F1 2011 game thread

[sswishbone]

Well my first impressions. I like the layout of the paddock now, the use of e-mail rather than the annoying agent is good, I also like how smooth the game feels, with both kers and DRS being easy to use. They have made the rain a bit more realistic though the track doesn't stay slow in the dry like real life frustratingly.

I do love how random the grid is though, just done Q1 at Melbourne and it was 1st) Me (force india), 2) perez, 3) algersuari, 4) Maldonado, 5) Kathikeyan... This could be a bizarre alternative title year this, should the results carry on being this mental I'll update here with how it pans out!

[dr-baker]

Well, I only played F1 2010 on PS3 for the first time last night, so might be a while before I catch up with F1 2011...

[MinardiFan95]

I've done the first two races (Australia and Malaysia), and from what I can gather, it's a huge step up from F1 2010. The DRS works very well in this game (haven't used KERS yet because I've only driven the HRT) and the difference in track conditions as it "rubbers up" is great - the marbles off the racing line really do affect the handling of the car. In the two races I've done, I've finished 16th in both of them, despite using a different level of difficulty for each.

I reckon that the Co-op online championships will be quite a popular feature around here.

[East Londoner]

I distinctly remember that one of the poorer features of F1 2010 was the inabilty to have an engine blow-up. Does anyone know if Codemasters have reintroduced mechanical failures into the game?

[FullMetalJack]

The newer teams are actually much further off the pace than 2010. AI is definitely more realistic.

I love the DRS and KERS, you pay the price for putting on the DRS too early, trust me.

[stupot94]

The newer teams are actually much further off the pace than 2010. AI is definitely more realistic.

I love the DRS and KERS, you pay the price for putting on the DRS too early, trust me.

Or leaving it on through Eau Rouge

[FullMetalJack]

The newer teams are actually much further off the pace than 2010. AI is definitely more realistic.

I love the DRS and KERS, you pay the price for putting on the DRS too early, trust me.

Or leaving it on through Eau Rouge

I've done that.

I can understand why it was banned now.

[MinardiFan95]

The newer teams are actually much further off the pace than 2010. AI is definitely more realistic.

I love the DRS and KERS, you pay the price for putting on the DRS too early, trust me.

I made the same mistake as Sutil in Australia - opened the DRS a bit too early coming onto the main straight. However, where as Sutil completely missed the walls, I was not so lucky, losing a front wing on the wall on the inside of the corner.

[FullMetalJack]

The newer teams are actually much further off the pace than 2010. AI is definitely more realistic.

I love the DRS and KERS, you pay the price for putting on the DRS too early, trust me.

I made the same mistake as Sutil in Australia - opened the DRS a bit too early coming onto the main straight. However, where as Sutil completely missed the walls, I was not so lucky, losing a front wing on the wall on the inside of the corner.

Same, I missed the Q1 cut because of it. I was in a Williams so it's excusable.

[AdrianSutil]

I do like how the dry lines appear when the rain stops, and the characteristics of the track evolving during the weekend. Curreny done 4 races as HRT (career) and am thoroughly impressed.

Just hope EJ doesn't appear in an interview

[AdrianSutil]

I distinctly remember that one of the poorer features of F1 2010 was the inabilty to have an engine blow-up. Does anyone know if Codemasters have reintroduced mechanical failures into the game?

In the 4 races I've done, no drivers have retired through mechanical failures. Had the safety car at Malaysia though

[Wizzie]

I do like how the dry lines appear when the rain stops...

*Cough* GP4's wet weather simulation's still one of the best ever.

[sswishbone]

Some mechanical issues are in, I am driving for force india and at china I had kers trouble so couldn't use it for six or seven laps until it was resolved.

[FullMetalJack]

I reckon we should get a few races going between us lot, I don't know how fast any of you are. Except Ed24, he's really quick.

I'm on PS3, let me know if you want to race.

[sswishbone]

X-Box 360 here, I am too inconsistent to threaten anyone's pace really

[FullMetalJack]

X-Box 360 here, I am too inconsistent to threaten anyone's pace really

You and me both.

[Shadaza]

Xbox360 here.

Getting it tomorrow, co-op season looks good if I can find some mug to play it with.

Prefrably a hot chick, but beggers can't be choosers.

[FullMetalJack]

Xbox360 here.

Getting it tomorrow, co-op season looks good if I can find some mug to play it with.

Prefrably a hot chick, but beggers can't be choosers.

If you end up teaming with a hot chick, and she beats you, you deserve a profile on this site as well.

[Stramala]

I would, but...I'm too much of a cheapskate to splash out on both F1 2011 AND XBL Gold.

[tommykl]

I've got Xbox 360, and this one, if you're lucky and have the code in the box, has online play without Xbox Live Gold (I think, I haven't tried yet).

[Shadaza]

Having bought the game today I can only say what a blast it is! Online play involves great slipstream go kart like battles and KERS and the DRS really add to the expirience. Handling is different to the beast that was F1 2010 and I feel it will take some time before I am confident enough to turn off TC and ABS.

I was almost rolling on the floor laughing at a 16 player online attempt sprint race at the India GP, no one knows the track so to see a full grid of cars fling off the track at a sudden sharp bend is very entertaining!

[AdrianSutil]

Halfway through my first year in career mode with HRT. No Kers is killing me on the straights.

Slowly getting better at the game, also always have it on legend difficulty. Started with 24th in quali and 22nd race at Melbourne. Monaco was good, 18th in quali (ahead of Maldonado lol) and finished 12th after Rosberg went Kamikazi on lap 2. More improvement at Canada (19th in quali, 14th in race) and Valencia (20th in quali and 14th in race). Hoping to snatch a point soon.

Also pushed the super softs at Canada a bit too much, picked up a puncture on the penultimate lap.

Still disappointed the A1 cars don't have mechanical problems, unless they do and I haven't noticed. But the A1 cars are realistic in overtaking, sometimes it goes wrong and you get a few retirments with cars spinning out (only 18 finished Monaco and 19 finished Canada). But overall, you really have to work hard with the tyres and setup to achieve a good time.

[BlindCaveSalamander]

Just got the game today, and I started a career with HRT. I seem to be ridiculously good on the first lap, and then fall off dramatically, although I am using Legend AI and assists. Anyway, I qualified 23rd and finished 14th at Melbourne, after holding up Heidfeld for 11th for most of the race. Then I got to Malaysia, where I, for some reason, am really competitive - I qualified 12th in the rain and came home 3rd! Not so much success to be had in China, though, I could only finish 19th there.

After attempting Turkey I got bored of having no pace, having qualified for there and China 24th, and restarted with Williams. Things didn't start out so well, as I got knocked out in Q1 in Melbourne, but another good start shot me up to about 8th or 9th, fighting with Massa and Schumacher. I pitted on the same lap as Massa, who passed me in the pits and then drove off. I stayed ahead of Schumacher, though, and held him off for the rest of the race. First it looked like I'd get 6th, but a few guys ahead pitted for a second time, leaving me with 3rd (again!). Not entirely sure why they thought that was a good idea - pretty sure they'd already used both compounds - but it left the race with a podium of Rosberg, Massa, and me, which I'm not going to question.

Then came Malaysia, and again I was surprisingly quick. Both me and Barrichello got to Q3, Rubens opting for an early run, while I went out late. He was slowest of those that had set a time when I went out, so I wasn't too hopeful, but I set 3 purple sectors and took pole while everyone else was in the pits. I wondered why that was as I cruised back to the pits, when drizzle began to fall, which I guess is the reason why.

In the race, I was under quite a bit of pressure from Webber and Hamilton, but when I pitted, it seemed that Button, who beat me in the pitstop (curse you, timid lollipop man), was my main threat. I quickly rushed back past before he got too far ahead, and again resumed holding everyone else up. Just like in Melbourne, a bunch of top cars pitted with 3 to go, leaving me to fend off Rosberg and... Perez?? Yes, Perez, he did a long stint on primes to start and somehow got the fastest lap in the process. Both cars passed me multiple times, but I set my car up for straightline speed, which came in handy as I had a habit of stuffing up the penultimate corner and having to chase them down to the hairpin. Nonetheless, I picked up the win and now am just 3 points behind Rosberg, though I don't expect to stay there for the season, despite being 16 points in front of 3rd-placed Massa.

[avaviney]

What is the current leg today?

[tommykl]

I started a career with HRT, Legend AI and only an automatic gearbox as driver aids. It's not surprising that I can't seem to be able to complete three laps before losing my front wing, but my driving style is getting a lot smoother this way.

[sswishbone]

I am currently world champion with force india, need to change the AI I think I also rolled the car with full damage on and had no damage at all

[dr-baker]

What is the current leg today?

A wooden leg named Smith.

[JeremyMcClean]

Looking at YouTube, there's a few bugs in the game such as these:

This and this and that

[AdrianSutil]

Another little update.

Silverstone is arguably my best race so far. Set the car up to cope with the turns in sector 1 and 2 to qualify 17th, ahead of Buemi and Sutil. Drove a really aggressive race, flinging the car in the turns. Was up to 6th during the stops and dropped to 12th after taking on the prime tyres. Moved up to 11th when Schumacher pitted again and finished 11th.

Similar story at Nurburgring. Another aggressive strategy saw me move from 19th to 13th at the start. Rain began to fall after my stop, so when everyone started to pit for wet tyres, I took a gamble and stayed out on slicks. I moved up to 6th before the rain got too heavy and I slipped back. On the last lasp I was 8th before Alguersuari, Schumacher and Massa pushed me down to 11th.

Hungry I qualified 19th again, and was up to 15th before my stop. Held off Buemi and Di Resta to finish 15th, nearly a lap ahead of Liuzzi.

Ran out of fuel at Belgium on the last lap, but still classified 22nd, despite running in 14th after starting 20th.

Monza was good. I went with more wing than usual for Monza, and raised the camber and toe for the Lesmo and Ascari bends. Qualified 19th after setting my quickest time on my final hot lap. Only 3.3 seconds from pole, the closest I've been all year. Finished the race in 15th, ahead of Schumacher, Perez and Sutil (my new rival challenger). Lapped Kovalainen and Trulli after both made 3 stops!

Singapore next, I like this track so hoping for my first point.

[BlindCaveSalamander]

An update on my season - qualifying in China didn't go so well, I only got to Q2 because Petrov, for whatever reason, didn't set a time, and wound up 17th. The race was rainy, though, and I charged my way into the lead on lap 1, to my own surprise. Webber was right on my tail, but after lap 2 I started pulling away and won by like 10 seconds, giving me the lead as Rosberg didn't do so well. I swear to God I did not lower the difficulty.

Turkey was much more difficult, though, I had trouble keeping pace with the Renaults and Mercedes', and wound up 9th, with Massa closing in to 17 points behind me again, while Webber won. I got through to Q2 in Spain, though, and started 12th after I couldn't be bothered going out again and trying to get into Q3. Vettel took pole and dominated for the first time this season, while I shot up to 4th and held on, increasing my lead by 4 points with Webber becoming my new challenger.

Monaco was very difficult, largely because I have a driving style that makes Lewis Hamilton look like Jenson Button. Eventually I got a lap in in qualifying, picking up 13th on the grid before coming home 4th in the race, just ahead of Webber to increase my lead to 23 points.

I'm now on 91 points, with Webber and Button tied on 68. Vettel, after scoring only 20 points from the first 4 races, has turned the wick up and is now 4th with 63 points. Massa hasn't been as competitive in the last couple races but is still 5th with 58 points. Rosberg and Hamilton are tied for 6th with 53 points after Hamilton won in Monaco, but don't expect Rosberg to stay there - he's only scored 10 points since Malaysia. Alonso is a slightly lonely 8th on 41 points, but that's largely down to some bad luck for him. Perez is still 9th with 26 points after his surprise podium in Malaysia, but Petrov looks set to take that place soon, he's only two points behind. Also, Liuzzi somehow finished 13th in Monaco - this despite it being a dry race with only 2 retirements - which means HRT is in 10th, and he's also ahead of Buemi in the drivers' standings!

I'm looking forward to the next race in Canada, Montreal is by far my favourite track and I always run strongly there with any car, in any game. After Practice 1, where I was about 4 or 5 tenths up on Vettel while using Primes, I think I might be on for another win.

[Shadaza]

Round 1 Report, Team: Wiliams Driver: Darren Older

Qualifying: P5

I always run well round Melbourne in videogames and this proved no exception. Nico Rosberg was a surprise Pole ahead of Button but undoubtably the star was Alguersuari who qualified 3rd on the Grid! Red Bull were 10th and 12th in a dissapointing session. The "Newish" teams were a long way back with the gap between Rosberg and Barrichello (18th) was larger then the gap between Barrichello and Trulli P19!

Race:P4

A goodish start put me up to 3rd whilst Rosberg and Button began to run away at the front. I was on about equal pace as Massa for the first 3 laps, however my tires wore faster then his and I made a few mistakes on my in lap that allowed Massa through.
Petrov emerged from the pits just infront of me on the next lap so I had to strike whilst he was on cold tires so I used all my KERS to pass him at the fastest corner of the track, very guttsy! I had to be on full guard to keep an inform Petrov behind me as we were both lapping faster then the leaders. Rosberg to a surprise win, his career first with Button close behind. Massa managed to keep 3rd, I was 4th and Petrov 5th. Alonso, Alguersuari, di Resta, Sutil and Heidfeld rounded out the pointscorers. No points at all for Red Bull who narrowly get ROTR over DBTOTR Michael Schumacher who finished 19th in the race winning car! IIDOTR goes to Rosberg for his first win.


In Game Unrejectifications: Rosberg, Button, Massa, Older
Petrov 1 5th, Alonso 1 6th

Round 2: Malaysia

Quallifying: P4

Despite normally struggling around Malaysia I manged to get a good set up and good DRS and KERS use put me a pleasantly surprising 4th. This time Alonso took pole just 0.045 ahead of Sebastian Buemi (!?!) as Toro Rosso continue good qualifying form. Hamilton 3rd. Red Bull slightly better but still a dissapointed 7th and 8th. With Rosberg is 13th, Button 10th and Massa 11th it will be hard work for any of the podium setters from R1 to be on the podium again. Barrichello is 17th, 1 better then last time.


Race: P13

Horrible race for me, the soft tires never really worked on race fuel so deslite leading out of the first corner I dropped back to 4th by the pitstop window with Hedifeld right on my tail, come the pitstop we magaged to get out ahead of Buemi but fell behind Heidfeld. Immediatly grip was improved on the harder tire and I was right with Heidfeld. but sure enough the tires wore out and soon I was defending hard against the Red Bull cars, until I ran wide on to the marbles and span, got a 20 second time penalty when Petrov ran as I span back across the track, Fell back even further with ruined tires and the peanlty put me 13th, when reality I was 10th on track. Alonso dominated the race since Buemi backed the pack for him on the first few laps, Hamilton was 2nd with Heidfeld 3rd. Webber, Vettel, Buemi, Petrov, Kobayashi, Sutil, Rosberg rounded out the points.

Meaning Alonso leads the championship from Rosberg, Hamilton and Button.

ROTR: Older, spinning away an easy points finish, IIDOTR Buemi, should never had been that high up. DBTOTR Massa 0 points, team mate wins.

Urejectification: Rosberg, Button, Massa, Older (AUS) Alonso, Hamilton, Heidfeld, Webber (Malaysia)
Petrov 1 5th, Vettel 1 5th, Buemi 1 6th

[VirtuaMcPolygon]

Right my first post on here. (it's amazing i've been to the main website for years but only just found the podcast! *groan*)

Is it only me but cannot beat my team mate if I play it with the AI on legend.

I was a bit of a whizz on F1 2010 but this one is mental on expert. I've resorted to putting on TC and ABS. And still i'm 1 second min behind my team mate which is glock. I'm sorry even M J FOX at the moment wouldn't be 1 second behind glock! And I'm using the 11 max bug on the roll bars!

any ideas?! or am i just cr*p >_<

[AdrianSutil]

Bump.

If anyone struggles at circuits and need good set-ups, I found this website. Helped massively with Suzuka and Belgium, the only circuits I really struggle at. The threads have what car the set-up was designed for, but they pretty much work with all teams.

http://www.racedepartment.com/f1-2011-race-setups/