If you like breakneck speeds and hearing the scream of an F1 engine, give this game a try.
Right away I would turn off the dash and other MFD doodads to where I would feel like I'm in the cockpit of an F1 car, and all the settings would be set towards a realistic atmosphere. Whenever the race started, it was an adrenaline pump from start to finish.
But for the review: starting with the overall presentation and layout of the game, I give it a 6 out of 10, mostly because I feel the game producers could have had more input to give you a more grasping environment or some other way to spice it up a bit. After a while it just gets bland and boring...
Graphics on the other hand were pretty astonishing, with a few missing the mark. Therefore, I give this particular section an 8.5 out of 10. Again, after seeing other games perform on the PS3 I felt it was just a tad outdated, but whenever you're racing in the rain in the cockpit/helmet view, the water washing off of the screen as you speed in excess of 150MPH just adds another reason to keep holding on to the controller as tight as you can. The cockpit view, as if you wouldn't have already guessed, is my favorite of all views, because (you guessed it!) it felt more realistic. The attention to detail in all the views, as well as a vibration effect from the shear speed and bumps along the track give it that extra mile point. Car damage is pretty well detailed as well, and even more realistically so that if you ever crash out in a race during a career, there is no restart button (but you still can shut down the PS3 and power it back up, given that you saved before that race). The overall track details were pretty good, notably so on the tarmac but with the NBA Live 2002 PS2 crowds filling the stands - but I guess it shouldn't be a big deal since we're talking about racing here; its just another one of those finishing touches.
Sound department should be proud to hear that I give them a 8 out of 10. From the engine tones from different RPMs, to the different engine tones of the different manufactures to ride in-game, have a recognition due that someone (or some people) had the attention to detail. Tire screeches sound more recorded than emulated, as well as the shifting throughout the gears sounding sharp rather than non existant. The addition of an announcer and a pit crew talking you throughout the race is a bigger plus, especially giving hints if in career mode you choose to partake in the parade lap; telling you to move left and ride to get your tires warmed up for a good launch at the start. Again, I feel that this makes you get in that "F1 Zone".
When it comes to realism, I give this game a 9 out of 10. I can't say for certain how realistic this game is, given the fact I'm not, or will ever be, an F1 driver. The feedback of the car during certain situations (i.e., track temperature, rain, speed, no ABS) gives the players quite a challenge and if they have all the assists off, things get even more interesting. It definitely is more fun to play without having the game do everything for you. As far as difficult goes, its a bit of a gap in between the few available, so don't expect to find 10 different levels to suit which is best for you. In combination with the awesome visuals in cockpit view, the sounds, the realism in total comes out scoring pretty high in this department.
Overall, for those who like sim-racing games, this is definitely a game to keep in your stack of other games for a good while.