Type – Dance Pad Manufacturer – Mad Catz Platform – PlayStation 2, Xbox
Let's get the obvious out of the way first: this is not an acceptable pad for an experienced DDR player, but they won't be reading this review, so it's not written for them. Instead, this is written for the casual DDR player, or those who think they might enjoy DDR - if they ever gave it a try. That just happens to be what this pad is perfect for: giving DDR a try, without spending a hundred bucks on a decent metal pad. It's cheap, and playing difficult songs on it is virtually impossible, but it's a great peripheral for beginners.
Mad Catz's pad is pretty stylish, colored black with a variety of blues. The dancing girl silhouette in the middle is kind of cheesy, but realistically, most people will look kind of cheesy playing DDR anyway. Eac of the buttons and arrows are clearly labeled, so no problems there. It's also very clear on the pad where one button ends and the next begins.
The pad itself is basically a blanket that you roll out onto the floor; it's completely flimsy and lightweight. When actually playing, I never had any trouble getting the pad to register my steps on the easier difficulty settings. Racking up big combos was never a problem, and if I missed a step, it was certainly my own fault. Of course, on the higher skill settings, the pad slides around too much, making it a real challenge to keep up with the song. By the time someone is ready for those skill settings, though, they'll be ready to upgrade to a hard pad.
For the DDR-curious, this is a great pad to pick up. It'll allow you to explore the dance genre and learn the basics without investing much money. On the easier settings, the pad is sturdy enough that it doesn't slide around so much that it's a huge problem. Undoubtedly, though, those that really get into it will want to get a nicer pad at some point, but this is a good first step. Recommended, but just for DDR beginners.
