F1 22 Review: Newer Isn't Always Better

[MagpieRacer]

I'm sure EA can come up with a snappy name for some new imaginary gameplay to say they've added Next Gen only tech like Hypermotion (FIFA) or FieldSense (Madden), they're great at that.

TrueAero. PackMotion. HybridSense.

To be fair, they can call it what they want, I'll still buy into the hype and day 1 purchase 😆.

But a switch to UE5 or something would be great. I think they've teased the idea of that?

 

[INEEDNAWZZZ]

But a switch to UE5 or something would be great. I think they've teased the idea of that?

Would be interesting but honestly, I think it's a case of picking poison. Codemasters are pretty complacent so they will either stick with Ego, or EA will force their hand into using Frostbite since they love 'demonstrating its scalability' (read: not having to pay Unreal or anyone else to use their engine instead).

Given that CM have now been tasked with helping with NFS, I'd imagine they'd probably save dev resources and just use Ego at this point. Disappointing, but I'd rather have that than Frostbite which is not properly geared for anything barring FPS games - and I'd argue it isn't that good at that either.

 

[Milouse]

So i tried the game in VR on PC.
One thing to note is that the only part that is actually VR and not a virtual flat screen is the driving itself, which is limited to the cockpit view. No replay in VR nor playing with the usual higher TV driver cam. That's important for the later because the low position in VR with the limited resolution* makes lines and curbs sometimes very hard to see until the last moment. For example, I made a few time attacks laps on Silverstone and the Maggots-Becketts section wasn't enjoyable at all for that reason.

That could be one of the two reasons that what i enjoyed the most in VR in F1 2022 are... the Supercar challenges (the other reason being that i played with a DS5 and not a wheel since they stop to support mine last year). Especially the gates challenges

Regarding performances, i run it on a desktop PC with: CPU R2600, GPU GTX 1080, Ram 32 GB, Oculus Quest 2 with cable Link.
The game has a 1 lap benchmark mode that you can set on any track. It runs in the middle of a full pack of cars. => On Barcelona, i failed to get a consistant FPS even at lower settings (the game has predefined "VR" visual settings). I'm not often subject to motion sickness, but something felt wrong here. But that's in full pack. Once in a less populated environnement, the game was ok if settings kept low. Anyway, the overall experience led me to conclude that i will live without F1 2022.

*: resolution in VR in general is different than with flat screens, being excellent for close objects but exponentially degraded with distance.

This is for the second lowest overall visual setting.

 

[GTWorkshed]

But a switch to UE5 or something would be great. I think they've teased the idea of that?

If they do it would only for graphics. UE5 lacks the physics engine to do a simulation racing game. So it would have to be a 2-prong solution. Like RENNSPORT is doing with using UE5 for rendering and a custom physics engine.

 

[MagpieRacer]

If they do it would only for graphics. UE5 lacks the physics engine to do a simulation racing game. So it would have to be a 2-prong solution. Like RENNSPORT is doing with using UE5 for rendering and a custom physics engine.

And ACC which uses UE4. To be honest, the physics are fine they're in a sweetspot that caters to quite a wide crowd, sure committing just to current gen will bring extra possibilities for refinement but the visuals are where the game is starting to sorely show its age.

 

[Mercia]

sure committing just to current gen will bring extra possibilities for refinement

Think we've had enough refinement, or translated: complacency. Reading the various feedback I'm shocked how little they've done.

 

[MagpieRacer]

Think we've had enough refinement, or translated: complacency. Reading the various feedback I'm shocked how little they've done.

Yeah I just mean if they drop the old consoles we might see more meaningful improvements.

 

[PJTierney]

And ACC which uses UE4. To be honest, the physics are fine they're in a sweetspot that caters to quite a wide crowd, sure committing just to current gen will bring extra possibilities for refinement but the visuals are where the game is starting to sorely show its age.

Kunos had to build their own physics engine for Unreal as it doesn’t have one with enough fidelity for racing.

“Just switch to UE” isn’t the magic bullet the public thinks it is, no engine swap is. It’s the kind of decision that takes years of planning and then years of execution and you can still mess it up, just look at eFootball vs PES 2020.

 

[Jezza819]

Just on my first couple of hours with the game I really didn't notice any difference in the way the '22 cars handled compared to last year. But I also need to take a look at my FFB settings because I think they are still on default.

I do agree that the supercars are just kind of......odd I guess. I used my gift token for the AMG Black Series and drove it around Monza a little bit. It almost felt like driving a big 60's or 70's American car. Didn't really want to turn quickly or stop quickly.

 

[MagpieRacer]

Kunos had to build their own physics engine for Unreal as it doesn’t have one with enough fidelity for racing.

“Just switch to UE” isn’t the magic bullet the public thinks it is, no engine swap is. It’s the kind of decision that takes years of planning and then years of execution and you can still mess it up, just look at eFootball vs PES 2020.

Oh yeah don't get me wrong, I look at Unreal in this scenario purely for the visuals with CM using their own physics. Unreal is just the first thing that came to mind after the braking point cinematic used UE4.