Let me start out by saying that since about 1995 I have been following F1 racing very closely, and have loved it every since. Yet at the same time I was completely in love with Super Monaco GP II on the Sega. That to me was an incredible game. It had all the courses, slipstream, different teams, you had to fight to get good positions, it looked awesome. Simply put this was my dream F1 game.
Then I got a playstation and F1 97. All I can say is WOW. That game had it all. It became my benchmark of racing games. Yes, GT is awesome, but it never had the concentration of doing races in F1 97. Let me explain.
Even to this day, F1 97 had actual tire wear, fuel consumption, engine failure that could be repaired and engine failure that would have instantaneously if you pushed some cars to much or if you had rear damage. A pit crew that talked to you, perfect split time recording, great commentary by Murray and Brundle, variable weather conditions, going from dry to wet to dry. It had all the tracks and great graphics. Simply put, it had it all.
Now, every other F1 game that game after F1 97 (I kid you not) was sub par to me. Never, did I get the complete package with one exception: Grand Prix 3, but that had a different problem: playability. Either way, no F1 game could touch F1 97 in my eyes.
And then I decided to get F1 2010. It has variable weather, tire wear that actually works, fuel consumption, a pit crew that talked. Alright, my biggest gripe was no engine failure, or any other kind of failure (such as brake failure), but since that will be in F1 2011 I will let it slide. But this game has something that no other game since F1 97 has had: great F1 racing.
I took out the Mercedes of Schumacher, expert difficulty, went to Monza. Qualified as 5th. And then raced in the same spirit as F1 97: great competition, difficult to easily pass and a great race overall. Over 53 laps I finished 4th and it felt awesome.
It was something that no GT game can every do, but F1 2010 just did.
Now, for me it has almost reached the heights of F1 97, not quite yet, but it pretty much up there. I truly hope F1 2011 goes all the way and finally will stop me from playing F1 97 again...even to this day.
Then I got a playstation and F1 97. All I can say is WOW. That game had it all. It became my benchmark of racing games. Yes, GT is awesome, but it never had the concentration of doing races in F1 97. Let me explain.
Even to this day, F1 97 had actual tire wear, fuel consumption, engine failure that could be repaired and engine failure that would have instantaneously if you pushed some cars to much or if you had rear damage. A pit crew that talked to you, perfect split time recording, great commentary by Murray and Brundle, variable weather conditions, going from dry to wet to dry. It had all the tracks and great graphics. Simply put, it had it all.
Now, every other F1 game that game after F1 97 (I kid you not) was sub par to me. Never, did I get the complete package with one exception: Grand Prix 3, but that had a different problem: playability. Either way, no F1 game could touch F1 97 in my eyes.
And then I decided to get F1 2010. It has variable weather, tire wear that actually works, fuel consumption, a pit crew that talked. Alright, my biggest gripe was no engine failure, or any other kind of failure (such as brake failure), but since that will be in F1 2011 I will let it slide. But this game has something that no other game since F1 97 has had: great F1 racing.
I took out the Mercedes of Schumacher, expert difficulty, went to Monza. Qualified as 5th. And then raced in the same spirit as F1 97: great competition, difficult to easily pass and a great race overall. Over 53 laps I finished 4th and it felt awesome.
It was something that no GT game can every do, but F1 2010 just did.
Now, for me it has almost reached the heights of F1 97, not quite yet, but it pretty much up there. I truly hope F1 2011 goes all the way and finally will stop me from playing F1 97 again...even to this day.
