Patience

Unfortunately the G25 isn't compatible with the 360. Back in August I had pre-ordered the Porsche 911 Turbo S wheel by Fanatec in preparation for Forza 3's release. This wheel is compatible with the PC, PS3 and the Xbox 360, which is brilliant because the wheel needs to be bolted onto the frame of the racing seat so it's secure enough - this makes changing wheels painful to say the least. Ultimately they had some production problems and the wheel - that was originally scheduled to coincide with Forza 3's release - slipped by about a month and a half.

While I was waiting, Forza 3 arrived. I was keen to try it out and after initially just playing a few laps with the controller, I went through the arduous task of attaching the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel to the seat. The issue was compounded by the fact that the wheel doesn't have bolt mounts to attach it to things. The official way to attach the wheel to surfaces is to use the clamp that comes with it, but that doesn't work on the Playseat. The creators of the seat came up with a mounting "solution" using sticky velcro strips and some plates you can bolt onto the frame. The end result was sturdy enough, but pretty tacky.

Using the wheel was such a disappointment. It had been years since it had last been used and, unfortunately for it, my new frame of reference was the G25. The difference was utterly astounding. The Microsoft wheel feels like a kids toy. The force-feedback is ridiculously weak and the pedals are floppy with no real resistance at all. I'd also become used to 900 degrees lock-to-lock of turning; the MS wheel only has 270 degrees (a usable 221 according to wikipedia).

I decided that it just wasn't worth potentially ruining Forza 3 attempting to play like that.  So I put it aside. That should change soon enough though, as I received confirmation on Friday that my Fanatec wheel has finally shipped! Words can't describe how excited I am to finally be able to get some quality time with Forza 3.