Certain games are harder to review than others, not necessarily because they’re bad games, but because the material is unfamiliar or uninteresting enough to the reviewer that it’s a grind to get through. As I stated last year, I think the sport of F1 is pretty amazing and I can respect the hell out of it, but I don’t follow it at all. It’s no surprise then that I only play the F1 games when asked to review them. I simply don’t play them enough to appreciate the differences from year to year. I find myself in the same situation this year, so if you’re looking for a thorough review of F1 2014, this isn’t it.
That said, if you’re still reading, F1 2014 is not the current-gen (PS4/X1) title fans were probably hoping for. Instead it’s the last of the last-gen versions we ought to see. It manages to lose one of the most notable features of F1 2013 though, i.e., the Classic Mode. Classic Mode was cool in that it let players race with drivers and cars from the 80s and 90s, perhaps the golden era of F1 racing. That’s gone now, which is a shame and probably some kind of licensing issue, but there is still at least a lot of depth for the hardcore racer to dig into, be it with ranked online play in the RaceNet community (also split screen and LAN support, which is unusual and cool), Grand Prix mode, or Career. The Career mode is very similar to last year, but new to this version is the ability to play the full Formula One season (19 races), or you can select a 7 or 12 race season.
Before you can start your career you need to take a lap at Monza. You can actually skip this, but it’s intended to help you setup the difficulty level, which you can customize and change anytime afterwards. This one lap test replaces the Young Driver’s Test scenario that was used last year. Anyway, it was little surprise, although slightly disappointing, that the game chose the new Very Easy mode for me. Afterwards, I went into the My F1 to tweak various Driving Assists (braking, steering, traction control, etc). You can also change the difficulty of the AI from Amateur on up to Legend, although from what I have read online, the AI still seem to be a little under whelming, at least for those seeking serious realism.
The F1 series is known for realism or simulation with plenty of licensed teams, cars, drivers, tracks, etc., as well as ample technical depth. Strictly speaking how accurate a lot of this is I can’t speak to, but to my amateur F1 senses, it seems pretty spot-on. F1 2014 incorporates the new rules changes that allow turbo-chargers to the mix which result in significantly more torque. This can lead to spinning your wheels if used incorrectly, but if you can learn to control your throttle, the ability to accelerate and thus overtake opponents is more tangible now than last year. Personally, I didn’t notice a huge difference in ‘feel’ between 2014 and 2013 in this regard, but I’m sure seasoned players will.
Also new this year is the ERS (Electronic Recovery System) and new circuits in Sochi Autodrom (Russia) and the return of Hockenheim and Spielberg. The new roster changes are included too, while the Scenario mode, one of the best features of 2013, is back with new Time Trials and Challenges for players to dig into.
As an executive summary, F1 2014’s biggest changes are from the rules that the sport underwent in the last year. In many other ways, it’s basically equal to, if not slightly less than, the game from the previous year or two.