Eventually, I got myself a copy of Geoff Crammond's Grand Prix 2 based on my favourite season, 1994. What was a bonus was that I got a copy of Geoff's Grand Prix Manager 2 as they came together in a pack.
Grand Prix Manager 2, based on the 1996 season, was brilliant for its time, and it set the standard for F1 management games for at least a decade. It had so many different elements, my favourite element, as always, was developing the car. But you had to manage drivers, do you spend more money on a top star, or do you save money on a young driver with potential, or even risk taking on a pay driver and concentrate on development. You had to manage strategy, sponsors and develop your facilities and it really helped me learn how to juggle lots of different elements to make the whole operation function as a whole.
Before I move onto GP2, I have to make mention of the manuals. Sadly I don't have them anymore, but they did more than help you get the game going, because they had introduction to the drivers, the teams, the circuits as well as some of the events that occurred during their respective seasons. It was quite the bonus to have a great little book along with the game.
I was so happy to play GP2, and I spend plenty of enjoyable hours on that game. I loved that it was a simulation game rather than an arcade game, how setups really affect how you drive the car, the realistic tracks compared to other games, how to manage the locking up of your brakes when driving on the keyboard and so many other elements. I also enjoyed that there were different types of retirements, and if you broke your front wing, you'd have to pit to get a replacement. One of my favourite elements of the Grand Prix series is director mode, you don't have to race, but you can watch the race by choosing trackside or on-board cameras, or letting the director take charge of the feed. Accelerated time was also a very nice feature. This game set the standard for F1 games at the time and though I tried some other racing games, this was still my favourite.
What gave the game longevity was I discovered that there were tools and mods available to edit the game. GP2edit enabled pretty much every element of the game to be edited, and whose website still exists:
I dabbled at updating cars for myself, but I was never really any good at it. But there were many talented artists and modders out there that I was happy to download and use their work.
In 2000, Grand Prix 3, based on the 1998 season, was released albeit a little late and out of date. An improved graphics engine was welcome but a step backwards for me was that all the teams shared the same carshape. Still, I was pleased with an evolution of the game and to my delight, GP3edit and more mods were developed online. However this time, there was a carshape editor. Unfortunately, you could only amend the existing shape, but at least you could change it from season to season.
I came across a talented group of modders called EMAC and particularly Ralph Hummerich: http://emac.sportplanet.emacberry.com/index.html
For me, these guys set the standard for GP3 mods at the time.
I enjoyed GP3, the game was a step up from GP2 and was fun, but I think in my heart, I never really loved it as much as I did GP2. Still, it had a great physics engine, reasonable graphics, and the AI were sensible and fun to race against. I never bothered with GP3-2000, especially as I heard that GP4 was being developed.
