This game includes a dance pad Pump It Up features choreographed steps for each song and a five button mat that lets the step designers reward players for not just where they put their feet, but how the feet got there. The game features over 80 songs, including new music for the console version from cutting edge artists such as Grammy nominees Crystal Method and Steriogram, as well as Elvis vs. Junkie XL;, Earth, Wind and Fire; and Sugarhill Gang. Music familiar to fans of the arcade
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26 of 26 found the following review helpful:
Getting tired of DDR lately...?Oct 17, 2005
By Christian H. Kim I've been playing DDR(Import versions) since it came out for PSOne and was sort of growing tire of it when I was getting to play PS2 versions(US versions)- then heard about "Pump It Up", which is suppose to be more popular than DDR in Asia, Europe, and South America regions- and decided to give it a try; and understood why it was more popular in other regions after few tries.
I definitely agree with other reviews that it feels more of dance moves than just stepping like DDR; Pump it Up added only one more step button in middle and changed '+' format of DDR into 'X' format instead. However, result is quite different because you gotta cover more space and extra step to fill in, resulting in dance-like movement and more rhythm to dance to.
Yes, I guess if you are THE veteran in DDR, you could probably do the headspin and 360 and all, but casual players like me felt more of dance movement because of the middle step button. It's only an extra stepping button yet it's like math where 2square (2x2)is 4 but 3square (3x3) is 9, exponentially giving more variation/freedom to the player.
I did some research when I decided to purchase this game and the feedbacks were overwhelmingly positive; one of my concerns was what if they give you this crappy dance pad since it's coming out at the end of PS2's life cycle?? I did a direct comparison with DDR dance pad (one that came as a package with DDR Extreme, 3rd installment in PS2) and not only it has better surface feel to it (more of synthetic nylon feel instead of sorta 'sticky' plastic feel of DDR if you play in bare feet; I always had to wear socks to play DDR but don't need to do that with PIU) but most importantly it has more 'meat' to the dance pad, which is easier on your feet for a long playing time (I play about an hour- looking for a cardio workout??).
Like I said I'm a casual player, but I consider myself pretty good in DDR since I've been playing it for years...and could pretty much cover all the difficult levels in DDR... yet it was a different story with PUMP. May be I haven't gotten familiarized with the 'X' format quite yet, but it becomes way too hard if you are trying to finish even a 'hard' mode(ok, I just blew my cover as a 'pretty good' in DDR... hehe..but PUMP is objectively harder than DDR... try 'CRAZY' or 'NIGHTMARE' mode... you better be in a good shape).
I used to love DDR when it first came out... The idea was refreshing, and I could feel the effort of people involved in making DDR on every step I took on DDR dance pad- yet I feel recent versions have been more of rehash instead of 'evolutionary'; I don't really feel 'soul' in them anymore.
Well, if you are into DDR (or have grown tired of DDR these days)or looking for a dancing game (seriously, just play this sucker for an hour everyday and see what happens) then give Pump It Up a try because you will fall in love with it like I have. Last DDR game lasted only couple days...yeah...but PIU looks even more promising after two weeks of playing. It's probably because of various genre over more than 100 songs and creative background video for each one of them (I believe some of background videos are so cute like cartoons..even kids in elementary will love them).
Ok.. gotta go now for another round of PUMP IT UP...I'm out of shape
11 of 12 found the following review helpful:
Fun enough that you'll forget it's exerciseSep 26, 2005
By F. Webb I haven't tried all of the different dance pad games. I bought Pump It Up because its movements were supposed to be more fluid, and its movements more natural and dance-like.
I found that because the steps are not random, (each song has a set routine), I can easily spend an hour doing the same song over and over trying to do it more accurately. As I start to learn a routine I can sometimes get through the more difficult sections without having to keep my eyes on the screen - which helps.
The pad seems to be good quality. On my rug it does slip slightly so that I might need to move it back in place every few songs. On a wood surface it doesn't slip noticably at all.
I'm still a beginner, so I can't say how advanced users will find the game, but don't expect to outgrow Pump It Up for a very long time. The game has plenty of locked features that can be unlocked through gameplay, so I would definitely suggest getting a memory card if you don't have one.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
Pump it Up is bestJan 22, 2006
By James Batson
"Brackenfish"
I was at a party and we played dance dance revolution all night long. It was so much fun that it was hard to tell that I was actually getting some well-needed exercise. I decided to go ahead and get it for my xbox. At the store they had about 5 to 1 ratio of dance dance revolution to another option called Pump-it-up; in fact Pump-it-up was around the corner displayed away from all the dance games/accessories! After reviewing the boxes I decided to go with pump-it-up because it had a 5 step buttons on the pad vs. the 4 on dance revolution.
Once I was home and playing I was so bad at it and I was sure that I could never do any of the dances on level 3 or up...they were crazy fast! In fact, after the short tutorial I was getting D's and C's on level 2! (For some reason there is no level 1 songs; it starts you on level 2 in home mode). Anyway, once I spent an hour with it I was quickly doing the level 2s...and what fun! Now I can't believe it but I am getting A's on level 5.
All these dance games are fun, however I am so glad that I went with Pump-it-up over dance dance rev. The extra button makes it more dynamic and the placement of the buttons is more natural. The music is fun and works great with the dances.
Cons:
I can't seem to find a place to buy another dance pad. I talked to a friend who simply purchased another game bundle to get another pad so his wife can dance at the same time as him. I'll probably end up doing the same (yeah it is that good and worth it).
At first there are only a few games available in HOME mode; to get more you have to play them in ARCADE mode first to unlock them in HOME mode. There are many more level 2s in ARCADE mode for practice. The problem is that ARCADE mode stops you dance if you miss to many steps and you have to start over at the main menu screen...this is frustrating to me because I am just using it for HOME mode.
So, I think it is a difficult choice but the best choice. (Difficult because dance dance rev. has been around the longest and everyone seems to know about that one and never heard of pump-it-up. So it is kinda scary going against the crowd to buy this...however; it is so much more fun than dance rev. you won't have any regrets)
PS> I've lost 30 lbs!
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
ExelenteJan 11, 2010
By Ana A. Cruz Martinez This game is perfect, I didn't have to buy the air climber or any other item to lose weight so is 2 in 1 you lose weight and you have a lot of FUN. No puede haver otro articulo que haga lo que este tapete, una vez que te aprendes las canciones, empiezas a sudar y a divertirte, no se necesita ningun otro aparato para hacer ejercicio, yo recomiendo este articulo ademas ya no necesitas ir a un night club para bailar.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
tons of fun and a great workoutJan 18, 2009
By sibylvain83
"sib"
I love love love pump it up. I got into the dancing game thing a few years ago, when I was 23 already, and I started with Pump it Up, when an arcade version happened to be at a hotel I was staying at. I lost several pounds and really got good at it, and wanted to get it to play at home. I couldn't find it so I tried DDR. Really, I don't like DDR. I don't like the 4-step pad or the cheesy songs. I love the songs for pump it up, and I like the 5-step pad. Once I found pump it up on amazon.com I retired my DDR games and pads.
based on 18 reviews
( 18 customer reviews )
