''F1 22'' is a

racing video game Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic rac ...

developed by

Codemasters The Codemasters Software Company Limited (trade name: Codemasters) is a British video game developer based in Southam, England, which is a subsidiary of American corporation Electronic Arts. Founded by brothers Richard and David Darling in Octo ...

and published by

EA Sports EA Sports is a division of Electronic Arts that develops and publishes sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to imitate real-life sports networks by calling themselves the "EA Sports Network" ...

. It is the thirteenth entry in the '' F1'' series by Codemasters. The game holds an official license of the 2022

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

and

Formula 2 Formula Two (F2 or Formula 2) is a type of open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009–2012 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The name return ...

championships. The game was released for

Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...

PlayStation 5 The PlayStation 5 (PS5) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 4 in April 2019, it was launched on November 12, 2020, in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, North Ame ...

Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third base console in the Xbox series of video game consoles. It was first released in North America, parts of ...

, and

Xbox Series X/S The Xbox Series X/S are home video game consoles developed by Microsoft. They were both released on November 10, 2020, as the fourth generation Xbox, succeeding the Xbox One. Along with Sony's PlayStation 5, also released in November 2020, t ...

on 1 July 2022. It would also make its debut on EA's

Origin Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics and manga * Origin (comics), ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002 * The Origin (Buffy comic), ''The Origin'' (Bu ...

platform as their main platform, which is also playable in the EA Desktop app, as well as the

Epic Games Store The Epic Games Store is a digital video game storefront for Microsoft Windows and macOS, operated by Epic Games. It launched in December 2018 as both a website and a standalone launcher, of which the latter is required to download and play gam ...

. In previous entries,

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...

was the only platform available for PC players. The game received mostly positive reviews from critics, with most criticism aimed at the lack of innovation compared to previous titles and the new "F1 Life" mode.

Gameplay

Due to new technical regulations for the

2022 Formula One World Championship The 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship was a motor racing championship for Formula One cars which was the 73rd running of the Formula One World Championship. It is recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), th ...

, ''F1 22'' features new car models with updated physics. The game also features an updated track list, including the revised layouts of

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya () is a motorsport race track in Montmeló, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. With long straights and a variety of corners, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is seen as an all-rounder circuit. The track has stands ...

for the

Spanish Grand Prix The Spanish Grand Prix ( es, Gran Premio de España, ca, Gran Premi d'Espanya) is a Formula One motor racing event currently held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is one of the oldest in the world still contested, celebrating it ...

Yas Marina Circuit The Yas Marina Circuit (Arabic: حلبة مرسى ياس) is the venue for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The circuit was designed by Hermann Tilke, and is situated on Yas Island, near Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. Yas Marina was ...

for the

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix ( ar, سباق جائزة أبوظبي الكبرى) is a Formula One motor racing event. It was announced in early 2007 at the Abu Dhabi F1 Festival in the United Arab Emirates. The first race took place on 1 November 2 ...

and

Albert Park Circuit The Albert Park Circuit is a motorsport street circuit around Albert Park Lake, three kilometres south of central Melbourne. It is used annually as a circuit for the Formula One Australian Grand Prix, the supporting Supercars Championship Melbo ...

for the

Australian Grand Prix The Australian Grand Prix is an annual motor racing event which is under contract to host Formula One until 2035. One of the oldest surviving motorsport competitions held in Australia, the Grand Prix has moved frequently with 23 different venu ...

, as well as adding the new

Miami International Autodrome The Miami International Autodrome is a purpose-built temporary circuit around Hard Rock Stadium and its private facilities in the Miami suburb of Miami Gardens, Florida. The track is long and features 19 corners with an anticipated average spe ...

for the new

Miami Grand Prix The Miami Grand Prix is a Formula One Grand Prix which forms part of the 2022 Formula One World Championship, with the event taking place at the Miami International Autodrome on a ten-year contract. History In 2018, a proposal for the Miami Gra ...

. The

Algarve International Circuit The Algarve International Circuit ( pt, Autódromo Internacional do Algarve), commonly referred to as Portimão Circuit, is a race circuit located in Portimão, Algarve region, Portugal. The development includes a karting track, off-road tra ...

, home of the

Portuguese Grand Prix The Portuguese Grand Prix (''Grande Prémio de Portugal'') is a motorsports event that was first held in 1951 as a sportscar event, and then intermittently disappearing for many years before being revived again. In 1964 event was held as a spo ...

, along with the

Shanghai International Circuit The Shanghai International Circuit () is a motorsport race track, situated in the Jiading District, Shanghai. The circuit is best known as the venue for the annual Chinese Grand Prix which was hosted from 2004 to 2019 and was scheduled again fro ...

, hosting the

Chinese Grand Prix The Chinese Grand Prix () is a round of the Formula One World Championship and was contracted to return in 2023 but will now not do so until 2024 at the earliest. It is currently held at the Shanghai International Circuit, Jiading, Shanghai, des ...

, was subsequently added to the game with an update. Formula One sprints, a new addition to the sport, are also included in the game. ''F1 22'' features adaptive AI, which would adjust the pace of AI cars according to the performance of players to ensure players are competitive from race-to-race. The game also introduces a customisable hub mode called ''F1 Life'' to allow players to collect

supercar A supercar – also called exotic car – is a loosely defined description of street-legal, high-performance sports cars. Since the 2010s, the term hypercar has come into use for the highest performing supercars. Supercars commonly serve as t ...

s, clothing and accessories. The game is also confirmed to support

virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), educ ...

for PC via

Oculus Rift Oculus Rift is a discontinued line of virtual reality headsets developed and manufactured by Oculus VR, a division of Meta Platforms, released on March 28, 2016. In 2012 Oculus initiated a Kickstarter campaign to fund the Rift's development, af ...

, or

HTC Vive VIVE, sometimes referred to as HTC Vive, is a virtual reality brand of HTC Corporation. It consists of hardware like its titular virtual reality headsets and accessories, virtual reality software and services, and initiatives that promote appl ...

virtual reality headset A virtual reality headset (or VR headset) is a head-mounted device that provides virtual reality for the wearer. VR headsets are widely used with VR video games but they are also used in other applications, including simulators and trainers. VR ...

s. ''F1 22'' also features immersive broadcast options, designed after televised Formula One broadcasts, as well as interactive

pit stop In motorsports, a pit stop is a pause for refuelling, new tyres, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, as a penalty, or any combination of the above. These stops occur in an area called the pits, most commonly accessed via a pit la ...

s. EA and Codemasters also added Supercars to Formula One with "

Pirelli Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational tyre manufacturer based in Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, is the 6th-largest tyre manufacturer and is focused on the consumer production of tyre ...

Hot Laps", which is accessible through the new "F1 Life" mode.

Development and release

''F1 22'' was revealed on 21 April 2022, with both

and

returning to work on the game. It is an official video game of the 2022

and

championships, alongside '' F1 Manager 2022'' of

Frontier Developments Frontier Developments is a British video game developer founded by David Braben in January 1994 and based at the Cambridge Science Park in Cambridge, England. Frontier is known for developing amusement park Construction and management simulation ...

. The game was launched on 1 July 2022, for

, and

platforms via

and

, which is on the weekend of the

2022 British Grand Prix The 2022 British Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Lenovo British Grand Prix 2022) was a Formula One motor race held on 3 July 2022 at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, England. Carlos Sainz Jr. took both his first pole ...

. The Champions Edition of the game was released three days earlier, on 28 June 2022.

Reception

''F1 22'' received "generally favorable" reviews, according to

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

. ''

Eurogamer ''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 and owned by alongside formed company Gamer Network. Its editor-in-chief is Martin Robinson. Since 2008, it is known for the formerly eponymous games trade fair EGX ...

'' praised Codemasters' implementation of simulation elements such as dynamic weather and wrote in favor of their exclusion of porpoising but called the game "overly familiar" and "overly bloated", writing that "there's a feeling 2022's regulations have introduced as many problems as they have fixed, and that the positive impact of the new ruleset will not really be seen for some years to come." ''

GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...

'' praised the increased level of player agency, host of assist settings, and the authentic recreation of the new era of Formula One but criticized the lack of iteration, hollow ''F1 Life'' mode, and the inclusion of

microtransactions Microtransactions, often abbreviated as mtx, are a business model where users can purchase virtual goods with micropayments. Microtransactions are often used in free-to-play games to provide a revenue source for the developers. While microtransact ...

. ''

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

'' liked the inclusion of the Formula One sprint race format,

support, and the game's rejuvenation of the franchise's stagnating elements but panned the "vapid" ''F1 Life'' mode's replacement of the predecessors' ''Braking Point'' mode. Regarding its monetization, the site wrote, "It's probably a sad sign of the times that while previous Formula One games featured iconic cars from the sport's history, ''F1 22'' features an extensive set of ... designer rugs, lounges, and lamps." ''

PC Gamer ''PC Gamer'' is a magazine and website founded in the United Kingdom in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future plc. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games ma ...

'' praised the inclusion of real-world standings updates, sprint races, the skill tree system, damage models, and wealth of player choice but criticized the aging graphics, inconsistent AI, console controls, and lackluster addition of super cars, while noting that "the annual release has not felt this unnecessary since ''F1 2014''." ''

PCGamesN ''PCGamesN'' is a British online video game magazine focusing on PC gaming and hardware. It has a full-time team of over a dozen writers and is the oldest owned-and-operated site within publishing group Network N. History Parent company Netw ...

'' found itself "dulled to 'F1 22's''charms" and lamented the "cumulative fatigue of having been through this experience so many times before in previous iterations, and having so little meaningful new content in ''F1 22'' to relieve it." ''

Polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two toge ...

'' stated that "''F1 22'' is not transformative work but it did not need to be one — creating new cars, and the organic challenge of learning how to drive them on the limit, was transformation enough." ''

Push Square Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British mass media company based in Brighton. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and other ...

'' gave praise to the quality handling, good visuals, deep career modes, novel supercars, and robust customization while criticizing the numerous bugs, crashes, and screen tearing, as well as the aging game engine and insubstantial ''F1 Life'' mode. ''

Shacknews ''Shacknews'' (originally Quakeholio, then ShugaShack) is a website that hosts news, features, editorial content and forums relating to computer games and Video game console, console games. It is currently owned by a company called Gamerhub Cont ...

'' lauded the overhauled racetracks, new circuits, remixed audio, new commentary, VR support, and the integration of new regulations and car designs but disliked the "terrible" feel of the supercars, difficult AI, and persistent series issues. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' gave the game a score of 3/5 stars and wrote, "''F1 22'' is technically stunning, and that, combined with the chance to drive this year’s cars on this year’s tracks, should make it irresistible to Formula One fans. As long as they manage to ignore the egregious ''F1 Life''." The game topped in the United Kingdom sales charts.

Notes

References

External links