Pep's History of F1 Games

We all have our own history with F1 games - this is mine.

Early days

My first experience with F1 games began in the late 1970’s with the Tomy Electric Formula One game.  Handheld, mechanical and black and white except for a little red light when you crashed.  You used the steering wheel and throttle to negotiate two lanes of traffic from an overhead view.

The other option was going to your local arcade.  Gaming was taking-off and of course F1 and Grand Prix games were being developed.  The first one I remember playing was “Championship Sprint” – first in black and white and then in colour.

In the arcade, kids everywhere were madly spinning their steering wheels to get around those hairpin turns while trying to avoid oil slicks and other obstacles. 

"Pole Position" - A Classic

A big breakthrough came in 1982 with the release of an absolute classic game –“Pole Position”. Firstly available in arcades, then released by Atari 2600, this game broke new ground.

The reason “Pole Position” was a breakthrough was because of it’s pseudo-3D graphics and rear-view racing format.  It was full colour, featured qualifying and race, advertising signs, plus when you crashed your car exploded in flames.  Fantastic!

PC Gaming

In the 1990’s, I switched to PC gaming and my game of choice was Geoff Crammond's excellent and defining title "Grand Prix 3".  What a game!

The intro brings back so many memories:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjpcle5lVXY

This game featured advanced graphics but more importantly plenty of car customisation options.  This continued for many years with people building mods for this game.  GP3 also offered up weather effects, damage, AI and excellent sound. 

Console Gaming - PS1

The first console game I played was “Formula 1 1997” for the PlayStation 1.  Sony owned the franchise by now and the graphics and gameplay were a definitely a step-up.  Plus it had commentary from Murray Walker... 

I also enjoyed the other PS1 games of the day – “Formula One 98”, “Formula One 99” etc

PS2

When the PS2 console arrived my purchase was bundled with the “Formula One 2001” game.  The graphics and sound continued to improve.  But the setup and gameplay didn’t match the feel I was used to from Geoff Crammond.  Too arcade – too forgiving.  Still it was a lovely game and I really had a good time playing it.

With “Formula One 2001” I was beginning to move back to console gaming. PC games were starting to frustrate me a little because of the need to constantly update hardware, memory, drivers, video cards etc.  Some of you may love building and customising games on the PC – downloading new cars, skins, circuits and adapting the game to your specific needs – “rFactor” for example.  That doesn't interest me really.  Also "F1 Manager" games - no thanks.

Successive games from Studio Liverpool / SCEE were my games of choice – Formula One 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006.  Each one was getting progressively better and while I found them to be a little too arcade for my liking.

PS3

When the PS3 was released one of the first titles available was “Formula One 2006 Championship Edition” – a game ported from the 06 PS2 game with better graphics. And those graphics in my opinion were just beautiful. And it wasn’t just the increased grunt from the PS3 either, TV’s were also getting much better. And it showed.

I got so much enjoyment out of playing this game. It’s was pretty, sounded great, the gameplay was good and it had lot’s of setup options. Okay I admit that like it’s predecessors it’s too soft and forgiving but despite this - it was FUN.

Codemasters

Codemasters obtained the F1 franchise and started with F1 2009 on limited release before F1 2010 launched. 

I am a huge fan of what Codemasters have done with their commitment and development of F1 gaming.  This first game was another step-up and we have seen good progression through the titles over the years which still continues today.

PS4

The next generation of gaming has just landed for me with the PS4 and F1 2016.

F1 2016 is quite simply the finest F1 game ever released and I've written a separate blog with a review.

Thanks for reading, please leave your comments.

Pep, F1 Podcast.

Daily updates on twitter:  https://twitter.com/F1Podcast

Pep's Message for Ayrton

I can’t believe that it’s been 20 years since we lost you.

The first Formula One race I ever watched was the 1986 Australian Grand Prix. It was won in spectacular fashion by Alain Prost, a man who would of course become your great rival. That day I was instantly hooked on F1.

At the time you were a rising star, a winner of 4 Grand Prix already. Those 4 wins were all in that beautiful and elegant black Lotus Renault. What a fantastic looking F1 car that was! I was to read much later about how you got into F1, your time at Toleman plus all about those first 4 wins. You were known as a super quick and single-minded racer with plenty of determination and talent. Already you were being called a master in the wet ... a fighting spirit. So in 1986 I was watching a rising star, taking up the challenge to drivers like Prost, Mansell and Piquet. And I knew, as the world did, that much more exciting things were to come from you.

I am not sure how you were perceived in Brazil at that time. What I mean is that the next year in 1987 Piquet took his 3rd world title. But Piquet was polarising while I suspect you were already universally loved. The next great Brazilian charger!

In 1987 you took another 2 wins, this time in a yellow Lotus with a Honda engine, but it wasn’t until 1988 that things really got exciting. That was an awesome season. You joined McLaren with Alain as your teammate and during the season you both systematically destroyed the competition winning every single race except one.

As a fan of Prost I remember during 1988 my dad asking me after each race; “How did Prost go?”. My answer so many times was – “He got second”. You won 8 races that year with Prost getting 2nd 7 of those times. While I supported Prost – I respected and admired you. I enjoyed the battles and remember wanting that McLaren MP4/4 to win every race. My attitude was – “May the best man win”.

And Senna my friend you did win! 1988 was your first F1 title despite Alain scoring more points. But only 11 of the 16 races actually counted to the title. A stupid rule in my opinion born from the terrible reliability F1 cars had back then. And that McLaren MP4/4 was pound-for-pound one of the most beautiful F1 cars I’ve ever seen ... and probably the most dominant.

In 1989 the rivalry continued and intensified. You took 6 wins and Prost only 4 however Alain was more consistent over the season and had less retirements than you. All this came to a head in the penultimate round of the season, the now famous Suzuka race. I’ve seen the footage many times and I still believe this was a racing incident from two drivers who would not give an inch. You came from a long way back and put your car on the inside at turn 15 ... just as Alain was turning in. The circumstance of your disqualification from this race and losing the title must have been a bitter disappointment for you.

The next season in 1990 Prost went to Ferrari and were joined by Gerhard Berger, a man who would become your friend. His personality and practical jokes seemed to bring the 2 of you together. Despite retiring from the final 3 Grand Prix of the season you took the title but there was controversy again, again at Suzuka – this time at turn 1. You admitted later that this was “payback” from the year before. Your single mindedness and need to win was showing through. You were now a double world champion. And I was by now a massive Senna fan.

Then in 1991 you won the title again! You had joined the greats of triple World Champions. Like everyone else I expected you to win more titles after this, but tragically this was not the case. The battle was with Mansell for this season and but you won it with ease – 7 wins.

For 1992 and 1993 the Williams Renault dominated. But you still managed to take 3 wins in 1992 and had to watch Mansell’s storming run to the title. This season you finished 4th. Then in 1993 it was a better season ... you finished 2nd to Prost who had returned from his sabbatical. There were 5 wins that season including that phenomenal victory in the wet at Donington.

1994 and you joined the team that was dominating F1 – Williams Renault. Ever since Toleman you always wanted to drive the quickest car. Team loyalty was less of a priority - winning was everything and I respected that. A young charger Michael Schumacher won the first 2 Grand Prix in his Benetton and Williams clearly had some work to do. It was then that the GP circus arrived for the 3rd round of the championship in San Marino.

Imola May 1st 1994 - a day I will never forget. Your tragic death was an absolute shock and a dark day in Formula One. When Ratzenberger died in qualifying the day before, I was surprised but I never imaged that 24 hours later the biggest name in Formula One would also be dead. As I watched the race live and saw your accident, I was immediately reminded of Berger’s accident on the same corner in 1989 which looked just as bad but also involved fire. Your accident was serious but I was not initially worried... after all Berger survived and your car didn’t look that damaged.

It was in the minutes after the accident that I became very concerned. First of all there was the frantic gestures and body language of the marshals and medical staff. Also, you were not moving and they had to remove you from the car.

Things looked very grim and as the race finished late Sunday night Australian time, I remember going to bed that night feeling very concerned that there could be bad news in the morning. As soon I woke Monday morning, I turned on the news and heard that the worst had happened. You had died.

It’s difficult to describe how I felt hearing this news. It was like a close relative or family member had died. There was a sense of the unreal - that it wasn’t happening. F1 had been such a big passion for me for 8 years and I admired and respected you so much. And now, the biggest and brightest name in F1, a man at the top of his game, was gone.

In the weeks, months (and even years!) after you died there were enquiries and court cases into exactly what happened that day. For me there was only one answer – a technical failure of the Williams FW16B. It was very clear that the steering column was unstable at the time of the accident. The steering column broke and you went straight off at Tamburello. Other theories about cold tyres, low pressures and the car bottoming-out were just ridiculous.

And now 20 years later, the name Ayrton Senna is revered around the world – as it should be and as it always will be.

Since your death I’ve learnt so much more about your life and passions outside F1 ... family, religion, your homeland. And the enjoyment you gained from water sports, model planes and of course go-karts. Things like the houses and organic farm you were building for yourself and the workers around the lake. I learnt about your values and your determination to give something back to people less fortunate than yourself. I am glad that many of these values were continued by your sister Viviane through Instituto Ayrton Senna.

Your legacy in Formula One is also clear. Not just your 3 world titles and record 65 pole positions, but the way you went about racing, your philosophy, your intense need to win. Your death also brought about many improvements in F1 safety - cars, redesigned tracks and barriers, higher crash safety standards.

Nowadays I have several things around my home which remind me of you everyday. I enjoy reading books and watching the DVD’s about you over and over. Footage such as the incar lap at Monaco just mesmerize me! These things I especially do every May.

Você é o melhor. Obrigado e eu sinto saudades