Another year, another F1 release. Some of you will sigh and some like me will be excited to see what Codemasters can bring us especially as this year has seen some of the biggest changes Formula 1 has seen in a very long time.
F1 22 PS5 Review – Updated History
As older readers here at AIR Entertainment will know, I have played the Formula 1 games from Codemasters for many years now and this was the title I have been most excited to get my hands on.
Last year in the world of F1 we were supposed to see the biggest changes the sport had ever seen with new rules and completely different designs in the cars. Unfortunately, due to Covid, all these changes were put on hold for another year.
For this reason, F1 22 feels like a completely different game to last years release with the complete overhaul of the vehicles design and dynamics. That, along with dropping some tracks that we have seen for years in the sport due to political reasons and the addition of new venues and also various track alterations that have been made within the F1 circus. Codemasers had their work cut out for this years release but have hey managed to pull it off?
F1 22 PS5 Review – Lights Out
From just loading up the game first impressions are strong. You can tell that more money has been put into the development of the game and if that is down to EA Sports buying Codemasters then I’m all for it. The music throughout the game features licenced tracks that a lot of people will recognise.
We are instantly introduced to F1 Life, one of the main new features of the game. It certainly gives the home menu a little more personalisation and you can edit this to suit. We are given some nice customisation options which do include dressing your driver in their race outfits as well as casual clothes. Thankfully we can’t make our driver look as outlandish as Lewis Hamilton when he arrives at a race weekend, but that’s a good thing.
F1 Life also introduces us to our living area where you can change the décor, display your winning trophies and also display your Supercar collection.
Yes, I did say Supercar collection. This is a new addition to the F1 franchise and for me, a welcome one. Throughout the game, certain actions will grant you with SC tokens which you can redeem against supercars from Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren and more. This collection can be displayed in your private pad; although its not so private; other online users can visit you and you can visit theirs.
Not only that, but a new feature has been added to the game. Before every race weekend you can take part in Supercar Challenges which range from setting the highest speed throughout a sector on the race track to racing head to head against a rival. This for me is a fantastic inclusion into the game bringing a greater depth into your career as a driver. We all know that between races there is a lot of emphasis to promotion thrown upon the drivers as part of their contracts as well as attending various driving events and this gives us a greater feel of the fun they can have.
F1 22 PS5 Review – And We’re Racing
As expected, My Team and Driver Career return to the game which is pretty much the same as it has been for the last few years now and as in-depth as they always have been which is what we have come to expect. The only thing that is missing from this years release is some form of story which has been a great addition over the last two years.
I’m not going to go into the nitty-gritty of the career mode as it is largely unchanged from last year. The great new additions are the sprint weekends which have been added. These are weekends on the official calendar where the weekend is changed slightly. A normal race weekend consists of three practice sessions where you can get a feel for the track and how your car performs followed by qualifying and then the race.
The sprint weekend changes things up a little. You have your first practice session followed by a qualifying run. Then another practice followed by a sprint race which is much shorter than a regular race and also decides your starting position in the main race as well as awarding differing points depending on your finish position. After that, its on to the main race.
The accessibility of the game remains fantastic allowing you to set it up to your personal skill set. Complete beginners will have no issues what so ever getting to grips with the games mechanics as well as seasoned drivers to the series stepping up the difficulty levels.
The feel of the cars feel a lot better than last years models as they should. With heavier cars and bigger wheels the cars feel a lot more planted in corners. This year is the first ever time that I have managed to take the famous Eu Rouge at Spa at full speed. Every other year I have had to drop back on the throttle otherwise the weight shift would send the car spinning.
F1 22 PS5 Review – Fastest Lap
Overall this years release feels amazing. I would have loved another story mode, but the new additions into the title far outweighs the loss of that particular inclusion.
Take a step back from driving at 200mph and look closer at the graphics and we see some really great mechanics. If you do rub against a car in front without loosing your front wing completely you can see ever increasing damage to the parts. If you are unfortunate enough to loose the front wing and need to pit to change take a look at that new nose section.. compared to the rest of the car it is clean.
I have always said that its the small things that matter and most wouldn’t even notice these things but look at the screen shot above. Clean and undamaged front nose and the rest of the car is dirty. You can even see where the nose is joined on to the rest of the car.
Game physics have been greatly improved over previous years and the addition of new tracks with already existing tracks being updated with official changes manage to keep the game ahead of other racing games. That being said up to date this is he only F1 game on he market until the release of F1 Manager in August and we will see how that performs alongside F1 22 when released.
F1 22 PS5 Review – The Chequered Flag
Quite simply the best game that has been released so far under the Formula 1 banner. Codemasters and EA Sports have certainly gone to town on this years release. It is definitely the most complete game there has been up to date. It is lacking a story mode which has featured the last 2 years but the overall release certainly feels well polished. Featuring an engrossing set of career modes there is plenty to do and keep you occupied before you even think of going online to race other people.
Unfortunately with the latest generation of consoles, the character customisation still isn’t up to scratch but its not really as if this plays a major part in the game other than seeing yourself walk out to the podium to pick up your trophy for the race.
