F1 2017

Sick of Linux Format Tower’s underpaid prima donnas and constant queuing, Phil Iwaniuk escapes to a world of overpaid prima donnas and queuing cars.

- Phil Iwaniuk

There are two ways to look at annualised licensed releases such as F1 2017. One is to compare it to last year’s effort and take a stock inventory of all its little iterative improvements. The other is to compare it to the real thing: everyone’s favourite waste of a Sunday afternoon, Formula One. Either one demonstrates, in F1 2017’s case, what a stellar job Codemasters has done this year.

For the new season the tyres are wider and more durable this year, and the cars are manufactured to a completely different set of regulations. As a result, 2017’s cars are significantly quicker than last season, and F1 2017 benefits from that enormously. The cars are simply more fun to drive than in the last game. They suck onto the tarmac through high-speed corners and bite into apexes as you turn in. They’re faster than ever, but not skittish like the aero-heavy cars of a decade ago.