Wii Wheel

The normal white Wii Wheel.

The Wii Wheel is a plastic Wii Remote add-on released as part of Mario Kart Wii. The plastic add-on was described initially at E3 2007 to "level the track for beginners while offering a new feel even if you first started racing with Mario Kart 15 years ago".

Overview

The Wii Wheel is a shell for a Wii Remote, a Wii Remote snaps into the Wii Wheel, making a "Steering Wheel" for racing games. It makes the B button on the back of the Wii Remote softer and blend in with the back of the Wii Wheel. Many consider this very comfortable.

History

The Wii Wheel idea was conceived at the conclusion of 2006, the idea of a Wii Wheel for driving appealed to Nintendo because of how simple to understand it was. With the Wii's focus on bringing in people who didn't normally play video games, the Wii Wheel would make Mario Kart Wii seem simplistic, and a lot easier to understand for the causal gamer. The Wii Wheel went through about 30 revisions/test wheels, all editing shape, size, and weight of the wheel before settling on the Wii Wheel we have today.

Compatibility

The Wii Wheel, is compatible with every game on the Wii, as long as the game doesn't require the use the port at the bottom of the Wii Remote for an accessory, like a Nunchuk, or Wii Motion Plus.

However, certain games advertised themselves as being "Wii Wheel Compatible" on the front cover, some of the games that do this include Mario Kart Wii, Excitebots: Trick Racing, and Tetris Party Deluxe.

Reception

The Wii Wheel was praised for it's design, and helping bridge the gap from more laid-back titles like Wii Sports or Wii Fit, to more hardcore games for casual gamers. Although, the Wii Wheel was pointed out numerous times to be simply a Gimmick adding nothing substantial to Mario Kart Wii for the hardcore gamer.