Teach me the ways of the beatmasta!

beatmania, beatmaniaIIDX, beatmania III

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Teach me the ways of the beatmasta!

Post by djfooboo » Wed Mar 16, 2005 10:07 pm

So here's the deally:

I have Beatmania.
I suck at said Beatmania.
I would enjoy sucking less.

What are some good tips? I would like to eventually get off beginner. If it matters I have 6th and 7th. In the process of getting 3,4,8. What are some good skill building songs/songs to avoid?
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Post by MonMotha » Wed Mar 16, 2005 10:58 pm

In my experience, it all comes down to practicing and getting a feel for the controller (and the same applies to Pop 'n Music). I still miss the keys sometimes, much to the detriment of my score.

You'll hit a time when you think you're not going bad, but you're just not doing well enough. Beatmania is a very difficult game. There's a reason 5.1.1. is on that game.









It's to make you *think* you can play Beatmania.
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Post by God Of Rock » Wed Mar 16, 2005 11:08 pm

Same as DDR probably, play until you're good....

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Post by chocobojoe » Thu Mar 17, 2005 11:11 am

Just keep practicing like crazy. Play slower songs on high speed mode so you can get used to reading them. Since it's the home version you don't have to worry about losing money if you fail, so play hard songs to challenge yourself a lot. The more you play a certain song the more used to its patterns you'll be, and you'll start to notice similar things in other songs, much like DDR, only with 8 things to worry about hitting instead of 4.

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Post by ShammerS » Thu Mar 17, 2005 12:13 pm

Do yourself a favor, and don't become a 'pecker'; use only one hand on the keys and the other on the scratch. It'll make your skill rise exponentially faster than the alternative, and needless to say, it at least looks much more impressive.

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Post by chocobojoe » Thu Mar 17, 2005 12:29 pm

"Pecking" --as you call it-- works just fine for me. It's easier to hit white/blue combinations that way, I think.

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Post by Merk » Thu Mar 17, 2005 1:09 pm

As someone who considers himself pretty good at BeatmaniaIIDX I can tell a few things to do in order to improve in a hasty manner:

Don't play 5 key at all. IIDX is after all a 7 key game and 5 key will just teach you bad habits.

The first obstacle you'll have to overcome is getting a feel for the keys and knowing how the notes on the screen should be hit. It's easy at first to get notes on the screen switched up in your head and having you fumble around to hit the wrong key, so just learn how to read everything and hit everything at first.

Play with two hands on the keys. Seriously, you won't be playing like LISU unless you've played piano for 10+ years and have been playing Beatmania since the original was released. If you want to get good fast then get a feel for playing with the controller with two hands and scratching with your pinky. On a personal note I played with one hand for nearly the first year I had the game and I absolutely could not get any better once I was required to make the transition between 6 and 7 star songs; it was literally like hitting a brick wall in skill. I decided to try out two handed play and I almost instantaeneously shot up in skill to where I could pass most 7 star songs. At the present time I can pass nearly all the flashing 7 star songs with the exception of the notoriously difficult ones (A, Colors, DXY!, Max 300, etc.). So in conclusion, be a pecker.

Don't use autoscratch. Like 5 key, this just teaches you bad habits and should be avoided at all costs.

Play beginner on 6th style until you can get at least a B on everything and then gradually switch to light 7.

Use high speed. BeatmaniaIIDX was not meant to be played without mods so unlike DDR there is no stigma towards using speed mods. It's nearly impossible to tell the difference between 32nd and 64th notes on slower songs if you haven't seen what the song is like without high speed.

This may be hard to follow but, learn how to break down patterns and chords into smaller peices instead of just looking at the whole picture. For instance, in V [7 key] there are 1+7 and 3+5 chords alternating in a 16th note rhythem that is very intimadating at first. However, once you break that pattern down and realize you just play that pattern as two simultaenous drum rolls on both hands (left hand on 1 and 3, right hand on 5 and 7) then it seems significantly less intimidating.

Last but not least, once you get a feel to how to properly read and hit the notes then use random periodically. With different note charts you can sometimes learn how to perform specific patterns that would otherwise not be seen until the flashing 7 difficulty.

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Post by Ho » Thu Mar 17, 2005 2:36 pm

OrangeLounger wrote:"Pecking" --as you call it-- works just fine for me. It's easier to hit white/blue combinations that way, I think.
We came up with 'Pecking' and 'Pecker' a year ago or so to describe two-handed IIDX play to liken it to bar raping in DDR with a derogatory, yet jokingly tongue-in-cheek terminology. It was derived from the phrase 'hunt and peck' to describe how people who don't know how to type use a keyboard.

I agree that one-handed play is more impressive looking, but two-handed play can make it much easier to pass more difficult songs. Personally, I find it difficult to pinky scratch, so I prefer one-handed play even if it limits my ability to pass more difficult songs.

I will admit that I do get flustered on occasion and use two hands on the keys...usually when the game is having me tap out a constant bass line or bass drum rhythm while simultaneously playing another part. I can sometimes do that with one hand, but I will concede that it is extremely difficult and one of the game's greatest challenges.

I may joke with two-handed players, but I don't look down on them. However, I would be inclined to look up to a one-handed player of the same or better skill level. Personally, if I want to play a two-handed key game, I'll play pop'n music. :)
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Post by djfooboo » Thu Mar 17, 2005 5:52 pm

Thanks for all the replies, especially Merk. I peck but I haven't really experienced where that would be a bad thing. Even some of the guys on the videos on Beatmania peck. I guess the biggest thing is practice. (I don't use autoscratch or 5key)

So I guess I'm a pecker 8)
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Post by CaseyDidder » Thu Mar 17, 2005 6:11 pm

djfooboo wrote:Thanks for all the replies, especially Merk. I peck but I haven't really experienced where that would be a bad thing. Even some of the guys on the videos on Beatmania peck. I guess the biggest thing is practice. (I don't use autoscratch or 5key)

So I guess I'm a pecker 8)
jus dont spit when you get angry

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Post by Ho » Thu Mar 17, 2005 6:27 pm

I'm a pecker, he's a pecker, she's a pecker...

"Wouldn't you like to be a pecker, too?"
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Post by God Of Rock » Thu Mar 17, 2005 6:31 pm

......

This got derailed fast....

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Post by Grubb » Thu Mar 17, 2005 7:06 pm

This Thread...
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Re:

Post by Merk » Wed Mar 09, 2011 1:25 pm

Merk wrote:As someone who considers himself pretty good at BeatmaniaIIDX I can tell a few things to do in order to improve in a hasty manner:

Don't play 5 key at all. IIDX is after all a 7 key game and 5 key will just teach you bad habits.

The first obstacle you'll have to overcome is getting a feel for the keys and knowing how the notes on the screen should be hit. It's easy at first to get notes on the screen switched up in your head and having you fumble around to hit the wrong key, so just learn how to read everything and hit everything at first.

Play with two hands on the keys. Seriously, you won't be playing like LISU unless you've played piano for 10+ years and have been playing Beatmania since the original was released. If you want to get good fast then get a feel for playing with the controller with two hands and scratching with your pinky. On a personal note I played with one hand for nearly the first year I had the game and I absolutely could not get any better once I was required to make the transition between 6 and 7 star songs; it was literally like hitting a brick wall in skill. I decided to try out two handed play and I almost instantaeneously shot up in skill to where I could pass most 7 star songs. At the present time I can pass nearly all the flashing 7 star songs with the exception of the notoriously difficult ones (A, Colors, DXY!, Max 300, etc.). So in conclusion, be a pecker.

Don't use autoscratch. Like 5 key, this just teaches you bad habits and should be avoided at all costs.

Play beginner on 6th style until you can get at least a B on everything and then gradually switch to light 7.

Use high speed. BeatmaniaIIDX was not meant to be played without mods so unlike DDR there is no stigma towards using speed mods. It's nearly impossible to tell the difference between 32nd and 64th notes on slower songs if you haven't seen what the song is like without high speed.

This may be hard to follow but, learn how to break down patterns and chords into smaller peices instead of just looking at the whole picture. For instance, in V [7 key] there are 1+7 and 3+5 chords alternating in a 16th note rhythem that is very intimadating at first. However, once you break that pattern down and realize you just play that pattern as two simultaenous drum rolls on both hands (left hand on 1 and 3, right hand on 5 and 7) then it seems significantly less intimidating.

Last but not least, once you get a feel to how to properly read and hit the notes then use random periodically. With different note charts you can sometimes learn how to perform specific patterns that would otherwise not be seen until the flashing 7 difficulty.
Man, 6 years later and this is still pretty good advice. I love my random spelling errors.
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Re: Teach me the ways of the beatmasta!

Post by Merk » Wed Aug 03, 2011 10:29 am

Alright, can someone explain Lift to me? I don't see how it's any different than Sudden+ other than the fact it pushes the little red line at the bottom of the scroll lane up instead of obscuring the scroll lane at the top. I saw a really good player at Gemini use Lift instead of Sudden+ and I couldn't tell if it was just a preference thing or if it did anything else that I wasn't aware of.
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