Review: F1 2010
by Sean Meakin-Bolderston | Tuesday 21st December 2010
The Review in Brief
Whether or not you are new to Formula One or the series, this first for Codemasters does fantastically. With a scarily realistic approach to the
car controls, deadly accurate circuit detail and immersive racing experience, F1 2010 is a game that any racing fan is bound to enjoy.
The Review
It's reasonable to assume from you reading this review that you have more than a passing interest in Formula One and the games that come out in
conjunction with the seasons. That being the case, then you will most certainly remember the Formula One games of old. There was a time when you
couldn't move in games stores for racing games with the official Formula One seal emblazoned on them, despite most of them being a poor
representation of the sport, which lead to unhappiness within the fanbase. Then, Sony got hold of an exclusive license, and finally we would have a
game that did the sport justice...or so we thought. Sony appear to be one of the only companies in the world who can take a sport as fantastically
spectacular as Formula One and make it as dull as watching dried paint dry.
This all came to a head when Sony released the last game in their series, Formula One: Dull As Dishwater Edition (or, as they preferred it to be known, Championship Edition), a painfully crap representation of the sport. So, when it was announced that Codemasters would be getting the license, and releasing a full Formula One game in time for 2010, excitement could be felt through all the fans.
What a year for Codemasters to release their retake on the franchise. 2010 was perhaps the most exciting years in the sport ever, with four drivers being in contention for the drivers title by the last race of the season. In-team rivalries, controversial car components and blatant rule-breaking made for a combination that captured the attention of millions, and had all of us sitting on the edge of our seats. No pressure on Codemasters, then.
Considering this is the first game in the franchise for Codemasters, they have done phenomenally. The game stays true to the sport, and is one of the most accurate representations that I have ever played. Driving the cars in the game gives the same thrill as driving them in real life, a combination of excellent graphics, precise circuit detail and scarily accurate physics makes this game what it is. Unlike the cars of old, these cars can be pushed to their absolute limit, and you will notice it whenever you try to brake, or accelerate; the slightest wrong move can and will have disastrous consequences.
For the first few laps of the game, your race will be spent either in the gravel trap, without a nose cone, receiving penalty upon penalty, careering into other drivers on the circuit or all of the above, at least in my case. Luckily, Codemasters have taken a leaf out of GRID's book, and they have included the flashback feature, something that will become a valuable resource, especially at the beginning.
All of the cars, teams and circuits from the recently-ended 2010 season are included in the game, and you would be hard pressed to find fault in any of the detail. Thanks to the EGO engine, the graphics in the game are stunning. The level of detail that has been put into every aspect of the game is astounding and rather unprecedented, whether it be the cloud cover, trees and grandstands all reflecting in the car chassis, or the specific detail of every single button and dial on the cars steering wheel. Being in the cockpit view heightens the sense of immersion, the lack of visibility and even having to turn your head to see your side mirrors make you feel like you are the driver, rather than the car. As the heavy (and I mean heavy) rain sets in on the game, the graphics really do come into their own. The lack of clarity and visibility makes the game look totally realisitic, and doesn't disappoint.
F1 2010 is designed to be a simulation, and it does that brilliantly. The career mode allows you to spend 3, 5 or 7 years in the sport, and in that time you can either move from team to team, eventually working your way up to one of the big teams, or you can stay with a smaller, new team and build them up to be great. You can also participate in all of the sessions in a Formula One weekend, whether it be practice, where you can also help along the Research and Development of the team, qualifying or the hotly anticipated race.
The physics in the game make the cars feel real. In previous games, yes the cars would occasionally spin or go wide, but most of the time they would stick to the surface and feel unrealistically stable all the time. This is definitely not the case in F1 2010. In this game, it's a case of carefully balancing the car; finding the limit of the car to get maximum performance, but not over doing it so that you end up ploughing into a gravel trap like Kobayashi, into a wall like Petrov or into another car like Webber.
The game has fully customisable difficulty settings, allowing you to enable or disable a wide variety of driving assists, setting the difficulty of
the AI, and even the number of flashbacks available during a race weekend. The modelling of rainfall, tyre degradation and the rubbering in of the
circuits is splendidly done, and adds a deep and enjoyable feel to the simulation. The damage modelling is generally impressive too, if missing in a
few aspects. If you remove a front wing, not only do you notice an immediate lack of grip and stability, but you also feel the impact as your tyres
start to cool and parts of your car begin to fly away. This is best seen during a first corner of a race most of the time, where plenty of cars end
up in major collisions, and everything from wings to tyres explode across the track.
Despite the fantastic damage modelling, the game does fall down when it comes to mechanical issues. Codemasters stated that they wanted people to enjoy the game, and so they opted not to include mechanical failures like the engine blowing, brakes failing, steering columns going or anything in that vein, and while I understand that this is so the game can be enjoyed by many people, I personally feel that a lack of those kinds of dangers takes away some of the pressures and involvement that comes with the career mode.
The driving is also only one aspect of the career mode, the other aspect being the handling of the press, and this, I feel, is where the game really falls down. I understand that it is difficult to accurately recreate the way the press reacts to certain events, and despite the Mass Effect style in-depth conversation, I feel that the questions are ultimately the same, the available responses generic, and there really is no noticeable repercussions of what is said to the press.
If the career really isn't your bag, and all you want to do is jump straight in with the racing, then F1 2010 has you covered. There is Grand Prix mode, where you select the team, driver and circuit (or circuits, if you decide to add more than one track to your roster) and then jump right into the race. The game will randomly assign you a grid position (appropriate for the team that you chose) and it's go, go, go.
When you start the career, you are the second driver for one of the lower placed teams, and you must work your way up the ranks to eventually becoming a driver for one of the lead teams, gaining a realistic shot at the championship title. Asserting yourself as the number one driver in your team by consistently out-performing your teammate and eventually signing a first driver contract (don't tell the FIA) means you then get to decide the direction of the Research and Development, tailoring it to suit the needs of your driving style. Progression in the game takes a lot of time, and gamers who don't have much time to put into the game will be disappointed that they can't immediately start their career with a team of their choice, or at least as the first drivers. That said, completing a seven-year career after starting from the bottom, and winning yourself a few championships along the way, carries one of the most satisfying feelings that can ever be gained from a video game. Given that the minimum career is three years, and the minimum race distance 20% of the full Grand Prix, the amount of time that needs to be put in is considerable.
Despite the realism that I have talked about above, there are still a few holes in the simulation that mean it isn't quite complete. There are no safety cars deployed, even in full-length races and if a car is sitting in the middle of the racing line, mechanical failures, outside of tyre wear and impacts, are non-existant, and the dire AI crowding in the pit lane means that AI-cars seemingly get priority, and even if there is a considerable gap, if an AI is heading your way in the pit lane you have to wait, causing what could have been a perfect pit stop to last nigh on 20 seconds. The way the game presents information and the amount of information shown in-game is likely to disappoint. Telemetry information is almost non-existent, except for colour indications to notify you of damage or non-optimal temperatures in your tyres, brakes or engine.
The HUD is something that I also find disappointing. I was a big fan of the games using the official Formula One graphics for the HUD, as I felt it gave the game a much better feeling, and made it feel more like the real thing. Whilst the HUD that it provided by Codemasters is adequate, I feel that the official graphics would have worked much better, and, since we are used to them, would have been instantly easier to read and get along with.
Multiplayer in the game has many options, most of which are contained in the online mode. There is a distinct and disappointing lack of split-screen for the local machine, and while this has been replaced with a turn-based Time Trial mode, overly punishing rules and endless loading times mean that it is a poor substitute. Online, however, is fantastic. You can either stick with the fixed challenges, or you can fully customise your Grand Prix experience, changing the length of the races, what sessions you will compete in, and the difficulties and assists that will be applied. The option to make the performance of all the cars equal was also a good choice, since it means you can race based on pure skill, rather than the vastly differing performance of the cars.
So, whether you are going full speed through Au Rouge, kissing each of the four chicanes in Turkeys Turn 8 or thrashing around the Parabolica, F1 2010 does a fantastic job of recreating the thrill and excitement of actual Formula One racing. While there is definitely room for improvement, overall F1 2010 is a game that can appeal to both Formula One veterans and newcomers.
This all came to a head when Sony released the last game in their series, Formula One: Dull As Dishwater Edition (or, as they preferred it to be known, Championship Edition), a painfully crap representation of the sport. So, when it was announced that Codemasters would be getting the license, and releasing a full Formula One game in time for 2010, excitement could be felt through all the fans.
What a year for Codemasters to release their retake on the franchise. 2010 was perhaps the most exciting years in the sport ever, with four drivers being in contention for the drivers title by the last race of the season. In-team rivalries, controversial car components and blatant rule-breaking made for a combination that captured the attention of millions, and had all of us sitting on the edge of our seats. No pressure on Codemasters, then.
Considering this is the first game in the franchise for Codemasters, they have done phenomenally. The game stays true to the sport, and is one of the most accurate representations that I have ever played. Driving the cars in the game gives the same thrill as driving them in real life, a combination of excellent graphics, precise circuit detail and scarily accurate physics makes this game what it is. Unlike the cars of old, these cars can be pushed to their absolute limit, and you will notice it whenever you try to brake, or accelerate; the slightest wrong move can and will have disastrous consequences.
For the first few laps of the game, your race will be spent either in the gravel trap, without a nose cone, receiving penalty upon penalty, careering into other drivers on the circuit or all of the above, at least in my case. Luckily, Codemasters have taken a leaf out of GRID's book, and they have included the flashback feature, something that will become a valuable resource, especially at the beginning.
All of the cars, teams and circuits from the recently-ended 2010 season are included in the game, and you would be hard pressed to find fault in any of the detail. Thanks to the EGO engine, the graphics in the game are stunning. The level of detail that has been put into every aspect of the game is astounding and rather unprecedented, whether it be the cloud cover, trees and grandstands all reflecting in the car chassis, or the specific detail of every single button and dial on the cars steering wheel. Being in the cockpit view heightens the sense of immersion, the lack of visibility and even having to turn your head to see your side mirrors make you feel like you are the driver, rather than the car. As the heavy (and I mean heavy) rain sets in on the game, the graphics really do come into their own. The lack of clarity and visibility makes the game look totally realisitic, and doesn't disappoint.
F1 2010 is designed to be a simulation, and it does that brilliantly. The career mode allows you to spend 3, 5 or 7 years in the sport, and in that time you can either move from team to team, eventually working your way up to one of the big teams, or you can stay with a smaller, new team and build them up to be great. You can also participate in all of the sessions in a Formula One weekend, whether it be practice, where you can also help along the Research and Development of the team, qualifying or the hotly anticipated race.
The physics in the game make the cars feel real. In previous games, yes the cars would occasionally spin or go wide, but most of the time they would stick to the surface and feel unrealistically stable all the time. This is definitely not the case in F1 2010. In this game, it's a case of carefully balancing the car; finding the limit of the car to get maximum performance, but not over doing it so that you end up ploughing into a gravel trap like Kobayashi, into a wall like Petrov or into another car like Webber.
Game Images
Despite the fantastic damage modelling, the game does fall down when it comes to mechanical issues. Codemasters stated that they wanted people to enjoy the game, and so they opted not to include mechanical failures like the engine blowing, brakes failing, steering columns going or anything in that vein, and while I understand that this is so the game can be enjoyed by many people, I personally feel that a lack of those kinds of dangers takes away some of the pressures and involvement that comes with the career mode.
The driving is also only one aspect of the career mode, the other aspect being the handling of the press, and this, I feel, is where the game really falls down. I understand that it is difficult to accurately recreate the way the press reacts to certain events, and despite the Mass Effect style in-depth conversation, I feel that the questions are ultimately the same, the available responses generic, and there really is no noticeable repercussions of what is said to the press.
If the career really isn't your bag, and all you want to do is jump straight in with the racing, then F1 2010 has you covered. There is Grand Prix mode, where you select the team, driver and circuit (or circuits, if you decide to add more than one track to your roster) and then jump right into the race. The game will randomly assign you a grid position (appropriate for the team that you chose) and it's go, go, go.
When you start the career, you are the second driver for one of the lower placed teams, and you must work your way up the ranks to eventually becoming a driver for one of the lead teams, gaining a realistic shot at the championship title. Asserting yourself as the number one driver in your team by consistently out-performing your teammate and eventually signing a first driver contract (don't tell the FIA) means you then get to decide the direction of the Research and Development, tailoring it to suit the needs of your driving style. Progression in the game takes a lot of time, and gamers who don't have much time to put into the game will be disappointed that they can't immediately start their career with a team of their choice, or at least as the first drivers. That said, completing a seven-year career after starting from the bottom, and winning yourself a few championships along the way, carries one of the most satisfying feelings that can ever be gained from a video game. Given that the minimum career is three years, and the minimum race distance 20% of the full Grand Prix, the amount of time that needs to be put in is considerable.
Despite the realism that I have talked about above, there are still a few holes in the simulation that mean it isn't quite complete. There are no safety cars deployed, even in full-length races and if a car is sitting in the middle of the racing line, mechanical failures, outside of tyre wear and impacts, are non-existant, and the dire AI crowding in the pit lane means that AI-cars seemingly get priority, and even if there is a considerable gap, if an AI is heading your way in the pit lane you have to wait, causing what could have been a perfect pit stop to last nigh on 20 seconds. The way the game presents information and the amount of information shown in-game is likely to disappoint. Telemetry information is almost non-existent, except for colour indications to notify you of damage or non-optimal temperatures in your tyres, brakes or engine.
The HUD is something that I also find disappointing. I was a big fan of the games using the official Formula One graphics for the HUD, as I felt it gave the game a much better feeling, and made it feel more like the real thing. Whilst the HUD that it provided by Codemasters is adequate, I feel that the official graphics would have worked much better, and, since we are used to them, would have been instantly easier to read and get along with.
Multiplayer in the game has many options, most of which are contained in the online mode. There is a distinct and disappointing lack of split-screen for the local machine, and while this has been replaced with a turn-based Time Trial mode, overly punishing rules and endless loading times mean that it is a poor substitute. Online, however, is fantastic. You can either stick with the fixed challenges, or you can fully customise your Grand Prix experience, changing the length of the races, what sessions you will compete in, and the difficulties and assists that will be applied. The option to make the performance of all the cars equal was also a good choice, since it means you can race based on pure skill, rather than the vastly differing performance of the cars.
So, whether you are going full speed through Au Rouge, kissing each of the four chicanes in Turkeys Turn 8 or thrashing around the Parabolica, F1 2010 does a fantastic job of recreating the thrill and excitement of actual Formula One racing. While there is definitely room for improvement, overall F1 2010 is a game that can appeal to both Formula One veterans and newcomers.
Overall Score:
8.6