Gran Turismo official steering wheel

The Gran Turismo official steering wheels (such as the GT FORCE or Driving Force, see the trademark symbols difference) are a series of 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 Playseat®[2] and MoveTech.[3]

Model comparison

Features common to all models include:

Features that vary between models are:

Feature GT Force Driving Force Driving Force EX Driving Force Pro Driving Force GT G25 Racing Wheel G27 Racing Wheel
Currently available no no no no yes} Only stock} no yes
Clutch pedal no no no no no yes yes
Gear stick no no no yes yes yes yes
Six-speed shifter no no no no no yes yes
Sequential shifter yes yes yes yes yes yes no
Real-Time Adjustments Dial no no no no yes no no
Wheel size TBC TBC 25 cm (10-inch) 25 cm (10-inch) 28 cm (11-inch) 28 cm (11-inch) 28 cm (11-inch)
Steering range (degrees) 200 200 200 900 900 900 900
Steering wheel cover Rubber Rubber Rubber Rubber Rubber Leather Leather
D-pad / action buttons yes yes yes yes yes 12 16

History

The original 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.

In 2007, the GT Force line-up was 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 replaced the first as the top level (299.99 USD/EUR).[4]

Both are compatible with PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, and Windows PC systems and are supported by Gran Turismo 5 Prologue.

GT Force

GT Force (LPRC-10000) with Racing Cockpit (LPSK-01002) bearing the Gran Turismo logo.

The GT Force (LPRC-10000) is a rebranded Logitech Wingman Formula GP, with a blue rather than a yellow rubber grip. It was released on April 28, 2001 as the Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec official wheel[5]

GT Force for Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec (LPRC-10001)

A "GT Force for Gran Turismo 2000" (Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec, LPRC-10001) was scheduled for 2001,[6] 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.

GT Force Initial D version (LPRC-10002)

On June 26, 2003, Logicool released an Initial D Special Stage custom version of the GT Force (LPRC-10000).[7]

Driving Force

The Driving Force is the first evolution of the GT Force announced at the London Games Convention in early September 2001.[8] This model is discontinued since it was replaced by the Driving Force Pro in 2003.

Driving Force EX

The Driving Force EX (also known as the GT Force RX (LPRC-12000) or Driving Force RX (Retail Version)) is the PlayStation 3 official wheel released on the console's launch date, November 11, 2006.[9] It features force feedback and was succeeded by Driving Force GT. The wheel came bundled with Formula One Championship Edition.

Driving Force Pro

The Driving Force Pro (also known as the GT Force Pro (LPRC-11000)) is the Gran Turismo 4 Prologue official wheel released in December 2003.[10]

GT Force Pro for Sega Rally (LPRC-11000S)

A Sega Rally 2006 custom version named was released on January 12, 2006.[11]

GT Force Pro (LPRC-11500)

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. 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 individual turning it, if the user attempts to turn the wheel 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 controller, 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 [12] lists PlayStation3 under System Requirements, indicating it is supported. 900° support will be software dependent.

Driving Force GT

The Driving Force GT was released on December 13, 2007.[13]

Developed in conjunction with Polyphony Digital, first introduced at the 2007 Tokyo Game Show and intended for use with Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, Gran Turismo 5 and all PlayStation 3 auto racing games, the Driving Force GT is the fifth entry in the company's Driving Force series of game controllers.

G25 Racing Wheel

The G25 Racing Wheel (LPRC-13000) was unveiled on October 25, 2007 and released on December 13, 2007. It currently has no matching official racing cockpit available. It's not an official GT steering wheel but is fully compatible and after some updates, officially supported in GT5 and GT6.

G27 Racing Wheel

The G27 Racing Wheel is based upon the previous G25, with some new features. Like the G25, the G27 is also not an official GT steering wheel but is fully compatible and after some updates, officially supported in GT5 and GT6.

G29 Driving Force Racing Wheel

The G29 Driving Force Racing Wheel is based upon the G27 and the Driving Force GT and it is compatible with the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 and PC. It was scheduled to be released later in 2015.

References

  1. ↑ GT Cockpit official website
  2. ↑ Playseat®'s official website
  3. ↑ GTC Professional Racing Cockpit by MoveTech
  4. ↑ Logitech official website - products line
  5. ↑ http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/172/1311&cl=
  6. ↑ Logicool official website - "プレイステーション２対応 GT Force for Gran Turismo 2000（仮称）（ジーティーフォース グランツーリスモ 2000（仮称））のプレスリリース"
  7. ↑ Logicool official website - "「GT FORCE 頭文字Dバージョン」予約受付開始"
  8. ↑ Logitech Driving Force - Press release "Logitech Lengthens Lead With Driving Force - The Newest Force Feedback Wheel for PlayStation 2"
  9. ↑ Logicool official website - "ロジクール、PLAYSTATION3対応ステアリングコントローラ「GT FORCE RX」を発売"
  10. ↑ Logiccol official website - "“PlayStation2”対応「GT FORCE Pro」を2003年12月発売開始"
  11. ↑ Logicool official website - "ロジクール、「セガラリー2006」完全対応GT FORCE Pro限定モデル「GT FORCE Pro for SEGA RALLY」(LPRC-11000S)を発売"
  12. ↑ http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/details/SE/EN,CRID=2905,CONTENTID=11097
  13. ↑ "Peripherals - Driving Force GT". Sony. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
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