The first 7-key IIDX entry on PS2, establishing the format that would define the series. Track selection is limited and difficulty is steep, but the addictive potential of the format is already fully evident.
Your verdict
Category
Rhythm2 players3+
Description
One of the earliest IIDX games to land on PS2, released in Japan in 2001. This conversion of the third arcade chapter brought the seven-key plus scratch format to consoles and set the template for a long line of editions to come.
Beatmania II DX 3rd Style review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
A temple of the DJ rhythm game, the Konami selection piles up techno, trance, jungle and house in an electronic deluge of wild richness. Mixing and scratching to the beat turns every game into a demanding club set. This teeming sonic diversity, a pioneer of the genre, forged the identity of a whole keys-and-turntable culture.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first minutes"
Addictiveness
"Obsessive"
Reading a scrolling score of notes, hammering the seven keys and scratching the turntable at just the right instant induces a precision trance where every successfully played track calls for the next. Earning a better rank and unlocking titles sustains a tangible sense of progress. The expert difficulty and the dedicated controller put people off, but this dialogue between hand and rhythm keeps a rare intensity.
Difficulty
"Punishing"
On seven keys and a turntable to scratch, reading the charts becomes a high-level sport: notes pour down at a wild density and the slightest timing slip breaks the combo. Stamina, coordination and sight-reading come first, where mere memorization no longer suffices. Harsh for the newcomer yet endlessly rewarding, it remains a benchmark of rhythmic rigor for the devoted.
Lifespan
"Massive"
Laying the foundations of mixing on the turntable and keys opens a learning curve that extends well beyond the first tracks. Refining your accuracy, climbing the difficulties and aiming for better clears keeps calling you back. That foundational depth, with no real end, establishes from the outset the longevity that will make the series' name.
Technical info
💾3,3 GB📅22/11/2000
Published by Konami
Beatmania II DX 3rd Style (PS2) price, value & rarity
Complete: box, manual and disc/cart very clean. Lightly handled.
Q1 damagedQ6 completeQ10 new
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Is Beatmania II DX 3rd Style still worth playing in 2026?
A rhythm game from Konami, Beatmania II DX 3rd Style adapts one of the early entries of the DJ arcade series to the console, where you combine seven keys and a scratch turntable to perform an electronic soundtrack with the characteristic sounds of the turn of the 2000s. The flavour of the series' beginnings, the energy of the period tracks and the depth of the system appeal to fans of sharp rhythm games and the curious of the origins. The high demand and the dependence on the dedicated controller target a knowledgeable audience. For a fan of demanding rhythm games or of the series, the title keeps a preserved energy and retro charm, in a dated edition.
