F1 2010's career mode detailed

By Oli Welsh Published 17 March, 2010

Simulates drivers' life both on and off track.

Codemasters has lifted the lid on its next Formula 1 game, F1 2010, at a press event in London, revealing an extensive career mode that will simulate the drivers' life in the paddock as well as on the track.

F1 2010 will allow players to interact with their agent, team-mate, engineer and the media as they build a career for themselves. You'll start in a lower or middle-tier team aiming to beat your team-mate and championship rivals, in order to increase your standing and negotiate new contracts over several seasons.

As your rank improves, the F1 circus in the paddock will respond differently to you, with media showing interest according to your standing and asking questions relevant to your performance. Finish in the top three in a race and you'll be able to join in the post-race press conference for TV.

The game also features an upgrade system that improves and changes your car according to the performance of you and your team-mate and the amount of testing you do, while doing well in a season will feed into off-season research and development. You can get closely involved in the setup of your car or give broader instructions to your engineer for how you want it to drive.

On track, Codemasters is aiming for handling that's authentic without being too difficult for average players, and predictable enough that players can focus on putting in the consistent lap times that are all-important in Formula 1. It's putting an equal emphasis on credible and dynamic AI opponents as it is the handling model, however.

Keeping race strategy in mind will be important, especially managing tyres, which will blister, marble and puncture. Players will also be able to adjust wing angles angles and engine performance on the fly.

There will be dynamic weather conditions and the track surface will evolve from session to session and lap to lap, as drivers lay down rubber to increase grip, leave dangerous tyre "marbles", and actively dry wet tracks with their tyres.

We'll have a full feature preview with hands-on impressions for you in the coming days. F1 2010 is due for release on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 in September.

Picture of Oli.

About Oli Welsh

Oli is Eurogamer's acting deputy editor and reviews editor and likes to take things one word at a time. He is among the best dressed people in South London.

Read more articles from Oli by visiting the Oli Welsh archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (47) Latest comment 8 months ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • super_monty #1 2 years ago

    This will be a Day 1 purchase for me, i missed the last one on the ps3 and it didn't appear on the 360.

  • KayJay #2 2 years ago

    Sounds good. F1: CE (PS3 Release title) did something similar to this and it was quite engaging.

    /marks interesting
    /dosent know who Mark is!

  • TheMoonRat #3 2 years ago

    Sounds good. Problem I have with this kind of "upgrade" system, however, is that the game starts off hard and then gets easier and easier; not only are your skills getting better, but your car will be boosted as well. Shouldn't game difficulties be the other way around?

  • dsmx #4 2 years ago

    Time to lower the tone of this comments thread:

    Does that mean we get to bang the drivers girlfriends then?

  • viper_h #5 2 years ago

    Bastard! That was going to be my comment!

  • KayJay #6 2 years ago

    @ TheMoonRat
    Well it sounds like they are going for a SIM so It needs to be a real as it can be. I imagine its far more difficult (Generally) for a Lotus F1 driver compared to a McLaren F1 driver.
    Thats just the way it is and this games seems to want to replicate that.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #7 2 years ago

    Does it mean that if you have a two fantastic seasons, then end up in a comparatively shite car, the in-game Martin Brundle will spend longer trying to chat to your Pussycat Doll girlfriend that with you, even though you're reigning World Champion?


    (Damnit dsmx, making me work harder for what ought to have been a cheap gag)

  • Timbercottage #8 2 years ago

    PLEASE don't be shit, you look so good

  • altitude2k #9 2 years ago

    Here's hoping for a 2011 seasonal DLC update rather than a money-grabbing EA-style year-on-year release.

  • SwashbucklingStuff #10 2 years ago

    It will be interesting to see how they execute the press conference stuff as it is something that very few games (Football Management sims i'm looking at YOU) have managed to do well.
    Edited by 1 at 17/03/10 @ 16:55

  • Jonny5Alive7 #11 2 years ago

    I can't wait for this I really hope is as good as it should be.

  • tachometer #12 2 years ago

    So this means you'll get a load of unskippable cut scenes of your Scottish "mentor", an improbably rendered girlfriend and an Italian rival who follows you up through the ranks, plus lots of radio chatter where Scotty repeats "Try harder kid, I know you can do it!" ad infinitum.

  • Faldrath #13 2 years ago

    Just make it less boring than real F1. That Bahrein Grand Prix was... ugh. Let's hope they have... say... a 1988 season DLC!
    Edited by 1 at 17/03/10 @ 17:02

  • Eraysor #14 2 years ago

    To be honest even if it turns out average I'll probably buy it, as long as the actual racing is done alright.

  • Ceatlan #15 2 years ago

    @ TheMoonRat.

    I don't read it like that, since when you are in the a lower teir team the expectations will be of beating the guys/teams around you. It shouldn't be any more difficult for a guy in a Lotus to beat a guy in a Virgin, than it is for a guy in a Ferarri to beat a guy in a Maclaren. You won't be expected to win the championship in the Lotus, just do well enough to be noticed by the teams up the order.

    In my opinion its really saddened me that more racing games haven't done this, I mean Sega's Super Monaco Grand Prix had it on the Mega Drive over 20 years ago and it made the game awesome. One of the few racing games to have ever made me play more than a single season.
    Edited by 1 at 17/03/10 @ 17:13

  • AtomicBanana #16 2 years ago

    Handling will be awful, just like all CM games. The rest sounds like all flash and no substance, again just like all recent efforts (GRID, DIRT).

  • Beano #17 2 years ago

    60fps or no buy.

  • MrChuckles #18 2 years ago

    Eh? This sounds like quite a good F1 game... I'm confused... I thought all post Crammond F1 games were arcade racers?

  • HyperShadow #19 2 years ago

    The sounds really interesting, I think I'm going Day 1 on this bad boy.

    ...and 1988 season, wasn't that the season where the McLaren-Honda's of Prost and Senna won 15 of the 16 races contested that season? Not sure that would've been *that* interesting. Besides, 2010 has had one race at a really bad track (that new loop has ruined it), I think it deserves a few more races at least before we condemn it.

  • Fixxxer #20 2 years ago

    Don't like the idea of your car improving for the same reason as MoonRat.

  • gingerlink #21 2 years ago

    @Ceatlan
    "It shouldn't be any more difficult for a guy in a Lotus to beat a guy in a Virgin, than it is for a guy in a Ferarri to beat a guy in a Maclaren."

    Should be far easier for the lotus in fact, you've just got to wait for the virgin to break down

  • TLKCydonia #22 2 years ago

    So what that basically means is that they're re-hashing the UI from DIRT 2's roaming main menu.. and using the same graphical style as GRID.

    Add to that the fact that Codies' handling model has been god-awful for a long while means this is a rental at best atm.
    I never though I'd say this, but any other dev and this'd be a day 1 buy.

  • raion #23 2 years ago

    Sounds too good to be true. If they think they'll get away with it if they cut any of those features... well, actually, all that "driver lifestyle" does not interest me, but all the in track stuff sounds delicious. I am a bit worried about the handling though: I hope they won't compromise too much in the name of accessibility.

    By the way, want to make F1 more interesting to watch? Back to maual gear changes and a speed limit on straights, so they'll have to play it by the corners. That ought to spice things up.

  • icelt #24 2 years ago

    Based on GRiD the handling model is my concern as well. FWIW here's the first Official promo video:
    http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=QMhgDl4zcoQ

  • Rodchenko #25 2 years ago

    Sounds exactly like what tachometer said. Here is hoping your alter-ego isn't called Ryan McKane...

  • Climhazzard #26 2 years ago

    Really looking forward to this, sounds like they've got all bases covered in the campaign just need online options and features now.

  • AHiFi #27 2 years ago

    Bloody hell kj66246...it's" mark's" with an apostrophe!

    *gets tyre cover*

  • seasidebaz #28 2 years ago

    Don't like the idea of your car improving for the same reason as MoonRat.

    I have a feeling that MoonRat improves more by telling him how to improve, as opposed to getting better at playing with him. So it's not really the same reason for improvement.

  • dfooster #29 2 years ago

    the career mode sounds interesting, but the game will have to be super balanced for it to work. its no good having the team rivalry and upgrade of parts if you can simply drive a back marker that would be 3-4 seconds a lap slower than a ferrari from last on the grid onto the podium.

    if they nail the AI and have the AI driving lap times that are realistic as to what the player can produce in similar machinery then this game will rock.

  • Old_Nick #30 2 years ago

    Dear Codies, when I play an F1 game I don’t want to be like Michael Schumacher and remember to buy birthday presents for my mechanics. I don’t want to attend press conferences or sponsors events. I want to be a lazy so and so like Kimi Raikkonen and just turn up to the race and drive the wheels off the car. If you want me to have a virtual career you are going to have to pay me to play the game. My opinion of this game just went from “quite interesting” to “you must be joking”.

  • CARL05 #31 2 years ago

    I'm taking down Alonso - I don't like his face!

  • Collymilad #32 2 years ago

    Please dont screw this up.

    Was encouraged when i read the handling won't be like Grid. Hopefully the cars will actually feel like it's 4 tires on a track and not pivoting around a pole stuck through the engine.
    Edited by 1 at 17/03/10 @ 23:07

  • doggod #33 2 years ago

    Why do they add the life crap to a racing game,be like adding the mess hall and marching in between maps in battlefield or call of duty.
    Their ui has been getting constantly worse each game they make
    Why no just let us race
    On a brighter note it looks like rfactor 2 is getting released this year with some screen shots up on VirtualR

  • Law07 #34 2 years ago

    i really hope that sepia tone that's present in GRID and DiRT doesn't ruin this. hate their lack of colour range in sunny weather

  • nasanu #35 2 years ago

    Sounds crap. I want an F1 sim not a PR sim. Codies recent record isn't great either. Whatever, GT5 should be out at around the same time anyway, or this will be rushed out the door so as not to compete. I'll check it out when its released, but I'm not looking forward to it.

  • nasanu #36 2 years ago

    "Codemasters is aiming for handling that's authentic without being too difficult for average players"

    That really pisses me off. Give players like me who want a full on sim what they want because its not hard, just have driving assists on by default for everyone else. What is so hard to understand about that?

  • UsernamePending #37 2 years ago

    Is there a Max Mosely simulator in this game? If so, I'm in!

  • tachometer #38 2 years ago

    Apparantly he's got a separate game coming out; Max Mosely: WHiP

  • kiroquai #39 2 years ago

    Problem is though, and as someone who regularly races on iRacing and rFactor in racing leagues, if Codies make this a full-on nailed sim then it won't sell as well. If word spreads that it's totally insanely tricky to drive (as a sim would be - have tried rFactor with the 360 pad and it's nearly impossible) then people who enjoy F1 but don't want to get their arse kicked all the time will stay away.

    I think Studio Liverpool got it reasonably right in their last F1 game for the PS3 - with no aids on and at the hardest difficulty level it was not as tricky as the PC sims, but you did have to drive properly; brake gently to avoid locking up, steer consistantly, take the right lines to carry momentum etc. If Codies can give me something along those lines on the hard setting whilst allowing more casual F1 fans the chance to get stuck in straight away with some easier settings then by my book they will have succeeded.

    EDIT! - I think all the little details such as upgrading the car and taking part in press conferences sound great! Always wanted to be an F1 driver (along with about 90% of the population I imagine), so the chance to have something that gives the vibe across off and on track is welcome as far as I am concerned.
    Edited by 1 at 18/03/10 @ 10:00

  • metalangel #40 2 years ago

    tachometer is right, we don't need a "plot", it's a racing game! Ryan McKane and his badly rendered mates really needed to fuck off. Still, the minigame where you get a titfuck from your tanned, pneumatic girlfriend on a yacht off St Tropez should shift a few more copies.

  • orakio #41 2 years ago

    A step back into the direction of the super monaco GP game back in the good ol' nineties. I might buy this!

  • abbot #42 2 years ago

    Agree with TheMoonRat, lots of racing games have this issue. Max out the upgrades and it gets too easy.

    I think i said this before but I'm hoping for local multiplayer with individual difficulty settings so i can have a fair race with the button mad gf.

    I assume someone from codemaster reads these comments and includes all our ideas, lol!

    Plus i hope there's an achievement for running over jake humphreys in the pit lane. I like him but he does seem to have a death wish.
    Edited by 1 at 18/03/10 @ 12:54

  • stepneg #43 2 years ago

    I Hope they take into account people with wheels, Grid is aweful using a Driving Force Pro

  • chronom4n #44 2 years ago

    @stepneg, it took a while to get the FDP to perform just right. Out of the box, I agree that the performance of the game with the wheel ouf of the box, was nothing short of terrible. Seeing this is going to be a hardcore sim (hopefully) they will most likely cater for all the hardcore wheels. Anyways, I can see this as being a pre-order for me.
    Edited by 1 at 18/03/10 @ 14:52

  • Bluetooth #45 2 years ago

    I hope you can race backwards and crash into all the drivers forcing them into retirement, like you could with F1GP on the Amiga. Indeed, most F1 games since then couldn't emulate the quality that is F1GP.

  • CalmBlueOcean #46 2 years ago

    Just to offer the opposing point of view on the off-track/PR side of this game...

    I love Moto GP, and I have enjoyed the recent Moto GP games, but however interesting you find the racing, doing a 16 race season, with the constant qualify - race - next track - qualify - race - next track sequence, gets really REALLY boring after a while. You do need to put something in there to break up the monotony.

    Games like Forza or GT or whatever do it with the car tuning to an extent, and I guess thats kind of available to F1 and GP games but other racing games never put you into full length racing seasons. Every four races you can jump into a radically different type of car and change the experience enough for yourself that you don't get bored.

    So, tentatively I am in favour of those off-track distractions... balancing your media profile, picking fights with Hamilton and co, getting into a feud with your team mate... could be a nice break in the pace

  • GHW #47 8 months ago

    The F1 game has been a great game for the thrill of winning a championship in different tracks and the adrenaline going at a top speed and the hard work. I expect so much of this game because i really like racing games. Hope that this game updates won't give any problems and could really make a player quit this kind of game. Gauthier, Houghtaling and Williams