Just ordered it ^_^ (anything I should know?)

[AJmon13]

Sorry, I know I might get flamed for this kinda topic as there are already many...anyhoo, I got #10, with the flip top mod and swap magic...all for around, eh, maybe 170$ with all shipping.
So thats more or less what I expected to pay.

Heres a link to the game/controller (both brand new ^_^)-
http://cgi.ebay.com/Pop-N-Music-10-I...QQcmdZViewItem

And for the mod-
http://www.thegiantstore.com/index.a...ROD&ProdID=265

So basically here are some questions that people have been making you answer all the time!

-Price wise did I do alright?
-Did I buy the right mod?
-Is there a guide to putting the mod on? I heard its easy but...
-Hows #10? Like how good is it?
-Any thing I should know about #10? Like the unlock system...
-Since I got the basic shipping on the mod, any idea when it'll arive? I live in Ohio...
-Are you guys sick of answering these topics?

~TIA~

[Arkaaito]

- You didn't get ripped off. The prices you paid are maybe a bit high for my tastes. But there's always a trade-off involved. You can spend more time searching and less money, or you can spend more money and less time searching. The former tends to be more appealing for people who already have expertise in eBay or Bemani, since they can get a better return on their time; as a newbie it makes sense for you to go the latter route. Side note - if you do really like Pop'n, you will want to purchase an arcade-style controller at some point. Start keeping your eyes open now, 'cause these cost. (Though Desktop Arcade seems to be doing a lot to bring the prices down - what are they at now, $200 for a basic V4 DASC?)

- "The right" mod? Depends on what kind of PS2 you have. I'm going to assume that you got the right number of screws, so sure, you got the "right" mod. Many people here use the fliptop/SwapMagic combo if that's what you're wondering.

- Is there a guide to putting the mod on? Yes, there's one linked from the page you linked us to, under "Installation Instructions"...

- I like 10. Of course, I like them all, so I may not be the best judge. 10 does have Hi-Speed 6, which most people like, and Low-Speed, which *I* like. It also has some excellent songs, and some just-plain-weird songs (like the Goonies theme).

- Most people don't like the unlock system for 10, particularly if they don't read much Japanese. I recommend you give it a try, but if it doesn't work well for you, turn on time-based unlocks. There's a little information on 10 available here in the Pop'nnomicon wiki, but I haven't started renovating that page yet so it's unfortunately bereft of useful stuff (like an explanation of the unlock system). If you have specific questions you can post them and I'll try to answer them.

- I'm going to go out on a limb and predict "sometime in 2007."

- Ehh... I wanted to do a giant centralized FAQ/version comparison for first-time pop'n players, but the nice folks who run the review section never told me whether it would be okay to post it or not. So the answer is probably "no."

[AJmon13]

lol thanks dude...and yeah thats the kind of mod I got...and it woulda been cheaper but Playasia.com was all out of controllers...didn't feel like waiting ^_^

[Trip Machina]

I'll say what I said on VJArmy about a month ago:

Hehehe, I happened to buy pop'n music 10 a couple of days ago. Sure the Wish to the Stars game is not only annoying, but really difficult to get what you want out of it...so, I only played it once and then turned it off so that I could time unlock it.

I played the game for some hours yesterday, and then today, I played from 6:00PM - 2:00AM straight! I have to work, so I stopped at 2AM. So far, I've unlocked everything except for the Hypers/EXs, which is last unlock this way. I have slightly less than 30 minutes of play left until everything is unlocked.


Here's my two cents on this game:
The new interface is really cool and fresh. The new voices aren't too bad, but sometimes make me cringe (in a kind of good way), especially when they say "Readyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy~~~!" for the Wish to the Stars game. XD

The initial songlist (excluding the Licenses) is rather boring and bland IMO...I can remember having such a boring time forcing myself to play these songs over and over again for time unlock purposes, hell, I was about to give up and turn the Wish to the Stars game back on. XD

LOL, but thank goodness for the licenses, which are really good IMO. Majokko Megu-chan and Mazinger Z are awesome and my absolute favorites on this game! ^_~

After I unlocked the extra High Speed options, I felt a bit more motivated....I then kept playing and unlocked many of the secret songs, which made me not dislike pop'n music 10 anymore because now things started sounding HELLA better. You have to work hard for the good songs. I currently have a record on nearly every song on each difficulty level due to trying to use my unlock time on filling stuff up.


So all in all, the SECRET songs improves pop'n music 10 alot....you just gotta unlock 'em. =/

[AJmon13]

Ah, makes sense...so whats the uhh...hellish unlock system like?
0_o

If it makes a consolation I wanted to get #9...but...like I said no controller at playasia...

[DKW]

Okay, the unlock system has three rapidly-spinning reels with words on them, and you have to get a combination of words that makes a coherent sentence. Do that and you unlock the item indicated. The reels spin very fast, so even if you know Japanese it won't help. The problem? Extremely easy to fail, possible to have incredibly long dry spells, and no guarantee of unlocking anything, ever. (I remember one player saying that after three months he had nothing but the Christmas song, which is automatic.) It is possible to "power unlock" it by playing and cancelling out of Expert (hold Start once the first song begins) repeatedly, but even that gets tedious. Seriously, if I'd known just how ridiculous this would be, I would've turned it off from day one. First Japanese-language item on the option screen, IIRC.

Other than that, this is another fine music game. Boring songlist? No different from any songlist that's come before. If you want dozens of incredibly diverse, epic, mind-blowing songs...well, that's what IIDX is for.

You're going to love 10, promise.

[Arkaaito]

I don't even remember which songs on 10 were unlocks anymore... and I resent your insinuation that Pop'n has mediocre song-lists. (But it's probably true. )

I'll have to go back through 10 soon enough, because I need to refresh my memory on the unlocks and unlock systems. My opinion of it may change then. Anyway, it'll be interesting to see what the new guy thinks of it.

[AJmon13]

Wow, its amazing how pop'n kids are so nice and DDR kids are all full of themselves...(on the internet)

thanks a lot ^_^

Oh and can someone give me advice on how to...well...like start it up and such? I don't wanna get it all ready only to fail out and make my parents/bros think it was a waste of money...not that they don't already ^_^

[Cao Landoku]

I remember 10 was my first one.....and that was a month ago. I got 8 and 13 for xmas. You are right about the DDR community, hence why I do not post on ddrfreak anymore, that place is jerk city. It's like the people just sit at their computer all day waiting to "pwn" others that dont agree with their own opinions but when you fire back at them, you get in trouble(and I mean not even saying anything offensive).

But yeah back on subject, when you first fire 10 up, it should automatically create a system file if I can remember correctly. If not, i'll be the default highlighted choice. Like the other guy said, the unlock system is hard if you can't understand japanese text. So to turn it off, go to options and it'll be the first On/Off option after the "select default character" option in the menu. Also, it will take 4 hours just to unlock the first thing (hidden options) so dont be discouraged if it takes awhile. When you hit 9 hours of play time, everything should be available. ^.^;

When everything was unlocked I fell in love with 10 instantly. It was full of my favorites and I hope it will include your favorites too.

[ΩOMEGAΩ]

you seem to have a good price, I got my mod for $30, and pop'n music 1 10 and a contoller for$70, but that was just luck (the controller is a mini), plus the guy wanted to get rid of it so ya, you got a good deal, my mid ended up breaking my PS2 in the end, so just be careful.

[Cao Landoku]

I was using the swap discs/flip top until it killed my U.S. ps2. Then I just bought a Japanese ps2. I found out the swap discs cause the laser lens to work harder decreasing it's life.

[Arkaaito]

I disagree somewhat about the internet DDR community. I mean, most of the "major" DDR forums are a bit hostile, but there are also plenty of places where DDRers are civilized and generally fun. I watch a regional DDR board (which is slowly getting dragged into more general Bemani), and people there are generally quite civil and supportive.

It's probably a size thing - larger boards tend to have a nastier population. Because DDR has far and away the most American followers of any Bemani game (strictly speaking - not counting non-Bemani rhythm games), it tends to have the larger boards.

Uh, anyway, on topic, Landon is correct - it should ask you if you want to create a savefile the first time you ask it to save.

The one thing you should bear in mind that I haven't seen others mention is difficulty. If you've never played Pop'n before you should definitely play your first couple of games on Enjoy mode. Challenge mode is the more difficult single-song mode. Expert is the course-based mode (think Oni courses in DDR). Battle and Taisen Battle are... different. Fun, but different. I can't remember which of the play styles are available on 10, but I know Enjoy & Challenge are.

[AJmon13]

Ah ok...or could I just play lower level songs?
Anyway thanks but..
you two...PLEASE explain..
1. you said the "mid" killed your PS2...you mean the mod?
2. How long did your PS2 last until the swap magic weared it to its death...

thanks 0_o

[Arkaaito]

Yeah, you can play lower level songs - the number next to the song indicates how hard it is (higher = harder).

Slide cards generally cause more PS2 wear than flip-tops, which in turn cause a bit more PS2 wear than normal. The flip-tops cause excess wear on the laser assembly.

If you burn out your laser assembly, you can always replace it assuming you're not afraid to open the PS2 up.

If you're concerned about the issue I think I've heard that much of the problem is due to using backups or "inferior media," as opposed to original discs which are easier for the PS2 to read. If you actually buy the games and play from the original discs, you should extend the life of the laser assembly. A Google search confirms this impression. And remember, everything you read on the internet is true!

[AJmon13]

lol and im gonna be playing real games...im just getting the mod for imports..
since it'll read pop'n as a backup...will it wear it more then an american game?