Playseat Challenge Offers Racing with Style

Playseat is the creator of some pretty neat looking racing chairs that are built to attach a racing wheel and pedal to them. I got the opportunity to check out one of Playseat’s latest chairs, the Playseat Challenge, and was excited to get on the track and begin racing with this new setup.

Obviously, the chairs and racing wheels are sold separately, but the each one of Playseat’s products feature attachments that connect with racing wheels from all major companies like Mad Catz and Logitech. Let me first say – and this has nothing to do with the chair – that as exciting as driving with a racing wheel and pedal sounds, it’s insanely difficult to adapt to. I can’t believe how many walls I continuously ran into. It’s quite the adjustment!

The Playseat Challenge is one of the more affordable options from Playseat and is more similar to a fold up chair than it is a racing chair. It’s definitely not as stylish as one of the more expensive products, and it’s certainly not the most comfortable chair for those who are bigger or taller. I’m a tall person so my review is based on my height and size, and a lot of which I’m about to say is less of a problem for younger and smaller people.

It’s very easy to put the Challenge together and even easier to store. This is a great feature as owners can fold it up and store it rather easily when they are not using it, which is something that can’t be done with the more expensive chairs. I do like its portability factor and really wanted to like the chair overall, but it’s just not that comfortable.

Once the Challenge is built and the wheel is attached, it’s quite the “challenge” to get into. The wheel is attached to a bar that wraps around the outside of where the user’s legs must go into. So there isn’t much leg room there at all. To make it worse, the back and bottom of the seat are held together by a hitch on both sides of the chair. This hitch has a corner that sticks out just a little bit too much, and those who are bigger can feel it pressing into the side of their thighs. It’s not comfortable at all!

It’s hard to ignore the hitch and the difficulty getting in and out of the chair as that affected my overall view of it. For someone who is smaller, I’m sure they’ll love the simplicity of putting the chair together, attaching the wheel for a few quick races, and then folding it up to store in a closet once they are done racing. The Challenge is made out of nice and comfortable fabric and feels rather stable to sit in. So it doesn’t feel as if it’s going to collapse at all.

I really wanted to like the Challenge, but it’s just not built for anyone 6’3 or taller. It’s ideal for someone smaller who wants a racing chair that is simple to setup and take down and easy to store. Anyone that’s 6’3 or taller should avoid the Challenge and take a closer look at one of Playseat’s other products.

Playseat Challenge Racing Chair
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