History ThatOneBoss / DanceDanceRevolution

** Special mention goes to the '''Boss Rush (Ver. Supernova 2)''' challenge course, one of the most difficult challenge courses in the history of the franchise. Basically imagine having to do ''Paranoia ~Hades~'' and ''NGO'' back to back; then ''Trip Machine Pheonix'', which is the easiest of the bunch but hardly a cakewalk; ''Pluto'', a song notorious for its FakeDifficulty by way of '''24 stops''' throughtout it (not helped by how tired a player likely is at this point); and then last but most absolutely not least, ''Pluto Relinquish'' and its notorious closing streams. And that's on top of challenge mode's no breaks and '''4 misses''' (with maybe a few added bars later on) and you lose nature. This course was so hard, it took almost '''''10 years''''' for anybody to clear it.

* ''DDR Supernova 2'' brings two of the currently three ''Pluto'' boss songs. Pluto does not use as many stops as Chaos, but it does not have a consistent BPM. It also does not make it easy for the player to tell when the song stops during the fast part. And that's not even the hardest the game has to offer. To put it into perspective, this game, along with the brutal charts from Supernova, were so hard that they basically [[BrokeTheRatingScale broke the ratings system]] Konami had been using since the first game, as it was increasingly obvious that some of the level 10s were far harder than others. All of the following would later score 18s starting in DDR X:

* Ladies and gentlemen: allow me to introduce DDR A's final boss song, '''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nA6bh32Jek ENDYMION]]''', with a brutal expert chart rated 18, and it's brutal, with streams, sudden slowdowns, speed-ups, a max bpm of '''880''', and a very high step count of 783.\\

'''General'''

'''1st-5th MIX, Konamix'''

'''MAX, MAX 2, Extreme, and Extreme 2'''

'''Supernova 1 - 2'''

'''X1, X2, and X3'''

'''2013-2014'''

'''A'''

'''1st-5rd MIX'''

'''MAX, MAX 2, and Extreme'''

'''MAX, MAX2, and Extreme'''

* Early "Paranoia" or "Trip Machine" songs could qualify, but thanks to SequelEscalation in the difficulty department however, these songs aren't really as hard today's DDR bosses. But factor in the engine differences in early mixes (including a lack of speed modifiers), and they were in fact quite hard.

And then it got a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pT6RHQd9Zek challenge chart]] with a 19 rating, the 3rd to date. Given that the chart features a total step count (811) second at the time only to Elemental Creation challenge (which is more than 30 seconds longer) and has [[SerialEscalation 16th notes at 440 bpm]], its rating is probably warranted.

With the steady increase in difficulty in every installment in DDR, there seems to be one way or another for boss songs, or just straight up "hard songs," to get more and more challenging for even the most experienced of players.
* In general, any chart rated level 15 (10 in DDR versions before X2) to level 18 are the most challenging songs to play, requiring not only dexterity but also intense amounts of stamina. A good number of boss songs (Extra Stage and One More Extra Stage) are usually in this range. And then there's the songs rated [[HarderThanHard level 19]]...

* Meet [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQX2YyyzBm0 EGOISM 440]]. Even when [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW5-_plTvAg cut down]] to ''just quarter notes'', it's fast and has a lot of interesting pauses. \\
\\

* And now we have "Over the 'Period'"; much like "Love is the Power Re:born" on X3, this is not only on Sudden Death mode, but a sudden death that causes an instant fail on ''anything'' worse than a Perfect. Cue the sea of players failing on the ''very first arrow''. What's particularly painful is that it starts at ''32.5 BPM'', forced on the same speed mod as the 600 BPM MAX.(period) that preceded it, then slows down ''further'', then after the 25 BPM section has a stop - and that's just the start of the FakeDifficulty. To top it all off, the song is rated a 15 on Single '''Difficult''', and many feared having to do the same with the expert charts... But, that didn't happen, though that doesn't make its Expert chart, which is the 3rd (4th for doubles) expert chart to be rated an 18, any easier. \\
\\
Its [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58EyqDSOUck challenge chart]] is yet another [[HarderThanHard 19]], more than warranted with its streams loaded with crossovers, 160 bpm sections full of 16th streams with 24th streams peppered in, a very complex slowdown/speedup section, speed up sections with even more streams with tons of crossovers (Including one reminiscent of Healing-D-Vision's infamous crossover stream, but at [[UpToEleven 420 bpm]]), and a semi-final section that eventually reaches 840 bpm. Oh, and did we mention the chart is (initially) only available when playing the song as an extra stage, [[FourIsDeath meaning you can't miss any more than 3 notes]]?

** ''Healing-D-Vision'': While it's not too bad at first, it's the final 360bpm speed-up where the song shows its true colors, bombarding you with streams, with the final one being one of the most infamous crossover streams in the entire game.

** ''Pluto Relinquish'' was critically acclaimed as one of the hardest songs to date, unchallenged for that title until DDR X2. Remember the notorious ''death runs'' of classic songs like ''Exotic Ethnic's'' heavy chart? Now imagine those, but at '''400 bpm''', [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMzMzYEuGUU Observe.]]

** ''NGO'': It may feature the lowest stepcount of any 18 in the game, but it accommodates by being absolutely loaded with jumps, including many cases with ''8th notes between jumps''. Definitely not a chart to be underestimated.

** The 2MB remix ''Fascination Eternal Love Mix'', who's challenge chart is widely considered to be just as hard, if not harder than the above. While its stepcount is nowhere near as high, it more than makes up for it with some very technical Jump sections, especially nasty at the end, where you have to do multiple in a row with a few 8th note streams thrown in too.

* Oh, and the Challenge chart? It's rated 19 and it contains [[UpToEleven 16th notes at 360 BPM.]] No, that wasn't a typo, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CVHRfHNy9U see for yourself.]]

* After spending a very long time as a console exclusive, Max. (period) finally made its arcade debut as the semi-final boss song of DDR 2014. While it was already pretty far ahead of its time as far as boss songs went, it now got a new 18 challenge chart to truly put it on par with the very hardest songs in the game. Loaded with crossovers, taps, and then featuring 6th note streams and closing out with a quite long one during infamous 600 bpm section, this challenge chart is truly not for the faint of heart.

** The 2MB remix ''Fascination Eternal Love Mix'', who's challenge chart widely considered to be just as hard, if not harder than the above. While its stepcount is nowhere near as high, it more than makes up for it with some very technical Jump sections, especially nasty at the end, where you have to do multiple in a row with a few 8th note streams thrown in too.

** ''Healing-D-Vision'': While it's not too bad at first, it's the final 360bpm speed-up where the song shows its true colors, bombarding you with streams, with final one being one of the most infamous crossover streams in the entire game.

* ''DDR Supernova 2'' brings two of the currently three ''Pluto'' boss songs. Pluto does not use as many stops as Chaos, but it does not have a consistent BPM. It also does not make it easy for the player to tell when the song stops during the fast part. And that's not even the hardest the game has to offer. To put it into perspective, this game, along with the brutal charts from Supernova, were so hard that they basically [[BrokeTheRatingScale broke the ratings system]] Konami had been using since the first game, allowing players to differentiate all the easier level 10s from the harder ones more easily. All of the following would later score 18s starting in DDR X:

** The 2MB remix ''Fascination Eternal Love Mix'', who's challenge chart was considered by to be just as hard, if not harder than the above. While its stepcount is nowhere near as high, it more than makes up for it with some very technical Jump sections, especially nasty at the end, where you have to do multiple in a row with a few 8th note streams thrown in too.

* ''DDR Supernova 2'' brings two of the currently three ''Pluto'' boss songs. Pluto does not use as many stops as Chaos, but it does not have a consistent BPM. It also does not make it easy for the player to tell when the song stops during the fast part. And that's not even the hardest the game has to offer. To put it into perspective, this game, along with the brutal charts from Supernova, were so hard that they basically [[BrokeTheRatingsScale broke the ratings system]] Konami had been using since the first game, allowing players to differentiate all the easier level 10s from the harder ones more easily. All of the following would later score 18s starting in DDR X:

** ''Pluto Relinquish'' was critically acclaimed as one of the hardest songs to date, unchallenged for that title until DDR X2. Remember the notorious ''death runs'' of classic songs like ''Exotic Ethnic'''s heavy chart? Now imagine those, but at '''400 bpm''', [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMzMzYEuGUU Observe.]]

* When ''DDR Supernova'' came out, it radically pushed the envelope, creating the first charts in the franchise that would later score 18s in the updated foot ratings in DDR X onwards. These particular songs are:

** The 2MB remix ''Fascination Enternal Love Mix'', who's challenge chart was considered by to be just as hard, if not harder than the above. While it's stepcount is nowhere near as high, it more than makes up for it with some very technical Jump sections, especially nasty at the end, where you have to do multiple in a row with a few 8th note streams thrown in too.

* ''DDR Supernova 2'' brings two of the currently three ''Pluto'' boss songs. Pluto does not use as many stops as Chaos, but it does not have a consistent BPM. It also does not make it easy for the player to tell when the song stops during the fast part. ''Pluto Relinquish'' has been critically acclaimed as one of the hardest songs to date. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMzMzYEuGUU Observe.]]
** It also brings us ''Paranoia ~Hades~''. It is quite possibly one of the hardest, if not the currently hardest Paranoia remix. On Heavy it's bad enough with 8th note crossover patterns that sound like 16th notes, lots of jumps, and a BPM shift that throws in triplet steps before coming back to full speed with mini 8th runs...but on Challenge [[UptoEleven it's turned up to eleven.]] Constant 8th runs that end with jumps, jackhammer triplets at the slowdown section followed by Iron Maiden-esque gallops, and then ending in a long 8th run that will make you beg for mercy. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQ8I-h6dOA0&feature=related Observe.]] Even the medium chart, [[BossInMookClothing which is criminally given a rating of "8"]], is a relentless mess of arrows.

* ''Hottest Party'' for the Wii is mostly not bad, but ''Super Samurai'' often becomes a stumbling block, especially to unlock the song. No speed mods in the game means one is forced to use 1x. The song does not flash its receptors to the beat at all times: this makes the quarter notes blue during the early and later stages of the song. This song can make one want to use a controller to unlock the song.
* Any song that contains the word '''Evolved''' in it. Not only are the songs hard to figure out, but one [[LuckBasedMission gets a different chart every playthrough]].

** The Oni course Legend. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHWhEfB1KEo If you thought 10-12 songs were bad, try dealing with 5 songs that are ALL 10's, with the hidden Paranoia Survivor MAX Challenge steps having the most notes in the game, both Singles and Doubles]]. The Japanese Console Version adds ''Max.Period'', the console-exclusive boss song that goes up to 600 frickin BPM! (Un)fortunately, the song never made an appearance outside the game. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys_RTJXpb4g See for yourself!]]

* When ''DDR Supernova'' came out, it radically pushed the envelope, creating the first charts in the game that would later score 18s in the updated foot ratings in DDR X onwards. These particular songs are:
** ''Fascination [=MaxX=]'' was considered by many to be the new hardest canon DDR song. Some consider it to still be the one of the hardest. That is just on Expert. Challenge has HardModeFiller in use, with the worst bits right at the beginning and end.

* Pick a "MAX", Trip Machine, [=PARANOiA=], Pluto, and "EVOLVED" song. Any of them.

As if that weren't bad enough, it's Challenge chart is, naturally, [[HarderThanHard another 19]], arguably the hardest one yet. To start, it shatters Elemental Creation's record with a new highest stepcount of '''''925''''', and yet, that will be the least of your worries with the song bombarding you with most every difficult thing it possibly can. And, it has to be initially beaten without more than 4 misses. While DDR A's more forgiving than previous games in that goods don't count as misses, it's still so brutal that it took over a month before anybody successfully passed it, and the first one to do so only managed by one miss away from death. Witness the madness for yourself [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnTky49oBVA here]].

And then it got a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pT6RHQd9Zek challenge chart]] with a 19 rating, the 3rd to date. Given that the chart features a total step count (811) second only to Elemental Creation challenge (which is more than 30 seconds longer) and has [[SerialEscalation 16th notes at 440 bpm]], its rating is probably warranted.

As if that weren't bad enough, it's Challenge chart is, naturally, [[HarderThanHard another 19]], arguably the hardest one yet. To start, it shatters Elemental Creation's record with a new highest stepcount of '''''925''''', and yet, that will be the least of your worries with the song bombarding you with most every difficult thing it possibly can. And, it has to be initially beaten without more than 4 misses. While DDR A's more forgiving than previous games in that goods don't count as misses, it's still so brutal that it took over a month before anybody successfully passed it, and the first one to do so only managed by one miss away from death. Witness the madness for yourself [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwykAZArNw4 here]].

* Ladies and gentlemen: allow me to introduce DDR A's final boss song, '''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nA6bh32Jek ENDYMION]], with a brutal expert chart rated 18, and it's brutal, with streams, sudden slowdowns, speed-ups, a max bpm of '''880''', and a very high step count of 783.\\

** In general, any chart rated level 15 (10 in DDR versions before X2) to level 18 are the most challenging songs to play, requiring not only dexterity but also intense amounts of stamina. A good number of boss songs (Extra Stage and One More Extra Stage) are usually in this range. And then there's the songs rated [[HarderThanHard level 19]]...
** Pick a "MAX", Trip Machine, [=PARANOiA=], Pluto, and "EVOLVED" song. Any of them.
** Valkyrie Dimension was the TrueFinalBoss of the arcade version of X2, which meant players initially had to jump through a large number of hoops to even get to it in the first place. Then, because it was always played on [[OneHitPointWonder Sudden Death mode]], everyone kept failing on the [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDcy379mTBo trills]] right at the end. When it was finally unlocked for normal play, cue the disappointment from fans who learned it was yet another Level 18. For many, that wasn't hard enough. Even with that, Valkyrie Dimension also has a pretty brutal difficulty spread across its charts. Its Single Beginner chart is rated a ''9'', which is around a rating range typically reserved for ''Difficult'' charts. The Single Basic chart is rated a 13 (for reference, MAX 300 on Single Expert is a 15). \\

** Even worse? [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKO5lKlZSf0 [=888=]]] and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNftJ9N-_9k Mei]]. Each Challenge chart has over 700 steps, whereas a normal DDR boss song has about 550. And the latter is well-known as being one of the hardest ''VideoGame/{{beatmania}}'' songs. Think about that for a second.
** X3 vs. 2nd Mix brought [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv6ofcTgJxM&feature=related Tohoku EVOLVED]]. While it is a Level 17 on Expert (one level easier than VD), Sudden Death mode caused players to get caught off-guard by a sudden speed-up for a few moments, and then the most dreadful ''and'' literal example of a LastNoteNightmare ever.
*** And now, we have "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHG1oBEvlrY&feature=related PARANOiA Revolution]]", which premiered as a BonusBoss for 2nd Mix Mode; despite (almost) conforming to the limitations of the early era of DDR (i.e. no freeze arrows, but still a stop; stops only started appearing on 5th Mix), it does not conform to the difficulty of the era ''at all.'' Add [[DefaultSettingSyndrome forced 1x]] ([[ObviousRulePatch no speed mods until DDRMAX]]) and [[FakeDifficulty Flat]] ([[ColourCodedForYourConvenience the arrows only became colored by beat position on the very next version]]), and you've probably got the most ridiculous bosses in recent DDR histories.
*** Oh, and the Challenge chart? It's rated 19 and it contains [[UpToEleven 16th notes at 360 BPM.]] No, that wasn't a typo, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CVHRfHNy9U see for yourself.]]
** The boss of the Bemani Gakuen event is "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iCIlGfiu6gM Elemental Creation]]"; while it's about as hard as the average boss song, it is also longer than most normal DDR songs. Of course, more length equals more steps; its Difficult chart is an 11 with a max combo of over 600 ([[BlatantLies Yeah, that's pretty easy]]), the Expert is a 17 with a max combo of ''789'', and the Challenge, while not ''the'' hardest song (It's yet another 18), has '''''860'''''. Its highest-leveled IIDX, ''VideoGame/ReflecBeat'', and ''VideoGame/{{Jubeat}}'' charts break similar note count records. And did we mention its 212--sorry, [[FakeDifficulty 424 BPM with tempo changes]]?
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51-aCpvw38s TRIPLE JOURNEY -TAG Version-]] is the boss of the DDR side of the Triple Journey collaboration event with ''VideoGame/{{Jubeat}}'' and ''{{Gitadora}}''. While it stays on an even BPM most of the time, try not to lose your breath on the long stream of notes about 3/4 of the way in- That's not the end of the song, and you finish up with another quick burst of steps. [[BreatherBoss While not as hard as the other two event bosses]], it should not be taken lightly, with complex jump patterns and crossovers.
** Rounding out DDR 2013's series of events, clearing the rest of the Bemani Stadium event brings up [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=lMGgSZaUKJQ IX]], potentially one of the hardest level 18s. The chart is loaded with FakeDifficulty on top of [[NintendoHard real difficulty]], with complex 16th note patterns at ''half the speed'', before moving into quick patterns and jump streams at ''396 BPM''. While Elemental Creation and Triple Journey are available to play by default as of DDR A, you still need to unlock IX. [[NintendoHard That means you have to clear the song with a LIFE-4 healthbar- 4 misses, and you gotta get another Extra Stage to try again.]]
** Meet [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQX2YyyzBm0 EGOISM 440]]. Even when [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW5-_plTvAg cut down]] to ''just quarter notes'', it's fast and has a lot of interesting pauses. \\

** And now we have "Over the 'Period'"; much like "Love is the Power Re:born" on X3, this is not only on Sudden Death mode, but a sudden death that causes an instant fail on ''anything'' worse than a Perfect. Cue the sea of players failing on the ''very first arrow''. What's particularly painful is that it starts at ''32.5 BPM'', forced on the same speed mod as the 600 BPM MAX.(period) that preceded it, then slows down ''further'', then after the 25 BPM section has a stop - and that's just the start of the FakeDifficulty. To top it all off, the song is rated a 15 on Single '''Difficult''', and many feared having to do the same with the expert charts... But, that didn't happen, though that doesn't make its Expert chart, which is the 3rd (4th for doubles) expert chart to be rated an 18, any easier. \\

** DDR A added a new Extra Stage system. Activating it is similar to DDR 2014's Extra Stage, where you fill up a gauge as you clear songs. However, unlike 2014, your life option is limited to LIFE-4; Instead of giving you a non-refillable life bar, you have 4 lives. Miss 4 steps, and you fail. This makes it especially challenging to unlock upper-level Extra Savior songs (To unlock the song, you have to either clear it, or slowly fill up a meter over multiple different play sessions), and any song with BPM changes will certainly end your game quickly.
*** Of the new Extra Exclusive stages, [[https://youtu.be/QPOBgMr5J5M New Century]] is currently the highest-leveled on its expert chart, at level 17. With fast streams and tricky patterns, many players couldn't clear it with the LIFE-4 healthbar on. [[DegradedBoss However, it was merely the first Extra Exclusive song, and was soon available for normal play without the LIFE-4 bar on.]]
*** Meanwhile, [[https://youtu.be/k7l3rtD9r0E Out of Focus]] and [[https://youtu.be/cDviyzQ-YHM Neutrino]] are Extra Exclusive stages with tons of timing changes. While not as highly-ranked as New Century, many people had trouble clearing these songs when they were first released because of the sudden stops and timing changes. [[NintendoHard Also, Neutrino has a challenge chart ranked level 18]]...
** After clearing the "Baby-Lon's Adventure" event (Anyone with eAmuse will earn points from clearing songs, which allow players to unlock new songs), players now have another event to clear- "Rinon's Adventure". Unlike Baby-Lon's Adventure, Rinon's Adventure requires you to clear the Extra Stage in order to unlock new challenge charts for Extra Exclusive songs. Luckly for players, clearing these charts on the Extra Stage isn't required, but there's little comfort in that...
*** New Century, originally a 17 on hard, now has a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SqREKevJj0 level 18 challenge chart]]. It has lots of crossovers, [[GimmickLevel shock arrows]], and [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs crossovers through shock arrows]]. The [[DoublePlay doubles chart]] even splits the rows of shock arrows up between the two pads!
*** Rising Fire Hawk makes a big jump from a level 14 to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnkJpURuReg level 17]].
*** Astrogazer, another [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhqAlyhm1kA level 18]], has long streams interleaved with 24nd notes, reminiscent of high-end VideoGame/InTheGroove charts.

** The boss of the Bemani Gakuen event is "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iCIlGfiu6gM Elemental Creation]]"; while it's about as hard as the average boss song, it is also longer than most normal DDR songs. Of course, more length equals more steps; its Difficult chart is an 11 with a max combo of over 600 ([[BlatantLies Yeah, that's pretty easy]]), the Expert is a 17 with a max combo of ''789'', and the Challenge, while not ''the'' hardest song (It's yet another 18), has '''''860'''''. Its highest-leveled IIDX, ''VideoGame/ReflecBeat'', and ''{{Jubeat}}'' charts break similar note count records. And did we mention its 212--sorry, [[FakeDifficulty 424 BPM with tempo changes]]?
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51-aCpvw38s TRIPLE JOURNEY -TAG Version-]] is the boss of the DDR side of the Triple Journey collaboration event with ''{{Jubeat}}'' and ''{{Gitadora}}''. While it stays on an even BPM most of the time, try not to lose your breath on the long stream of notes about 3/4 of the way in- That's not the end of the song, and you finish up with another quick burst of steps. [[BreatherBoss While not as hard as the other two event bosses]], it should not be taken lightly, with complex jump patterns and crossovers.