F1 Manager 2022 guide: five starting tips to get up to speed fast

It’s not easy being a Formula 1 team manager, and “F1 Manager 22” proves it. In the new management simulator, developed by UK-based Frontier Developments, players are tasked with running all aspects of a Formula 1 team, from budget management to race strategy and team development. car upgrades, and the options can seem overwhelming at first.

While the first tutorial (called “First Time Orientation”) is great at explaining how to do things, it doesn’t really tell you what to do to maximize your potential throughout the season and leaves quite a bit unexplained.

If you find it difficult to make decisions at the beginning or meet objectives in races, check out these tips to help you. “F1 Manager 22” is certainly a complex game for beginners, but following these tips from the start should help you achieve impressive results and set you up for future success.

Invest early in Design Center and Factory

Early on, you’ll learn about all the various facilities you can create and perfect, which will affect the development of the car, staff, and operations. It’s a lot to take in, but there are two clear options you need to tackle first: the Design Center and the Factory, both of which are located under “Car Development Facilities” within the larger “Facilities” menu. Although both are expensive, they will increase the number of car upgrades you can create and the speed at which you can make them, which will pay off later in the season.

Review: In ‘F1 Manager 22’, racing is exciting, but off-track play feels like a chore

Be sure to focus on these options from the start. In fact, you may want to start upgrading one of them before your first race to maximize its potential all year long.

Manage practice sessions.

The tutorial actually suggests that you simulate practice sessions, skipping them and letting the AI ​​automate the results, which is a bit strange, since it’s one of the most important parts of the game. After each practice run, drivers will provide feedback on how comfortable they are with the car’s setup based on five categories: oversteer, braking stability, cornering, traction and straightaways. You can then change the car’s settings, which adjust a slider bar that moves each parameter to your driver’s comfort zone. You can zero in on the optimal level of comfort for each driver as the session progresses.

I’ve generally found that playing during practice sessions substantially increased my drivers’ setup confidence compared to simulating sessions, so try to manage at least one or two practice sessions every weekend of race. Admittedly, they can be a bit boring, so don’t forget: the option to speed things up to 16x normal speed is there for a reason.

You probably know someone who has just entered Formula One

Don’t Neglect Pit Crew Qualifications

There is nothing worse on race day than having an extremely slow pit stop. A few extra seconds can make the difference between finishing eighth or 12th, especially for a midfield team.

Setting up your “Pit Crew” is vitally important, though it’s easy to overlook – the option is hidden at the bottom of the “Staff” menu. By default, your pit crew strategy is set to “Balanced,” which means your crew will gain the same experience for all aspects of a pit stop throughout the season. In most cases, though, you’ll want to focus on “Front and Rear Lifters” or “Tire Changes,” especially if you’re playing as a mid or rear scoring team that starts with exceptionally low numbers in those areas.

Investing early in one of those two options can greatly improve your pit stop times as the season progresses, and you’ll start to see results quickly.

Be aggressive at the start of races.

Just like in a real Formula 1 race, the opening laps of a Grand Prix in “F1 Manager 22” are often the most important. As a result, in your pre-race strategy, make sure your drivers’ opening turn starts in “Attack” mode, the most aggressive driving option available.

Once the race begins, order your drivers to either deploy fully or use the “Go” mode on ERS (an electrical boost that increases pace) and set the fuel command to “Pushing”. There will be times later when you can take your foot off the pedal, but gaining track position early is critical during races and is an especially useful tactic for midfield and back marker teams that need to fight from behind.

Pushing hard early in a race will probably cause your fuel to drop to the red, but don’t panic. You can choose to set your fuel back to standard once you’ve gained a few positions. And keep in mind: there will be plenty of time throughout the race to conserve more.

After the second lap of each race, the DRS (Drag Reduction System) is enabled, allowing lagging cars to open a rear flap to gain speed down the straights. Your drivers will do this automatically and it usually helps them save a little fuel on every lap. Meanwhile, safety cars or yellow flags give you good opportunities to further reduce your fuel consumption and harvest ERS, so take advantage of those moments.

Gregory Leporati is a freelance writer and photographer who covers esports, technology and motorsports. His recent work has appeared in GQ, the Los Angeles Times, Pitchfork and Ars Technica. Follow him on Twitter @leporparty.

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