What’s on this week
If you’re looking to distract yourself from the COVID-19 pandemic and its demolition or delay of every real-world motorsport calendar, simply load up Codemasters’ latest Formula 1 game and enjoy a record-breaking grand prix season in the virtual world that’s free from any signs of the health crisis.
The developers have wisely taken the decision to act as if the 22-race season got under way in Melbourne and proceeded without a hitch. This means you can tackle the new Vietnamese and Dutch venues despite the fact real-world events led to their postponement.
The headline new feature in F1 2020 is the inclusion of the ‘My Team’ career mode, where gamers can create their own 11th outfit on the grid and compete as a driver, as well as manage the squad.
It provides an opportunity to get your surname in among Mercedes and Ferrari, or you may choose to resurrect a classic moniker such as Brabham or Tyrrell.
You hire one of the drivers on the 2019 FIA Formula 2 grid as your team-mate at the beginning, but you can later attract one of the F1 elite to your stable.
It’s a game mode that fans have been asking for ever since Codemasters started producing the official F1 games more than 10 years ago. There are no signs of it being half-baked or rushed, with a complex and detailed approach that leaves you feeling extremely satisfied as your team rises up the F1 pecking order.
The 2019 F2 season is now available to play in its entirety in the regular career mode, although unfortunately the 2020 season is not available upon release. This is expected to be added in the summer.
Codemasters has rightly scrapped the fictional F2 drivers that were featured in F1 2019 and put far more emphasis on the actual feeder series stars, who will also earn graduation to F1 and play a major role in the driver market over the course of your 10-season career mode.
This increases the longevity of the game and makes it worthwhile continuing in the career beyond the first couple of seasons. Gamers also have the choice of a 10, 16 or 22-race calendar for each season of career mode, and can pick which races are included among that reduced number – although the order is fixed.
The classic content continues to be the most underdeveloped section of the franchise, with a series of uninspiring, short challenges to complete in one of the 20 classic cars available. Four of those cars are accessed upon the purchase of the bonus DLC content, which is centred on seven-time champion Michael Schumacher. With an additional £10 price tag, it’s difficult to recommend forking out for more than the standard edition of the game unless you’re absolutely desperate to drive the Jordan 191.
Codemasters continues to struggle to provide an interesting game mode for the classic content within the game. It would greatly benefit from reintroducing classic drivers and circuits – last featured in F1 2013.
One surprising but welcome returning feature to the franchise is splitscreen, something alien to most current racing games. Aside from this, multiplayer remains relatively unchanged and this is by no means a bad thing following its overhaul a couple of years ago.
The overall handling itself is not light years away from its predecessors, but specific areas such as the feeling of the car under braking is greatly improved, benefiting from feedback from drivers such as Charles Leclerc and George Russell. If you liked the F1 2019 handling model, you will not be disappointed. The in-race ERS system has also been simplified to a single overtake button, something requested by gamers from both ends of the players’ spectrum.
F1 2020 plays to both serious and casual gamers alike, arguably better than any other racing game on the market. Real-world motorsport may have returned, but there is still plenty of fun to be had in the virtual world. is available to play on Xbox One, Playstation 4 and PC