Opening Comments From Sivus

    I want to open this TournaMix by telling everyone how happy I am with the turnout we received.  TournaMix 1 started with a humble 70 entries. TournaMix 2 with it's new look and more formalized rules took an unexpected dive down to 65 entries. I worked hard with my staff to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it. Back to the drawing boards NMR and myself went, determined to come up with a more comprehensive and understandable rules. Finally, TournaMix 3 happened. And this is when we knew TournaMix was going to be a success. 175 people registered for TournaMix 3 and of that, 115 people entered. TournaMix 3 also remains my personal favorite, containing the most stuff I play even to this day. When TournaMix 3 ended, I still felt the need to have more clear, more organized rules. My staff and I went back and read ALL the suggestions in the forums. Feeling the need to further expend on what was already working well, NMR and I again decided to try and make the next TournaMix more interactive, more friendly and of course, more challenging. I announced TournaMix 4 only a few months after the previous and I cannot begin to explain to you the level of feedback and interest I got. 215 people registered for TournaMix 4, of that 175 people actually entered. TournaMix 5 received and unprecedented 326 registrations and the final count for this TournaMix: 175.

For what ever reason you entered. I thank you! And good luck!!

On a slightly sad note; This will be my first TournaMix without NMR. As in the way most things work, he's moved on in his life. We all understand how he feels and wish him the BEST of luck. Neil, You will always be welcome at DDRei and TournaMix. BEST of luck to you and what ever makes you happy.

You can find the complete set of rules
HERE

Opening Comments:

Ollec -
All songs are played on 1.5x solo in DWI. Readmes and the .dwi file were looked at before the song was ever played. Write-ups performed after all 3 required difficulties are played.

CCC -
I'll only include comments on Light and Standard when I have specific critiques on them. Otherwise just assume that they're fine. If I have a comment that applies to all sets of steps, it'll be in General Comments.

Shinkuiro Tenshi - Comments are too massive to include here. A link is provided below.
    You’ll notice that the songs with the most comments are usually the most flawed ones.  This is because the comments are written to help make these stepfiles better.  It’s called constructive criticism.  If I don’t say much about a stepchart, and it has a high score, then consider that a good thing!
    No, I don’t rate every song insanely high.  I don’t believe in grading “on the curve” when it comes to these files.  There are just a lot of really good files out there.  I’m not going to rate a file down simply because it’s not as good as the best songs in the bracket.  There are a lot of good DWIs out there; you can still distinguish the good, from the better, from the best.
    If you see me bitch about a 6 foot song being too difficult for light, then grade a song rated the same thing perfectly, it’s because the BPM is different.  It’s that simple.  No one expects a 300 BPM song to have 2 foot light steps, and no one expects a 120 BPM song to have 7 foot light steps.
You may view his 32 page write up HERE

The following comments are the opinions of individuals who are not necessarily directly associated with DDR Eastern Invasion, or TournaMix. All judges have agreed to take responsibility for their own comments, so in the event of a dispute, please take it up with the individual.
Nobody else shares responsibility for anything they may say.

Song Name:  '%5

Artist:  Pory

Steps:  Funbox

Ollec -
The BPM stops went with the music, but there's really no point to them. I didn't really like the doubling of the BPM all that much either. It seemed too fast for the song. A steady 121 would have done better. Step wise, it was pretty concrete. The slow part at the beginning created for some interesting patterns, but again, I think it would have worked better with one steady tempo. Well synched, nicely done overall.

Ensyther -
I docked you a few points (mainly in your core steps and song sync) because of some very odd (and I personally think, very bad) decisions you made in trying to make your stepfile unique and noted. Those stops at the beginning and end were not needed, and not only that, they had no impact on the steps in the song themselves, since they were at points where you didn't have to step on an arrow. I couldn't see the point, and I frown on gimmicky situations like that. Your steps were fairly solid, though nothing to amazing about them, and my only real complaint is that the song itself got rather repetative after a while. A slightly-above-average, I think. The quality is there, but there were just some wierdness that I think shouldn't have been there in the first place.

CCC -
General Comments - Feels like the effects were unnecessary and disrupted the step flow more than they helped. A section in the middle feels a bit off, which I'm not is due to the effects or the BPM itself. Likely a combination of the both.

Heavy - Opening section, while following beats in the back well, still feel really random in terms of timing. Other than that, good variation and runs throughout the song.
 

Song Name:  1200N

Artist:  ShinHwa

Steps:  Kurisu

Ollec -
The BPM seems too high for the song. The file starts off just fine, but it definately goes out of synch as the song progresses. It lost at least two whole beats, if not more. The steps themselves were very well crafted. Light steps fit perfectly, Standard were good, but it started to feel repetitious at times, Heavy fit well with the song, although I didn't really enjoy the gallop section at the end (just personal preference, they flow well). The only thing keeping this file from being great is the synching.

Ensyther -
Very, very, very slightly offsync. Not enough to be detremental, but enough to sneak that single Great in. It's most apparent in the Heavy steps, and sadly, that's what drags the whole thing down. Your Light steps showed a fairly good core, but for a song like this, I wasn't feeling the Heavy steps (the 8th runs, though slow, weren't working out), and somewhere in between, I'm not sure where the Standard steps fell.

CCC -
General Comments - The BPM is off, as the steps become desynced more and more throughout the song.

Heavy - Solid steps, good runs. It's a shame the BPM is off, this could've been a fun song otherwise. No specific complaints here about the steps.

 

Song Name:  Angel (Euromix)

Artist:  Joee

Steps:  Marcos Navarro

Ollec -
I'm really confused as to why Stepmania a18 did this to your steps. Why would it use 1/128 notes when it's not necessary. It caused all of the steps to be off just slightly, which really messed everything up. As for the steps themselves, it started to feel repetitive on practically every difficulty. If you would invent some different eighth note runs as opposed to using the same ones over from earlier in the song, it'd keep the interest level up. The light steps didn't really warrent a 5 foot rating in my opinion.

Ensyther -
CHAOS SPIKE. BAD. Try and make sure your song doesn't have something like that unless it's something like Bag. Or Burning Heat or something to that degree. It's usually the signal of an offsync stepfile, as was the case here. Doesn't necessarily mean the steps were offbeat, but the song fell under what's known as "yellow arrow syndrome", in which the file is offsync enough for the real 1/4th beat of the song to fall on the 1/16th beat of the stepfile, resulting in the Chaos spike (most of the steps were on the 1/16th or non 1/4th & 1/8th). Would've helped to have the song not so slow to start, but when it did, it wasn't so bad. The Heavy steps were proof of some light in there. Just some polishing to get the actual file timing right would be needed.

CCC -
General Comments - The spike on the chaos meter indicates Yellow Arrow Syndrome. Try adjusting the gap and taking out or inserting a blank 16th space in the beginning to fix that.

Basic - Steps start too early.

Standard - The long 8th note runs and 16th clump at the end are more fitting for the Heavy steps, and make this a hard 7. Also, like Basic, steps start too early.

Heavy - Good steps overall, but I have several critiques here. The slow sections at the beginning and the end try to approximate the lyrics too much, and result in somewhat awkward timing. Also, two patterns are overused in this song. The first is multiple (generally 3) steps in the same direction followed by a jump. Using a more varied pattern (for example LRL instead of LLL) would help here. Second is 4 8th note steps starting with either L or R, ending with the opposite, with either Up-Down or Down-Up wedged in the middle. While this pattern is good for runs, it feels like there's just too many in this song.

 

Song Name:  Battle Without Honor or Humanity

Artist:  Hotei Tomoyasu

Steps:  Sambo

Ollec -
All difficulties were unplayable due to the SM Bug. I really liked where you were going with the Heavy steps, though.

Ensyther -
Come now, people, really. SM3.0 is OLLLLLLDDDDDDD. WHY do you people STILL have it? They're up to Stepmania CVS alpha 20 and it's been far better than 3.0 for a while. The freeze-arrow bug should NOT be happening anymore. Sorry.

CCC -
General Comments - Song starts off way too early. Try to have a few seconds before the start of the song before the steps start. Also, this song has the Stepmania bug, which made it unplayable.

Heavy - Aside from SM bug, the only additional comment is that two consecutive 16th notes in the same direction is hard to read and often more annoying than good.

 

Song Name:  Bean Victory

Artist:  Jeff Lew

Steps:  Jaik

Ollec -
Very well done. My biggest complaint would be the repetition in the Light and Standard steps. The patterns didn't vary enough for my taste, which made it a drag to play at the end. The heavy steps avoided this, though. I liked the use of different patterns through out those steps. If there's one thing I would change, it'd be the amount of jumps used in a row. Jumps are fine and good, but having about 16 of them in a row gets tiring and boring. Synched perfectly, nice job.

Ensyther -
An odd song choice. Odd enough for intrigue, but too odd to keep it sticking after I play it. It's catchy, I'll admit, but I suppose the song itself just needed a little something more. Your Standard steps show the benefits of functionalty, but the Heavy steps show the consequences of gratiuity; it seems like part after part in there was just landlocked to give the steps their difficulty, and things just weren't working out with the song itself. It's sort of like Cry Out from TournaMix 4. I'll play it for the Standard steps, because they're great. Not for much else though.

CCC -
Heavy - Good use of 8th note triplets and jumps, but for a 7 foot song more complex patterns should probably be used than just the occasional runs in addition to those. Holding onto one arrow while tapping the rhythm with the other feels somewhat bland, but luckily there were only two instances of that here.

 

Song Name:  Beethoven’s 5th

Artist:  Vanessa Mae (and Beethoven!)

Steps:  Xidane

Ollec -
BPM is off slightly, but putting that aside, very nice step file. The BPM changes fit well with this song, but I think the freeze could have been left out. It fits decently, but it probably could have done better without it. All 3 difficulties had great steps that fit the level you placed them at. The biggest complaint I have is the steps being too predictable. At one point, I had my eyes closed and still got the arrows for the next few measures because it was expected. Try to vary your patterns a bit.

Ensyther -
Well done. You managed to take a reletively simple piece, that at this point, would've been done to death, and made it work well with the steps you had planned out. Not too overbearing, not too subtle; just right. ...Though I can't help but be irked at the feeling of offbeatness after the first slowdown. Heh. Still, very not shabby.

CCC -
General Comments - The BPM changes don't really feel necessary. In addition, I think the first BPM change may have actually thrown off the sync, as I couldn't actually find a GAP value that'll fit well on the song as a whole.

Light - 8th note going into a jump probably shouldn't be used at this easy a difficulty level.

Heavy - I see nothing to complain about here in terms of step pattern design. Good job.
 

Song Name:  Can’t Get You Out Of My Head (K&M’s Mindprint Mix)

Artist:  Kylie Minogue

Steps:  twen

Ollec -
Nicely executed file. My biggest complaint would be the Light steps. At times, it feels a bit akward, since you're putting the emphasis on the second and fourth beats as opposed to the first and third through the first 1/3 or so of the song. It doesn't really develop a good sense of rhythm and establish a beat until you get to the midway point of the song. Standard and Heavy were very solid. Synching was good, and a nice job on getting the video synched that well.

Ensyther -
Fine choice, your regular everyday pop song. Can't go wrong there for song choice, so primo on that. However, if there were more interesting parts to the song initially, I would've liked to hear them. The song itself felt far too short, and that there should've been some nice interlude section to break between the main theme and the end, and sadly, that never came. Because of that, the interest in your steps sort of waned, but not enough for them to be bad at all. The steps were good, but the song could've been better.

CCC -
Heavy - Nice, simple pivot patterns complemented by solid steps all around. However, with just two long 8th note run sections, the use of the same pivot pattern made the steps a little bit repetitive. Still very solid work, an easy and enjoyable 7 footer. (I'm almost inclined to bump this down to a 6.)

 

Song Name:  Captain Jack

Artist:  Bassmasta & Dr. Brad feat. Suzanne

Steps:  pokecapn

Ollec -
I think that this is a perfectly solid step file, if only it didn't resemble the DDR version in steps so much, Especailly when you get to Heavy. A lot of the spots were way too predictable, both rhythm and step wise. Everything was well put together, but there just wasn't enough originality to it.

Ensyther -
On specification, I decided that your entry was allowable, and I suppose that was both a good and bad thing. I'm not really going to offer any points on originality for song choice, but this specific song choice worked in the respect that you good bridge good steps. They're on their own enough to be enjoyable, and not just a virtual copy of the Grandale Mix, so I at least don't feel like I'm playing the same song.

CCC -
Heavy - Good, you didn't just rip off the official steps. The steps are well designed for the most part, but some of the freezes, especially the ones that last only an 8th note, as well as some of the 8th note jumps near the end really feel excessive.
 

Song Name:  Catastrophic Cognitive Void

Artist:  Black Lung

Steps:  Cadam

Ollec -
Light steps definately deserve that 5 rating, Heavy steps definately deserve that 9 rating. Steps overall work pretty well. I can't say I enjoy the Heavy steps, though they go with the music well. There's just too much clutter in them for my taste. Light steps seemed a bit hard for its difficulty.

Ensyther -
Oooooh boy. Uhm... very interesting song choice. In fact, TOO interesting. The song just doesn't work. It's unique and non-mainstream, but it's that to an extreme, which poses a problem. For that, I pointed on your Stepability score based only that the song has a bassbeat, and because it was different. The end, also, I think could've been reduced considerably. If there's one thing I hate, it's being left on a freeze arrow for 10 seconds like that. In contrast, though the song itself isn't a golden bell, the steps to go with it work very well. They're unfortunately brought down by the song's functionality though, which is little.

CCC -
General Comments - Maybe it's just that my ears can't pick up the subtle differences, but most of the song sounded pretty much the same, and gave me a sense that it was dragged out longer than it could've been. The long freeze that marked the end of each step set just made the wait for the song to end even longer.

Heavy - There didn't appear to be a consistent pattern throughout most of the steps. Also, there was too abrupt a shift in difficulty from the early section to the latter, marked by too many 16th notes, making the first half of the song a 6-7 footer and the second a 9.

 

Song Name:  chaos MKII

Artist:  CPi

Steps:  CPi

Ollec -
I really liked the tempo changes. They flowed really well and matched the song. I really didn't like the BPM doubling though. The steps themselves were way too frantic due to the fast tempo of the song. Definately something you can compare with all the other 10 footers out there. It was well put together, but it just didn't feel like an official song.

Ensyther -
This could've been good, if not for a few things. First off, there are very few situations where doubling the BPM in the interetst of intensity is good, and though the song has power, there's not enough of it to go around to warrent it. Good job on the speed changes though; those were seamless. The stepfile itself was obviously made to reflect difficulty, and sometimes going for that isn't the best of ideas, which is most prevailant in the Heavy steps, where some things don't make sense, and were slayed out in the interest of gratuitous difficulty. The Standard steps had their own share of difficulty, but were smooth enough to be subtley fun.

CCC -
General Comments - BPM doubling doesn't really help, and in general made the song more BMS Syndrome-d than it already is. That said, I'll just comment on the step design and difficulty/appropriateness for the individual difficulties.

Basic - This could easily be a 7 footer, and would probably be had the BPM been halved and the 4th note runs turned into 8th note runs. Would probably work better as Standard.

Standard - Again, speed dominates here and makes these steps probably more suitable for Heavy.

Heavy - The freezes end way too late for such high speed, especially transitioning into another freeze on the same jump. Also, spins aren't really that feasible either. The step patterns themselves are generally well designed, but such long 8th note runs at such high speed is generally painful, so these'd look better as Challenge steps.
 

Song Name:  Chronologie IV

Artist:  Jean Michel Jarre

Steps:  wellian

Ollec -
There's too much similarity between the Standard steps and the Heavy steps. As far as I noticed, the only real difference was gallops instead of eighths in Heavy, and the eighths in the Heavy steps were just more complex than the ones in the Standard. Perhaps simplifying the standard steps a bit. Those steps could very well pass for Heavy steps in any other song. Not a bad file by any means.

Ensyther -
Good, calm song choice, and no step fudge-ups on it, which is very good. Solid entry. That's all I really have to say.

CCC -
General Comments - Feels like the song was dragged on for a bit too long. The song could've stopped around 1:50 where in Heavy the freeze leading up to the second sparse 16th notes section is.

Standard - This would do better as an alternate set of heavy steps. The use of DXY! style step step jumps, the machine gun 16ths, and the long 8th note runs make this more of an 8-footer than a 7.

Heavy - Interesting use of turns. The two sections that consisted mostly of sparse 16th notes felt kind of random, but kept to one set of beats pretty well.

 

Song Name:  Clash on the Big Bridge

Artist:  The Black Mages

Steps:  Shin

Ollec -
The doubling of the BPM really messes up the steps. It causes all of your down beats to come on the off beat, which really hurts the file. Not to mention, the doubling of the BPM isn't even worth it. It's not really needed since the song remains at the same tempo all the way through. Step-wise, it wasn't bad, but nothing that really stood out.

Ensyther -
As I said in chaos mkII: doubling BPM is, more often than not, not the best of ideas, and here is was unneeded in all respects. The song could've kept all its power at a static BPM, and everything would've been fine, but unfortunately the speed change turned things half a beat off-sync. Otherwise, the steps were befitting of the song; nothing too spectactular; they were enjoyable, but because of the off-sync, nothing perfect.

CCC -
General Comments - BPM doubling at specific sections aren't needed, in addition, the BPM is a bit off.

Heavy - BPM errors aside, some of the freezes feel unnecessary, especially in the double BPM sections. The step patterns also involve too much shuffling when done on foot. However, had the BPM been on, some steps feel very appropriate for specific sections, especially near the end, but the offbeat-ness distorted those too much.

 

Song Name:  Clubstepper

Artist:  DJ Energy

Steps:  SporkSensei

Ollec -
Very wel put together. The only real complaint I can think of is the added difficulty of the eighth notes in the light steps. If it were me, I would have left those out, or raised it to 5 feet. Also, probably insert a few breaks, since it's just straight quarter notes, it gets repetitive. Standard and Heavy were great, well on synch. Good job.

Ensyther -
I questioned what you were doing with some of those burst runs in Heavy, however, I don't question the rest of the piece. Sounds and works very much like what you would see in a US DDR Mix.

CCC -
Heavy - Quite a bit of foot shuffling at places, and the few 16th triplets could've used some more variety. However, most of the runs in this song, especially the pivots, are very well designed and well placed.
 

Song Name:  Cool City

Artist:  Purple Motion

Steps:  Mega

Ollec -
Not bad overall, but I hvae issues with doubling BPMs for no reason. There's just no point in making it that fast unless you just want shock value towards your player by making the arrows scroll so fast. Everything was very solid and well put together, but it was a bit repetitive/predicitable at times in all three difficulties.

Ensyther -
Cool, but I can see the uncool. Doubling the BPM wasn't very cool, nor were the repetative steps, but the song kept you topped out, I think. Note that when trying to find the ending to a song, use a fade out as little as you can. I know there's the possibility you had no choice with this song, but it's not the most attractive thing in the world.

CCC -
Standard - Some of the freezes are too short to be worthwhile. However, a few in the middle could be extended a bit or just kept to maintain the effect of a stream of freezes.

Heavy - Again, freezes that last only half a beat aren't really needed. The 8th note runs and jumps remind me of Across the Nightmare Oni, but as you labeled it a 10, they're well acceptable here.
 

Song Name:  Death Machine

Artist:  Jakaeid

Steps:  Shadowman

Ollec -
There's definately something wrong with the BPM. You're trying to force off beat steps to fit with the beat, which doesn't work all that well. Light seemed way too hard, even for a 5 footer. Everything else was decent, but the BPM is really what kills this file.
 

Ensyther -
Pro Tip: Turn on Solo. If the majority of your arrows aren't coming up red (without a good reason), it means something's wrong. What worries me more is that the BPM was correct.

CCC -
General Comments - The BPM is definitely wrong on this one. The steps are really randomly placed and try to approximate streams but fail because, well, the BPM is wrong. Try to find the right BPM and stick to 4th and 8th notes next time.

Heavy - Asides from the general randomness of the steps, consecutive 16th jumps are just plain painful in general.
 

Song Name:  DNA

Artist:  Parquets

Steps:  KLONOA 3663

Ollec -
Something with the BPM change is causing the entire second half of the song to go off beat. The quarter notes no longer lie on the beat which really makes the end of the file hard to play. The fact that it's 4 minutes long doesn't help all that much either. The patterns get very repetitive and after a while, it's somewhat tiring to play. There's a great spot to cut the song about a minute and a half in, which you might consider if you remake this song. Steps were decent, but like I said above, the 4 minutes just ruined it with repetition.

Ensyther -
Nice, bouncy, non-intimidating, on-sync.. way, way, waaaay too long. Definately should've cut it down.

CCC -
General Comments - This is a lot longer than it needs to be. There are several good points to cut the song short, and I kept expecting it to end then, but the arrows keep coming...

Standard - Yellow Arrow Syndrome strikes. Somewhere along the line you missed a fraction of a beat and the whole second half's one color.

Heavy - Once again, Yellow Arrow Syndrome. Also, too many clustered jumps in the beginning.
 

Song Name:  Do Wah Diddy

Artist:  DJ Otzi

Steps:  Tekara Asagiri

Ollec -
The BPM and Gap values on this song are off enough to make it very difficult to play. It doens't start on synch all that well, and it loses half a beat by the end of the song, if not more. As for steps themselves, the eighth note run in the Light steps didn't really fit, nor did the gallop sections in the Heavy steps. Both just seem really out of place and don't go well with the music. Some of the patterns were nice, but it became repetitious after a while.

Ensyther -
Your editing of the song could've been better. The steps work well, but you can see the imperfections of the cut if you turn on Solo (you see that the 1/4th beat of the song starts falling on the 1/8th beat of the stepfile), and heard in the song itself in play.

CCC -
General Comments - The sync feels off in several places. I hear a clip near the end of the song, which might be the result of a bit of error in editing?

Light - The 8th note run bumped the difficulty of this song up to at least a 5. The whole section with 8th note freezes feel offbeat, and those freezes are too short to be helpful anyways.

Standard - Again, some of the really short freezes weren't really needed. The motif of running back and forth between two arrows is a bit overused here.

Heavy - Some specific points: two 16th notes in the same direction is hard to read and generally annoying. Some of the 8th note runs are well designed, but the major gallop section felt kind of random. There were too many 8th note jumps right near the end crammed into one stream.

 

Song Name:  Domo Domo Domo

Artist:  SMILE.dk

Steps:  Titiln9

Ollec -
Very well done. I can't really think of many things to say, other than Standard should probably be a 7 footer. Steps were very well laid out, some of the patterns started to repeat, but it didn't stand out at me until I actually thought about it. Awesome job.

Ensyther -
If don't right, you can never go wrong with Smile.dk, as much as I would hate to say it. Practically all of their songs work well when steps are attached, and this entry is no exception. Excellent.

CCC -
Heavy - Nice solid runs. Good step patterns. No complaints here.


 

Song Name:  Felys

Artist:  Onoken

Steps:  MaftaXD

Ollec -
Something with the BPM change ruins the slow part. The beat gets off somewhere, but it does manage to get back on after the next change. I don't know if it's my computer or what, but the synch seems just slightly off. Nothing big enough to hold you back. Steps were good, but there's still the issue of the BPM that made the file hard to play.

Ensyther -
The song itself didn't hold much water until the second half, where then it got really, really good. A day late and a dollar short, though. Steps were good in bursts, but unfortunately, I saw parts were you were trying to attatch steps to very quiet sections; an experimentation that doesn't usually work out well for anyone.

CCC -
General Comments - Not sure if the BPM halving is really needed here. The effect created is cool, but it really makes the step sets unnecessarily harder by adding that sight-reading/slow-song-timing element in there.

Light - Feels like some of the freezes here are a bit excessive here, especially for a 4 footer.

Heavy - Interesting and sometimes tricky runs. As far as readability goes, two 16th notes in the same direction or a 16th step followed by a jump is hard to pick out and would look better on Challenge steps rather than on Heavy ones.

 

Song Name: Free Like The Wind (Party Remix)

Artist:  Ultrabeat

Steps:  Nathan Garcia (PenguinMan)

Ollec -
For some reason, I can't think of much to say about this song. For the most part, I think it's fairly average all around. There were a few spots here and there in the Standard and Heavy steps that didn't seem to work all that well, like the jumps amid the eighth notes and the repeated taps didn't seem to fit. Overall though, nothing seems to stand out and push this anywhere.

Ensyther -
This is good. No nonsense, no beating around the bush. Song starts fast, and the steps go in with it comfortably. Very well done. Would be almost perfect if you just un-crazied your Heavy steps juuust a tad.

CCC -
Heavy - Definitely too hard to be a 9, the more intense 16th or jump sections may be more appropriate for Challenge. On specific points, I've noticed one: try to avoid having a 16th note lead into a jump, as it is usually painful, especially when the song is in the medium/high BPM range.

 

Song Name:  Freezing Atmosphere

Artist:  Twin Amadeus

Steps:  Crza

Ollec -
I've never played the IIDX version, but the slow down part doesn't really need to be there, especially at the end. The light steps felt like there were too many spins in them (they may have just been bad crossovers), and the Heavy steps just had too much going on. Didn't really have any problems with the standard set. The song seems more peaceful to me, and the chaos that goes into the Heavy steps doesn't really fit, even if it does go with the music.

Ensyther -
Your Heavy steps weren't as great as I was hoping they were going to be, but it doesn't hurt the file as a whole too much. My only real irk was the final freeze arrow that almost took forever to end, and your overuse of said freeze arrows in your Heavy steps. Other than that, quite notable.

CCC -
General Comments - The slowdowns aren't really needed, and only make the steps even harder to read than they already are, especially on Heavy.

Heavy - This has BMS syndrome written all over it. The erratic clusters of 16th notes and freezes that end nearly as late as the start of the next are far better as keyboard steps than ones designed for foot. If a few more steps were added to Standard it would've made better Heavy steps.

 

Song Name:  Get Ready For This

Artist:  2Unlimited

Steps:  CatchRothy22

Ollec -
That had to have been the hardest 4, 5, and 7 footers I've ever seen in my life. Each difficulty deserves to be upped about one foot, if not more for Light and Standard. The steps were very well laid out, the problem is, the song repeats itself so often in such a short time that both the song and the steps become repetitive. It's very well built and very well done, but the interest level drops after the song is half done.

Ensyther -
2Unlimited is good. What also would've been good is if you raised the difficulty number for each of your step sets by one or two, so that they'd at least be accurate.

CCC -
General Comments - This song is innately repetitive, and really could've ended earlier than at the 2 minute mark.

Light - Despite the slow BPM, with all the 8th and 16th notes, these would work a lot better as Standard steps.

Standard - With all the streams and spinning, this warrants at least a 6 foot rating. Good step design though.

Heavy - Try to cut back on foot shuffling and spinning as they're interrupting the flow of steps all over the place here, especially in the gallop sections.
 

Song Name:  Give it to me Baby

Artist:  Rick James

Steps:  spriggan72

Ollec -
I can totally imagine someone doing a freestyle to this song. Very nice job with the steps. I don't really have much to say. There were parts that didn't really feel right in the Heavy steps, but overall, I think this was very solid. Major props on the synching of the song though. I noticed the tons of BPM changes you made to keep it on beat. Oh, and I'd also suggest using a line break for some of your lyrics. One of the lines went off the screen.

Ensyther -
Very nice song choice. Can't go wrong with funk. The steps felt like a pleasant mix of Long Train Runnin' and Groove, which obviously work for a song such as this, so you hit the nail on the head.

CCC -
General Comments - YEEEEAH! OKAY! Uh. Yea.

Heavy - The only critique I could find is that 16th note right before the jump, but even that's not really noticeable. These steps are VERY well designed.
 

Song Name:  GO!!!

Artist:  FLOW

Steps:  DRM3

Ollec -
Something is definately wrong with the BPM. All of the arrows don't land on beat and makes it really hard to play. The steps themselves didn't seem all that solid. Light and Standard seemed thrown together, but the Heavy steps have some consistancy to them. It just feels like the entire thing was hastily put together.

Ensyther -
Your BPM is way, way, WAY off. It drags down the entire stepfile completely. There were sections of your Standard steps that felt perfectly on, but most of it was a mess of 1/16th arrows and offbeat function, and your Heavy steps don't flow at all.

CCC -
General Comments - Try to find the right BPM and stick to 4th and 8th notes. Having 16th notes all over the place make the timing pretty messy to deal with. This goes for all three difficulties.

Heavy - In addition to putting things on beat, there are too many freezes here. Try to cut back on them where unnecessary.

 

Song Name:  Gotta Get My Groove On

Artist:  good cool

Steps:  Xythar

Ollec -
One thing that really stood out to me was the use of the off beats on the Standard steps. They just don't seem to fit well at all. The off-beats in the song aren't accented enough to give the proper feel for the steps. Other than that, I think this was pretty solid. The sixteenth runs at the end of the Heavy steps didn't seem necessary, but they fit well enough.

Ensyther -
I can see simple, dumb mistakes in this file. Some steps are wierd, some timings feel off, etc. Doesn't make it a bad file, but I would suggest simply polishing off those mistakes and re-releasing after TM is over, because otherwise, it's a great file.

CCC -
Heavy - Some of the 16th note clumps got a bit crazy, especially the ones that chased after the lyrics. For the most part, the step design is pretty good. Same comment about two or more 16th notes in the same direction consecutively not generally feasible, but this might be at a low enough BPM for it to be doable.


 

Song Name:  Green Hill (Euroclub 95 mix)

Artist:  Rayza

Steps:  jammitch

Ollec -
Very well done. Honestly, I can't think of much to say. Very well put together, nice job with the step charts, well in synch. Great file.

Ensyther -

CCC -
Heavy - Might want to end some of the freezes earlier, so that they're not pressed right against the upcoming jump. Otherwise the steps look fine for the most part.
 

Song Name:  Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

Artist:  Daft Punk

Steps:  Myriad

Ollec -
Light steps seemed too hard to be considered Light. The other two step sets played well. The only issue I have is the amount of jumps, and the use of eighth jumps. Not only that, the semi-handplants that are required on some of the freezes. Sure, you can let go of the freeze early and still get it, but it'd be easier to just end the freeze itself. Not bad, but it has a few flaws here and there.

Ensyther -
Though you probably could've cut it just a bit more, I can see promise in the stepfile as a whole. You didn't try to insert too much, even though the difficulty for the steps seem to overbear on a song of this type. Not my job to make THAT kind of judgement though, so you did good work with the steps that you did give. Piece of advice, though (don't have to follow it): people usually don't think highly of jump freezes ending with another note on the same step. Makes them believe they have to hit that with their hands.

CCC -
Light - Freezes need to end a lot earlier, or the effect of hitting 3 arrows at once would sink in.

Standard - Same comment about the freezes. Er, these feel a lot like the Heavy Steps by the end of the song, with slightly fewer number of 16ths and jumps. Would work a lot better as an alternate set of Heavy steps, but too hard for Standard.

Heavy - Same comment about the freezes. Jumps got a bit intense at the end but still manageable.

 

Song Name:  Heart of Sword

Artist:  T.M. Revolution

Steps:  Neo

Ollec -
The wrong BPM makes this file near impossible to play. It's hard to tell what you're trying to do step-wise when all you see is a flood of purple arrows. Light and Standard should definately not be 3 and 4 footers. The song itself went on too long. There were definately places where it could have been cut. The length just makes everything become repetitive. If the right BPM were applied, this might have been a good file.

Ensyther -
GIFs are not supported by DWI, so your graphics couldn't be seen. As for your stepfile, the BPM was off (which would explain why all the steps felt 'off'), which crippled things as a whole. Editing the song to WELL LESS than 4 minutes would also have helped a lot.

CCC -
General Comments - Once again, this is another song that has the wrong BPM and then tries to approximate the beat with a lot of 16th arrows, resulting in that big Chaos spike on the Groove Radar. Try to get the BPM right and use more 4th and 8th notes next time. The song is also really song, and cutting it down to 2 minutes or less might be better.

Heavy - Not much else to add.
 

Song Name:  Insane Asylum

Artist:  Thomas Trouble

Steps:  Jarse

Ollec -
Everything went together nicely, but I just didn't like the Heavy steps all that much. The sixteenth notes seem randomly placed at times, and all the left/right eighth and sixteenth notes at the end just got tiring and repetitive. It seemed like there was a lot of double-stepping also, which really takes away from the fluidity of the steps. Not bad overall, but the Heavy steps didn't really do much justice for me.

Ensyther -
Indeeed. At least that's what I thought when I was playing Heavy. Everything else worked, despite the song running a little long, but I personally found the Heavy steps a bit bland. That can only be blamed on the song. Good work on everything else, though.

CCC -
Heavy - There's too many repetitive 8th notes in the same direction at points, where streams involving more directions than just left and right might've worked better. In general the song just felt very chaotic in terms of what direction to step in, as there's no consistent directional patterns that I could find.

 

Song Name:  It’s My Life

Artist:  Bon Jovi

Steps:  GoGoNaoki

Ollec -
I know you said you felt the jumps fit in the readme file, but I just don't see it. In the Heavy steps, it felt like a straight eighth note run would have done just nicely. As for the jumps in the Standard steps, they were too much. It was the same pattern repeating over and over for four measures at a time. I'm just not a big fan of jumps. When done well, they can be fun, but it's easy for them to be misused and out of place.

Ensyther -
The Jerseian in me explodes "WINNER!". However, I'll keep that in check, saying that too many jumps, again and again, in the exact same pattern, makes things tiring and rather boring. That's just for your Standard steps, though. Your Heavy steps, though fun in form, don't flow together very well, and if I were actually playing this on feet, wouldn't find a whole lot of enjoyment in it. Let that statement be a lesson to anyone who wishes to enter TournaMix 6. However the concept was good, the feeling was there, and I can't say that this is a bad file, but like so many others so far, it could've been far better with a little polishing.

CCC -
Heavy - Most of the short freezes feel unnecessary. That random 16th jump at the end should probably be taken out since, well, 16th jumps are not really feasible in general except for really slow songs. Also, holding onto a freeze while hitting a stream of 8th notes with the other foot is more tiring than fun. On the upside, the DXY! style jumping streams are nicely done.
 

Song Name:  Jakkety Sax

Artist:  Benny Hill

Steps:  Simon X

Ollec -
BPM feels way off. Steps are decent, but it's really hard to tell how they fit when they don't go with the music because of the BPM. Overall, it doesn't seem like a bad file, but it's just hard to determine fully.

Ensyther -
Technically, you didn't need to cut the song at all, which is good (saves you time), but getting the BPM right, as well as the sync, would also have been good.

CCC -
General Comments - The timing is off at various points in the song -- is this song even constant BPM?

Standard - Like a few other songs in this bracket, these would actually work well as an easier alternate set of Heavy steps.

Heavy - Good use of pivots, though there's too many machine gun steps at points.

 

Song Name:  Jumpin

Artist:  XTreme

Steps:  Dj KoZoTo

Ollec -
Nicely done. Everything plays very solid, nothing really major stands out. Not exactly a fan of the amount of crossovers used in the Heavy steps, but they flowed pretty well.

Ensyther -
There's jumpin. Which is good. If you found a way to take it down about 20 seconds, this would be the closest-to-perfect stepfile so far.

CCC -
Standard - Pretty good overall, though that random half beat freeze is probably unnecessary.

Heavy - Very solid step pattern throughout the song. The only little thing I could probably nitpick is to take out that last 16th down arrow or make it an 8th note, but that's a minor detail.

 

Song Name:  Just Like Naoki

Artist:  DJ Potatoe feat. MLE

Steps:  Eric Ruth

Ollec -
Good job, well done overall. The only problem I have with it is the similarity of the steps to official songs. Surely you could have come up with some better step patterns than just borrowing from 1998 and B4U so often. Well put together. Only real problem is the originality of the steps in certain parts.

Ensyther -
You mispronounced Naoki. It's Na (short a)-Oh-Kee.

CCC -
Heavy - Some of the 16th note patterns felt kind of chaotic, but overall the step design is nice and varied.

 

Song Name:  Let Me Take Your Heart

Artist:  New System

Steps:  ecureuil

Ollec -
Everything here was very solid. I really enjoyed all three difficulties. Even more surprising, I think the Light steps were your best set of the three. If there's one thing that irked me, it was repeated runs of up/down eighth notes. I think that popped up about 4 times in both Standard and Heavy. Other than that, great file.

Ensyther -
Standard dance pop happy hardcore stuff. Can't say I like the genre or its biased abuse in TounraMix, but I'd be a fool to say it doesn't work, and once again, it does in this file. Good work.

CCC -
Heavy - The steps, while nicely laid out, follow the lyrics too closely. This song has plenty of backbeat to step to, and if you only following the lyrics where they exist then you'll end up with a couple of gaps between arrows that are really bigger than they should be.

 

Song Name:  Lifesupport

Artist:  simulacra

Steps:  roothorick

Ollec -
The song itself may only be 2 and a half minutes, but it feels much longer for some reason. The steps just didn't seem to flow for me. The offbeats of the steps seem like they're being forced to the music, rather than having the music define them. It's especially noticable in the Standard steps. A lot of times, it felt like the arrows went to absolutely nothing. Not a bad file by any means, but it's hard to get a feel for this song's steps.

Ensyther -
1) Not a good idea to make arrows to ambient sound effects.
2) Blatent overusage of freeze arrows isn't attractive or fun.
3) A third arrow during a dual freeze arrow isn't a great idea either.

Otherwise, any steps where there weren't freeze arrows were great. Very tasteful 1/8ths.

CCC -
General Comments - In all three difficulties, some of the freeze arrows need to end earlier to give the player more leeway in getting to the next arrows, also, some of the short freezes could be taken out as they're pretty unnecessary.

Standard - There are a few sections here and there that are too difficult compared to the rest and probably should be used in Heavy rather than Standard.

Heavy - Some of these step patterns are very well designed. However, the freeze-heavy sections got far too heavy, and there were even instances of holding two freeze arrows and hitting a third. Please leave those to Challenge steps or just leave them out altogether.
 

Song Name:  Little Mac’s Confession

Artist:  Game Over

Steps:  RTF

Ollec -
I know you're trying to make your steps like ITG, but considering this was a DDR step-file contest, hand-plants and stuff probably aren't a good idea. If you ignore those, this file wasn't bad. The only thing I don't like about it is the fact that the song itself doesn't really fit well with having steps made for it. It's hard to dance to, and the beat itself doesn't feel strong enough step to.

Ensyther -
Oh god, this was awesome. Pure Unadulterated Awesome. ..Right up to where you decided to put handplants. Then it got downgraded to Normal Awesome.

CCC -
Standard - A few too many jumps in the beginning of the song. Other than that it looks fine.

Heavy - Most of the streams are nicely designed. However, I have two comments. One, one of the earlier sections tried to follow the lyrics too closely and resulted in a few awkward steps; and two, some of the freezes ended too late. It looks like it might be a coding error rather than intentional, but in any case, 3 arrows at once is rarely useful.

 

Song Name: Love and Ecstasy

Artist:  Seok Hong

Steps:  NVLMTraX

Ollec-
Nice overall. I can't understand why people use eighth note freeze arrows. They don't add to the difficulty any, and for the most part are just an annoyance. They work, but I just don't think they're needed. Other than that, no major qualms, but nothing about this file really stands out over the rest.

Ensyther -
The steps worked very well with the song, I have to admit. I'd be inclined to give the song itself a better score if it didn't make my ears bleed from time to time.

CCC -
Heavy - Not bad, although some of the freezes seem kind of unnecessary, especially the 8th note ones that look like they're more for visual effect than actual stepping.
 

Song Name:  Love Is In Danger

Artist:  Priscilla

Steps:  Vyse

Ollec -
Very solid file overall. If there's anything I have a problem with, it's that the steps feel frantic at certain points. Some of the sixteenth notes don't really seem needed to flow with the song, but it does work most of the time. Nice job on the file.

Ensyther -
Well, it's an Initial D standard eurobeat song. What else can I say? It's not like it's easy to make those look bad. :p

CCC -
Heavy - Nice stream patterns, although it feels like some of the gallops in the middle of streams should be a 16th note earlier. (Early gallops rather than late gallops.) Could use a little more variety in 16th triplets, instead of using just LDL and RDR alternately throughout the first half of the song.
 

Song Name:  Lunar Opening Theme

Artist:  Noriyuki Iwadare

Steps:  Adelor

Ollec -
The GAP value on this is off just enough that all the blue notes come on the downbeat, and the yellow arrows come on the off beat. Nothing major, but it would have been nice for them to be the proper way around. Solid step file, maybe a few too many offbeat notes in Light, but overall, not bad.

Ensyther -
I would be lying if I said the song's nature didn't confuse me. It was only until I played the heavy steps did I realize I was right in thinking that the sync of your arrows was off by a 1/8th beat. Everything was still off beat, but the blue arrows should be red. Otherwise, not bad at all.

CCC -
Heavy - Trying to follow the lyrics too closely at points lead to a step chart that's too dense with arrows sometimes and has too much blank space at other times. Although this problem diminishes as the song gets closer to the end.
 

Song Name:  Malchik Gey

Artist:  t.A.T.u

Steps:  Arcanyx

Ollec -
Song is nicely done. Everything fits and flows well. Nothing really that I can think of that I'd fix. Well put together.

Ensyther -
It works. Not only is the song catchy, the steps have enough bounce and attract to entice me to another play another day down the road when I'm browsing my TournaMix 5 folder, and that's where the hit counts.

CCC -
Heavy - Some of the gallops within the streams felt kind of awkward as they required spinning or shuffling. However, the rest of the step patterns are solid and nicely designed.
 

Song Name:  Roppongi Carillon

Artist:  Blue Roses

Steps:  KingKirby87

Ollec -
The only thing that bugs me about this file is the freeze. At first, it seemed like it fit in the Light steps, but by the time I got to Heavy, it just didn't seem right. Otherwise, very good file, flows well, fun to play.

Ensyther -
I've gotta sift through your music folder one of these days KingKirby, because you have a knack for choosing a song that's just perfect to put steps to. The only thing that drives me crazy is that stop. x_x

CCC -
Heavy - No fault to pick on as far as I can see. Good work.

 

Song Name:  You Spin Me ‘Round

Artist:  Dead or Alive

Steps:  djDH

Ollec -
Excellent step set. I especially love it how the spin parts match the song perfectly. All the step sets seemed very solid, but they did get repetitive at times. Perhaps spinning the other direction would have made it more fun. Very well on synch, very fun to play. Great file.

Ensyther -
Might I add in how much I like this song? That said and done, I can say that I like the steps that you added in just as well, and I had no reason to expect otherwise. Good work.

CCC -
General Comments - Those freezes came off as annoying as first, but after the second play they felt surprisingly fitting.

Heavy - Holy Trip Machine! There's a ton of spins in this, as hinted from the title. Some of them feel a bit chaotic but they're consistently placed. Solid step design overall.
 

FULL RESULTS