DDRMAX2 Dance Dance Revolution (PlayStation 2)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.5 stars Very good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 7.2 (3.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Jeff Gerstmann
• Reviewed on: 09/23/2003
• Released on: 09/23/2003
• Originally published on GameSpot: DDRMAX2 Dance Dance Revolution (PlayStation 2) Review

When the Dance Dance Revolution series got its start back in 1998, few could have predicted that it would go on to garner such a huge and dedicated following. Since then, the Japanese version of the series has been through more than seven different iterations, some of which just added more music to dance to and some of which made real enhancements and additions to the gameplay. While the series has surely inspired many to look into importing Japanese software, DDR has also made a few official forays onto North American consoles. Most of these were merely collections of songs from the various Japanese editions of the game. With the release of DDRMAX2 Dance Dance Revolution, the US is finally getting a collection of songs that contains a few hits from this country rather than relying on the Eurodance and Japanese pop music for which the series is known.

Let's back up for a second. If you're unfamiliar with the long-running series, Dance Dance Revolution is an interactive rhythm-based dancing game you play with a mat controller that is placed on the floor. The concept is basic. Directional arrows scroll up the screen, meeting with a set of arrow silhouettes that rest at the top of the screen. When the scrolling arrow meets the stationary one, that's your cue to step on the corresponding spot on the dance mat. You're scored based on how perfectly you time your steps. When you do well, the game begins to count the number of steps you've correctly executed as a combo. The goal, of course, is to not miss any steps at all. If you miss too many, the game ends. The game can be played by two players simultaneously, or, if you're feeling up to the challenge, the game allows you to use two mats at once for a special one-player mode called double. DDRMAX2 is the second game in the series to include freeze steps, which ask you to hold one of your feet on an arrow for a specified length of time, often while using your other foot (or your hands or elbows, if you're a crazy dancing machine) to hit the other arrows. If you wish, you can play the game with a standard PS2 controller, but playing without a dance mat is pretty much a big waste of time and defeats the purpose of playing the game.

The basic modes found in previous entries in the series are found here. Aside from the regular three-song arcade mode, the game has a workout mode that asks for your weight and then approximates how many calories you're burning by playing. Lesson mode does a good job of teaching the basics of DDR theory. DDRMAX2 also has a nonstop mode that lets you dance a series of songs back-to-back, with only a limited pause between tracks. The game has a collection of preset nonstop courses, but you can also configure your own, if you wish. DDRMAX2 contains an array of unlockable items, the most important of which are new songs. Previous games have been a little mysterious about what you unlock and when you unlock it, but DDRMAX2 lets you know how many points you need to unlock each bonus, and the information screen gives you details on your unlocked items as well as brief biographical tidbits on some of the artists in the game.

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DDRMAX2 Dance Dance Revolution (PlayStation 2): $8.50 - $39.99

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