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Following its announcement in March, F1 Manager 2024 finally has a confirmed release date. Aspiring team principals can hit the paddock in over two months from July 23, with this year's entry set to add long-requested features like a Create a Team mode and mechanical failures.
Like last year’s game, two editions are available to preorder: Standard and Deluxe, with the latter including five extra liveries for Create a Team and five fictional Race Replay events as bonus content. However, the preorder announcement didn’t mention whether Frontier plans to release a disc version for physical media fans.
Unfortunately, it’s bad news for disc collectors: Frontier has confirmed to RacingGames that F1 Manager 2024 won’t get a physical release. Both the Standard and Deluxe Editions will be digital only.
Why F1 Manager 2024 won’t get a physical release
“F1 Manager 2024 brings a wealth of much-requested features, from the exciting new Create a Team mode through to increased management depth with the Mentality and Mechanical Failure systems, as well as a number of unannounced features we’re sure our fans will love,” Frontier said in a statement to RacingGames.
“We don’t want the price point of F1 Manager 2024 to be a barrier to entry for our fans. By not releasing a physical version, we are able to keep costs lower, meaning players can experience all this, alongside all the content they know and love for a lower SRP of £29.99 / $34.99 / €34.99 for the Standard Edition, and £39.99 / $44.99/ €44.99 for the Deluxe Edition.”
Frontier trying to cut costs isn’t surprising. According to a recent report, F1 Manager 2023's sales were “very underwhelming compared to management's expectations,” resulting in layoffs at Frontier. Hopefully, the lower retail price combined with the new features will help boost F1 Manager 2024's sales.
With most players preferring the convenience of digital releases and physical game sales sharply declining, it makes sense for Frontier to remove disc manufacturing costs.
Even so, this will be disappointing for F1 game fans who favor physical media over digital releases and will have a gap on their shelf where F1 Manager 2024 should be. Conversely, the standard version of F1 24 will still get a physical release.
F1 Manager 2024 isn’t the only recent high-profile game from a major publisher to not get a physical release. Last year’s Alan Wake 2 was also digital only, much to the dismay of physical media collectors. Like Frontier, developer Remedy Entertainment claimed this decision was made to reduce costs and sell the survival horror game at a cheaper retail price.
Are you disappointed that F1 Manager 2024 isn't getting a physical release? Let us know in the comments below.
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