If you are an F1 fan it’s fair to say the gaming space has been treating you pretty good these past few years. Firstly feeling the thrills of racing with Codemasters ongoing official series and then seeing the other side of the action with Frontier Developments‘ F1 Manager 2023.
F1 Manager 2023 is a very niche title. Not many fans will dream of being Toto Wolff or Christian Horner over the actual drivers; like Max Verstappen or Lando Norris. But if you dream of R&D over hitting that perfect corner apex, you are truly covered here.
This game is a refinement of the solid foundation set by last year’s instalment. In F1 Manager 2023 you spend your time split between handling the day to day running of the team and then the thrill of what race weekends will bring.
Day Manager
The day to day side of things sees you navigating countless emails. Chatting to your team. Taking their advice on what to do to help the car with that week’s race. And things step up a gear or two as you head towards the weekend.
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Seeing you have to look at what each track requires from the cars and setting it up the best you can for it. Or even having the R&D guys cook up some new bits to bolt on to the car.
On top of this you’ll have to handle sponsorship deals and contracts. These are key elements and one skill you sorely need to keep the lights on and the wheels turning.
If you don’t cut the mustard with the team or fail to deliver results, the team’s board will question you and even send you packing, so it’s far from a walk in the park.
Finance One
If that wasn’t enough on your plate, you’re also responsible for investing money in new and better facilities for the team. This in turn will see you having access to better kit and higher trained staff to fill positons with.
To get the best from your team in F1 Manager 2023, both in terms of back room staff and drivers, you’ll have to run training drills and keep the morale high. But beware – push them too hard and you tire them out, which can have huge impacts on the race weekend.
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But all this comes at a price and you have a limited budget, plus every choice you make has an impact on your bottom line; from wages to just general upkeep of your facilities. So counting the pennies is a huge part of the game.
Trackside Wonder
Of course this is just half of the game, as other side is the racing and it sees you having to become a master strategist – planning pit stops, what tires to run, when and when not to attack.
How much you get your hands on is up to you. If want to have a full weekend experience you can have at it. Or if you just want to handle the race, then the team will look after the three days of practice and qualifying. Hands off is the simpler way to do things, but it does rob you of a level of input overall.
As for the races you get to watch all the action unfold. There are countless real-time stats ranging from times, track conditions and how your drivers are doing. In fact there is an almost televised feel to this side.
However, if you don’t want to sit through 60 laps you can speed it all up. Interestingly, the game will slow the action back down when incidents happen on track.
After the race you are debriefed on how you did and if you hit challenges set by the sponsors. Then you dust yourself off and get ready to do it all again next weekend.
Sports Management Presentation
Visually, F1 Manager 2023 is a mixed bag. The game is mostly played in backroom stats-heavy screens, which are clear and easy to read. These menus are a bit dull compared to the on track action. However, the animations around races are overly stiff, especially if you look at the standards F1 23 are dishing up.
F1 Manager 2023 is more of the same and fans of its brand of team principle building will love their time on its new shiny pit wall. There is a lot of info and stats to lose yourself in here, as well as letting you see just what it takes to run a successful team…money…lots and lots of money.
But if you are looking for an F1 thrill of a different type, this is well worth a look. If only to see how long you can keep your place at Red Bull before you’re shown the door.