Racing Games: Steering Wheel, or Controller? Assists or No Assists?
Using a Steering Wheel or a controller has been a subject of debate among the racing-games community. The “puritans” allege that a more immersive experience and ultimately more growth can only be achieved if you transition from a controller to a wheel. “Old schoolers” say that we all started playing with a controller, and that most racing games were designed to be played with a controller. So, which one should we choose, a convenient controller or shall we make a significant investment on a steering wheel?
Arcade vs Simulator
Racing games are all inside a spectrum containing two sides: on the left side you will find arcade-type games that focus more on visuals, sounds, and overall fun experience. These games have a broader scope of target audience and are controller friendly, in fact, some of these games do not even support steering wheels.
On the right side there are more simulator-type games that focus on handling, physics, car set up, track fidelity, and so on. These games have both controller and steering wheel support; however, controllers are not fully optimized in terms of stick sensitivity, linear input, and user interface to navigate the menus. These games are mostly found on PC. They have a wide range of steering wheel support (brands and models).
Right in the middle we find games that have a bit of both worlds. They sacrifice some of the unique features on each side of the spectrum and find a nice balance in terms of experience and immersion. These games optimize controller input and have a wide range of steering wheel support.
An Acquired Taste
If you are a motorsport fan that grew playing racing games, chances are that your gaming palette needs something more complex. Probably you have transitioned from arcade-type to simulator-type racing games somewhere in the spectrum. Perhaps you seek a more immersive experience, and a steering wheel can provide that. It is true that a steering wheel offers more depth to your gaming experience, it can even make you a more precise driver; but ultimately, the purpose of games is to have fun.
I have been playing with a steering wheel for a few years now, and certainly it has been a game changer. The learning curve is significant, and I found myself being faster with a controller than the wheel at first. With the wheel I am more precise and consistent, oddly enough, with the controller I am a bit faster. This is due to the types of racing games that I mostly play. Gran Turismo Sport is the perfect example of a game that is both arcade, and simulator type. I also play games like F1, Dirt Rally, Assetto Corsa, and Project CARS. All these games are somewhere in the middle of the spectrum and you can certainly have heaps of fun with both a controller and a steering wheel. In fact, all these games are available on PC and consoles.
Everyone Is Welcome, It is All About Having Fun
The steering wheel is my go-to choice when playing these games, however I found myself having a lot of fun playing Gran Turismo with a controller the other day. It was a reminder that racing games are meant to be enjoyable and entertaining. It really comes down to preference and convenience. Most race gamers do not own a steering wheel and it should not be an alienating factor. I believe that everyone is welcome to play these types of games to the level of depth that you see fit. In fact, developers have this in mind when creating these games.
Most of the games mentioned previously have different levels of assists and customization. They cover aspects such as AI (artificial intelligence) skill, damage, racing line, breaking points, steering, handling, and braking assist. Some of them even have preset car setups that improve either top speed, handling, or overall stability. I remember many years ago being overwhelmed by a game called F1 Racing Championship by Ubisoft. This game had very little levels of assists and guides. Nowadays, purists can mistakenly call actual racing games as too casual because of the amount of effort that is put into assists, guides, and tutorials. My perception is that these kinds of assists and guides are an amazing feature and are a testament of how much developers and game designers care for the products they make.
Developers Polyphony (Gran Turismo), and Codemasters (F1 and Dirt, and Grid games) are amazing at designing assists and guides within their games. They provide a plethora of assists to tweak so the player can have both an entertaining and challenging experience. I used to be in denial when it came to assists. I believed that to significantly improve, I had to max out the AI skill level, and turn off every assist. The result was a frustrating experience every time I played these games. I had little progress in terms of being a faster, better driver. It was only when I started tweaking the assists in the game where I found myself having fun and improving simultaneously. Of course, over time you tend to turn off assists like traction control or ABS (Anti blocking system) on the brakes or racing lines when you become familiar with the tracks, but these are necessary at first when it comes to facing the learning curve.
Race for Fun
What if you just play for fun and have no desire to become a racing prodigy shoving off tenths of a second on each lap? As I mentioned previously, the purpose of games is to have fun. Tweak the games assists as you see fit and have the time of your life! A race-for-fun approach is an absolutely valid reason to play racing games. Everyone’s situation is different, we approach games for different reasons and play them in different amounts of time each week. The level of commitment varies on each individual and that should not deter anyone from giving it a go.
What are your favorite types of racing games? How many years have you been playing them? Let me know in the comments down below.
Have fun, and race on!
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