Wang Xiaobin paused for a moment and continued, "A direct-drive steering wheel has a stepper motor or servo motor. Its effect will be better than a force feedback steering wheel with a hybrid gear and belt transmission because the feedback force is stronger and the reaction is faster.
"Foreign manufacturers that provide simulators for professional fleets basically use direct-drive solutions.
"But its price fluctuates greatly.
"The foreign direct-drive steering wheel is very expensive. The mainstream brands are basically around 1,500 euros. In other words, a steering wheel costs more than 10,000 euros. Most people can't afford it.
"However, many hardcore domestic players will choose to do it themselves and DIY the entire set. That way, the cost can be greatly reduced. The pure cost may be less than 2,000 yuan. After all, industrial servo motors and drivers can be bought second-hand online for 400 to 500 yuan.
"However, the DIY process is extremely complicated and cumbersome. If it's completely DIY, you also need to know programming knowledge. Even if you use a ready-made solution online, it will take several weeks to adjust. For noobs, buying it is pure waste of money. Only big shots with strong hands-on skills can play with it.
"What's more, if you go online to find a DIY solution, you can forget about the product's quality control and after-sales service.
"At present, the virtual game steering wheels that domestic players can buy are mainly foreign brands, whether it's an entry-level force feedback steering wheel or a direct-drive steering wheel.
"There are some domestic manufacturers that are making steering wheels, but they are all very cheap entertainment steering wheels without force feedback.
"In fact, the steering wheels of these foreign brands are not only expensive, but the key is that the accessories are also expensive.
"Regardless of whether it's a H-series manual transmission, a sequential manual transmission, or a specialized hydraulic handbrake, none of these parts are less than 1,000 yuan. If you want to assemble a complete set, even if it's a beginner-level force-feedback steering wheel, you won't be able to assemble it without 6,000 to 7,000 yuan."
"After all, factors such as brand value, licensing fees, taxes, and so on will cause the price of foreign steering wheels to be inflated.
"In fact, the cost of many accessories is very low, such as brackets and hydraulic handbrakes. These things of foreign brands are generally more than twice the cost. A homemade hydraulic handbrake in China only costs 200 to 300 yuan, while foreign brands sell it for nearly 1,000 yuan. The actual difference in experience is not very big.
"Of course, the advantage of buying a ready-made brand is that everything is a set and optimized for the game. The steering wheel can be played directly after it is connected to the computer and the driver is installed. For players who don't have professional knowledge, DIY is definitely not going to work. They can only buy ready-made products. "
Wang Xiaobin introduced the current situation of the steering wheel in domestic games in detail, and everyone nodded as they listened.
These three different steering wheels would bring players a completely different gaming experience. There must be a reason why they were so expensive.
There were only two reasons for buying a steering wheel. One was to increase the immersion and sense of immersion in the game, and the other was to increase the precision of the controls.
The VR steering wheel had a variety of vibration modes. When the vehicle passed by different roads, the vibration effect would be different. Players could clearly distinguish whether their vehicle was passing by a gravel road or a muddy road.
Moreover, the steering wheel could be finely adjusted to match the angle of the wheel. With the help of the foot pedal and the gear lever, it could realize advanced skills such as springing, drifting, downshifting, refueling, and so on.
More importantly, the force feedback of the steering wheel could inform the player of the current wheel condition of the vehicle.
Players could determine the grip of the wheels based on the feedback from the steering wheel. If a tire was skidding, it was very important for drifting, cornering, and driving on special roads.
Therefore, many professional racers would also use the simulator for training because an excellent steering wheel could indeed restore the driving experience of a real car.
In short, for ordinary players, since they had decided to buy a steering wheel, they had to pay for the force feedback. They should not touch plastic toys that cost less than a thousand yuan. They might as well buy a good controller with that money.
Some people even said that it was best not to experience a direct-drive steering wheel before they could afford it.
That was because after experiencing the direct-drive steering wheel, returning to an ordinary steering wheel, controller, or keyboard might make one feel disappointed or even completely lose interest in racing games.
Of course, the steering wheel would not improve one's skills. When one first switched to the steering wheel, one might drive worse than the keyboard or controller. However, once one got used to operating the steering wheel, most people would not use the keyboard or controller to play racing games.
Chang You nodded. "According to Boss Pei's usual style of doing things, since he wants to make a product, he must do it to the best.
"Then, we must choose the direct-drive servo motor for the steering wheel.
"Moreover, the direct-drive steering wheel market is in a state of polarization. Foreign brands sell for tens of thousands of yuan. It might be cheap for players to DIY it themselves, but the threshold is too high and time-consuming.
"There is a huge market gap in this area.
"If we can develop an excellent direct-drive steering wheel and control the price of the full set of accessories at a cost-effective level, it would still be very competitive!
"Perhaps Boss Pei saw the business opportunity in this and decided to make the steering wheel?"
Jiang Yuan added. "It might also be because Boss Pei felt that the steering wheels in the market could not be perfectly compatible with the game. That's why he decided to make it himself."
Ye Zhizhou nodded. "That's right, that must be one of the reasons.
"At the moment, there are some buttons on the steering wheel in the market, but they basically simulate the buttons of the controller.
"Ordinary racing games need fewer buttons. This kind of steering wheel can also meet the requirements.
"However, there is a lot of simulation content in the game 'Safe and Civilized Driving'. For example, you have to turn on the turn signal when turning a corner, turn on the double flash when stopping when there is a malfunction, as well as wipers, low and high beams, windshield defogging, and so on. If players want to drive large trucks or long-distance buses to earn money, they would need more buttons.
"If there are not enough buttons on the steering wheel, we can only rely on the keyboard. Obviously, it is not very convenient. It would definitely be more convenient if we can produce a special console that integrates all the buttons needed in various games. It would also help to enhance the sense of immersion. "
Wang Xiaobin agreed. "Yes, speaking of this, I think there is still a lot of room for innovation in the accessories even though there are already many steering wheels in the market."
"There's no need to talk about the most basic H-gear and handbrake."
"Under the steering wheel, on the base of the motor, we can actually add a dashboard display screen. It's not expensive, but it can display different effects according to different vehicles. Players do not need to look at the screen anymore. They can know the speed and speed of the car just by lowering their heads."
"The steering wheel has to have a shift pad with a magnet. There must also be various buttons such as turn signal, wipers, and so on. The surface of the steering wheel can be wrapped with Alcantara leather. It won't cost much, but it can improve the feel of the steering wheel. "
"A miniature vibrator can be installed on the pedals. If the steering wheel and pedals vibrate together, it can better simulate the feeling of driving."
The four of them quickly finalized the details of the steering wheel.
There were many different accessories for the steering wheel. They could be bought separately and priced individually, or they could be bought together as a package. There would be a certain discount on the price.
The main body of the steering wheel was divided into the steering wheel and the direct-drive base. The direct-drive base would integrate a control box and a small display for the instrument. The base and the steering wheel would use the D1SPCE quick disassembly system used in real cars. It was reliable, safe, and easy to disassemble.
These two together accounted for the majority of the price of the equipment. The steering wheel was about 1,300 yuan because it was integrated with various buttons and vibrators, while the direct-drive base cost about 3,200 yuan.
The pedals were made of pure metal. The accelerator, brake, and clutch could all be adjusted slightly. The clutch and accelerator relied on an adjustable spring to rebound, while the brake relied on a small preload spring and a large rubber block. This design was to simulate different foot sensations.
There was also a small vibrator on the accelerator, brake, and clutch pedals to simulate the vibration of the vehicle.
The price of the pedals was relatively high, about 1,200 yuan. Although it was similar to the pedals from many foreign manufacturers, the actual experience was absolutely different.
The gear lever integrated with H and sequential gears, as well as the hydraulic handbrake, cost 300 yuan and 200 yuan respectively.
There was also a special console with various commonly used buttons, mainly used to simulate some special situations during driving. It was actually a special keyboard, so it was not expensive. It could be bought for 100 yuan.
There were also three different brackets: a foldable bracket without a seat, about 500 yuan; an adjustable bracket with a seat, about 1,200 yuan; and the highest-specification bracket that included a monitor bracket and a G-force seat was priced at 4,000 yuan.
Of course, the G-force seat was not the six-directional kind, but the basic three-directional one. In other words, it could only simulate front-to-back, left-to-right, and up-down movements. But for the general experience, the three-directional one was more than enough. The six-directional G-force seat was too expensive, and the demand was relatively small. The big shots who pursued this kind of experience basically built their own, so there was no need for it to be mass produced.
The G-force seat could only improve the experience, but it did not help with the improvement of skills. Many racers did not use the G-force seat when driving a simulator. The reason why such a bracket was provided was to meet the needs of some high-end players.
If players already had a steering wheel bracket or other brands of manual gears, handbrakes, and other accessories, they only needed to buy the new accessories they needed.
On the other hand, if players were to start from scratch, Otto Technologies would also provide three different packages.
The first was the introductory package, which only required a steering wheel, pedals, bracket, and console. The original price was 6,300 yuan, and the package price was 5,800 yuan.
This plan was suitable for beginners. There was no need to change gears or handbrakes. They could also use their own chairs. It was considered a more entry-level plan.
The second was the advanced package, which included a steering wheel, pedals, handbrakes, console, and adjustable bracket with a seat. The original price was 7,200 yuan, and the package price was 6,800 yuan.
This plan was suitable for players who had a certain requirement for advancement. The hydraulic handbrake was more convenient for drifting, and the paddle on the steering wheel could also complete the shift operation. If one preferred the H gear, they could add another 300 yuan to buy a separate gear lever.
At the same time, the seat and the bracket were fixed together, so there was no need to worry about the seat shaking. It was more comfortable.
The third was the deluxe package, which had all the necessary accessories and a G-force seat. The original price was 10300, and the package price was 9,999 yuan.
This set of equipment could basically meet the driving needs of all expert players and even some professional racers.
The introductory package was relatively more preferential, mainly to expand the player base.
After buying the low-level package, one only needed to add some money to buy the accessories they needed if they wanted to upgrade in the future. It would not be troublesome.
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