This year, Forza 4 is one of the major attractions at the Xbox booth. The focus isn’t so much on what’s new about the gameplay, but how you can control it.

There were a number of control methods shown, including the standard Xbox controller, a new wireless steering wheel, a traditional wheel and pedal setup, and full Kinect control.

The first I tried was the Wireless Speed Wheel, a new first-party controller from Microsoft. Scheduled for an early October release at a $59.99 price point, it’s an interesting concept.

The wheel works in much the same way that you’d expect: steer to turn. The rest of the standard Xbox buttons are all present, except for the two shoulder buttons. I found steering to be much more precise with the wheel, since the object you’re moving is much larger than a small joypad thumbstick. You can be a little more subtle in your movements because of this. The triggers are also larger than normal, allowing you to better control braking and accelerating.

The new controller seems like it’ll appeal to both enthusiasts and more causal gamers alike. For Forza fans, this could be a better experience than the normal joypad, but it doesn’t require you to buy an expensive and bulky racing setup. For casual gamers, it’s obvious how to play.

I then tried a full wheel and pedal setup, with accessories from a third-party. The main draw here was Kinect headtracking, which allows you to look round corners as you’re driving. For some reason, I chose manual gear shifting, so for much of the race I was too busy keeping track of gear changes, but being able to look around seemed like a cool addition. My lasting impression from that session was my aching arms though - the force feedback was severe!

Finally, I tried playing Forza 4 with only the Kinect. The Microsoft representative also introduced a demo of a virtual car showroom, where you could physically look around a car and interact with it. As part of Forza’s partnership with Top Gear, there was also a guided tour from Jeremy Clarkson, which is sure to go down well with motorsport fans.

Playing with just the Kinect means holding out your arms, as if gripping an imaginary steering wheel. accelerating and braking is done automatically, much like the default settings on an iPhone racing game. This isn’t ideal, but it makes the game accessible for everyone.

In terms of gameplay, there was little to distinguish this Forza from the previous one. I asked about the career mode, but there were few details available. The Microsoft representative acknowledged the issues with Forza 3’s menu system and said that the career mode would be altered to be better in this regard.

The theme at the Forza stand was control. The game is the same, but you can play it any way you want, whether you’re an enthusiast or a non-traditional gamer. Each control method had an appeal, and having played three of them, the new wireless wheel seems like the strongest choice.