F1 24’s much-needed career mode update makes what is otherwise a fairly safe entry worth playing.
Codemasters is back with the latest annual entry in its EA Sports Formula 1 racing game series. For F1 24, the developer has elected to focus its efforts on a much-needed Career mode overhaul, which is good news for players who enjoy the series’ offline offerings, and I’m happy to report that Codemasters has seriously improved this aspect of the game.
F1 24’s Career mode is a massive step up over the last few years, introducing or refining several elements for a much richer experience overall. Simply being able to (finally) play as a real-world F1 or F2 driver is huge, allowing players to don the lid of their favorite driver and take their future career in any number of directions. On top of that, additions like secret meetings between yourself and other teams, on-track objectives, strict team expectations, and an improved rivalry system all bolster a highly replayable single-player mode.
Some slick track updates, in terms of both aesthetics and accuracy, are welcome, and the return of the Chinese Grand Prix reintroduces a fantastic race track to the game. Furthermore, the addition of the new Challenge Career mode adds moreish, bite-sized seasons on a rotating basis.
However, beyond these changes and updates, F1 24 remains largely identical to the last few entries in most other areas. F1 World (outside of the new Fanzone feature), My Team, and other single-player offerings remain largely unchanged. Elsewhere, driver AI seems to have taken a bit of a step back, feeling a little too clinical and, well, boring, during race events. F1 24 is still an entry that’s well worth playing, especially if you’ve been pining for a better Career mode, but don’t expect much else new beyond that. Raring to go
So, F1 24’s big draw is its overhauled Career mode – and what an upgrade this is over previous years. Simply put, Driver Career now feels like the fully fleshed-out mode it always should have been. This is helped in no small part by the ability to play as your favorite real-world driver and the team they occupy for the 2024 season.
You’ll start a Driver Career by signing a new contract with your team. At this first step you’ll set targets for yourself, including the Driver Rating you’re aiming for by season’s end. There’s a welcome bit of risk versus reward here; higher ratings will naturally be harder to obtain but will make you a more enticing prospect for other teams in future seasons. On that note, I recommend picking a backmarker driver like Zhou Guanyu or Alex Albon, as I felt that working your way up from the back of the pack provided the most rewarding and challenging career experience.
The added features of this year’s Career mode do a great job of making you feel less like you’re going through the motions. You can still influence your team’s research and development by spending resource points accumulated over a race weekend, but there’s now a huge focus on developing your driver, too.
One avenue where this comes into play is the expanded rivalry system. For one, your teammate is now treated as a rival from the start, and you’ll be expected to outperform them each race weekend. And as the season progresses, you’ll also develop rivalries with other drivers and even constructors. I feel this does a great job of cementing a season-long narrative for your driver.
