'F1 2018' | Video Game

This is the tenth interoperation of the F1 game series designed and created by Codemasters. This game allows the player to have the most authentic and realistic F1 experience from your couch. Although this is known as a game, Codemasters have also pushed that F1 2018 can be also known as a simulator. It is able to be played on the XBOX, PS4, and PC platforms.

The player is able to have two types of control methods for the game: a controller (Pad) can be used to play the game, but a steering wheel (Wheel) is also compatible with the game. Most steering wheels on the market are able to be used when playing this game. The game has some major in-game attributes like ERS deployment, track curbs, and the cockpit view with the halo. The biggest news to the real-life 2018 season is the addition of the halo to the cars. With all of the cockpit views available in the game, the addition of the halo is the most visible change when compared to the previous F1 games.

The sound quality for the game has also been updated. In real life F1, there are four types of engines available. There is the Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault, and Honda engines in the game. They all sound different in real life. In the last game, all of the engines sounded the exact same. The sound upgrade is much improved and makes the driving experience more enjoyable and realistic.

KERS stands for "Kinetic Energy Recovery System" and it is able to be configured when the player is in the car. There are several modes to be configured like; "None, Low, Medium, High, Overtake, Hotlap." Each have their own attributes which should be used in certain situations and tracks.

Just like in real life, curbs around the track affects the cars when driving around the track. How much curb a driver does or doesn't take affects the car's lap time and performance. In real life if an F1 car takes too much curb it could affect the lap time or could even make the car crash on the track. These attributes have been carried over to the game. This makes the game a lot more realistic and more like a simulator because of the fact that the player needs to be more accurate and efficient when playing the game.

'F1 2018' | Career Mode | Overview

Career mode is nothing new to this F1 game but it has been newly improved when compared to the other F1 games. The newly designed game looks a lot more realistic since Codemasters have upgraded the graphics for the game.

Rivals are able to be challenged in this game. The game automatically gives you your teammate as a rival, but the player is also able to pick a rival. You as the player have to beat the rivals to earn their respect. As the player beats the rival, respect points are rewarded to the player.

Contract negations are able to be carried out a few times throughout the career. The player is given a contract to be negotiated with attributes like negotiating with another F1 team, upgrade speed, pit stop efficiency, race bonus, simultaneous development.

'F1 2018' | Career Mode Media Interview

On the other hand, they have added things to the game to make the F1 experience a lot more authentic to the real F1. They have incorporated a media aspect to the game which allows you as the driver to be interviewed after a practice session, qualifying session, and the big race. Reputation with the team as well as sportsman and showmanship points can be earned here depending on how the player answers the questions asked by the interviewer.

F1 | 2018 | R&D Tree

The R&D trees have been totally redesigned. The R&D trees are specifically designed for every team. The R&D trees in the game reflect on the F1 teams situation in real life. The R&D tree is made up out of four categories: Powertrain, Aerodynamics, Chassis, and Durability.

Resource points are able to be earned throughout the player's F1 career. When they are purchased, the player has to wait until the next race for the parts to be incorporated to the car depending on the development type which is either a minor or major update type.

'F1 2018' | Multiplayer

The multiplayer aspect of the game is basically the same as the previous versions of the F1 games, except for the newly upgraded aspects which are in the career mode like the ERS deployment and the curb characteristics. There is no R&D tech tree or media interviews as they are career specific. When playing the multiplayer the player is able to join other players in a lobby of 20 players.

Ranked Multiplayer | Safety Training

The major change made to the F1 multiplayer is the aspect of the ranked multiplayer. The ranked system allows the players to join lobbies which have the same rank. Just like games like Call Of Duty, they have ranking systems which allows a player to rank up fast depending on their skills and performance completed when playing the game.

The safety training is based on the way a player acts when playing in the lobby. If the player is driving clean and leaving the other drivers enough room they will be given a respected A grade. However ,if the player is ramming into other cars on the grid to gain track position and waiting on a certain part of the track for the front runner to pass just so they can ram them off the track, they get a respected lower grade. This then means that depending on what grade they are, it puts them with their corresponding grade letter so that they don't screw up the players driving a clean race.

My Opinions of the Game

This is the best F1 game ever released to the public. Every year the F1 games get even better as more upgrades and updates are added to the cars and the game modes. I love the sounds of the F1 cars as when I am flying down the Belgian circuit listening to the accurate Ferrari engine it makes me feel like I am really in an F1 car. The updated graphics allowed me to be immersed into a realistic F1 experience. The career mode allows the players to be able to be a F1 driver from the players couch. I think that the career mode was really great, and the addition of the upgraded R&D tech tree allowed me to realistically upgrade my chassis on my Sauber as the engine has enough power.

The multiplayer has been updated in a way which allows the players to be categorised into grades depending on their skills and driving behaviour. When I was playing on the multiplayer I found that the levelling system was great as it placed me with other drivers who have the same level as me—this meant that I was not racing against drivers who were majorly better or worse than me giving everyone the best opportunity for a race win.

I would definitely recommend this game to a real F1 fan like myself but I would even recommend this game to any gamer who loves racing games as a whole.

*All content here is purely based on my opinions and no official sources have published this content. @h4mm3r_h34d