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Dom Robinson reviews
Eidos Interactive Limited
- Windows 95/98
- Pentium PC 90Mhz (200 Mhz)
- 16Mb RAM (32Mb RAM)
- Quad-speed CD-ROM Drive
- 1Mb graphics card 100% DirectX 6.x compatible (2Mb)
- DirectX 6.0 (included on CD)
- Sound card 100% DirectX 6.x compatible
- Multiplayer support under DirectPlay
Official F1 Racingtakes the Formula 1 licence for the motor sport and wraps it around a PC gamewhich allows to you drive around 16 tracks from all around the world includingAustralia, Brazil, Italy and our very own Silverstone race track.
Using all the official FIA data from the 1998 Formula One World Championship,all 11 teams, 22 cars and 16 circuits are realistically represented in thehighest detail, with over 20 customisable camera angles.
Playing the Game
The game is very easy to get into with menu languages available in five flavours:English, French, German, Italian and Spanish, each represented by its nationalflag. From then on, just about everything is customisable from the specificsof your car (there’s a fully-animated garage section which allows you tweak thevarious parts) to whether you want a quick race, a practice run, a fullchampionship or you can simply opt for “helicopter” view – a commentary willaccompany a bird’s eye-view of the entire track as it circles around it.
One major plus that this game has going for it is the simplicity of the controlkeys. Most racing car games require stacks of different key presses as if you havetwo pairs of hands, as you tweak your car while it gets around the track. This one,for those without a force-feedback steering wheel, requires you only to manipulatethe cursor keys to turn, accelerate and brake, plus a couple more if you don’t want theauto-gear change on. It’s also possible, though not recommended unless you like spendingtime in the pit, to turn your car around and head back into the pack and let worldscollide.
In addition to choose an overview or a cockpit view and the chance to see a replay fromany point in the race, there are a number of interesting extras, all available at thepush of a function key :
Graphics, Sound and Playability
The graphics are first rate. All the cars are well-rendered and move along in speedyfashion and the conventional behind-car camera follows you closely, but if you backinto something, the camera raises up high to keep you completely in view. There aren’tmany colours that can be used to describe the grey of the track, the blue of the skyand the green of the grass, but everything that should be here is represented correctly.The tracks are also excellent renditions of their real-life counterparts.
The sound is confined to the roar of the engines and occasionally commentary from hiddenvoices, so nothing too taxing for your soundcard, but then what did you expect?
The playability takes a little getting used to.Carmageddon this isn’tand accelerating to top speed all the time isn’t the way to go, unless the way to go isinto a barrier when behaving like that. However, time and patience win out and you’lleventually work your way around the tight corners, learning where you can speed safely.
Overall
This is a game that looks great, but takes a little getting used to in thecontrols department. However, if you stick with it you’ll be rewarded with atrip to 16 different countries as you take on the world’s best racing drivers.I still have to make it round the track the obligatory five times withoutsmashing up my vehicle yet though…
If you’re after some more info on Eidos Interactive’s games, you can checkout their official Website atwww.eidosinteractive.comGRAPHICS : *****SOUND EFFECTS AND MUSIC: **PLAYABILITY: ***ORIGINALITY : **ENJOYMENT : ***——————————-OVERALL : ***
Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 1999.
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.