F1 World Grand Prix for the Nintendo 64
Created | Updated Apr 15, 2002
You're lined up in your box, a bead of sweat trickles down your forehead, you take another drink, you hear the other cars revving, the tension mounts, 1-2-3-4-5 red lights go on and then a pause that seems forever. Then all the lights go out. You slam down the A button too soon and the computer opponents speed into the distance leaving you to crash into the nearest tyre wall and end up in 22nd place where you remain madly spinning off corners for the rest of the race. Finally you get somewhere (say 19th place), an opponent is straight ahead you hit the Z Button… but where is the turbo mega rocket that’s fires up the enemy's backside and blows their suspension to smithereens? Simple, you don't have one. Too much playing Mario kart 64. You must get better with practice I'm sure.
At first when I saw this game I thought "Oh no, I hope this isn't going to be another naff racing game for the N64, All the other realistic ones were dreadful (apart from Top Gear Rally)." I was in…FOR A SHOCK (to be said in a Jeremy Clarkson manner).
After a very good intro (except without the music that is usually associated with the grand prix, you know, the Dum Diggi Dum Diggi Diggi De Dum Job) the game rolls into a screen with, AAGGGGHHHH, OPTIONS! These come in the form of a bar at the side of the screen with buttons. The options are actually game modes: Exhibition, Grand Prix, Challenge, Time Trial and 2 Player.
The Exhibition mode is a single race where you get to choose which track you use. There are a lot of options in this pre-race area, mainly to do with the race and how the screen will look when you're rocketing down the track. There are 2 odd (as in strange) options here. The first is the ability to set the position where you start, so you can set yourself first and win the race easily. The other weird option is when you are in the driver selection screen; choose the television cameraman (or camerawoman) and start the race. You see all the cars racing as if it was on T.V. but you don't get to drive any of the cars. This means you get to watch the race happen, It might sound exciting but believe me; it isn't. Anyway, presume you choose a proper racer, you press the start button and you go to a screen called the paddock. This is where you adjust the car settings, You don't have to adjust them but it does help. Unfortunately if you are not an absolute racing fanatic you may be puzzled by some of the options like changing the angle of the front and back wing to make the car go faster or changing between Benetton and Goodyear tyres. Once you are finished changing settings (you don't have to) you press the exit button. Why it's called the exit button and not the start button I don't know but once you've pressed it you go on to the race.
The Grand Prix option is, well, The Grand Prix! Other than the subtle name change the Grand Prix mode is different to Exhibition mode in many ways. For example you don’t get to choose which track you start on, and you always start in 22nd place the first time. Also you don't get to be the cameraman. I don't see why you would want to though. There are four different files for saving you Grand Prixs' (Well if you laugh at that why don't you try and find the plural of Grand Prix… see it's hard isn't It.). As you will have probably guessed you can only have 1 driver that you play as, so you're stuck with him until the end. Before a Grand Prix race you have much the same options as Exhibition mode plus a few more. These are Friday practice, Saturday practice, Qualifying (funnily enough it seem to insist you do four laps here), Warm up and Grand Prix. These are all fairly self-explanatory so I won't go in to them. After all this the actual races are much the same as Exhibition mode.
Challenge mode is a little bit different from normal. It's a little bit like a tutorial except with challenges like "gain a few places while the others go into the pits" Although it explains this in full before the race in the form of a very swish intro.
Time Trial is another rather plain name. No points for guessing what it does.
2-player is… OK enough of the blatantly obvious names. Strangely the default setting for 2-player mode is vertically split, but you can change it to horizontal.
When you're actually racing the default settings make the car just a tad over responsive but you can set the car up differently. The Tag Heuer official timing is good because it's the same as on telly. I tried the game with a rumble Pak but it doesn't take much effect, it only rumbles slightly even when you crash into a concrete wall at 147 mph (which would make some effect on the car if damage was turned on, once my brother had broken the suspension, Annihilated the gear box, lost the engine, Destroyed the front and back wing, had run out of fuel and worn out the tyres. Amazingly he could still drive the thing at 100+ mph, until the tyres shot off like missiles and he remained at a solid 2 mph, and then, and only then, he was waved off with a black flag.).
Over all I'd say this game is better than Top Gear Rally. It's got all the proper timing, Tons of options for those who like them, is relatively easy for someone who is not a complete F-1 fan to pick up and play. I'm sure the cars would handle better with a steering wheel. Unfortunately you don't get Murry Walker shouting his head off with excitement and Martin Brundle prompting him that it's only the warm-up lap, or indeed any commentary at all but you do get this Scottish bloke telling you that you've lost your engine. Supposedly he's telling you this over a radio link. That aside it's still a flippin' marvellous game although I'm worried about it's long time appeal. Hmmmm…
Ah, well. There's still the 2-player game.
My rating? A rip-roaring 90%
