Firstly, the F1 titles are incredibly hard to score by our review system: they have all of the content you'd expect, but that's only 11 cars and 24 tracks (actually 25…). This laser focus means the game is 100% complete, but scoring it at five stars for content puts it on the same level as a 500-vehicle sandbox title and scoring it by comparison to that doesn't seem fair either.
There's nothing especially wrong with the game either. If I were to give it a full review I'd certainly praise the overall look and sound, which have stepped up since F1 23 — at least on PlayStation 5 — especially in the track area which now seems more consistent. I've disliked the way the heavier cars drive for a few F1 games, but in handling terms it's much more enjoyable now too.
The title absolutely delivers on the F1 experience too, all-but dunking you into a completely immersive (bar PSVR2, although PC versions support VR) adventure. I'm not sold on the whole "be one of the 20" idea, which is what we had to do back in the early 1990s before you could play as yourself, but the neat, authentic driver messages do add some value. Tweaks to the Career make it more robust and engaging too.
There's a good chance many readers will point out that this has been the case for a while with these annual F1 releases, and to some extent they're right (if often harsh about it). However it's much more stark with F1 24, which largely comprises a physics, car and track skin, and graphical update to the exact same field of cars, drivers, and tracks.
In fact, despite the implementation of the Recognition system (which is pretty neat), tweaks to car development and other off-track machinations, a slightly more interesting Career mode, and the Challenge modes, there's actually a bit less game in F1 24 than its three predecessors — even if it is nicer to look at and better to drive. There's no Braking Point, no Pirelli Hot Laps, no classic F1 cars, and so on…
Compared to F1 23, F1 24 almost feels like the Spec II update for GT7 did, except that didn't delete Music Rally the way F1 removed Braking Point; love or hate either feature, they are at least innovative and something else to do. In both cases it's an excellent update that adds to the game, but of course Spec II was free.
Of course EA may be bound into this yearly release cycle by whatever agreement it has with F1, and that would be a problem for the developers in trying to find a new USP each year. However the end result for players is another title that is almost identical to the last one as far as they're concerned.
But it doesn't exist in a vacuum, and the fact is that the whole paragraph above applies to F1 23 as well. And to F1 22. And F1 2021… Not a single one of them has been a bad game, and each is an incremental improvement over the last.
F1 24 is where the series broke me. While there may be technical reasons (which I'd find hard to believe, as the title still uses a heavily altered Ego engine) and a contractual obligation for an annual release, I can't see the sense in not offering it as even a $30 "2024 Season Update" to F1 23 owners as well as making the full game itself available.
If you have to have the title, or don't own a previous one, you absolutely won't be disappointed and the refinements are clear. For those who bought into the series at F1 23, the sequel's a hard sell as a full-price title.
