Will F1 24 Use a New Engine?

The F1 24 hype train has started rolling, with the official reveal trailer confirming some of the new features coming to the game. One of the biggest unanswered questions, however, is which engine will power F1 24?

A familiar engine

Historically, Codemasters’ Ego engine has powered every F1 game since the studio acquired the license, starting with F1 2010. When F1 23 was announced last year, EA hinted at a “fresh start” for the series.

This raised fan’s hopes that the F1 series would get a shiny new engine for the first time in over a decade.

Sadly, this wasn’t the case as F1 23 once again ran on the Ego engine – the same version that powered F1 2015. As a result, the graphics in F1 games look dated compared to modern racing games. Much like a Williams after yet another heavy shunt, the series is crying out for a new engine, so will F1 24 be a new start for the series?

Will F1 24 run on Unreal Engine?

EA Sports WRC became the first Codemasters’ racing title to ditch Ego in favor of Unreal Engine 4, sparking speculation that this year’s F1 game could also switch to Unreal. That doesn't appear to be the case, however.

EA has yet to officially confirm which engine F1 24 will use. A recent leak revealed the Ego engine's logo on the F1 24 loadscreen, suggesting that once again it is powering the game.

It’s worth noting that both series are helmed by different studios: Codemasters Birmingham handles the F1 series, while the Warwickshire studio develops WRC.

However, whereas EA Sports WRC was current-gen only, F1 24 is heading to PS4 and Xbox One as well as PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Launching on 11-year-old hardware will inevitably hold F1 24 back, preventing Codemasters from fully utilizing the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

With a new career mode and improved handling being the only new headline features announced so far, F1 24 could be a stopgap before a series reboot next year – ten years after F1 2015 launched with an upgraded graphics engine.

We could see history repeat itself here: F1 2014 was seen as a stopgap on PS3 and Xbox 360 before the series made the jump to PS4 and Xbox One with F1 2015. With no driver shakeups or new tracks on the calendar in the real-life season this year, a long-overdue engine upgrade would have helped push the F1 series forward.

How do you feel seeing F1 24 stick to the Ego engine? Let us know in the comments below!

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