I specifically asked Dwayne to put me down to review F1 25 for one reason: Because I sat herein November last year and told y’all that sim racing wasn’t for me. And that piece was written after trying one F1 game and multiple Gran Turismo games. I’ve always enjoyed watching F1, and I watch the hell out of Formula 1: Drive to Survive on Netflix. It just never translated to the games.In that piece, I said this:“When I play a racing game? I don’t want to follow the line, draft behind opponents to slingshot around, or any of that. I want to line up, press the gas, hit a cool-ass drift or two, and break out. That’s fun to me. The technique and minutiae of racing in game form just aren’t.”I’m here to tell November Anthony to shut the hell up. I’ve found the sim racing game that clicked with me. And it was F1 25 that did it.‘F1 25’s PRESENTATION IS OFF THE CHARTSI had to go back and fire up F1 24 because I don’t remember the game feeling as energetic as F1 25 does. From menus to in-game action, this game makes an effort to pull you in. It makes a huge impact on the experience. That time spent on presentation shows itself the most in the game’s story mode, “Braking Point,” which is Part 3 of a larger story. The documentary-style storytelling, mixed with the cutscenes, makes each moment feel tense. And all the characters are well-written. Playing through the mode made me want to go back and check out the other parts of the story.“Braking Point” doesn’t force you into doing whole races to complete the story. Rather, it drops you off mid-race with a couple of objectives to complete. One had me hold off the pack for my teammate to catch up and take over after some issues with my own car. After a certain point, I took over as that teammate, and it was my job to make up the ground and then go on to finish the race. Being able to be responsible for both sides of that was a pretty awesome touch.the racing in ‘f1 25’ is top-notchEnjoying that only goes as far as the racing will take me. And I finally saw the fun in racing sim-style. Once I got a handle on braking and letting off the throttle on turns before accelerating out? I began to slowly understand the strategy of the races. Everything wasn’t just “floor it and get to first place.” And the CPU does a great job of trying to cut you off when you attempt to overtake them. There was a lot of back and forth for me in a number of races where I would concede an overtake attempt just to be able to pull it off because I did better coming around a turn later.I always felt rewarded for being smart on the track. That incentivized me to lean into the more technical aspects of the race. Timing my pit stops correctly and managing the condition of my tires didn’t feel tiresome. I knew coming out of the pits that as long as I made the right decisions, I had a shot to regain position or at least get a podium finish.I was most impressed by the way the cars handled. There is a clear difference when you’re using tires meant for adverse weather conditions versus a dry day. When you complete a turn and go too hard accelerating out, you can feel the skid of the car and the tires pulling at the track. The controller is an extension of the car, and the adaptive triggers on the PS5 greatly enhance the experience. Even in the career mode, starting in F2, I can tell the difference in the cars at that level versus F1.i can admit when i’m wrongSo, coming into this game as a relative newbie, I’m sure there are longstanding gripes with the series that longtime fans have. Having only put any time into one game in the series prior to this, I can’t speak to an overall evolution from past entries to this one. What I can say, though, is that for those who are on the fence about this style of game, as I was, or those who are just looking for a great entry point, F1 25 is perfect for you. If you’re willing to really lean into how races actually work and the management that goes on during them, you’ll have a great time.Verdict: Highly RecommendedF1 25 is available now on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. A code was provided by the publisher for review. Reviewed on PS5.The post ‘F1 25’ Is My “Welcome to Sim Racing” Moment, and I’m Loving It (Review) appeared first on VICE.