A Request To Fellow Forum Members...

Posted by Rupert

A Request To Fellow Forum Members...
Date: March 30, 2002 03:37AM
Posted by: Rupert

Registered: 20 years ago

If you read the GP4 forum, you know that I made a decision to purchase F1 2001, by EA Sports. This was a risky decision because it cost me $60 Australian, or about 25 Pounds. But it was one great decision, because the game is wonderful. Well I suppose you want to know this thread is about. Well I am going to tell you.

I wasn't really expecting much from F1 2001, but I have been pleasantly suprised, more to the point, overwhelmed with the quality of this game, err sorry, simulation.

Because it is a simulation. I know what you are already saying, oh bullsh*t Rupert, it is an arcade game. Well I argue not. It isnt, it is very realistic, more so than GP3. I won't go into detail about the features, I am sure you alredy know most of them, but I will dwell on the most important ones.

Firstly, the graphics are first class. The game runs as smooth as a baby's bottom, up to 70 FPS. I am running it at 1024 x 768 in 32 bit mode, on an Athlon 1600 with 256 Ram and a GeForce 2 64 Meg card. And it looks a treat. The tracks are very detailed, more so than GP3s. The original carskins aren't that bad, but with Ralph Hummerich's fantastic work, we can drool at Malboro instead of plain white, or West instead or Mika or David. The cars look fantastic, especially from closeup. The carshapes are very nice, they don't really need to be updated.

The physics are very hard to judge. Driving the car feels very different to GP3, and that comes down to a few reasons. I think the high frame rate makes it easier to control, but the physics would have been written differently to GP3s. Another nice addition is that only some of the top teams have the 7 speed gearbox, teams like Arrows, Minardi and Benetton have to do with only 6. The only grudge I have about the physics is that you can suffer from understeer in slow corners, but in high speed corners that is all gone. That can be fixed by changing the steering lock in the car setup menu.

The tracks are top notch. As I said above, the graphics are very detailed and look wonderful. But the thing I like is that all the trakcs are unique in their own way. Hockenheim is very thin, compared to Sepang and Silverstone which are very wide. And the bumps, well Interlagos like a constant ripple strip. You feel the bumps, and they do actually slow you down. The camber in the tracks is much more noticable than in GP3, like the 1st corner in Brazil is an absolute bastard to get through, because it falls away, just like it should. And turn 4 at Sepang is curved up to the apex, and can catch you out easily. All in all they are a joy to drive on.

But the thing that impresses me most is the detail that the developers have gone through to make the game realistic. For example, each team has their own steering wheel, accurate from last year. For example, Ferrari has the large round wheel, and McLaren has the wing shaped one. Very nice to distinctly tell the difference between cars. You can also see the whole cockpit from outside views, with the steering wheel moving etc.
And for pit stop reality, you drive out of the garage, and you can set the speed limiter, and you have to turn it off manually. You have motion pit crews, and very good feedback from your engineer via radio. You can turn down the frequency of these messages, but they still come in handy.

Also inside the cockpit you notice what it is like to be in a F1 car. You see your suspension move about, and you also get that effect when the wheels are going so fast that it looks as though they are slowing down then going backwards. (I dont know if people have noticed that in real life, it was in GPL.) And your test days (practices) you can have them private or not, which means you can actually have public test sessions with 3 or 4 other cars.

And also available is the superb FIA GT Mod Patch, which overwrites the F1 Cars with Porsches, Ferraris, Vipers and Lister Storms. This was no easy feat becuase the carshapes and physics had to be completely remodelled. But this wasnt horribly difficult because the physics engine for F1 2001 was based on Sports Car GT, which was a very good game in its own right. And I can tell you, it is difficult, because the physics have had an amazing amount of work done on them. You think you can come steaming up into high speed corners and just pedal through them, but you cant. You have to brake very early, shift down, careful not to overrev, and be stable on exit.

Well, this thread has no meaning except to tell you how fantastic F1 2001 is. Until now.

I have had GP3 since Christmas 2000, and since then I have done 2 full champ seasons on 100% race distance, one on Pro, one on Ace. I was midfield, which I found to be more fun than up front because there is more of a battle for points. Anyway, I drove GP3 off its ass, and I always thought it was good.

But for me F1 2001 shines over GP3. The physics are fairly close together, but graphics and gameplay sh*t all over GP3. I know I am comparing this to GP3, because we cant really to GP4 fully because non of us have played it.
But what I am asking of you guys is to not necesserialy look at F1 2001 as pish. I know you need a top end system to run it, but you will need the same sort of system for GP4. I am really annoyed because there isnt a demo, because you would be pleasantly suprised, just like I am.

So if GP4 turns out to be a disappointment, you can go back to GP3 (unlikely) or you can get F1 2001, or 2002 for that matter which looks awesome as well.

Because I wont be rushing to the stores to buy GP4, I will wait and see. But I assure you that I will be for F1 2002 if the standard stays that high.

So C'mon, get in the deep end. If you are feeling bored, or even naughty, go out and buy F1 2001. I promise you wont be disappointed.

I would like some discussion on this thread, I know it is long and Mika you may not read it all, but try! Becuase it is a big issue because GP4 could turn out to be awful, but then again, maybe not.

Ozzy

P.S: Happy Easter all! And Vader Bunny, bring me something or you will be forced to lose your bunnyship.