FRI 11 MAR 2005
Revolutionary Moves
By Hillary FlowersArgonaut Staff
“Dance Dance Revolution” sweeps arcades and dorm rooms alike.
As Robbie Krishner walks into Bumpers arcade in the Palouse Mall, he exchanges his $2 worth of rolled nickels for $2 in quarters at the front counter. He isn’t there to play just any game. He walks up to a machine, puts in his 50 cents and starts to dance.
He’s playing “Dance Dance Revolution.”
“DDR” was released in Japan in 1998. The game came to the United States in 2000, and is now available as an arcade game and in Xbox, PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and PC versions. The mastermind behind the game is Konami Digital Entertainment, a Japanese corporation. Bemani provides the music for the game.
Daniel Bickley / ARGONAUT - Pullman High School's Sean Anderson tears up the dance floor of the “Dance Dance Revolution” game at Bumpers video arcade Thursday evening in the Palouse Mall.
Store manager Sam Whipple, a senior broadcast journalism major at the University of Idaho, said he has seen groups of people surrounding the game waiting for their turn to play. On a typical weekday, about 10-20 people play “DDR” every hour, Whipple said. On weekends, he said, the game is played nonstop during business hours. While some college students play the game, Whipple said it is most popular among junior high and young high school students.
“Our ‘DDR’ machine rakes in about $200 a week,” Whipple said. “Considering that all of that is in quarters or tokens, it’s a pretty popular game.”
At 50 cents a game, this means the game is played about 400 times a week. Whipple said Bumpers makes about 20 percent of its revenue on the game.
Whipple said people are drawn to music, and “DDR” is one of few games that incorporate music as a centerpiece.
“They’re doing more than just using their thumbs or moving a joystick,” Whipple said. “They have to use hand-eye coordination.”
Whipple said one particular woman comes in to play the game just to exercise. He said if a person wanted to go on a diet, “DDR” would be a reasonable form of exercise to go along with the diet. He said “DDR” was mentioned in a health journal.
“It’s good for the mind and body,” Whipple said. “Mostly just wasting time, but it can be effective.”
Krishner, a sophomore computer science major, plays the game about once a week. He said he used to play “DDR” more, but now he only spends about a dollar a week on it.
“I just like the music,” Krishner said. “It’s easy to do and it’s something that I seemed to have picked up naturally.”
Krishner said the game is convenient for this school-based community, and agrees that it’s a good form of exercise. He said he prefers to play “DDR” at the arcade rather than the version that is played at home, because the pads and arrows are more responsive. He said the home version wears out quicker and shifts around while being played.
Dancing in the dorm room
Junior psychology major Mike Larsen has owned the PS2 version of “DDR” for about six months. He first discovered “DDR” a year ago when he was at a friend’s house. He played, and was instantly hooked on it. He said he thought it was a blast, and it’s not so hard once the player gets used to the game’s unique style.
Larsen said he usually plays it in the family room where he lives in the LLC Engineering dorm, because if he played in his room he would disturb the students below with all the jumping and stepping that goes with playing “DDR.” He plays once a week for about three hours.
He said “DDR” includes many motions and rigorous exercise. He likes it because, unlike other video games, the player is actually moving around, and not just sitting playing with a controller.
“I just think it’s really fun,” Larsen said. “It actually gets my heart going.”
Larsen spent about $300 on the game and foam dance pad. He said he would spend more money in an arcade over time than he spent buying the home version.
Junior psychology major Guy Anderson owns the PS2 version and plays it about one hour a day. His mother bought him the game for exercise around the end of January.
“When you start off, you’re really bad,” Anderson said. He said he got better after about a week, and now gets above-average scores.
Playing “DDR” gives Anderson a sense of pride. He gets to exercise and have fun at the same time, he said.
“You feel physically fit afterward,” he said. “At least when you do the songs right.”
He said owning the system is beneficial to him because it doesn’t cost as much as playing at the arcade. He said the game that was released in the United States doesn’t include some of the arcade songs, but that still doesn’t take away from the excitement.
“Seeing that you improve every time, that’s real encouraging,” Anderson said.
Join the obsession
DDR Games at ddrgame.com is the nation’s leading distributor of the game. To play at home, a player needs a TV or game projector, PlayStation, PS2 or Xbox console, game software and a “DDR” pad.
The PS2 games are “Konamix DDR,” “DDRMAX,” “DDRMAX 2” or “Extreme.” “Konamix DDR” is the preferred version. The Xbox games include “Ultramix” and “Ultramix 2.”
A variety of dance pads are available, in materials such as acrylic and metal.
Price lists and places to buy “DDR” can be found at ddrfreak.com. “DDR” console games range from $30-$40. Pad prices range from $9-$580, depending on quality. Bundles can be bought that include the game, pad and pad covers.
There are 10 locations with “DDR” machines in Idaho, including Boise State University. Washington State University and Zeppo’s in Pullman also have machines.
Bumpers is open 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday and noon-8 p.m. Sunday.
INFO BOX How to play “DDR”
To play “Dance Dance Revolution,” a gamer steps on four “dance pad” arrows to the beat of techno-pop music. Arrows stream up the game screen, and when they reach the top, the player is supposed to step on the corresponding arrow. The player earns points for getting the right steps with the right beat.
A Dance Gauge appears on-screen to show the player’s progress. The game shouts “Perfect,” “Great,” “Good,” “Boo” or “Miss,” depending on how well the player is doing. If a player misses so many steps that he fails, the game stops. Players earn a grade of “SS,” meaning all steps perfect, to “E,” meaning failure. Players choose the game’s difficulty level, ranging from “light” to “challenge.”
Arts&Culture Editor: Jon Ross
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