So, I managed to go along to the press reveal event for this game last Thursday and have a go at both the Classic mode and the 2013 modes, but only on Time Trial no racing allowed. A couple of things to say
The Classic cars, especially the 1980s cars, are really fun to drive. No more challenging or realistic than the 2013 cars even on a 360 pad with no driving aids, but you can really throw them into the corners and feel the tyres about to let go in the high speed turns. Its really good fun, I have to admit. They feel like giant, super-powered go-karts.
1980s cars have a basic yellow HUD similar to the old basic graphics overlays from the actual Eighties while the 1990s cars have a yellow and blue HUD thats clearly modelled after the old F1Digital+ graphics from the late 90s to 2002, which is pretty cool. Each car drives differently, has unique engine sounds, gear and brake-balance changing animations and a unique tachometer on the external HUD thats different for each car.
Jerez looked great, really well lit and with neat touches like a load of hot air balloons in the background. Its also a heck of a lot of fun to drive with the high-speed sweepers and the fast pre-Donnelly right-kink before the final hairpin. The 1980s cars did have a semi-sepia screen filter placed on them, which we were told would make the game reflect the old analogue broadcasts of the day. Not sure thats the best decision, though.
The 2013 cars dont feel very different to 2012 to me. My very first lap of the game, I went to Time Trial mode, switched all assists off and could push pretty easily. One of my biggest disappointments was that it still seems as though cheesing the setup is the best way to go. 1-1 ride heights and 11-11 spring stiffness make the car quicker without any obvious drawbacks. All the setup options, driving aids, etc are still the same. No TV cameras in replay mode, still. Also no obvious ability to change cars or save in replay mode. No obvious changes to damage either.
There was a bug with the Sauber I drove looking as though it was producing spray from the front tyres constantly around a dry lap, but thatll surely be fixed before release. No other obvious issues or invisible walls, but I did launch the car into a wheelie, Mark Webber style when I turned into Copse corner to early and ran over the inside kerbs.
I can happily report that tyre scaling is back, as is the ability to race a full or custom championship in Grand Prix mode. Theyve also finally fixed the mirrors in cockpit view, so now you can actually see a car coming up behind you. The AI and penalty system are supposed to be improved, but I couldnt test that. You can now save the game mid-session or mid-race, which is good, but long-overdue.
Talked to one of devs who said there wasnt any major changes to online for this year, but he did say that penalties can be turned off by hosts. No mention of anything about the career mode either. Thats all I can write right now. Might be able to give more detailed feedback later on tonight.