For the uninitiated, DDR Max 2 is the latest title in the long running dance game franchise that began with the coin-op hit Dance Dance Revolution (DDR). The DDR series ushered in the first truly physical element of gameplay, as you’re forced to keep up with a groovy dance beat, following the on-screen steps as everything from pop tunes to drum and bass tracks are blasted at you. Your controller is a roughly 3’ by 3’ dance mat, with stompable "buttons" at each compass point. The gameplay is deceptively simple: as the music plays, dance steps in the form of directional arrows flow up the screen. Your job is to wait until the dance step hits its matching spot at the top of the screen and then stomp the dance pad in that direction. The trick is, sometimes you’ll get two steps (like a left and a right) appearing at the same moment, forcing you to do a small split, or you might get five "ups" in a rapid sequence, followed by something crazy like a split and three "downs." You never know what you’ll get, since the beats per minute will shift as you get better, thereby forcing the dance patterns to likewise shift to increase the difficulty. The more "combos" you score (in the form of unbroken streams of dance steps) the more points you’ll score. Fail at the most basic combos, and you can expect plenty of smack talk from the game’s announcer. The announcer is a harsh taskmaster with a hilarious repertoire of commentary that helps maintain the game’s pace. As the game gets faster and the beats per minute more insane, things start looking like a musical game of twister, with you sweating (and oftentimes swearing) as you contort your body to catch that ten beat combo. If you want to see just how out of shape you are, you can crank the beats per minute and the frequency of the dance steps, ensuring your family of a quick return on your life insurance policy.

While DDR Max 2 follows the basic DDR style of gameplay, it also adds a few new twists. There’s a workout mode that counts calories for you, an editing mode to let you create your own dance steps, a nonstop mode for uninterrupted dance (no breaks between songs) and an endless mode that has you playing through every song in the game. If that’s not enough, you can hook up two dancepads, yet play them as one player, which will have you hopping around your living room like a madman crossing hot coals.

Music, the heart and soul of DDR Max 2, varies by its beats per minute rating. If you’re as clueless on the dance floor as I am, you’ll quickly drop it down to the 125 or so BPM tunes. Save the near 200BPM tracks for the experts. The game starts out with about a dozen unlocked tunes, and as you play through the game modes, you’ll unlock even more. After unlocking everything, you’ll have about 65 tracks and over 100 minutes of music. Being a DDR title, you can expect a mix of everything in the music, from Chemical Brothers to Kylie Minogue, to techno remixes of YMCA. It’s all in there, and yes, there’s still plenty of Euro-techno in there.

As far as the visuals go, DDR Max 2 is a continuation of the eye-blasting colors we’ve seen in the previous titles. It’s mostly cartoon styled graphics, though on occasion you’ll see some full motion video. It’s nothing high tech, but that’s not what you’re here for anyhow!

Anybody who likes dancing (or wishes they could dance) and enjoys video games will be playing DDR Max 2 for many months to come. It’s an easy game to just pick up and play, and a great way to spend 15 minutes, or a few hours on. Grab a friend for some competitive fun, and you’ll be laughing for hours on end. And don’t forget to buy a dance mat!

See more screens on the DDR Max 2 media page