Formula One Championship Edition

But then that's what Formula One is about. And if you know that going in - and even better, you know the tracks from watching races or playing previous games - you'll be able to get more out of it than I did. The career mode in particular is incredibly deep, taking you from an unsigned neophyte with no Formula One experience through the tester stages and all the way up to your ascent to the top of the world rankings.

My concern is that many people won't get nearly so far. Riding the edge can be exhilarating but that's not the same things as having fun. The online modes add to this, because they allow you to learn with other people while enjoying the competition that comes from racing against real people. This is helped along by the stability of the online experience. It is a pity that Sony Liverpool wasn't able to incorporate voice chat into the experience, since using a USB or - god forbid - the onscreen keyboard doesn't cut it. The lack of rumble is another hardware shortcoming we have to live with - at least for now.

So was I having fun? Honestly, no, not really. A lot of the time I spent with Formula One Championship Edition felt like work, and not always rewarding work at that. Sometimes, especially during the career mode, I found myself spending a lot of time on the track and coming up with nothing or little to show for it. The game is technically solid, so if you're a fan of Formula One you should probably pick it up, but know that you're going to have to put in the effort. I think I'll stick with Ridge Racer and MotorStorm for now.

Graphics Sound Gameplay Depth Presentation OVERALL 8.0 6.0 6.0 7.0 7.0 6.0

THE VERDICT: I enjoy racing games but I prefer them to make me aware that I'm getting better the more I play them. Formula One Championship Edition is well done but it's too unforgiving for its own good, and that sucked the life out of the game for me. The online mode partly makes up for this. It can be a lot of fun if you have people of your skill level to race against. Ultimately that wasn't enough to save the game for me.

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