thoughthead

Those that know me well know I’m a DDR fan. I was excited that a new DDR game was coming to the Xbox 360. Since the game came out last week I’ve played it nearly every day. One really really evil thing they’ve done though is they’ve made the unlockable songs only availble through quest mode (along with achievements for unlocking them). The other evil thing they did was offer no instruction what-so-ever for how to use quest mode, nothing in the game itself, nothing in the booklet. The mode isn’t exactly apparent either, it’s actually quite confusing even if you know how it works. Because of that I wrote a quest mode guide. I actually submitted this to both Xbox.com Achieve360points.com and GameFAQs.com but NONE of them accepted it, I really have no idea why, they all just ignored my submission. So I’m posting it here and hopefully it will come up in some searches. This isn’t something I plan on doing very often.

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Dance Dance Revolution Universe – Quest Mode Guide
Written by Twistedsymphony
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I.   Introduction

II.   The Basic Premise

III.   The Map
III.A.   How to use the map
III.B.   Special Envelope Icons
III.C.   Crown Icons
III.D.   Controlling the location of Competitions and Special Events
III.E.   The regions

IV.   Challenge Types
IV.A.   [COMBO] Challenges
IV.A.1.   Making Jump and Freeze Combos easier
IV.B.   [FANBASE] Challenges
IV.B.1.   Fanbase Scoring
IV.C.   [DANCE RIVAL] Challenges
IV.D.   Special events
IV.D.1.   Unlockable Songs from Special Events
IV.E.   Competitions
IV.E.1.   Unlockable Songs from Competitions

V.   Gameplay UIs
V.A.   The Dance Screen
V.B.   Between Songs
V.C.   Quitting Challenges
V.D.   The Music Selection Screen

VI.   Purchased items

VII.   Final Thoughts

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I. Introduction:
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For someone going for Achievements or a DDR fan just trying to unlock new songs, Quest Mode is one of the biggest pains in DDRU; mostly because it’s incredibly confusing, and neither the game nor the booklet offer instructions on how to make your way through this mode. I’m here to help you with that.

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II. The Basic Premise:
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The ultimate goal is to become the best Dancer in all of North America. North America is split up into several regions each region contains several states/provinces/territories (for ease of writing I’ll just refer to them as “states”) and each region has an associated color. Once you clear at least one Challenge in each state of a region you will be able to enter a contest against the best dancer in that region. Once you beat the best dancer in every region you will be able to enter contests against the best dancers in all of North America to become the best Dancer in all of North America.

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III. The Map
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III.A. How to use the map
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Between challenges you’ll have access to the map, you’ll be able to choose where to travel next using the up down left and right buttons. Locations that are off-limits will be blacked out (You can only ever move one state beyond states where you’ve won), locations that you can travel to and have not won at yet will be a darkened version of that regions color (states that border states where you have already won), if you’ve completed a challenge in a state it will be shown in a bright version of the region’s color. If you lose a challenge in a particular state it will return to a darkened color and you will be required to play that state again and win. You will only ever need to complete one challenge in each state to complete a region; the type of challenge doesn’t matter.

Moving a cursor over a city it will tell you the state name, the city name (always the capital of the state), it will show the path you’ll travel to get, how much money you’ll earn by completing the challenge in that state,  how much it will costs to travel to that state, and the number of backup dancers you have in that state.

Once you select a city to travel to you will zoom in an the map will follow a bus or plane as it moves from city to city along the path. Cities with competitions available will be represented by a large trophy and a fountain of music notes. Each city you stop in along your way (including your destination) will offer a random chance to purchase backup dancers, music clips, or video clips (see  section “VI. Purchased items” for more on these things)

The top right corner of the screen tells you how many music clips and how many video clips you’ve unlocked.

The bottom of the screen will tell you general information about a highlighted destination; it will also alert you when a new Special Event or Competition has appeared. The amount of money you have available is listed here as well.

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III.B. Special Envelope Icons
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Envelope Icons represent Special Invitational events, the small number next to them alert you to how many days the Special Invitation will remain (assuming each challenge completed represents a day). The appearance and location of Special events is random. Also several Special events could appear at once.

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III.C. Crown Icons
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Crown Icons represent Competitions, you have unlimited time to choose to enter a competition. The location of a competition is random. There can only ever be one regional competition; however there can be multiple North American competitions once the first round has been completed.

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III.D. Controlling the location of Competitions and Special Events
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There is a trick to controlling Where competitions and Special Events appear. Because the game saves at the end of a challenge but before the map appears the location is generated after the save. You can use this to your advantage because if you see the event has appeared in a state you don’t wan you can simply push “B” to go from the map back out to the Difficulty/Character select screen and then push “A” to to back to the map. You’ll see the congratulatory message for completing the last challenge again and the competition or special event locations will be randomly chosen again. Keep doing this until they’re located in the states you want. Once the game has been saved (by completing another challenge) the locations will be locked in place.

If you’re trying to get a competition in a particular state but aren’t yet ready to compete. use this method to keep refreshing the map until it’s where you want it, then go compete in some easy competition (the easier ones typically give you less money) when you finish and the game is saved the location will be locked in. If you’ve accidentally locked a competition in a location you don’t want. Then simply start the competition and then lose, you will be required to win that state again but once you do the competition location will be randomly generated again. This isn’t necessary for Special events because there can be multiple special events at any time.

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III.E. The regions
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The regions (listed in order of increasing difficulty) and their associated states/territories are as follows…

Western Region (Green):
Alaska
California
Colorado
Hawaii
Idaho
Montana
Nevada
Oregon
Utah
Washington

Canadian Region (Orange):
Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
New Brunswick
Newfoundland and Labrador
Northwest Territories
Nova Scotia
Nunavut
Ontario
Prince Edward Island
Quebec
Saskatchewan
Yukon

Southern Region (Red):
Arizona
Louisiana
New Mexico
Oklahoma
Texas

Northern Region (Blue):
Arkansas
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
Nebraska
North Dakota
Ohio
South Dakota
Wisconsin
Wyoming

Eastern Region (Violet):
Alabama
Connecticut
Delaware
Georgia
Kentucky
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Mississippi
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia

Honestly the naming and grouping of these regions doesn’t make any sense to me, not to mention it’s incredibly unbalanced… but hey, what do I know.

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Iv. Challenges Types
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There are three types of Challenges in this game, the kind of challenge you face is random (except for competition an special events). Also there is no way to tell which type of challenge you will face in a particular state. However the prize money offered will often clue you in to how difficult a particular challenge will be.

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IV.A. [COMBO] Challenges
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Combo Challenges will often include an Icon with a business man who puts up money to see you complete a specified number of consecutive steps. Once you enter the Challenge you’ll see a combo count-down at the top of the screen, to the right of your characters icon. If you break your combo you’ll see an explosion on the screen and the count down will reset. The status bar will fill as you increase your counter here as well Once you meet the challenge goal the count down will stop and the status bar will start flashing rainbow colors. At this point you can continue your combo, quit, or just stop playing and wait for the song to end. Once you’ve completed the challenge it doesn’t matter what you do. If you don’t finish the combo in one song, you can immediately start a new song and your combo will pickup where you left off. You can continue to go song after song indefinitely, even after you’ve completed the goal.

There are some different types of Combo Challenges too. Sometimes there will be a [JUMP COMBO] or a [FREEZE COMBO] In these challenges the rules are the same with one big exception. the only steps that count for or against the combo are freeze (step and hold) or jump (two directions at the same time) steps respectively. These challenges can be considerably less demanding however you should pick songs that have a high rating for “Freeze” or “Air” depending on what type of challenge it is. This will help ensure that you have enough of the types of steps you’ll need. In these modes the rest of the buttons don’t matter, you can completely ignore them or you can step along if you’re board. I like to follow the song normally just to make sure I’ve got the timing down. You’ll see the normal combo meter build but the only one that matters it the countdown at the top.

Playing on “Difficult” I like to use “Don’t Play Nice” by Verbalicious for the Jump Combos and “BRIGHTNESS DARKNESS” by SPARKER for the Freeze Combos. Your tastes may differ.

==IV.A.1. Making Jump and Freeze Combos easier==
If you can’t find a good song here’s a little way to make it easier. During Song selection hold the “A” button on the song you want and it will bring up the arrow options, you can then change the song to all jumps or all freezes. Every step in the song will be of this type giving you lots of opportunity to get the combo down. Just be sure to remember to change this back to normal the next time you pick a song as it will stay however you set it… unless of course you like jumping or freezing all the time.

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IV.B. [FANBASE] Challenges
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Fanbase challenges are some of the hardest challenges in the game. Basically you’ll have a set number of “fans” you need to earn to complete the challenge, the difficultly comes in that these fans need to be earned completely in one song. you can try as many times as you like but unlike combo mode your status will be reset with each new song until you lose (by quitting) or complete the challenge.

==IV.B.1. Fanbase Scoring==
Fans are earned with each step. Normally each completed (great or perfect) step is worth 4 points. Combos mean absolutely nothing. You can improve you points per step by purchasing items. If you’ve purchased a music clip for the song you will get an extra 2 points per step whenever you play it. if you’ve purchased a video clip you’ll get an extra 2 points per step whenever it’s playing in the background, and if you’ve purchased any backup dancers you’ll get an extra 2 points per step for each backup dancer you’ve hired in that state.

Completing most of these challenges on the “Basic” difficulty can be impossible unless you’ve got help from these bonus items. Since the fanbase resets after each song, most songs simply wont have enough steps to complete the challenge Even playing on “Difficult” will require some of these items to complete challenges toward the end of this mode.

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IV.C. [DANCE RIVAL] Challenges
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Dance Rival Challenges are similar to Fanbase challenges but with some subtle differences. In this mode you’re competing for fanbase against a Rival Dancer. You can’t view the actual number of fans you’ve earned in this mode, the only thing you have to go by is the meter. The goal is to get a set amount of fans ahead of your rival. In other words you have a moving target; so when you screw up your lead will diminish rather then just stop. If that wasn’t enough your rival also has access to bonuses such as music and video clips which in some cases can put you at a disadvantage such that even if you perfect combo a whole song you will have finished with less of a lead then when you started, thankfully though your rival cannot have backup dancers. Also unlike fanbase challenges you can carry your progress from one song to the next indefinitely until you lose (by quitting) or complete the challenge. Just like the other challenge types, once you’re meter is full it is locked in like that and you cannot lose.

Unlike other challenge types Dance Rival challenges are a wager. You’re required to put up the prize money up front and if you lose your rival will take it, but if you win you’ll get your money back plus that of your rivals.

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IV.D. Special events
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Special Invitational Events appear on the map as Envelopes, these will always be worth a good chunk of money, but they are also some of the most difficult challenges in quest mode. The little number next to the envelope represents how long the invitation will be available. If you think of each challenge as a day Invitations will only last 3 days. When the count reaches 0 it will no longer be available. Don’t worry if you pass up an Invitation, it is possible for them to appear again.

Special events are always “Fanbase” type challenges though they are often much more difficult. You are not required to compete in any Special events but in addition to cash, special events in certain states will unlock particular songs

==IV.D.1. Unlockable Songs from Special Events==
Listed in order of increasing difficulty. New York’s special event has a fanbase goal of 1960 with the other special events decreasingly lower by about 100-150 fans:

Think Ya Better D – California “Special” Invitational
Cachaca – Washington “Special” Invitational
Healing Vision – Ontario “Special” Invitational
Koibito – Texas “Special” Invitational
Stop Violence! – Missouri “Special” Invitational
Treble, Bass, and Attitude – Illinois “Special” Invitational
Drivin – Florida “Special” Invitational
Love Me Do – New York “Special” Invitational

If you need for a special invitation to appear in a particular state see the section above on (Controlling the location of Competitions and Special Events).

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IV.E. Competitions
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Competitions will appear once every state in a region is fully colored, they will be marked by a crown icon. The location of the competitions is random. Competitions are always “Dance Rival” Type challenges and like the Special events they’re much more difficult then the regular event they’re based on. Competition events will tell you the prize money right up front and usually worth about as much as special events. Also in addition to money all regional competitions and two of the national competitions will unlock new songs.

==IV.E.1. Unlockable Songs from Competitions==
Listed in order of increasing difficulty:
Bongo – Western Region Competition
Xenon – Canadian Region Competition
Return of the Toe Jam – Southern Region Competition
Tir Na n’0g – Northern Region Competition
My Only Shining Star – Eastern Region Competition
Maximizer – North American Competition (Silver)
Paranoia Evolution – Final Competition (Gold)

If you need for a special invitation to appear in a particular state see the section above on (Controlling the location of Competitions and Special Events).

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V. Gameplay UIs
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V.A. The Dance Screen
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The dance screen looks very similar to arcade mode but there are a few important differences.

Above the arrows you’ll see a HUD, This includes an icon of your dancers face with a completion bar below it. To complete the challenge you’ll need to fill the bar. How you fill the bar changes slightly depending on the challenge type (explained above in the ” IV. Challenge Types” section). Once the bar is completely filled you’ll get a “cleared” message and the bar will start flashing rainbow colors. At this point you can completely blow off the challenge; the bar will never drop back down once it is cleared. You can exit right away by holding down the back or start buttons. Or you can wait until you complete the song. While it might be nice to simply quit out once you’ve completed a challenge you stand to make extra money if you score higher then required (at least in Fanbase type challenges), so I’d recommend at least completing the Song you’re on.

In Dance Rival challenges you’ll see a second dancer icon that represents your rival. Above both of the icons there is a red “Fever” icon. This will glow when you’re in Fever mode. Basically Fever mode happens whenever one of your purchased video clips is playing in the background. There is nothing special you have to do to trigger this it will happen automatically. Just be sure to play as well as you can during fever mode for maximum points.

On occasion you’ll see your progress bar scrolling right with orange and white lines. This means that you own the music clip for the song playing in the background and are receiving bonus points with every step. During Dance Rival challenges the empty space in the status bar might scroll left with blue and white bars. This means that your Rival owns the music clip for the current song and they are are receiving bonus points with every step; which can be really bad for you.

Backup dancers will be shown in the background along with your own avatar. Rival Dancers do not appear in the background.

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V.B. Between Songs
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Once you’ve completed a song you’ll get a “Cleared” or “Failed” screen. The message displayed depends on whether or not you completed the challenge on the preceding screen. If you see “Failed” do not fear though, you can push the “A” button and play another song. In Dance Rival and Combo modes the next song will have you picking up right where you left off so you can finish your combo or gain on your rival. Fanbase mode however will reset your status bar whenever you start a new song. Unfortunately you cannot pick the next song, it will be randomly chosen. However any arrow options you set in the song selection screen before starting the challenge will remain set.

If you do nothing during this screen you will automatically be taken to a new song whether you’ve completed the challenge or not.

Pushing “B” will end the challenge and take you to a results screen. When you exit the results screen but before the map loads is when auto saving will occur.

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V.C. Quitting Challenges
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The only way to lose a challenge is to quit by going to the results screen or holding back or start during a song. You can continue playing new songs indefinitely whether you’ve met the challenge or not.

If you can’t bare to lose a challenge you can cheat by quitting to the Dashboard. At any time push the “Guide” button and then the “Y” button to exit back to the dashboard it will be as if you never even played the challenge you’re currently on. DO NOT do this while the game is saving or you will corrupt your save. Even if you’re on the results screen, you can quit back to the dash as long as you do it BEFORE you leave the results screen of the challenge.

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V.D. The Music Selection Screen
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The music selection screen is similar to the screen you’re used to in Arcade mode. Up and down change the difficulty, left and right select the song. Holding A on a particular song will let you adjust the arrow options. However you leave this screen will be exactly how it will start when you pick your next song, this is important to remember because if you change the arrow options they will stay changed.

An important difference in the Music selection screen is once you’ve purchased some Music clips you will have a small blue circle with a note in it directly to the left of the song’s title image. More importantly is that when competing in a Dance Rival challenge the same icon will appear upside-down and to the right of every song your rival owns the music clip for. Unfortunately there is no way to tell which songs you or your rival have video clips for.

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VI. Purchased items
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When you travel, each state you stop in (including your destination) is a random chance to buy upgrades. You can think of this as leveling up your dancer. There are three kind of things you can buy: Music Clips, Video Clips, and Backup Dancers (how these can help you is covered above in the IV. Challenges Types” section). Backup Dancers are only good for the state you purchase them in, however Music and Video clips are good anywhere. You should plan on buying whatever becomes availble to you as you’ll need as much help as you can get later on in this mode. The top right box on the map will tell you how many Music clips you’ve purchased as well as how many video clips you’ve purchased. AFAIK you cannot unlock video clips for songs where a real music videos play in the background (songs like “Feels Just Like It Should” or “Everytime We Touch”).

Music clips are good for the entire song which makes them the best item to purchase. Backup dancers are good for entire songs too but they are only good in the state where you buy them, though you can have as many as 8 Backup Dancers in a state. Video clips often work across multiple songs however they are only good for a few seconds of each song they appear in. The power of Video clips doesn’t really help much until you have enough of them that your clips are playing almost the entirety of most songs.

Contrary to the Achievement descriptions, you cannot purchase new songs. New songs are only unlocked after completing specific special events or competitions (covered above in the  Challenge Types section). Most unlocked songs, however come with their associated music clip which is really nice (though for some strange reason “Stop Violence” doesn’t).

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VII. Final Thoughts
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This game mode is a complete pain in the ass. I love DDR but the only reason I played this mode is for the achievements. I only hope this guide helps others out because I was completely lost when I started and had to figure most of this stuff out on my own. Thanks to The Xbox.com forums, while no one there helped directly many talked about experiences and allowed me to solidify my own experiences and suspicions into a confirmed truths.

If you find anything in here is inaccurate please send me a PM or XBL message.

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No reproduction of any kind unless granted by Monsters or Twistedsymphony.    2007
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