Codemasters’ F1 series is one of video gaming’s most consistent franchises as its delivered thrilling simulation racing for well over a decade at this point. This year’s release features some great under the hood upgrades graphically, additional options to the career mode, and a great crossover with the F1 movie. It all gels to create a great racing game that is filled with modes and features to keep Formula One fans busy.
The core racing has always been the series’ strong suit and it remains as such this year. There’s a particular buzz that comes with overtaking an opponent around a turn, carefully navigating the space between success and a crash. The sense of speed is as good as ever, with some visual upgrades making the cars look better than ever as you .(hopefully) speed past them. With plenty of difficulty settings and sliders, you can make sure you’re having fulfilling action on the track across the game’s many modes.
One of the coolest additions to F1 25 is the game’s implementation of the upcoming F1 movie starring Brad Pitt. First off, both the APXGP and its drivers (Pitt and Damson Idris’ characters) are available in both Driver Career and My Team modes. Additionally, there are scenarios from the film that players can relive. Currently, only one is available (more will be coming on June 30 once the film is out), where you play as Pitt’s Sonny Hayes and try to match the time of Idris’ Joshua Pearce, but it’s presented really well as it blends movie footage to set it up before transitioning into the racing gameplay. I always love challenge modes in sports games, and I can’t wait to do the rest of the challenges next month.
If you enjoy the taste of off-track drama in the F1 movie mode, then you’ll be glad to know that the story-based Braking Point mode returns for a third time. It picks up from last year’s story — although it introduces itself well, so you won’t be totally lost if you’re new — and you’ll have the option to race as either Callie Mayer or Aiden Jackson. I’ve always gotten a kick out of the mode (and wish more sports games would have narrative modes), and what’s nice about this year’s addition is that after you’ve finished the story, you can take the team into Career Mode to continue it if you wish.
As a yearly release, the game is naturally iterative (as it should be with such a strong base), but there are a number of other additions. New advancements in F1 25 include five rebuilt tracks (Bahrain, Miami, Melbourne, Suzuka, and Imola) that look fantastic. You can also race around three tracks in reverse layouts, as well, so there’s more variety than ever before. A lot of other nice touches, such as better facial animations and a much better decal editor, make it a better visual spectacle both on the track and during cutscenes as well.
F1 25 Review: Final Verdict
Codemasters has done it yet again as F1 25 is a fantastic offering with plenty of modes and gripping racing. I can’t wait to see more of the F1 movie implementation as I love what’s already in the game, and Braking Point is yet again a solid story mode. You can never go wrong with the F1 games, and F1 25 builds on the series’ strong past to provide the best one yet.
SCORE: 8.5/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 8.5 equates to “Great.” While there are a few minor issues, this score means that the art succeeds at its goal and leaves a memorable impact.
Disclosure: The publisher provided a PlayStation 5 copy for our F1 25 review.
