F1 Manager 2023 has long been in the sights of fans after a mixed first release from Frontier Developments. Now that it is finally out fans everywhere can enjoy the new game which features plenty of tweaks and improvements from last year.
In F1 Manager 2023 you are team principal of a Formula 1 team and need to take decisions on staffing, drivers, facilities, and car development. There is a lot going on and it can seem quite daunting, but our ultimate guide is here to take you through everything you need to know about F1 Manager 2023!
You can get F1 Manager 23 now on Fanatical and use code F1MRG at checkout to get 19% off.
Latest News - Update 1.9 out now
Update 1.9 brings some much-needed bug fixes to F1 Manager 2023, but it's the new features that steal the limelight.
Along with reworking the penalty system during races, Update 1.9 introduces new difficulty settings for both AI Car Development and the AI Race Sim, allowing players to tweak the difficulty of their game more precisely.
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+ 6Check out the full Update 1.9 patch notes here.
F1 Manager 2023 review
F1 Manager 2023 takes last year's game and improves on it in several ways. From more competitive AI management to deeper cost cap challenges the game is a big step forward.
However it very much looks and feels the same as last year's title. This will leave some fans frustrated, but under the surface, the game is greatly improved. You can read our full review here.
Staffing up
Once you are in place as the boss of your favourite team you will want to get the right staff members in place around you. Some teams, like Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes, already have very good staff members but others can certainly be improved on.
click to enlarge+ 6You will need a Technical Chief, a Head of Aerodynamics, two Race Engineers, and a Sporting Director to help drive your team to glory and you can check out our tips on which ones to hire below:
The Technical Chief and Head of Aero will determine the quality of each part and their effectiveness on the car. Your Race Engineers handle driver communication and build relationships with them, a solid pairing here can lift the level of both of them.
The Sporting Director is new this year, and manages the training and focus of your pitstop crew. We will come onto that in a moment!
Drivers
You will also want to carefully consider your drivers. You need three in total, one for each car plus a reserve. However, this year F2 & F3 are being fully simulated in the background, leading to driver development there. That means you may be better off leaving your favourite youngster in the junior ranks before promoting them to a full seat.
click to enlarge+ 6You can find the full F1 Manager 2023 driver ratings here, but we've also compiled a list of the best young drivers should you want to make an immediate switch to your lineup.
Drivers develop a little differently this year. In F1 Manager 2023 you need to select a specific area of focus for each driver. Once they have earned an upgrade point it will be assigned to one of the attributes that makes up that area of focus.
Pitstops
I told you we'd get back to pitstops! This part of the game is new for F1 Manager 2023 and gives you the opportunity to improve, or not, the quality and consistency of your pitstops.
click to enlarge+ 6The key here is to balance the crews readiness and skill with their fatigue level. Back-to-back races and a heavy training session will lead to higher fatigue which means a greater chance of errors, but a sharper and more skilled crew means faster pitstops. You can leave it to your Sporting Director if you want, or micro-manage it yourself to maximise returns.
Cost cap management
Formula 1 teams are limited on their spending, and F1 Manager 2023 has added a new mechanic that will make cost cap management a little trickier.
This year body parts receive wear just like mechanical parts do. Afte each race the cars will be inspected and you could find that a front wing or a chassis fail inspection and have to be replaced.
click to enlarge+ 6This means you will need a bigger stock of spares, especially if you have a crash-happy younger driver in your team! During our review process we found out just how expensive it is to order up emergency parts during a race weekend. F1 Manager 2023 won't let you just sit out a race like Haas did in 2022, so be ready with those spares!
Race Replay mode
A headline feature in F1 Manager 2023 is Race Replay. This new game mode will add a flavour of the real Formula 1 world to F1 Manager 2023.
Available outside your main save, Race Replay will set up Grands Prix using the real qualifying results and let you take control of any team. That means you can fix Ferrari's strategy or rescue the poor qualifying performance of your favourite driver.
click to enlarge+ 6But there's more. There will also be a scenario mode, dropping you into a team mid-way through the race and giving you a target to achieve. Again these will echo real-world events, letting you prove your superiority!
On top of that there are a few special scenarios. Some are challenges, like taking over Haas late on the Las Vegas Grand Prix and trying to get a podium, or equal performance races where the cars all have the same performance level and your managerial skill will prove to be the difference.
For more articles like this, take a look at our F1 page.