IIDX Glossary: Difference between revisions

:A matching battle mode introduced in [[AC CANNON BALLERS|CANNON BALLERS]] via an online update, and was first unveiled in [[KONAMI Arcade Championship|The 7th KONAMI Arcade Championship]], whereas four players, played locally or online, compete in a set of four songs. A special pacemaker graph, ARENA target score, is exclusive to this mode to track the performances for all players real time. When playing online on certain time periods, the player earns ARENA CUBES which can be used to unlock songs and hidden LEGGENDARIA charts.

:This mode was added in [[AC 9th style|9th style]] ([[CS 5th style|5th style CS]] for home version). Designed for newcomers to the game, BEGINNER gives an alternate note chart for a large selection of songs, with the level rating ranging from 1 to 3. From 9th style to [[AC PENDUAL|PENDUAL]], BEGINNER was a separate mode with only BEGINNER charts, thus severely limiting the number of songs available in a game, while the difficulty levels are written in Kanji. As of [[AC Lincle|Lincle]], several BEGINNER charts from console versions (and earlier arcade styles) were revived. Prior to [[AC HEROIC VERSE|HEROIC VERSE]], scores do not save for BEGINNER charts, and all songs have a generic green clear lamp. Barring a couple of exceptions in some CS releases, there are no Double BEGINNER charts.

:This mode serves as a skill-ranking system for beatmania IIDX players. Modeled after the Dan system for many martial arts schools, players are ranked from 7th Kyu (the initiate level; 5th Kyu on Double prior to copula) all the way through 10th Dan (the highest rank attainable). Each rank consists of a course of four songs (three on Double prior to copula), each rank being harder than the last. The highest rank a player can achieve can be considered that player's relative "skill level," and is a decent way to gauge player ability. In [[AC DistorteD|DistorteD]], an extra rank above 10th Dan was added, called Kaiden, that is designed to truly test a beatmania IIDX master's skills. A new rank was added in [[AC copula|copula]] called Chuuden, as a bridge between 10th Dan and Kaiden.

:This mode is one in which you can play a course of songs in a row without stopping. You start with the gauge at its maximum; if it drops to 0, the game is over. The gauge is the same as that used in Hard mode in normal play, but drops at a much slower rate. EXPERT mode was removed beginning in [[AC tricoro|tricoro]], but has since returned in [[AC PENDUAL|PENDUAL]], this time as a software update. It did not return again since [[AC Rootage|Rootage]].

:Similar to Standard/Arcade mode, with the exception that there is no limit on the which songs can be picked for any particular stage. On home versions, play in Free Mode will continue endlessly until the player chooses to return to the main menu. On arcade versions, Free Mode allows for the player to play two stages, but the player can pick any song for either stage without limits on difficulty and without having to worry about Game Over if a song is failed. A variant of this mode is TIME FREE, introduced in [[AC SINOBUZ|SINOBUZ]], whereas the two stages is changed to five minutes.

:A variant of FREE mode, but with four stages and a new restriction: if you break combo at any point, you fail the song instantly. In arcade versions, it is accessed by highlighting FREE on the mode select screen and pressing the three black keys simultaneously. In console versions, it is a GAUGE modifier accessed by holding down the key to change gauge modifier as you select HARD gauge. A variant of this mode introduced in [[AC SINOBUZ|SINOBUZ]] is TIME HAZARD, which was set to eight minutes instead.

:An arcade-exclusive variant of FREE mode that allows you to play as many songs as you wish for a specified amount of time, similar to console versions' FREE mode but with a time limit; by default, 6-, 8-, and 10-minute modes are available (and these can be extended by the arcade operator up to 30 minutes maximum). You can quit or retry a song any time by pressing the EFFECT and VEFX buttons. This is a [[PASELI]]-only mode, and costs more than a credit of other play modes in exchange for this convenience.

:A play mode suitable for all players whereas players play songs with a limited, but dynamic song list which refreshes every song, with the starting difficulty level based on a tier (Lincle or tricoro) or by starting Dan rank (SPADA onwards).

:Introduced in [[AC CANNON BALLERS|CANNON BALLERS]], it is a variant of FREE mode available on every Thursdays, replacing HAZARD. The player is given 8 minutes, and is forced on a special HARD/EX-HARD gauge where it cannot be recovered, similar to the PRESSURE gauge seen in pre-[[AC DDR SuperNOVA2|DDR SuperNOVA2]] EXTRA STAGE system. This kind of gauge was earlier debuted on [[AC copula|copula]] when playing [[NZM]] during the ONE MORE EXTRA STAGE on their first try.