Summary
Codemasters, the developer behindF1 25, seems to be tossing around the idea of bringing the racing series to the Nintendo Switch 2. The concept still seems to be in its early phase, so it’s unclear whetherF1 25even has a chance of a later launch on the new console, but future games in the series may find a home there if Codemasters determines it to be a good fit.
TheF1franchise was first launched 25 years ago, withF1 2000,F1 Championship Season 2000, andF1 Managerall released in the same year. The mainline series has produced a new game every year since 2009, and withF1 25set for launch on May 30, Codemasters seems poised to continue releasing some of thebest F1 gamesin a crowded racing game field.
Future development may also mean branching out onto a new platform, as revealed by comments from the series' creative director, Gavin Cooper. In a comment to racing game news websiteTraxion, Cooper stated that officials at Codemasters will be having internal discussions about thefeatures of the Switch 2and how well they would translate into hosting futureF1games. “We need some smart people to look at it and see what the console can actually do and whether it’s actually a good fit for the kind of experience that F1 is,” his statement reads, though he remains noncommittal to any official announcement other than that the possibility is being weighed.
F1 Games May Make Long-Awaited Return to Nintendo
If Codemasters' assessment of the Switch 2 works out in players' favor, it could mean the return of the mainline series to a Nintendo console after an absence that has lasted 14 years so far. While a spin-off kart racing game calledF1 Race Starswas released for the Wii in 2012 and thesimulationF1 Manager 2024’sdriverssaw a surprise Switch release last year, the last mainline entry on a Nintendo device wasF1 2011, which was available on the 3DS.
While a release on Switch 2 could open the racing series up to an entirely new group of players, now may not be the best time for Codemasters to think about branching out. After each game in the series had registered generally favorable reviews since 2016,F1 24’s scores saw a notable decline, dipping into the mixed-to-average category, with particular criticism being aimed at the game’s mid-race objectives.Early access forF1 25begins very soon, on May 27, so it won’t be long before early impressions hint at whether Codemasters has already righted the ship.
