I enjoy racing games as much as the next person, though I’ve never been a massive fan of simulation type racing video games. When given the opportunity to check into F1 2017, I wasn’t sure just what all I would be put up to with the game, I’m glad to say that the video game was purely fun to go through.
Again, I’m not a car expert, but F1 2017 certainly brought out a ton of fun going through the game. The development team behind F1 2017, Codemasters, aimed to deliver a truly fantastic experience for gamers who enjoy the sport.
Each year, with sports titles, there’s always that guessing game as to how far the developers went with making adjustments to their beloved series. As it turns out, F1 2017 makes a massive jump with one of the greatest elements to the title in my opinion.
Before we get too far ahead of this impression, it’s worth noting that visually and audibly, F1 2017 receives no complaints from me other than the textures with actual individuals. Character models could probably have been a bit better, but at the same time, we’re talking about a racing game. What matters most is how the vehicles and Raceway appears.
There are a few different game modes available for players who simply want to pick out their favorite car and race specific events or championships, but the real fun could arguably be made for the career mode. Players will start their careers after selecting a team, though you’ll have to keep up with their expectations, during the season.
Within career mode, you’ll be introduced to the big update known as R&D where players can tinker with their vehicles in a massive way. It’s essentially drawn out like a typical RPG skill tree, as you determine every little aspect of your car, though be careful, as these aspects could cost you in a big way during the race.
This was a big learning curve when playing, but a fun one at that. Because there are so many little aspects to adjust and change, knowing just how to alter your vehicle before a race could mean the world for your career.
Everything is setup just as how you would see the sport played out. This could ultimately mean penalties for switching to new components. Most of this was trial and error on my part, but if you’re skilled enough from playing, you could really shave off some tiny aspects giving yourself the advantage over your opponents, such as how much fuel will be in your tank.
I’ve might have been on a losing streak, but over time, I felt myself slowly getting the hang of a few minor abilities in the R&D department.
Speaking of keeping track of your vehicle, during races a menu can be brought up which should give you an idea on when you’ll need to make adjustments. Since there are a number of items to keep track of, expect to flip through a few menus on the fly as they’ll showcase on the bottom right corner of your screen.
All-in-all, F1 2017 was a solid experience during my time with the game. It’s certainly something I’ll be diving deeper into thanks to the amount of tinkering Codemasters allows when managing your vehicle and it’s one aspect that will likely bring in early adopters when the title officially launches this August 24, 2017.
Full Disclosure: A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for purposes of this review.
