History VideoGame / DanceDanceRevolution

Migrates to a UsefulNotes/PlayStation2-based hardware platform and a new engine (carrying over UI elements and background movies from the recent console version ''Extreme 2''/''STR!KE''), the return of characters to the arcade version (now rendered on three-dimensional stages), battle mode, and for Japanese builds, the introduction of Konami's online platform [=e-AMUSEMENT=] for online score tracking and updates. It was also the first arcade version to have a single international release with the same soundtrack (with the European builds falling under the ''Dancing Stage'' branding), a change which necessitated the removal of the licensed songs present on ''Extreme'' (including ending the franchise's long-standing partnership with [=Toshiba-EMI=]'s ''Dancemania'' album series).

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution=]'' (1999, UsefulNotes/PlayStation)

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution 2ndMIX Dreamcast Edition=]'' (2000, [[UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast Dreamcast]])

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution GB=]'' (2000, UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor)

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution ディズニーダンシングミュージアム=]'' (2000, [[UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 64]])

* ''[=DDRMAX -DanceDanceRevolution 6thMIX=]'' (2002, UsefulNotes/PlayStation2)

* ''[[VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolutionMarioMix DanceDanceRevolution with MARIO]]'' (2005, [[UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube GameCube]])

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution HOTTEST PARTY=]'' (2007, UsefulNotes/{{Wii}})

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution ULTRAMIX=]'' (2003, UsefulNotes/{{Xbox}})

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution UNIVERSE=]'' (2007, UsefulNotes/Xbox360)

* ''[=DanceDanceRevolution=]'' (2010, UsefulNotes/PlayStation3) (2011, Xbox 360)

* ArrangeMode: The very first home port of the series that appeared on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation in Japan contains its own ''Arrange Mode'' selectable from the main menu. This mode makes things harder by lowering your health bar every time you step on an arrow you're not supposed to. This triggers the "Ouch!" judgement, and is similar to what happens when hitting the wrong buttons in the ''VideoGame/{{beatmania}}'' series. Subsequent games would drop this mode, though future games like ''In The Groove'' and ''Dance Dance Revolution X'' would modify the "don't hit this" concept with Mines and Shock Arrows respectively.

** ''DDRMAX'' was supposed to be one since it changed so much: it introduced a new scoring system, introduced an overhauled difficulty system (with new difficulty names, and replacing old difficulty level system with the Groove Radar, a 5-point graph that rates charts on certain characteristics), introduced a new options menu to replace pad codes, dropped the 3D characters, added new full motion video backgrounds, freeze arrows, the new Extra Stage system, and console ports migrating to the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2. However, it also removed ''every'' song from previous versions in favor of a completely new soundtrack. Most players were happy when [=MAX2=] and EXTREME brought them back.
** A similar reset happened for the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} and UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 versions released in 2010, which were titled just "Dance Dance Revolution" in North America. The Wii version also brought an UnexpectedGameplayChange by extending its motion control integration into a new ''VideoGame/JustDance''-esque "Choreography" mode, which used special charts containing a variety of new hand motions for the Wii Remote and Nunchuck to form more varied routines (Meanwhile, the [=PS3=] version had players using the [=PlayStation Move=] wand to hit targets in the corner of the screen. It wasn't that great) In Europe however, they got re-branded as "Hottest Party 4" and "New Moves" respectively. The next game "Dance Dance Revolution II", was essentially the console port of X3 vs 2nd Mix (well, not really. It is mostly a port of X2 AC, but with many new songs that were then ported to X3 vs 2ndMix. Yes it is complicated.)

* FluffyFashionFeathers: A [[PaletteSwap white or black]] feather-trimmed angel-themed dress in ''Dance Dance Revolution (UsefulNotes/{{Wii}})''.

* UsefulNotes/HighDefinition: As of ''Dance Dance Revolution X'', arcade versions can come in a cabinet with an HD monitor. Arcades can opt to upgrade their legacy cabinets with new hardware/software, but at the expense of HD, and with upgrade kits being rare outside of Asia. Beginning with ''X3'', only Asia can order upgrade kits. Outside of Asia, releases are exclusive brand new white HD cabinets. This includes the location test of ''DDR 2014'' in the United States and the release of ''Dance Dance Revolution A'' worldwide.

** ''DDRMAX'' for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 in North America (NA) has little in common with its Japanese counterparts regarding its song list. Of the 42 songs shared between the Japanese arcade and [=PS2=] versions, only 11 (10 Konami originals, plus the "Ordinary World" license) made it in the NA release for [=PS2=]. Nevertheless, the NA release did include the two bonus Konami originals from the Japanese [=PS2=] release: "Kind Lady" and "So In Love". The NA game includes 71 songs in all, meaning that most (58) did not originate from ''DDRMAX'' in Japan. These 58 songs are from older releases, newer releases, future releases or even exclusives. %% ''DDRMAX2'': 53 new songs (JP) but only 15 (12 KO and three licenses) in NA; however, eight 'DDRMAX'' (JP) songs (five licenses and three Konami originals) are in NA ''DDRMAX2''.

* LongRunnerTechMarchesOn: On [[spoiler:MAX. (period)]] on DDR 2014, the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 DDR pad previously depicted in its artwork was replaced by a UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} pad.

** The fourth "Hottest Party" game on the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} (and the 2010 UsefulNotes/XBox360 and UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 release) was called just "Dance Dance Revolution" outside of Europe, as it seemed like Konami was trying to relaunch the series. However in Europe, they were re-branded as "DDR Hottest Party 4" and "DDR: New Moves" respectively. The same happened for DDR II, which was renamed "Hottest Party 5"

** Averted in a way in America until the Hottest Party 3 sequel, as each console got its own separate game yearly. [=PlayStation=] versions were aligned with the arcade mixes, the Wii had the party play and gimmick-based Hottest Party series, and the UsefulNotes/XBox[=/=]UsefulNotes/XBox360 versions (Ultramix and Universe) had a more diverse song selection (which often involved rather interesting and unexpected Bemani crossovers), DownloadableContent and Xbox Live multiplayer, [[FandomNod Fandom Nods]] galore, and more "advanced" play styles (such as the infamous Quad mode). Even the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube GameCube]] got involved with ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolutionMarioMix'' one time.

** Pre-release material for the DDR X soundtrack and UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 version leaked a few songs that hadn't been unlocked for play yet (traditionally, the Japanese CS release was usually released near the end of an arcade version's life, and sometimes had preview songs from the next version on it. This time to facilitate the USB edits feature, it was released sooner, and all of its "new" songs were unlocked later on AC). Fans were quick to speculate that one of these songs, "real-high-SPEED", was going to be the TrueFinalBoss of X. It ended up just being an easy J-pop song -- and not a very fast one either[[note]]131 BPM[[/note]]. On ''X2'', Konami [[AscendedMeme proceeded to place said song at the end of a nonstop course titled "Speed Master"]] (which actually ''was'' full of fast songs, save that one).

* RecycledTitle: Twice. The 2010 home release for UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}, UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, and UsefulNotes/XBox360 as well the 2013 arcade release are simply called ''Dance Dance Revolution''.

* UsefulNotes/TheSolarSystem: Is the subject of the "Grand Cross Planet" series of songs in ''[=SuperNova 2=]''. It has songs representing all planets, plus the Sun and the Moon. [[ScienceMarchesOn Including Pluto]], but then again the game does make fun of this by adding a remix of Pluto's song to represent [[PlutoIsExpendable its desolation]], which as it turns out is one of the hardest songs in the series.

* ObviousBeta:
** ''Dance Dance Revolution Disney Channel EDITION''. The game is not unfinished per se, but it's apparent that the creators prioritized the presentation over gameplay. All of the stepcharts are terribly off-sync, something that is not helped by the absence of Rainbow and Note arrow skins as well as the custom GUI that the game uses, which makes everything look blocky. Very few players know that the game actually contains 40 songs, not 37, because the last three songs ("Moment 40", "exotic ethnic", and "Sakura") can only be accessed by scoring a Marvelous Full Combo on three different difficulties (some may make a guess that "exotic ethnic" is in the game because it's the song used for the Magic Mode theme).
** ''Dance Dance Revolution Freedom'' for the iOS. It still uses the same GUI from DDR X, and all the songs are [[GameBreakingBug horribly stepped and synced]]. [[FromBadToWorse Even worse]], DDR S and S+ were removed from the iTunes Store upon its release. Thankfully, a month after its release, they took it down and re-released S+.
** ''Dance Dance Revolution Pocket Edition''. After abruptly pulling down ''Dance Wars'' (which was like S+ but with obligatory social gaming elements), Konami randomly released this new version for iOS in October 2013. But what's wrong with it? ''Everything''. Firstly, you have to mirror it to an Apple TV device connected to a TV; because to "play" it, you put your iWhatever in your pants pocket (securely, we must add. Good luck fitting an iPad in there), and it tries to pick up your motions using its gyroscope and accelerometer. Good idea in concept, [[FromBadToWorse had they not based everything off the Classroom Edition (which itself is bad enough); meaning there's no real "game" at all]], it uses [[GameBreakingBug automatically generated charts]], and the audio quality is poor as well.

** Songs remixed by [=U1-ASAMi=] under his 2MB alias are usually a lot darker and/or creepier than the original versions. Oh, they're also tend to be much harder, as well. "Healing Vision (Angelic mix)", "MAX. (period)", and "Fascination (eternal love mix)" are examples.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* AllTheWorldsAreAStage: The TrueFinalBoss song, "Dance Dance Revolution" by DDR All Stars, which you are forced to play on HarderThanHard difficulty as a OneHitPointWonder, reuses Heavy step sequences from "Brilliant 2U Orchestra Groove", "Dead End", "Dynamite Rave", "End of the Century", "AM-3P", "Celebrate Nite", "[=B4U=]", and finally "DDR" itself.

** [=DDRMAX2=] pulls this one. It features a lot of [[RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver black and red]], the select screen music is a toned-down disco version of PARANOIA survivor, and almost of all of the new songs are {{Trance}}[[note]]Trance is mainly used to evoke a personal emotional feeling on the listeners[[/note]] in one way of another. The boss songs, MAXX Unlimited and Kakumei, are a lot darker than the previous boss songs MAX 300 and CANDY; MAXX Unlimited is stuck up with the Trance syndrome unlike the drum-heavy MAX 300, while Kakumei is a modern rendition of classical music[[note]]Fun fact: trance is widely considered to be something of a SpiritualSuccessor to classical music.[[/note]] (namely, Chopin's Revolutionary Etude), in contrast to the happy hardcore CANDY.

* PinballScoring: The scoring is kind of confusing, especially pre-[=SN2=].

* ChallengeRun:
** Using modifiers to make the game harder has been relatively common since they first showed up. In addition to making the notes move faster, there's also modes that hide the notes at places on the screen, shuffle them around, or penalize a player for stepping on a pad any time that there isn't a note.
** The Double mode, where one player uses both dance pads.
** [[NintendoHard Stealth + Shuffle]]. Stealth is a mode where you can't see the notes at all, and Shuffle makes an arrow's step random to the beat. Combining both of these makes even the easiest of songs a LuckBasedMission.
** The original [=PlayStation=] version had a mode called "Arrange Mode", which penalizes you with an "Ouch!" for hitting ''any'' panel when there isn't an arrow there.

** Even the [[EasierThanEasy Beginner difficulty]] undergoes this trope. Originally, Beginner was strictly meant for beginners, no matter how fast or how hard a song and its Expert difficulty were. MAXX UNLIMITED, regardless of its slow-down speed-up madness and exhausting jump-heavy Basic chart, has a subdued Beginner chart, with no complex pattern and nothing separating it from the likes of HYSTERIA. However, came ''[=SuperNova=]'', and the creators decided that [[Literature/AnimalFarm some Beginners are more Beginner than others]]. Fascination (eternal love mix) Beginner, for example, has 4th note streams coupled with jumps that no creator of ''Extreme'' would approve. It all culminated with Valkyrie dimension Beginner (rated 9, and many fans think it should be a 10). [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21Q9kGV1g2c Here]]. Just ask yourselves: do honest-to-god 8th note streams and ''crossovers'' that crop up multiple times seem welcoming for newbies? Don't think so.
** The maximum BPM is pushed upward as time goes on. It starts at 180 ("[=PARANOiA=]"), before going to 190 ("[=PARANOiA=] MAX ~DIRTY MIX~"), 200 ("AFRONOVA"), 260 ("DROP OUT"), 300 ("MAX 300"), 320 ("MAXX UNLIMITED"), 666 ("The legend of MAX"), and 800 ("Pluto Relinquish"), culminating with 1020, which "Tohoku EVOLVED" famously reaches in its ending, making it not only the fastest song in DDR, but also the entire Bemani franchise.[[note]]the previous record holder was 876, reached by "Y&Co. is dead or alive" from IIDX 16.[[/note]] However, the series has yet to make you do things more taxing than a single jump for anything beyond 880 BPM.[[note]] "ENDYMION" Expert and Challenge have you do a 4th stream in that BPM, though honestly, it's not that bad.[[/note]] In terms of actual notespeed, the series went to 333 in The legend of MAX, 400 in SuperNOVA with Fascination MAXX, then it hung out there for a while with a few exceptions before slowly climbing up. 440's the new standard BPM for uber-bosses like the 19-footers, though 888 went to 444 BPM and Valkyrie Dimension Challenge had a stream at 480, both in X2.

** "Trust" has scenes from ''Anime/TengenToppenGurrenLagann'' playing in it.

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Satomi Takasugi is spelled as Sotomi Takasugi in US/EU DDR X2 AC.

** Tohoku EVOLVED might be the ultimate example of this, as the "nightmare" is truly on just the ''last'' note. Most of the song runs at 340 BPM, then the final chord comes and the music fades out...and then a full five seconds later, the song's speed ''triples'' to 1020 BPM and there's '''one more jump''' that comes out of absolutely nowhere, which ''changes every time it's played''. This was particularly nasty when the song was only unlockable as a SuddenDeath OptionalBoss (aka Encore Extra Stage).

* SuddenDeath: On recent versions, the Encore Extra Stage is played with only [[OneHitPointWonder one life]] (also known as "Risky", a mode avaliable in normal play), so breaking your combo at any point ends the song. Since X3, there has always been one EES song (typically one meant as a finale for the version) that uses an even stricter version of Sudden Death that deducts the single life if you get anything worse than a Perfect.