Ever since Nigel Mansell won the Grand Prix last season, racing fans all over the UK have been subjected to a seemingly never-ending stream of racing sims. Whether they are sprite based games like the Lotus series or vector based a-la Formula 1 Grand Prix, one thing is certain - we aren't likely to see an end to these in the near future!
Now, Team 17 have made their fourth journey into the world of budget software with their contribution to the racing genre. F17 Challenge is a sprite based race based around the Formula 1 World Championship. The player (yes, sadly this is a one player game only) is pitted against 21 opponents, each with their own driving styles and abilities, racing over 16 of the world's most difficult and famous circuits in a host of weather conditions (allowing the game to accurately represent the UK with a rain-soaked track!).
Before you start the game, you have the option to choose one of four different cars, each one suited to different types of tracks. However, beware of what car you choose as you can't change cars during a championship competition! There is also the obligatory choice of control methods of either manual or automatic gears and what control method is to be used for acceleration. You can also change the preset names of all the opponents which, unlike other games of this ilk, are names of people from within the software industry as opposed to names from the racing world, so instead of racing against the preset names of staff from Commodore, Team 17 and so on, you can play (in name, at least) against all your friends and beat the pants off them!
As with some of the more realistic racing sims, your car is not indestructible and there is an on-screen indicator giving you details of how much damage your car has taken. A nice touch here is that once a certain damage level has been reached, the car's performance begins to suffer and you'll find your rate of acceleration slower or your maximum speed reduced. To repair the damage, all you need to do is to pull in to the pit and watch the animated crew repair your car before your very eyes!
One nice touch that you rarely find in driving games is that the computer- controller cars are fallible! Unlike most driving games, if you collide with another car, you are left standing still as you watch your opponent ride off into the sunset. Not so with F17 as not only do the computerised cars take damage as well, but you do actually see the other cars on the roadside that have dropped out of the race due to damage! It's nothing major, but it does add that extra dimension to the game giving the championship a more realistic feel (just wait and see how many cars crash when you race on the Japanese circuit!).
The difficulty curve seems to be set just right allowing first time players to settle into the game quickly, but with all of the difficulty options and the choice of cars, more advanced players can still find the game challenging.
Graphically the game is good, but not exceptional, although the road scrolls by quite smoothly and is fast enough for any speed junkie, and the effect when your car spins out of control (through 360 degrees) is quite amazing to watch. However, obvious comparisons are made here with the Lotus Trilogy and F17 is no where near as smooth or fast as it's more well-known rival.
Sound again is good with a plethora of great music tracks and some atmospheric and suitably vroomy sound effects, although better use of the Amiga's stereo sound could have been made, as the car effects are, for the most part, relegated to just one channel.
However, good graphics and sound maketh not a game and it is very playable. I found myself playing this for hours, trying to become world champion, only to have my dreams shattered by a drunken driver in the car in front (probably one of the Team 17 drivers!).
It's not a brilliant game and it's been done before so many times that I think the genre is getting rather overcrowded, but this is one of the better games of it's type. It probably would have failed as a full-price game, but at this budget price, it's certainly worth a look. Pity there's no two-player option, but you can't have everything!
