A beatmania tip of advice

[Stepfreak101]

Well i started playing beatmania say about a week or 2 ago and im very content that i can already beat 5's. But im sure the style i use (its not specific its pretty free hand) won't get me any further anytime soon. So do any of you recommend a style or finger placement to help me get to those more challenging songs.

P.S. Try not to use the number things to explain a style im not sure about the number placement on a KOC.

[Jeff Paine]

The numbers are the same in the arcade as they are on a KOC:

 2 4 6
1 3 5 7

There's no definitive finger placement, just keep playing and find what works best for you

[Go Beyond!!]

I just use whatever finger is free to press buttons. If you actually assign a finger to each key specifically, that'd be real boring imo.

[Stepfreak101]

well actually thanks go beyond you do have a point i do find some styles that require free button pressing more fun than others even though im less experienced. and as to the other comment i didn't know the numbers in the arcade cause i can't play in one. I don't think we have a local machine anywhere near our location. They still maybe selling that distorted machine on ebay though

[Blackraven]

The only important thing is to keep your fingers as versatile as possible.

Pretty much what everyone else says about this.

That's all you need to know apparently.

[LilRabbitToy]

You learn quick, took me 1 year to reach a 5.

[Go Beyond!!]

Originally Posted by LilRabbitToy

You learn quick, took me 1 year to reach a 5.

Took me a year to reach 9. Cleared a couple of 10 but those are really easy ones.

[m335h73r of PBJ]

Took me 9 months to beat 12's hahahahahaha

[Monster in a box]

It took me 4 years to border pass one 12*.

Though for what's it worth, a few weeks ago I got a 78% on A...

[Exagon]

Lol took me <2 months to pass a 12*. Since then I've passed around 6 12s I think. I really think it all depends on previous experience (for me, very frequent StepMania for 2+ years until starting IIDX, and semi-pro piano). So it's probably a good idea to qualify your experience.

I've noticed that many people have asked for advice on IIDX specifics, play styles (fingerings) especially. I've also noticed that people are relatively reticent and just repeat the mantra "do what feels comfortable" or "do what works for you." While that is of course true, could it hurt to contribute our own play styles (or, if known, some pro players' styles) just to give ideas?

Personally, I went on a spree of watching tatsujin videos of the super pros and basically mashed some of their techniques together to make my new play style. That's not to say I suggest doing that (I still have doubts about whether I can avoid hitting skill walls), but if you want to know how others play that's a good way to start.

Some general advice though: try to be adaptable as possible. At higher levels of play, static fingerings (i.e. set fingers for set keys) can be a handicap when harder patterns come along (especially if Random throws you a curveball). Hence, using every available finger is probably desirable (including thumbs and pinkies, if you can stand to use them).

All in all, do what works for you. Checking out how others play can be helpful; remember that practice makes perfect!

[Mus!kBox]

I can now pass 8's and some 9's, and even 10's if there are no turntables :p
like exagon, i played stepmania and piano, so theres something i guess you can do to practice finger/eye reflex.
once you get up higher levels, you'll really need ur thumbs too. i used to never use them

i've seen a tatsujin vid of a guy AAA Mei. he placed his right hand's palm constantly on the turntable wit hthe fingers still on the keys. That's pro.

[Stepfreak101]

Originally Posted by Exagon

Lol took me <2 months to pass a 12*. Since then I've passed around 6 12s I think. I really think it all depends on previous experience (for me, very frequent StepMania for 2+ years until starting IIDX, and semi-pro piano). So it's probably a good idea to qualify your experience.

I've noticed that many people have asked for advice on IIDX specifics, play styles (fingerings) especially. I've also noticed that people are relatively reticent and just repeat the mantra "do what feels comfortable" or "do what works for you." While that is of course true, could it hurt to contribute our own play styles (or, if known, some pro players' styles) just to give ideas?

Personally, I went on a spree of watching tatsujin videos of the super pros and basically mashed some of their techniques together to make my new play style. That's not to say I suggest doing that (I still have doubts about whether I can avoid hitting skill walls), but if you want to know how others play that's a good way to start.

Some general advice though: try to be adaptable as possible. At higher levels of play, static fingerings (i.e. set fingers for set keys) can be a handicap when harder patterns come along (especially if Random throws you a curveball). Hence, using every available finger is probably desirable (including thumbs and pinkies, if you can stand to use them).

All in all, do what works for you. Checking out how others play can be helpful; remember that practice makes perfect!

This may make sense why i started pretty good on beatmania. Reading skills are from experience from playing both O2jam. A game like beatmania but with 7 keys and is online for keyboard but was soon shut down. and playing stepmania ALOT. but i also noticed that beatmania has helped my timing in stepmania too. but beside that i guess like in previous games i've played im gonna watch pros and how they do it. Sadly i only have beatmania US (GAY) till friday then i get red and swap magic. i guess if i keep playing that like i did stepmania i'll possibly get better

[Starscream1215]

Well, in an effort to derail this thread from "I'm at X level in Y time", and back to the original topic, I'll tell you something that's really helped me.

You're gonna start noticing a lot more chords starting now, and again when you hit your 8-9 barrier. Right now I'm at mostly 9*'s with a 10 or two under the belt, and the thing that's helped me the most in running the chords is to play the songs a few times in Free (or any other play mode) to get the feel of the beat, then take it to practice and slow it down a little and repeatedly practice the tough chord chains. Build the speed back up to regular when you think your brain has a grasp on the image as it drops down.

It may just be me and the way I hit keys, but when I have to scratch and hit 1+2 (any additional really are kinda irrelevant), my brain often siezes up and goes "wtf how do I hit that". By which time the notes are gone =P

[aeriyu]

Originally Posted by Starscream1215

It may just be me and the way I hit keys, but when I have to scratch and hit 1+2 (any additional really are kinda irrelevant), my brain often siezes up and goes "wtf how do I hit that". By which time the notes are gone =P

Same problem here. A friend suggested that I switch hand positions whenever I need to do this. My default position is...

1 - left ring finger
2 - left middle finger
3 - left index finger
4 - <right index finger>
5 - right index finger/right thumb
6 - right middle finger
7 - right index finger

When those annoying Scratch+1/2 come up, he suggested that I try shifting to hitting 1 with thumb and 2 with index finger, w/ right hand covering everything else...

This strategy may allow me to pass Fire Fire[H] -- the fcking scratch+1s are killing me, w/ the ending always draining my HP from 100% -> 78%...

[Starscream1215]

Yeah that's pretty much the exact setup I use aeriyu, except I don't run my left ring finger much unless it's a 1+2 chord. Getting my brain to rewire to shift my thumb over for the +scratches is the hard part; still can't get the motion right yet heh.