Best Mix judging sheet for DJ Potatoe 9000 Remix (Gotcha Mix) HEAVY-This chart on heavy is very average. There is nothing poor about it per se as there is also nothing worth noting on the positive side. The steps are simple, revolving around basic 8th note combos broken up by the occassional hop and eventually, a series of hold notes. A few jumps line the opening and rarely make reappearences. Nothing creative here, but again, nothing really terrible either. I give this chart a 8/15 STANDARD-Another fine example of nothing memorable. Again, the steps are simplistic in their design aside from unturnylikepivotability (I just coined that phrase...don't steal it or DJ POTATOE WILL SUE!) and like the heavy steps, nothing here to really yell at it for. The jumps in the middle were a bit out of nowhere but fit ok with the song, so it's all good. I give this chart a 5/10 BASIC-These steps went with the song less than it's harder counterparts. This felt like the author hit record in stepmania song editor and just tapped along to the rhythm. This is ok in of itself, but there were parts of the "tune" with no beat where a step was placed (and not in the opening) as part of a run. Also, for a BASIC chart, pivoting is almost mandatory because you have to remember that there are beginners out there, and a newbie would have clearly fallen on his ass during this chart. In summary, nothing great about this chart, but there were (this time) a few problems. I give this chart a 2/5 PRESENTATION-This is where this file shines for the most part. It contained a humorously edited video of a famous Dragon Ball Z quote gone awry. The Background and Banner were very straight forward, containing a picture of Fajita somewhere around power level 7568 (he was raising the meter). To top it off, the song edit wasn't bad, and the file was RIGHT on beat, which I must say I enjoyed not having to push F11. This was a solid presentation that had all the basics covered. I give it a 15/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS- I strongly disliked the song choice, but didn't let it affect my judging as per the rules. It certainly got a smile on my face for the joke by itself, however, I don't think this file as a whole should move on in the tournament. The effort was good and the package was presentable, so good job to the author for not making something that could have REALLY sucked suck. :-) All The People In The World HEAVY-Nice opening steps set the pace for the majority of the slower part of the song. Ya know..the usual, a few 16ths here, a lot of 8ths there. Anyways, when the song picks up, I feel that first steps you come across don't fit the song's beat so I find myself missing some of the steps in a result of confusion. Eventually, teh steps seem to fall back into place and become a really fun treat. I enjoy the latter half of the song as it is nice and pivotable as well as having some nice hold note placements. I do in fact think that there may have been a bit too much hold note action during the close of the song, but again, it's somthing that didn't really bother me. The chart here was fun, though a little confusing at parts, but at least it kept flow pretty well. Good work, I rate this file a 12/15 STANDARD-I really enjoyed the standard steps to this. They weren't eye popping amazing or anything, but solid, I'd say YES! This is a good example of something that isn't too hard but isn't boring. Good job keeping it changing through a song thats incrediblly repetitious. In case you can figure this out, I really liked the parts that were like dada-da-da-dada. :-) Overall, I'd say this chart deserves a nice 9/10 BASIC-A nice little collection of basic notes here. As it's tough to make an impressive BASIC chart, I think this author did a very nice job. Maybe a bit heavy on the hold notes side towards the end, but ehh..shit happens and it didn't agrivate me or anything. overall, I enjoyed this and hand it a 5/5 PRESENTATION- A very simple banner and background combined with a nice video. This worked very well for the whole package. It was nothing too fancy while being memorable (IMHO). Aside from a general void at the beginning of each step chart (it takes a few to get started) they were all pretty solid. I think this whole file was a strong entry and I dub presentation an 18/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-First off, I think this song's opening should have happened a bit quicker, but it wasn't a big deal. Also, at the end of the song where the beat disappears, the tempo should have dropped to half again (I think) and it would have maybe felt a LITTLE bit more complete. The song choice was just fine, and aside from heavy repetition in the edit, there was virtually nothing wrong with it. Some parts did feel a bit stagnate though, despite step change-ups. In summary, the author did a very nice job putting this together and showed only a few small weaknesses throughout the product. Even the gap was nice and straight from the get-go. I hope this file moves on. I think it deserves it. Boss On Parade HEAVY-Wow! This was very challenging, AND at the same time, very fun! There was a NICE use of hold steps in the latter half of the song as well as some fun foot sliding. Normally I don't like foot sliding in song entries, but for some reason, this song it seemed to work...kinda like in Healing Vision Angelic back on DDRMAX. I feel that I would have failed this on my feet due to sheer speed and the barrage of steps flowing forth, but it was (especially for the 1337 crowd) a great entry. Every note fit right in with nothing left on the edges or in reserve. I think the steps lived up to the full potential of the song and this specific edit of it. Near perfect- 14/15 STANDARD-Splendid! Again, this author has managed to keep me entertained with the patterns used. This song's standard wasn't too difficult, as I believe I could have passed this on my feet no problems. The notes stuck to the song, AND the author also changed a few things around between the HEAVY and STANDARD versions as far as note cadence goes, thus keeping it interesting. There was nothing bad to say about this chart in my opinion, and as a result, another near perfect score is awarded. 9/10 BASIC-It's hard for me to excited about BASIC step charts, and as a result, I was not thrilled with this one. Did it work? Yes. Did it fill the requirements? Yes. Was it easy? Yes. All in all, this chart was nice and even although there was nothing to brag about this time around. Because of that, I haven't much more to say. :-) 4/5 PRESENTATION-This was damn wonderful package! An animated banner that differed in art from the background, and a nice solid edit that had note charts right on beat. The charts were a nice surprise for me personally, and ofcourse, no F11 toggling to be done. I wish I could talk more about this file as a whole, but I think I've pretty much covered everything I wanted to touch on. 19/20 PEROSNAL COMMENTS-I absolutely hate the song choice here. These annoying boom- tis-boom-tis-boom hardcore songs with hardly a melodic structure annoy me to NO end and always seem to find their way into these competitions. It's the kind of tune that gives me a headache, and if you press me long enough, I may even hold argument that this isn't a song at all...it's just noise. However, that being said, I found the steps more than made up for the crappy element here known as the "mp3". This was, in the end, a pleasent file for me and I wish the author all the best in heading straight to the top of this competition. Tehy deserve it. Cafe Cafe HEAVY-A lot of the steps in this song were pretty well done. I especially liked the tasteful use of gallops throughout the chart as well as some nice little runs. I felt that the mid section of the chart had a severe problem with steps not matching the beat (or what there was left of it) during the breakdown. I felt like I was playing the stepchart to like, baby baby Gimme your love over top of the song can't stop fallin in love. It just didn't work for me...which is a shame considering pretty much the rest of the song was fairly well done. With a few MINOR adjustments and a breakdown change, this chart would have been damn near perfect. Unforunatly, it wasn't....for me at least. I give it a 10/15 STANDARD-OK, now THIS was a good example of a good chart. :-) I actually enjoyed this one better than it's HEAVY counterpart. The steps all matched up nicely, the breakdown in the middle's problem was fixed, and I genuinely thought these were more fun. My only real complaint about this file at all is the abundance of 1-2-3 single foot sections about the 3/5 mark of the track. Much like anything else, many things are great in moderation, but I felt like they were maybe a school of fish who travel in large groups together. Ya know? Like, they were escaping a shark maybe, and they swam right into this note chart looking for cover. I mean, I'm glad they're safe from the predator and all, but maybe they should leave a few behind and take the party elsewhere. That's just what I think, and ofcourse, in retort, in leave this chart a classy 8/10 Stupid sharks. BASIC-OK, we seem to be back at square one. Again, I thought the author had only about half this chart in mind when working on it and just said "I'll wing it from there." Some of the chart was genuinely nice, where as other parts were very "what?" I couldn't find good reason for some of the chart and as a result, I won't give it a top notch grade. Not to worry though, it's still not a bad chart...just could've been better. 3/5 PRESENTATION-I really enjoyed the background and banner used for this file actually. It reminded me of old school DDR ones from like...4th mix. I always enjoy nostalgia. :-) Anywho, the step charts were all not bad, with the highlight being the STANDARD one. Everything was nice and on beat which I always enjoy as well as accurate difficulty ratings. Good job on a decent grade file. I award you a 16/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-I don't think the edit of the song was that wonderful. It felt very repetitious and the song choice itself wasn't the best. Vivian has done a number of good hispanic/dance songs in the past and if the wuthor likes her work, I strongly suggest they look at an old album of hers. As for the basic steps, people (this author included) tend to use a LOT pf jumps in them. Look back at the DDR basic charts- you won't find jumps everywhere because they are generally too difficult for beginning players. ESPECIALLY corner jumps i.e. up/right or down/right Just keep this in mind for next time. Carmelldansen (Speedycake Mix) HEAVY-Hey hey! This was a nice little chart! I really found this to be fun, which in case you forgot, is the most important thing. I played it 3 times because I really enjoyed it. :-) The steps were on beat, the pivoting was fun (mostly) and it all flowed together nicely. I did, however, not notice what some of the steps were following at the end until the 3rd time playing when I noticed they were following a very light background noise. Once I realized that, everything clicked into focus a bit better. Other than that, I really don't have much esle to say. It was good! Good work! 14/15 STANDARD-The chart here was mildly entertaining while at the same time keeping most the spirit of the HEAVY version. There's something at the beginning I'm not quite feeling, but other than that little nick, I felt this was fairly solid, and as such, deserves a solid grade. 7/10 baby...yeah. BASIC-OK, first off, I think the difficulty rating was wrong. It's ranked as a 3 by the file, but I would definitly say more of a 4 here. There are several groups of jumps and after the first 3rd of the song, there's a near constant step-step-step-step broken only by occasional jumps or gaps. With that being noted, I can safely say that it was a just fione step chart. It's honestly about as perfect as you can get, so I'll go ahead and slap down a 5/5. PRESENTATION-The background and banner were adorable with the smiling strawberry shortcake slices. The background is very simple but contains the cuteness apparent in the song. All the steps were decent at worst and the whole package is a strong contender in this little game. This whole thing felt like it really belonged in a DDR game, and because it gave me such a strong vibe in that catagory, I rank this a near perfect 19/20! PERSONAL COMMENTS-I loved the song choice! I loved the heavy steps especially but it was certainly all nice. GREAT work from the author of the file. You get 2 thumbs up from me, and I truly wish you the best in this competition! <3 THIS is what a file should be like all the time! (mostly) Che.R.Ry HEAVY-Not a bad little number, but I felt overall it could have been less tiring. This song combined with it's steps made me tired, like I could just fall asleep at my desk here *yawn*. It's not a poor stepfile or anything... I mean, the steps all matched the rhythm of the song, and it was nice seeing something not aimed at 1337 players, but I just can't call this file "fun." I was working hard to maintain my focus on this chart through playing, though my eyes would start wandering. I actually missed like 7 or 8 steps when playing this. Now, I don't want to sound mean, but I hope the next difficulty I play is more entertaining. 9/15 STANDARD-Well, again, the steps matched the rhythm of the track just fine. It made sense and it wasn't poorly thought out as far as patterns or arrangements. It's just....I can't in good consciousness give this chart a great rating when the thing was just so boring. I really don't mean any disrespect as I can tell the author did everything they could. It is a nice piece of work at heart, but this step chart just left me feeling empty. 6/10 for the effort. BASIC-The first time I played this difficulty, I got 1 great....while staring off into space thinking about the transformers movie. Man, that was a great movie. Anyways, I had to play it again to pay attention, but, alas, it was another struggle with boredom. I am so sorry, author, I can tell you were trying, but I just can't say anything marvelous about this or any of the difficulties. They certainly aren't bad or dissappointing by any stretch, but I just can't get behind them. The only thing I noticed that I liked here was a sorta cool hold-step-step-step pattern you had going at about the 4/5 mark. Sorry, but this chart recieves a 1/5 PRESENTATION-I'm afraid that this is where this file would have had to make up for a very lowly set of charts, however, again I feel it falls short. It DOES in fact have the required items- a readmen, .sm, mp3, a banner and a background, but as you know, just having them isn't enough. this file could have made some extra points here with a video or something, but even that probably wouldn't have been enough to save the whole thing. Well........ maybe if it was a video of tubgirl. Anyways, the background and banner isn't well put together, and I'm not just talking about the well of MSpaint going on here. I'm talking about how none of the layers of characters or effects seem to match anything else in the background. You have 2 cartoon characters who both have like a 2 pixel cel border around them and then giant cherries with a 20 pixel cel border. Then you've got a pattern in the background thats such a small piece used over and over that it looks like a quilt. I'm sorry, but I was let down by this file more than any other so far, and as a result I will give presentation a lowly 5/20. You STILL get points for effort here, but it really is not a professional package. Again, I'm sorry. PERSONAL COMMENTS-I thought that the song choice here was atrocious. It's a fine song in it's own right, but it's not much of a DANCE song...ya know...for DANCE DANCE Revolution, and it REALLY didn't help the boredom brought on by the step charts. I give the author kudos for a nice effort and steps that match the cadence of the music, but this file as a whole just wasn't my cup of tea. Who knows, though? Maybe I'm wrong and this is actually great? However, probably not. Dance In My Blood HEAVY-Alrighty, as it turns out, this was a decent composition of steps. I particularly liked the runs ending in single foot triplets around the 3/5 mark of the song. The steps all matched nicely with the music, the pivoting worked, and the jumps were well placed.I also liked the hold-pivot steps present at the beginning of the chorus the first time. This was another very solid chart. I really thought it all worked nicely together and brought the chart to a good degree of fun. This would be good times on the feet. For this, I award thee a strong 14/15 STANDARD-I really enjoyed how this chart literaly walked you through the song. Not once do you have to foot slide or even move your feet in an awkward way to keep going. These steps REALLY brought point A to point B together smoothely. I would say that the only fault I personally find in this file is that it's a bit heavy on the jumping for a 6 STANDARD. Jumping is fine and it worked, but there were a lot of the damn things in this. Anyways, with that being said, I think this deserves an 8/10 BASIC-I liked how the simple steps followed the song's vocals more than anything else here. It was done pretty well. Usually I don't like when a file does that, but since you did it in all 4ths, it lends a bit more respect to the situation as well as being more original than most. I like it! 5/5 PRESENTATION-A nice bundle of things here. I do have to admit that the charts were the best part of the package since there was nothing impressive with the background, the banner and lack of beginner steps or video/animations. Either way though, this was definitly a lot of fun and the song has a VERY VERY SOLID set of fun steps. They may not be really memorable or anything, which is a shame, BUT this is still a very good file. 16/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-I really liked the song chosen. It's a nice mix of rock and disco, which is not a typical mix up you'd hear on say....the radio. Well, American radio at least. Anyways, the edit of the song was nice too although I always clinch my teeth a bit with songs that have no definite ending. Ya know, where the track just fades out. I hate that. :-( Nonsense aside though, I thought this was good work. Another author brought their A-game this competition, and it shows. *Kanji* Guilty Sky (Danzai no Hana) HEAVY-I think I enjoyed the series of jumps during the chorus the best in this chart. It was fun to "bounce" to the vocals in the chorus...especially at that bpm. I also liked the steps at the songs conclusion that followed the guitar rhythm in sort of a run-skip-run way. Aside from those parts I just pointed out, the rest of the songs wasn't anything really special. Just your average note-by-note sync up to the music. Not to say it wasn't good, but the rest of this song just didn't POP for me. Either way, it was still a splendid chart that deserves a 12/15 STANDARD-This chart was very expectedly, a dumbed down version of HEAVY. The steps, ofcourse, matched just fine and the same patterns could be found here with just a touch less difficulty. So, with that said, it was a solid and entertaining set of steps that I could really enjoy on my feet. It also suffers from the same problem as the HEAVY steps- they were good, but nothing memorable. Nice on the whole, so I give thee 7/10 BASIC-I counted a total of 22 jumps in this BASIC step chart. As I've noted before, I think it's important to keep in mind that jumps are hard for new players. Especially at 180 bpm. And for the record, BASIC is meant for new players so they have somewhere to start. It's just a pattern I notice with stepmakers who want to keep their BASIC files interesting after making their HEAVY charts contain 700 notes. I will summarize with "Less is more." NIce file and all, but I don't think it adheres to the unwritten rules of DDR, bringing this chart's score to 2/5 PRESENTATION-Videos are always a positive addition to any file, and this one was no exception. It was your typical brooding anime opening sort of deal which matched well with the music. I wouldn't be surprised if this song was directly from that anime to begin with. Anyways, I always enjoy seeing the kanji for Japanese titles in banners, so that scored you a plus here as well as the background. It was nifty of you to throw down some beginner steps, but it still doesn't win you back points from all those jumps in BASIC. Anyways, decent work all around and I commend thee with a solid 15/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-Fan made anime theme songs in DDR is like finding water in the ocean- You can't avoid it no matter how hard you try. Personally I think this file suffers from "oh god! Shut it up!" syndrome in that I don't think this music has any place in DDR. Dance Dance Revolution is not named Rock Rock Revolution, or Anime Anime Revolution, thus I don't like speed metal anime themes in my DDR folders. I do think this whole package was nicely done and all, but even the video wasn't that interesting. It was more like panning a series of images than it was an actual video. I wasn't impressed with it to say the least. Over all, the author did a good job with what they chose here, but I believe the choice for the entry was utter nonsense...no offense. Dark Blue HEAVY-I enjoyed this chart on the whole. It had a few really cool parts, including, but not limited to the chorus guitar part with the hold-step-step-hold-step-step-step patterns and the ending with the tastefully done slow down. Everything matched and the rhythm was pretty neat. I don't have anything really bad to say, so I guess I need to give this step chart a good grade! 14/15 STANDARD-There was a nice tap-tap of holds before the chorus I thought worked nicely here. I also enjoyed the big hold with a step-step at the end near the song's conclusion. However, I think some of the step patterns didn't really match the music at all. It's like they were following a part that was maybe edited out of this mix. Who knows, but either way I have to say that the HEAVY steps were better and more fitting for the selected track. I land this chart a decent 6/10 BASIC-These steps were fairly straight forward and without complication. They had an unfortunatly large amount of jumps for a BASIC step chart, which as I pointed out is all too common with stepfile makers not paying enough attention to difficulty. It wasn't enough to really lose it any points though, so whatever. I figure this chart deserves a nice 4/5 PRESENTATION-With a nice banner and a decent background, I think this was a pretty fair package. All too often are tempo changes misused in DDR step files, but I found the tasteful addition of the bpm change a nice combination with the rest of the presentation. I especially liked the addition of beginner steps and a good edit/cut of the song itself. I give this file a 16/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-The song choice here was pretty bad considering it was just a generic pop rock ballad. Again, no dance song to be found here, which I don't like but the surrounding elements were enough to make me not hate it. I could also see exactlly how the background and banner were made, which conisdering my horribly low level of Photoshop skill means there wasn't a lot of effort involved. I gave this entry a good score in all because of decent steps, a nice tempo change and a fair visual package, but the truth is that if we were aloud to judge song choices, this would have fallen VERY flat by my rules. Lucky the song choice doesn't count. Elysium (S&B Mix) HEAVY-Here is an example of a chart that isn't offensive or wrong in any particular way, but can definitly be classified as "room for improvement." The very typical latching on to the cadence of the vocals wasn't done in any particular way.....wait! Let me take that back. It was in fact done in a particular way- the unpivotable way. This wasn't a fun set of runs like you'd find in Healing Vision where the foot sliding is a jovial mismatch of the intended set, but more of an out-of-place throw together where the author wasn't paying attention. I could, ofcourse, be wrong about this, but IMHO (1'm S0 1337!?&%) this song could have shaved down it's corners for a smoother feel. This chart is certainly playable on feet and all, but I can't condone the confusing foot action of this chart. It just wasn't special for me. Sorry, but this only gets a 10/15 STANDARD-These steps were ok I guess. There was a part I didn't like in the first 1/3 where I felt, again, the author wasn't paying much attention to what part of the song he/she was stepping. I feel like the majority of the song was being done on purpose, though there were parts that seemed like more of an accident. It just wasn't great for me, but honestly felt a little more natural than the HEAVY version. I suppose I'll give this chart a 6/10 for at least effort. BASIC-Alright! Now THESE are good BASIC steps. Probably the best I've seen so far! You ranked them a 3 and they were IN FACT a 3! I'm amazed at how pleasent this chart was in comparison to some others, and I LOVED the fact that there were only like... what? 3 jumps in the whole chart? NICE! The pivoting wasn't a big deal this time through because of the steps being far between and carrying NO 8ths. Good work on this one, author! 5/5 PRESENTATION-A decent edit of the song and some great BASIC steps are the only eye- popping factors from this file for me. Sure, the HEAVY and STANDARD charts didn't totally suck or anything, but it was obvious to me that BASIC is what this song is all about. Newbies everywhere I think would really enjoy this on their twinkle toes. The whole package was very mediocre all together, but I find that I don't hate the presentation. It was what it was supposed to be (I think) and that's always a good sign. Nothing great, but I'll supply it with a 13/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-This song needs to stop being so repetative. There is NOTHING even close to interesting about this song choice in any way shape or form. I think the author should have chosen something less repetative and more fun. I believe their full step writing potential could have been realized with something else under their sleeve instead of da--da--da-da. It's always a shame to see something like this as part of a file. Anyways, I applaud some decent effort here, but really, try to get something a little more interesting next time. Best 'O luck. Good Bye CHALLENGE-I hated every second of this ITG-esque trap of a file. The synth solo part screamed to be put out of it's misery, and this was specifically mentioned to be a DDR sim file contest, not an ITG simfile contest. I understand that CHALLENGE steps are meant to be harder and really try a player, but that was on a different level. Again, the ITG level. Anyways, the long and short of this is that I didn't like it. Not for one second. If you want a good challenge stepfile, look no further than some of the remixes in the DDR series...study those. I hate to be a jerk here, but the way I see it, this file was a jerk to me. Here's hoping the next files will be better. :-( BTW, you at least get a point for effort..I'm not THAT heartless. 1/8 HEAVY-Much much better than the CHALLENGE steps, though still horribly off in the difficulty aspect. I don't like in a DDR world where an 8-footer means jump-step-step jump-step-step and more 16ths than D2R x6. This was a 9...easily. Well, moving on, I'll point out on a positive note that the chorus sections were pretty cool and decently fun. I thought that if the rest of the song were dumbed down to an actual 8 footer, than the chorus would have fit right in and I would have liked it a lot more. I think that this author still had ITG in mind when putting this together, which pretty much means this file was lost from round 1. I find that less is more in DDR songs. They end up appealing to more people and seem to come out more fun. Again, I'm no pro, but I've been playing music games since their delightful appearence in the U.S. and started playing DDR avidly when 4th mix was new...in Japan. before the whole 3rd Korean popularity launch. I have an idea of what I'm saying is all. Anyways, you had some OK ideas here, but these previous 2 are making me dread STANDARD. Let's see what you've cracked up for me. BTW, 5/10 STANDARD-Now here ya go! WAY better! For starters, this was ACTUALLY a 6-footer AND the steps weren't ITG oriented at all. Nice job. I think that your choosing to step pattern around the 16ths was good except where you didn't. Some times you chose to follow the patterns, and sometimes you didn't. I don't know where your reasoning for this series of events came from, but it's not that big a deal, as it was all still very nice. Easily the best of the group of difficulties! I award you a near perfect 6/7 BASIC-Thankfully you were right on par with difficulty again, making me just a wee bit happier. :-) These steps were a nice little 4-footer whose personality didn't really show through, but I suppose it didn't really have to since most DDR songs get their personality from thei HEAVY charts. The long and short of this is that it was solidly OK. I have no major complaints and it's jump-heavy chart was a bit more warranted than most. Also, like usual with this, I enjoyed the chorus section the most. I award you a 4/5 PRESENTATION-Man do I really like th background for this file! Nice use of the color pink and it really captures the feel of the song. The music and BKG went together smoothly here which I was happy to see. I have to say NICE WORK! I wasn't SOOOO impressed with the banner, but it's ok because it still didn't suck. As a whole, I think this author did OK here. certainly nothing flawless about it, but it was DEFINITLY a great effort all around despite my anger at the CHALLENGE steps. For the good work of pulling the whole picture together nicely, I give presentation a solid 18/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-I REALLY liked the background for some reason, but I guess that makes up for the extremely foul hatred I carry for the CHALLENGE steps. (NSFW) FUCK THOSE STEPS!!! I think the author has a lot of talent with simply the wrong idea about what was expected here. I wish I could see them do something else for this contest. Also I think the song feels a bit long. Maybe a lengthy edit, or it could just be my imagination. Either way, their package was solid and I think overall it was pretty OK. Should it make it to the enxt round? I don't know...probably not. There have been a lot of great entries so far. Here's to hoping they continue. Hanafubuki (Kou ni Tayutau Ai no Uta) HEAVY-I think I truly enjoyed this file from beginning to end. It was fun, upbeat, a kind of neat asiany song complete with acurate difficulty steps and even a decent tempo change. The only thing I would have done differently here is to remove a few of the gallops that didn't seem to belong, but that's not important. The chart definitly felt like it belonged and carried a certain "old school" DDR style I couldn't help but enjoy. VERY good work here Mr/Mrs Author San. I award you a great 14/15 STANDARD-Again, a very "thumbs up" worthy chart. It stuck to the same ideas that made the HEAVY so good and managed to be less difficult as well as fun. I really don't have like, a big speech prepared for this file considering it wasn't faulty enough to deserve a lot of criticism, BUT I will say that even back in the old days, I would have enjoyed playing this on STANDARD. Good work again. 9/10 BASIC-Fearfully, I regret to say this is my least favorite difficulty level of this song file. I really could've imagined some great ferestyle on this if it weren't for a mass of quick foot sliding and a lot of jumps. Don't get me wrong, it was pretty fun and lived up to it's set foot rating, but I think some of it could have been better in the end. Don't worry though, it was still solid enough and fun to score you a decent 3/5 PRESENTATION-Saying that this song's greatest attribute is it's step files would be somewhat of an understatement. I REALLY loved the files except for the extras- like the video. It was just some Extreme/Max 2 clips thrown together...nothing special worth scoring extra points over. Also, the background/banner combo wasn't very impressive visually.....it was just randomly colorful. I don't know..I just had some minor problems with it. I think the whole package was decent here, but honestly it could have been more professional looking. I nail the presentation with a 9/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-The greatness of the steps alone should drive this song into the next level, but I'm afraid the presentation might be enough to keep it back unfortunatly. I liked the song choice well enough, but I'm not sure how it's gonna stand out from the other anime-esque theme songs this contest is sure to produce (and for the most part, already has). I do wish this file the best of luck for moving on. Good job. Inferno HEAVY-Honestly, I'm not sure how I feel about this chart. On ONE hand, the steps certainly do go with the song rhythm very well, and on the other hand, I think it was a little chaotic...even for an 8. More like a HARD 8, or even an easy 9. Anyways, There were a lot of jump-step-Jumps throughout the number and more than a "dash" of 16ths. If this were a stew, I'd call it salty, but slightly delicious. I really found myself cocking my head to the side, like a dog who's thinking "Did somebody say BACON?!" So this leads me to ask myself again- was this a good sim file step chart? "It's BACON!!!" I'm afraid not actually. A bit too chaotic for what I was expecting. So I have to say that this won't earn the highest of points from me, HOWEVER it will still get a good score for being overall pretty good. 10/15 STANDARD-Aside from a slight problem with a mid section part, this file's steps were a pleasent addition to my night. This was simply put- a nice chart. I really liked the ending where the last 4 steps were a run backwards, like you're stepping down from completeing the song. It was simple, yet it really caught my eye. Thanks for a fun time, author. The ONLY problem is the difficulty. definitly NOT a 4 footer. Anyhow, nice work. *puffs cigarette* Call me. 8/10 BASIC-The steps here were pretty good as far as BASIC steps go, but you've made the same mistake twice now. And I have to crack down hard this time because it offends me more due to it being your second offense. And this time it was BAD! Absolutely NO 2 footers in DDR history have 4th runs, multiple jumps, more than 10 hold arrows or that many notes in whole. 2 footers are easy. Actually, they're EASIER than easy. They're only preceeded by 1 footers...which usually are only a step every 4 beats. What you had there was way more a hard 3/easy 4 than a 2. It was pretty obvious. I think almost everyone will agree with me on this one too. Sorry, but this time around, it'll cost ya. 2/5 PRESENTATION-I think the presentation here was pretty groovy. The video was a fun addition to an otherwise middle grade set of files. The background and banner were nice looking and added to the package wonderfully....as well as the beginner steps. ALTHOUGH, mistake #3! Those steps were definitly not a 1 footer. THOS were more like a 2 footer. You are HARD pressed to find even 1 jump in a 1 footer. Well, that aside, the package here was complete- files, video, song, beginner-heavy. It was pretty solid. DO A BARREL ROLL!!! 17/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-It's hard to get over the blatantly incorrect difficulty settings here. The author did a nice job, especially with the STANDARD chart, but there could have been more here...and no, not MORE STEPS. I could have used a bit less of those actually, but overall I wasn't really dissappointed. I think maybe a shot at the title is worth it, and this will probably make it through to the next round. Good luck. Je t'aime Je t'aime HEAVY-A nice set of pivots followed by some basic foot steppery following mainly the vocals and the lead synth in the anime-ish song. This was very mediocre. It's almost what a lot of the J-pop anime stuff in this competition is turning into. This is another good example of there being nothing inherently wrong with the file, but it also just blends into the background for me. Nothing eye-popping here. Nothing to get truly excited about. Nothing to get angry about. Nothing to do really except land this file a nice mediocre grade- 10/15 STANDARD-Hmm....I'm not sure what to say really. This file certainly isn't bad, but again, it's lacking in anything to step it forward. Nothing fancy to speak of and in turn, nothing to write home about. This is what I would call a "filler" or in the world of pro wrestling, a mid-carder. This file is here to fill the space that is required to be filled. I'm also curious to know how much effort was REALLY put into this. Apparently the author had enough common sense to not make it suck, but I guess they were banking on the "anime" thing to pull it through. Sorry, but this chart doesn't cut very much mustard. Maybe about a spoon ful of mustard. Yeah. But why would anyone use a spoon for mustard? Ehh..anyways, I slap you with a spoon full of 5/10 BASIC-Definitly a 4 footer...and much like it's siblings, nothing to scream about. At this point, sadly, I just want it to stop. The song is starting to wear on me, and I have a headache. As far as the steps go, I just can't think of any real criticism other than PLEASE try to make something more interesting next time. I mean, it didn't suck, so you're off to a good start, but I really wanna remember all the files I play. This just won't happen here. 3/5 PRESENTATION-A VERY beautiful background, which IS something to write home about stars in this file's moment of glory. The banner is OK, but much like the step files, doesn't really do anything for me on the inside. Not bad though. There's nothing special sitting in the extras here. Maybe next time you could include a director commentary track explaining your stepping decisions. That would make a great special feature and would probably quell some of my internal demons with this file as a whole. Plus I'd totally give you more presentation points for it. All in all, I think this gets a 12/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-I want to be blunt with you because I feel you're mature enough to handle it.... CUT THE DAMN SONG IN HALF! This was waaaaayyyyy too long for me. There is NOTHING worse than a 3 minute song with uninteresting steps. Plus this entire file is put together so similarly to a few other anime songs in this competition that it really has found no place in my heart. I'm sorta getting sick of it all at this point. Not to say you didn't put some delightful effort into some corners of this song, but it's just not enough to move on. Sorry. :-( Now take that advice and run with it. Metallic Mind HEAVY-Splendid! I generally dislike stuff like this, but this, my friend, you made work for you, and it shows. You really slapped a bunch of effort into this, I can tell and I think it's paid off. The 16ths were MOSTLY well done. I didn't like the steps with "c'mon c'mon" in it, but I guess I'm just nit picking. My favorite parts were the fun pause and the well executed tempo slow down at the end, and combine that with a well pivoting song thats right on beat, how can you really go wrong? I award thee an almost perfect 14/15 STANDARD-This was a GREAT time on my feet and I found absolutly no flaws in this file no matter how hard I try. I played it 3 times. I have just one thing to say: 10/10 BASIC-I loved how you used well placed hold arrows to cover up things you just can't do on a BASIC file. I also loved some of the revolving patterns in the middle, and I can't help but feel this came together well with a solid amount of effort. The most impressive part was a SHINING EXAMPLE of how to use 8ths in a BASIC song and make it work. Everyone pay attention to this file. It's even freestylable with a rave dance! Perfect, which ofcourse earns you a faultless 5/5 PRESENTATION-This was the cat's pajamas as far as a total package goes. I probably would have given this a perfect score if it had a neat video or something, but either way, this file is excellent with some great steps and a solid enough background and banner. I am impressed with all of this, and as such- 19/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-This was an excellent set of files! I HIGHLY commend the author on a job well done! This is the highest scoring song I've done so far despite the fact that (yes, I must say it and be honest) I HATED the song itself. It's a dance game song, sure, so it fits, but I found it to be a headache. I hate music like that, and if song choice was able to be a part of grading, you would have lost a fair amount of points for the song I have redubbed "Bangy McLoudington." Luck is on your side, however as I have given you remarkable pointage. Congratulations, and may this file make it deep into the finals. :-) Nano Risk CHALLENGE-16th runs into jumps? Nope. Jump-step-jump-jump-step-jump? Nope. More jumps than Maxx Unlimited? Nope. I think the author was going for the ITG thing as well, which is NOT what CHALLENGE steps are intended to be. They aren't meant to be ridiculous! It's a shame I hate this so much too based on the fact that the HEAVY steps were absolutly excellent. If you want another few ideas about GOOD CHALLENGE steps, check out V on Supernova or even Dance Dance Revolution on Supernova. While checking those out, I'll award you a 1/8 for effort. HEAVY-Not a bad piece of noise! I liked it for the most part. The long runs were top notch on the fun scale, but I found a lot of the steps during the vocals to be hard to follow based on the fact that you didn't follow the vocals, but instead kept with the background music. That's fine and all, but the vocals are VERY prominent in that specific part, and as such, the patterns of the steps start to get lost which is a shame. It was a slight annoyance, but mostly this chart left a good taste in my mouth that I just can't deny. Good work, Autobot. 9/10 STANDARD-Some of the pivoting was a little bit obnoxious here, but this file more or less stayed true to the original. It was still very fun, but at the same time, it wasn't different from the HEAVY version. It's like all the same ideas and patterns were used but just in an easier format. Because of lack of creativity on this one, I'm gonna deduct a bit, but on the whole, still a nice step chart. I award thee a 5/7 BASIC-A simpler version of the prior steps, but I really liked 'em. Classy use of 8ths in a BASIC chart as well as some tasteful use in jumps. I'm a bit impressed with this one, as you've also accurately set it's difficulty, and ofcourse, everything was right on beat. Delightful I say. Near perfect for a 4/5 PRESENTATION-What a swell presentation! I really liked the artwork in the background and banner, as well as most of the step charts involved here. It's obvious some nice effort was applied to an otherwise prude situation. Again, aside from silly-ass CHALLENGE steps, this should belong in the top groups. It looks pretty, it plays pretty, and it even smells nice. I know cuz I checked. ;-) A job well done and a presentation well recieved- 16/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-We need to stop this ITG crap. It hurts my inner soul and gashes at my pride. Anyways, with that out of the way, I thought the song was interesting and the steps were a pretty good thumbs up through and through. Seriously though, I hate that CHALLENGE shit, and as a result of this and Goodbye, I will forever fear the upcoming CHALLENGE charts, no matter the talent of the author. Nettaiya HEAVY-HELLS YES! This was a home run of a file! My favorite by far! EVERYTHING worked here! The song was crazy into it, combined with fun uncomplicated pivots and well placed jumps. The rhythm was upbeat and the steps flowed AND matched perfectly. They followed a little vocals, a little song rhythm, a little cuts, a little melody and ALOTTA AWESOME! I can't say one bad thing about this. Here it is- the first perfect HEAVY file so far! 15/15 and it deserves every bit of it! STANDARD-Another award winning performance! I loved the way this author DID NOT OVER USE 8ths in the chart! They used 'em sparingly and only when warranted! Everyone take out your text books and take notes! I also admired the author's ability to IGNORE the breakdown when it came to steps. Because it's such an obvious place to fill stuff in, any other person would have done it in a flash, throwing a quick 8th run to match the beat, BUT in true DDR style, they left it alone because the break downs are NEVER the focus of steps in reality. That's why they're a breakdown. Anyways, I can't say I dissapprove and as such, another hand slappin' score is awarded! 10/10 BASIC-WOW! Another fantastic chart! Here's another example of where to take notes! This author stunned me again with their attention to old school DDR detail. Notice, everybody, that the jumps in this song were ONLY UP/DOWN and LEFT/RIGHT! There were no corner jumps in BASIC songs in DDR's pit of a stomach, and there were none here either, showing once again that this author knew EXACTLLY what they were doing. It was fun, easy and for me, most importantly, FREESTYLABLE! I can't help it! Another perfect score!!!! 5/5 PRESENTATION-Sweet jesus! Does the greatness ever stop?! A set of decent beginner steps, a FANTASTIC bakground and banner! I loved the yellow/dark blue theme they had going on there. The cut-out kanji was nice looking and went great with the surfer shorts background patterns. Ya know? Trees, sun rays and stripes. This went divinely with the music rhythm and feel of the whole package. I REALLY enjoyed the whole togetherness of this file more than any other so far. I didn't think I'd say this the entire tournament..I really didn't, but here it is- 20/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-WTF!? This was sooo great I can't even believe it. Whoever this author was astounded me to my core. They brought more than their A-game, they brought their AAA game!! *DDR joke* There wasn't a damn thing wrong with this file at all. I even ENJOYED the fact there was no video. It would have taken away from the fantastic surfer shorts background image! And I have NO desire for that to happen. Good job. No...GREAT job. As of right now, this deserves to win in my ever wacky opinion. I truly hope everyone takes note of these comments because some of you can learn a lot from this guy/gal. <3 S.U.K.I. HEAVY-Well, that was very interesting. As much as I want to dislike that, it was actually pretty good. I can't say I'm overly thrilled with it due to some weird turning of the body, but there were some good uses of hold arrows throughout the chart, except at the beginning where I thought they overdid it just a smidge. I did really enjoy some of the simple runs at the beginning- they were mega fun. The only part I frown upon was the tempo change which I felt was largely un-needed. It seemed like it was there just to be there. I know now a days there aren't as many tempo changing songs as there used to be cluttering up these contests..which is good! I think we should keep it that way, so in the future, let's try not to just throw them in a song because the beat drops out for a measure...k, dawg? Supergreen. You earned a nice 12/15 STANDARD-I have to admit that I needed to play this a few times because my attention was being distracted by the little fuckin' plant 2nd from the right. He was ruining every other plants routine by being off a tinge. That plant should be tried for treason. Fuck him.....*back to the subject at hand*.... This file was very much like the HEAVY one with a few altercations. I would have very much liked to have seen the tempo change gone, but what can ya do? I liked some of the hold arrows in this, but other than that little smidgen of information, I can't think of much else to say. It was fairly good with little in the way of memorability. Like I said, these anime songs tend to blend together for me. Luckily you still get a 7/10 BASIC-Here was an accurate 2 footer. Nicely done. VERY simple and easy to do. No jumps and a fine lack of ending. I think well of this chart and without hesitation, I'm giving it a 4/5 PRESENTATION-Unfortunatly, the video being present wasn't really anything special. Sure, it was different than anyone elses video, but nothing HAPPENS in the video. The only thing that happens is that damn plant ruining everyone elses time. I mean they didn't even lead that into anything! They could've had the plant get bitch slapped by his neighbors, ending on those delightful lyrics "I love you, I, I love you!" Yeah, that woulda been great! Anyways, the Background and banner weren't memorable and pretty much confirmed my "anime song" theories. Although it was a fairly OK all around package, I think the steps were better and as such, my grade will go from there. 12/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-God damn that plant! I found the steps to be a nice collection, but I can't help that you guys LOVE anime music. It's really just running together at this point and I want to hear other things from you people. Surprise me, or I may drop dead at any point here. Author, good work on the steps though, especially the HEAVY ones. Good feet fun! Hope this one makes it through. She Blinded Me With Science HEAVY-These steps tend to want you to start on the right foot, which isn't natural for a lot of the pivots and runs and especially where they drop you off at. I also found the 16ths a bit un-needed in this chart as nothign there really warranted it. Alot of the patterns didn't change at the beginning making the orchestral stabs repetative and eventually obnoxious. The 2nd 3rd of the song was nice and tolerable though. Nothing horrible there. If I could change something about this song, I would make it a little easier on the jumps because they seemed to overdo it a bit. That's just my opinion. Anyways, nothing really great here, so I'm unfortunatly left to give this chart a 7/15 STANDARD-There must be a family gene that makes both these files so far have the same problems- Too many jumps, repetition in the orchestral stabs and weird pivots that end you awkwardly. I was less impressed with this difficulty than I was with HEAVY. There's a lot of cleaning up here to do, and honestly, it was fairly uninteresting. These brothers should see a doctor about those issues and maybe start taking Viagra. ...shut up. I have no idea why I said that either. Fine- 4/10 BASIC-Thanks for finally toning down the jumps. But, I'm afraid it's too little too late. the steps here didn't really keep my attention for long and I found myself staring off into space. They werent' really awful or anything, just ridiculously uninteresting. I did notice while playing that I need to clean off my desk though, so I'll probably go ahead and do that next. Anyways....err....the steps didn't do anything for me, and my desk needs cleaning, so 1/5 PRESENTATION-Amazingly, I really liked the background/banner duo that was here. I thought it was kind of simple, yet to the point. Good use of solid color and a pretty organization of the "atom" patterns on screen. I do admit that the files were largely uninteresting, and with a lack of video or anything along the lines of beginner steps, I have to grade the whole package fairly low, despite the pretty colors. 10/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-I don't have anything important to mention here. I mean, this was a fairly poor effort I think. I could be wrong, as always, but I think this was entered just to be entered. I don't know how much work was put into this aside from the Banner/BKG combo. I apologize if I upset or offend the author in any way as that's not my goal or anything. It's just...I have to be honest as a judge, and I think this was bottom rung when you add it all up. I'm sorry. Better luck next time. <3 The Eleventh Hour (Clockwork Revelations) HEAVY-LOLOL HAHAHAHA! What the FUCK!?!? LOL LOL This isn't playable. This is worse than ITG. I'm sorry, but I'm going to assume this was a joke entry and as such- JOKE/15 (0/15) STANDARD-Crap. 0/10 BASIC-Crap. 0/5 PRESENTATION-The background was worth a point or 2, but my inability to swear loud enough at this file has taken away what it would have recieved there. 0/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-I don't like joke entries usually. I mean, the Fajita thing was kinda tastefully done because its a joke we all love and it was kind of a song...with steps. This file was awful and I can't even give serious commentary on it based solely on the fact that it was dirt. I can't even think of a 4 letter word I want to scream. How fucked up is THAT?! I can't even THINK of a 4letter word. That's like amazing! That's how bad this sucks! It's stopped me from thinking of FUCK words. FUCK. Plus, not one of these is accurately placed in difficulty. None of these would be less than a 10. Just because of the tempo changes, this song CAN'T be a 7. It's impossile....like this song winning the competition. Oh god..FUCK, this sucks!!! Time (Wideboys Club Mix) HEAVY-This was a decently interesting chart. I can say that some of it was really fun, but ofcourse, on the other hand, a lot of the steps were repetative. They were more or less good, but I think this track could have shown a bit more diversity in it's step arrangements. The whole gallop into a short 1-2-3 was really nice at first, but the entire song carried that trend down to the last part before the creative ending. It like, fakes you out, but oh yes, here's the real ending right after. Even though I'm disappointed a smidge with te over-and-over again present here, I do feel that the song was cool and fun enough to play more than once. In my final critique, I think maybe this song had some jumps where jumps shouldn't have been. Not that there were too many jumps or anything, but there were some gallops, 8ths and then a jump on a 16th place. And it wasn't just once, it was half the song. Anyways, I deliver this file a solid 12/15 STANDARD-That sure did have a lot of 1-2-jumps in it for a STANDARD song. Not really saying thats awful or anything, but it was just a little out of place. I think it could have done with less of those as that pattern hits about 16 times in the chart. Also, there's no need for that hold at the end to be so long. At that point the song is over, and the only thing standing between me and my score (and the post score song selection) is that damn hold arrow. Blah. Other than those observations, I must admit nothing else really caught my eyee. I suppose nothing else was really offensive here, so I'll grade this with a 6/10 BASIC-Again with that damn hold arrow at the end. I'm afraid that my problems with this chart don't stop there- they only begin. Next on my "eww" list is the jumps... a lot of them, and there are corner jumps EVERYWHERE. A BIG no-no for a BASIC step chart, and then if that weren't enough, that's right, there are 8ths!!! C'mon...This is a DDR simfile contest, NOT AN ITG SIMFILE CONTEST! this was stated clearly in the rules at the beginning of the tournament. On TOP of all that, those 8ths were ONE FOOT 8ths. AT LEAST they could have been left-right-left or up-down-up or something easy for a new player, but alas..they're ONE FOOT 8ths. Appauling. I want to be nice to you author, for having a nice solid set of steps in HEAVY and having some passable steps in STANDARD, but these BASIC steps deserve this, and I'm sorry 1/5 As always- you still get the point for effort. PRESENTATION-I have to say up front that I'm not impressed with the background and even less impressed with the banner. The package here doesn't appear professional to much of any length, and to add to the disaray, the video was just a collection of random DDR videos. I mean, I applaud you for throwing the little bit of extra in, but your efforts would have been better spent cleaning up the step files for better points. Sure, everything is here and that's nice, BUT this file as a whole is disappointing. Sorry author, but I don't think this should move on. 8/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-This was a big let down for me as a whole. When I heard the song sample I thought "Hey! This is like a DDR USMAX sorta song!" and I got a bit excited. However, I then played it, and though the HEAVY steps were cool enough, I wasn't feeling the rest of it...at all. I do applaud you on a good song choice though. I like that track. :-) Vodka HEAVY-OK! After playing that 4 times, I believe it's time for judging. I'll start off by saying that the steps here were absolutly wonderful with some fun and easy pivoting that would absolutly rock on the feet. The patterns obviously followed the vocals mainly and then took a few steps off the beaten path here and there. This was OK and all, but because the song's chorus raged on for about 1/2 of the chart, the chorus steps kept a going too. Fun steps, YES, but repetition will kill anything in too large a dose. Anyways, it wasn't NEARLY enough to upset me as I think this is a winner of a chart! I had a great time and I'm glad that the author chose these steps! Also, good use of a slow down into a puase! <3 14/15 STANDARD-Same sort of coolness I expected once playing HEAVY. This chart was a little on the jump-o-rama side of things, but again, it's someting I can excuse as it was still loads of fun. Pivoting was great and most importantly it really flowed together well. I don't think there's really anything else for me to point out here as I think it was a fine file. Again, not perfect, but damn close. 9/10 BASIC-I tink this is the least impressive chart here. Again, you're really sticking to your jumps, which were on the numerous side for a basic song...especially a 3 footer. However, I appreciate that all your jumps were up/down and left/right, so you at least stuck to an unwritten rule of DDR. For THAT I'll spare you the point I was going to remove for the heavy jump set. Also, I think you should kept something in mind that most people don't think about- This is a song that would obviously be picked by freestylers for it's silly theme and funny video, so adding hold-step-step was a downfall to that group. When I make files, if the song would be a freestyle favorite, I try to be kind to that group of players by giving them a nice freestylable chart. I know this isn't super important, but I thought it was worth mentioning. Anyhow, still, a good job was done and I give another near perfect score. 4/5 PRESENTATION-Aside from some fantastic steps, this file's obvious star moment falls on it's video. First, I want to say that a lot of effort went into this and I like how the song begins and ends with the background image, making it all feel very complete and tight. Also, I liked that background image! It was kind of simple in part placement and definitly made you think "motherland" with the red and white. NOW, the video was great...especially LA LA LA. LOL I like the progression where everything gets blurry by the end due to "drunkeness" and the effects there of. A ton of effort went into this complete package, including a set of beginner steps. Altogether, a great file for this competition, and I hope this one makes it to finals. Presentation earns 20/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-Nice song choice! It's like this song was a joke entry without actually being a joke, and being fun above all. The video made me laugh and I thought putting it all together was tastefully done. This is a wonderful entry and I wish it the best on it's trip through BEST mix. Wish HEAVY-I want to start off by applauding the author for having the guts to enter a song of such a low difficulty. And NO that's not an insult. I'm glad to see something here that isn't trying to be difficult in order to keep people's attention held. I ALSO want to applaud them for steps that don't just follow the melody or vocals...they went a little out there with some of these and I want to thank them for making this a file that really went with the musical choice. It would have been silly to make say....a 9 footer that went with the rhythm of this, and because of that little fact, I'm not gonna take away as many points for this step chart being blah. Yep, I know, I said it. As much as I respect this chart for a small number of things, there is also a dark side to the force, young padawan. I just couldn't find much in the way of memorable steps here. It's not that they were poor patterns of any sort, but it's just nothing great. I'm sorry, but I played this one 4 times looking for something to save it because I really wanted it to do well. Anyways, I'm sorry, but because I didn't like it and only found it "eehhh", I only give it a 9/15 STANDARD-Well, I liked the steps as far as an easy STANDARD set goes, but there just seems to be little one can do with the given rhythms I guess. I don't think this file author was incompetent or otherwise we wouldn't have gotten those solid good things out of the HEAVY steps. Anyways, because there's nothing to keep interest or fun here for long, I'm afraid I'm wielding a 4/10 on this one. BASIC-Unfortunatly, this is another example of the afore mentioned problems, HOWEVER these steps would have been a nice freestyle set if done well, so I just wanted to point that out. :-) past that, however, there's nothing really all that good to say, but again, nothing really bad to say either. I will give you a deserved 3/5 PRESENTATION-I was impressed with the video and un-needed BEGINNER steps. The background and banner were just fine and the step charts all around were stable... not really memorable, but stable. Everything matched eachother ok and it looked just fine. Good job pulling everything together well. 16-20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-I really think the song choice was poor. I just can't help but say "ehh" when I hear it. You can tell this is from IIDX right off the bat which is fine, but I'm thinking that out of all the IIDX songs to pick...why this one? Is it because it's one of your favorites? I'd let that slide then. I can understand entering something because you really like it and not because it would work. I've seen it many times before. But anyways, thanks for giving us a file that isn't a 9 footer and has matching steps. I give you at least a thumb and a half up! Yamato Nadeshiko (Maxxx400 Infinity Style) CHALLENGE-The steps fall behind in the first 1/3 because of a (poorly placed) un-needed freeze. It's waayyy too fast, it's steps are near impossible at 400 bpm, too many jumps, poorly placed holds, unpivotable, etc etc. Crap 0/8 HEAVY-Same problems, and WOULD be playable on hands (not feet) if it weren't for those un-needed freezes at the beginning. But because this is playable on hands (even though that isn't the point at all) I will give this 1/10 STANDARD-*sigh* 1/7 BASIC-......1/5 PRESENTATION-Nice background...I'll definitly give it that. Has that MAX feel which I guess is needed whenever you make a bad simfile. I'll give it a 7/20 PERSONAL COMMENTS-AGAIN, this is a DDR simfile contest. This would NEVER appear in DDR. This was just another painful file like Eleventh Hour. I'll assume that this too was a joke entry. However, I wasn't laughing. This, ofcourse, does NOT move on in my opinion. 't Smidje HEAVY-Not a bad set of steps going on here. There were only a couple real things to speak of on the negative side- one being that some of the fiddle solo parts were just 2 steps over and over again for about 8 beats (right,down,right,down,right,down,right down,right,etc) So those could have been more interesting to bring it all together. However, it was a fun little jig that has dome cool galloping around on 12ths. The hold arrows were well done (especially in the end) and it wasn't too jump heavy. This would be a treat on feet, I think. 12/15 STANDARD-This one you did get a little pricey with the jumps-at-cost. However, I like a lot of the simplified patterns of this chart. I liked the da da-da da stuff roaming through the verses of the song. Nice work. Nothing really to say except that you get a nice 8/10 BASIC-Ooo..those corner jumps in a BASIC song are gonna cost you, I'm afraid. And this chart too felt lofty in the jump region. So, not only were they everywhere, but you trhew in those corners. Hmm....Other than those, this would have been decent to hop around on. Nothing remarkable here, but it served it's purpose. 3/5 PRESENTATION-I admit I really like the background and banner. The whole "wooden table supporting a charred piece of parchment" thing definitly worked with the song quite nicely. The steps were all fair to good and the package felt pretty whole. There was nothing eye popping in this package, but it certainly wraps everything here up nicely! 15/20 PEERSONAL COMMENTS-I liked this osng a lot on it's own, but I don't think it really belonged here in this competition. I mean, it was really nice to see a 3/4 song and not a 4/4 song for a change in this bracket, but it was too...uhmm....real for me. I know that sounds weird, and it's dually hard to explain, but DDR music has a pre-designed cheapness to it that goes through the entire series and gives it it's own feel. For example- Most of the non Bemani songs in DDR are covers or remixes and very rarely are the actual tune. The only ones I can think of off hand were those old 2nd mix days (I don't include US PS2 songs here). Anyways, to sum this up, this song felt like a real work and a real song, and wasn't a US pop remix or a sugary J-pop euromix track. I'm not knocking DDR, or you, but I think this was 2 different worlds that you brought together, and I'm not sure how well it works. Good work on the file though!! :-)