Dom Robinson reviews

for PC

Distributed by
Mad Catz

• Price: £79.99

Two games are included in the package: Andretti Racing, a Formula 1-style racing game with a choice of tracks, cars and many other aspects but contains quite simplistic graphics. The other is Interstate '76: Nitro Pack - for which you don't need the original game - and takes you back to the days of flared trousers and afro hairdos to complete missions such as bumping off enemy cars or protecting an oil tanker from attack.

Taking the wheel apart bit by bit, not literally you understand because it's got to go back afterwards and I'm not quite that technically-minded, the steering wheel is made from Tactile Pro-Style rubber racing grip and rotates around 270 degrees. It's quite small in diameter though, so is fine for Andretti Racing where small turns are required, but it isn't suited to Interstate 76 where, while jousting with another car and a quick, sharp handbrake turn is required to go back for more as this just isn't possible with the Andretti wheel. Any standard car steering wheel would be more the required size since you need to cross your arms over quickly, even though it's not what you should do in real life. Then again, how often do you perform handbrake turns on the motorway?

Four action buttons are on the wheel - two on the front and two behind, the former which can be used to fire at other cars in Interstate 76 and the latter to change gears in Andretti Racing. All four buttons are programmable through Direct Input-compatible games. A four-way point-of-view hat switch is also included to allow you to look all around you when the heat's on and you need an advantage.

Once you can steer, you'll also need to go forward, which is where the racing pedals come in. There's no clutch, but while accelerating is very effective with subtle increases in pressure being accurately registered, braking is a less-precise motion as it always stops too soon, so the only viable option with this is in handbrake-style turns, accomplished by first speeding up, then turning the wheel and braking at the same time.

The padded gear stick will let you change gear, but note that it doesn't move forward and backward like a standard one, it just clicks each way. Securing clamps are included to attach the device to a desk and stop it from moving. You can hook it up to a USB or Gameport connection in either Windows 98 or NT 5.0 and only hit one snag while trying to install it the first time.