Formula One Championship Edition

Formula One Championship Edition
Publisher: SCEE
ERP: £39.99

We must admit to writing rather nervously about this one. Sony’s F1 games are a specialist taste, having evolved into the most in-depth racing experience on console because their audience demands it. Hands up, we generally find such trials quite a chore – MotorStorm will do nicely, thanks.

Yet there’s always something intriguing about each debut next-generation F1 game, and once again we find ourselves helplessly drawn to the lust for detail here. It’ll cost you a high definition TV and a decent surround sound system to fully appreciate the glory of Formula One Championship Edition on PS3. Not to mention a PSP that functions as a wing mirror if connected to your PS3 via USB. Everyone with a passion for the sport, however, will relish the degree of fine tuning cars that are personalised to suit each driver’s style.

There doesn’t appear to be an escape from set-up screens unless you choose ‘Quick Race’. Elsewhere you really need to throw yourself at the hard stuff, so we welcomed the ‘Learning Centre’ that talked us through official rules and regulations, setting up the car, and eventually tips for racing like a pro. Simply electing a ‘Gran Prix Weekend’, a relatively carefree spin around the world’s famous circuits, requires you to experience the ‘Race Car Evolution’ feature – the F1 equivalent of your MOT, balancing the car to suit your driving style. Getting this right becomes more crucial in ‘World Championship’ mode, while the entire ‘Career’ mode depends on it.

You can enjoy how driving these screaming F1 beasts with or without driving aids (auto gear change, auto break etc.) and it’s clearly a different experience than Ridge Racer or even Gran Turismo, which still doesn’t allow damage to the cars. Whereas the next-gen prowess of MotorStorm could be described as dramatic realism, F1 is appropriately clinical. So F1 CE is to racing games what Virtua Fighter 5 is to beat ’em ups; you’re either in or you’re out.

Not for the casual audience then, despite Sony’s efforts to dumb down the experience and even add such ‘fun’ as interactive pit crews. We imagine the online community for this game to be scary place indeed, tempting though it may be with up to 11 human drivers among a total of 22 cars on the circuits.

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