 Review By: Jared Black |
Developer: | Studio Liverpool |
| Publisher: | SCEA | |
| Genre: | Racing | |
| ESRB: | Everyone | |
| # Of Players: | 1 (11 online) | |
| Online Play: | Yes | |
| Accessories: | PlayStation Network (online play), HDTV 720p, Logitech Driving Force Pro/EX/G25 Racing Wheel | |
| Buy Now: |   |
One of my favorite games in the early days of the original PlayStation was Formula 1, developed by Project Gotham Racing creators Bizarre Creations (one of the company’s first games) and published by Psygnosis. Although I’ve never been a big fan of watching the sport on TV, I found the more technical nature of the driving in that game (you go left and right, and actually have to brake from time to time!) appealing. Eleven years later, I figured it was time to give the video game form of the sport another try, especially now that there’s a robust online mode and high-definition PS3 visuals far superior to anything on the original PlayStation to go along with it. The results don’t disappoint.
I hesitate to call the game this year’s edition, because in fact the rosters are from the beginning of the 2006 season. Personally I couldn’t care less about this, since I don’t actually follow the sport on TV, and I like the fact that my old Formula 1 (the game) favorite Schumacher (who in real life retired last September) is in this game as well. Still, this will undoubtedly turn off some hardcore fans looking for a true 2007 season in this game.
That little detail aside, the rest of the game should appeal to any F1 fan, and fans of technically minded driving games in general. As is the case in real life, you cannot simply hold down the gas pedal and expect to win. Each of the game’s courses is at a minimum as complex as a NASCAR road course, requiring real driving skill and mastery of the course layouts in order to be successful. The game isn’t lenient about it either, and penalizes players that attempt to cut corners off the course (or otherwise disobey the rules) to get an unfair advantage.
You’ll find a focus on a true simulation experience in the game’s career mode as well. Here the game’s built-in assistance is turned off (replaced with options to select race length, amount of tire wear and fuel usage, etc.), so you’ll find that it’s challenging enough to simply qualify for a team and get offered a contract to begin with. Even if you do get an offer, you may find yourself starting out as a test driver, rather than a full-fledged member of the crew. Some players will undoubtedly balk at this, because it’s a fairly high barrier to entry for less skilled players. However, I enjoyed it quite a bit, as it represented a level of challenge not really present in other racing simulations like EA’s NASCAR franchise. Once you do qualify, you’ll be presented with a contract outlining what the team expects from you, and away you go into a full 2006 season of F1 racing.
During the season, you’ll receive news bulletins after each race, along with emails from your agent commenting on your progress or lack thereof. I found this part of the season mode to be a little cliché, as it’s basically copying what some other franchises (including EA’s NASCAR) have already done. The messages you’ll receive are also a little bit too canned, with the only real variables in them seemingly being your name and the team you represent.
That’s not to say that the game totally excludes players new to F1, and in fact it ships (in North America at least) with default settings that pander to the lowest common denominator for quick races and such. If you simply turn on the game and start racing, you’ll find that you’re racing on training wheels. By default, the game turns all of the helps on, including braking assistance, steering assistance, spin recovery, etc. In fact, if you want to play it this way, you can essentially just hold down the gas pedal and do well. Pit stops are a mini-game in themselves though, with the player needing to quickly press a series of buttons on the controller to make the stop as short as possible. This is a decent system that at least gives some control during pit stops to the player (as opposed to some other games that make you simply sit there and watch), but hardly a revolutionary way to handle it.
Speaking of player control, Formula One Championship Edition does make use of the Sixaxis’ motion sensitive controls for steering. Only one control configuration (out of six) utilizes it however, with braking and acceleration mapped to the shoulder buttons. This is probably for the best unfortunately; as much like Ridge Racer 7 before it, I found that the motion controls are simply not sensitive enough. While tilting the controller left and right works fine for gradual turns, it was practically impossible for me to navigate sharp turns using motion. More often than not, the motion sensing would simply get “lost” and fail to turn my car properly, or react so slowly that I ended up in the grass or against the wall. In a game as technically demanding as this, sluggish controls are simply unacceptable. Of course, the more traditional controls are much more functional, but gamers looking for a racer that finally uses motion-sensing right will be disappointed.
Posted: 2007-03-18 12:44:50 PST