F1 25 Is Here: First Impressions from a Sim Racer's POV

F1 25 is finally here, and we’ve had a few days to play the game and build some solid first impressions for what looks to be a strong foundation for this year’s F1 season.

A definitive evolution over last year’s game, F1 25 still has some features that need to be worked on, but overall, Codemasters has delivered a refined experience that should keep both PC sim racers and console players immersed in a more realistic version of Formula 1 racing.

Tyre Model & Physics: A Step Forward

The 2025 tyre model is a vast improvement over last year’s iteration. Many have praised this new version as a revolution following F1 24’s contentious physics system, but it’s more of an evolution. There are still elements from the previous model that carry over. However, these quirks no longer feel like immersion-breaking bugs, more like nuances that players can learn to manage.

One thing racers will need to be aware of, especially those unfamiliar with heavy tyre management is that this year’s model features significantly increased tyre degradation. While the wear rate may not mirror real-world Pirelli performance precisely, it adds an extra layer of strategy. In short: don’t expect a simple medium-to-hard one-stop strategy to work every weekend. (Looking at you, Monaco.)

Graphics as Good as Ever + Path Tracing on PC

As with most annual releases, F1 25 once again offers one of the most graphically stunning racing experiences available. But this year, PC players get a serious visual upgrade with the introduction of path tracing, Codemasters’ leap beyond ray tracing.

You’ll need high-end hardware to run this smoothly—think RTX 4080 and above—but when enabled, the lighting, reflections, and surface detail are truly stunning. Expect major performance hits without DLSS or FSR if you're on mid-range GPUs.

Decal Editing: A Much-Needed Upgrade

Something we were personally excited about was the overhauled decal editor, and it doesn’t disappoint. F1 25 now gives you far more control over how your car looks in F1 World and My Team mode.

While you still can’t import your own logos, the expanded options allow for in-game font customisation, layered decals, personalised colour schemes, and more detailed placement tools. It’s a great addition for players who love to show off their custom liveries in multiplayer or solo campaigns.

Things We’re Looking Forward To: APX GP and Braking Point 3

While the feature isn’t live yet, we’d be lying if we said we weren’t excited about the upcoming release of the APX GP story mode content, which ties into the upcoming F1 movie. Codemasters has confirmed players will be able to drive for the fictional APX GP team and relive moments from the film in-game.

We’re also looking forward to the return of Braking Point, now in its third chapter. While we haven’t had time to dive deep into it yet, early impressions suggest a continuation of the Konnersport storyline, which should be a treat for fans of narrative-based racing content. Expect full impressions once we've played through the campaign.

Things to Work On

AI Still Needs Balancing

Not everyone online has had the same experience, but from our time in the game, the AI still feels overly dominant at higher difficulty levels. Many players have posted breakdowns of average AI lap times at each difficulty setting, showing near-unrealistic consistency at the top tiers.

The new tyre model also appears to affect AI drivers less than human players. AI cars suffer less tyre wear and don’t seem to struggle with traction or ERS management like human drivers do. While we’re hopeful this will be adjusted in the first major patch, it currently creates an imbalance, particularly in longer races.

That said, the AI’s decision-making has clearly improved. They make fewer reckless mistakes, take smarter overtaking lines, and feel more human in wheel-to-wheel combat.

PC Crashes – Especially on Triples and VR

While it's been a thrill to finally jump into the game, our PC experience started out rough with ongoing trouble. On day one, F1 25 was repeatedly crashing on our triple, single-screen and VR setups. We spent over three hours trying to get it working, testing everything from ultrawide to standard configurations and fiddling with our NVIDIA Surround settings, with no success.

Codemasters’ advice has largely been to “update your GPU drivers”, but for many sim racers, especially those using VR or NVIDIA Surround, it hasn't resolved the issue. It seems like these problems are more common on PC, with console players enjoying a much smoother launch experience.

Hopefully, hotfixes and patches will address this soon, as it's frustrating for the most dedicated part of the community.

Final Thoughts

F1 25 brings meaningful improvements to the series—particularly in tyre modelling, AI racecraft, and customization. It may not be a total revolution, but it refines key areas that fans have been asking to see improved for years. From path tracing to the long-awaited APX GP content, there’s a lot to like here.

But it’s not without its issues. AI balance still needs tuning, and PC stability, especially in triple-screen and VR setups; needs immediate attention. Despite these drawbacks, F1 25 is shaping up to be one of the better entries in recent years. It rewards patience, race craft, and immersion, exactly what sim racers want.