The preview we were able to access was very limited: it only allowed us to sample two basic game modes (Grand Prix and Time Trial) and to ride on five different circuits (Imola, Miami, Silverstone, Red Bull Ring and Austin). The single-seater model is generic for the moment, but each will have its own design when the game is released. There are therefore few areas in which to offer a look at this 2022 opus, but enough to sense that the revolution will clearly not come from the gameplay.
Indeed, if Codemasters announces significant changes in aero behavior, suspensions or even tires to adapt to the new rules of F1, do not really expect a sudden change in the way the single-seaters behave. We are on familiar ground, in a game that wants to straddle arcade and simulation. The main changes seem to be both greater difficulty in braking the car at the end of long full loads (it is easier to lock its wheels) and a more wandering rear end in the re-acceleration phases when exiting slow bends. , which is accompanied by an impression that it seems slightly easier to catch up with the moments of strong oversteer.
As for those hoping for porpoising, don’t expect it too much because it has been confirmed that it will absolutely not be simulated in F1 22. Instead, quite the contrary, you are treated to almost monolithic single-seaters , which hardly move. Just as much during the braking phases as in the cornering phases, the chassis is immutable. The suspensions only move when passing over vibrators. It is hard to believe that there will be a huge evolution in this area by the final release of the game on July 1st.
Another thing that does not change is the graphics engine: it is the same as in recent years. Even if the game is still pleasing to the eye, we are still a little unsatisfied: if F1 2021, the first game on the new generation of consoles, arrived in a particular context with the acquisition of Codemasters by EA Sports, one could think that F1 22, taking advantage of the revolution in the discipline, could launch a new era. It won’t.
A reworked AI
The cars in the preview are generic models, the « real » ones will be there when F1 22 comes out
So, what’s really new you ask me? In what we have been able to access, one of the main novelties is the arrival of the « sprint » weekends, which will be accessible in Imola, Spielberg and Interlagos in the Career/My Team modes and on any track for Grand Prix mode. It is still difficult to understand why it had not already been integrated into the previous opus, so if this « novelty » is welcome for realism, it is the bare minimum.
Another novelty is aimed at players who are new to the game or who do not want to spend hours grinding the circuits for fun: it is an evolutionary AI, which will adapt the level of the cars not controlled by the player to the pace and /or the position of the player himself. This option is only accessible via the Driving Style called « Relaxed » and offers several levels of adaptability depending on what the player wants. There are also always, alongside “Relaxed”, “Standard” and “Expert” Driving Styles which give access to more or less customizable parameters.
The AI has evolved overall and seems both more aggressive with the player, whether in attack, defense and even positioning, but also more aggressive with the other AIs: in our games, it was not uncommon to see dives bordering on decency at the first turn, which ended in contact between AIs. Contacts and incidents between AI which are also much more frequent and make the events much less linear by triggering safety cars.
Immersion vs Diffusion
And we also arrive at the last point of novelty glimpsed during this preview: a modification of the way in which the player can experience the phases of formation lap, Safety Car and pit stop. Indeed, for these three race phases, you will now have the possibility of choosing to experience them either in an « immersive » way (as a player), or in a « Diffusion » way, therefore as a spectator. In the latter case, the phase will be broadcast « like on TV » (shortened for formation laps and SCs) and you will have no impact on it until the race resumes.
Regarding the phases in « Immersive » mode, they are accompanied by two developments. At the start, first, to have control over a complete formation lap, namely until the moment of stopping at its starting location, and even to choose how to position oneself there exactly (as in reality , with the possibility of putting a little bias). At the stand, then, where the procedure remains almost entirely automated once the entry line is crossed, except at a time when you will have to « turn » in the right timing (the game will stop you no matter what) to hope for the optimal stop, on pain of wasting time. In both cases, a small marker tells you where to stop and where to turn. The penalty if you miss each other at the start? Well, you will swing 1.5 to 2 meters behind the ideal position.
For the rest, we will note some new animations for the intro and the podiums of the races, or even in the stands. And the arrival among the team of commentators on the French side of Jean-Éric Vergne, who accompanies Julien Fébreau. But otherwise nothing changes in terms of damage management or on the circuits that we have been able to test (we will obviously wait to see the changes that have been announced on the tracks of Melbourne, Barcelona and Yas Marina).
After that ?
In addition to this preview, which therefore does not offer a very in-depth overview of the game, Codemasters has provided a certain amount of information on some of the « key » game modes of F1 22 which were not accessible to us. First of all, let’s put our feet in the dish with what has caused the most talk, namely « F1 Life », this personalized « hub » where the player will be able to display different items or trophies that he can collect through his games. in different modes such as Career or My Team.
As expected, it will be a space where the player can customize the appearance of his character in his « everyday life » via clothes and accessories (obviously with the arrival of real brands in the game), via the decoration of the place in which the character will evolve, displaying his supercars, his trophies, etc. The customization of elements related to piloting (helmet, suit, multiplayer car, etc.) will also be present, and will be done a priori via the same interface. It is also, it seems, this interface that will « welcome » the other characters of other players online.
The supercars will be drivable, just like the Safety Cars, notably via the arrival in the game of the Pirelli Hot Laps in My Team or the Career mode. Without the way in which all this would be integrated has been specified, there will also be the implementation of challenges in autocross, drift, time attack, pursuit, etc. Everyone will obviously judge the relevance of all these additions to the official simulation of the Formula 1 World Championship.
The damage does not evolve and only adapts to the new F1 parts
Little information has been revealed on My Team or Career, except that there will be no real integration as such of the budget cap in the mechanics of these modes. There will be three possible entry points into these games depending on the challenge sought (Newcomer, Midfielder, Title contender), which will give access to more or less resources from the start. As for legendary drivers, the vast majority of those present in the previous edition will be there, accompanied by new faces.
On the historical level precisely, there will a priori be no return of old F1. On the other hand, on the circuit side, even if Codemasters has been mysterious on this point, it is not impossible that we should not only have to be satisfied with the 23 circuits of the 2022 calendar.
Virtual reality will therefore, as announced for several months, be present, with consideration of the rain and a slight soiling of the visor, but no simulation of the tear-offs.
In the department of elements that will not be integrated into the game as soon as it is released, the F2 will be there but still in the 2021 version, with a free patch to add 2022 liveries/platforms later. Not available immediately but integrated later: crossplay (i.e. the possibility of being able to play online with players on different consoles or PCs). The crossgen (being able to play with players from different consoles of the same family, PS4 and PS5 for example) will, as in F1 2021, be there from the start.
Finally, a central element of the promotion of the previous installment in the series, the story mode that was Braking Point (« Breaking point » in the French version) is not renewed. It must be said that he had very moderately convinced.
In conclusion, what we have seen of F1 22 and what has been announced between now and its release does not point to fundamental changes. We will obviously have to wait to see the finished product (hoping that it is truly finished and not full of bugs and problems as is often the case at the time of release), but there is nothing really surprising in this stability in a game that is aimed at the general public as long as success is there, surfing on the resurgence of popularity of the discipline. The biggest revolution, ultimately, is that led by Formula 1 itself, which will undoubtedly be the major argument for affording what so far looks like a simple evolution.
In the rain, single-seaters are treacherous to reacceleration
