DDR fans delight in 360 release

Konami's first home release of their popular dancing simulation game Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) was released for the Playstation and contained a mere 30 songs or so. Over the years, the console technology improved and Konami was able to improve on almost every aspect of their Playstation 2, Gamecube and Xbox varieties of the game.

Now, Konami brings the party to the next generation of game consoles with DDR Universe for the Xbox 360.

The game works in a deceptively simple manner. Arrows scroll up to a timing marker on the screen in time to the music. When an arrow reaches the marker, the player must step on the corresponding arrow with their feet. The simplest patterns only follow the most prominent beats in the song, but the more complex ones match up with almost every note and may require tricky foot and body positioning.

At the heart of every new release of DDR is the song list. This one factor truly has the ability to make or break such a game. The mix on DDR Universe provides an excellent array of tunes, ranging from popular hits like "Run It" by Chris Brown and "Every Time We Touch" by Cascada to remixes of other Konami games like Castlevania and Gyruss.

Interestingly enough, Bill Shillito, a Tech student, also has a featured song under the name of DM Ashura. No matter what the player's taste in music, they are sure to find something to enjoy in this game.

The steps that go along with the music are very well done. New players will find that every song has a Beginner level so they can enjoy the full experience. Experts will enjoy the cleverly designed step patterns and the challenge of the Oni level.

Universe does not stop at a single game mode, either. Quest Mode tasks players with going around North America to establish themselves as the dancing master.

All of the unlockable content is accessed through this mode as well. Challenge Mode requires the players to clear songs under specific conditions.

Party Mode boasts several modes of play for multiple players, even those who wish to play on three or four pads at once or dance through a five-minute long mix of songs.

Those who wish to make their own step routines can use the Edit Mode. Xbox Live also allows players to challenge others from all over the US and download new songs for a nominal fee.

As mentioned earlier, the music and gameplay is wonderful, but there are a few flaws in the graphics. The characters are rendered well and animate smoothly, and the background videos are exciting and attention-grabbing, but some players may find them distracting. Too much action on the screen slows down the frame rate by a noteworthy amount. The announcer also starts to grate after a while. Fortunately, these issues can all be addressed in the option menus.

This game can be played with the standard controller, but playing the game with the included pad is the best idea.

Still, people may find it a little difficult to pass the harder songs without the pad moving around. They are durable, but here is hoping that Konami or some other company make a reliable, stiffer pad.

The Xbox 360 also only has two USB ports, so plugging in more than two pads is not possible. However, to get the most enjoyment out of the game, two pads are generally the most needed at any point in time. Anyone who loves music will certainly enjoy this game.