STsung

KONAMI released Rock Revolution for Nintendo DS. It reminds me of beat’n'groovy… why is everything so pro-western? It does not look good.

Three days have passed since the test location of Jubeat started in Tenpin Bowl located in Acton, UK.
One credit costs 2 pounds and that gives you two songs to play.
The machine has 20 songs on it.
e-Amuse is off.

I think that (e-amuse off) might be one of big disadvantages of the game. Because jubeat seemed to be quite targeted at online play and internet ranking. If we get this game in Europe without e-Amuse it won’t be as motivating as it could have been with e-Amuse.

The American game similar to Pop’n Music is now available for download for those who own Xbox360. You can buy the game for 800 points (worth about 10USD) or you can just download the demo which contains three playable songs and see how the game look likes.

KONAMI announced that they will release 17th Pop’n Music in February 2009. The game’s full title is Pop’n Music 17: The Movie. The main color of this theme is light purple.

We don’t know much yet except that the game will be aimed for both beginning players (Enjoy mode) and expert players. KONAMI also announced that they will be organizing e-amusement events regularly and that new licensed and original music will be in the game.

Go check the Hardkore of the North video on my youtube channel =>
Hardkore of the North

14 days before the official launch Positive Gaming has sent out press release containing more information about iDance.
As all you may already know iDance is a new dance game by Positive Gaming. It is a four panel dance game featuring songs by PG selected music artists (various genres) and featuring step charts by step artist from the community. The judgements are in stars not in words as we are used to. 3 yellow stars are when you are on time, two green stars when you are a bit off and one blue star when you almost missed the arrow. no star means a miss.

Features

- Up to 32 players using RF-based high range wireless transceivers.
- Over 100 licensed songs
- A minimum of five step charts and difficulty levels per song
- 1 to 3 simultaneous difficulty levels during play
- 3D game engine.
- Real time scoring (star system)
- Early-late timing indicator (nice graphic will show you also in the end how your timing was)
- Direct player feedback in all game modes
- remote controlled interface
- Regular software upgrades with new song packs and features (once per 6 months)
- Durable and light-weight wireless Positive Gaming(TM) dance platforms
- Optional space effective transport and storage cart for up to 16 dance platforms.

Newly confirmed songs

- Behind The Horizon - Daniela Elger
- Bollywood vs. Hollywood - Xaviaro
- Crocodiles - Cat Jahnke
- In The Hall Of The Mountain King - Digital Explosion
- Hardkore Of The North - Dr. Tanner
- Kleine - Shiki
- Million Feelings - Floren Cristea
- Party Hard - Neo Cartoon Lover feat. Daddy Boastin
- Tek Drum - Ryan Blair
- We Met Dat Night - Vospi

Pentavision announced an official American release of DJ MAX game. This game will be named DJ MAX Fever and it more or less a merge of DJ MAX Portable 1 and 2.

The second release announced and tested last month is DJ MAX Technika. It is an arcade machine of DJ MAX meant for the Korean audience (for the time being). But beware it’s nothing like pressing 4-8 buttons on a PSP. It has a new gameplay system. The arcade machine consist of a screen and a big touch pad/screen. The touch pad screen is divided in half vertically. Notes of the melody of the chosen song appear on the screen. A bar goes from the left to right. As it goes and reaches the notes the player is supposed to confirm the notes by touching them on the screen.

There are three types of notes. Normal notes that just need to be pressed. Freeze notes that need to be pressed all the time till the bar does not touch them and some kind of slide notes. Those are notes that can be played by “sliding” your fingers in the direction indicated on the screen.

Now Pentavision announced even more releases. DJ MAX Portable: Clazziquai edition and DJ MAX Portable: Black Square. Black Square is a DJ MAX Portable game that follows the series. Thus new songs from not that really known artists, returning songs from DJ MAX Portable 1 and 2 and the same gameplay difficulty and setings. Clazziquai is a DJ MAX version is not targeted at hardcore gamers but for more general audience. The game is easier compared to other DJ MAXes and features more known songs (k-pop). Also Pentavision hopes that this game will be played also by female players.

Samba de Amigo

The only game that interests us at SEGA stand is Samba de Amigo. Announced quite a long
time ago was a Nintendo Wii version of Samba de Amigo. A game played usually with two
controllers in a shape of maraca. Maraca is a Latin American percussion musical
instrument. This game will let you be the maraca player. You have to confirm notes that
come from the middle of the screen at one of the six receptors located on a imaginary
hexagon few cms away from the center of the screen (of course you confirm the notes
with music^_~).

The game is same as any other Samba de Amigo game. Of course songlist is different, see below. The only new thing I can think of is that Ulala is a playable character in the game and that there is also a full space station stage.

SEGA had many people telling you how to play the game and you could come to the stage and compete with Sonic the Hedgehog in Samba de Amigo.

From my personal feelings the game just does not feel right when played with Wiimote and nunchuk instead of maraca controllers. Both make the sound of maracas but wiimote and nunchuk has completely different feel when you shake them with music.

Songlist

Bellini - Arriba Allex
Las Ketchup - Asareje
Gypsy Kings - Baila Me
Charo - Borriquito
Chelo - Cha Cha
Ozomatil - Como Ves
Miami Sound Machine - Conga
Jennifer Lopez - Do It Well
Dee Lite - Groove Is In The Heart
Harry Belafonte - Jump In The Line
War - Low Rider
Ken Woodman - Mexican Flyer
Bellini and Mondonca Do Rio - Magalenha
Lou Bega - Mambo No. 5
Perez Prado - Mambo No. 8
Santana - Oye Como Va
Perry Como - Papa Loves Mambo
Rihanna - Pon De Replay
Tito Puente - Ran Kan Ran
Santana - Smooth
Wavegroup - Solo Tu
Wavegroup - Tango With Me
Wavegroup - Un Aguardiente

Well, the game’s being around for few days and people are really having fun to play this game. I wonder how popular this game will get.

Anyway more to the game play mechanics. You already know that you have to confirm the panels that light up with music but I guess everyone wondered when exactly the panels were supposed to be confirmed. People could think that it needs to be confirmed as fast as possible, but those playing BEMANI games were like “there has to be something like ‘just great’ window”. And there is actually one. The just perfect window is at the time when the panel is full lit.

Songlist:

KONAMI original

ki☆ki - Happy Happy
Mutsuhiko Izumi - Polaris
Mutsuhiko Izumi - Snow Goose
Mutsuhiko Izumi - 天国と地獄

License

AAA - BLOOD on FIRE
鈴木亜美 joins �*田ヤスタカ - FREE FREE
Mi - Good bye little girl
Chris Brown featuring T-Pain - Kiss Kiss
川嶋あい - My love
�*ードオブメジャー - PLAY THE GAME
ANNA inspi’ NANA(BLACK STONES) - rose
Scatman John - Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)
VILLAGE PEOPLE - Y.M.C.A.
THE BOOM - 風になりたい
mihimaru GT - 気分上々↑↑
RIKI - �*�！ミッドナイト
MINMI - シャナナ☆
FUNKY MONKEY BABYS - ちっぽけな勇気
Do As Infinity - 冒険者たち

Cover

BONNIE PINK - A Perfect Sky
Ai + BAND - BELIEVE IN LOVE
浜崎あゆみ - BLUE BIRD
UVERworld - endscape
POLYSICS - I My Me Mine
Nolans - I’M IN THE MOOD FOR DANCING
嵐 - love so sweet
大塚愛 - PEACH
平井�*� - POP STAR
絢香 - Real voice
Rip Slyme - SPEED KING
コブク�* - YELL ～エール～
THE BLUE HEARTS - �*スしてほしい
倖田來未 - �*ューティーハニー
レミオ�*メン - 粉雪
Crystal Kay - こんなに近くで…
ス�*マスイッチ - 全力少年
山下智久 - 抱いてセニョリータ
MISIA - 太陽の地図
BUMP OF CHICKEN - 天体観測
サンボマスター - 光の�*ック
NANA starring MIKA NAKASHIMA - 一色
YUKI - ふがいないや
ZARD - �*けないで

Hidden

Kozo Nakamura - Jumping Boogie
kors k - Special One
Jimmy Weckl - Icicles

Today KONAMI announced 2 big and long awaited news. ….

1. DDR X is going to be an arcade release! (as well as the CS one, but everyone knows that already).

2. Jubeat is going to be finally out! Site is opening on 24th July so it’s going to be soon!

edit: Jubeat is out.