Formula One fans had a riveting weekend because of both on-track and off-track developments. As Formula One returned last week in all of its glory, fans were given an ample dose of adrenaline-filled drama that surrounded the F1 weekend in this semi post-pandemic world.
Along with the on-track action, Codemasters announced the launch of F1 2020, the official video game for Formula One racing.
So, let’s check out at all the things fans can look forward to in this new edition of the famed racing game franchise.
- My Team
The most anticipated addition to this edition of F1 is the new My Team mode that is going to be amazing. In this mode, unlike any previous versions, you can create your racing franchise that will be placed as the 11th team on the track. This means you can be the owner as well as the driver of your F1 team.
Create your driver’s avatar, your color scheme, livery, and team logo. These are filled with hundreds of customizations, and you can completely design every aspect of your F1 team’s look. You even get to make technical and tactically essential decisions that will increase or decrease your team’s efficiency. These decisions could mean deciding your main sponsor, second driver, power unit supplier. Once the designs and arrangements are set, you move on to a question-answer round with F1’s Will Buxton. He asks you about the car’s performance and predictions for the race. These seem like reasonable questions but very well determine the fate of your car’s future in the race.
- Gameplay and in-game driving
Due to the global pandemic, Formula 1’s star racers took to the F1 video game as part of an esports series. This paved the way for discussions about how real the F1 2019 version was since it seemed impressively realistic to gamers. To Codemasters’ credit, they took the feedback as constructive criticism and came out in 2020 with a much more realistic driving standard. This does not mean the difficulty level is more comfortable as compared to before, especially without assists on. It still takes time to master the handling, learn the breaking points, and not go crazy over the newfound freedom of acceleration provided in the latest edition.
My Team can be regarded as the best aspect of the new edition.
Along with this, the gameplay in other modes, such as Career Mode, My Team, or Grand Prix, will be much better. This is because the makers have created more powerful AI. The competitors fight back and fight hard, are much more competitive and real. Thus, even the experience of offline racing will be improved.
- The Overtake Button and Casual Mode
F1 can be excessively technical for new players. To inculcate the culture into these newbies and get the hang of it, the makers have included two fan-favourite features. The casual mode will be a new mode that will enable players to access a much simpler menu, easier off-track surfaces for increased control, and other assists will be present. The Overtake button was a hit during the actual F1 race this year and has been added to give you an extra push when trying to overtake a competitor as the name suggests. But overuse will result in vulnerability from behind, as it so happens in real life as well.
- New Tracks
Although the real-life F1 could not include newer tracks as planned, into their season, F1 2020 brings you two new tracks. Netherlands’ Circuit Zandvoort and Hanoi Street Circuit in Vietnam, have been included in the latest edition. These tracks haven’t featured on the F1 tour as of yet, but F1 2020 will feature both of them.
- Split-Screen Gaming and Virtual Rear-View Mirror
For the first time since 2014, an F1 game will feature head-to-head racing on a single console. Using a split-screen, players will be able to race on a Grand Prix weekend, right from the qualifiers to the final race on Sunday. At the behest of the fans and the community, the makers have added a virtual rear-view mirror. This will enable players to identify and fend off potential attacks from competitors.
- Podium Pass
This Pass will enable players to Race, Earn, and Unlock. Free customizations can be unlocked in each season by racing and earning more XP. Custom items include gloves, overalls, helmets, and car liveries. Plus you can upgrade to VIP and access higher-level rewards and challenges.
F1 2020 Final Conclusion
Overall, the experience of playing F1 2020 is surreal and leads us to believe that there’s still a lot of room for improvement in this arena. It is exciting, full of adrenaline-pumping sequences and while playing, you’ll lose all sense of reality because of its impressiveness. All in all, a great edition with even greater additions.
F1 2020 will be launched on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC (DVD and via Steam), and Google Stadia.
You can also buy the Michael Schumacher Deluxe Edition to receive exclusive content and early access.
