What’s new and overhauled in F1 2016 video game?

Codemasters has quite the motorsports pedigree and its previous F1 games were rather fantastic. So some people were rather disappointed with the way F1 2015, the first current-gen F1 game, turned out.

It wasn’t necessarily a bad game by any stretch, but fans lamented the loss of features compared to previous entries.

Fortunately, F1 2016 looks like it’s on the right track (heh) at the very least. So here’s what you should expect from the new game, which is set for an August release.

Upping the simulator ante

The latest F1 title seems to be going all-out in an attempt to win over motorsport enthusiasts, starting with the introduction of a formation lap and manual starts.

Yes, the game will allow you to conduct a warm-up lap to warm your tyres and brakes, reflecting the real-world practice of course.

Manual starts are also self-explanatory for the most part, as you’ll need to “engage your clutch and balance your revs” to pull away. Do it too soon and you’ll jump start, but get it all wrong and you’ll be swarmed by cars as the anti-stall tech kicks in.

Speaking of manual controls, the team confirmed that manual control will take place in the pitlane too, giving you the chance to save a bit of time by braking a bit later. However, the introduction of a new five second pit stop penalty means you don’t want to exceed the speed limit.

Another neat pit-related feature is the addition of actual pit boards, delivering proper information as you whizz down the start/finish straight.

Those aren’t the only realistic on-track features either, as Codemasters has confirmed that the Virtual Safety Car and traditional Safety Car will make appearances too.

The main mode gets a proper overhaul

One of the biggest disappointments in F1 2015 was the barebones season mode, merely being a series of race weekends instead of anything more substantial.

Anyway, players have a rather interesting career mode in F1 2016, spanning ten seasons and starring your own created driver.

In a cool touch, there’s also a car upgrade system that sees you earning points throughout a race weekend to upgrade the various aspects of your vehicle. Points are earned by doing “track acclimatisation tests” during race weekends.

The career mode also lets you start at different teams, with each team having different expectations. Don’t like your current team? Then you have the ability to sign a contract with a new team throughout the career mode.

What else is new?

Codemasters has also revealed several other additions and tweaks, such as improved “car damage sensitivity” and wheel tethers – both should make for more realistic thrills and spills.

Other additions include the introduction of a full 22 car field for online racing, the new Baku racetrack, “remodelled” kerbs and surfacing, “brand new physics” and a time-of-day editor to adjust start times for races.