(out now on PAL PS2 & XBox) - rrp only ?29.99. Xbox version reviewed.
Being a big F1 fan this was the cloesest I was going to get to F1 on my Xbox, pleased to say it doesn't disappoint, read some good, some bad reviews before getting it but these are my opinions;
Firstly first menu, quick race, Indy Series (full season mode), Indy 500 race, Masterclass (8 lessons such as car control, pitting etc), Multiplayer, Options.
All self explanatory really, Multiplayer is: Live/System Link/Split screen, on Live you have the normal quick search/optimatch/leaderboards etc.
Live option is very user friendly and there are quite a few people online with ICS2005. Upto 12 humans and 13 CPU controlled cars per race, a record for Live ?
The leaderboards show best ranked players/yourself and friends by times and overall score (based on average speeds mainly).
Options; Lots of options to change controller configuration to suit everyone, there's also a couple of options to set up steering wheel sensitivity etc, options to adjust AI to match you/full strength and all the other usual racing game things.
Now the important bit; gameplay/graphics.
Gameplay, handling is great, very realistic wether at high or low speeds, you spin out if your tyres are cold, settings galore for all you techies out there (toe in/out etc). On screen race HUD evem lets you adjust petrol/air combination etc in race, and tells you all the usual stuff, tyre condititon, speed, slipstream level etc.
The computer AI is good also, computer controlled cars crash and spin out on their own, they don't just follow one racing line, they slipstream, try to overtake etc.
Race distances can be set from 10 laps to full distance (upto 500 miles!). Each lap is about 20 to 45 seconds in length.
Graphics, tracks can seem a bit bland, but hey your racing on a oval circuit with just the wall/crowd/sky to look at, overall car detail is high though, also, there is odd pop up on Xbox version which is slightly annoying but you do get used to it.
A good 8 out of 10 from me so far, will update this somewhat rushed post when I've played some more tomorrow.
That's my first First Play done, any questions just ask ...
Being a big F1 fan this was the cloesest I was going to get to F1 on my Xbox, pleased to say it doesn't disappoint, read some good, some bad reviews before getting it but these are my opinions;
Firstly first menu, quick race, Indy Series (full season mode), Indy 500 race, Masterclass (8 lessons such as car control, pitting etc), Multiplayer, Options.
All self explanatory really, Multiplayer is: Live/System Link/Split screen, on Live you have the normal quick search/optimatch/leaderboards etc.
Live option is very user friendly and there are quite a few people online with ICS2005. Upto 12 humans and 13 CPU controlled cars per race, a record for Live ?
The leaderboards show best ranked players/yourself and friends by times and overall score (based on average speeds mainly).
Options; Lots of options to change controller configuration to suit everyone, there's also a couple of options to set up steering wheel sensitivity etc, options to adjust AI to match you/full strength and all the other usual racing game things.
Now the important bit; gameplay/graphics.
Gameplay, handling is great, very realistic wether at high or low speeds, you spin out if your tyres are cold, settings galore for all you techies out there (toe in/out etc). On screen race HUD evem lets you adjust petrol/air combination etc in race, and tells you all the usual stuff, tyre condititon, speed, slipstream level etc.
The computer AI is good also, computer controlled cars crash and spin out on their own, they don't just follow one racing line, they slipstream, try to overtake etc.
Race distances can be set from 10 laps to full distance (upto 500 miles!). Each lap is about 20 to 45 seconds in length.
Graphics, tracks can seem a bit bland, but hey your racing on a oval circuit with just the wall/crowd/sky to look at, overall car detail is high though, also, there is odd pop up on Xbox version which is slightly annoying but you do get used to it.
A good 8 out of 10 from me so far, will update this somewhat rushed post when I've played some more tomorrow.
That's my first First Play done, any questions just ask ...
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