Arcade Play vs. Home Play

After keeping away from the arcades and saving my money, I went to a grad party today and end up playing DDR MAX (2 soft pads).

I've never really played DDR on the PS2 before, and it was quite a different experience. After trying a few songs, I immediately found out about the mat getting bunched up, or moving backward/foreward, etc etc. We taped the mats down and that helped to solve the problem. Still, having the mats on carpet didn't help. I disliked the *squishy* feeling when I stepped.

Another thing with the mats is that when I play at the arcade, I can tell where I am on the pad by 'feeling' where my feet are on them. In contrast, the soft mat at my friends house has a 'flat' texture on it, and you can't tell the directional buttons from anything else.

Another major difference that irked me was the *lack* of songs. Extreme I suppose has spoiled me with having nearly every song for DDR, but still I didn't like the more limited song choices. - it had Stomp To My Beat though, that makes me happy :)

The one thing that I did like about playing in the home was that you can play with and around friends much easier. No money needs to be thrown around, and it's always fun to either insult someone or encourage them while playing. Good times were had by all :)

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Tommy Penner
"The plural of 'chassis' is 'chassis' ;)" - Den

CPLady's avatar
I have the opposite problem. On the soft pads at home, I do very well, getting A's on the lights, and A's and B's on most of the standards.

Put me on an arcade DDR, and I can't seem to get higher than a C, even on songs I can ace easily at home.

I find that I have to step harder on the arcade pads, and am always "missing". My son also does better on the pads at home vs. arcade.

I guess it's what you are used to.

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I'd rather die living than live like I'm dead
http://www.webtechnik.com/ebony/CPLady.htm

Jeff's avatar
Extreme isn't like other versions, home or arcade. You can get bored with an arcade Max2 machine if you play it frequently. Extreme just has a ridiculous number of songs.

We have had every kind of soft pad. The thin ones with the non-slip foam on the bottom (DPR2 I think) on a piece of wood work really well. The extra thick 1" foam pads actually kind of suck in my opinion because it feels like you need to fight the foam to rebound off of it and press something else. The mid-level pads work the best, and have worked the most reliably for me thus far.

I like to play on arcade machines, but the quality of them varies a ton in terms of how responsive the stage is. That's why I'd love to have one of my own, to tear it apart and play with it.

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Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com - Sillynonsense.com
DELETED! What time does the water show start?

I think that the arcade pad is pretty much superior in every way. The thing I like best about it is that it feels like you are dancing on a floor, not a pad. I like that the bar is there to lean on after songs (or grab if you start to fall over), and you can feel where your feet are.

As far as song selection, yes, Extreme has just about any song you'd want. MAX2 has many of my favorites, but I'd get tired of any other mix.

At home, I have a metal pad, but it doesn't feel anything like the arcade. The buttons have a little squishiness to them like a soft pad. The thing about it that's good is that it never moves, bunches up, etc.... not one inch. It used to stick once in a while but I haven't had any problems now for quite some time (knock on wood).

I absolutely hate all the soft pads I've tried. The ones Jeff linked are the best, but they still move about a foot for every heavy song I do, and I have to glance down to see where my feet are. I can barely get B's on songs I usually AA. The non-foam-filled pads are even worse... anyone who plans to play above the light level should not buy these...

Maybe it's because none of my friends like DDR, but I find more camaraderie in the arcade than at home. At home, it's usually just me and my wife, or if there are friends over, it's them watching me, or trying it once and saying, "I suck" and giving up. In the arcade, they may be strangers, but there's a lot about DDR you can talk about. If you're lucky, you'll share other interests... I once met a C-buzzer randomly in an arcade. :)

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A day is a drop of water in the ocean of eternity. A week is seven drops.

Jeff's avatar
Interestingly enough, I've never had any problem knowing where my feet are on a soft pad. Even if they move a little, and they do when I play doubles, I for some reason have a sixth sense about where the buttons are.

I know the purists might hate it, but I'm not ready to proclaim the arcade stage as superior to soft pads.

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Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com - Sillynonsense.com
DELETED! What time does the water show start?

CPLady's avatar
I have the pads Jeff linked to and so far have liked them best. Only problem is they tend to split after hard use, but they are cheap enough that replacing them won't break my wallet.

The only time I play DDR in an arcade is when I'm at a park. I believe we have the latest home version but my son said the next version is due out soon (if not already), but it's DDRMax2 ??

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I'd rather die living than live like I'm dead
http://www.webtechnik.com/ebony/CPLady.htm

Like CPLady said, it's what you're used to. I started out at the arcade, and when I bought the home game, I started with a metal pad. I didn't use a soft pad until much later.

But whenever anyone comes over and plays, they always prefer the soft pad over the metal one. Probably because if you step on the "seams" around the arrows on the metal pad, it hurts a little.

Just the other day, a friend of my wife's came over and said, "So, you're still using that old pad, eh?" implying that I should throw it out and use the soft pads. Yeah right! :)

EDIT: CPLady, MAX2 is officially slated for "Autumn 2003," though I've heard people saying September. They've announced a few of the songs, including "Days Go By" from the Mitsubishi commercial, Twilight Zone (you know this one), and one of my all-time faves Tsugaru - w00t!

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A day is a drop of water in the ocean of eternity. A week is seven drops.
*** This post was edited by Den 7/14/2003 9:28:30 AM ***

Even though I started off with soft pads (and going through about a pad a month,) I much prefer to play on my metal arcade pad(s) built by yours truly. Even modding the soft pads didn't give me the arcade feel that I was looking for, not to mention all the inherent problems I had with soft pads; bunching, ghosting, slipping, having to play in socks, etc. (who plays DDR in socks?...I mean really :) Now I can stomp around all I want at home, but I can no longer blame the pad when I miss an arrow or two :) My friends are also now much more willing to play DDR on metal pads. What's wrong with you friends wearing their shoes while playing on the metal pads?

Tsugaru is one of my all time faves to play, although I prefer Apple Mix to the original.

Right now Max2 hasn't moved out of my PS2 in quite some time (every now and again 5th mix will make a guest appearance). I'm eagerly awaiting to see what EX will bring home this fall.

Just to brag a little more on my pads, construction info and pics can be found here...http://r.rockwood.home.mchsi.com/ddr_construction.html

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"This mode is difficult!"

*** This post was edited by pokeyron 7/14/2003 11:11:56 PM ***
	

	

	

		

			
		

		

	





	

		
		
			
		
	

    
	

		Wow, I wish I had taken wood shop.... ;)
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A day is a drop of water in the ocean of eternity. A week is seven drops.
	

	

	

		

			
		

		

	





	

		
		
			
		
	

    
	

		PokeyRon, that's pretty damn cool :) Does Grandpa Joe play DDR? ;)
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Tommy Penner
"The plural of 'chassis' is 'chassis' ;)" - Den
	

	

	

		

			
		

		

	





	

		
		
			
		
	

    
	

		For those of you with flat soft pads, (I have two, I'm waiting for them to break.) buy covers. They're great! No bunching, and they actually help my gameplay. But, when my pads finally break (which would've happened by now without the covers), I am going with Jeff's suggestion.
	

	

	

		

			
		

		

	





	

		
		
			
		
	

    
	

		What do those covers do?  I don't get it.  I just ordered a pad from RedOctane and honestly, I'm not that impressed.  For some reason, the arrows don't register when I hit them about 25% of the time.  I'm still able to pass songs, but I haven't gotten above a B on anything since I got it.  I'm considering just saying that I paid $50 for DDR Konamix and ditching the new pad.
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Formerly PittDesigner (graduating soon!)
Lifelong fan of all Impulses!
--Brett
	

	

	

		

			
		

		

	





	

		
		
			
		
	

    
	

		I'm looking at version 2.0 of the dance pad Jeff reccomended here:
http://www.komusa.com/pldaredeigpa1.html
I'm wondering if I should spend the extra $18.  Anyone have the version 2.0 pads and can let me know if it's worth it?
PS: I'm getting this for my wife.  She's an absolute beginner but I'm loathe to not buy something that's good quality even if she's a beginner player.
	

	

	

		

			
		

		

	





	

		
		
			
		
	

		Jeff's avatar
    
	

		Don't get the 2.0 version. It isn't everything it promises to be. The buttons are not any bigger, and frankly the foam is too thick.
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Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com - My Blog
Blogs, photo albums - CampusFish
What time does the water show start?
	

	

	

		

			
		

		

	















	
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