F1 25, the official video game of the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship, is here. While it delivers some positive handling changes and takes a step forward graphically, the new My Team experience doesn't quite hit the mark.

With the 2025 Formula One season now eight races in, F1 25 is finally in the hands of racing enthusiasts everywhere. The good news is that there's been a significant update to one of the most popular game modes, a refinement of the handling model, three new reverse tracks, a big upgrade to the game's appearance, and more. The bad news is that, while most of the upgrades work brilliantly, perhaps the biggest one of all – the reimagining of My Team – doesn't quite make the overtake stick.

F1 25's handling and physics model are definitely an evolution compared to F1 24 and they deliver some key changes. After spending a fair bit of time with F1 25, albeit mostly in default setups due to time constraints, the most obvious change you'll feel as soon as you jump into the car is that the super pointy front end that F1 24 became known for isn't really there anymore; instead, it's been replaced by some inherent understeer at corner entry.

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Personally, I think this is a step in the right direction, and it makes the car a bit more predictable, and much more stable at corner entry. This change also probably (I say probably as I've never driven a real-life Formula 1 car, sadly) brings the handling model more in line with real life, as you often hear F1 drivers talk about the current era of cars being more understeer-y – although not if your name's Max Verstappen, who apparently likes a really pointy front end.

In fact, stability is a key theme in F1 25, as there's also a slight increase in traction, particularly at corner exit, giving you even more confidence to put your foot down and push the limits. Although this does make the cars more stable in high and medium speed corners, it does make it more difficult to nail the slow speed corners, as the added understeer, combined with a slight increase in instability in mid-corner and more dangerous kerbs (more on that later), means these cars feel more clumsy than ever at slow speeds. Which is, again, probably more akin to how a real-life F1 car behaves.

The cars are slower in F1 25, without a doubt, I've found I'm between five- tenths and one second slower on Time Trial, depending on the circuit, which is probably due to the fact that you have to drive the cars like F1 cars to get the best lap time, in my short time with the game anyway. The 'flick' technique, which was a fast yet unrealistic way of getting lap time in F1 24, thankfully, isn't nearly as effective in F1 25, and in races especially, you'll find that your tyres will go off very quickly if you're doing that consistently. Obviously, I'm a decent sim racer and absolutely not an esports driver, so pro players may well find a new, unrealistic way of getting lap time after the game is realised, but I wasn't able to find one!

Speaking of tyres, overall tyre wear has increased significantly compared to F1 24, and the sliding scale in terms of grip is much harsher as they wear. When you get to 30%, 40%, 50% and then 60% wear, you'll notice a huge loss of traction at corner exit, loss of braking performance, and tumbling lap times, which should add some much-needed strategy options during races, as some races will definitely be faster with a two-stop strategy. Kerbs are also much harsher this time around, and on tracks like Imola, Singapore and Suzuka, they're particularly dangerous; although there are some tracks where the kerbs are noticeably flatter, like Austria, Australia and Bahrain, for example, (mostly the ones which have been LIDAR scanned) and you'll need to attack them in order to get the best lap time.

As much as players want it to be, F1 games will never be full-on simulation racing games like Assetto Corsa or iRacing; this is a game for the masses, the Drive to Survive and F1 Movie fans, and it needs to be accessible enough that anyone can jump in and play. But F1 25's handling model does feel like a significant upgrade, and the changes that have been made this year are certainly positive, in my opinion. It's not F1 23, but it's not F1 24 either, and it's probably the most balanced model we've seen yet.

The game's AI has taken some flak over the last few years, either for being too aggressive and causing collisions, or not being aggressive enough and being too easy to overtake, and I think this year there's a decent balance between the two, although it's not perfect. The AI will defend from moves up to a point, but will also give you room if you're side-by-side and will often be happy to be squeezed out, so I'd say it's probably slightly on the too-easy side, from what I can make out with the short time I've had with the game anyway, but not by much.

F1 25 is comfortably the best-looking F1 game ever, with a number of enhancements, big and small, leading to significant graphical improvements. The five updated tracks – Bahrain, Miami, Melbourne, Suzuka and Imola – which have been rebuilt with the use of LIDAR technology supplied by FOM and F1 from race weekends, are absolutely stunning, and this really adds to the immersion when you're blasting around, even at over 200mph.

The tracks themselves feature some reprofiling of corners, new kerbs, more accurate sponsor boards and more realistic surroundings. There's also been some improved lighting effects, which might seem like a small thing, but it's actually made a huge difference in how the game looks, particularly in daytime races, which are now much brighter and vibrant. For PC players, you can also play F1 25 with Path Tracing for the very first time, if you've got a powerful enough PC, of course. I don't, so I couldn't try this out.

When EA Sports announced that three reverse tracks would be coming to F1 25 – Silverstone, Zandvoort and Red Bull Ring – I didn't really feel excited about it, if I'm honest. But, I have to say, after spending more time with the game, I think they're a superb addition, with Austria and Zandvoort in particular being excellent tracks to race in reverse, and they'll provide a unique challenge even for the most experienced sim racers out there.

In my F1 24 review, I said that one of my favourite things about the game was the addition of the real-life radio messages that played out after wins, podiums, race finishes and crashes, and I'm delighted to say that EA Sports has almost doubled the amount of lines for these moments, including adding some lines from team principals too, which is a really nice touch.

On a personal note, one of my absolute favourite things about F1 25 is the addition of a Braking Assist Cue option in the Accessibility menu, which feeds a beep into your ear when you need to brake for a corner. I've been working really hard and putting in the hours to stop using the racing line, but one of the hardest things about not having it on is having no reference point for braking, but this new addition is an absolute game changer.

EA Sports' biggest marketing push for F1 25 was My Team 2.0, a complete redesign and reimagining of the popular My Team game mode. This year, instead of being an owner-driver, you'll be just the owner, managing an entire team with more detail and depth than ever before, as well as racing as one of your two employed drivers every race weekend. But, for me, it doesn't quite hit the mark.

Let's talk about the positives first because this is, without doubt, the most detailed and deep My Team experience to date. There's always something to do, and there are menus, submenus, and sub-submenus across the three main departments – Engineering, Personnel, and Corporate – where you manage the development of the car, negotiate driver contracts, manage your workforce, manage your budget in line with the cost cap (yes, it's in the game!) and even manage sponsor negotiations.

It sounds like a lot to juggle – and it is – but there are handy prompts that appear when you really need to do something, and there's always the virtual help manual in the Team HQ if you get stuck. Then there's the superb Decal Editor, which is a really nice addition that will give players the chance to be creative and create the car design they really want, rather than having to settle for a predetermined option.

But being solely the owner of the team has impacted my enjoyment of actually driving the car, which should be the main focus of an F1 game. The great thing about My Team was how immersive it felt; even if it was ridiculous and unrealistic to be an owner-driver of an F1 team, getting wins, podiums, and points with the car felt super rewarding and immersive because it was me driving the car.

When you start a new My Team save in F1 25, you have a limited choice of non-customisable, middle-aged owner avatars that might, or might not, look like you. So there's already a bit of a disconnect there. Then, when choosing which driver you want to drive as each weekend – which in my case was Franco Colapinto or Juan Manual Correa – you're then thrown into the situation where you are now the driver you employ, and not the owner, which completely breaks the immersion and, even after getting a good result, I struggled to feel any satisfaction, because it's not me driving the car. Wasn't that the whole point?

EA Sports and Codemasters have clearly put a lot of effort into this reimagining, and the mode itself is now the in-depth, comprehensive management experience that players were crying out for. However, I can't help feeling that keeping the driver-owner concept would have been a much better experience, particularly when you're driving the car. The mode delivers on the in-depth experience players wanted, but the fantasy of taking podiums as an F1 driver has well and truly been ruined.

Overall, F1 25 features a number of improvements compared to F1 24, with improved handling, realism, graphics, gameplay options, and customisation. It has a more balanced handling and physics model, improved visuals, more accurate tracks and excellent reverse circuits. However, the reimagining of the popular My Team mode didn't quite work for me, despite it being by far the most detailed and in-depth ever, and I can see it being a love-or-hate scenario with the community.

F1 25 review score: 4/5