F1 Challenge '99 - '02

First off, the Amazon write-up looks like it's for the console version. There is no 4-season-long campaign mode for the PC.

Now, onto the game. The sim mode has improved over F12002, though it's more of an evolutionary rather than revolutionary step. The graphics are well done, as are the tracks, though none of them seem to reflect the bumps an actual circuit has. The tire models have improved, though unless you get adventurous with your setups, don't try to hit the curbs through corners, you're almost doomed to spin. Multiplayer still lags far behind the standards set by Papyrus, you'll be lucky to get more than 6-7 cars in a race without massive lag. Like I said, it's improved over F12002, and I still think it's the best F1 sim on the PC market, but it's not quite perfect.

That being said, ISI did one thing very right: they made it very extendable. There are numerous mods available, from Group C Prototypes, ETCC, Australian V8 Supercar, BMW M3 Challenge, and others, as well as an upcoming ALMS mod that is shaping up nicely. There is also a 2003 season available, and while the single-lap qualifying is a bit of a hack (set the lap limit for qualifying to 3 laps, so you only get one flying lap, though without parc ferme, you can get away with low fuel loads and different tires/wing/suspension settings). A 2004 season is reportedly in the works as well.

It's well worth the price, assuming you can actually find a copy, as they seem to be few and far between these days (thanks again, EA). It works fantastically with my MOMO Force, and there's still something really fun about running a number of laps on an RL race weekend to get familiar with the tracks and know the trouble spots before you watch on TV. No Bahrain or Shanghai, but the rest are all there.

If you must have an F1 sim, this is the one to buy. For mods, this is also the one to buy. If you need to have the greatest sim on the market, stick with Grand Prix Legends for now, and GTR when it comes out, assuming it's as good as the demo makes it seem like it will be.

For more mod information and downloads, check out Blackhole Motorsports: http://www.bhmotorsports.com/


EA Sports F1 Challenge '99--'02 review   January 16, 2004
 0 out of 17 found this review helpful

After reading the positive reviews I thought I would give this one a try. This game sucks. It does not even come close to Sierra's Nascar 2003.(which is awesome) The graphics are poor, and the whole feel of it is very low grade. I do not recommend this game even if you get it for half price. Total waste of money!


The best F1 racing game ever!   October 3, 2003
 7 out of 8 found this review helpful

This game rocks. This is the best of F1 series and I think it was the last F1 game with EA. It has great graphics, good sound, and nice cars. There are also mods for this game and they are even better. I always play the mods now. But the game itself is very good. There are plenty of cars, there areplenty of tracks, and there are few different camera angles. I like the 3rd first person view. You don't need super great computer for this game so you should get this game. My recommendation is only Pentium III 500 or higher, 128MB ram, and at least about Nvidia TNT2 16MB, Radeon 7000 or higher. This game should work on all decent computers. This game also has great multiplayer mode. I think this game is a must buy and the mods are definetly worth it for free too.