For PS2 Made by Konami ESRB rating E For anyone who likes Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) this is a pretty good game. Not only does it have the classic Game Mode, it also has a couple party games and a mission mode you can unlock (which is quite challenging). This is the first DDR game to utilize the Eye Toy USB camera so you can see yourself dancing if you want to. There are also a couple party games exclusively designed for the Eye Toy.

How do I play?

If you are new to DDR there are some helpful modes available in this game. Lesson Mode will teach you the basics and some helpful techniques. Training Mode will help you on a particular song or parts of a song. The basic game play is still the same. You have arrows coming up on the screen and you must press the dance pad arrow when the arrow lines up with the one on top. You are rated on your timing: Marvelous (in challenge mode), Perfect, Great, Good, Almost, and Boo. There is a life bar and if that depletes, you fail the song. There?s an announcer to encourage you or taunt you if you fail. Most songs have multiple difficulty levels you can choose from: Beginner, Light, Standard, Heavy, and Challenge.

What are the different Game Modes?

Game mode: In this mode you can play solo using one or two pads (double), two player, or you can do a versus mode where you can play against the computer and complete the song under certain conditions to win. Also in Game Mode you can play Non-Stop Mode where you have one health meter and play through four songs at a time with no breaks in between. Challenge Mode is similar in that it plays four songs non-stop but you are only allowed to make four mistakes per song! Mission Mode is quite challenging. In mission mode you must complete missions in order to unlock new ones. Each mission will have a random objective that you must perform in order to pass. Some of the objectives are to finish a song with less than 10% health, or not to press any arrows simultaneously (Hard!). The songs get more difficult as you progress. The screen will be inverted or the arrows will disappear a few seconds before they touch. The party games are cute. I don?t have an Eye Toy so I can?t comment on those games. Hyper Dash is a running game where you have to avoid pitfalls along the way. Feeding Time is a cute one where each arrow represents a food type and you have to press the correct arrow to throw food at the animal close by. If you select the wrong type it will just bounce off their head and you won?t progress until you give the right food. DDR is a great way to lose weight. If you enter your weight in the workout mode it will tell you how many calories you just burned after finishing a song. You can customize songs and steps using the Edit Mode. The defaults are fine for me.

Unlockables

This game has a generous helping of songs and many of them are from previous versions of DDR so they will sound familiar to veteran players. There are over sixty-five songs, many of which you have to unlock. The Mission Mode is available after playing for a bit. The game starts off with two dancers Rhythm and Blues but you will add to that collection in time. You have to unlock the E, AA, and AAA scores after your earn them.

Songs

Most of the songs in DDR are dance/techno. There are some re-made flash backs like YMCA, Bizarre Love Triangle, Reflex and the Never Ending Story theme. Some popular artists include Village People, Duran Duran, Petshop Boys, Darude etc. For those like me with many DDR games there are lots of recycled songs but there?s enough new ones to make things interesting.

Graphics

DDR doesn?t really require bleeding edge graphics but the 3D dance characters and animated movies in the backgrounds look nice. It?s hard going back to the original Dance Dance Revolution or Konamix game after playing this.

Sound

This game is all about music and moving your feet. The music is great provided you like dance music, and the announcer is not annoying. No complaints here.

Controls

The menu system is easy to navigate and the dance controls are not too bad once you?re used to them.

Appropriateness

Even though this game is rated E I find a few things annoying. Like a Virgin is one of the songs you can dance to if you choose. There are other love songs of sorts but that song for sure is the most explicit (-3.5). Nothing else comes close. Many of the female dancers wear daisy duke style shorts and I fail to see how they could be comfortable, especially for dancing. They often have bikini or tight tops too (-1.5). My last complaint is that when you fail a song one comment the announcer makes uses the Lord?s name in vain (-5).

Conclusion

DDR Extreme is a worthy addition to any DDR library. The Eye Toy support, Mission and Party Modes are welcome additions. The plethora of unlockables is nice too. The songs collection is pretty good but I don?t think Like a Virgin fits in an E rated game.

Final Ratings

Game Play 19/20 Graphics 8/10 Sound 10/10 Controls 5/5 Stability 5/5 Game Score 47/50 Appropriateness 40/50

Final Score 87%

{pgomakase}