GT FORCE or Driving Force (see the trademark symbols difference) is the name of a line of Gran Turismo official steering wheels designed by Logitech (a.k.a. Logicool in Japan) in collaboration with Polyphony Digital. These racing games controllers are designed to be used with the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 systems but later models can be used on PC as well due to their USB connection. The GT Force is the central part of a driving simulation cockpit installation. Official kits are co-designed and released in Japan by Logicool and Sparco[1] (distributed by import tuner Endless in North America), while compatible kits are designed and released worldwide by European manufacturers such as PlaySeats[2] and MoveTech.[3]
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The original Logicool GT Force first came out in Japan and South East Asia in 2001. It was later released in North America and Europe. The brand soon evolved to "Driving Force" in these Logitech distributed territories. Code product is "LPRC" for Logicool PlayStation Racing Controller.
As of 2007, the GT Force line-up is made of three wheels, the entry-level GT Force RX replacing the discontinued Driving Force type (79.99 USD/EUR), the medium-level GT Force Pro (129.98 USD/EUR) and the G25 Racing Wheel which replaces the first as the new top level (299.99 USD/EUR).[4]
Both are compatible with PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 systems and are supported by the Gran Turismo series' latest version, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, set for release on December 11, 2007 in South East Asia.
GT Force wheels are parts of a FIA homologated driving simulation cockpit line which SKU is LPSK standing for Logicool PlayStation Sparco Kit. Official kits are the Logicool and auto part maker Sparco joint designed Sparco Racing Cockpit/Seat.
Although GT Force wheels are supported by the professional oriented PlaySeats compatible kits line.[5] The PlaySeats are based upon a different design, e.g. the G25 Racing Wheel PlaySeats kit includes parts named Gearshift Holder and Seat Slider.
The GT Force was released on April 28, 2001 as the Gran Turismo 3: A-spec official wheel[6]
A "GT Force for Gran Turismo 2000" (LPRC-10001) was scheduled for 2001,[7] however due to a game title change it was replaced by the "GT Force Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec" custom version released on April 28, 2001.
On June 26, 2003, Logicool released an Initial D Special Stage custom version of the GT Force (LPRC-10000).[8]
The Driving Force is the first evolution of the GT Force announced at the London Games Convention in early September 2001.[9] This model is discontinued since it was replaced by the Driving Force Pro in 2003.
The GT Force Pro (a.k.a. Driving Force Pro) is the Gran Turismo 4 Prologue official wheel released in December 2003.[10]
A Sega Rally 2006 custom version named was released on January 12, 2006.[11]
Feature | GT Force discontinued |
Driving Force discontinued |
Driving Force Pro (GT4) discontinued |
Driving Force EX entry-level / discontinued |
Driving Force GT (GT5) medium-level |
G25 Racing Wheel top-level / discontinued |
G27 Racing Wheel top-level |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Force feedback | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
Clutch pedal | no | no | no | no | no | yes | yes |
Brake / gas pedals | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
Gear stick | no | no | yes | no | yes | yes | yes |
Paddle shifters | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
Six-speed shifter | no | no | no | no | no | yes | yes |
Sequential shifter | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | no |
Wheel size | TBC | TBC | 10-inch (25cm) | 10-inch (25cm) | 11-inch (28cm) | 11-inch (28cm) | 11-inch (28cm) |
900-degree steering | no | no | yes | no | yes | yes | yes |
200-degree steering | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
Steering wheel cover | Rubber | Rubber | Rubber | Rubber | Rubber | Leather | Leather |
D-pad / action buttons | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes (12) | yes (16) |
Real-Time Adjustments Dial | no | no | no | no | yes | no | no |
Clamp base | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
Lap attachment | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
USB connector | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes | yes |
It is a specialized game controller manufactured by Logitech for the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system. It also works with the PC using drivers available from the Logitech website. See Here. It is designed to function like the controls in an automobile and includes a steering wheel with force feedback, analog accelerator and brake pedals, and sequential stick and paddle gear shifters in addition to the standard PlayStation 2 buttons. The controller was jointly designed by Logitech and Polyphony Digital to be used with Gran Turismo 4, however it will work with other games and automatically switches to a 200 degree compatibility mode for games not compatible with the 900 degree mode. It works with most driving games on the PlayStation 2 and has a list price of £99.99 (around 200 American dollars) at most stores, but can be as low as half that.
It is viewed by many that when used with Gran Turismo 4 it provides an experience very comparable to actual racing. This is mostly due to the force feedback feature which causes the steering wheel to pull back on the your turning it, if you are turning it in a way a real car "wouldn't want to go;" a counter-resistance — "pushing back" against drivers' initial attempts to turn it, based on the speed, inertia, energy, and geometry of the car, and what surface you are driving on. It will provide sharp, smooth and clean resistance effects on dry pavement, less resistance on wet pavement, and almost none on snow and ice. On a dirt or gravel track, it will vibrate erratically to give the sensation of actually driving on these surfaces. A minor feature, like the DualShock 2 remote, is vibrating when clipping the side of the road or some other object. The wheel generates a sudden jerk when hitting any object. If the driver goes over a bump, the wheel will jolt like in a real car. The close collaboration between the wheel and game development teams ensured that maximum use was made of the hardware's capabilities.
The Logitech website lists PlayStation3 under System Requirements, indicating it is supported. 900° support will be software dependent.
The GT Force RX, a.k.a. Driving Force EX is the PlayStation 3 official wheel released on the console's launch date, November 11, 2006.[12] It features force feedback despite the rumble removal on the SIXAXIS default controller and it was succeeded by Driving Force GT. The wheel came bundle with Formula One Championship Edition.
The G25 Racing Wheel is unveiled on October 25, 2007 and set for release on December 13, 2007. No official Sparco kit is available yet but PlaySeats has released a compatible model called "Evo".
Sparco Racing Cockpit is the official kit for the original GT Force and Gran Turismo 3 A-spec, it was released in Japan in 2001.[13] The kits two parts are named "Steering Pod" and "Bucket Chair".[14] As an official product the steering pod features a Sparco / Gran Turismo double name emblem plate, and the Sparco Speed seat has GT logos.
Official kit for the GT Force Pro and Gran Turismo 5 Prologue is the "Sparco Racing Cockpit Pro Fighter Model" that was released on December 22, 2003 in Japan.[15] As for the first kit, this one features an emblem plate and logos. Racing Cockpit Pro kits are specially designed for the GT Force Pro wheel and are not compatible with other models, including prior GT Force wheels.
The updated version of the GT Force Pro and Gran Turismo 4 kit was released on June 10, 2004 in Japan.[16] This kit replaces the Fighter seat by a Gran Turismo custom Sparco Speed seat which is an evolution of the Speed bucket seat. It still features official Sparco Gran Turismo plate and logos.
Released in June 2005, this Endless SKU is a North American licensed version of the Racing Cockpit Pro, hence "SRCP" (Sparco Racing Cockpit Pro). It has no seat but only the kit frame, e.g. steering floor mat and steering pod. Official Sparco / Gran Turismo plate is available though.
The "Sparco Sprint Bucket Seat" is the North American version of the LPSK-02002. Though, it replaces the "Fighter" bucket seat by a similar Sparco model called "Sprint".[17] Although the Sparco / Gran Turismo plate is included, the Sparco seat is a regular one with no GT logo.
A "larger individuals"[17] version of the Type 1 was simultaneously released in the North American market. This version called "Sparco Siena Reclinable Seat" (or Type 2) replaces the regular bucket seat by a larger retractable model called Siena.[17] As for the SRCP-001 kit, the Sparco seat is not a GT custom.
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