Why was the Wii wheel designed like that ?

well, it doesn’t know when you’re using the weel, because i dislike it so much i just hold the wiimote…

the wheel is just to provide a little more “realism” to the game
and the strap is for your seatbelt. (strap) some people use other forms of straps so i would guess that it is larger to fit such customizations.

It assumes if you’re holding the remote sideways, with the pointer to your left and the back of the remote to the screen, that you’re holding it in the wheel. If you’re holding it the “normal” way, face up and pointing at the screen, then it assumes you’re not using the wheel.

@MrItty Its a driving game even if you didn’t have the wheel, you would have to hold it sideways . Wouldn’t you !? !?

no.

You can hold it normal and use the control pad. Or you can attach the nunchuck and use the control stick.

There have been racing games as long as their have been video games. How do you think it was done before the Wii? :-)

http://www.mariokart.com/wii/launch/ Click on Game Details, then controls.

I was wrong about the single-controller method. You can either hold it sideways using the wheel, using the nunchuck, or using the “Classic Controller” (or GameCube controller if you still have one)

On other consoles its thumb sticks OR with the ps3 you tilt it like the Wii .
The D-pad on the Wii is different controls not left right movement from what i know so far .

Here’s where I point out that the first Mario Kart game was on the SNES, which had only a pad and no stick.

I am talking about Mario kart Wii here tho . And how the Wii knows you are using the wheel attachment, other than just holding the Wiimote on its side without the wheel cradle .

… why do you think there is an “other” reason beyond the one I gave?

Go ahead – turn on the game, start Mario Kart, and hold the Remote as though it was in the wheel, but don’t actually put it in. The game will think you’ve got the wheel on.

You get a wheel usage bonus whats the point having that if the Wii doesn’t really know you have it attached .
You’re whole thing about how do i think it was done before the Wii doesn’t really have anything to do with my question .
I have been playing games since i was 7 that’s 20 years i do know how games were played before the Wii .

The wheel is intended to give you a more “natural” feel. Because when you drive a real car, you hold a real wheel. That’s the extent of its usefulness.

My “whole thing” about games before the Wii was not in response to your question, but to your statement: “On other consoles its thumb sticks OR with the ps3 you tilt it like the Wii ”. I was pointing out that thumbsticks and motion detection are not the only means of playing racing games.

There is no wheel usage bonus. The wheel is only a piece of plastic, no computer, no wires. The Wii doesn’t know (or care) if you have the Wheel attachment on or not. The only benefit to using the wheel is that you can physically grab areas where you can’t grab on the remote, and I find it requires less effort to shake the wheel than shaking just the remote (for the speed bonus when you are in the air on a bike).

@dynamicduo what @sandystrachan is referring to is an in-game award for using the Wii Wheel to successfully complete X number of races. Of course, as you stated, the game doesn’t know you’ve actually put the controller in the wheel for any of those races. It only knows that you’re holding it as though you did.