This game offers what you can expect from Codemasters - a fairly quality racer. However there are some aspects that pushes it's rating down, such as:

- Robotic AI, who NEVER makes mistakes, crashes, etc.
- Fact of having to deal with one new game each year at full retail price with minor changes.
- Troublesome multiplayer, disconnects are plentiful, and it's full of people expoilting the game bug's for their personal advantage.
- Loss of save data can and probably will occour to you.

These facts are stated after playing more then 50 hours, so I'm pretty sure I'm being fair to this game. GFWL is in the game and its the source of some problems, however it is Codemasters choice to leave it in so yeah, I take that into consideration and count as a game's fault. It's a good game, specially if you like F1, but it has it's flaws like I said before. I would give it a 7,6 but metacritic doesn't allow that kind of grade so I pushed it up because this game it's more an 8 then a 7.… Expand

Brilliant, fantastic Formula One game! This game has amazing ultra graphics, realistic F1 car models, authentic look of the drivers, greatly designed tracks of F1 2011 season. So many awesome details, car setups will keep you chasing for better lap times in time trial. Lots of different settings to play with, definitely a lot to master as you progress in the game. Definitely the best F1 game up to date, although I miss podium celebrations and a parade lap. New feature in this game is the co op championship online with a friend. This is so much fun with a good friend!… Expand

Codemaster have not been able to send out a decent game for years so this is nothing new.
Buggy as hell ( no full screen mode , so racing a car with your taskbar visible, very long intro before racing. Waste of time , money and lacking overall.

Improved slightly over 2010, suffered same day zero bugs (not a good thing ever!) as 2010 edition, with some pretty major issues even after patch #1, (such as the 11/11 setup cheat thats layed waste to multiplayer with other humans). Overall the handling is far better, the weather system now works properly and looks slightly better. Could have been done as a DLC TBH.

The game is quite hard, compared to Dirt 3, for example. The first times I played I had to pick the amateur level of opponent's difficulty.

As the other games from Codemasters, like Dirt series, F1 2011 is too "casual". In the driving aspect the game is realistic, of course, but in general it is shallow. You don't get the feeling of a story running on.

just got it today, it looks like a revamped f1 2010 with many bugs adressed, the handling seems the same, the graphics look really sharp, great blending between arcade and simulation, might be frustrated with high loading times but that's what u get, overall nice and immersive game.

A great game. A terrible continuation.

If I look at F1 2011, it's great. The graphics look as the should, the addition of KERS and DRS systems makes racing a bit more fun and challenging. Yet the lack of more obvious improvements and new features when compared to F1 2010 makes me feel I've wasted my money on this one.

If you've never sat behind F1 2010's wheel, then feel free to buy it's successor and enjoy the life of a celebrity driver.
On the other hand, if there's a F1 2010 box near your TV or computer monitor, think twice. It's almost the same game with a new number and few improvements. Not enough for the money they want you to pay for it.… Expand

Just picked this game up on sale and i must say if you like codemasterss racing games you should definately give this one a go, i was usure about it scince im not a huge f1 fan, but after playing grid dirt 2 and dirt 3, i saw this on sale and thought go on, the driving feels very realsistic and responsive, the amount you can customise your car is also very good, also one thing i like is that the game is fairly challenging , you have to get your corners just right and avoid hitting other cars or you will start last on the grid, also the option to do a 50 lap race may be extreme for some but it gives people the option who are really into the racing and want a f1 experience, eventhough it has a lot of hardcore racing fan elements im a fairly casual player and although it seemed daunting at first and complex ,after i got the hang of qualifying and car setup the game is very enjoyable, if your into racing id give this a go but i will say that an xbox controller for windows is definately needed like with all windows live games, u wont be able to enjoy this game using the keys on your keyboard… Expand

It´s a good game for real fans, but not for me.
I thought it´s interesting, but it´s so boring..
It also has positive aspects: good graphics, nice car handling and every f1 license.
As I said: something for real fans, for others much too boring..

Very suitable for expert drivers....a true challenge for you. I will make it short and plain: F1 2011 is a game with a lot of potential, and it widely keeps its promises.

What will impress you most is the challenging gameplay: F1 2011 is a hard and over demanding game. It will keep you busy for hours and hours in an attempt to become the very expert pilot. You have been warned: you won't have an easy ride. Opponents are merciless drivers, you will have to master ang go around deadly bends, avoid going off the rails and keeping a dangerous driving (otherwise you will be heavily punished by umpires). Some tracks could be frustrating even in beginner's mode and...if you play in higher difficulty levels you will have to struggle a lot (a prolonged pit 'rest' could mean you to topple from 1st to 24th position in a couple of seconds). The positive news is that car handling is not as frustrating as in other racing games (take the pitiless Need for Speed Shift 2 or even F1 2010 to give you an example).

As about visuals, the game is pretty functional. You won't hail it as a miracle but weather effects are well done, some tracks are superb and with lots of details...some other tracks are bare and blank. The cars look awesome at the beginning of the race. Human characters should have deserved more attention (stiff animations here around) but they're passable as well.

F1 2011 features some really good soundtracks, especially during loading screens, which I found to be very suitable and catchy. Sound effects are good but not exceptional.

Lasting appeal is noteworthy: the numerous tracks will keep you busy for many hours and higher difficulty levels will hold your interest unaltered all over the game.

As far as concerns negative aspects, I can't help but to mention the very frequent and interminable loading screens (+ 1 min and not only between one track and another), the quagmire menus and - generally speaking - a too much attention to simulative aspects that can cutt off some of the fun from your gaming experience. Surely, that is not a game for everyone: it requires you a lot of patience, the learning curve is long and hard, forget about immediate and arcade fun. But you will be enormously rewarded.… Expand

Great game but still with its flaws. A lot of flaws that exists in the 2010 version such as the Incapable AI and the lack of fuel simulation has been fixed.

However some problems still remains. For example AI never crashes (Unless its caused by you). Its very unrealistic that every car finishes every single race.

I also had one race where the rain stopped 2-3 laps before the checkered flag. Every single AI car pitted for option tyres 1 lap before the end of the race. Needless to say i chose to stay out in Intermediates and that netted me an easy podium.

Its small flaws like these that spoils the fun of the game but still, it is a pretty great game if you can overlook these and I would recommend it to any hardcore F1 Fans.… Expand

Hideous bugs. Again. The 11/11 bug that HighwayUK mentions is the worst of the lot, but if you check the race sim forums you'll find pages of reported issues. Virtually unplayable for multiplayer because of the 11/11 bug, but also because there is no way to remove wreckers, and there are A LOT of wreckers out there. There are also a lot of hackers who've taken control of the top of the online leader boards.

The game does not match real life physics, so if you're looking for a game that shows you what it's like to drive an F1 car, then this is not the game for you. You'd probably be better off with the next release of rFactor. If you're looking for a realistic-looking arcade game and don't want the multiplayer feature, then give it a try. The career system is okay, but they've shortened the longest possible career to five years, down from 7 with F1 2010.

I desperately hope the F1 franchise will be taken from Codemasters (the company name is ironic) and given to someone who can write code.… Expand