F1 Race Stars

If F1 Race Stars hadn’t crippled itself in solo play with an artificial challenge, it would’ve surprised everyone with award season material. It’s still a fine racing title and filled to the brim with variety and entertainment though, which gets beautifully presented and implemented in tons of exciting elements. It’s not F1 as it once was, but it’s different in a good way.

Ultimately, F1 Race Stars is a solid racing game that plays it safe. Whether this is because of the license or something else is unknown, but its paltry list of modes and features just can’t trump Mario Kart. However, considering how much of a head start Nintendo’s racing series got, I look forward to all the improvements that Codemasters will be bringing in the (inevitable) follow-up next season

There's just enough style in F1 Race Stars to make it stand on its own.

For a caricature to succeed it must capture the likeness of the original but exaggerate it in a way that raises a smile. But F1 Race Stars rarely achieves this. It’s a failed caricature, its cute and charming appearance totally undermined by its frustrating and frequently bland gameplay. Sometimes nice games finish in last place.

F1 Race Stars is a game that makes clever use of its license. It takes all of the sport's real-world teams and drivers, and slaps them into a colourful karting game. But while the title initially appears tailor made for children, it quickly transpires that there's a lot more to the arcade racer.

F1 Race Stars isn’t going to set you back a great deal of cash. The game retails at £29.99 on release, meaning this is a worthwhile investment as we head into the Christmas holiday. Codemasters has produced a remarkably upbeat karting title that puts the feel-good into a license that is often bogged down by its own intricacy. Throw in a few friends and an evening of online multiplayer, you might just have yourself a starting grid worth gearing up for.

Formula One is a pretty serious sport, so the cartoon stylings of F1 Race Stars is something that's surprisingly out of the ordinary. And although the kart racing sub genre has taken a variety of shapes from the grandaddy of them all, Super Mario Kart and the excellent Crash Team Racing, to a whole host of other half-arsed shovelware with 'kart' slapped on the end of the title, F1 Race Stars is a slightly different prospect since it's based on real-life racing personalities with real-world li...