StepMania

[Detrimentalist]

Does anyone else play this?

Summary: it's a music game based on DDR, although most people use their fingers to play. If for whatever reason you live under a rock and don't know what DDR is, it uses the four directional arrows in four columns and you have to hit the arrows to music. There's also a six-key mode available and a seven-key mode on sm-ssc (a different branch of StepMania). Generally stepfiles (the file that determines where arrows are in a song) are made with two-handed setups in mind for experienced players, although you can play files meant for a dance pad if you want to get better.

This is the game I waste most of my time playing, so I figured I'd see if anyone else here plays it.

Links:

The StepMania Website
FAQ (Read this if you want to get started!)

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Spoiler

Show

Videos:

Ageha 2 Greats (Player: Detrimentalist)

Screenshots:

Feel free to post scores/videos and I'll try to add them to the main post.

[MickJay]

Yeah, I've played it for a while (that is, until my mat stopped working, I didn't replace it since, and playing on the keyboard just isn't as interesting). Good fun, and lets you get some exercise at the same time. I preferred playing in the mod which emulates Pump It Up (where you have five fields arranged in an X, rather than four in +, as with DDR), it allows for much greater fluidity of movement, while making the game a bit more challenging at the same time.

[Detrimentalist]

Ah... the only pad I have slides around waaay too much; I can barely play 4s on it without it moving under my desk. I tried putting velcro on it to no/little avail. Gotta get duct tape. Duct tape fixes everything! Or I could nail it to something, but then it'd take up more space. Hrm....

Pop'n is cool, but it's not the same without the actual controller. Not shelling out the dough for that any time soon. Overall I find the keyboard aspect of StepMania easier to get into; just too time-consuming (for me) to get everything set up properly for pad.

I'm starting to get into six-key. It allows for more patterns than with four-key, although it's more complicated and harder to get used to.


For all of you FFR people, in case you don't know yet, it's back up.

[MickJay]

Yeah, I can imagine I should get that new pad one of these days, too

Sliding is a problem, but due to the carpeting, it was enough for me to adjust the mat every 6 songs or so. Have you tried using these double-sided sticky things? Where you peel off the film on both sides, and then you can stick two things together with them? These should be safer to use than duct tape.

[Drascin]

I used to play a fair bit, but it's been a year or so since I last got the dancing mat out. I'm probably so out of practice I feel ashamed to even try and get humbled by 6-feet difficulty songs .

And yeah, the mat sliding is really rather annoying, but almost unavoidable. I usually had to readjust it between songs.

[Detrimentalist]

I dunno, I'm not into pad play enough to buy anything more than duct tape. I do have carpet, but I play holding onto the back of a chair, which gives my feet an angle causing it to slide too much just with a little bit of a mis-step. If I had a metal pad or a more sturdy foam pad (this one isn't even foam) I could get into pad... I didn't get to grow up near any arcades with DDR, so it's a little hard to get into, I guess.

And that's why I play keyboard. THEEND!

[valadil]

I played all the time back in college. Since then I've always had a landlord living under me, so stomping on the floor at all ours of the night has been a bad idea. Can't wait till I have a decent basement again.

Duct tape works well depending on the carpet. My plan once I get a house is to get some large boards to fix the pads to, and just leave those propped up against the wall. Easier than applying tape whenever I wanna play.

[bue52]

Still playing it, mainly doing anime songs, and I kind of play through the keyboard.

[Thelas]

Random challenge for whoever wants to take me up on it.
It's not the best score in the world, but oh well.
http://img267.imageshack.us/g/screen...1018at650.png/

I use the ITG2 official timing windows and theme in 3.95.
The timing windows used are:

JudgeWindowSecondsMine=0.070000
JudgeWindowSecondsBoo=0.180000
JudgeWindowSecondsGood=0.135000
JudgeWindowSecondsGreat=0.102000
JudgeWindowSecondsPerfect=0.043000
JudgeWindowSecondsMarvelous=0.021500
JudgeWindowSecondsOK=0.320000
JudgeWindowSecondsAttack=0.130000

This is slightly stricter than the default ones.

[Keyboard play, obviously, if that was pad the score would almost be good.]

[Detrimentalist]

Random challenge for whoever wants to take me up on it.
It's not the best score in the world, but oh well.
http://img267.imageshack.us/g/screen...1018at650.png/

I use the ITG2 official timing windows and theme in 3.95.
The timing windows used are:

JudgeWindowSecondsMine=0.070000
JudgeWindowSecondsBoo=0.180000
JudgeWindowSecondsGood=0.135000
JudgeWindowSecondsGreat=0.102000
JudgeWindowSecondsPerfect=0.043000
JudgeWindowSecondsMarvelous=0.021500
JudgeWindowSecondsOK=0.320000
JudgeWindowSecondsAttack=0.130000

This is slightly stricter than the default ones.

[Keyboard play, obviously, if that was pad the score would almost be good.]

I have no idea what pack that's in, but I've seen the file everywhere.
If you could tell me the name I can find it myself, and that would be great

[Thelas]

I have no idea what pack that's in, but I've seen the file everywhere.
If you could tell me the name I can find it myself, and that would be great

Infection is from In The Groove.
Uber Rave a friend sent me, if you really want it I could upload it.

[Detrimentalist]

Oh, I don't have any pad packs so that explains why I don't have it.
Uber Rave I'm certain is also in another pack so I could find it, but if you want to upload yours, feel free.

[Thelas]

Oh, I don't have any pad packs so that explains why I don't have it.
Uber Rave I'm certain is also in another pack so I could find it, but if you want to upload yours, feel free.

I find that some of the really hard pad stuff [Vertex^2, Tachyon packs, etc] is harder than some of the keyboard stuff [OML, etc]
yes, I actually find Vertex^2 harder than OML... BPM changes are not fun.

[Detrimentalist]

The difference between pad and KB is that nobody cares if you use CMods on pad files when you play on KB. ;)

Anyways, about to try to beat your scores with those judgment settings.

EDIT: Okay, I can't find that Uber Rave file anywhere, could you upload it for me?
EDIT2: Holy crap, I'm gonna TeRaGe if I hit a mine during one of the hold sections of Infection again. Other than that the song is piss easy.
EDIT3: And to top it all off, a song called The Game from the same pack made me lose the game. It's just not my day, is it?

[Thelas]

The difference between pad and KB is that nobody cares if you use CMods on pad files when you play on KB. ;)

Anyways, about to try to beat your scores with those judgment settings.

EDIT: Okay, I can't find that Uber Rave file anywhere, could you upload it for me?
EDIT2: Holy crap, I'm gonna TeRaGe if I hit a mine during one of the hold sections of Infection again. Other than that the song is piss easy.
EDIT3: And to top it all off, a song called The Game from the same pack made me lose the game. It's just not my day, is it?

a) I have actually removed CMods from my Stepmania, so... [there is a reason stops and bpm changes exist. Vertex^2 is an easy 12 with a CMod, pretty much.
b) Uber Rave: http://www.mediafire.com/?jmwcb1sw15jxf3b should work?
c) The mines aren't the problem for me, it's just random lag that gets me misses. And the difficulty when playing 11s and 12s on KB isn't passing, it's getting good scores. I think the standard of "good score" is a 98 on 11s and 97 on 12s. [I can't do that, by the way. On anything.].
d) No, it's not your day at all.
e) May I take your comments on Infection to mean you beat my 93.xx easily, then?

[Detrimentalist]

I did beat your score (as far as my SM will tell me, I got a worse percentage but I only got 11 greats), but then I wasn't able to do it again because I kept getting mines. Huh. I'll remember to get the screenshot on this one.

While I play Uber Rave, enjoy these scores: (Delirium and OML)

http://imgur.com/MH60Jl&iTh3Q
http://imgur.com/MH60J&iTh3Ql

[Thelas]

I did beat your score (as far as my SM will tell me, I got a worse percentage but I only got 11 greats), but then I wasn't able to do it again because I kept getting mines. Huh. I'll remember to get the screenshot on this one.

While I play Uber Rave, enjoy these scores: (Delirium and OML)

http://imgur.com/MH60Jl&iTh3Q
http://imgur.com/MH60J&iTh3Ql

What about excellents? In ITG, Ex is only worth 0.80 of the full score for the note, not the entire thing like DDR [yeah, looking at your screenshots, you're using dance points to count, which are 1.00 for M/P and 0.50 for G. In ITG, we count 1.00 F, 0.80 Ex, 0.40 G].

EDIT: Also, DP don't deduct for bad scores... iirc, ITG is something like -1 WA -2 Miss?

[Detrimentalist]

Yeah, our percentages are way different. Still using your judgments in my StepMania.ini....


http://i56.tinypic.com/344ru42.jpg

I got approximately the same percentage as you, yet when you compare the scores mine was a bit better.

[Thelas]

Yeah, our percentages are way different. Still using your judgments in my StepMania.ini....


http://i56.tinypic.com/344ru42.jpg

I got approximately the same percentage as you, yet when you compare the scores mine was a bit better.

Yeah, that should have been a 95.95 you got there. So top of S+. [96.00 is the threshold for * in ITG. 98 for **, 99 for ***, Full Fantastic Combo {100.00} for ****]
source: http://rhythmatic.net/itgscore.php

[Detrimentalist]

Oh, that's a cool utility.
Try to beat my OML?

Also, any scores I post from now on will be with normal timing (Judge 4 on standard SM) unless someone specifically challenges me telling me to use different timing.

[Thelas]

Try to beat my OML?

Not going to happen, I haven't even FCed it.

EDIT: On the other hand, if you have 3.95 or would be willing to download it, it might be more interesting to do a nonstop course. [no cmods, though, those break marathon courses - one of wDEU's could be fun, maybe?]

[Detrimentalist]

I do have 3.95, I use it for online play. I suck at xmod but I'll give it a shot.

Just point me in the direction of the courses and the songs I'll need for them :d

[Thelas]

I do have 3.95, I use it for online play. I suck at xmod but I'll give it a shot.

Just point me in the direction of the courses and the songs I'll need for them :d

Course:
http://virinpro.com/Downloads/courses.php
Let's try... Insomnia Finale. Normal, not Intense, Normal is overly hard enough. I'll have a score up in a bit.

And wait, ONLINE PLAY?
Where can I get this?

[Thelas]

Not a great score, but marathons are always harder...
http://img818.imageshack.us/img818/2...01021at748.png

[Detrimentalist]

Well, first of all, you need a theme that supports it (most standard themes do, ITG2 theme probably doesn't). Then you need to make an account name with the same name as the profile you use on www.stepmaniaonline.eu (it's the only SMO server up right now). Then go to Network Options in the options menu and connect to stepmaniaonline.eu.

Go to start a normal game and... GASP! Your dance wheel turned into a lobby of sorts. You can talk with people and press ctrl+enter to go into rooms.

Anyways, trying that course.


EDIT: Okey, for one, my SM makes a really loud noise whenever the mod changes (which it does a lot). Second, there are two Insomnia Finales in my nonstop course list and it doesn't tell me which is Normal and which is Insane. All I have to say about that is LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

[Thelas]

Well, first of all, you need a theme that supports it (most standard themes do, ITG2 theme probably doesn't). Then you need to make an account name with the same name as the profile you use on www.stepmaniaonline.eu (it's the only SMO server up right now). Then go to Network Options in the options menu and connect to stepmaniaonline.eu.

Go to start a normal game and... GASP! Your dance wheel turned into a lobby of sorts. You can talk with people and press ctrl+enter to go into rooms.

Anyways, trying that course.


EDIT: Okey, for one, my SM makes a really loud noise whenever the mod changes (which it does a lot). Second, there are two Insomnia Finales in my nonstop course list and it doesn't tell me which is Normal and which is Insane. All I have to say about that is LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

They're both Normal by default, Intense is the harder difficulty [courses are only Normal/Intense, at least in ITG]. Courses are just kinda bugged - everything displays twice for some reason.
To deal with the sounds: what I did is go into themes, delete the two sounds labeled as Battle Attack or whatever.
If you actually like the sounds in Battle [I hate them], move them to some other folder and put them back when you're done.