F1 2019, the review

Even if the time comes in the future when there will be millions of driving games in circulation, the formula 1 it will always continue to exert its charm. Maybe it is that we Spaniards all have a bit of the myth of Ferrari well rooted in our DNA, but seeing the red ones whizzing on circuits all over the world can only thrill the spectator with little passion for engines. An emotion that also this year thanks to Codemasters and its F1 2019 we can go back to living in the first person, this time a lot earlier than usual. To celebrate the ten years of the series, the British company has in fact decided to anticipate the release of F1 2019 from August to June, thus responding to a request long made by gamers. The arrival of the game in the middle of the Formula 1 championship that started in March makes this event even more worthy of attention, also in light of the news announced by the developers in recent months. It is therefore with great pleasure that we got behind the wheel to take care of this review of F1 2019, a game able to surprise us where we least expected it, even if not free from defects. Let's see it all together.



F1 2019, the review

Menu and modes: a lot of Career, but also a lot of multiplayer

The pitfalls of games that have an annual release is well known to all fans of sports titles, whose first question each year is about the real innovations introduced in the new edition of their favorite series. F1 2019 tries to set the record straight as soon as it gets to his menu, completely revised by the developers compared to predecessor. Even if the interface is completely new, it is still really difficult to be lost among what are some of the staples of the series for some years now. On top of these there is of course the mode Career, which we will focus on later, accompanied by the usual series of grand prix, leagues and time trials to be played in singles. Among the novelties of this year there is the considerable space dedicated to the component multiplayer of the title, in which Codemasters has decided to invest to give users the means with which to manage their leagues directly from within F1 2019: therefore, it is no longer necessary to resort to external tools to do so.



The expansion of events into different categories makes these events more varied for those who are willing to play online, enriching the rewards system with the introduction of competition points. These are nothing more than the virtual currency with which to buy aesthetic elements for your driver or for the car you use online (the same for everyone), in the same context in which the microtransactions with real money. Some items can in fact be bought only by spending hard euros, but it is good to remember that these are elements that do not change the skills within the game. Moreover, it could not have been otherwise, given the decision with which Codemasters seems to want to aim at the world of eSports after also raising their seasonal prize pool to $ 500.000. In fact, the renewed menu contains an entire section dedicated to the official F1 2019 competitions, where you can access videos, calendars and other dedicated material. With this in mind, we would have liked to see greater integration with the game itself, instead of being sent back for each selected content to be viewed via the PlayStation 4 browser. The list of available sections is completed by the Autosalone, where you can admire all the cars up close. official present in the game, and the Cinema mode, where the highlights of the races we run are automatically inserted to be eventually shared online.



F1 2019, the review

PlayStation 4 Trophies

In addition to those you will get by driving your car, F1 2019 offers a total of fifty-one PlayStation Trophies. The usual Platinum is accompanied by two Gold level objectives, ten Silver and thirty-eight Bronze. To get them all it is necessary to work through the various modes of the game, starting especially from the Career and its rivalry system.

Formula 2 and Career

If we take care of the Career mode after having listed all the others, it is because it is strongly linked to one of the main novelties of F1 2019: the arrival of the formula 2 and its entire league. In the various modes proposed by the game it is in fact possible to take part in one or more races of the 2018 championship (the 2019 of Mick Schumacher will arrive via update) of the minor category, a sort of forge of talents where the skills of emerging drivers willing to seek glory in Formula 1 are measured. In fact, this is not by chance the incipit of the Career mode, in which we are called to dress the role of a driver engaged in the Formula 2 championship. In reality the latter is not disputed in full but is shown to us only through some salient phases, useful for defining rivalry and friendships that we will take to Formula 1 in the following season where we will land together with Lukas Weber, our teammate, and Devon Butler, our fiercest opponent.



F1 2019, the review

In reality, the choice to put Formula 2 at the beginning of the Career also acts as an obligatory introduction to this category, certainly less followed than Formula 1 but able to reserve pleasant surprises. Starting from the type of car used, the same Dallara F2 2018 for all the teams which therefore makes the challenge the same for all the drivers, accompanied by a different management system for points and the races themselves. Each weekend is in fact made up of a single practice session and a qualifying session, followed by the so-called Feature Race, the longest race with a mandatory pit stop, and from Sprint Race, shorter race with reversed starting positions. We do not dwell further on technical and regulatory details, but we simply invite you to give Formula 2 a chance in F1 2019 even if its arrival does not excite you too much. As in reality, the use of a rougher but also less powerful car than a Formula 1 single-seater can in fact also be useful for learning the game's driving system. Returning to the Career, once the introductory phase is passed, as in the past, the choice of the team among all those present in the 2019 season is accessed, thus renewing the possibility of starting immediately with a contract in Ferrari or another high-level team. Our colleagues from Formula 2 will adapt by choosing a team capable of competing with ours, thus carrying out an intertwining that also allows us to see the answers they give to the questions they are asked in the interview. In narrative terms we are not at the levels of similar modes seen in other sports titles, it is good to say, but the additions of F1 2019 undoubtedly open an interesting path for what will be the future developments. Among other things, the new dynamics also allow the interviews of the usual Claire to be a little more varied than in the past, even if after a year we would have expected more news in the interaction with the media. For the rest, the Career remains similar to what was seen in F1 2018, with the presence of experience points that can be accumulated in the various racing sessions to be then spent in the research and development phases, paying attention to the changes in the regulation.

The gameplay

When the time finally comes to hit the track, F1 2019 proves to be faithful to the philosophy embraced by the series in recent years. The very large scalability of the game settings allows both novices and more experienced to find their own place among the various aids, among which we find control of the traction, braking aid, suggested gear and so on. The numerous frames available allow you to find your own orientation: as far as we are concerned, this time we preferred to use the cameraTV Pod, as even by removing the vertical element of theHalo the view from cockpit it kept giving us the feeling of having little field of vision. The changes to the interface during the race, in our opinion clearer and cleaner than last year, should be noted. Although Codemasters' statements spoke of one physics completely revised, the sensations experienced in driving the F1 2019 cars were very close to those given to us by F1 2018, allowing us to sit in front of the wheel without particular worries. A slightly different story for Formula 2, where the use of a different car becomes tangible. Although the use of the controller continues to be supported, owning a steering wheel has now become a must to fully enjoy all that F1 2019 has to offer, starting from the improvements to the performance of the force feedback that the developers offer us every year. Playing a little with the settings of theartificial intelligence of the pilots it seemed to us to see a quite adequate behavior at the set levels, even if several hours of play are needed to evaluate any flaws. Finally, as regards the management of collisions, it seems to us that some concessions are still being made both in the damage to the cars and in their evaluation by the race marshals.

The graphics: lights on the EGO Engine

When we talked about surprises at the beginning, we were referring mainly to the technical sector of F1 2019. Although we had already given it close to retirement during the review of F1 2018, the 3.0 version of EGO Engine manages to amaze those who approach the game this year, mainly for the management of shine renewed by Codemasters. If on the one hand it is true that the models are always well-finished and up-to-date even in the smallest details, this year it is in fact illuminations and reflections that make the difference, both on the cars and on the elements that make up the track. The biggest difference can be seen in night races, where atmospheric effects and artificial lights make up a decidedly different glance compared to F1 2018, we dare to say almost at the limits of the generational leap. Moving on to the day races, the work done on the management of the lights becomes less evident but still tangible, especially in particular moments such as the sunset in the way in which the latter illuminates the asphalt. As a consequence of the work done, a better shadow contour also arrives, while the delayed texture loading problems encountered in F1 2018 have been almost completely solved. PlayStation 4 Pro there are no drops in the number of frames per second, but if you want to be picky it is possible to notice some aliasing problems from time to time. Compared to last year, there are no changes in the championship circuits: the only changes to the 2019 calendar concern the reversal between the Mexican and United States GPs. As for the sound, this year too listening to the single-seaters directly through headphones remains a symphony not to be missed. Naturally confirmed to the comment Carlo Vanzini and Luca Filippi, now at home in the series.

F1 2019, the review

Comment

Tested version PlayStation 4 Digital Delivery Steam, PlayStation Store, Xbox Store Price 69,90 € Resources4Gaming.com

9.0

Readers (35)

8.6

Your vote

The F1 2019 review ends with a predictable promotion with flying colors for the work done by Codemasters, which has long since become a guarantee when it comes to racing games. Even if the driving sensations remain mainly those of a year ago, the many novelties around make F1 2019 a mandatory step for all fans of Hamilton, Vettel and company, enriched by a Formula 2 more than determined not to be like a simple meteor in this series.

PRO

  • Two more months to play duty free in terms of quality
  • Graphics beyond expectations
  • Career mode enriched with rivalries ...
AGAINST
  • ... but not yet at the level of other sports productions
  • We would have liked to see something more in the interaction with the media and after the race
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