Dance Dance Revolution (video game)

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Dance Dance Revolution
Cover art for the first console port of DDR as part of Konami's Dance Simulation Games.
Developer(s)	Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, Konami of America, Konami of Europe GmbH
Publisher(s)	Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, Konami of America, Konami of Europe GmbH
Distributor(s)	Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, Konami of America, Konami of Europe GmbH
License	Proprietary
Series	Dance Dance Revolution & Bemani
Engine	Custom
Aspect ratio	NTSC-J, NTSC & PAL, horizontal
Platform(s)	Arcade & Sony PlayStation
Release date	Arcade: JP November 21, 1998 Asia March 1999 U/C March 1999 EU March 1999 EU September 1999 (re-release) PlayStation: JP April 10, 1999
Genre(s)	Music & Exercise
Mode(s)	Single-player & Multiplayer
Rating(s)	Arcade: AAMA: Suitable for All Ages PlayStation: CERO: A
Media	CD (1)
Input methods	Dance pad (feet) & Gamepad (hands)
Cabinet	Custom
Arcade system	Bemani System 573 Analog
CPU	R3000A 32 bit RISC processor
Sound	PlayStation SPU
Display	29" CRT (Raster, 256x224 & 740x480)

Dance Dance Revolution, abbreviated DDR, was release on November 21, 1998 by Konami to the Japanese video arcade audience. DDR is a unique music video game involving dance and rhythm that defined the genre. The game involves timing and balance by having players use their feet instead of their hands like typical video games. In March the following year the game was released to the Asian and American arcade audiences. It was also released to the European arcade audience under the name Dancing Stage. Players and game critics were caught off-guard by the game's addictive qualities winning the new franchise many merits to its design.

On April 10, 1999 Dance Dance Revolution was released on the Japanese PlayStation, adding new music and gameplay elements. A console release was not made for any other region. Despite the global popularity of DDR the series remained obscure outside of Japan and few additional arcade releases of DDR were made elsewhere until the multi-regional release of Dance Dance Revolution SuperNova in 2006.

[edit] Gameplay

See also: Gameplay of Dance Dance Revolution

The general premise of Dance Dance Revolution is to move one's feet to a set pattern. One player can play using one dance pad (Single mode), two players can play using one dance pad each (Versus mode), or one player can play using both dance pads (Doubles mode).

Players must step to the beat, matching their beat to the arrows presented to them on screen by stepping on arrows on a dance stage. A judgment is displayed for each step, depending on the player's timing; Perfect!!, Great!, Good, Boo or Miss.... An on-screen life meter, known as the Dance Gauge, begins halfway full at the start of each song. Perfect and Great steps slowly fill the Gauge, while Boo and Miss steps quickly deplete it. Good steps have no effect either way. If players accumulates too many Boos or Misses, and the Dance Gauge becomes empty, the song fails and the game ends.

Players may play anywhere from one to five songs, depending on how many the arcade operator sets the machine to play each game. At the end of each song, players see their accumulated points, bonus points, and how many of each kind of step they made. They also get a letter grade that is dependent on the judgments received during play, ranging from SS, all steps Perfect, to E, failure, which is only seen in Versus mode when the other player passes. If players manage to pass their songs a cumulative results screen is given, totaling the stats from all played stages.

[edit] Interface & graphics

The song selection interface of Dance Dance Revolution is a jukebox-like menu of CDs that represent the available songs. On this screen, various step codes can be entered on the dance stage to modify the arrangement and appearance of arrows during gameplay. On the arcade version of Dance Dance Revolution step codes must be entered to switch between difficulty levels.

During gameplay, 3D dancing characters appear in the background of each song. Different characters can be selected at the main title screen by standing on either the left or right arrow panels while pressing the select button.

[edit] Releases

The test version, known as the touring edition, of Dance Dance Revolution had three songs that were not included in the final release. Money by The Ragga Twins, Jump by Bus Stop, and Boys by Smile.dk. Boys was later included in Dance Dance Revolution 2ndMix. The final version included Internet Ranking which allows players to compare their scores online.

[edit] Home version

The home version of Dance Dance Revolution was released in Japan on April 10, 1999, for the Sony PlayStation. It features fifteen songs. Eleven from the arcade version, and four from the arcade version of 2ndMix. The game has a unique Arrange Mode which penalizes players for stepping when not told to. Players receive an Ouch! judgment, draining even more from the Dance Gauge than a Miss.

[edit] Songs

The music in Dance Dance Revolution consists of eight songs licensed from the Dancemania record label, and three Konami Originals. The three additional songs in the touring edition are also from Dancemania.

[edit] Notable songs

• Paranoia: A Konami Original produced by Naoki Maeda. The listed artist is 180, a pseudonym which represents the approximate Beats per minute of the song. Paranoia is often considered the most difficult song in Dance Dance Revolution, and many remixes have appeared in subsequent DDR games.
• Trip Machine: Another Naoki production, with step patterns comparable in difficulty to Paranoia. The song has spawned several remixes, four of which were compiled along with the original in the Dance Dance Revolution Extreme Challenge course; Trip Five.
• Have You Never Been Mellow: A remix of Olivia Newton-John's original song. It is one of the easiest songs in Dance Dance Revolution. A remixed of this song, Have You Never Been Mellow (MM Groovin' Mix), was later seen in Dance Dance Revolution 4thMix.

[edit] External links

• Dance Dance Revolution official website (Japanese)
• Dancemania (Japanese)
• DDRFreak
• DDRers' Stompin' Ground (Japanese)

[edit] References

This article does not cite any references or sources. (January 2008) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.