I’m a lifelong Ferrari fan, but I’m firmly in the “anyone but Red Bull” camp this year. With Max Verstappen sweeping almost every Formula 1 race, his lead feels unassailable, and I’m desperately hoping for a post-summer break shake-up. F1 Manager 2023 imagines a more competitive season, rewriting history without directly driving, unlike F1 23. This isn’t the upgrade I hoped for over its predecessor, but Frontier’s annual management sim shows the team principal life can offer thrills.
Let’s begin with 2023’s most significant addition, ‘Race Replay.’ By replicating how each real-life race plays out as the season progresses, this new mode challenges you to achieve better results than your chosen team’s actual performance. Replays make for some fun alternate history and by providing options away from career mode, it feels less bare and more varied than F1 Manager 2022. It adds another layer of moreishness to what Frontier brought before, creating a form of roleplaying challenge against your real-world idols.
That’s further boosted by ‘Race Moments’ based on pivotal race incidents, creating entertaining challenges like securing a McLaren double podium at Silverstone after the safety car emerged. I’m enjoying these moments and it’s pleasing to know those will continue being added as the real-life season progresses. Disappointing then that Frontier gated twelve quirkier scenarios behind the Deluxe Edition. These offer entertaining but unrealistic scenarios, like tasking you with securing Haas and Nico Hulkenberg’s first F1 podium in the excellently named ‘Viva Haas Vegas.’
