The launch of the F1 season is mere weeks away, and the video game replication of that will be thrust out around the same time. Today though it’s all about the new game mode that will be present in F1 2020 as Codemasters unveil My Team.
An innovative new game feature that will be making a debut in F1 2020, My Team will let you create, manage, drive and win as you utilise driver-manager mechanics to become the 11th Team on the grid, battling it out with the established drivers and teams already in place.
My Team will hit the grid by allowing players to create their own driver, a unique visual identity and brand for their team by picking a livery, creating their colour scheme and setting a team logo. From here they’re responsible for signing their first key sponsor, which will fund the opportunity to sign a real power unit supplier and second driver from the F2 grid of 2019.
Starting in humble surroundings, you’ll find that initially you will have fewer resources and limited equipment, but as things progress your facilities will improve and grow, letting you become a fully-fledged professional F1 team, challenging for the Drivers and Constructors’ Championships.
Off the track action is key in My team and before unveiling the new car, players will face the media to answer a series of questions ranging from car performance to race predictions. The responses you make here will have a direct impact on the initial strength of the car, so it is vital to think about every single answer. And once you have done, your car can be unveiled to the world.
Another key off-track focus will be that of managing your team during the week. How you allocate and use the time available will affect everything for the upcoming race weekend and so you’ll need to weigh up how to handle staff activities, and the generation of funds which will in turn keep the team motivated. The season timeline shows the events coming-up which play through and boost performance, but team activities often have pros and cons – sending a driver to a fitness camp could have a knock-on effect such as less time dedicated to sponsors.
My Team will also allow you to mess around and negotiate with the driver market when choosing a team-mate. You’ll be able to compare F1 and F2 stars based on Experience, Racecraft, Awareness and Pace, alongside their market value and the level of acclaim they bring to the team. These stats and driver skills have been built from comprehensive real-world data gathered from the past five F1 and F2 seasons, and drivers will receive stats updates during the season, with these delivered directly into the game based on their 2020 real-world race performances.
“My Team is a feature that both the studio and our community have wanted for some time,” said Lee Mather, F1® Franchise Game Director at Codemasters. “My Team thrusts the player into the world of F1® with its unique driver-manager experience. We know our players are going to love this new feature.”
“It’s been an enlightening experience using real-world data to create the driver stats. They will divide opinion, and we know our players will spend hours debating them,” said Paul Jeal, F1® Franchise Director at Codemasters. “We’re excited to see how the stats evolve when the drivers hit the track, and the knock-on effect this will have in the game.”
F1 2020 will be hitting the Xbox One, PS4, PC and Google Stadia grids come 10th July 2020 – unless you grab that Michael Schumacher edition and receive the early access it provides. And don’t forget, F1 2020 will also be providing some nifty split-screen action too.
