F1 2010
The Best F1 Racer in 10 years
Posted September 27, 2010
Formula 1 has long been an ignored facet of video game sports, mostly because Electronic Arts did such a terrible job of producing earlier F1 racing games. In the hands of Codemasters (creators of the DiRT & GRID series), Formula 1 racing is getting another crack in the video game space with their release of F1 2010 for the Xbox 360, PC and Playstation 3. Formula 1 racing has a much larger following in Europe, but is gradually gaining in popularity in the U.S. with the revival of the United States Grand Prix. The presentation is definitely true to the sport with gorgeous locales and post game interviews. These interviews border on silly occasionally and don’t really further the racing story, but they are a decent addition at selling the F1 experience.
You will probably want to jump right into racing after popping the disc in, but you would do well to study the tracks before entering the race. Different from other racing games, the curvature of the road and bumpy areas are to be paid extreme attention to. It’s a simulation style of racing game, hence earning first place during the race is vastly tougher than an accident prone arcade racing title. That being said, you can adjust the game’s difficulty to your skill level. The opening skill level allows the player to ease into F1 racing by only focusing on accelerating and turning the car. Braking is all automatic on that level. Ramp up in difficulty and you will be deciding when to slow down the car and race ahead of the competition.
You have a variety of modes to choose from including time attack, grand Prix, championship racing and multi-player to choose from. Career mode is likely where you will spend the bulk of your time in the single player modes. It’s relatively entertaining bringing up your racer and watching how they interact with the team from race to race. Races themselves are difficult to complete in first place on the normal difficulty, mostly because the AI is definitely challenging. Also, you really need to understand the penalty structure before choosing times for pit stops and interaction with other cars. Grand Prix is fairly straightforward, much like an exhibition mode. You have the ability to choose your team, track, river, etc before launching into a race or series of races.
The online multi-player mode seems very barebones for team play or even promoting the racing community. It’s more of a one-off situation most of the time, with the option to expand the experience with multiple races up to 12 people. The problem with online racing, as in any online racing game, is the morons out there that prefer to race backwards or crash into cars repeatedly. You really need to find a great group of people to enjoy suspenseful, tense races with skill competitors. Beyond the online idiots, the multi-player was completely lag free, something critical for a racing game that’s rewards crucial timing of braking and turning.
This is the best Formula 1 racer currently available, but that really wasn’t hard considering the lack of competition. If the game has any caveats, it’s that a small amount of knowledge regarding the sport is needed to understand the complexities of racing, the silly interviews post-race add little to the presentation and the online component is severely under-developed for teams. Still, the well-balanced gameplay offers challenges to someone who’s just learning about the sport and Formula 1 veterans alike. Pick up F1 2010 from Codemasters if you have any interest in Formula 1 racing or simply are looking for a new type of racing game to sink your teeth into.
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You will probably want to jump right into racing after popping the disc in, but you would do well to study the tracks before entering the race. Different from other racing games, the curvature of the road and bumpy areas are to be paid extreme attention to. It’s a simulation style of racing game, hence earning first place during the race is vastly tougher than an accident prone arcade racing title. That being said, you can adjust the game’s difficulty to your skill level. The opening skill level allows the player to ease into F1 racing by only focusing on accelerating and turning the car. Braking is all automatic on that level. Ramp up in difficulty and you will be deciding when to slow down the car and race ahead of the competition.
You have a variety of modes to choose from including time attack, grand Prix, championship racing and multi-player to choose from. Career mode is likely where you will spend the bulk of your time in the single player modes. It’s relatively entertaining bringing up your racer and watching how they interact with the team from race to race. Races themselves are difficult to complete in first place on the normal difficulty, mostly because the AI is definitely challenging. Also, you really need to understand the penalty structure before choosing times for pit stops and interaction with other cars. Grand Prix is fairly straightforward, much like an exhibition mode. You have the ability to choose your team, track, river, etc before launching into a race or series of races.
The online multi-player mode seems very barebones for team play or even promoting the racing community. It’s more of a one-off situation most of the time, with the option to expand the experience with multiple races up to 12 people. The problem with online racing, as in any online racing game, is the morons out there that prefer to race backwards or crash into cars repeatedly. You really need to find a great group of people to enjoy suspenseful, tense races with skill competitors. Beyond the online idiots, the multi-player was completely lag free, something critical for a racing game that’s rewards crucial timing of braking and turning.
Graphics
- Car models and tracks are highly detailed on the PS3. This is easily the best looking Formula 1 Racer in existence, mostly because it’s one of the only one’s that exists in the high definition space. Take a moment to watch some of the replays of the race and you will marvel at the silky smooth framerate and the high resolution textures within the game environment. The weather effects are exceptionally impressive as well as water will often splatter on the camera or fly off in fine spray from the wheels of the speeding cars. Similar to the visual quality of Dirt, Codemasters is exceptional at bringing the racetrack to life.
Audio
- During a race, there’s very little to listen to other than the roaring engines. That being said, Codemasters did a good job of capturing what an actual driver hears when racing around the track. You will hear the occasional voiceover over the radio, but nothing overly complicated. The soundtrack isn’t very exciting, something that would have been nice to have for tracks that you memorize.
Conclusion
This is the best Formula 1 racer currently available, but that really wasn’t hard considering the lack of competition. If the game has any caveats, it’s that a small amount of knowledge regarding the sport is needed to understand the complexities of racing, the silly interviews post-race add little to the presentation and the online component is severely under-developed for teams. Still, the well-balanced gameplay offers challenges to someone who’s just learning about the sport and Formula 1 veterans alike. Pick up F1 2010 from Codemasters if you have any interest in Formula 1 racing or simply are looking for a new type of racing game to sink your teeth into.
Discuss This Game on Our Official VGT Forum