Dance Dance Revolution Extreme 2

"All the fun of the arcade...without the humilation!"

I am going to start a support group. It's called Klutzy Pseudo-Emo Teenage Guys Who Love DDR. Seriously. I will be President.

This is undoubtedly one of the most successful video game franchises. I can walk up to any gamer I know, and I can guarantee they'll know what I am talking about if I talk DDR. It's easily the best known rhythm/dance game series around.

Oh, and another thing: Sound and Music will factor much more heavily into my score than most games, for obvious reasons. Normally, my review is mostly based on gameplay, replay value, and story.

But let's get on with the review, shall we?

Gameplay: 8/10

For those who don't know, DDR is a game where you have a giant floor pad with 4 arrows on it. On the screen, little arrows come from the bottom, and you wait until they get to the arrows at the top, and then you hit the pad with your foot corresponding to the arrows onscreen. Simple, right?

Absolutely wrong. In higher levels, this game takes insane amounts of coordination, speed, and sometimes a bit of luck. While I'm nowhere near those guys who hang out at the arcade and make your girlfriend jealous with his mad dancing skills, I'm okay. Unfortunately, no one else in my family is. It's definitely not for everyone. It takes hours of practice and basically seeing the arrows every time you close your eyes. The ingame tutorials can help, but in the end, you've only got your own two feet.

Many people criticize the DDR series for being too repetitive from title to title. While I've only really played 2 (this one and the original Extreme), sometimes repetitiveness isn't bad, as it lets newbies easily jump into the series.

Another complaint is the pads. If you don't have a high-quality pad, you won't be playing long. I highly recommend RedOctane's pad. Try to get one with the foam inserts. They'll last a long time, they take a lot of abuse, and they're not bad on the feet.

Graphics: 5/10

A negligible part of the game, but disappointing nonetheless. The background "characters" (who you can select but really do nothing but dance around in the background) are well-animated, but there's very little detail on them, making them look like bad PS1 characters. The backgrounds of the games are colorful and distracting. Not much else can really be said about the graphics, though.

Sound: 7/10

Okay, this game doesn't have a stellar music selection. It's basically all original techno songs or chart-toppers...from about 4 years ago. I really wish there was more rock music in DDR. It doesn't really fit, but what about us rockers? WE NEED LOVIN', TOO!!!

Okay, I digress. Most tunes are catchy and fun to dance to, but it's really not very diverse.

Story: 0/10

There is no story. Live with it.

Replay Value: 8/10

Dance Master mode will keep you occupied for hours. There are tons of songs to buy and various other things, and there are tons of challenges and various other things to keep the player busy. Actually, since there really is no way to beat the game, I guess the entire game is replay value.

So there you have it. This is a solid entry into the DDR series. Nothing more, nothing less. You get what you paid for, I guess...

Rent or buy? If you're not gonna get tons of playtime out of it, neither. Just go over to a buddy's house and play it for a while. If you're going to buy it, do yourself a huge favor and buy a decent pad. It's really not worth it to play with a pad that sucks, and playing with a controller is as boring as it seems.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/26/07