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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Demo release shows amazing promise for a great sequel, May 14, 2002
This review is from: F1 2002 (CD-ROM)
Having been a huge fan of F1 2001 and believing that it was the first game in a new series (since F12K & Championship were just updated NFS models), having played the demo of F1 2002 it is easy to see that this one will trump its succesor. The game starts off with an improved navigation screen that is more intuitive than F1 2001. You immediately feel good because you immediately see this years drivers and the correct livery for those teams who merely updated sponsors since last year. Although the demo version didn't have all 11 teams, pre-release photos have shown the new Toyota team along with all of the rookies in this year's field. Once you proceed from the driver/team selection, the new tracks load up significantly faster than F1 2001. It is the familiar "race weekend" menu that let you navigate between the garage, the track and the new option that wasn't available in the demo, telemetry. If the telemetry section is anything like the GP3 module, then I think all players are in for a treat because you can truly focus on your slow sections just like the real drivers do as they sit in the garage with the flat screen in front of their face. The advanced set up screens are much more detailed, with a sweet picture of the car right in the middle. This version allows you to modify new bits such as max. RPM's, brake duct openings, etc...better detail that should help the qualifying setups. Now for the gorgeous part, getting into the car and pulling out of the garage on to the newly mapped circuits. Just the new sound of sitting in the garage is far and away better than F1 2001, it sounds just like Speed Channel. You can still slowly launch out of the pits, but another exciting option is the introduction of launch control, and it works like a beauty. Just hold down the key, mash the throttle and release when the lights go green, just like Kimi....the physics model has improved to new levels seen in Formula Car sims, sliding is much easier and you can't just throw the car into corners anymore or lift in turns because it will react against you. Another bonus that real F1 fans will know is the ability to now only manually downshift just like the real boys. Or you can be Minardi and have only a semi-auto....Competition seems a little more on their game this time around, and it's great to see that little Vodaphone team in your newly enlarged mirrors. So if you enjoy the sport, or just enjoy racing sims that challenge you and recreate the sport in its entirety, than pick up F1 2002 because it is far and away the best racing game out there for open-wheel cars. Highly recommended.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fun For Everyone, June 17, 2002
This review is from: F1 2002 (CD-ROM)
This is a game that can be fun for everyone. My 4-year old has a ball playing it with a steering wheel and pedals. F1 2002 allows nearly unlimited control over your racing experience. You can do anything from practice to running an entire F1 race with all of the top racers and teams of the real F1 circuit. Every circuit is loaded and comes with dazzling detail (limited only by your hardware). For real racing, you can control every detail of race car setup and view all kinds of telemetry. You can choose from multiple racing views and the sounds make you feel like you're right there. If you're just starting out, I recommend the Silverstone race circuit. It is less complex than some (like Monaco or Suzuka) and lets new drivers get a good feel of the game. One installation hint: if you see bizarre colors or patterns on the roadways, check the drivers for your video card. Because F1 2002 uses Microsoft DirectX 8.1, I needed to upgrade the drivers on my video card. The installation guide mentions this, but it is worth emphasizing. The graphics are so good that it will be well worth the effort to do it.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Best F1 Sim Currently Available, July 23, 2002
This review is from: F1 2002 (CD-ROM)
F1 2002 is probably the best F1 sim available today. Newcomers to this category of game won't be disappointed with EA's latest offering and players of older versions will enjoy the changes to this version. Overall gameplay hasn't changed too much from the 2001 edition, so I'm not going to spend too much time on it (see my long review on F1 2001 if you're interested). The main things you'll notice are slicker menus, more advanced car setup and a full telemetry system. On the track you'll be treated to better visuals (which were already great in 2001), pit-car radio communication (which can be very helpful when you're trying to race and don't want to flip through menus), and a revised physics model. EA seems to have done a good job releasing a product that isn't beta quality. The initial release of F1 2001 was plagued by problems that made it virtually unplayable for some (including me) until a patch was released. I've had no major problems with this release and haven't seen many complaints from others. My biggest issue is with the multiplayer system. It just isn't up to par with today's games. The game selection menu barely provide any information about the servers and doesn't allow filtering based on game attributes (such as difficulty level, number of players, etc). Once you do find a game you might not even be able to connect or will be given a "Connection Refused" message with no further information. Gameplay in a multiplayer situation isn't much better. Throw a little lag in the mix and you'll see cars hovering in the air and jerking all over the track. As broken as they are, multiplayer games can be tremendously fun and the online community is generally small and friendly. Hopefully this area will receive some attention in a patch or the next version.
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