Pop'n music CS General Info

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Which mix should I buy?

Every person has their own opinions about which Pop'n Music mix is the "best". Rather than point out a definitive list, I'll list the pros and cons of each one, and let you decide. It is easier, however, to get the newer mixes.

Pop'n Music

Total Songs: 19
Unique Songs: 0

Pros

• available on two different systems
• worth a look to see how much the series has progressed

Cons

• only 19 songs, all of which have been repeated in later games
• only one diffciulty level per song
• graphics are outdated
• bad timing, bad loading times
• hard to find

Pop'n Music 2

Total Songs: 46
Unique Songs: 4

Pros

• available on two different systems
• much bigger songlist than the first game
• introduces many of the characters still seen in the series today
• difficulty level has been amped

Cons

• most of these songs were repeated in later games
• outdated graphics, bad timing, bad loading times still
• still only one difficulty level per song
• hard to find

Pop'n Music 3 Append

Total Songs: 44
Unique Songs: 7

Pros

• available on two different systems
• introduces several key Pop'n Music artists, such as Q-Mex, Atsushi Shindo, and Katoaka Tsugumi
• Hyper difficulty introduced to increase difficulty
• older songs have new charts to play

Cons

• outdated graphics, bad timing, bad loading times still
• almost half of the song list can also be played in Pop'n Music 2
• requires owning Pop'n Music 1, 2, 5, or 6 to play it
• three new licenses from the AC version are absent from this one

Pop'n Music 4 Append

Total Songs: 41
Unique Songs: 8

Pros

• available on two different systems
• Hyper diffciulty added to new AC songs: a first
• almost all of the songs are new to the game
• many of the arcade originals have never been revived
• two of the licenses missing from the last CS game are restored

Cons

• very few unlocks, most of them remixes
• requires owning Pop'n Music 1, 2, 5, or 6 to play it

Pop'n Music 5

Total Songs: 64
Unique Songs: ??

Pros

• EX difficulty added
• contains many preview songs for the next Pop'n Music game
• contains 15 brand-new songs for the CS release
• much improved graphics and interface

Cons

• hard to find and expensive
• many of the arcade originals were recycled in later games

Pop'n Music 6

Total Songs: 104
Unique Songs: ??

Pros

• biggest songlist of the PS games, bigger than some of the PS2 games
• all the new AC/CS songs have Hyper difficulty as the minimum difficulty level: a first
• much-needed speed mods Hi-Speed 3 and 4 make their way to the CS games

Cons

• hard to find and expensive
• graphic quality is diminished greatly from the arcade version, with animation on par with the first games
• many of the revived songs are missing charts, or only have one chart
• all but 2 of the licenses are missing from the game

Pop'n Music Best Hits

Total Songs: 54
Unique Songs: 3

Pros

• contains many songs that haven't been revived since their appearance in this game
• many of the songs and charts are available from the get-go

Cons

• small songlist compared to other PS2 and even PS Pop'n Music titles
• only 5 new songs, 3 of them remixes
• many of these songs can already be played in Pop'n Music 6 and 7

Pop'n Music 8

Total Songs: 104
Unique Songs: ~30

Pros

• big, varied songlist
• contains many Bemani crossovers
• many of the songs have not repeated to this day
• part of the PS2 Best Hits line, making it inexpensive to purchase new

Cons

• very few revivals
• Live songs said to have weird timing issues

Pop'n Music 9

Total Songs: 111
Unique Songs: ~55

Pros

• big, varied song list
• good balance between easy and difficult songs
• much less cumbersome interface than 8
• contains 4 e'mall songs and 3 preview songs from Pop'n 10
• ONLY Pop'n title to date to contain Hi-Speed 8
• part of the PS2 Best Hits line, making it inexpensive to purchase new

Cons

• long, confusing unlocking system
• slower speed mods than other PS2 Pop'n games

Pop'n Music 10

Total Songs: 103
Unique Songs: ~30

Pros

• upped difficulty from previous games
• you no longer have to play songs in Arcade mode to play them in Free mode. Also, once you finish unlocking all the songs in Arcade mode, ALL songs and their charts become playable (a first in the series) in Free Mode automatically
• interface is more polished than earlier games
• part of the PS2 Best Hits line, making it inexpensive to purchase new

Cons

• long, frustrating, annoying unlocking system
• timing is incredibly strict/off

Pop'n Music 12 Iroha

Total Songs: 102
Unique Songs: 70

Pros

• varied songlist
• easy, fun unlocking system
• Pop'n Request songs

Cons

• three songs require data from other PS2 Bemani games to save permanately
• many of the songs were later repeated in the next game
• older songs have awkward timing

Pop'n Music 13 Carnival

Total Songs: 114
Unique Songs: 70

Pros

• Super Challenge mode added to gameplay
• Fast unlocking system
• Pop'n Request songs
• Lots of songs, many of them brand-new to the game

Cons

• lots of repeats from the previous game

Pop'n Music 14 FEVER!

Total Songs: 112
Unique Songs: 96

Pros

• lots of brand new songs
• contains all the ee'mall 1st avenue songs
• new mini-games to play
• updated records section now tracks cools, greats, goods, and bads you get in a song in addition to score and max combo
• fast, easy unlocking system

Cons

• timing is considered too lax by some, making it easy to score on songs
• practically no revivals
• many of the ee'mall songs have no EX charts
• no Marathon Mode
• no Internet Ranking
• no Omake section