F1 2000

"The best Formula One simulator possible on the Playstation system. And the N64 doesn’t have anything close"

So, here we have an EA Sports game. Known by the quality of their creations (maybe not with the FIFA games, but, no one is perfect...), the EA team delivers now a Formula One simulator. Racing fans, specially the people accustomed with names like Ferrari, McLaren, Schumacher and Barrichello, certainly would love a good Formula One sim. Well, here we have one. Now, to the review.

Graphics:7.4

By now, dozens of players around the world have had the Playstation System for some time. Time enough to discover that, while it’s a terrific system, with great games and lovely audio capabilities, the Playstation cannot present in-game graphics as well as the Nintendo 64 can. Knowing that, F1-2000's graphics are no disgrace. Instead, they’re very good. The courses are accurately represented, with real-life advertisement. What detracts from the graphics score, though, is the somewhat disappointing frame rate when there are more than three cars at the same time on screen. With that said, you can imagine the chaos that happens at the start of the races....
Also, I think that the feeling of velocity could be better. I mean, just a bit. But, overall, the game looks fine.
Thumbs up for the movies of this game. The opening video is short, but very cool. In fact, the best thing about the movies is that, when you’re in the game’s menus, a part of the screen will be playing cut scenes of real Formula-One races. And, when choosing your pilot, again you will be able to see videos; this time they’re a quick overview of the teams’ cars. With no additional loading time. Neat.

Music and Sound Effects:8.5
At this exact moment, I’m listening to the music:”Every me, and every you.....” Time to turn up your stereo system. Any Formula One fan knows that a great part of the races’ charm are the sounds that the cars produce. With this game, you won’t be frustrated. The sounds are always very clear.
About the commentators: Jim Rosenthal (that’s his name, right?) rarely says anything, but when he does, he does it well. Note that, when racing, a person from your team will make comments like: “You are 3 seconds ahead of Hakkinen (or whoever you are ahead of)”. But I’d like to listen to this guy (who has a heavy British accent) more often.
The music? Well, the game a few sound tracks, which are actually good. But more variety would be appreciated.
There’s something: when you start the game, it’ll be set “Mono”, so you will have to go to the Options menu and change it to Stereo. That is, in case you have a Stareo System connected to your Playstation.
Loading Times:10

Perfect. The loading periods could not be any smaller.

Gameplay:9.0

With a complete Formula One Association license, including all teams, pilots and courses, F1-2000 is very good regarding realism. In Qualify and the Test Day, you’ll have the chance to modify your car, including front and rear suspension, ground clearance, gear ratio, and more, to best adapt your car to the different circuits. Four factors will oscillate, depending on your car’s settings: Acceleration, Braking, Grip and Speed. These modifications are the key of your success or failure in the game. I won’t give any hints to not let you know everything before playing the game.
There are some camera views, and a rear view, which allow you to race in every [good] angle possible. The best one is, of course, the camera view that is placed inside the cockpit, and allows you to see the pilot’s hands on the wheel. Unfortunately, the statistics will not appear while this camera angle is used.
What can I say more about the gameplay?.... It’s a Formula-One racing game. That’s it.
Oh, wait, there’s more to be said.....Well, besides the Championship mode, there is a Single Race mode, where you can race in any circuit, and you can also make up your own opening grid. So, Mazzacane will have more chances of winning if he can start in the first position, against only one pilot, Gene, for example, which could start at the last place. Yes, that scenario is possible.
You can have races with 8, 16, or more laps, besides the standard number of laps in each course. It is possible to set Fuel Usage On or Off, as well as Equipment Failure, Flags (the in-race advices, which most times are penalties), Damage, and others factors.
This game has some screen alignment problems. It’ll never fit my TV screen properly when I turn the game on. Luckily, the programmers have added a tool in the menu options that permit the screen alignment to be adjusted. Use it.
The controls can be changed (only by pre-set control schemes), Replays can be seen at any time in the race, and the game is overall fine. I guess the grade I gave to the Gameplay is fair.

Overall (not an average):8.4
Whoa, this has been a long review. If the game had not such framerate problems, the overall rating would be higher.
Do you know any better Formula-One game? I do not.
Hasta la vista, baby.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 05/26/02, Updated 05/26/02