Codemasters is widely known as one of the most dedicated racing game devs out there, but after mixed results with 2015’s installment in the F1 franchise, can Codemasters get back to the top of their game with F1 2016? Last week Codemasters gave us the opportunity to spend some time with a portion of the game, and what we got to play gave us a good look at what we should expect from the studio’s upcoming release.
The opening negativity aside, once you get to work, the real experience starts. Starting off with a series of practice runs, the game doesn’t rush its introduction, which in this case is a good thing. The thing with practice races is that a lot of people (including me) seem to take these for granted, as for a lot of players they simply want to cut to the initial chase, but in the world of F1 that is basically the stupidest thing you could do. Offering a taster of the real experience, accompanied by your initial conquest to find the perfect driveline, F1 2016 strives to make the practice section of the game not only practical, but fun to go through.
But of course, you can’t stay in the frying pan forever, and after a few practice runs it was time for the real deal, and with the game’s new and improved AI, I really did feel the pressure throughout the races. AI behavior seemed a lot more dynamic than in the game’s predecessors, which made certain situations a lot more unpredictable, which really seemed to give me an edge when it came to concentrating on the situation, which can make or break your experience. This was accompanied by the game’s new damage system, which is pretty unforgiving when it comes to even the smallest of mistakes. Long gone are the days of not caring about the tiniest of dents because these dents could turn into a serious problem just a few rounds later. However, one of the most aggravating aspects of the experience seemed to be the safety car and the virtual safety car, which ultimately tested my patience severely as I was forced to drive in line or adapt to Delta speed, which is realistic, but annoying at times none the less.
So far, F1 2016 is a game that isn’t without its issues, but it’s a game that’s learned some valuable lessons from its predecessor, which has resulted in a game that already feels far more complete than its 2015 counterpart.
F1 2016 comes out on PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on August 19.
*The sessions discussed in this preview were done using an Xbox One controller on PC.