Kayden
Tech Monkey
When you look at peripherals for your PC you always want to make the right choice but how do you choose what those factors need to be when you have to buy it sight unseen? There comes a time when reading the reviews and going over the specs for the umpteenth million time can only get you so far, there is never an easy explanation of what to look for, especially when it is a high dollar item and the G27 is no different. I haven’t owned a wheel for racing games since the Microsoft Precision Wheel with foot pedals in 2002, it did not have force feedback but I knew that was a feature I wanted in my next wheel so that’s where I started my search.
The first thing that caught my eye with the G27 was the dual-motor force feedback, this helps simulate traction loss in your game. I thought really that has to be over kill and almost passed it by, but after some research I found out this also made the feedback much more precise with it and it could be much more intense if you wanted it. I have found it is better to have features you may not use and hope you don’t need it, then to find out your experience would have been better with it down the road. This sort of thinking leads to higher prices of course but I personally don’t mind waiting a little longer to get something right the first time. The other features that helped me focus in on this unit was its build quality, shifter, works with the PS3 as well, the pedals with clutch and third party accessories I could get with it if I wanted to expand on it so these factors helped me decide this is the wheel I would get, even at $250.
The first thing I noticed when I got it in and out of the box was the weight and not just with the wheel but the pedals as well. The cables were long, the metal wasn’t a knock off (except for the shifter panel), the mounting point lockers were able to be pushed down & then locked into place so they are flush with the surrounding plastic and the buttons give me a satisfying click when I pressed them. The biggest down side I found with the unit physically was the pedals stiffness or lack thereof, the tension on the brake is very stiff and when trying to press it sometimes it would make the whole foot unit move a little, to prevent this I have to have my other foot on the plastic as an anchor, the gas and clutch are both very loose so it’s odd the brake is so much more rigid. With all the time put into this unit to be user friendly it would have been nice to have a tension spring or something I could adjust for all of the pedals individually, instead you’re stuck with where they are at.
I got everything setup on my desk and found that the lockers are solid as a rock, this unit goes beyond what most other units offer by providing two anchor points that can be manually tightened and fit almost any kind of desk. I then got around to installing the software, when I plugged in the USB to my PC I encountered a nice a surprise, it calibrated the wheel right away. I thought this was a onetime deal so I removed the USB cable waited a few seconds and plugged it back in but I was wrong it did the calibration again! This was awesome, my major complaint with my last wheel was finding center and starting the game to find out I was off, that will never happen again. The programming software is simple and to the point, simple isn’t bad but it would have been nice to see a little imagination put into the GUI for it, but that isn’t a requirement because it works the way it needs to without a problem.
The first game I got to test this new toy on was Burnout Paradise, the only problems that came up with programming my buttons were with the game, for some reason it wouldn’t remember them all when I exited the game and loaded it back up. This problem annoyed the hell out of me but I did realize it recognized those buttons at least, so everything for the wheel was working thus I just went on to play. The biggest complaint with most wheels (and I agree) is that they can cause you to be very squirrely in a game and trying to nail down that sensitivity is a major pain, not so with the G27. The fact I did nothing to calibrate this wheel in the game was fantastic and started to make me feel like I made a good buy here, however one game a test does not make so I went onto Dirt, Test Drive Unlimited 2, GRID and Need for Speed Hot Pursuit.
The biggest surprise to me was that all five of these games recognized the wheel and the buttons no problem, which was another complaint with my last wheel. I had too many games that would not recognize buttons or the pedals for one reason or another and it felt like a waste of money, not so with the G27. I did not have to calibrate the wheel in these games either, it was very solid with the default setting and I never expected that. The force feedback did not disappoint either, if you turn it up all the way you can defiantly walk away from it feeling like you put some time in at the gym. The shifter isn’t widely supported so I have learned to live without it, it’s unfortunate but I never thought it would be used anyways. The next problem physically is one I ran into while playing my games, the space between the pedals aren’t as far apart as I would like. Now keep in mind I have a size 13” shoe so sometimes I hit the gas along with break and that can be a problem if I am being very frantic to press one pedal or another during a race.
This is one of those times I was not expecting a purchase to go beyond my expectations at all, but the G27 pulled it off. The controls are solid, not much fine tuning required but if you find yourself needing to do it, it won’t take long. Now the fact most racing games support it off the shelf means you will be hard pressed to find another wheel that can live up to this one with the price point mentioned, especially after you have tried it. This is a solid buy and any one in the market for a wheel and pedals I HIGHLY recommend this one, you will not be disappointed but if you can try it before you buy it do it, sometimes it can be hard to leave that Gamepad behind.
PROS:
+Build quality second to none.
+Full support in modern racing games.
+Little setup time in games.
+Force feedback can make you work for it.
+Can be used on the PS3 as well.
CONS:
-Big foot will have problems.
-Pedals are too lose or too stiff.
Score: 4.5 out of 5.
The first thing that caught my eye with the G27 was the dual-motor force feedback, this helps simulate traction loss in your game. I thought really that has to be over kill and almost passed it by, but after some research I found out this also made the feedback much more precise with it and it could be much more intense if you wanted it. I have found it is better to have features you may not use and hope you don’t need it, then to find out your experience would have been better with it down the road. This sort of thinking leads to higher prices of course but I personally don’t mind waiting a little longer to get something right the first time. The other features that helped me focus in on this unit was its build quality, shifter, works with the PS3 as well, the pedals with clutch and third party accessories I could get with it if I wanted to expand on it so these factors helped me decide this is the wheel I would get, even at $250.
The first thing I noticed when I got it in and out of the box was the weight and not just with the wheel but the pedals as well. The cables were long, the metal wasn’t a knock off (except for the shifter panel), the mounting point lockers were able to be pushed down & then locked into place so they are flush with the surrounding plastic and the buttons give me a satisfying click when I pressed them. The biggest down side I found with the unit physically was the pedals stiffness or lack thereof, the tension on the brake is very stiff and when trying to press it sometimes it would make the whole foot unit move a little, to prevent this I have to have my other foot on the plastic as an anchor, the gas and clutch are both very loose so it’s odd the brake is so much more rigid. With all the time put into this unit to be user friendly it would have been nice to have a tension spring or something I could adjust for all of the pedals individually, instead you’re stuck with where they are at.
I got everything setup on my desk and found that the lockers are solid as a rock, this unit goes beyond what most other units offer by providing two anchor points that can be manually tightened and fit almost any kind of desk. I then got around to installing the software, when I plugged in the USB to my PC I encountered a nice a surprise, it calibrated the wheel right away. I thought this was a onetime deal so I removed the USB cable waited a few seconds and plugged it back in but I was wrong it did the calibration again! This was awesome, my major complaint with my last wheel was finding center and starting the game to find out I was off, that will never happen again. The programming software is simple and to the point, simple isn’t bad but it would have been nice to see a little imagination put into the GUI for it, but that isn’t a requirement because it works the way it needs to without a problem.
The first game I got to test this new toy on was Burnout Paradise, the only problems that came up with programming my buttons were with the game, for some reason it wouldn’t remember them all when I exited the game and loaded it back up. This problem annoyed the hell out of me but I did realize it recognized those buttons at least, so everything for the wheel was working thus I just went on to play. The biggest complaint with most wheels (and I agree) is that they can cause you to be very squirrely in a game and trying to nail down that sensitivity is a major pain, not so with the G27. The fact I did nothing to calibrate this wheel in the game was fantastic and started to make me feel like I made a good buy here, however one game a test does not make so I went onto Dirt, Test Drive Unlimited 2, GRID and Need for Speed Hot Pursuit.
The biggest surprise to me was that all five of these games recognized the wheel and the buttons no problem, which was another complaint with my last wheel. I had too many games that would not recognize buttons or the pedals for one reason or another and it felt like a waste of money, not so with the G27. I did not have to calibrate the wheel in these games either, it was very solid with the default setting and I never expected that. The force feedback did not disappoint either, if you turn it up all the way you can defiantly walk away from it feeling like you put some time in at the gym. The shifter isn’t widely supported so I have learned to live without it, it’s unfortunate but I never thought it would be used anyways. The next problem physically is one I ran into while playing my games, the space between the pedals aren’t as far apart as I would like. Now keep in mind I have a size 13” shoe so sometimes I hit the gas along with break and that can be a problem if I am being very frantic to press one pedal or another during a race.
This is one of those times I was not expecting a purchase to go beyond my expectations at all, but the G27 pulled it off. The controls are solid, not much fine tuning required but if you find yourself needing to do it, it won’t take long. Now the fact most racing games support it off the shelf means you will be hard pressed to find another wheel that can live up to this one with the price point mentioned, especially after you have tried it. This is a solid buy and any one in the market for a wheel and pedals I HIGHLY recommend this one, you will not be disappointed but if you can try it before you buy it do it, sometimes it can be hard to leave that Gamepad behind.
PROS:
+Build quality second to none.
+Full support in modern racing games.
+Little setup time in games.
+Force feedback can make you work for it.
+Can be used on the PS3 as well.
CONS:
-Big foot will have problems.
-Pedals are too lose or too stiff.
Score: 4.5 out of 5.