Formula One 05

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Formula One 05
European cover
Developer(s)	Sony Studio Liverpool
Publisher(s)	Sony Computer Entertainment
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2
Release date	September 22, 2005 July 1, 2005 2005
Genre(s)	Racing
Mode(s)	Multiplayer
Rating(s)	PEGI: 3+
Media	DVD

Formula One 05 for the PlayStation 2 was released in Europe on July 1, 2005, and in Australia later that year. Carrying on with the 'Career Mode' concept from Formula One 04, which allows players to work their way through the Formula One teams over the course of five years (albeit a repeat version of the 2005 season each time). This game also supports EyeToy: Cameo, allowing players to place their own face on a driver when creating their profile, but unlike F1 04, you cannot choose your own helmet.

Players start out testing for a smaller team such as Minardi, Jordan or Red Bull Racing (Like in F1 04, a generic car does exist, but it is only used in Time Attack mode). Players then work their way up the grid throughout their 'career' through a mixture of good tests and impressive race performances. As before, consistently poor performances will lead to dismissal from the player's current team. There are now also occasional 'shoot-out' tests against the team's second driver (or third driver, depending on the player's current status within the team), in which both drivers complete a set of five laps each and whoever has the fastest overall time (one time based on the fastest first, second and third sectors added together) then takes the race seat. Players can now also view trophies they have received from winning races and championships after each is won in Career Mode for the first time. the muse track "butterflys and hurricanes" features in the soundtrack

As with F1 04, "classic" cars are unlocked once certain terms are fulfilled, such as winning a World Championship. Helmets for Career Mode are also unlocked, and there is also a hidden track (the Detroit street circuit which was used for United States Grand Prix East) available for Time Attack Mode. Notably, since this game was developed before the change in the qualifying regulations midway through the actual 2005 season, this game runs the original "aggregated times" format in every race in Race, Championship and Career Mode. This game also has Net Play available. Formula One 05 is not compatible with North American NTSC PlayStation 2 consoles.

For the first time in a number of years the fans agreed that this was a massive improvement in the series and the shot in the arm it had so desperately needed. A lot of people where criticising Studio Liverpool for the lack of ambition and progress since the series appeared on the PS2 platform up to this point. With the 05 release people saw that great strides had been made by Studio Liverpool in terms of gameplay handling and AI.

There where criticisms in terms of the AI being too easy on the hardest of settings, and about the penalty system that had been introduced in the 05 edition which cut the revs during a penalty instead of the traditional "Drive Through" Penalty previous games had seen. Over all though the fanbase agreed that apart from these small issues, Studio Liverpool had redeveloped the brand as a stepping stone for improvement for the inevitable 2006 edition.