I have to hand it to Codemasters - they really do understand the culture surrounding the venerable Formula 1 racing series. A more disinterested developer probably would not have chosen the incredibly boring Monaco Grand Prix to showcase this year's F1 2018, especially for the first promotional video of this cycle.
The thing about Monaco is that despite being the slowest track of the season, which also happens to be the race that will have the fewest passes for position of any other races this year (it's called an "elephant walk" for a reason), it is steeped in tradition. As a temporary circuit located in a town with less square footage than a typical Ikea store, one would think it would have been replaced by a racier track by now.
It helps that many of the wealthier drivers actually maintain a residence there, but the real stickiness comes from the fact that the first Formula 1 race held there was in 1929 - that's some serious tradition at work! The roads are tight and cramped, and there is a single turn that is so tight that the race engineers have to modify their entries to allow enough steering lock to get those relatively tiny cars to even make the turn. As far as racing goes on such a constricted track, well, it really.... doesn't.
Qualifying, for the most part, is the race at Monaco, but despite that it is still one of my favorite races of the year.
It is all about the tradition. If someone were to propose such a race in this day and age, they would be laughed out of town on a rail. Conversely, if someone were to propose taking this race off of the schedule in favor of yet another generic, boring Hermann Tilke designed track, their departure from town would be far more violent.
It is simultaneously the best and worst race of the year. It is also very commonly scheduled on the same weekend as two other big races: the Indy 500 and the 600 mile Nascar race in Charlotte. NC. It's the most important day of the year when it comes to having a good TV and a lot of time to use it.
Codemasters also passed along some comments from the driver:
Speaking about F1 2018, Charles said, “I love playing the F1 game. As soon as I get out of the car, I miss racing. So, when I am back home, I play for fun. This is the closest I can get to driving a Formula 1® car outside of the track, so it is always very enjoyable to play.”
On the recreation of Monaco in F1 2018 Charles added, “First of all, I was amazed at how realistic the scenery was. Being born in Monaco, I know the circuit very well. Well done for visualizing the track so nicely in the game. My favorite part is the last sector because there is a great rhythm to the drive there.”
Sit back and enjoy the video, at least to the degree you can with that hideous halo they've added to the cars this year.
