Codemasters presents F1 2010

[Rodster]

Lex:

There has been no USGP since 2007 at Indy. Bernie Ecclestone wanted a new deal with Tony George to extort even more money from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and Tony wisely told the elfin one to piss off.

It's almost impossible for a private track to make money on a Grand Prix with the built-in sanctioning fee hikes and guaranteed revenue streams that Ecclestone ensures for himself in contracts with tracks. For example, Bernie gets all the revenue from signage, paddock hospitality and TV. All the track is left with is revenue from tickets, parking and concessions.

That's not enough to come close to breaking even when the annual sanctioning fee at some tracks is $50 million for ONE RACE. Indy's fee was only about a quarter of that, but it was almost impossible for the track to turn a profit on F1.

Almost every GP these days receives government funding. Indy never asked or took a dime of taxpayer money, and it never has in its 100-year history.

Bernie is the greatest robber baron in the history of worldwide motorsport.

I'm so glad TG told BE to shove it, about time. We need more track owners to tell BE to find races elsewhere. Apparently Austin hasn't kept up with F1 track history because it's destined to repeat itself.

[fletcher21]

Anyone know how to accelerate time in practice? F2 is certainly not working for me.

On PS3 you go to the screen where you are sitting in the car in the pits. Click one of the right shoulder buttons (can't recall if R1 or R2) once to bring up all the drivers and their times. Click it again to accelerate 6x. Click it once more to accelerate 30x. Another way to get around this so you don't have to wait for the time is to swap motors (automatically takes the remaining time away from the session) or click "return to paddock" and that will end the session.

[fletcher21]

Lex:



Bernie is the greatest robber baron in the history of worldwide motorsport.

I am a HUGE fan of the oval track at Indy, but the road course does nothing for me. I am sure you're a bit bias, but is the Indy road course held even close to the esteem as the oval? Anyone who knows anything about open wheel racing has to have the Indy oval in their top 10. The road course is just kinda ho-hum to me. I like road course with a lot of change in elevation, and that's hard to do on an infield road course like Indy. It's sad that Bernie wouldn't relent to save the USGP. He can rape the other 16 countries. Paul, does that say something about how he feels about America? I'd assume F1 WANTS Americans to get into the sport. Taking their race away doesn't do much to promote new fans. I think they could have used the USGP as what they call a loss leader. You don't make your money at the time, but you get butts in the seats and maybe they will buy the overpriced F1 merch and all that stuff on the F1 website.

Wasn't Bernie the one who was rumored to have done some kinky s*** a year or 2 back? I can't even remember what it was. Nazi something, wasn't it?

[toonarmy]

Bernie cares about one thing: money. And it was Max Mosley who did the kinky-Nazi stuff a while back, not Bernie. I agree the Indy road course for the USGP was crap. I know they are limited by simple geography, but that doesn't take away the fact that it is a less than ideal F1 course. I always dreaded the USGP in prior videogames because I knew it was going to be a snoozefest.

As for the video posted about the glitches in F1 2010, I have literally seen nothing of the sort. This game has consumed virtually all of my free time since I got the game, so I have put in crazy hours with the game. I have not had a single tire puncture either. I think this game is simply incredible, and is easily the best F1 videogame I have ever played. I will play 5 or 6 hours tonight and then spend the weekend playing. That is how much I am loving it. Any glitches the game has are not affecting my enjoyment in the least bit. I am amazed at how well this game controls with a DS3 controller. Everything about the driving itself feels so right.

[pk500]

Fletch, Toon:

Name me one other American road course that is FIA-spec, with existing infrastructure and staff ready to stage an F1 race. You can't, because there isn't one.

[toonarmy]

Fletch, Toon:

Name me one other American road course that is FIA-spec, with existing infrastructure and staff ready to stage an F1 race. You can't, because there isn't one.

Never said there was one. Just pointing out the Indy course is boring and not very good as a F1 course.That doesn't have anything to do with the lack of any other FIA-spec courses in America. Hopefully the race in Austin will come to fruition so that America can have a race again, not to mention the track looks like it could be a real good one.

[fletcher21]

Fletch, Toon:

Name me one other American road course that is FIA-spec, with existing infrastructure and staff ready to stage an F1 race. You can't, because there isn't one.

You're right. I wasn't knocking the Indy road course, just saying that it doesn't do much for me. I have the OVAL as my #1 oval in the entire world, though. You just can't beat Indy, with the row of bricks, all the famous landmarks, the knowledgeable fans, and everything else that makes Indy, "Indy". With that said, the road course is pretty flat and boring, to an extent. It was awesome watching the F1 cars rocket down the straight and take the turn, but that was the only part of the course that did much for me. I like courses like Spa and Road America that are long, scenic and not as flat as an ant hill. Not knocking the Indy road course, just saying it's not my cup of tea.

[pk500]

It's pretty damn hard to build a road course with elevation changes and a layout to match Spa or even Road America inside the confines of an oval.

IMS has a better layout than any other roval in the country. That's not saying much, but you can only work with what you have.

[fletcher21]

IMS has a better layout than any other roval in the country. That's not saying much, but you can only work with what you have.

I agree. That part is true. I guess I am not a fan of "rovals" as you call them. How awesome would it be to turn the F1 cars loose on the oval for a few hundred miles?! Is there any reason why F1 doesn't have any ovals on the schedule? It'd be kinda like Nascar having 2 road courses. F1 could have an oval race at the most famous oval on earth. I'd definitely watch that!

[fletcher21]

I dun goofed. I wanted to start another career, so I clicked new career. I didn't realize it deleted my old one entirely! Oh well. I had been doing a 3 year career. I am not doing a 7 year, again with Virgin.

I am between a rock and a hard place. I can obliterate the field on intermediate, but on professional I don't seem to have the pace with the Virgin. I'd rather have a challenge then a cake walk, but I am kinda perplexed. My ultimate goal is to sign with a good team, but I think it'll take 3 years or so before I have raised my rep high enough. Does your rep re-set after each season? If so, that's kinda hard. Does the R&D really end up making a noticeable difference? I never got far enough in my previous career to notice it. I am also doing 50% race distance now, as opposed to the 30% before. I figure it narrows the gap by giving me more laps to potentially screw up on.

Anyone come close to finishing a season? Toon, you sound like you are ripping along nicely (if you're playing offline that is) What have you guys all seen per the R&D? Do you notice the change when you are given a new part? When did you become #1 driver of your team, and did you deny any other team offers to be their #2?

One last thing. Let's say you go to another team as their #2. What happens to the guy who was previously the #2? Is he just out of the game? I am on Virgin and their #2 was Glock I believe. He's not in any of the races, so it does look like the #2 driver who you replace when you switch teams is out of the game. That's kinda odd, but I guess it's really the only way it can work.

[GB_Simo]

Fletch, the driver you replace disappears from the game until you move to a new team, at which point he takes up his old drive. Because F1 is so brand-oriented and there are so many sponsorship deals, both for teams and individuals, it's nigh-on impossible to get clearance for drivers switching teams or anything like that. I've done so many one-off races and time trials that I've only got through 3 career races, so the R&D question is one I'd be interested to hear some thoughts on too.

The game has been designed in such a way that you aren't meant to have the pace with a Virgin. Too many career modes - F1 Championship Edition being a prime example - make it easy to be competitive with a low-end car, so there's no incentive at all to get a drive with Ferrari or McLaren or whoever. All it does is ruins the game, because you're going to win every race.

A Virgin has never once got past Q1 on a dry day this season, and while nobody expects the game to be quite that hard on you, the idea is that a points finish in a Virgin should feel as good as a win in a higher car. At Melbourne in my career, with Legend AI and the hard difficulty, I drove as fine a race as I've ever put together on a soaking wet track and never had a prayer of getting above 7th, but I know I drove the wheels off it and couldn't have got myself any higher up the field. That's the kind of thing Codemasters say they're wanting from the difficulty levels, so if that's where you're at on Professional, keep it there. Mind, you said a few posts back that you've had a podium against the Professional AI, so Legend might be worth a go.

[dbdynsty25]

I'm so addicted to just running time trials and trying to run down some of you guys with better times. I chased Zeppo's ghost around Sahkir for a few hours and only got to within about a second of his time. I just can't get that last little bit of speed to pull even or pass. I've got the first five or so turns down and I can be leading but it's the last section that kills me every time.

The game is still frustrating as hell, but putting some perfect sections together is so awesome and pucker inducing when you don't want to ruin your good run on the back half of the circuit.

[Rodster]

Gee and here I thought I was going to read about another busted controller.

[dbdynsty25]

Gee and here I thought I was going to read about another busted controller.

Naw...the new one is in perfect condition still.

I thought about it before I started playing and brought one of my couch pillows to my office so I could punch that instead. Genius.

[Rodster]

Looks like someone's doing the USF1 Team

[fletcher21]

I am a bit concerned. I started a new season and moved the AI to legend. I am running 50% distance. TC is on, but no other aids. Auto transmission. I am with Virgin. I was able to place 5th in my first race. I qualified on professional and got the pole, so I turned it to legend for the race. I remained in 1st place until about the 8th lap, when Webber finally passed me. Once he passed me he pulled away very quickly. It's weird. I was obviously holding him up, blocking every passing attempt. It makes me think the AI is too passive, since he had a lot more power than me. Once he passed me even by a car length he pulled on me like I was only doing 100, so I don't know why he couldn't have passed me earlier? I am enjoying the game, but I spun out twice and still finished 5th on legend. If I had run a perfect race I would have probably been on the podium. What's going to happen when I get into a car with power? I don't want to be in front by 45 seconds, even though it does happen in F1 on a normal basis (Schumacher at Spa for example)

Some tracks it's obvious I am in a Virgin (like Valencia) but there's no way I should finish in the top 10 in any race in this car, except with some big luck. Is there any other way to make the AI better? I heard guys doing 3 year careers and winning the WDC all 3 years. I hope this is not true..

[Rodster]

Is there any other way to make the AI better? I heard guys doing 3 year careers and winning the WDC all 3 years. I hope this is not true..

The patch is suppose to address the AI, to what extent we don't know. If you are having those results either pick a car that can give you more believable results like a Williams or turn off TC and use manual shifts which means you are handicapping yourself for the AI.

[fletcher21]

I qualified 17th at Australia. I know qualifying times are faked, but still that's not bad. Looks like I just owned Bahrain, but it's back to a challenge again, thankfully.

[lexbur]

You know you've spent way too much time playing this game when this happens: Driving to work this morning on the freeway I caught myself looking for those little white markers floating around before checking my rearview mirror.

[fletcher21]

Anyone else noticing a lack of passing by the ai vs other ai drivers? Seems like once Webber gets out in front he never gets passed. It seems like drivers stay in the same places for many, many laps at a time. Pit stops are the only time people really change positions it seems like.

[Rodster]

Anyone else noticing a lack of passing by the ai vs other ai drivers? Seems like once Webber gets out in front he never gets passed. It seems like drivers stay in the same places for many, many laps at a time. Pit stops are the only time people really change positions it seems like.

Yup, sounds like real life modern F1.

[pk500]

It seems like drivers stay in the same places for many, many laps at a time. Pit stops are the only time people really change positions it seems like.

Damn, the game is much more realistic than I thought.

[JRod]

It seems like drivers stay in the same places for many, many laps at a time. Pit stops are the only time people really change positions it seems like.

Damn, the game is much more realistic than I thought.

Fletch-- Do you watch any F1 races? Because this game is pretty damn realistic.

[fletcher21]

It seems like drivers stay in the same places for many, many laps at a time. Pit stops are the only time people really change positions it seems like.

Damn, the game is much more realistic than I thought.

Fletch-- Do you watch any F1 races? Because this game is pretty damn realistic.

Yeah. In a good year, I only miss 1 or 2 races. This year I have missed damn near all of them, due to working every weekend. I agree it has some nice realism, but it's a game and I would assume there would be a bit more passing in it. I really wish there were more mechanical failures, even for us gamers and not just the ai. I am sorry, but it's just unheard of for 24 drivers to start AND finish a race at Monaco, Canada or Spa. It's sad, but F1 World Grand Prix on the N64 and Dreamcast handled mechanical failures and driver retirement 100x better than this game. I played F1 World Grand Prix in ~1998, so there's some confusion on my part in why this can't be implemented now on a system much more powerful than the woeful N64.






Strategy question. Do you guys elect to start on your softer option tires, or start on your primes and then switch to the options in an attempt to get back to the front?

[Zeppo]

I'm only doing the 20% races, which take a half hour to complete, so I'd bet things are a little different on longer races, but in my race at Malaysia, I tried a long first stint on the primes and ended up coming out of my stop in 15th, behind Buemi, my teammate. So far I'd always been quicker than he, so that was frustrating. I didn't have enough laps to get past more than one car before the end. I suck at that track, but still, I'm starting to think the short first stint, which is always the recommendation to me so far, is the way to go. .