DDR Tutorial
DDR players goal is: "go toward the full combo". You are awarded points each time you step on the arrow with good rhythm. There's a wide margin for just hitting the step and a narrow margin for hitting the step PERFECTLY. Your score is compounded as you step to the music without missing any arrows ("combo"= combined steps).
DDR Maniacs: "fascinate audiences with their great moves". Each song has three difficulties and Maniac is the most challenging. (although later Oni Mode steps are added which are even tougher than Maniac in some cases...) Either way, Maniac players are so adept at reading arrows and moving to the music that they play only on the most difficult mode. When Maniacs compete, they rarely miss any steps at all so the winner in determined by how many Perfect Steps. (meaning that even just one or two Great steps instead of Perfects can cost them the match). Maniacs as defined by 10K Commotion are players who get no less than A on any song, any difficulty and are able to compete under any Modifiers.
DDR Tricksters: "show us what they've got". In real life, most people fall into this catagory, playing on Standard or Trick Mode. But in competitions like 10K Commotion the people who are registered as Tricksters usually play Maniac/Heavy songs too. The major differences that separate them from the Maniac Division are that they can't compete with Modifiers (except maybe speed under 2x), or they can't read arrows above 260bpm, or they don't have the stamina to clear any Boss Stages.
Here
are a few terms mentioned in 10K Commotion. There are no doubt hundreds
more, but for more info, including song lists, step charts and a more
extensive DDR Glossary, check out http://ddrfreak.com.
Stepping on the arrows in time with the music yields one of these reponses
from the machine in accordance with your accuracy: (in order)
Perfect
Great
Good
Boo
Miss
Okay: is a Freeze arrow held properly. It's just "okay"
because that doesn't reference if you hit the arrow at the right time,
simply that you held it without breaking (as opposed to NG).
Marvelous: is a step hit with absolute precision-- better
than Perfect but only awarded in certain modes.
Foot Rating: How difficult a song is depends on many
factors. The foot rating gives an indication of how tough a song is before
you start it, but there are five basic elements people discuss in the
manga:
Stream: How much time you spend moving. The more stream
there is, the less time for catching your breath.
Voltage: The maximum intensity of the steps in a song.
Sometimes a song starts out tame and then gets insane... This rating lets
you know.
Chaos: Just like it sounds, sometimes songs make you
step to the beat, other times you step to the lyrics, the bass... or to
everything or nothing!
Air: Also like it sounds, this rating tells you how much
you can expect to jump. The total number of jumps determines how much
air you'll get during a song.
Freeze: Sometimes you have to hold still. Managing your
weight is essential to handling high freeze meters. If you can't stay
still on the stage, then your freeze becomes an NG for
"No Good"
Modifer: they're used to alter the difficulty of a song.
There are mods which alter the speed and direction of the arrows as well
as the pattern of the steps and the way the arrows look on the screen.
Mods can make a song easier or harder depending on how familiar you are
with them.
Modifiers on the DDR 10K Commotion Mix are:
Speed= changes the speed at which the arrows scroll:
0.25x - 8x
Boost= start slow and speed up,
Brake= start normal and slow to almost stop,
Expand= flux in the middle
Hidden= appear normal then disappear before the mark,
Sudden= arrows do not appear until just before the mark,
Blink= arrows disappear and reappear
Dark= target arrows are not visible
(Stealth is NOT a selectable modifier at the 10K Commotion)
Mirror= step patterns played the exact opposite of normal
Left=
normal step pattern turned to the left (eg. UP becomes LEFT, LEFT becomes
DOWN)
Right= step pattern turned to the right
Shuffle= randomly chosen between 5 different patterns
Special Shuffle= arrows are randomly chosen within any
of the 5 randomly chosen patterns
Reverse= arrows scroll from the top down
Flat= all arrows skins are the quarter note color, regardless
of rhythm
Vivid= all arrow skins are the half note color
Solo= arrows skins are the same as DDR Solo Mix (This
mod is only available if both players agree)
Catas: When the game first came out, the most difficult
song anyone could play was 9 feet. So those songs were called Catastrophic,
although now there are so many they can't all be listed here. Players
call them catas for short and often take pride in how many they can master.
Boss Stage: A song that combines all of the most difficult
elements into a routine that not everyone can clear. Some 9 foot songs
are considered intensely hard but it's generally excepted that boss stages
are songs with 10 feet. Flashing 10 Feet is an Extreme Boss... or so it
seems. Max300, Maxx Unlimited, Legend of Max are the most famous boss
stages.
Extra Stage: On Heavy/Maniac Mode, if you pass your whole
game and score a AA on the last stage, then you get an Extra Stage. The
Extra Stage is usually a Boss Stage as well (except with DDR 8th Mix,
which allows you to choose any song you want for Extra Stage)-- the stipulations
are, 1.5x Reverse. If you play the song with those mods and get another
AA then you get an Extra Extra Stage or Encore
Stage but that's a LOT more rare.
Pump It Up: A comparable dance game, with a k-pop playlist,
different from DDR because it has 5 arrows instead of 4 and can involve
stomping 3 at one time.
In The Groove: A DDR emulator with a less j-tech playlist
that incorporates new obstacles. Popularly played with Stepmania or at
home.
