It’s probably my best kept secret that I love relaxing behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler every now and then. Some people relax by soaking in a steaming hot bubble bath, others by playing a cosy game like 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Stardew Valley, but for🅰 me, I get my chills by perfectl🅘y parallel parking an enormous truck.
There’s something meditative about games like 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Euro Truck Simulator. I don’t roleplay as a truck driver per se, but there’s magic in watching the barren landscape roll by, safe in the k♓nowledge that your only challenge will be exiting the highway and making sure you don’t run any red lights. No dragons or zombies are going to jump out around the next bend, you just need to overtake that Honda Civic.
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For most of my life, I’ve entered this cogitative state with a controller in my hand, pushing buttons to accelerate, flicking the joystick to turn. My trucking experience was turned upside down, however, when I tried Thrustmaster’s full driving setup, complete with the new TH8S Sh💖ifter add-on. Shifter is American for gearstick, by the way.
The only driving wheel I’ve used for gaming before now was the one you put on your Wiimote for MarioKart, and this is far more revolutionary. While I loved the vaguely wheel-shaped plastic shell for Nintendo’s family console, Thrustmaster wants to give you a properly immersive experienc🃏e. This is a steering wheel that wouldn’t ✤look out of place in my car, let alone my gaming setup, and the other accessories only add to the immersion.
I quickly moved from tapping buttons to really driving. The steering wheel, despite being the most iconi🎶c part of a sim racing setup, was♒ arguably the least important. I knew what to expect from the steering wheel, and it delivered. I didn’t realise how revolutionary the pedals and gears would be.
Moving a wheel left and right to make your virtual vehicle turn is pretty standard fare, but using your feet is less common. It’s been a while since I last strutted my stuff on a DDR p﷽ad, and I haven’t driven a real car in the best part of a decade. It took a little while to get used to accelerating with my toes, but once I was back in the driving groove, nothing could stop me. Nothing except for ruining my gearbox.
One of the problems with playing an immersive driving sim eight years after having last driven a real vehicle is you forget how it all works. I stalled more times than I care to admit, tried to take off from the traffic lights in third 🍌at one point, and generally ruined more clutches and gearboxes than most people would in a lifetime. At least it only cost me video game dollars and I’ve got a little practice before buying a real car of my own, right?
But once it all started coming back to me, I realised that this is what my mammoth meditations had been missing. As much as I enjoyed watching the scenery pass me by with controller in hand, it was nothing compared to resting my arm on the gearstick, settling back into my chair, and keeping my foot at that ൲perfect angle on the pedal. The smooth gear changes mimicked those of an estate car, or what I imagine a fancy BMW would feel like, and the clamp on the TH8S meant I could position it exactly where I needed it on my desk – a luxury not afforded in BMWs, no matter how much you pay.
I don’t think I’m the intended audience for this kit. I think allꦫ the buttons and doo-whizzes, the direct gear shifting and sport-style gearstick handle – I just can’t bring myself to call it a knob, sorry – feels made for racing. I’m no rally driver though, I like to keep my wheels firmly on the tarmac, and the TH8S was perfect. Seven gears are plenty for most vehicles, but doubling up for 14-gear trucks is supported and I had a ball with this clamped tꦅo my desk.
While my driving got infinitely more complicated with the addition of a full suite of peripherals, after ascending the learning curve, my truck simulators were more immersive than ever. There’s nothing more relaxing after a lo✱ng day at work than starting up your engine, pumping the radio up loud, and driving a two-ton truck along an American highway. That feels even better with all the accoutrements at your fingers.