Dance pad
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A dance pad, also known as a dance mat or dance platform, is a flat electronic game controller that is placed on the floor and used to control some music-related video games. Most dance pads are divided into a 3×3 matrix of square panels for the player to stand on, with some or all of the panels corresponding to directions or actions within the game. Some dance pads also have extra buttons outside the main stepping area, such as "Start" and "Select". Pairs of dance pads are often joined together for certain gameplay modes.
Popular arcade games, such as Dance Dance Revolution (DDR), In the Groove, Pump It Up, and StepManiaX use large steel dance platforms connected to the arcade cabinet, whereas versions for home consoles usually use smaller (often flexible) plastic pads. Home dance pads are made for systems such as the GameCube, Wii, Dreamcast (Japan only), PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and Xbox, but can also be used in computer emulators, such as StepMania, through the use of adapters.
Types
[edit]Soft
[edit]
"Soft" pads are thin and made of plastic, generally costing $10–$20 USD. They are intended for light use in a casual setting and have been known to wear out easily[citation needed]. Manufacturers of soft pads include Konami, BNSUSA, RedOctane, Intec, Mad Catz (Beat Pad), MyMyBox, Naki International, and Nintendo (Action Pad).[1] OEM manufacturers include Futime and Topway (manufacturer of RedOctane pads).
Some soft pads contain stiff foam inserts to provide more stability and durability. The inserts usually ship as either three or six interlocking pieces to reduce the size of the packaging. These fit together using a dovetail joint and slide into the dance pad, which then zips closed around the foam. Certain brands of foam pads put raised plastic sections under the directional buttons to allow them to be more easily felt by a player's feet, as well as to keep them centered on the pad. These pads generally cost between $40 and $100.
Hard
[edit]"Hard" pads are usually constructed with metal (and sometimes wood) for durability. They typically come with a raised bar behind the player. Arcade machines use durable metal pads designed for heavy use. Other hard pads can be purchased for home use with a video game system; prices can range from anywhere between $100 and $1,000. Manufacturers of hard pads include DDRgame, Cobalt Flux, L-TEK, MyMyBox, Brown Box, RedOctane (ceased production as of February 2010), and Naki International.
Hard pads can be used in all arcade versions of music games that employ dance pads. They often serve as an ideal for DIY gamers who attempt to construct "homebrew pads." Homebrew kits often consist of instruction guides for converting soft pads into hard pads, although they often feature additional functions such as additional inputs (see below).
Dance Dance Revolution mats with buttons in orthogonal axis
Pump It Up mats with buttons in diagonal axis
StepMania mats with buttons in both orthogonal and diagonal axis
Solid State
[edit]"Solid State" pads replace the usual mechanical switch and contact used in other hard pads. A proximity sensor is used to detect the player's steps on the pad. Solid-state designs do not require pressure to activate, eliminating moving parts that might break down, but dirt may get into the mechanism.[2]
Caveats
[edit]Problems are often encountered when attempting to use a PlayStation pad with a computer simulator. Most PlayStation-PC adapters will not register all of the directions on the pad simultaneously because normal PlayStation games do not require such input and D-pads are not designed for it. StepMania's website has a section concerning adapter compatibility.[3] Although these devices may work on a PC, the adapters will not work with consoles that have built-in USB ports, such as the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360.
Purchasers of home pads should be aware of the number and arrangement of active arrow panels that are required by the game(s) they want to play. Although most commercial pads have four arrow panels (DDR/In the Groove), some have five (Pump It Up), six, eight (MC Groovz Dance Craze), or nine.
Homebrew pads
[edit]
Some players construct their own pads due to durability and cost concerns. Using common materials found at local hardware stores, such as plywood, sheet metal, and acrylic glass or polycarbonate, they are able to construct pads that are often more durable and authentic-feeling compared to commercially built hard pads. Some homebrew pads have extra features such as additional arrows, menu switches, pushbuttons, and bars. These are often made to be easily repaired and disassembled at home.
While some homebrew pads use custom electronics built from scratch, most homebrew pads make use of a circuit board from a standard controller to simplify the process of interfacing the pad with a gaming system. The controller used depends on the system that the pad is intended to be played with (GameCube, PlayStation, Xbox, or PC).
Homebrew pads use a variety of technologies for designing the arrows that the player is supposed to step on. The most common design uses metal contacts that sandwich together when the player steps on the pad or arcade button switches, but some ideas have been proposed, such as the use of optical, pressure, vibration, or proximity sensors.[4][5]
Due to the amount of work needed to create a custom metal pad, some players instead opt to modify existing soft pads by stapling on plywood sheets, acrylic, or office chair floor protectors. This prevents wrinkling and makes the pad more durable to use while wearing shoes.[6]
Educational use
[edit]Dance pads have been used in experimental systems for navigating through virtual environments, such as those reproducing historical buildings.[7]
Other games
[edit]Some games that can be played with dance pads do not involve pressing the arrow buttons on the pad to keep with the rhythm of a song:
- Many games developed for the NES Power Pad
- Breakthrough Gaming Presents: Axel
- The minigames of Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix (GameCube)
- Active Life series for Wii (Active Life: Outdoor Challenge, Active Life: Explorer, Active Life: Extreme Challenge, Active Life: Magical Carnival)
- Kraft Rocking the Boat
- Kraft Soccer Striker
- Kraft Virtual Dojo
- Exult - uses a Dance Pad Walking controller mod
- DDR-A-Mole, a game similar to Whac-A-Mole[8]
- Various mini-games in Dance Praise 2: The ReMix (DanceTris, a Tetris simulator, is included).The 2014 rogue-like rhythm game Crypt of the NecroDancer and some other games on Steam like The Metronomicon: Slay the Dance Floor (RPG elements in addition to dancing) and Vectronom[9]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ "Nintendo Action Pad product page".
- ↑ Original Video Game Operator's Manual Dance Dance Revolution. Konami. 1998. p. 8.
- ↑ "USB Adapters". Archived from the original on 2010-07-01. Retrieved 2017-06-25.
- ↑ "Kotaku | Gaming Reviews, News, Tips and More".
- ↑ "Capacitive Dance Pad - MEIN !!!". simon.derr.free.fr.
- ↑ "DDR Freak - Home Modding". www.ddrfreak.com.
- ↑ Fassbender, Eric; Richards, Debbie (2008). "Using a Dance Pad to Navigate through the Virtual Heritage Environment of Macquarie Lighthouse, Sydney". In Wyeld, Theodor G.; Kenderdine, Sarah; Docherty, Michael (eds.). Virtual Systems and Multimedia: VSMM 2007. Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS). Vol. 4820. Springer. p. 218. ISBN 978-3540785651.
- ↑ "EECS 373: DDR-A-Mole!". www.spinnerdisc.com.
- ↑ "Vectronom". dayofthedevs.com. Retrieved 2019-09-08.
External links
[edit]- Byrne, Michelle. "Console players win on their points" - An article about 'keep-fit' women buying dance pads to help with losing weight. Western Mail, 2004.
- Indie games with dance pad support on Itch.io