Codemasters Wii F1 Game Review

Stuart · Post by **Stuart** » 23 Nov 2009, 15:37

I was eagerly awaiting the Codemasters F1 Game but after seeing the trailer and stuff on youtube I don't think I'll bother and would suggest you stay away from it... my full rant about this is on my blog:

http://www.stewzer.com/2009/11/codemasters-wii-f1-game-review.html

The thing looks like a quick cash in - no doubt Bernie is making a mint out of this rubbish but he probably needs it to pay for his divorce

They should bring out an F1 Rejects version with classic moments of punditry commentary and all the reject drivers and teams in it. Although there would be a huge first corner pile up and then those who did get near finishing would break down with a few laps left and cry...

- Stuart

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 23 Nov 2009, 15:41

Stuart wrote:I was eagerly awaiting the Codemasters F1 Game but after seeing the trailer and stuff on youtube I don't think I'll bother and would suggest you stay away from it... my full rant about this is on my blog:

http://www.stewzer.com/2009/11/codemasters-wii-f1-game-review.html

The thing looks like a quick cash in - no doubt Bernie is making a mint out of this rubbish but he probably needs it to pay for his divorce

They should bring out an F1 Rejects version with classic moments of punditry commentary and all the reject drivers and teams in it. Although there would be a huge first corner pile up and then those who did get near finishing would break down with a few laps left and cry...

- Stuart

One would think Codemasters was capable of more...

Stuart · Post by **Stuart** » 23 Nov 2009, 15:56

Codemasters is synonymous with great games almost since the inception of gaming... But this... sheesh I couldn't believe my eyes.

- Stuart.

Jordan192 · Post by **Jordan192** » 23 Nov 2009, 16:02

You have actually played the game, right?

Post by **Nuppiz** » 23 Nov 2009, 16:07

Here's an emoticon that describes this game perfectly:

Stuart · Post by **Stuart** » 23 Nov 2009, 16:09

No I took one look at it and saved myself the £40 and the time. I think the time reading up on it and a bit of simple research made it apparent it was a steaming pile of doo doo. Maybe I'm wrong but £40 is too much to risk IMO.

- Stuart.

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 23 Nov 2009, 16:32

You can't really blame Codemasters for this.
The Wii has a rather mediocre graphics chipset and is about on a par with the PS2 when it comes to high-end graphics. It simply wasn't designed for that.
This is a quick cash in though, as the whole purpose of the Wii was not for detailed simulations, merely for arcade games. If you were expecting otherwise, you are looking in the wrong place...lets see what Codemasters has in store for F1 2010...

Python · Post by **Python** » 23 Nov 2009, 18:14

I was thinking about renting this game since my dad bought a Wii for our family however now lets just say that I think I am going to change my mind and rent something different.

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 23 Nov 2009, 19:38

kostas22 wrote:You can't really blame Codemasters for this.
The Wii has a rather mediocre graphics chipset and is about on a par with the PS2 when it comes to high-end graphics. It simply wasn't designed for that.
This is a quick cash in though, as the whole purpose of the Wii was not for detailed simulations, merely for arcade games. If you were expecting otherwise, you are looking in the wrong place...lets see what Codemasters has in store for F1 2010...

I was already suspecting something similar when I saw the Wii rendition of Need for Speed Undercover. Well, one more reason why anyone who's going to play videogames seriously should overlook the Wii (in fact, my group of friends have a running joke: if anyone was tempted to buy a Wii, then we will have to hit him hard :lol:

without disrespecting Wii users). The Wii is more suited for games like Wii Sports or Wii Fit, and I think it was created on purpose for those games. Besides, it must be jarring to play a driving game with Wii controls.

Many Blue Flags · Post by **Many Blue Flags** » 23 Nov 2009, 19:47

Perhaps it's a chance for CM to get a little more feedback putting into the 360 and PS3 versions? As many people have said, the Wii is an inferior machine, and isn't an indicator of how good a game would be. Personally, I think it would have been good if F1 was just added on as another category in GRID 2.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 23 Nov 2009, 20:05

Many Blue Flags wrote:Perhaps it's a chance for CM to get a little more feedback putting into the 360 and PS3 versions? As many people have said, the Wii is an inferior machine, and isn't an indicator of how good a game would be. Personally, I think it would have been good if F1 was just added on as another category in GRID 2.

While I think that adding it to GRID 2 would be pretty cool, I think F1 deserves it's own standalone game.

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 23 Nov 2009, 20:07

I don't really care what standard it is, I'm not cynical enough to not buy it. For the PSP, just to be different, even if my PSP has long been damaged beyond repair.

Shadaza · Post by **Shadaza** » 23 Nov 2009, 20:42

Thats not a fair thing to say, I actually went out and bought the game for the wii and graphically you are right, it is playstation 2 quality. But aside from that what they have is a really fun game. Throwing away the wheel and going for nunchucks me and my brother picked toro rosso for a joint season and we are leading them to greatness

. It is a nice family game that is playable for all ages and is really fun, using a kers based wheel to wheel battle with the family is hilarious and like many wii games is a socialble expirience. My only downside with the game (besides graphics) is even on relaxed mode there are some occasionaly draconian punishments, I would of won my first race at istanbull only to be given a 25 second penalty for slightly cutting the last corner, I was 9 seconds ahead it was the last lap and I had no chance of driving into the pitlane. But Fun game, not a sim, arcade fun.

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 23 Nov 2009, 20:44

Shadaza wrote:Thats not a fair thing to say, I actually went out and bought the game for the wii and graphically you are right, it is playstation 2 quality. But aside from that what they have is a really fun game. Throwing away the wheel and going for nunchucks me and my brother picked toro rosso for a joint season and we are leading them to greatness . It is a nice family game that is playable for all ages and is really fun, using a kers based wheel to wheel battle with the family is hilarious and like many wii games is a socialble expirience. My only downside with the game (besides graphics) is even on relaxed mode there are some occasionaly draconian punishments, I would of won my first race at istanbull only to be given a 25 second penalty for slightly cutting the last corner, I was 9 seconds ahead it was the last lap and I had no chance of driving into the pitlane. But Fun game, not a sim, arcade fun.

If you look at it this way, any game is funny, even The Sims.

Jordan192 · Post by **Jordan192** » 23 Nov 2009, 20:45

Many Blue Flags wrote: Personally, I think it would have been good if F1 was just added on as another category in GRID 2.

Not Codies' decision. Bernie explicitly (and contractually) forbids it.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 23 Nov 2009, 20:56

Shadaza wrote:Throwing away the wheel and going for nunchucks me and my brother picked toro rosso for a joint season and we are leading them to greatness .

I'd love to see someone actually drive a car with nunchucks.

The Passenger · Post by **The Passenger** » 23 Nov 2009, 21:14

Looking at those videos, I'd say the Wii version kinda seems to be what I expected it to be, that is, an arcade style F1 racer for the more casual crowd who may not care for realistic sims. The graphics are piss poor, though, in the right hands the Wii can do much better than that even though its hardware is more limited than that of the PS3 and Xbox 360. This looks worse than most of the PSP games I've played.

But yeah, I'll wait and see how F1 2010 for the PC (it is coming to the PC, right?), PS3 and 360 turns out, Codemasters will probably (and hopefully) make that one more of a simulation type game. I hope the cars handle better than the single seaters in GRID, though, those things were horrible to drive.

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 23 Nov 2009, 21:17

The Passenger wrote:Looking at those videos, I'd say the Wii version kinda seems to be what I expected it to be, that is, an arcade style F1 racer for the more casual crowd who may not care for realistic sims. The graphics are piss poor, though, in the right hands the Wii can do much better than that even though its hardware is more limited than that of the PS3 and Xbox 360. This looks worse than most of the PSP games I've played.

But yeah, I'll wait and see how F1 2010 for the PC (it is coming to the PC, right?), PS3 and 360 turns out, Codemasters will probably (and hopefully) make that one more of a simulation type game. I hope the cars handle better than the single seaters in GRID, though, those things were horrible to drive.

Your name just made me do this, sorry.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8filyvBJmeg

The Passenger · Post by **The Passenger** » 23 Nov 2009, 21:21

Well, I took my username from that song and I'm a huge fan of Iggy Pop so it's all good, but... who the hell decided it was a good idea to combine it with footage of "One Got Fat"? (yeah, that's the name of the creepy educational short with kids in monkey masks riding bikes) :mrgreen:

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 23 Nov 2009, 21:24

The Passenger wrote:Well, I took my username from that song and I'm a huge fan of Iggy Pop so it's all good, but... who the hell decided it was a good idea to combine it with footage of "One Got Fat"? (yeah, that's the name of the creepy educational short with kids in monkey masks riding bikes)

It's moderately artsy.

The Passenger · Post by **The Passenger** » 23 Nov 2009, 21:32

It kinda is, to be honest.

We're getting off topic here, though... Hm, maybe F1 2009 on the Wii would be better if the drivers wore monkey masks instead of helmets?

Valrys · Post by **Valrys** » 23 Nov 2009, 21:39

The Passenger wrote:We're getting off topic here, though... Hm, maybe F1 2009 on the Wii would be better if the drivers wore monkey masks instead of helmets?

Monkeys make everything better :nods:

And I believe F1 2010 is coming to the PC, and hopefully it will be excellent. However I remember reading somewhere that it wouldn't be moddable which is a tad upsetting if true

FloProAct · Post by **FloProAct** » 23 Nov 2009, 21:54

And I believe F1 2010 is coming to the PC, and hopefully it will be excellent. However I remember reading somewhere that it wouldn't be moddable which is a tad upsetting if true

Every game is moddable. It may take a while but there will eventually be mods!

watka · Post by **watka** » 23 Nov 2009, 23:19

Yep, I'm just getting my hands on the F1 challenge mods every time they bring out a new season.

The Nintendo Wii is a console for people who have friends, of which I have none, hence I have an XBox 360.

thehalford · Post by **thehalford** » 24 Nov 2009, 06:41

BlindCaveSalamander wrote:
Shadaza wrote:Throwing away the wheel and going for nunchucks me and my brother picked toro rosso for a joint season and we are leading them to greatness .

I'd love to see someone actually drive a car with nunchucks.

*Insert HWNSNBM joke here*

Many Blue Flags · Post by **Many Blue Flags** » 24 Nov 2009, 09:37

thehalford wrote:I'd love to see someone actually drive a car with nunchucks.

David Coulthard once said that McLaren were playing around with a hand-controlled throttle on the car. Coulthard said from the off that it was a terrible idea, but Hakkinen was interested so they made a hand-controlled car and set Mika off in it. David said that one of the best laughs he ever got was the white-faced Hakkinen coming back down the pits at an absolute crawl.

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 24 Nov 2009, 11:34

F1 2009 on the PSP is better than the previous f1 games for the PSP. Just not as many tracks or cars as for Grand Turismo. Would have loved to have raced a Brawn round Brands Hatch or Imola, or a Simtek or Lola round Abu Dhabi...

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 24 Nov 2009, 13:12

Nuppiz wrote:Here's an emoticon that describes this game perfectly:

It's incorrectly coded?

Collieafc · Post by **Collieafc** » 24 Nov 2009, 15:45

Does anyone know what PSP firmware you need for the PSP one? Just asking as mine is cracked

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 24 Nov 2009, 15:51

I got it on the Wii, to my shame, and have played it for about an hour.

Bit meh, but worth getting just to play as Bourdais, Nakajima and Piquet, not to mention recreate Force India's heroics. I would give it 5/10, but for the ability to do that, 6 is fairer. For €39.99, it's worth getting.

kowalski · Post by **kowalski** » 24 Nov 2009, 16:27

shinji wrote:I got it on the Wii, to my shame, and have played it for about an hour.

Bit meh, but worth getting just to play as Bourdais, Nakajima and Piquet, not to mention recreate Force India's heroics. I would give it 5/10, but for the ability to do that, 6 is fairer. For €39.99, it's worth getting.

Cheers someone who has actually played it!

(rather than a 'review' bassed on watching a clip on the internet!)

Stuart · Post by **Stuart** » 24 Nov 2009, 17:14

Yeah I suck at reviewing - I hadn't even played it. Amazing how I managed to save myself £40 and predict exactly how lame it was though

In future I won't title it review I will just title it rant. But in fairness I never claimed to of played it and when I put up the link I did say it was just a bit of a rant! Consider my wrists slapped mum :oops:

- Stuart

http://www.stewzer.com

MaxZero · Post by **MaxZero** » 24 Nov 2009, 17:21

New Star GP is a cheaper, top down alternative for this seasons cars. The drivers and teams need re-nameing and the car colours are a tad different to avoid copyright but they have made it very easy to alter them back

If only more people would use the multiplayer

http://www.newstargames.com/nsgp.html

Post by **Nuppiz** » 24 Nov 2009, 17:49

shinji wrote:
Nuppiz wrote:Here's an emoticon that describes this game perfectly:

It's incorrectly coded?

It wasn't when I posted it.

Stuart · Post by **Stuart** » 24 Nov 2009, 20:36

I can highly recommend New Star GP, I've played it quite a bit. Was lucky enough to be given a free copy when I was running http://www.formula1-blog.co.uk to review. I also ran a competition for it. It's only a few quid and well worth it. Even if as you said it's been tweaked for copyright reasons (boo hiss!).

Stuart

The Passenger · Post by **The Passenger** » 26 Nov 2009, 19:15

Eurogamer didn't think F1 2009 was too bad:

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/f1-2009-review

I liked how they compared the artificial intelligence of the CPU drivers to Romain Grosjean.

WeirdKerr · Post by **WeirdKerr** » 27 Nov 2009, 21:09

just bought the PSP version of this game and im pleasently surprised.... took a quick race in piquet's car at singapore.... and finished 17th so then went inbto carreer mode tested for torro rosso (got the drive instead of Buemi) then drove the oz gp and started from pole and won..... (ok i was on easy level)

RejectSteve · Post by **RejectSteve** » 28 Nov 2009, 06:16

WeirdKerr wrote:took a quick race in piquet's car at singapore.... and finished 17th

Piquet. Singapore. The number 17. This game is almost too realistic! Almost, of course, because Piquet doesn't finish races - though he finished his career.

jackanderton · Post by **jackanderton** » 28 Nov 2009, 13:09

The next Codemasters F1 game is going to be available on the PC and Wii at least, not sure about Xbox/PS3 (I would assume it probably would be though).

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 28 Nov 2009, 15:16

WeirdKerr wrote:took a quick race in piquet's car at singapore.... and finished 17th

[/quote]

Did you manage to keep the car off the walls?