F1 2016 review - A fine digital version of the sport

There’s a wonderful slickness to F1 2016. Every aspect of it is polished to a mirror sheen. It’s all bright and sparkling, a wonderful representation of the pinnacle of the motorsport world that it’s attempting to digitally ape.

But that slickness is sometimes a bit too slick, a bit too precise. Much like the sport itself, sometimes things are a little too processional. It’s fun, but it’s not raw, razor sharp excitement.

This is very much on the simulation side of things. Even with the difficult settings turned down, you’re rarely in a race for your life. Instead you’re carefully working your way through the pack.

There are a number of different modes here, but the main thrust of the experience comes from the career mode.

Here you pick one of the drivers from the 2016 season and take them through the entire year. There’s practice, qualifying, and then the race itself.

You can pick one of four different control styles when you start. There are two tilt options and two touch options. One of each lets you control the acceleration while the other takes that out of your hands.

There are also a variety of assists to keep you on the right track. If you’re looking for a more authentic play through - or as authentic as you can get on a phone - then you can turn these off.

The controls work well though, especially the touch ones. Although if you’re a fan of tilting then you’ll find them more than up to the task.

Which is good, because the task is pretty large. Especially when you take on the full career mode. You can ramp up the number of laps and really lose yourself in the tarmac.

There isn’t that much management here, which some might find a little upsetting. It does seem a bit of a misstep, especially since so much of F1 happens in the pit stops rather than on the track itself.

Interestingly you can jump from race to race in the calendar. And a custom season option lets you put your favourite races into one big session.

There are weekly events and time trials and all sorts of other things going on as well. But at the heart of it all is the driving. And the driving is pretty damn good.

It’s rarely edge of the seat, it’s rarely teeth-gnashingly exciting, but it is an awful lot of fun. My advice would be turn the difficulty as high up as you can manage. Then you’ll be getting the most out of the game.

Overall this is a good looking, solid, engaging, and entertaining driving sim. And it’s definitely a step in the right direction for F1 gaming on mobile.