Reddit mentions of Dance Dance Revolution Energy HD 1" Foam Deluxe Dance Pad for PS/ PS2/ Wii/ Xbox/ PC - DDR Game

How much are you looking to spend? This one here is fairly cheap and seems to have good reviews. http://www.amazon.com/PS2-Energy-Foam-Deluxe-Dance-Playstation/dp/B000GHG0BA/ref=pd_sim_sbs_vg_1

You could try something like this? A friend of mine used to have a similar foam pad - and reviews on this one look /mostly/ good and it's within your price range. This is USB so it should work on a 360; though I don't think it'd work on the Wii - but it might? This SHOULD work for PC as well! Which is what I'd recommend.


Keep in mind - ANY foam pad or less tier pad won't exactly allow you to pass some of the harder songs. So if you have some hardcore DDR players in your club they will likely laugh at these. I'm just being honest. However if you're just trying to play for fun - these would be fine!


In terms of which version of the game to get - never played Dance Dance Revolution Universe or DDR Universe 2 but scrolling through those song lists they seem to have a decent selection I guess. That would be your best bet if you chose the Xbox 360 as your choice of system. Also the easiest solution. Both of those games could probably be found at a local used game store or dare I say... Gamestop... Or even Ebay.


If you can find a spare computer (literally can run on just about anything) you could get a free piece of software called Stepmania. It only comes with a few songs when you first download it... but you can get more songs various ways. This would allow you to hand pick exactly which songs you'd like but also would be a bit more setup. Here's an ok article breaking down some controls and stuff.


I hope this helps!

You want one with a foam insert. Pads without foam inserts are simply unplayable at even 7-8 foot charts, but I've had pads with inserts hold up well for several years a pad.

I'm using this pad in particular. I just bought a replacement after 2 years of playing about once a week. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GHG0BA

Stepmania is a good choice, though it can be a chore initially to find all the music you want but basically all the music from arcade releases up through Extreme are readily available plus loads of other songs. As for console, PS2 is really the only choice. Xbox, Wii, and PS3 had some releases but their libraries don't compare. In addition to all the DDR releases, on the PS2 you also have access to In The Groove.

As for multi-platform pads, I'd recommend the DDRGame Energy Foam Pad. While at least one person on this sub has received a defective pad, and despite DDRGame's poor metal pads, myself and some others have been pleased by the durability and usability of the pad. Otherwise, refer to this recent post discussing cheap pads.

Hello! I have been researching this a lot lately so, to answer your question fully, I think it comes down to three things: what is your price range, what platform is your friend using, and how handy are you? I'm sure there are more knowledgable people who will chime in but I feel like after pouring through a lot of posts on this sub I can give some fairly standard advice.

The most affordable and device agnostic solution (without getting a cheap "plastic pad") is the "DDR Energy 1 inch foam deluxe pad" from Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Dance-Revolution-Energy-Deluxe-Playstation-2/dp/B000GHG0BA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1467232923&sr=8-1&keywords=ddr+pad). I own two of these: truth be told I have some issues with ghost steps on one pad and while the other so far is holding up, I just purchased it and I am not convinced it is 100% just yet. You'll see conflicting reviews online about these, particularly the metal pads, but these foam pads are recommended commonly. This is around $60 bucks, has a nice stable foam insert, and can work on multiple platforms (PC and PS2 probably being the most common). While my personal experience might not seem like a glowing review, I would still recommend this pad. In my opinion this is your safest bet.

If you are wary about the quality of the DDR Energy pad, can afford a little more, and your friend plays on PC, consider this pad (http://dancepadmania.com/product/dance_pads/deluxe-dance-pad/). While I have not personally used it, I have seen multiple people on here recommending it over the similar DDR energy pad. Comes in at around $85.

If you are handy and want to make an extra special gift, your next option (in terms of price) would be to construct your own metal pad. This is the route I am currently investigating as my next step up- this thread has information on the construction process (https://zenius-i-vanisher.com/v5.2/viewthread.php?threadid=3350). I see many people using Riptide's guide as a starting point and there are video tutorials of the whole process on youtube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aE88SHLHwU). From my research, I think this would set you back somewhere between $100-$150 + your time to construct it.

If you are not handy, but money is no option and you want the best of the best, you'd be hard pressed to find something better than an OmegaGX from precision dance pads (http://www.precisiondancepads.com/index.php?id_product=8&controller=product&id_lang=1). This can also be customized as well to make the gift extra special, but you're looking at spending around $350. This is considered the premiere home dance pad solution - at this point the only step up would be purchasing an actual machine or modifying arcade dance pads for use on PC.

Hope this helps :D!

DDR is a fun way of exercise.

There's Stepmania which is a ddr clone for the computer and you can find a whole shitton of songs for it online. They have pretty good pads on amazon that plug into the computer.

I got this pad. It works really well. It plugs into a ps2 too if you can find a game for that (all the new ddr games have really bad songs, but DDR Extreme 2 and before that better songs)

You can also get one of the cheaper pads that come in a bundle with a DDR game in the store. Those don't last too long, but they're good for beginners. There are PS2 to Computer controller converters for those.

I hope that helps!

I bought this one about 6-7 months ago and I love it:http://www.amazon.com/PS2-Energy-Foam-Deluxe-Dance-Playstation/dp/B000GHG0BA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1348286479&sr=8-1&keywords=ddr+energy

Given this is for a school orientation I'd go for getting two of these pads.

I'd also get some wood or something to place under the pads, as well as something like velcro to secure the pads on the wood.

For the version of the game I'd either run StepMania with a PC (allowing you to use user-created songs which you can find online), or for a console route I'd say Extreme 2 (although DDRMAX and DDRMAX2 are nice too as other people have said).

Thanks for the response! The info I got on DDRGame I got from just googling around. There are some threads on some different dance-game forums that discuss pc pads. Those brands I listed above are reputable (but now gone) and DDRGame is just not durable and needs replaced every month or so, even the metal ones.

I'll probably end up going with this anyway though: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GHG0BA

it looks like the only half decent option.

EDIT: here's some of those threads:
http://www.stepmania.com/forums/showthread.php?29200-Dance-mat-recomendation&highlight=ddrgame
http://www.stepmania.com/forums/showthread.php?16313-Buying-a-Dance-Pad-Would-Like-Help&highlight=ddrgame
http://www.stepmania.com/forums/showthread.php?9651-Dance-Pad-Reccomendations&highlight=ddrgame
http://www.stepmania.com/forums/showthread.php?22396-Working-Cheap-Pad-where-to-buy-fr-om%28ddrgame-com%29-Please-help-decide&highlight=ddrgame
http://www.stepmania.com/forums/showthread.php?25380-Can-i-trust-DDRgame&highlight=ddrgame

So, I guess your mileage may vary.

That’s what I assumed. Thank you.

On a related note, I have decided against the pad I put in the OP, and am instead leaning towards this one.

Any opinion on either of them? Or any other suggestions for that matter? If so, I’m all ears.

Hmm. I see what you mean. I really don't know about the differences. There's a description of each one, but I would assume that each version has a couple little updates/improvements over previous versions, so with Version 4 being cheaper than 3 at the moment, I'd say that's the one to get, although I don't know if the changes really make it any better than Version 2. I also haven't ordered from their website, so I can't really vouch for that. This is the pad I got: http://www.amazon.com/PS2-Energy-Foam-Deluxe-Dance-Playstation/dp/B000GHG0BA/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1425832275&sr=8-9&keywords=ddrgame+pad

I hope Amazon links are okay around here. Anyways, I'd really recommend a more expensive pad if you're serious about playing a lot. My pad worked great for about a year of light use, and then one of the arrows started either not responding to input or being stuck as "down" even when I wasn't standing on it. If they were like $20, I wouldn't care, but they're a little expensive to just stop working well after some time.

After it stopped working, I got one of the OmegaGX pads, and it's been great. Very responsive and comfortable to use.

Unless you are already playing harder standard or heavy songs and want to achieve high scores, I would suggest getting a simple, less expensive mat to get started.

I haven't personally used the D-force pads, which can be found on Amazon, but I've heard good things! If you are willing to spend the ~$90 the foam pads offer some support for your legs compared to pads w/o foam. And from my experiences playing on carpet, foam pads slide less than pads w/o. The plain dance mats ($50) without padding are still fine for beginners, but may slide more and will give less cushion, especially on hardwood.

This is the foam pad I have currently ($57). It works very well despite some "ghosting" of the down button which can occasionally cause errors. But I'm not too concerned with getting perfect combos on my home machine. There are some cheaper dance mats out there on amazon, but quality can be questionable, so always check reviews before you purchase! And make sure it has a USB if you want to play with Stepmania.

If you decide to stick with the hobby and want to maximize your scores, only then would I suggest shelling out money for a hard mat or the effort of hardmodding. Have fun!

Dance Dance Revolution Energy HD 1" Foam Deluxe Dance Pad for PS/ PS2/ Wii/ Xbox/ PC - DDR Game https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000GHG0BA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_DPZrxb7JRSPPX

I'm currently using this one with windows 10 and haven't had any issues: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GHG0BA/

Here is the mobile version of your link

> Fantastic timing? I've heard of marvelous timing which is one step above Excellent... perhaps fantastic is a step above that?

Fantastic is the same as marvelous. The default timing window for fantastic/marvelous is +/- 22.5 ms iirc. OP, you should have it turned on.

I bought this DDRGame pad three years ago. It works great if a soft pad is what you're after.

I use DDRgame Energy pads, but be careful because they have both thin pads and pads with 1inch foam inserts with almost the same name. And get them from amazon.com where they are cheaper than DDEgame.com. They tend to last a couple years. I don't think any soft pad being made today will last 14 years.

About $62 each today

https://www.amazon.com/Dance-Revolution-Energy-Deluxe-Playstation-2/dp/B000GHG0BA/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=ddr+energy+pad&qid=1573765581&sr=8-1

I'm not sure what kind of foam is in the d-force, well the amazon page does say it has "super high density" foam (you definitely want the dense foam.) I used this pad for a long time https://www.amazon.com/Dance-Revolution-Energy-Deluxe-Playstation-2/dp/B000GHG0BA, but the unfortunate thing about these pads is you will eventually suffer from "drifting arrows" (the raised cardboard inserts in the mat end up floating around.) What I ended up doing (once my "drifting arrows" became unworkable) was I took out the foam insert and taped it to the back of my FIRST "soft" dancepad (with double sided duct tape.) I swear to god it works even better than the original, I use velcro strips along the outside of the arrows (the soft side) to easily feel around for the arrows. (to be clear, most "soft" pads do not usually have the raised arrows, ALTHOUGH there ARE "soft" pads WITH raised arrows. Be careful when you're buying)

Avoid things that look like this, and go for something more like this.

https://www.amazon.com/Dance-Revolution-Energy-Deluxe-Playstation-2/dp/B000GHG0BA

Its actually a foam mat but is pretty easy to disassemble and assemble so mabye this will help

This pad has been going strong for me for over 3 years:
http://www.amazon.com/PS2-Energy-Foam-Deluxe-Dance-Playstation/dp/B000GHG0BA

I was playing DDR on it for about 30 minutes 4-5 days a week. Nowadays I'm not playing on it, but it's a great pad for only a little over $50.

Only thing - the USB part of it breaks VERY easily if you pull the cable sideways while it's plugged in. I had to resolder the USB connection once, though it's continuing to work fine. If you just use a USB extension cable you shouldn't ever run into that problem.