DDR going SuperNOVA in spring

For six years, gamers have risked sprained ankles and hyperventilation while trying to reach the highest levels of Dance Dance Revolution. Soon, though, virtual rug-cutters will need even fancier footwork if they want to successfully strut their funky stuff in arcades.

As part of its 2006 Konami Gamers' Day publicity fusillade, Konami announced it is prepping a new DDR game for release. Called Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA, the game will sport more than 2,000 different dance patterns and 300 songs. Though no specific song titles were mentioned, the publisher said the game's music library would draw on "a wide variety of musical genres that encompass famous smash-hit songs and Konami original tunes."

Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA will also use an all-new game engine based on a new arcade board. The engine will allow for full 3D graphics, which will be used to animate the game's onscreen dancers, as well as play a variety of as-yet-unnamed music videos. It will sport a tutorial mode for novices, and a battle mode to let those with more seasoned soles face off.

Acknowledging the game's success outside the arcade, Konami announced that Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA is being "designed to support linking features in future iterations of the series for home gaming consoles." However, the company did not specify which consoles the game would come to, raising the possibility that a next-gen DDR is in the works.

Konami did not announce a specific release date for DDR SuperNOVA, saying only that it "will be released in arcades nationwide" in the spring.