Written by Carl Hilliard, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
EA Sports’ and Codemasters’ newest entry in the F1 series has just been released, with a plethora of changes under its belt. Here is what to expect in the newest racing title.
F1 24 arrived on May 31st, featuring all the teams, drivers, and circuits from the 2024 FIA Formula One World Championship. The game comes with the latest car models and liveries, updated driver models, along with some well needed updates to some of the tracks on the calendar, most notably at Spa-Francorchamps, Silverstone, and Qatar.
Presentation is the name of the game here, with Sky Sports F1 mainstays such as David Croft, Alex Jacques, Anthony Davidson and Natalie Pinkham all making regular appearances throughout the title. The graphics and overall immersion in this year's release truly make you feel like you are watching a Formula One race, with all the on and off track drama present.
Gone is the story and supercar modes of F1 games’ past, Codemasters instead opting for a full focus on the complete overhaul of Driver Career mode, something long desired within the community.
Contract negotiations, rivalries, upgrades, and a brand new Driver Recognition system bring you even deeper into the shoes of an F1 driver. All of these additions make for a fresh and engaging career that one will no doubt sink plenty of hours into.
Oh, and if bringing Nigel Mansell, Michael Schumacher or Ayrton Senna into the current F1 career season is your kind of thing, you can do that.
Another new addition to the Career section, is Challenge Career, which puts you in the shoes of one of the 20 real life drivers, offering bite size scenarios for the player to complete, with ample opportunity for rewards such as liveries, helmets and podium emotes. A welcome addition that adds more content, and a reason to keep clocking up those miles.
F1 World (F1W), a mode first introduced in last year’s F1 23, saw the player completely customise their own car and livery, completing weekly races and events in order to earn new car parts and team staff.
Players can opt to play in solo events, or take part in sprawling online races, going up against other players of a similar skill level. While essentially untouched from last years’ entry, F1W adds even more depth to the title, something that fans have been starved of in recent years. Love it or hate it, fans don’t seem to argue with the lack of content available nowadays in a new F1 title.
The last, and most controversial addition to F1 24, is the complete overhaul of the Handling system. ‘Dynamic Handling’, as EA calls it, is designed to replicate ‘realistic and predictable performance’ on both controller and wheel setups.
These changes seem to shift in the favour of controller users, rather than wheel, as the car is now very front nose sensitive, allowing the player to send the car into sharp turns and chicanes, with plenty of oversteer on entry and a snap of understeer on exit. With a car this responsive on a controller, one can only image the sensitivity on a wheel.
These changes aren’t for everyone, however, with a controller being my preferred device, I can’t complain about these changes. It adds more predictably to the car, and makes correcting a mistake just that bit easier. However, it is easy to see why wheel and pedal users are unhappy with the new system as a whole.
In all, F1 24 adds plenty of content to its established framework, despite the controversial changes to the handling and suspension models, and fans will have something to enjoy here. Whether that be the all new Driver Career, Challenge Career, F1 World, or even online sim racing for the pros, there is something for everyone here.
EA SPORTS F1 24 is available now.
F1 24 Price Guide
Available on Playstation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Standard Edition: €79.99
Champions Edition: €99.99
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