Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I have been playing Forza for a few years (since Forza 2) and lately I had been getting fed up with the choppiness that came with using a joystick for steering, so I decided to look around for an XBOX360-compatible racing wheel. I remembered using a really nice Logitech force feedback wheel on the PC with Richard Burns Rally and have been chasing that gaming experience ever since. To my dismay, I found out Logitech isn't licensed to sell racing wheels for the 360, that the only (real) choices were the finicky (and expensive/hard to find) official XBOX racing wheel w/un-tunable force feeback, the super expensive Fanatic Porsche-licensed wheel, and this very basic MadCatz wireless wheel with no feedback at all. Needless to say, I couldn't justify spending more than $130 on a "toy", so I took my chances with this MadCatz wheel...
...When it showed up, I was impressed with the build quality. The wheel has a nice weight/diameter/thickness to it with good rubber grips, and the pedals emulate standard auto pedals instead of being floor-mounted. The sequential stick shifter is a joke (in my opinion), the throw isn't straight forward and back (I), instead it's at an angle like / or \ depending on if you're shifting left or right handed, luckily the paddle shifters work well. The pedal mount assembly is nice and resists slipping on carpet, but the gas and brake pedals are too far apart. Also, I wish the brake pedal was stiffer than the throttle, but it's still stiff enough to modulate without anti-lock brakes. I expected the driving experience without any feedback to feel very numb, but the clock-spring in the steering wheel offers enough resistance to give a good (semi-arcade) feel. I have it mounted to a small writing desk in front of my couch, which is PERFECT, but I would assume the leg mounts (with nice rubber grips) would be enough to keep the wheel planted in your lap through the tight apexes.
Overall, I'd give this racing wheel a 3/5 or 7/10. It's obviously not up to Fanatic standards, but it's also not even half as expensive. If you play Forza or any other driving games, you need a wheel. If you can't justify spending an arm and a leg on gaming accessories, this is the wheel to get.
Pros:
-It's a racing wheel!
-It's XBOX licensed so the center X (dashboard) button still works.
-Controls work smoothly, no excessive dead spots or grittiness.
-Good design.
Cons:
-No feedback of any sort.
-Iffy stick sifter.
-Pedals are too far apart (requiring left-foot braking).

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Race to victory with Mad Catz' officially Microsoft licensed Wireless Racing Wheel for Xbox 360. Complete with racing pedals, an interchangeable gear shift, full rubber grips, lap rest supports and desk clamp, all the intensity of a race comes to the comfort of your home and shifts your next-generation racing into top gear.

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