Frontier Developments’ foray into the world of officially licenced Formula 1 management returns for a second game, with several new features and game mechanics set to make F1 Manager 2023 an improvement on its predecessor.
Race Replay in F1 Manager 2023 explained
One of F1 Manager 2023’s key new features is Race Replay, which allows players to participate in several scenarios from the real-world 2023 F1 season. The scenarios are completely based on the real F1 races; so the weather will change at the same point as the real race; teams will have the same tyre allocation available and AI drivers will use the same strategy as they did in the real race.
Race Replay was showcased during an official F1 Manager 2023 livestream, displaying the new mode in action in a race at Miami Gardens, simulating this year’s Miami Grand Prix. Taking control of Ferrari was F1 Manager 2023’s Community Manager Steve James, whose aim was to better the fifth and seventh-place finishes achieved by Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc respectively.
There are two types of Race Replay to tackle: Starting Grid and Race Moment. Starting Grid is self-explanatory: it lets you take control of the selected scenario from the very start of the race. Race Moment, however, drops you in at a crucial moment in the race for a team and driver, seeing if you can react quickly enough to change the course of the race in your favour.
F1 Manager 2023’s Race Replay: Starting Grid mode
Race Replay is featured on the main menu alongside ‘New Career’, ‘Exclusive Scenarios’ and the obligatory Settings, Credits etc menus. From there, you can select which round of the 2023 season you’d like to re-live and then you can choose to try a Starting Grid or Race Moment scenario.
You can select any of the teams for a Starting Grid scenario and attempt to best that squad’s performance from the real-world event.
From then on, gameplay will be familiar to F1 Manager 2022 players, with very similar graphics, sounds and strategic options at your disposal. Tyre wear has been reworked slightly, however, with tyre carcass and surface temperature monitoring required. Overheating is bad for grip, so how aggressively you instruct your driver to drive will affect the longevity of your tyres.
During the race, you’ll see an icon on the top right of the screen marked ‘Objective’. This shows whether you are currently on course to beat your selected team’s result from the real-world Grand Prix or not, with a post-race results menu displaying the differences.
With Race Replay, Frontier Developments has aimed to deliver a new game mode which F1 Manager 2023 players can dip into quickly via a couple of menus rather than going through the rigmarole of factory upgrades, staff management and parts development, allowing a more immediate F1 Manager experience.
New Race Replay Starting Grid scenarios will be added after every Grand Prix.
F1 Manager 2023’s Race Replay: Race Moment mode
Also showcased during the livestream was a Race Moment scenario. Playing similarly to Starting Grid, Race Moments are curated events during a Grand Prix that are simulated in-game.
For example, for the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne’s Albert Park, you’re tasked with helping Oscar Piastri claim a top-10 finish in his home race. Starting on lap 29 with worn tyres, Piastri must hold off the chasing pack on fresher rubber – replaced after earlier safety cars and red flag interruptions.
With a specific target, players must use all their strategic nous to complete their goal with the tools at their disposal (including team orders). Also, the race positions and time gaps will be the same as they were in the real-world Grand Prix at the start of the scenario, with the tyres available the same as those the real race teams had – crucial information when it comes to potential pitstops.
Race Moments are intended to be short and sharp – even shorter than the Starting Grid Race Replays – and should be the purest form of F1 Manager 2023 gameplay.
As with Starting Grid, a new Race Moment will be added after every Grand Prix during the 2023 season.
F1 Manager 2023 release date
F1 Manager 2023 is available to pre-order now, with three unique Race Moment scenarios available to players who pre-order F1 Manager 2023 now, with 12 Exclusive Scenarios available to players who order the Deluxe Edition of the game.
The digital version of F1 Manager 2023 will release on the 31st of July 2023. The Deluxe Edition will allow players to play the game from the 27th of July 2023. Physical copies will also be made available on the 31st of August, according to an Amazon listing (Full disclosure: this may not be correct).
Are you looking forward to playing F1 Manager 2023? Do you think it looks like a step forward over F1 Manager 2022? Let us know in the comments below.
