Driving Force GT
Home : Hardware : Reviews : Driving Force GT
In fact, it’s safe to say that anyone playing Gran Turismo without a wheel isn’t really racing. They’re using the “jipped” version, the one that lacks the real feel that the racing simulator was meant to bring. There is simply no comparison between the two. When the car spins out and you regain control with the wheel, you feel that the tires are no longer carelessly spinning, that the car is properly aligned and that all is well in the world. That doesn’t come in a little controller.
This feeling does come at a price. Drift racing is part of Gran Turismo, and even though it is lacking in Prologue, it certainly exists. Upon asking amateur drift racer Chris Flaherty about his thoughts on the GT, he went on to say that for standard racing, the wheel is excellent. It gives the proper feedback, is responsive and as realistic as he’s ever seen. For drifting, it’s a different story.
Drift racing has the steering wheel turning very fast due to the direction the car is heading while the driver intentionally makes it skid across the track. This makes the wheel abruptly (but expectantly) turn from one direction to the other very quickly, because that’s where the car is going. However, the GT doesn’t turn fast enough to make this happen, and Chris found drifting with the wheel very difficult because he had to help push the wheel along in the middle of a drift instead of simply catching it as he is meant too.
His only other complaint was the lack of handbrake control, though with some tweaking we were able to set the shifter to handbrake when we were so inclined. This meant that up-shifting could only be done on the right paddle shifter, but considering that up-shifting while in a turn was unlikely, it wasn’t such an unwelcome prospect.
For a racing wheel, the Driving Force GT has the best force feedback we’ve ever seen. It isn’t on par with real cars, yet, but its close enough to further enjoy a racing game much more than with the standard controller. At $150, you get exactly what you pay for: a serious racing wheel that spews realism. We enjoyed testing it thoroughly and recommend any and all racing enthusiasts to at least try it for themselves, if not pick it up immediately.
Highs
Quality force feedback, adjustment dial is excellent for in-game changes, wheel feels sturdy and real.
Lows
Not fast enough for drift racing; power supply is too large; pedal connector cable falls out too easily; no good support for both up- and down-shifting and hand-braking.
Final verdict
One of the best racing wheels we’ve seen to date. We look forward to Logitech making an even better one soon.
85%
May 20, 2008
Review by James Pikover.
Send this review to a friend.
Home : Hardware : Reviews : Driving Force GT
Yet all of the benefits the standard controllers have are blown out of the water by one simple thing: feel. Using the GT feels real. It feels like driving a car on the road, it feels like the Nissan GTR is pushing against the road at 170MPH to make the turn. It oversteers, understeers, shows traction loss, and most importantly expresses the driver to how it really feels to be behind the wheel.
From the back, showing the two shoulder buttons and pedal shifters.
In fact, it’s safe to say that anyone playing Gran Turismo without a wheel isn’t really racing. They’re using the “jipped” version, the one that lacks the real feel that the racing simulator was meant to bring. There is simply no comparison between the two. When the car spins out and you regain control with the wheel, you feel that the tires are no longer carelessly spinning, that the car is properly aligned and that all is well in the world. That doesn’t come in a little controller.
This feeling does come at a price. Drift racing is part of Gran Turismo, and even though it is lacking in Prologue, it certainly exists. Upon asking amateur drift racer Chris Flaherty about his thoughts on the GT, he went on to say that for standard racing, the wheel is excellent. It gives the proper feedback, is responsive and as realistic as he’s ever seen. For drifting, it’s a different story.
Retractable spikes on the bottom of the pedals, to help keep it in firmly in place on carpet.
Drift racing has the steering wheel turning very fast due to the direction the car is heading while the driver intentionally makes it skid across the track. This makes the wheel abruptly (but expectantly) turn from one direction to the other very quickly, because that’s where the car is going. However, the GT doesn’t turn fast enough to make this happen, and Chris found drifting with the wheel very difficult because he had to help push the wheel along in the middle of a drift instead of simply catching it as he is meant too.
Where the power and pedal cables connect to the wheel, the pedal cable is especially weak and falls out quite easily.
His only other complaint was the lack of handbrake control, though with some tweaking we were able to set the shifter to handbrake when we were so inclined. This meant that up-shifting could only be done on the right paddle shifter, but considering that up-shifting while in a turn was unlikely, it wasn’t such an unwelcome prospect.
For a racing wheel, the Driving Force GT has the best force feedback we’ve ever seen. It isn’t on par with real cars, yet, but its close enough to further enjoy a racing game much more than with the standard controller. At $150, you get exactly what you pay for: a serious racing wheel that spews realism. We enjoyed testing it thoroughly and recommend any and all racing enthusiasts to at least try it for themselves, if not pick it up immediately.
Highs
Quality force feedback, adjustment dial is excellent for in-game changes, wheel feels sturdy and real.
Lows
Not fast enough for drift racing; power supply is too large; pedal connector cable falls out too easily; no good support for both up- and down-shifting and hand-braking.
Final verdict
One of the best racing wheels we’ve seen to date. We look forward to Logitech making an even better one soon.
85%
May 20, 2008
Review by James Pikover.
Send this review to a friend.
Add a new comment below
Top Games:
World In Conflict | The Settlers - Rise Of An Empire | Crysis | Medal of Honor: Airborne | Supreme Commander | Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars
Top Cheats:
Test Drive Unlimited cheats | Just Cause cheats | NCAA Football 07 cheats | FlatOut 2 cheats | Dead Rising cheats
© Copyright Gameworld Industries Pty Ltd RSS Feeds | Corp Info | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Contact
Not a member? Register here for free! It's quick and easy.