard and Heavy songs. Instead, lead the arrows as they move up the screen. Where the judgement ("Great", "Perfect", "Miss", etc) appears is typically a good place to look.
- On faster songs, try to lead the arrows, looking about half-way between the bottom of the screen where the arrows originate and the top where the step arrows are. This will teach you to predict based on the BPM of the song rather than on visual cues. This is a key concept.
- If you are uncomfortable playing by yourself, bring a friend.
- 90 degree turns vs double steps: When there are LUR, LDR, RUL, or RDL combos, there are two ways to do them: (1) use the relative foot (i.e. left foot for left pad and right foot for right pad) for the first step and your other for the other two while your weight is on your first foot. This is used when you can move your legs fast enough to get the last two with one leg, but usually isn't used by experts. This turns out as L(L)-U(R)-R(R) (2) Use the opposite foot for the first step (ie left foot to right pad or right foot to left pad) and alternate feet for the other two. This ends up as L(R)-U(L)-R(R).
Warnings
- Do not fall! As stupid as it sounds, I have seen people fall before because they couldn't balance on a machine. It is highly embarassing.
- Make sure the socks you wear for the basic home-version pads won't cause you to slip. Sweat can also complicate the pad's surface. Always use common sense, and be careful not to disturb others around you!
- Just like swimming, don't play DDR for about an hour after you eat or drink, unless it's a light snack or hydrating liquid (see below).
