Andretti! Prost! Nakajima! Codemasters reveals F1 2013 classic content
Lotus, Williams and Ferrari legends all inbound for this year's model.
Codemasters has fully revealed the classic content that's going to play a part in F1 2013, the latest instalment of its officially licensed series, and it brings legendary names such as Mario Andretti, Mika Hakkinen and, er, Satoru Nakajima to the game.
F1 2013 brings classic F1 content to the series for the first time, and it's being released in both a standard and classic edition. Both will feature the Jerez and Brands Hatch tracks, as well as cars from the 1980s. Among them is the Lotus 98T that powered Ayrton Senna to victory in the 1986 Spanish Grand Prix, though due to what would appear to be licensing issues the Brazilian won't be behind the wheel, with Mario Andretti and Emerson Fittipaldi taking the seats.
Original drivers and team legends drive the classic cars, so the Ferrari F1-87 that won in Monza just weeks after Enzo Ferrari's death 25 years ago will be driven by Gerhard Berger and the more contemporary star Michael Schumacher. Lotus are further represented by the Lotus 100T, which will feature Satoru Nakajima and Lotus 'legend' Mika Hakkinen (he made his debut for the Hethel team in the early 90s before going on to find success at McLaren).
The 90s content is exclusive to the Classic Edition, which will cost some £10 more according to online retailers, and it includes noteworthy cars such as the Williams FW14B which Nigel Mansell cruised to the 1992 championship with as well as the FW18 that took fellow Brit Damon Hill to glory some four years later. There are some odd choices, though - Ferrari's represented by the F399 which chancer Eddie Irvine nearly won the 1999 title in, but also by the Ferrari F92A, driven here by Jean Alesi and one of the most miserable F1 cars to ever come out of Maranello. The 641, an example of which is on display at New York's Museum of Modern Art, is nowhere to be seen.
But licensing is licensing, and no-one else is enough of a bore to care about it most likely. There are two tracks available in the Classic Edition, too, with Imola and Estoril both making appearances.
F1 2013's out on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC on October 4, with Codemasters electing to skip next-gen consoles this year as they wait for 2014's F1 rule-changes to rejiggle the sport.