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⬅️ Previous capture (2023-01-29)
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An arcade not far from the area has a dance game called StepManiaX, or SMX for short. The game involves stepping on a dancing stage with up, down, left and right panels similar to DanceDance Revolution, but it also features a center panel, bringing the total number of inputs per side to five.
On the surface, SMX sounds like a cheap ripoff of DDR, as many dance games were in the 2000s. The creative team behind the game, however, have no intention to be exploitative: they have been avid rhythm game fans for decades and developed the game in an effort to improve on the groundwork laid out by arcade machines like DDR and Pump It Up.
I tried the game for the first time about four months ago while hanging out at the arcade with a large group of friends, some of whom are extremely good at SMX. The inclusion of a center panel really threw me off, as did a slightly-late timing window, with led to rather low scores. I was frankly embarrassed, and I quickly wrote off the game as a confusing experience, scurrying back to PIU.
About three weeks ago, I decided to give SMX another try, this time on my own. I could now concentrate entirely on the game and not have to worry about what others might think of my skills. The center button was still sometimes confusing, but I picked up on the intricacies of the movement pretty quickly, and I found myself greatly enjoying the game.
The biggest strength to SMX is its charting. DDR and PIU are notorious for having charts that are not conducive to crossovers, especially DDR's early charts. Playing them requires moving one leg rapidly to hit adjacent notes, which is difficult to do quickly. SMX's charts are carefully constructed from bottom to top to be very fluid while still offering challenging crossovers and twisting body movements, which keeps the charts difficult while still being natural to move through and very fun to play.
I find now that I'm really starting to love SMX. Had I not purchased a PIU cabinet many years ago, and if I didn't own a dance game now, SMX would probably be at the top of my list.
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[Last updated: 2022-09-13]