F1 23: Daniel Ricciardo return date revealed

The F1 23 X account (formerly known as Twitter) has revealed when the Honey Badger will be in the game. Since returning to Formula 1 for the Hungarian Grand Prix, fans have been wondering when Ricciardo will be available in the F1 series. So when will Daniel Ricciardo be available to race in F1 23?

Daniel Ricciardo return date revealed

After teasing the return of Daniel Ricciardo earlier this week, a post on X from the F1 game account has revealed when the Australian will be available in F1 23.

In the post, Ricciardo is seen playing F1 23 on a sim rig. After selecting AlphaTauri, his avatar appears on screen, with Ricciardo announcing he’s back in the game.

The post confirms Ricciardo will be in F1 23 from 29 August, meaning we have to wait until after the Dutch Grand Prix to go racing as the Honey Badger. This also suggests that we’ll have to wait another week for the next F1 23 patch.

Considering F1 23 patches are normally released on race weeks, it’s surprising to see Ricciardo not coming to the game for another week, especially considering we’re coming off the summer break.

EA's announcement comes after Codemasters confirmed Daniel Ricciardo's return to us back in June.

EA reveal how Playtesting helped develop F1 23

Codemasters’ Creative Director, Gavin Cooper, recently revealed how crucial EA Playtesting was to the development of F1 23. From adding shortcuts to the F1 World menu screens to shaping the balance of the Braking Point 2 story, giving players early access to the game allowed for feedback to be used to fix major issues before release.

F1 23 was the first time EA Playtesting was used for the development of the F1 games, but Cooper hinted that the process would be used again for future F1 games. This could possibly start with F1 24 next year.

With many racing titles now developed by Codemasters, EA Playtesting could be used across the board to help gain vital feedback from players. Playtesting was also used for Criterion’s Need for Speed Unbound last year and could be used for Codemasters' WRC 23 before release later this year.

You can read the full interview with Gavin Cooper and Senior User Experience Researcher at Electronic Arts Playtesting, Alistair Wood, here.