Customer Reviews for Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel

Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel
by Microsoft Software

	List Price: ~~$99.99~~ Our Price: $85.96 You Save: $14.03 (14%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $55.95 (click here) Category: Video Games See more product details

Video Game Reviews of Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel

Customer Review: This wheel is great
Summary: 5 Stars

Most of the reviews of this wheel are dead on. It works fantastically, and totally improves the experience of the xbox racing games. I'm playing Forza Motorsport 3 with this thing, and it's a blast.

My only knock on it is pretty much the same one everyone makes... The pedals slide around on carpet a little too easily. MS needs to put retractable carpet spikes or something on the next rev.

Customer Review: Very Cool, but Needs a Secure Surface for Force Feedback
Summary: 5 Stars

I am very happy with this purchase, but the force feedback is very intense at times and needs a steady and solid surface to keep it steady. It charges the standard Xbox 360 controller battery if force feedback is plugged in, which I thought was a nice addition. Also you can operate without force feedback simply by unplugging it, which is also a nice addition.

Customer Review: VARRRROOOOOMMMM!!!!
Summary: 5 Stars

Makes racing games way better. There is a learning curve to using it, but very rewarding and a lot more fun once you get the hang of it. Makes going fast seem even faster but you have far more control over what you are doing.

If you got the money to burn and your just thinking about it, just do it. If you don't like it you should have no trouble craigslisting it or something, but generally everyone keeps theirs. Quit your lame ass excuses and drop the hammer on this mo fo.

Customer Review: Even for the price it's average
Summary: 3 Stars

I purchased this to play in conjunction with Forza 2 and eventually Forza 3. I have to be honest; I've only used it a handful of times. As an avid gamer of 20 years I am not new to gaming, but have not owned a racing wheel. When I first used it, I was fairly impressed with the pedal setup and force feedback the wheel provides. However after the next few times I noticed that the force feedback more than overcompensates for oversteer and turning mistakes. And because of this, the very thing I bought the wheel for - more realism actually took some of it away. Also, the game is considerably more difficult for gamers (seems to be the opposite for non-gamers). Naturally if you think about it, it makes sense. There is more movement, more things to manage, both your hands and feet are working as well as your arms. Gamers are used to basically moving their pointer finger and thumb. But it's easier for non-gamers because everybody has driven a car.

The positives are: construction is solid, comes with paddle shifters for another dimension of realism, pedals feel lifelike and of course the illusion that you're driving a real car. And my parents like it - because it's not a game controller. The price also is at least reasonable. I paid well under $100 for mine. Unfortunately the ergonomics and the force feedback make the original price seem a little much. The experience is reminiscent of a steering wheel on a car that is out of alignment. You turn and the car turns about a half second later. When you go around turns and the back end kicks out, you compensate but the force feedback gives the wrong message and you turn the wheel too far. Maybe with many hours of practice this could be understood. But for most the learning curve is so high that they most likely will end up shoving the wheel inside a closet for most of it's life.

One of the other issues is that you need a bunch of room. If you're mimicking a car, the pedals will need to be 1-3 feet from your chair and the pedal overhangs the pedal stand, so you don't want to be too close to the TV or you won't have full functionality of your gas and brake. After that you'll need to decide how you're going to sit the module on your legs. Or if you have a table of the appropriate height (not likely) you can try that. It would be the weirdest height table - somewhere between a coffee table and a desk. It feel like you should have a strap around the wheel, because it will move around during spirited turns. This absolutely kills the realism - for obvious reasons. I'd recommend this to younger gamers like 13 and under or to an occasional racing game enthusiast. But for those looking for that supra-realism you'll probably have to spend more money.