Review: Logitech G25 Force Feedback Racing Wheel - Part IV

Back To Page 2

RBR

SCi’s Richard Burns Rally is the old kid on the block in this group, with a release date of 2004. Having only discovered it a few weeks ago, it’s quickly become my obsessive new love, with it’s insane difficulty, uncompromising fidelity, and demanding race environments. This is a sim that’s just as challenging as Grand Prix Legends was in 1998.

As Rally cars are somewhat unique in the world of motorsport, so too is my setup for the G25, as I made some creative use of the G25’s controls to mimic those of a real WRC car.  By using paddle shifters for gear selection, and the sequential shifter’s aft motion to replicate the hand-brake, I arrived at a setup that not only works well, but also recreates the essential aspects of a real Rally car’s controls.

Counter to what you might expect, the FFB cues in RBR are very light and delicate, even with FFB settings at full force. This was the lightest touch of all the games tested, but again the large wheel diameter, precise paddle shifters and long throw pedals make driving the cars in RBR a very intuitive experience. A little tug to the rear on the shifter when entering tight corners, combined with a carefully modulated blip on the throttle and some opposite lock is all that’s needed to swing the tail around and exit the corner like the pros.

With RBR’s controller settings on maximum, the range of FFB response is quite detailed, and feels in keeping with the rugged and unprepared road surfaces experienced in this extreme motorsport. With the G25, I could feel every road rut, bump, jump and obstacle in the road — or off it, as I am still learning how to handle this form of racing!  Wrecking can really yank the wheel around. I can see that with RBR, a force feedback wheel that suffers from a lot of backlash could easily break the immersion factor. But this wasn't a problem for the G25.

Overall I think that titles like RBR really deserve a quality force feedback wheel to fully flesh out the driving experience. The G25 is just such a wheel. RBR would be the second title I’d bundle with the G25, if I were King of Marketing at Logitech.

Go To Page 4

Click here to go to top of this page.