Online, the game takes on the standard option set you'd expect from an Xbox Live game. It lets you choose a quick match, it lets you specify settings for an optimatch, or it lets you create your own game for other dancers to join. The game has a pretty strong rankings area, and it gives you the option of uploading your best offline scores to the scoreboard and lets you take a look at how you stack up against the best Xbox dancers.
Graphically, DDR has never really been much to look at. Each game has featured polygonal dancers and, more recently, video clips that play while you dance. Considering how focused players must remain on the arrows, the backgrounds are more for onlookers. So, those of you who like to watch will be pleased to know that DDR Ultramix is the best-looking version of the game to date. That's not to say that the game is the best-looking Xbox game in the world or anything, but it's an improvement over previous entries in the series. The polygonal dancers have been redesigned, and their models and motion-captured dance steps have never looked better. The game only contains a few songs with music videos, but the video quality in them is clean and clear.
The game also contains new announcers. The announcers pipe up often during gameplay and talk you through the game's menus. Additionally, they keep you informed of your combo strings and let you know when you're dancing poorly. The voices are new, but they fit the game just fine and aren't annoying in the least. The game also has Dolby Digital 5.1 support, so you'll hear some sound coming out of your rear speakers if you have a compatible sound setup. If you like, the game has a few equalizer and reverb effects options that will make more use of the surround sound so that you can, for example, make the music echo like it's coming from different room sizes.
It's a difficult game to figure out, but keep practicing, and you'll get the hang of it in no time.
While Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix isn't quite as friendly to new players as it could have been, the new features and options are ones that should be pretty exciting to anyone familiar with the series. Song downloads and online play open up a whole new world of enhancement and competition that none of the previous console releases have contained. So whether you've been playing DDR for four years or you're just now thinking about picking it up, you'll find DDR Ultramix to be a great addition to the Xbox library.
What You'll Pay
- See All Prices
- Set Price Alert
- Price History
