[Publib] dance dance revolution

[Toby Greenwalt]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Toby Greenwalt <theanalogdivide at gmail.com>
Date: Dec 5, 2007 10:00 AM
Subject: Re: [Publib] dance dance revolution
To: Lyn Smith <ellynsmith at gmail.com>


Lyn,

Your patrons might be the best resource, as my experience has been that
everyone has their own preference as to which one is the best. If you're
just getting started and just want to throw yourself into the endeavor, your
best bet is probably to go to Best Buy (or some other shop that sells games)
and see which version comes with a mat. There are at least 10 versions of
DDR that are compatible with PS2, and the main difference between all of
them is simply the selection of songs.

As far as the pads are concerned, the ones that come packaged with the games
will do, but if you anticipate heavy usage, they will wear out after a while
if used heavily. You will need two to play the game, as competition is a big
part of the appeal for the players. The mats do tend to shift if people get
overzealous with their steps.

At my old library (Westmont, IL - www.westmontlibrary.org), we purchased the
Cobalt Flux metal pads (which Google has eerily, er, conveniently posted a
link to in my Gmail window - www.cobaltflux.com) which helped our gaming
programs seem like more of an event. The mats are much more durable, and
they're certainly heavy enough not to shift during play. We rented out our
gaming equipment to other libraries to help defray the cost, and to finance
eventual upgrades.

If you belong to a library consortium, you might want to see if any other
libraries would consider pooling their resources, and making a set of gaming
equipment available to libraries in your system. That might also help even
out the cost-to-benefit ratio.

If you have any other gaming-related questions, I'd be happy to help you
out. The programs do garner a great response from patrons of all ages.

Toby Greenwalt
Adult Services Librarian
Skokie (IL) Public Library
www.skokielibrary.info
www.theanalogdivide.com


On Dec 4, 2007 12:09 PM, Lyn Smith < ellynsmith at gmail.com> wrote:

> We are going to present Dance Dance Revolution for teens here at the
> library. We will use PS2 gaming system.  Of the different DDR programs
> available, do the teens have a preference? What do you use for mats?
> Reviewers on Amazon write of the mats slipping.  How durable are they,
> any way?  Do we need several for multiple players and for
> replacements? What about the metal mat, which is more expensive?
> Lastly, where do you purchase your DDR supplies?
> The teens and tweens are really looking forward to this.  Next up will
> be a Wii for the seniors and Guitar Hero that they can share.
> Thanks for your help.
> Lyn Smith
> Pittsfield Public Library, Maine
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