Both DDR Extreme and my RedOctane pad arrived at about the same time, it seems. I went to the arcade before I went home today, though, and DDR Extreme was finished being installed and turned on about the time that I got there. Despite two scary (unintended) freezes in the middle of two songs, it works well and is a GREAT mix. It's got a lot of really cool options, including the ability to practice Oni steps in Normal mode, and the new "MARVELOUS!" rating in Oni courses. James full-combo'd his first 9-foot song (ha, I beat him with Matsuri Japan), and Chris completed the Naoki Neo-Standard Oni course with a friend. Very good times. We even ordered some pizza at the arcade since I was there so late (huh, great food to eat while playing DDR).

Then it was off to Jew school as it is every Tuesday, carpoolin' with Hannah. She seemed excited about the new "Beginner" difficulty that DDR Extreme has, but I assured her that she's better than that. I also told her that she was not the reason that most of her steps at home weren't being registered - her crappy crappy crappy MadCatz pad was the reason. I'm still beating myself up over buying that for her. Well, it's better than nothing... I think.

Speaking about crappy crappy crappy... or perhaps the opposite... as mentioned before, I got my RedOctane Ignition 2.0 pad. It took it out, and it looked exactly like the two that I got over the summer, plus Konamix, all for $70, but what came with it was definitely worth it. The pad, which is said to have superior wiring, and has a much better texture than my previous pads, comes with an inch-thick dense padding to stick inside it, along with a CARRYING CASE! Wow, wow, wow. I will certainly have fun with this pad. I would recommend it, even with its steep price.