13th anniversary of the release of “Dance Evolution”! Full body moving dance games have moved on to the present day – GAME Watch

Today, November 20, it has been 13 years since the release of the music game “Dance Evolution” (hereinafter referred to as DanEvo) from Konami Digital Entertainment.

“Dan Evo” is a music game released on Xbox 360. The title uses Kinect, which is an Xbox 360 peripheral that allows you to play by having a sensor that recognizes your body, a music game where you actually dance in front of the screen.

Following the huge success of the music game “DanceDanceRevolution”, which featured a controller that could be played by stepping on the foot, a number of music games were released that used the body to play. One example of this is Sega’s Samba DE Amigo, which was recently revamped. In the game “Samba DE Amigo”, players hold a maracas-shaped controller and wave the maracas in time with the beat and pose according to on-screen instructions.

However, the shocking element of “Dan Ivo” is that “you are also in control.” In `Dan Evo’, you don’t have to hold the controller; Alternatively, you can play by dancing with the characters displayed on the screen.

In order to pass a very difficult score, students are required to complete choreography from the beginning of the song to its end, similar to a dance performance at a school sports festival. This competition was tough for me, as a built-in fan, but oddly enough I enjoyed it as a game.

This time, to commemorate the 13th anniversary of Dan Ivo, I took back my memories from that time and wrote them down.

A device whose sensors recognize your body movements, allowing you to control the game by moving your body. In addition to dancing games, experience games such as sports games such as boxing have appeared.

A new musical game that you can play with your whole body! However, did he encounter the original version of this work as a boy?

I first encountered this game in the play store. I mainly play fighting games and shooting games, so I was playing on the Xbox 360, which is a good console for arcade games, but I got tired of just playing that. I wanted to play games unique to the Xbox 360, so a friend introduced me to a local game store that specialized in foreign Xbox 360 games and titles.

The store had several demo corners for Xbox 360 titles, but I was surprised to hear the nostalgic songs I’d heard in KONAMI’s music games “beatmania” and “Dance Dance Revolution” being played. When I asked the store manager for details about this game, he told me that it is actually the work of KONAMI’s music game brand “Bemani”. That was Dan Ivo.

“Dan Evo” is a music game where you actually dance to the music. On-screen dancers perform the choreography to the song, and while dancing, a piece of music, or “notes” in music game parlance, is sometimes displayed. If you make the same movements as the choreography, such as waving your hands, taking steps with your feet, jumping, or shaking your hips, you will get extra points. If you make a mistake, you won’t score any points and the scale at the bottom of the screen will decrease. If you successfully perform the choreography in a row, you will get more points and the scale at the bottom left will also increase. The game will be forced to end when the gauge runs out, and if the gauge remains until the game ends and the song ends, the stage will be cleared.

Dance to the dancers on the screen!

There is also a note difficulty level common to Konami’s music game series, starting with “LIGHT” where notes are rarely played and items scanned by the sensor are easy, “STANDARD” which is a medium difficulty level, and an advanced difficulty level.” ‘Extreme’. Furthermore, there are five hidden difficulty levels: `MASTER’ where there are many notes, and `STEALTH’ where all the notes are hidden and are almost impossible to beat unless you memorize the choreography of the song.

In addition, as a gameplay element, there are hidden notes called secret spells in STANDARD scores and above, which do not display on-screen instructions and cannot be obtained in normal mode. This is a process called parallel universe which increases the score for a certain period of time, and you can only gain points by performing the choreography during the time of the effect. However, if you dance the song dance properly, it is easy to get a secret ripple.

There are five hidden spots in each song, so memorizing the choreography will be essential to discover them all.

Even though “Dan Evo” is a completely new game, there was a sense of previous experience with this game. The history of the game dates back another 12 years after the release of “Dan Evo”.

“Bara Bara Paradise.” It is a music game also released by KONAMI which started out as an arcade game around the year 2000. It is a dance game that focuses on the dance that was popular at the time, barabara. The housing has a sensor in front of an octagonal stage, you move your hand according to the things on the screen to make the sensor react and the content was barabara dancing.

A home version was later released for the PlayStation 2, which also had a custom sensor installed to reproduce the same controls as the arcade version.

[بارابارا بارادايس]

This is a PlayStation 2 controller

There were many similarities between “Barabara Paradise” and “Dan Ivo”. It involves moving your entire body, and included songs include popular hits like “NIGHT OF FIRE” and “YESTERDAY,” as well as original dance music from Konami.

However, there is a difference: in Dan Evo, not only hand movements are checked, but also foot fluctuations. “Parapara Paradise” is an extreme story, even if you only have to respond to the sensor with your hand even with a difficult score, “Dan Evo” requires your whole body to move, which is perfect for dancing to. A difficult result, you must master the choreography.

Dan Evo evolved from Parapara Paradise by keeping the hand elevated for a certain period of time and taking steps.

The songs commonly included in “Dan Evo” and “Parapara Paradise” mainly follow the choreography of “Parapara Paradise”. So, while I used to be able to scan songs by simply moving my hand along with the notes, now I literally have to “memorize from scratch with my body.” Although the music and choreography are old, learning them is new. I was enjoying this strange feeling.

Arcade version is on. Fun knowing how to show and charm others

In March 2012, the arcade version “Dance Evolution ARCADE” (hereafter referred to as “Dan Evo AC”) was released.

The overall feel is great, and the white casing is beautiful. At the top center of the case, you can see the same Kinect logo and sensor found on the Xbox 360.

“Dan Evo AC” included songs from the home release of “Dan Evo”, and also added popular J-POP and Vocaloid songs of the time, such as “Onna Shikite” and “Luka Luka Night Fever”. .” There are many original songs by Konami, and I was impressed by the strong online updates which included “Din Don Dan” and “Daisuke”, which were very popular on online video sites.

This made it possible to play for others to see by playing in a game center rather than at home. In the arcade version, several songs were unlocked by clearing certain conditions or via online updates, but official videos of the choreography were never released. However, the choreography could have been learned if users posted playback videos early on. Thanks to the community, things like “learn choreography for home use and perform it at the Game Center,” “learn a new song on a video site and go to the Game Center,” and “dance with other players” I met there came naturally. It’s done. It was as if the gaming center had become a dance floor.

It has been 13 years since its release, but this trend still continues.

Therefore, as of 2023, there will be no additional songs for “Dan Evo” or “Dan Evo AC”, and it can be said that their role is over. However, I think this lineage has not disappeared.

The reason for this is that KONAMI’s full-body arcade games are still going strong. For example, there are games called “DANCERUSH STARDOM” and “Dance aROUND” (hereinafter referred to as “Danara”).

The first is a game that focuses on taking steps, and unlike Dan Evo, the motion sensor does not detect the entire body. However, the body’s built-in camera allows you to record your dancing and post it to a video site using your smartphone. Since it’s a game where you compete for scores using only your footwork, you can create your own choreography, unlike Dan Evo.

As you play, the LED panel under your feet lights up, making your steps more visible.Since the game is played using only the basic feet, videos of players choreographing and filming are uploaded to video sites, making it fun to see the players’ dexterity.

Danara, on the other hand, is a game of close lineage to Dan Evo, a game that uses two cameras mounted on the chassis to detect the player’s movements and dance according to the choreography. . Unlike Dan Evo, the dance moves are displayed on the screen, so you can dance to a certain extent without having to prepare in advance.

The best part is that songs that were also included in “Dan Evo” are also used in these songs, and the choreography in “Dan Ara” in particular was transferred from “Dan Evo”. Dan Ivo’s lineage is still inherited.

If after reading this article you find yourself wanting to play songs you’ve enjoyed before, please visit one of our Game Centers.