IndyDDR.com

Obviously I'm nowhere near the skill level of the regulars here at IndyDDR, so this thread is mainly to track my progress rather than to "brag".
Most goods/misses/boos are probably my fault, but the pads are in pretty rough shape at my local theatre/arcade. This also means I'm going to be getting more greats than I should, which can mainly attributed to having to step far harder than normal.
.59 - Heavy
http://i.imgur.com/Zz7uYp9.jpg
185 Perfect
82 Great
4 Good
2 Boo
2 Misse

You are moving into Heavy! Good job. You will learn a lot of common step patterns practicing the 6/7/8-footers, so don't worry about getting bad scores. Just worry about building stamina and starting to recognize different types of patterns like crossovers and stuff.

Riot wrote:You are moving into Heavy! Good job. You will learn a lot of common step patterns practicing the 6/7/8-footers, so don't worry about getting bad scores. Just worry about building stamina and starting to recognize different types of patterns like crossovers and stuff.

Step patterns are probably my main issue. My timing is pretty good, but if I get into an unfamiliar step pattern I get thrown off and that's when I start dropping greats.
Speaking of which, I played both Freckles and R3 (the latter was only a challenge because of the double steps.) Do you have any other suggestions?

I played this song today and thought this makes a pretty good practice song. Download this for your stepmania:

http://www.dwiextreme.com/files/dwiextr ... ngndgr.zip

This song has a ton of common little step patterns in small portions, kind of like a sample platter lol. There are a few crossovers, some gallups, some triplets, short eighth note runes, runs into and out of freezes/jumps, etc. It's not overly fast or hard either. If you don't have a real way to PLAY the song on your feet at home, I know it's a little awkward but you can just imagine the pad and play on the ground.

The song should be done without using the same foot twice for runs (except for the few double steps, obviously). Get into the habit of alternating your feet for the eighth note runs, turning your body to the side to do stuff like Left Down Right Down Left Down Right Down, etc. It's a bad habit to double step that stuff, so get into the habit of learning crossovers. I can't think of specific songs in DDR to practice on, but in general, just practice the 7s and 8s. Those will get you better in no time. Maybe people that actively play the official mixes like Ho or Merk can give you specific training songs. Also make sure you're playing with Solo/Note turned on in the options so you can read the arrows easier. Solid red for quarter notes, blue for eighth notes, and either yellow or purple depending on the game for 16th notes help a LOT.

It looks like that arcade cabinet is running some really, really hacked version of Extreme. Is that DDR "MegaMix"?

Merk wrote:It looks like that arcade cabinet is running some really, really hacked version of Extreme. Is that DDR "MegaMix"?

I was thinking the same thing. It's been long enough since I've looked at them that I can't decide whether it's "Extreme Plus" or "Megamix." But yeah, the blue background with no texture is a pretty dead giveaway.

Looks like you're moving up pretty welll, Reflectivity. Keep playing and patterns will probably start to just come naturally. There are very few that I've really practiced specifically. I've had a lot of cases where I'm just playing a song, see a strange pattern come up, get through it, and realize my combo is still going. And I think to myself, "Huh. I have no idea how I just did that...but I guess I did!"

I've also had the experience of having a song or pattern that I couldn't get through in several attempts, stopped playing, came back in a few days, and BAM...I can suddenly magically do it.

I guess what I'm saying is just keep practicing and I think your skill level will improve without it having to become a chore.

Ho wrote:

Merk wrote:It looks like that arcade cabinet is running some really, really hacked version of Extreme. Is that DDR "MegaMix"?

I've also had the experience of having a song or pattern that I couldn't get through in several attempts, stopped playing, came back in a few days, and BAM...I can suddenly magically do it.

Is there a name for this phenomenon? I've had the same happen with other rhythm games (especially IIDX), and even some platforming games as well. Does the human brain sort of background process new skills in off hours?

I believe memory works that way. And I think sleep serves to sort of file things away in your brain and is part of how you learn/store things that have happened during the day. I don't know if there's a name for this though (probably). I just remember reading a paper or seeing something about it once. Apparently I didn't retain it all that well.

I remember when I first started playing I would see arrows all the time when I closed my eyes and went to sleep and stuff lol. I think part of it is just being aware that the pattern in question is coming again and not being taken off guard. It's probably a bit of memory but also preparation and having that ever-so-slight improvement to reaction/processing time.

Ho wrote:

Merk wrote:It looks like that arcade cabinet is running some really, really hacked version of Extreme. Is that DDR "MegaMix"?

I was thinking the same thing. It's been long enough since I've looked at them that I can't decide whether it's "Extreme Plus" or "Megamix." But yeah, the blue background with no texture is a pretty dead giveaway.

Looks like you're moving up pretty welll, Reflectivity. Keep playing and patterns will probably start to just come naturally. There are very few that I've really practiced specifically. I've had a lot of cases where I'm just playing a song, see a strange pattern come up, get through it, and realize my combo is still going. And I think to myself, "Huh. I have no idea how I just did that...but I guess I did!"

I've also had the experience of having a song or pattern that I couldn't get through in several attempts, stopped playing, came back in a few days, and BAM...I can suddenly magically do it.

I guess what I'm saying is just keep practicing and I think your skill level will improve without it having to become a chore.

I can confirm it's MegaMix. Unfortunately, it's the only arcade machine in town, so it's also the only one I can play. Gameplay isn't bad (it'd be better if somebody fixed the pads), but the graphics are really, really horrible. It's pretty expensive too, coming in at $1.00 for 3 songs.

I will keep playing, though. As long as I can afford it.

Reflectivity wrote:I can confirm it's MegaMix. Unfortunately, it's the only arcade machine in town, so it's also the only one I can play. Gameplay isn't bad (it'd be better if somebody fixed the pads), but the graphics are really, really horrible. It's pretty expensive too, coming in at $1.00 for 3 songs.

I'd say this is pretty much the going rate, these days, and has been for quite some time. It was typically 75c or $1 for 3 songs when I started playing over 10 years ago, and we've had some inflation since then. A few places were charging 50c for 3 songs back then, but they were typically "DDR friendly" venues (Westside comes to mind) that were really just being nice. A lot of major chains are charging $1.50 to $2.00 for 3 songs for DDR/PIU these days, especially newer mixes, at nominal prices (cheaper if you buy bulk gameplay deals).

I really liked the extra stage. Being financially rewarded for good play is pretty cool.

I was spoiled by cheap Fort Wayne DDR. I want to say that just about every arcade was 3 songs for $0.50 or less depending on the token deals. A little $10 bill could easily last me two or more weekly trips.

I can now afford to go to the theatre biweekly. Hooray!
Abyss - Heavy
http://i.imgur.com/6qD8ykr.jpg
222 Perfect
83 Great
1 Good
2 Boo
1 Miss

Biweekly...that's every other week?

Nice score. It looks like you're moving right along. Keep it up!