Game Review: F1 2011

Platform: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC

Price Range: £24.95 - £32.99

Age Rating: N/A

Genre: Racing

Design


F1 returns this gaming year with the sequel to possibly one of the biggest racing games of last year F1 2010. F1 2011 has all the promise and potential to be just as big if not bigger than F1 2010. This years game sees some similarity in the game modes however this is to be expected as there isn't really much room to expand in this area. The game modes vary from your typical career mode to the 'Proving Grounds' where you can race against the staff ghost in each of the tracks and then go on to try and beat your personal best. The career mode plays out great as you play as an upcoming driver in the world of F1 and win races to gain experience and move up the racing ladder, either staying with the team that first signs you and winning a championship or by moving teams to try out the varying cars that F1 2011 has to offer. The settings and race duration can be changed and shortened if you don't feel like doing a full race and sitting there for an hour and half using DRS until your fingers drop off. Online returns this year and it plays alot smoother and looks much better than last year, you rank up depending on what experience you earn in online races, this can be slightly difficult when only racing against 3 players and you only drive for 'Lotus'. I feel a filter for matching players with similar skill level would be beneficial. Graphically it looks fantastic but it does have the tendency to freeze like F1 2010 and when looking in your wing mirrors it looks slightly disappointing.

Gameplay


As i mentioned earlier the game does play out fantastically with the career mode taking up most of your time, you can play through as many seasons as you like attempting to win not only the driver's championship but the constructor's championship as well. You start off driving for some of the lesser known teams in Formula 1 but as you start to win races you get more interest from some of the bigger teams. Before each race you can choose what setup you wish to have on your car, changing tyres and down-force however to get the most out of this feature you need to be a Formula 1 mega fan, for casual users I suggest the quick setup or just to stick with what the engineer sets you up on. Character customisation is really lacking in this game and its a huge shame, the only thing you do get to customise is your driver's helmet. DRS (or speed boost to us no technical folk) can be used as an instant speed boost to gain an advantage on the straights, but be warned not all cars use it in the two player split screen mode which can be a pain when trying to prove a point to your friend. This said two player mode is great fun, you find yourself getting more and more competitive as it makes a huge change to driving against the computer.

Presentation


Graphically this game is really top class, the cars look amazing with great attention to detail, the tracks look true to life and the physics involved when driving the cars are unbelievably realistic, for example it isn't uncommon for you to be racing down a straight in the pouring rain and strong wind and to be suddenly swerve on the wet surface. The g-forces when attempting corners are also brilliant you have to hit the angle and speed just right otherwise you find yourself flying nose first into the tyre wall. There are some graphical disadvantages though with the view from the wing mirrors being pretty much non-existent  and the drivers all look pretty much the same as you can't see much as they always have their helmets on, track-side interviews in the career carry very little significance and don't look that impressive however this being said it is presented in a way that really shows off the cars and their capabilities which is what the game is about.

Summary


So to round it all off F1 2011 is truly a great game if you look past the minor glitches here and there, it becomes more and more addictive as you play through the online and career modes however I would like to see a driver customisation option in the next game rather than just the helmet and more effort focused on the little things such as the crowd and wing mirror views. If F1 was to address these changes for the game next year then I believe it could really stand out from other racing games but for now I guess it will just have to blend in nicely and hold its own against the likes of Need for Speed and Dirt3

Ratings


Design: 9.2


Gameplay: 9.6


Presentation: 8.8


Overall: 9.2