We reported earlier today Codemaster’s first iPhone title, F1 2009, will be making its way to the App Store very soon. Lucky for you, we got a special preview of the game in action for you to check out before F1 2009’s release.
F1 2009 for the iPhone / iPod Touch puts players in the driver’s seat of a Formula One race car. Graphically, the game is pretty impressive and runs smooth. There’s a great sense of speed that many driving titles for the iPhone don’t have. The sound quality of F1 2009 is also quite impressive, especially when driving over different terrain. There are 3 camera views to choose from (chase camera, cockpit view, first-person view), but as you’ll see in my video, I prefered the cockpit view.
The amount of tracks included in F1 2009 is also something that should be noted. A total of 17 tracks are available for iPhone speed demons to race on. There are also a total of 20 drivers to choose from, but there was no benefit choosing one driver over another besides driving with your favorite Formula One driver. One thing F1 2009 was light on were race types. In total, there are “7” race types, but in reality there are two: Time Trial and Endurance, both with increasing number of laps. Thankfully, Codemasters included leaderboards so you can compare with your friends or people nearby. This will certainly help with the title’s replay value. There’s also the ability to share your race times on Facebook and Twitter.
The controls were responsive and there’s even an option to change the sensitivity of the game to fit your driving style. As you drive, a line helps in guiding you through the course, as well as indicating when you should hit the gas or brake. This feature helped a great deal in being able to properly make turns without smacking into a wall.
Overall, I was pleased with Codemasters’ first offering to the iPhone market. They made a solid racing title from a well known series. Even though there aren’t many race types, there are still a high number of tracks to race that will keep any racing fan busy for a while. No word yet on release date of pricing for F1 2009, but judging by this preview build, I don’t see why it couldn’t be released in the next few weeks.
[Update: F1 2009 was released on the App Store late last night. If you like what you see, you can grab it HERE for $6.99]