We don't get a lot of Formula 1 action on this side of the water, but any fool can see that F1 2010 is one fine racing game. If looks could kill, you'd be dead before the opening credits finished rolling. Production on this game must have been at least the equivalent of any big-budget movie or television show, judging by the slick text transitions, subtle gradients, and high-style approach to even the simplest elements. It's perfectly compatible, from a brand perspective, including the official F1 logos, marks, and colors. During loading menus, you can squeeze the triggers to zoom in and out, also a feature during the main game. There's nothing remotely like the sound of these cars revving up, it's like some shrieking banshee or crazed dragon when the RPMs climb. This background noise is complemented by some nuanced radio chatter, whether to nudge you along during a critical race maneuver or to congratulate you at the end of a nice run. Every piece of the interface is nicely designed, but it struck us as curious that F1 2010 didn't include a split-screen option for Multiplayer Mode. Instead, you get System Link, suggesting that the developers believe strongly enough in the importance of the full screen interface that they were unwilling to compromise.

The time not spent designing a split-screen interface clearly went into what seems like a million bits of detail on your car, the track, and your surroundings. Most of it is whizzing by at such a rapid speed, you don't really get to appreciate it until you watch someone else play. If you're a loner, replays are available so you can scan entire races for that moment when things went especially right or wrong. You will also just find yourself enjoying the scenery, whether the crowded streets of Monaco or the open stretches of industrial road in Bahrain. Even the game's hub, where you can explore your trailer and rap with your agent, is strikingly realistic. The speed at times makes F1 2010 feel like fantasy, but this isn't anything worse for racing-game fans than a classic like WipEout. Whiplash speeds are something you'll get used to as you learn the ins and outs of each track, and there are tons of visual indicators in your HUD showing cars attempting to overtake you, and the position of cars you are approaching. Best yet, it's all completely customizable, so you can create the look that you want for the game.

Even before Codemasters had a reputation for making great looking games, they were an outfit you could count on to get the details right. This means gameplay, effective racing, all the things that keep a game on the shelf long after the initial "Wow" factor wears off. F1 2010 is no disappointment in this respect. It provides depth and balance, meaning that longtime fans can jump in and start swinging wrenches while the rest of us step gingerly into the bath. The showcase mode for any F1 game has always been Career, and F1 2010 lets you be immersed in what would be a dizzying array of choices in other hands. Codemasters gets the fact that none us want to be overwhelmed with options, preferring to get in and play, so they guide you through what they call the "Golden Questions." Determining the type of Career settings you should have is largely done in the background, but can be tweaked afterward, if you're so inclined. Launching a race after answering the questions is simple, and or you can choose to launch one of two Grand Prix Weekend modes. A separate Grand Prix Mode is intended to give you an option for racing with less commitment than Career, but to recreate the essence of racing world destinations. Time Trial is the typical one-and-done mode that allows you to test your mettle against a ghost car or just compete with the clock.

Getting into Multiplayer, you'll have more options to be matched and to customize your gameplay experience. Four so-called "Quick Modes" are designed to provide maximum fun with stock settings, and varying levels of commitment. The Online Grand Prix is a 7-lap race that feels like a scaled-back version of the single-player Career, and others like Pole Position are quick (20-minute) jaunts. Racing fanatics will find that F1 2010 feels quite different than those racers where one buys and customizes vehicles. Newbies often have an impossible time matching up or competing with racers who've had time in the single-player mode to buy and customize, but F1 2010 is a greatly democratic experience. If you know how to tweak a vehicle and match equipment to conditions, everything else is about your ability to control the car. No cheap tricks or overpowered equipment matters here. Rankings and reputation are built around a crowdsourced voting model that also minimizes the distraction that can set in once the multiplayer space gets crowded. Finally, Custom Match lets you build - much as you can in the single-player Grand Prix mode - a "dream season" with everything exactly as you want it.

Thinking back to our comments about watching replays, one of the smartest features in the game is called Flashback. This tool comes into play when you catch that magic moment in a race where you got off track (sometimes literally). Flashback lets you restart the race from just before that point, much like a mulligan in golf, where you just pretend a bad shot didn't happen. You'll come to appreciate this feature, as there aren't many handouts in the world of F1 2010. At the most basic setting, when your answers to the Golden Questions could be entirely paraphrased as "I'm a n00b," F1 2010 is at least approachable. It feels a bit like WipEout in the sense that your first impressions are along the lines of, "I can't possibly race these tracks." As you put in the time, you'll find yourself anticipating curves, learning when to pit, and correctly judging the proper equipment. Before these skills are honed, you'll restart a few races and activate Flashback more than you might like. Compared to the raw, bumping aspects of NASCAR, F1 tends to feel constricted, more science than art. To be fair, NASCAR has much more science than most people can comprehend, but the popular image is of down-home boys chewing smokeless tobacco products and popping a Bud in some backyard BBQ. The reality in both forms of racing is that you have to master the basics of control. Compared to stock cars, F1 cars have a few more variables, but they tend to operate along similar lines. If you can get your arms around cornering, braking, and basic equipment, you'll have a good race. Catching up is wicked hard when average speeds are approaching 150mph, but sticking with it will produce some stellar results. It's nice to have multiple views available, so younger gamers can opt for the flying, whole-car camera while experts go toward the cockpit view. Either way, you'll have various settings that will change the realism of the game, to the point that F1 2010 plays very capably as a Formula 1 simulator, complete with damage and fueling considerations.

Part of an elegant design is knowing what to show and what should remain hidden. We wouldn't say that F1 2010 has a spare Heads-Up Display (HUD), but it does a nice job of bringing your focus to the track. You can tweak the HUD and just about every feature of its display, as quickly as you can drill down to the guts of your vehicle. As you prepare to race, you'll sit in the garage with a computer attached to your car. It's a simply designed device that is masquerading as the Options menu. Navigating through everything from weather forecast to setting up your car is simple, and there are detailed explanations attached to every setting. It's great that interface has finally caught up with mechanics; we now have beautifully simple sliders that adjust settings, and helper text that explains the pros and cons of adjusting each slider. What has been missing in the past was a setting between stock and highly customized, which F1 2010 achieves with a series of simple options that reflect the weather and track conditions. Moving between Wet/Dry or Normal conditions, you'll also see some variables related to how the car will handle from the perspective of top speed, steering, and downforce. Most players will enjoy trying out these different settings, and leaving the minute tweaks behind the scenes where they belong. Navigating the more nuanced settings and tweaking the realism is possible, to the extent that you want to make the game more difficult.

Even with its most basic setting, F1 2010 strives for realism. Drive across gravel and you'll see flecks on your tires plus a voice through your car's radio saying that you won't get the same level of grip until you drive the gravel off. Simplified controls mean that novice racers won't have to worry about their tires, fuel, or pitting. Dialing up the realism introduces a host of new features that enhance the game experience, for any that can hang on for the long ride. Especially if you've invested in the Wireless Racing Wheel, this is going to be a game that pays you back. From resistance around corners to jolts you can feel in the controller as you ride over a kerb, F1 2010 rewards those who value a game for its details. Not that you can't enjoy this for casual racing, but it's going to be much harder than plunking down into something predominantly arcade like the Midnight Club series. Fans of any more serious Racers are encouraged to check out F1 2010, whether or not they actually know the drivers or the tracks. There's an exhilaration factor here that's often higher than NASCAR, and the sensation of piloting a vehicle that is 80% fighter jet is something you should try out at least once in your lifetime...