Review F1 23 | Improved F1 World, controls and 'soap opera' Braking Point

A new Formula 1 game comes out every year. Codemasters have held the licence for several years, and now that the current F1 season is well underway, the new F1 game has been launched. Titled F1 23 for short, we get a game that, like every other year, mainly builds on the foundation already laid. F1 22 was far from the best game in the series, and thankfully we see another good step forward with F1 23.

Better steering

The handling of the cars in F1 22 was initially quite fine. But when driving at the on edge, it became apparent that the handling was not optimal regarding the stability of the cars, resulting in understeer. The physics also caused some issues in the long run, leading many players to abandon the game. With F1 23, that has now been rectified, which should make it feel better at the core for casual players and sim racers alike. The best experience is playing the game with a steering wheel, but not everyone has access to that. Many, for instance, still play with a controller, which is obviously inferior in terms of experience.

This also creates an uneven playing field in online races in particular, but Codemasters has found a solution: Precision Drive. In the settings, it is now possible to adjust the game's controls very precisely for the controller. It gives you extra setting options to tweak the controls much more precisely. While it still doesn't provide a level playing field with steering wheels, it does narrow the gap between control options. Playing with these options now makes the steering feel more refined, which is nice.

But we also see improvements in other areas. Graphically, for instance, it's all just a bit neater (minus the animations in cutscenes), especially when driving at night. It's a stunning sight to behold. In addition, the AI is a bit better again, making them much more adequate in handling situations on the track to give you the real Formula 1 feeling. Flawless, it certainly isn't, but compared to the previous game, there is progress to be seen here too, which is a good thing. As is the addition of the red flag and the ability to drive 35% of the race distance. This is a sweet spot for players who have been requesting this for a long time. It is now all present.

An adventure or a soap opera?

With the technical improvements mentioned, we can move on to Braking Point. The game felt its absence last year, but it is now back. The story picks up where it left off two years back, so we once again take on the role of Aiden Jackson. He now drives for the new team Konnersport Racing, along with the antagonist of yesteryear: Devon Butler. His dad is the title sponsor of the eleventh team on the grid, and given that things have not worked out between these two drivers before, this will naturally result in fireworks now.

Interestingly, the drivers' attention also shifts to the team itself. This gives you more insight into the goings-on behind the scenes, where politics and business interests come into play. The story follows exactly the same concept as before in terms of gameplay. You will see the necessary cutscenes, and you will be in action on the track at selected moments. Sometimes at the end of a race, sometimes halfway through, but also at the beginning. Sometimes you drive a few laps, other times a 'whole' Grand Prix. Sometimes scripted things happen here, where you switch from racing to a cutscene, and the story continues.

It's all mostly the same and a continuation as you expect. It should be noted, though, that the drama is laid on very thickly. Of course, this sport is emotional and with Drive to Survive on Netflix, we get to see a lot of that. However, we also know that that series dramatises things, but Braking Point goes on top of that. As a result, it feels a bit like a soap opera at times. What doesn't help in this is that most of the characters are not at all 'likeable'. At times they are incredibly annoying, which doesn't necessarily do the proceedings any favours. We have to learn to live with that because the overall picture is otherwise enjoyable enough to experience on its own.

The world of Formula 1

Speaking of F1 23's modes, there are plenty in the game. All the traditional options are represented, although the basic features are hidden under F1 World. Besides F1 World and Braking Point, you still have the competitive online multiplayer mode, which didn't have any problems in terms of connection during our play sessions. Of course, you can also try to build a career again, with the option of doing so as a driver or team boss driver. In the latter case, you go through a similar career but are also involved in all developments.

Think of developing the cars, attracting sponsors, managing your company and more. It's all a familiar story for players who have played previously released volumes. It's all very familiar, but what's noticeable is that it contains no significant innovations or developments. For that, we have to go to F1 World, a continuation of the very meagre F1 Life introduced last year. That didn't amount to much then; now, however, it is a different story.

F1 World is a hub from which you can do all sorts of things. Here you'll find basic options like quick race, time trial and more. Why that's not just in the main menu is a mystery. Mainly because F1 World requires you to be logged in to your EA account. Bit cumbersome since there could always be a situation where you can't or don't want to create an account. That said, F1 World is a system that subjects you to daily and weekly challenges. You can participate in a series of races, and with the Canadian Grand Prix coming up, there are now many challenges geared towards that race.

It's all about participating in various races that you can accept via the overview. These can be offline, online, or mixed (AI) races. It is up to you to complete the goals you are presented with, which range from driving x number of laps to reaching a certain level and more. All with the aim of collecting experience points. With these, you can level up via the Podium Pass, which gives you new items. This is mostly cosmetic but gives you an objective to keep playing throughout a season. Here you have a free Podium Pass as standard, but there is also a paid variant.

Cosmetic content is nice, but more importantly, completing challenges also gets you upgrades. These are different components for your car of higher value, as well as improvements you can apply to the different departments of your company. Unlocking new components and applying them to your car increases your level. This is a kind of digital identification of how far along you are. Think of it as your racing level but linked to your car so you can keep playing until you unlock the best items and become one of the top players. Right now, you unlock everything by playing, but this will probably - in good EA fashion - turn into a system with lots of microtransactions.

A complete package of racing fun

F1 23 feels much more substantial than F1 22, which missed the mark with F1 Life and wasn't the best technically. F1 23 puts that right, and the return of Braking Point is fine, but bear in mind the high soap opera-style content. F1 World makes much more sense than F1 Life and is actually fun to play, though we're curious to see where this goes. Graphically, it's a nice game but not the absolute best. Then there is nothing negative to say about the audio, which sounds excellent, and the soundtrack is very nice. The conclusion is pretty simple: F1 23 is better than F1 22 in almost every respect. You get a complete package with enough content to keep you entertained for a long time.

F1 23 is available now for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC.