Sim racing could be a sweaty enterprise. I dare say that is one thing I can write with expertise, however maybe no extra. I went for a take a look at drive in a sim rig over at CES 2025 from Nitro Ideas that included a set of blowers that stored me cool, and extra importantly, a lot immersed whereas racing.
For my take a look at drive, a set of blowers sit both facet the Moza wheelbase on the Nitro Ideas E-Racer rig. This set-up additionally contains massive LED gentle strips that gentle up in accordance with what’s occurring within the sport, ie flashing yellow when there is a yellow flag, and a haptic rumbling cushion. This ‘Immersion’ gear all connects as much as numerous controllers which might be connected principally out of sight.
I am initially fairly sceptical about the entire ‘wind’ factor. Will it actually really feel like wind or will it really feel like somebody turned a fan on in entrance of me?
The reply is: each.
It does really feel like wind, and the gradual scaling up and down of depth stops it feeling an excessive amount of like a fan blowing in your face. That stated, a fan blowing in your face may also do exactly as nicely when going at full pace.
I am racing round Spa Francorchamps, a racetrack in Belgium on the F1 calendar, and there are some excessive pace straights that basically let these followers attain full whack. There’s something fairly exhilarating about it—one thing in my interior mind is best tricked into feeling like I am travelling at excessive pace with the ‘wind’ hitting my face.
But when you consider it, it isn’t even that life like to have wind hitting your face in something apart from open cockpit vehicles. Trendy racecars won’t be fully sealed up like a household SUV, however there’s at the very least a windshield on lots of them. However, I discovered the wind actually added to the expertise—immersion does not all the time should be about pure realism.
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I put a lap in, after which one other, and I’d’ve fortunately gone for a couple of extra had I the time to stay round. However as I am climbing out of the rig, a Nitro Ideas spokesperson tells me that wind simulation will be particularly helpful for VR gaming.
Firstly, it retains you cool whereas carrying a headset—sim racing and VR gaming is an particularly sweaty mixture. Although what’s extra is that it’s claimed that simulating wind may help maintain nausea away. There’s one thing to having a way of course via the circulation of wind that methods your mind.
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Wind set-ups aren’t a model new idea for sim racing and I had a go searching to see if others report an diminishing nausea whereas utilizing them. There are, the truth is, anecdotal studies of wind simulation having this impact for individuals. In the event you undergo from nausea in VR, on the very least, it seems value attempting for your self.
Additionally, there are some beefy wind simulator set-ups on the market. The Nitro Ideas possibility was fairly modern by comparability, although I think you would possibly get extra oomph out of a much bigger unit.
I haven’t got availability information on the wind gear from Nitro Ideas simply but, however yow will discover the lighting and haptic techniques over on its web site for $50 (simply the LED controller) and $1,000, respectively.