Sorry for Codemasters. Last year, delivered what was perhaps the best Formula One game ever made, and the first time of asking too much. This year, with the seemingly impossible task of leading this effort to create a new game based essentially on the same formula. Sure, there are some changes in the rules, and some new drivers, builders and the slopes this season, but Formula One, from a bystander point of view, not change much from year to year. So how do you manage to make Codemasters F1 2011 feels like a new game and different from its predecessor?
Well, do not. For the most part, F1 2011 does not feel like a completely new game, and that's more a reflection of the brilliance of F1 2010 that the lack of effort by the developer. Last year was the route Codies total simulation, the choice of destination hardcore sports fans spouting jargon. While it is still the case this time, there is also a focus on making the game more accessible, so a little more balance to the gameplay. The driving aids are more or less the same as last year - the driveline, traction control, ABS, stability control, braking assistance, the simulation of the tires, etc. - but these adjustments now has an impact more significant in the game. Thus, while hardcore fans will encounter the same problem with the aid off, newcomers will have a much easier time with them enabled.
In my view, I had mentioned how many cars were almost impossible to control and maintain the course with the PS3 controller. Thankfully, that has been rectified in the final version, and not only is the game of playing with the remote, but it is also quite nice. That said, any racing simulation game is best played with a good racing wheel, and that goes double for F1 2011. The wheel which gives the type of information in real time the tires and the surface of the track that a driver can not handle, and in a sport where a thousandth of a second can make a difference, that feedback is priceless.
The preview build also had a few framerate issues, especially when in the garage and pit road, but unfortunately still the case in the final game, at least in the PS3 version. Fortunately, the action is very smooth once you're on the track. "Signature" Codemasters piss "filter F1 is surprisingly absent in 2011, and at the same time I'm glad to be the case, the game does not quite match the bar set by Codies' Dirt own 3 in terms of graphics is concerned. This is a clear case of eye candy performance. Driving under the rain is still an edge of the chair, the experience as you slide around and are forced to blindly when behind another car. The engine sounds are excellent As always, menu design and the music is very relaxing, as we have come to expect from Codies.
The only disappointing aspect of F1 2010 was its lackluster career mode, and that was the one area I was really hoping for a big improvement this year. Sadly, Codemasters have once again delivered an insipid career experience that lacks the excitement you would associate with the world’s most glamorous sport. It is still just a case of hopping from one race to the next, broken up by bland media interactions and email updates from your team and others from the F1 fraternity. The post-race press conferences have been done away with, replaced by just a celebratory cutscene after a podium finish. The purists will still enjoy the no-nonsense approach to the career, but for me, it came across as bland and sterile.
This year, you can also play through a season with a friend in co-op championship, whereby each of you takes up a seat in the same team. It’s a great concept, but sadly I couldn’t find anyone on my PSN friend’s list whom I could co-op it with. The other multi-player modes make it over from last year’s game, and the game handles itself well online, with minimum lag on the PS3.
You’ll find many of the new additions to the current F1 season replicated within the game, including the introduction of DRS, the reinstatement of KERS, and all the new teams and drivers. The big new addition for us in India is the inclusion of the Buddh International Circuit in Noida, which plays host to the inaugural Indian Grand Prix later this month. It’s a great track, with its mix of high speed stretches and slow, technical corners, and it’s great to be able to see and play it within the game.
And that’s really what F1 2011 is all about. At its core, it’s pretty much the same game as last year’s, albeit with a few gameplay refinements and visual changes. The only significant changes come in the form of the new rules, regulations, tracks and drivers, and perhaps that’s a sign of how this franchise will progress. It’s a fantastic game and continues the great work Codies started last year, but it’s hard to recommend F1 2011 to anyone but the seriously hardcore Formula One fan.
In my view, I had mentioned how many cars were almost impossible to control and maintain the course with the PS3 controller. Thankfully, that has been rectified in the final version, and not only is the game of playing with the remote, but it is also quite nice. That said, any racing simulation game is best played with a good racing wheel, and that goes double for F1 2011. The wheel which gives the type of information in real time the tires and the surface of the track that a driver can not handle, and in a sport where a thousandth of a second can make a difference, that feedback is priceless.
The only disappointing aspect of F1 2010 was its lackluster career mode, and that was the one area I was really hoping for a big improvement this year. Sadly, Codemasters have once again delivered an insipid career experience that lacks the excitement you would associate with the world’s most glamorous sport. It is still just a case of hopping from one race to the next, broken up by bland media interactions and email updates from your team and others from the F1 fraternity. The post-race press conferences have been done away with, replaced by just a celebratory cutscene after a podium finish. The purists will still enjoy the no-nonsense approach to the career, but for me, it came across as bland and sterile.
You’ll find many of the new additions to the current F1 season replicated within the game, including the introduction of DRS, the reinstatement of KERS, and all the new teams and drivers. The big new addition for us in India is the inclusion of the Buddh International Circuit in Noida, which plays host to the inaugural Indian Grand Prix later this month. It’s a great track, with its mix of high speed stretches and slow, technical corners, and it’s great to be able to see and play it within the game.
