 |
Playstation > PlayStation Game Cheats > PlayStation Reviews > Staff Review | |
 |
 |
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
 |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Playability: No matter how good a racing game looks its true measure lies in the playability. The way the cars handle, the way your opponents interact and how close you come to the edge of your seat, being discerning factors. Ubi Softs offering looks fairly good, but is it just mutton dressed as lamb. All the usual suspects line up, single race, championship, multi play, time trial, however, there's a new boy lurking in the menu..... school mode. This does exactly what it says on the tin, schooling you in the art of driving. Where to brake, when to accelerate, it's all there right in front of you. Arrow markers on the track and a sliding bar across the bottom of the screen guide you around the circuit with ease, before long you'll be stepping out of nappies into full racing overalls. This mode works well and, with a little patience, you'll soon become an expert at braking distances and bleeding the accelerator to sling shot corners. A pick up and play option is available. This plays like a full-on arcade racer with checkpoints and full overhead track display. A word of caution, the overhead track view isn't an option when in simulation mode. Learn the tracks before tackling a whole season, or you'll spend more time in the barriers than on the tarmac. Speaking of bending the barriers, saying damage levels are unrealistic in this game, is definitely an understatement . Even with realism options turned up to the max and full damage set on, a shunt into the hoardings, which would easily prang the front wing of any F1 racing machine, has little effect. In fact, even after a head on collision, you still can't rip a wheel off and continuous ramming into walls won't even dent your nose cone. Not, I'm sure you'll agree, what you'd expect after a tough time on the track, perhaps I misunderstood the word realism. It's more like driving a Security van than an F1 racing car, which is a great shame and a glaring over sight. Also, if we're looking at realism, go off-road, and you'll find that pumping the gas to get back on track, gives the impression of spinning on ice rather than on grass. It might look nice, the wheels turn green as your car cuts through the grass like a Flymo, but again, there seems to be a slight lack of realism. Oh, and by the way, if you skip qualifying or take part and accelerate the qualifying time, expect more than a few surprises when the hour's up. How about a Prost in pole position or one of the Minardis or Arrows sitting smugly near the front of the grid. It would make a nice change, but somehow I can't see it happening, it certainly didn't last season or come to think of it any season that I can remember. Now, I know I've just given the game a bit of a hammering, but its time to slow things down and ease up on the body blows. Putting all the above faults to one side, the fact remains, that F1 races well and manages somehow to hold its head above water. Despite it all there's a decent game lurking within. The AI is good, showing varying degrees of aggression depending on the race option. Opponents will actively block you and happily prang your car while racing in the arcade type options. Progress through a full season and the drivers seem to exhibit personalities, some moving over to let you pass and others, like veteran Alesi, deliberately blocking you by dodging from the racing line. Pit stops are handled well with the Playstation taking control of the wheel a short way down the pit lane. Presented with options to repair or refuel before your car comes to a halt, small animations depict your pit crew beavering away to get the work done. The length of footage varies depending on the competence of your crew. Chauffeured back out onto the track, you once again take control, sweaty hands gripping the wheel to rejoin the fray. The radar option is a good feature, appearing only when a car is near, showing the driver name and a coloured graphic of their car, indicating how close you are to them or vice versa. This makes it easy to glance down without diverting your attention from the track ahead to find out who your opponent is and ending up taking an early shower. Game Options: This is a 1 disk game for 1-2 Players and includes a Link-up mode. It is compatible with the standard (digital) joypad and the analog stick controls of the dual shock joypad. Games can be saved via memory card (1 block per save). |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|