Though its predecessor had a “much stronger” entry into video game charts in the UK, Eidos Montreal’s Deus Ex: Mankind Divided still managed to debut as the number one selling UK title among all platforms as per Gfk Chart-Track.

The difference in impact is more due to the disparity in current gen console owners compared to previous gen as the market at the time was “close to double the current installed base”. F1 2016 is in second place followed by No Man’s Sky and Overwatch.

Another new debut is Madden NFL 17 at fifth followed by Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Asseto Corsa debuted for consoles at eighth place with Grand Theft Auto 5 at ninth. Attack on Titan: Wings of Freedom rounds out the top ten as the fourth new debut for the week.

What are your thoughts on the diversity of this week’s top ten especially compared to last week? Let us know in the comments below.

It’s still interesting to note just how visually, there’s not a whole lot of graphical uniformity across different versions of F1 2016. The EGO Engine 3.0 which drives the visuals behind this year and last year’s edition is actually a modified version of the Neon Engine seen in Colin McRae: Dirt and it’s meant for more realistic physics and damage simulation. It was developed using Sony’s PhyreEngine and is used primarily to create larger scale environments. At the end of the day, the name of the game is realistic racing. Even if F1 2016 doesn’t adhere to the same level of quality across different versions, how does it perform to accommodate its engine’s goals?

Let’s look at the console versions first. As expected, both versions target 60 FPS with the PS4 version running at 1080p resolution. The Xbox One version is at a lower horizontal resolution (vertical is still 1080p) and unfortunately, unlike recent games like DOOM and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, there’s no temporal anti-aliasing to really mask the difference in image quality. You would probably balk at an anti-aliasing solution from those games being used for F1 2016 (and it’s there – just not on consoles like with those games) but the point is that if such a temporal component were used, there would be almost no noticeable difference between the image quality of both console versions. In its absence, it’s the PS4 version that wins out with its crisper and sharper image quality.

The console versions instead use SMAA to get rid of jaggies. Another thing in common is that even while targeting 60 FPS and not necessarily being locked at said frame rate, both versions suffer their fair share of frame drops. You’ll notice some heavy drops throughout and it’s odd that neither can really maintain a clear 60 FPS. We expect future patches to try and improve this because while it’s not unplayable, it most certainly detracts from the F1 2016 experience.

Then again, as with older racing sims and even till now, it’s the PC which offers the most graphically reliable performance. The PC version of F1 2016 is no exception. Its various graphical settings are pretty wide-ranging, giving you the ability to set post processing, motion blur strength, crowd details, mirror details, screen space reflections, vehicle reflections, skid marks, how the skid marks blend together and much more.

Performance-wise, we took F1 2016 for a spin on our usual test configuration – an Intel Core-i7 5960x with 16 GB DDR3 memory. The CPU choice helps avoid any bottle-necking and tests were further conducted on a variety of different graphics cards at 1080p, 1440p and 4K resolutions to determine how will optimized F1 2016 is across the board. The average frame rates can be observed below:

1080p:

GTX 1080: 115fps

R9 390x: 74fps

1440p:

GTX 1080: 95fps

R9 390x: 56fps

4K:

GTX 1080: 56fps

R9 390x: 34fps

We’re satisfied as a whole with the PC performance for F1 2016, especially considering the graphical options available. However, as noted above, we’re not exactly blown away by the quality across multiple platforms. Granted, games like Forza Motorsport and DriveClub have the advantage when they’re developed with specific platforms and hardware in mind. However, look at Forza 6: Apex and compare it to Forza Motorsport 6. While the former definitely showcases graphical improvements, the latter doesn’t really lag behind all that much in terms of image quality, frame rate performance, anti-aliasing and attention to detail.

With F1 2016, it’s plain as day that the PC version is superior – which was expected but still. The PC version has better anisotropic filtering than the console versions which results in more detailed objects and textures. Shadow quality is also superior and temporal anti-aliasing is indeed included in the PC version (while absolutely absent on consoles). Even the overall quality of the anti-aliasing is better than the console versions’ level of SMAA.

Again, in terms of gameplay and fun, F1 2016 is a definite step up over previous iterations. The combination of realistic racing and damage models goes a long way towards immersing the player in the experience, even if it’s not going to exactly dominate over the likes of the upcoming Forza Horizon 3 or Gran Turismo Sport. The PC version is the winner in this marathon and if you’re gaming on consoles, then it’s the PS4 version which wins out thanks to its higher resolution and superior image quality. The Xbox One version settles into last place but it’s a shame to see both console versions suffering from frame rate hitches. Hopefully as the months wear on, we see patches from Codemasters to improve performance on consoles.

F1 2016 is now available for the PS4, Xbox One and PC. For more on the game, check out our full review of the game here. If you have any questions about the game, let us know in the comments section below.

Racing Tips And Tricks:

For anyone who has ever played an F1 game in the past will have next to no problems adjusting to the game’s handling model and car control. However newcomers will definitely face issues. F1 requires a decent amount of track knowledge, you are expected to know the braking points, high speed sectors and while you do this, also push hard to achieve that all important pole position.

Fortunately for newcomers, the game provides a racing line that will help you understand the track. The racing line indicator changes its color according to the section in which you are racing. For example, the color will change to green to indicate that you need to put the pedal down, changing from green to yellow indicates you need to slow down a bit and a red indicates you need to brake hard. This will require practice and a lot of focus if you are new to the series but once you get hold if it, racing is a complete blast.

Furthermore, you will also find video guides for customisation, car upgrades, career mode and R&D upgrades.

Achievements And Trophy Guide:

Below you will find video guides for most trophies and achievements in the game.

Trophy Collector

Acquire every trophy in F1 2016

Compound The Matter

Fit all 3 available tyre compounds in a race

From 6:29 in the video below:

Determined

Accept a contract with Renault, Sauber or Manor

Challenger

Accept a contract with Force India, Toro Rosso, McLaren or Haas

Tough At The Top

Accept a contract with Red Bull, Williams, Ferrari or Mercedes

Itchy Feet

Accept a contract with another team mid season

Part Of The Programme

Meet your Research and Development Engineer

From 6:12 in the video below:

Seasoned Veteran

Complete a full season of 21 races in Career or Championship Season

Practice Makes Perfect

Complete your first Practice Programme

From 3:36 in the video below:

Practice Perfectionist

Achieve a perfect result in a Practice Programme

From 3:40 in the video below:

Up To Temperature

Complete a formation lap with your tyres at optimal temperature

From 3:35 in the video below:

Making Progress

Have 50% of the vehicle upgrades applied

Thanks To The Team

Purchase all upgrades for your car

Come Out On Top

Win a Career Rivalry

Unbeaten

Win all Career rivalries in a Season

It’s Not Over Yet

Reach the mid point of the season leading the Drivers’ Championship

Set-up Refined

Take part in any session having made a set-up change via the Setup option in the garage.

From 2:36 in the video below:

Form An Orderly Queue

Complete a penalty free formation lap

From 3:44 in the video below:

Down To The Wire

Win the Drivers’ Championship at the final race of the season

Overachiever

Spend at least 75% of your season being rated as ‘Overachieving’ by your team

Turning Things Around

Improve your performance to elevate yourself out of the ‘Underachieving’ zone

Top 3

From 0:33 in the video below:

Achieve a podium finish in any game mode

Just The Beginning

Take your first win in any full season

From 10:31 in the video below:

Best Seat In The House

Take pole position

From 11:08 in the video below:

World Champion

Win the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship

Constructors’ Champion

Win the Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship

Car Control

Complete any race with all assists disabled

From 3:05 in the video below:

From Dawn Till Dusk

Set-up your own Time of Day scenario and complete a race

From 5:34 in the video below:

Look But Don’t Stare

Complete 10 penalty free race starts with the system set to ‘Manual’

Launchmaster

Gain 10 or more positions between the start and end of Sector 1

Follow That Car

Complete 10 penalty free laps behind the Safety Car

Trust In Your Team

Pit under the Safety Car onto the team’s suggested strategy

Top That

Set the fastest time in all 3 Practice sessions, take pole position and win the Grand Prix

From 8:12 in the video below:

Ultimate Challenge

Complete a race in Pro Career

Carefully Does It

Achieve a podium finish with damage set to ‘Simulation’ without damaging your car

From 9:08 in the video below:

Not In The Corners

Politely ask your Race Engineer to stop talking to you out on track

Time To Trial

Set a clean lap in any Time Trial

From 8:05 in the video below:

Time Flies

Set a clean lap in Time Trial at 10 circuits

Blue Markings

Set wet times in Time Trial at 5 circuits

Save For A Rainy Day

Create and race your own weather scenario

From 0:38 in the video below:

Second Chance

Use a Flashback

From 7:29 in the video below:

Saved The Day

Resume a race using a Mid Session Save

Tweaking

Use the Multi Function Display to adjust your set-up while on track

From 7:00 in the video below:

Taking It Online

Complete an Online Race

From 6:56 in the video below:

Competitive Streak

Complete 5 Online Races

Winning Streak

Win a total of 5 Online Races

Saved Online Championship

Save an Online Championship

A Truly Global Sport

Complete 10 laps at the new Baku circuit

Brake For The Line

With Pit Assist disabled, perform 5 penalty free pit stops

So You Think You’re Fast?

Win a 25% + distance race against ‘Ultimate’ AI opponents

Hello Games’ No Man’s Sky had a decent run at the top of the UK game charts since its debut but Codemasters’ F1 2016 finally managed to dethrone it for the week ending August 20th. According to Gfk Chart-Track, F1 2016 is now the number one selling game in the UK across all platforms while No Man’s Sky moves down to second place.

LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Overwatch and Grand Theft Auto 5 pretty much maintain their spots from weeks past, remaining in third, fourth and fifth place respectively. Rocket League is in sixth place followed by FIFA 16, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, DOOM and Minecraft: Xbox Edition rounding out the rest of the top ten.

It’s been a feverish few months for releases but things are most certainly going to heat up in September when ReCore, Forza Horizon 3, Destiny: Rise of Iron and more release. What will next week hold for UK charts? Stay tuned to find out.

This year’s game, though, is an incredible return to form. It is, simply put, the F1 game we should always have gotten. The actual racing bits are as good as ever, backed by Codemasters’ incredible pedigree and years of experience in this area, but what sells this one is the sheer amount of content, all authentic, all compelling, and all exciting and dynamic, that is available to the player.

"This year’s game, though, is an incredible return to form. It is, simply put, the F1 game we should always have gotten."

The star of the show this time around is the career mode, naturally, and what a career mode it is. Returning after its absence last year, the career mode this time around bends over backwards to accommodate the player. You get to make your own avatar and character, you get to choose the team you want to race for, you get to choose your own teammate, and getting a different experience each time around. You can choose to play for Mercedes, and get a two season long career mode where you help the team maintain its hegemony. Or you could play as Manor, and get a longer career, as you attempt to chart Manor’s rise to the top. The objectives change, the length changes, the experience changes. The career mode is great enough to warrant multiple playthroughs, and get a different experience each time- it alone would justify the package.

This career mode apart, there is also a great practice mode, which lets you accumulate resource points spent on improving your car, with variable objectives available to the player again, as well as an accurate portrayal of the actual track you will be racing on later – including the time of the day – so there are no unexpected and unpleasant surprises for you when you have to take to the track for the real thing.

Arguably as great as the litany of modes in the game, however, is the sheer authenticity on display here. ‘Authentic’ is a word that is used a lot for sports game- but here, it is actually earned, with Codemasters going to ridiculous lengths and extremes to recreate the motorsport accurately beyond any reasonable belief. From the handling of the cars to the tracks themselves, to even the pitboards, everything is painstakingly rendered to seem as real and authentic as possible- if you’re an F1 fan, the sense of authenticity alone should be enough to sell you on this game.

"If you’re an F1 fan, the sense of authenticity alone should be enough to sell you on this game."

Of course, none of this would matter if the game didn’t play well, if the actual racing part of the equation was broken. Thankfully, Codemasters has a storied history of making great racing games, and that shows here- the racing engine feels absolutely on point, the handling is accurate enough to not lose the sense of realism the game is trying to sell, but fun enough to still be engaging, and there are few things as satisfying as shifting the gear successfully while holding down the gear in a neck and neck race. Tight track design – faithfully recreated from the real world – and very accurate physics, along with some very neat weather effects (I don’t remember the last time I found a racing game as challenging as when I had to race in wet weather in F1 2016) all come together to create an addictive racing experience that will definitely stand out to motorsport enthusiasts, in spite of some puzzling AI programming that can often detract from the experience. The racing is certainly engaging enough that it will end up picking up some casual stragglers along the way too.

That last bit is particularly true because of multiple concessions that the game makes to casual racing fans. For instance, F1 2016 permits time strapped players, or simply players who don’t love the sport enough, and just want to jump in for some quick races, to race in short 3 or 5 lap races, with appropriately shortened practice sessions and qualifiers too. Even hardcore F1 enthusiasts will probably appreciate not having to spend an obscene amount of time on one single race- the feedback is immediate, and the player can make more progress in a single sitting this way, too.

"The racing is certainly engaging enough that it will end up picking up some casual stragglers along the way too."

All of this is wrapped up, however, in a rather baffling UI that I cannot say I am personally a fan of. A virtual paddock interface presents the player with messages between races, notifications about teammates and rivals, new opportunities and improvements available, and the like. The interface is a bit obtuse, and adding to the problem is some unskippable cutscenes that the player is often subjected to. It also looks a bit rough, and on the whole definitely feels like the least appealing and most unfinished part of the experience.

All said and done, however, the few warts can’t take away from just how fun and fully realized this game is- the sheer level of improvement here over last year’s game is enough to give a series fan a sense of whiplash. Authentic and engaging enough for the motorsport diehard, and yet fun and accessible enough for the casual racing game fan, F1 2016 is one of the best recreations of a sport in a video game that I have yet seen- and is an easy recommendation for all racing game fans.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 4.

If you own an Nvidia GPU, and you are planning on playing some of the biggest PC game releases of late – No Man’s Sky, the Paragon beta, or the upcoming Deus Ex: Mankind Divided – then you should ensure you download the latest GeForce update, because it includes updated driver support for all of these games.

These drivers are version number 372.54, and are not in beta- among other things, they add SLI Crossfire support for No Man’s Sky, as well as optimizations for the Paragon beta, and the as yet unreleased F1 2016. They also add support for GTX 10-series mobile GPUs, so it’s a good update all around that you should definitely get around to downloading as soon as possible- not that you needed me to tell you that. You can download them from here.

Paragon is available in beta on PS4 and PC; No Man’s Sky is available on PS4 and PC, although the PC version is pending several substantial updates for technical optimization; Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is due to launch on PC, PS4, and Xbox One on August 23.

F1 2016 promises a “massive step forward for the franchise.” What was the thought process going into development, especially with the level of competition these days?

We knew we had a really strong starting point with F1 2015, then from there we wanted to expand on the features in the game. The focus for this game is to give the player the full F1 experience in Career taking inspiration from the sport wherever possible. The vision for the new Career mode was to take it beyond anything we had previously achieved and to make the player feel really connected to the game and always motivated to want to keep playing.Beyond that we wanted to include key elements of the sport and community requested features.

What were the biggest criticisms facing previous F1 games? How does F1 2016 improve on this to attract both old and new racers?

We paid a lot of attention to the feedback we got from our community while developing F1 2016. Their main request was for a Career mode, then Safety Car and Formation lap were also heavily requested. So we set out to give the fans the features they really cared about. The overall presentation and structure of the Career will attract both new and old fans, plus to help the less hardcore F1 fan we’ve also added some tutorials to explain the nuances and intricacies of the sport.

"Ultimately it’s the players on track performance, development of the car and results in their driver rivalries which affect player standing within the teams."

Career mode will allow players to create their own avatar, earn contracts, choose teams and whatnot. Can you offer some examples as to some common scenarios they’ll face?

We wanted to give the player total team freedom at the start of the game.Because of this the player will face different challenges depending on the team they select, and also based on how they want to progress their Career. Driving for a top team will require the player to immediately start winning races and scoring big points.Over achieving for a top team is tough, and the team will also require the player to keep developing and progressing the car. If the player starts to slip they will be at risk of losing their drive with the team. Alternatively, if the player starts with a lower performing team the goals will be more realistic; earn a point, make it in to Qualifying 2, upgrade the car etc. however, the player may want to move team, in which case meeting the teams’ goals will help attract contract offers from other teams. It’s entirely up to the player which path they take to becoming a World Champion, but they will be challenged accordingly no matter which path they choose to take when starting their 10-year Career.

How much will one’s decisions affect their overall progress? Is there a general conclusion to arrive at or will players keep going to maintain their status?

Ultimately it’s the players on track performance, development of the car and results in their driver rivalries which affect player standing within the teams. Working hard and hitting the goals the team set could see you becoming the 1^st driver. Achieving 1^st driver status sees the player gaining more upgrade points to allow them to have an edge over their team-mate. Repeated failure to meet goals will result in the player being ejected from the team.

How long will it take players to complete the ten seasons of Career Mode?

That very much depends on the length of the sessions and level of investment the player wants to put in to each session. At the extreme end of the scale the player could participate in 3 full length practice sessions, all 3 qualifying sessions and a full distance race. Over 10 seasons that’s a huge amount of gameplay.For those who want a more condensed experience there’s the option to skip some of the practice sessions, run One Shot Qualifying an as short as a 5 lap race. We want to allow the player to scale the experience to suit the time they have available to them to play F1.

"The safety car was actually the second most requested feature by our community for F1 2016.We knew we wanted to include it in the game, as we feel representing the sport accurately is very important in a licensed title."

How many tracks, drivers and settings can players look forward to?

With F1 2016 being the official game of the 2016 season, players can look forward to 21 circuits, including the stunning new Baku track and the return of a fan favorite ofHockenheim. We also have the entire grid of 22 drivers, plus the addition of the new American Haas team who have entered the sport this season.

Are there any other modes that will offer challenges to players?

In the sport of Formula One, practice sessions are incredibly important to the teams.We wanted to take inspiration from what the teams do during practice and then create some new cool features around them for the game. When playing Career in F1 2016 the player will be presented with three practice programs which will allow them to learn the circuit, gauge what sort of qualifying pace we can expect, which allows us to set realistic goals and also learn how tire wear functions. Taking part in the tire wear test allows us to create a bespoke pit stop strategy for the player based around how they drive the car and wear the tires specifically for that day’s weather conditions.

What can you tell us about the re-introduction of Safety Car along with Virtual Safety Car?

The safety car was actually the second most requested feature by our community for F1 2016.We knew we wanted to include it in the game, as we feel representing the sport accurately is very important in a licensed title. We also wanted to include it as it brings the excitement of the restart when the safety car returns to the pit lane. It generates a sense of tension and really mixes up the race, often affecting where drivers finish the race. The Virtual Safety Car is a new initiative in Formula One and one something we knew would work well in the game. We’ve marked the tracks up accordingly and have the notification boards around the circuit. As in the real sport, the Virtual Safety Car neutralizes the race, with each driver not being permitted to gain time. In the game, the driver must race to a delta time to avoid being penalized.

Can you tell us about the online modes and how they’ve been improved for F1 2016?

There are two significant improvements to the online portion of the game this year. The first is an increase in the maximum number of permitted human players. Previously the maximum we allowed was 16. In F1 2016 you can now fill the grid with 22 human players.

To complement the fact that players can now run 22 player faces in this way, we’ve added in a Saveable Championship feature. This allows participants to save a copy of the lobby list, which then retains the drivers and constructors’ points as well as players/teams selected etc. Another thing which the feature covers is being able to substitute a player. Should someone not be able to make it online to take part in a league race, the host can substitute them for another player who is online during any race, and then add them back later.

"We reward the player for multiple things while out on track, including clean laps, sector times, correct DRS usage etc., but the main tests are part of the Practice Programs."

A rich car upgrade system along with a “deep practice development programme which mirrors the tests carried out by the teams in real life” has been promised. How will this prepare players for the more difficult races in the game?

With the player now having the ability to work on upgrading their car, taking one of the slower teams to the top, we wanted to give the player interesting and also educational tests to take part in with which we can feed the system and allow the player to collect upgrade points.

We reward the player for multiple things while out on track, including clean laps, sector times, correct DRS usage etc., but the main tests are part of the Practice Programs. The three practice programs are designed to not only fill practice with some cool gameplay, but also to help educate the player on how to drive the car and on intricacies of the sport of Formula One. The first test is a track acclimatization test where the player is challenged to drive through gates with the correct line and speed. This helps to teach them how to race a circuit correctly, but also generates points for them to spend on upgrading the car. Another test is a hot lap which allows us to understand the level of performance the player can achieve in Qualifying. Again there is a target which we expect the player to hit, or even exceed for extra points. The final test is a tire wear test. We challenge the player to keep the tires within a range of wear while still maintaining a good race pace. This test helps with consistency and also highlights to the player areas of the circuit where they’re doing additional wear to their tires.

These elements along with Qualifying, Race positions and the rivalry battle which takes place all feed in to the Career and upgrade system.

Will the game run at 1080p and 60fps on both the PS4 and Xbox One? 

We’ll be running 60fps on both platforms, 1080p on PS4 and 900p on Xbox One.

Is there anything else you want to tell us before we let you go?

In F1 2016 we set out to create the most comprehensive Formula One title to date. We discussed the features with our community much earlier in the development cycle and we believe we’ve created the game which not only we wanted to make, but also the game with the fans craved and truly deserved. Thank you to anyone who has purchased any of our F1 games in the past, and we sincerely hope you have as much fun playing F1 2016 as we did making it.

One big feature of this generation of console games has been the emphasis on resolution- apparently, the number of dots and lines that your console displays on your TV screen is now extremely important. Both Sony and Microsoft have propagated the problem with their announcements, statements, and marketing, and with the upcoming launch of the PS4 NEO and the Xbox One Scorpio, the problem only looks to get worse, as we’ll probably be in for a lot of backtracking by fanboys on both sides of the console war.

But until that happens, with the Scorpio presumably turning the tables on PlayStation, we are stuck with the consoles we have now. And the consoles we have now see the PlayStation 4 being indisputably more powerful than the Xbox One- something that is evident in how most multiplatform games manage to run at a higher resolution on Sony’s system.

Take, for instance, the upcoming F1 2016– in an interview with GamingBolt, Codemasters confirmed that the game will run at 1080p on PS4, but only 900p on the Xbox One. Happily, it sounds like they chose to take a hit on the resolution for the Xbox One version to maintain their 60fps framerate- which is far more important for a racing game anyway.

“We’ll be running 60fps on both platforms, 1080p on PS4 and 900p on Xbox One,” they said.

In the end, I’m far more excited about the 60 frames per second, as well as the litany of new and returning gameplay modes, confirmed for F1 2016, which launches later this month on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

F1 2016, this year’s entry by Codemasters in the long running F1 series of video games, continues to sound better and better- Codemasters have now confirmed, for example, that the game will have a Multiplayer Championship mode, to allow up to 22 racers to compete against each other over the course of an entire F1 season- a pretty cool merging of the video game with its real world license.

Announcing the feature, Codemasters said: “We’re very happy to be announcing that F1 2016 will feature multiplayer championship, a brand new game mode that allows up to 22 players to compete against each other over the course of a season. This new mode allows you to race as team-mates or to battle it out as different teams, as well as offering great possibilities for league play. Championships are, of course, saveable, so you can fight it out over the course of many weeks.”

F1 2016 is due out on August 19 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.

Codemasters are readying the launch of F1 2016, and it seems like the new game will be fa more full featured than last year’s entry, which, in spite of having the core gameplay loop down, was otherwise disappointingly bare.

Among the new additions in this year’s game will be a full featured Career mode that lasts 10 seasons (!), a car development program where you earn points through practice sessions, multiple kinds of tyre compounds, and the ability to switch them out ahead of each race, aggressive AI, a brand new, far more realistic damage system, and new physics for driving under extreme weather conditions.

There will also be a whole lot of other features, all of which should come together to deliver what should be a rather authentic racing sim experience- the influx of features modes, and content, in conjunction with Codemasters’ mastery of moment to moment racing, should deliver what should be one of the best racing games of the year.

[Autosport, via NeoGAF]