racing wheel vs. arrow keys vs. other....

shamelessly ripped from an old gamespy poll; but anyway: what do you prefer to control your PC racing game(s) with? keyboard or a fully featured wheel? or something else? Take everything into account, like ease of use, realism factor, etc.

[shahzaib]

for me racing wheel is the best.you can control the car very easily but if you prefer to
arrow keys then it is hard to control.

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[didamangi]

I would prefer the steering wheel if I own one, until then my dualshock analog controller does the job

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I voted for arrow keys myself
main reasons:
1) ease of use; works by default
2) gah! it takes half an our to set up a wheel to use it for 5 minutes!
3) I'm simply better with keyboard.

even so, there are exceptions where I'll use an (analog) gamepad instead.

[Kirby]

I always use the arrow keys and mouse...a steering wheel is not an option. when you need to change from driving a car to shooting gang members, the keyboard is your best friend ^__^

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in Halo, I use the mouse as well
(warthogs are fun to drive)

[Demigod]

If I had a wheel I might use it but I've always used the keyboard and it's always worked well for me. Then again I use the keyboard for pretty much anything, even fighting games . I absolutely abhor gamepads though.

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[Kane]

Me good ole PS2 pad. It has served me well eve since I got the PSX>USB adaptors.

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[cloudvii]

keyboard Arrows in every game possible (i want to try them with Devil may cry)

my fingers can't leave them .

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[Radix865]

I liked arrow keys... until I got the racing wheel!! first it was a little tough to control...

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[Cylinder]

Gamepad here, but thats only because I don't have a wheel/pedel set. Plus I don't have ~$200 to spend on a good set. If I'm gonna get one, it will be good, have lots of buttons on the wheel, 3 pedels, and BOTH paddles+shifter knob. Rare combo indeed.

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[takwu]

I need to do a run down:

• steering wheel - nothing beats its accuracy and ergonomics. slight chore to setup, and tiresome for counter locking (i.e. rally games).
• joystick - steering is still accurate, but i recommend using buttons for gas/brakes. easier to setup than the wheel for a quick race, but don't go to the Le Mans with it.
• analog gamepad - arcade or rally racing only. inaccurate steering.
• digital gamepad - pretty much same as keyboard.
• keyboard - really depends on the game's support. In best cases it can rival the analog gamepad, but otherwise not recommended. Can be smooth if all goes well; make a mistake and you're dead.

I voted for joystick, simply because it offers accurate steering without the inconvenience of the steering wheel. Most games let you floor your gas/brakes anyway. However for some simulations I would setup the steering wheel for progressive throttle. For rally games I do recommend the analog gamepad because you can counter steer with ease and enough accuracy.

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[Xinu0]

Originally Posted by Samor

in Halo, I use the mouse as well
(warthogs are fun to drive)

Well in games like that of course the mouse/keyboard, but in racing games I love my gamepad(analog). Mmmmm....console flavor. Plus I am just down right horrible at the wheel.

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[blehz0r]

well as I have a wheel it's to much time to set it up everytime (too lazy )
though with "realistic" games it's the best (F1)
mostly I use my digital gamepad (as I haven't an analog yet)
keyboard isn't bad either

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[Cylinder]

>and tiresome for counter locking (i.e. rally games).

Thats what calibration is for, and if you watch some real rally racing (WRC) you will see just how little they turn the wheel. High ratio stearing boxes, not your moms Volvo stearing box. 1/4 trun and they turn the same degree as 1/2 - 2/3 turn of a regular car. You shouldn't be locking you wheel side to side when racing anyway, bad technique.

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[takwu]

That's called faster steering in RL, or more sensitive steering in games. It is already pretty fast/sensitive by default in most games and steering wheels.
Some games let you go even more sensitive. You should only mess with calibration as a last resort, i.e. if the game's highest sensitivity isn't enough.
But having higher sensitivity means your steering gets more jumpy, enough to throw your car over the trees. It is a delicate compromise between control and sensitivity.
As for locking your wheels, it is a frequent exercise in rallying. Pay more attention to your local WRC TV coverage. In games, it depends, but in general most rally games are like that too, from Gran Turismo 2 to Mobil1 Rally Championship, counter steering is what people play rally games for, and locking is just the extreme case of counter steering.

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[n_w95482]

Originally Posted by didamangi

I would prefer the steering wheel if I own one, until then my dualshock analog controller does the job

Same here . I either use my controller or my keyboard, depends on the game (I mainly use my keyboard for Racer).

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Originally Posted by takwu

[*]analog gamepad - arcade or rally racing only. inaccurate steering.

that depends a lot on the pad you're using; I usually don't advertise but the thrustmaster dual power 3 has far more accurate analog controls than most other gamepads; I can even properly control F1 games with that. In general it's true what you say though.