My F1 25 experience as a racing game newbie
As the title says, I have next to zero experience with F1 games. Until now, my only interaction with them was limited to the in-built benchmarking tool. And the last time I properly followed Formula 1 racing in real life; Michael Schumacher was the reigning champion. Racing games, in general, do not pique my interest. I haven’t played any after Need for Speed 2. So, when I finally decided to find out what F1 25 is all about, I had little idea about how the genre evolved over the past 20+ years.
Right after I fired it up, it became immediately apparent I was in an EA game. An internet connection, while not mandatory, is required to experience all features fully. And then there was a seasonal Battle Pass with a ‘VIP’ version, which, mercifully, could be unlocked by simply progressing through F1 2025’s numerous game modes. Of course, there was a ‘shop’, complete with knick-knacks you can purchase with in-game currency, which, in turn can be purchased with real-world cash.
Once I navigated through what seemed like a dozen-odd pages, I finally got to the main menu. I immediately started looking for a tutorial section, and to my surprise, there was none. Its omission is puzzling. Yeah, most people buying a new copy will likely be familiar with how F1 games work, but it would have been a nice addition for newbies. After all, there is one in every FIFA game, as far as I remember.
F1 25's PC system requirements include a vast gamut of hardware, depending on how you want to play. 1080p 60 FPS is achievable with a Ryzen 3 1300, GeForce GTX 1060/RX 570, and 8 RAM, but the game won’t look any good. But with path tracing switched on, you’ll need a Core i7-12600K/Ryzen 7 4700X, RTX 4080/RX 7900 XTX and 16 GB of DDR5 RAM for the same resolution/frame rate.
With everything maxed out, my system (Ryzen 7 5800X3D, RTX 3080 Ti, 46 GB DDR4-3,200) could comfortably touch 60 FPS without DLSS at 1440p. That figure dropped to 28 FPS with Path Tracing enabled at 1080p. Not an ideal experience, but surprisingly decent for a three-generation-old GPU.
F1 25’s marketing material talked a lot about Braking Point 3, a narrative-driven experience that puts you behind the wheel of a Konnersport car. There is surprising depth to this, complete with dialogue choices that are directly tied to your level. It took me by surprise because an F1 game was the last place I expected to see speech prompts. There’s a lot left for me to explore, and this is one game mode I’m most likely to finish solely because of its RPG elements.
The racing is fun too, I guess. It is, by default, made a lot less cumbersome with assists like automatic braking, traction control and a visible race line being switched on by default. F1 2025 can be very newbie-friendly when it wants to be. Does it make the competition a bit, too, easy? Yes. But, making a game accessible to a wide range of audiences is always a welcome move, especially in monetization-heavy titles such as F1 25
I tried switching all assists off, and let’s say I won’t be doing that again until I get a few dozen hours in. I’m sure it offers a much better experience for veterans, but it is overwhelming for a new player trying to learn the ropes. Once again, a practice mode that lets you fiddle around with different assists would have been ideal.
Now, I don’t know whether it was ignorance on my part or baked into the difficulty settings: my vehicle took virtually no damage when I inadvertently collided with my fellow racers. Apparently, that only matters in a specific game mode. I couldn’t switch on realistic vehicle damage despite finding a toggle, but I did get a two-second penalty at the end.
I briefly paused my Konnersport journey to look at the other game modes offered by F1 25. I started with Driver Career, created a character in the F2 league and progressed its campaign a bit. Once again, the character creation depth took me by surprise. F1 games have Fortnite dances now. So far, the experience has been smooth sailing, but I’m sure it will have its twists later. I’ll give it a go after I’m done with Braking Point.
And then I ventured into the My Team Career. Initially, it seemed easy enough. Allocate resources, create a team logo, set budgets, collaborate with sponsors and whatnot. And then race day hit. I got greeted by an overwhelming amount of data. Excellent for someone familiar with the terminology, less so for a scrub. Some racing has been thrown in, too, which is a welcome change of pace from the usual team manager elements.
Has F1 25 changed my perception of racing games? A little. Would I recommend it to new players? It depends. EA and Codemasters have designed it for a specific type of player, and it might be a hard sell for anyone outside that bubble. While the game has a decent chunk of replayable single-player content, most of its features are designed around a multiplayer experience. But the local split-screen/LAN co-op mode is a godsend. That alone could guarantee you and your buddies dozens of hours of entertainment.
Egregious monetization options aside, F1 25 is a well-crafted game that dives deep into its source material, of which I haven’t even scratched the surface with barely 10–12 hours of total game time. If I were someone who followed Formula 1 racing on the regular, it is definitely something I would consider. Regardless, I’ll still stick around to finish Braking Point 3.
Do the F1 games need a new version every year? Probably not. But that ship has sailed. While F1 25 is the first game in the series to support Path Tracing, its sky-high requirements make it inaccessible to most players. In conclusion, consider giving it a shot if you’re a Formula 1 fan and want to experience the sport in an entirely new format. Is it worth buying the game if you already own F1 24? That solely hinges on how much of an F1 nerd you are.
