STACK #166 Aug 2018

GAMES FEATURE

visit stack.com.au

wanting a driver who shows a certain type of character when being interviewed. Showing sportsmanship or showmanship will be important when trying to negotiate a better deal with your current team, or with a new team. The answers which the player gives can also motivate departments within the team, help with contract negotiations or improve your reputation. As I’ve already touched upon, the player can now pick the team which they want to move to, and can then negotiate themselves a contract, or renegotiate with their current team. Contract negotiations can take place 4 times during a season. F1 2018 has had a significant visual uplift. We’ve added a lot of elements, which all work together to create the strongest visual representation of Formula 1 that we’ve ever produced. Going in to more detail, we’ve added What kind of ‘enhanced visuals’ can players expect?

We spoke with F1 2018 game director Lee Mather to find out what Formula 1 fans can expect from this year’s instalment. LIFE IN THE FAST LANE

This year we want the player to be in full control of their career direction

environmental mist/fog, as air has a density and that affects what we see. We’ve also added heat haze, track mirage

performance in the previous session, that weekend, the season, other drivers and teams, and how things are

What are some of the major improvements over last year’s game? For F1 2018 we’ve continued to build upon our incredibly successful Career mode, giving the player an even more authentic and complete F1 experience. This year we want the player to be in full control of their Career direction,

effects, new engine heat haze, off racing line dirt kick-up and finally some new depth of field technology. Together, all of these enhancements have made a significant difference to how F1 2018 looks, compared to F1 2017.

going with your current team. The answers which the player gives will

have a wide range of outcomes.

We were inspired by the real sport, to take in to account the character of the player, with some teams

and how they’re perceived by the teams and the press. This obviously leads me to one of the biggest additions to the game this year, the press. Throughout your Career you’ll face the press. Interview topics will cover multiple areas, ranging from

What was involved in including the player-managed Energy Recovery System (ERS) in the new game? For the physics and handling team to be able to replicate the Energy Recovery System effectively, they first spent some time scrutinising the rules and technical regulations. We’ve modelled it to harvest and deploy realistically, and to work with the same restrictions as in real F1. We even go as far as harvesting

Lee Mather with Red Bull F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo

different amounts from the various components which make up the system. We also had to work out how best to give the player control over the deployment

of the system. We’ve given the player access to 5 deployment modes, starting with zero deployment, and going up to a hot lap mode, which is best used for a flying qualifying lap.

• F1 2018 is out Aug 24

018

jbhifi.com.au

AUGUST 2018