23 replies to this topic

[Linus27]

Well its here at last. Well, actually its not. I have nothing in my head apart from 1 line and so I am going to make this review up as I go.

Now I admit, I was a fan of GP3 when it first came out. I did a review in this forum for it and as far as I can remember, I liked it. That was until F1 2001 came out. The EA game blew GP3 out of the water, up the beach and straight into the trash can by the ice cream stall. GP3 2000 did improve things a little but at the end of the day, F1 2001 was so superior in my book, nothing GP3 could do would improve it. So, along came the demo of F1 2002 which I was lucky to get before most as it was first released on an Austrian PC magazine and where was I? At an Austrian airport, coming home from the Austrian GP and lucky enough to find the demo on the magazine. So I installed it and yes it was a slight improvement on F1 2001 but pretty much the same. Anyway, out came the full game and I was very dissapointed. Many of the tracks were still unrealistic and some of the original bugs were still there. My main gripe with EA's F1 series is the graphics. To me they look like toy cars and very cartoon like. Along with the unrealistic tracks, playing it became a very unenjoyable experience. So, along come GP4 and my first impressions were WOW, this is much better. Lets break this into sections. First graphics and visuals.

All I can say is the graphics are STUNNING. Out of this world. The tracks are done using GPS and are highly realistic, even down to certain bumps being modelled. Monaco is simply awsome. So much detail and a real experience and pleasure to drive. You will need a bit of a hefty machine to run this game in full detail but it is worth it. One improvement over GP3 is you now have an animated pit crew but to top it off, so does everyone else. Its great drivng into the pits and seeing other pit crews walking in and out of the garage, changing tyres, refuelling etc. Also, when you leave your garage, the pit crew lift the jacks away and one of your guys walks out, checks its all clear and then guides you out. When you return to your pit, you pull up and they then push you back into the garage. SUPERB. Track marshalls have also been improved. If there has been an accident, they stand by the track edge and wave yellows, whilst other marshalls wheel the car out of harms way and if you crash, they run to your car and will push it away. They then run back to there marshalls posts. Another great addition is when qualifing, you get the TV screen that real drivers have infront of them and you can not only look at other drivers times but also watch them qualify. Overall, the graphics are amazing. The detail on and around the tracks is brilliant. Cranes, TV cameras, TV screens, logo's and everything else that you get at a GP weekend. The only thing that I think looks a little odd are the crowds in the grandstands. Some of them are waving flags and it looks a little to animated. What I mean by this is the pitcrews and marshalls animation is really fluid and they visually look stunning. So much so that when I was having a pitstop, I looked at the guy changing my front right tyre and I thought to myself, I wonder what his name is, forgetting its only a computer game. The people waving the flags in the grandstand are very rigid on movement and look unrealistic and if anyone waved flags like that in real life then I am sure ther arm would drop of. I guess at the end of the day, its there for atmosphere and visual enhancement even if it does look a little unrealistic.

One point worth mentioning is the driver veiws. It still comes with the same view from in the cockpit as GP3 and this is still pretty awful. They have added a T-Cam view and although very good, its way to high and I would never use this view anyway. Its good it has been added as many were screaming for this. One new veiw is the helmet view. Its basically you sitting in the cockpit looking out through the visor and its the best view in my opinion. Its brilliant when it rains as the particles slide across the visor. The only downside is it is not 3D so the helmet does not appear to move about about over bumps or lean as you go through turns. Shame as this would have been fantastic.

Next sound. Pretty poor if you ask me especially after the great sound you get in F1 2001/2002. The pit radio is good if a little minimul but the engine sound is very very lame BUT it does its job.

Now for the big one, PHYSICS. Now none of us have driven an F1 car. We can get an idea but at the end of the day, none of us really know. Now I have seen both arguments for and against the physics in GP4 and F1 2001/2002. Some some GP4 drives on rails and other say F1 2001/2002 drives like a rally car being way to slidey. I can tell you now, GP4 does not drive on rails. I have been slideing around, spinning and driving all over the place. All I can say is if you think GP4 drives on rails then you are not driving hard and fast enough. Also the default setups are very safe. Tinker with them and you will get a much more responsive car. Also the tyres model has been greatly improved and when they become worn then you really have to fight to keep the car on the road. Riding the kerbs is now brilliant, realistic and can used used as part of the game. You can feel the car pitching over certain ones but taking to much kerb will unbalance the car like real. Only one area that did seem unrealistic was during the wet. The few kerbs I did ride still seemed to have plenty of grip. I really need to test this more to get a full evaluation but its slightly worrying. Overall I love the physics. I can't say how real they are but they seem good. I was getting a brilliant slide through the right hander before the slow right hander at Brazil (Turn 5 I think) but if I went in to hot I would slide to far off and if I applied to much brake, the car would start twitching and understeering with the back fighting the front. Now this is not driving on rails to me.

Computer cars are generally very very good. GP3 was famous for having great computer opponents and this has been carried over into GP4. They are aggresive, realistic but they do screw up. I am in the middle of a championship and I was at Sepang and it was wet and on lap 1, Ralf was leading but went to fast into one of the turns and just slid off. It was brilliant watching the replay as you can easily see he was going to fast for the conditions and the corner. They also run wide at times trying to outbrake you which is fun. One bad point is if they do pass say at the end of a straight, sometime they will pull infront for a split second only to have to pull out again to make a turn. Would have been better to pass and hold line. Now one very bad thing is if you are being lapped. You get the blue flags and you pull over but they sometimes get confused and won't pass. You can leave them masses of room and be right on the other side of the track but they still get confused at times. Say you are heading down a straight and towards a slow left hander. You would normally stay wide and on the outside of the turn whilst you would think the computer car would turn in and take the normal inside line. Well not always. Its like they are assuming you are going to turn in but when you don't they don't understand. Oh well, its not that bad and they are still brilliant.

Controls and setup. Well not to much trouble here despite many having problems. I got my controller working with no problem at all and I did have to fiddle a little to get the game running under 100 Opimum Performance but it was pretty basic stuff.

Other things to note are the rain effects are the best around. GP3 was famous for having good wet weather but this has been improved. It still has the silly black flag slowdown penalty. When will they get rid of this and get you to do a stop/go penalty in the pits and talking of pits, again, why do they have that stupid semi controled drive into the pits? We are capable of driving into the pits ourselves. The menu's are similar but improved and there comes a guide where one of the chaps from Arrows talks about setting up an F1 car. Fairly interesting.

Overall, I love this game and have been fighting not to play it. I am supossed to be practising for a Nascar 2k league race but I keep finding myself playing GP4. The only solution was to take a day of work to practise Nascar. Thats how good it is. I now have 4 games on my PC, GPL, Nascar 2k, Super 1 Karting and now GP4.

Oh and that 1 line I mentioned about at the start of this review,

THIS GAME IS AWSOME

My spec,

AMD Athlon 1.4
Geforce 2 GTS
Soundblaster 4.1
Win 98
Logitech Wingman Formula Force (old red one)

Any questions then just ask.

[F1Johnny]

Thanks for the review. I will buy the game now, knowing my fellow AtlasF1 posters know what they are talking about ;)

[Linus27]

Wolbo

PS2, Nascar 2K and now GP4. You will do anything to get away from GPL won't you?

:lol: Its funny you say that. I have just got a CD writer and as I was writting the review, I was downloading every track from the GPL Track database plus all the GPLEA add on cars so I can get my GPL setup with everything.

Seriously though, nice review. You're going to get flaimed by the F1 2002 fanclub.

Well, if they want to flame me then that fine, I just won't take there comments seriously. If they make a consructive post/point then fine and I will respond. I guess a lot have not even tried GP4 on the basis that GP3 was crap and so GP4 must be.

[mahelgel]

Nice review Linus27

my comments on the two games (GP4, F1-2002)

The GFX are superb in GP4, and also the tracks are generally better in GP4 than in F1-2002. I find the GFX in F1-2002 to be more "unpolished" and more crude, and as for the tracks, some i really like, and some i think are a bit off. F1-2002 runs faster on my computer though...

The sounds in GP4 does the job as you say, but could have been a bit better, but still not that bad. F1-2002 has much better sound, but i still find the enigne sound a bit to "light", the downshift sound is great though

As for handling, i'm more of a fan of the f1-2002 physics, but i guess it does slide too much compared to the real thing (but that is impossible to say for sure). I would think a bit more sticky version of the F1-2002 would be perfect. Modern F1 cars do slide a bit, but in high speed corners it lookes more stable than F1-2002 feels. GP4 feels more stable, but perhaps a bit too much grip. Also, i have a hard time finding the "perfect" setup for my joystick in GP4. Either i feel it is too little responsive, or it gets a bit to sensitive... (i know.. i should get a wheel...).

As for the AI, GP4 has the edge, but the F1-200x series has gotten better AI for each release, and it's pretty good imho. Not tried multiplayer on neither (my inet connection is slow, and i haven't had the chance to try lan), so i don't know which ones better.

To conclude, i prefer F1 2002 because i find it's handling better, and it runs smother on my computer. Also, the sound is better. The AI is acceptable, and even though some tracks are a bit off, i still find most of them to be OK. I still will run GP4 once in a while, but F1 2002 gets even more driving hours than GPL these days

[F1Johnny]

Linus27

Super 1 Karting. I have never tried it. I downloaded the demo, but it won't run. I have XP. Any thoughts?

[Linus27]

mahelgel

Good post and it just shows that what one person likes in a game another may not be that bothered about it and vica versa. F1 2001/2002 run much better on my machine also over GP4 and I agree with what you say about its graphics being unpolished and crude. At the end of the day, I guess you have to try both and see what you like and what you look for if an F1 game and see if rither fit that bill.

F1Johnny

What problems do you have. Can you explain more please? OH, also the full game is way better than the demo.

[F1Johnny]

Fancy XP just says a problem has been encountered with kart.exe and the programme will have to be closed. I guess I wil lhave to buy the full version.

How do you rate against GP4 on a fun factor grade?

[AndreasNystrom]

I think the physics feel better in F1 2002, especially if you have a FF-wheel and can feel what is going on. You feel in the FF what the car is doing, how much grip you have etc, so you dont go around sliding.

[quintin cloud]

Great Review Linus27, Last night I saw GP4 on my friends new AMD 2GHz PC with a G-Force 4 128MB Screen card, with XP and 256Mb memory, and the graphic setting were set to the max, and 1280x1024 graphics res, and we drove at Monaco, all I can say is Its out of this world !!!, the sound at I would say is as good as F1-2001. Yes the pit cooments suck, but the AI marshals waving the falg that run in and out to the track is the best.

[Linus27]

F1Johnny

One word of warning. The game may be to old to run on XP. Let me find out first before you buy. It may be OK but let me check.

AndreasNystrom

I also have a FF wheel and I can also feel what the car is doing in GP4 especially front end grip but like I have said, one man may prefere F1 2001/2002 and another may prefer GP4. Its all a matter of taste.

quintin cloud

Thanks. I hope my review helps some. Monaco is just awsome. You really have to see it to believe it. I would had liked to have seen it on your freinds machine as I bet it would had looked way better than mine.

[HardRock]

Originally posted by mahelgel
As for handling, i'm more of a fan of the f1-2002 physics, but i guess it does slide too much compared to the real thing.

That's the main reason why I prefer GP4, the car in F1 2002 slides too much, and has a
big understeer in fast corners, this is not a car set up problem is the game.

[confucius]

I have just recently formatted my HD and installed XP (previously Windows ME). Was a bit worried that GP4 wouldn't work but it seems to run fine. And yes, its a great game, although I wish you could turn off the 'pit crew waving you out' feature. I just get impatient and it gets annoying after a while. And there's a new little D/L you can get that disables the stooooooooooopid black flag "bug".

[HardRock]

Originally posted by confucius
I have just recently formatted my HD and installed XP (previously Windows ME). Was a bit worried that GP4 wouldn't work but it seems to run fine. And yes, its a great game, although I wish you could turn off the 'pit crew waving you out' feature. I just get impatient and it gets annoying after a while. And there's a new little D/L you can get that disables the stooooooooooopid black flag "bug".

Where I hate that Black Flag.

[Frederick]

Does GP4 still have all of the Data analysis tools???

you know...brake, acceleration, suspension travel all shown on graphs so you can compare laps and setups???

In all the reviews i have read this is never mentioned

[confucius]

U mean telemetry? AFAIK it does but i dunno how to use it and don't bother.

[Linus27]

confucius

Disable black flag utility??? Where?? I will go and check alphaf1.com

Frederick

Yes it still has all that data overlays.

[Linus27]

Yep found it at www.alphaf1.com under the GP4 section. Its called the GP4 disabler utility.

[mahelgel]

F1-2002 also got telemetry, but i like the GPx series better, but thats probably just because thats what i'm used to

and disabling the black flag slow down is neat... but GP4 should have had stop and go penalties, and drivethrough penalties...

[confucius]

Yup, that's the one

I haven't D/L it yet though. Let us know if its any good.

[X-ray]

The worst thing in Gp4 IMO is how far back you can pick up the slipstream of a car infront and blast by, it should be half that distance! It was the same in Gp3 and Gp3s2k, and I've never seen a patch to adjust it.

[Yoquai]

Linus27,

have you ever tried the F1 Racing Championship 2002 edition from UBISOFT Entertainment?
i just have it installed in my PC several days ago, and am still shocked with the quality of this
game (knowing that i've been playing for quite sometimes with my F1 2001 (playstation)!)

as a beginner player of sim racing games, it is obvious for me that the F1 Racing Championship (F1RC) is not comparable to F1 2001. and am curious about this F1RC compare to GP4...

would appreciate a comment from you and others, regarding this F1RC vs GP4...

thanks so much in advance,
Yoq

[Linus27]

Yoquai

2002 edition????? Unless they have released something without me knowing I don't think it exists. As for the original, F1RC, well, great looking game, especially the tracks and had a fairly nice feel to it but the computer cars were so bad, it became unplayable. They were either way to slow out of corners, crashed into the back of you or crashed into each other. The starts were a joke. Its a shame as it really was a great looking game and had massive potential.

[HardRock]

This game GP4 is awesome.
I just finish my first full season championship and I can tell you that all the tracks are amazingly real. The AI, pit stops and grafic details are great.
I have to say that this is a very system demanding game, and you need to have steering wheel to really enjoy the game.
This is the best racing game I've played for PC.
My computer is a Pentium 4 2.0 Gig, GForce 4 128 meg, Sound Blaster live card, 512 ram. 19'' High resolution monitor, Steering Wheel Thrustmaster digital no FF (I hate it), updated drivers for sound and video. Dual boot system with Windows ME and XP. Works fine with both.
I've read that some people don't like the car engine sound, but in my computer it works

[Yoquai]

Originally posted by Linus27
Yoquai

2002 edition????? Unless they have released something without me knowing I don't think it exists. As for the original, F1RC, well, great looking game, especially the tracks and had a fairly nice feel to it but the computer cars were so bad, it became unplayable. They were either way to slow out of corners, crashed into the back of you or crashed into each other. The starts were a joke. Its a shame as it really was a great looking game and had massive potential.

yes linus, it is 2002's version. they have all curent 2002 drivers line-up, current 2002 liveries (except for Williams' new HP livery), but there is no Indianapolis (US GP) track on it ! actually it is a 1999's F1RC CD with an up-dated CD for 2002's.

you're right about other cars crashed each other or into your back, i noticed that this happens mostly on the "pro" level and on the corners (i think thats because i'm too slow on some corners!). the telemetry report is cool, though i found it difficult to do the set-up and stuff (maybe because of my poor technical knowledge), and the podium ceremony is hilarious!

the other thing is, most of the time my computer would got hung during the qualification, but never have such problem during the races. talking about the (silly) qualification, i once drive Yoong's car at Hongaroring's, beginner level, got pole, and none of other driver were qualified for the race (didn't make it within the 107%), so i was alone during the race... very quite indeed! : i wonder how they could let this silly thing happened?

do you know where can i get more info about the GP4? i would appreciate if you could show me some links or something...

one more silly question, linus; does the "ABS" and "Anti-Sliding" have some effect on the speed and performance of the cars? i found it very difficult to control the car without having the ABS and A-S on. since i always won on the beginner level (but couldn't get my self well on more advance level yet), so i stick in the beginner level while the competitors are driving in "amateur, pro, or expert" level! unfair, but it gives me more challange though..

FYI, here are the driver's level they have:

beginner: 100% ABS, 100% A-S
amateur: 80% ABS, 80% A-S
pro: 40% ABS, 40% A-S
expert: 0% ABS, 0% A-S

cheers and thanks for the advices,
Yoq