EA just slipped a wild new mode into F1 25 — DRS on lap one? I’m excited, but I’ve got questions

Why this Season 4 drop actually matters

EA Sports just pushed Season 4 for F1 25 (live Nov 12 to Jan 6), and the headline is a new Survival Challenge mode: five-car sprints, elimination-style, with DRS active from Lap 1. That last part is the spicy bit. For a series that usually hews close to real F1 rules, flipping DRS on from the start is a huge shake-up that instantly changes racecraft. For anyone bouncing between Career, Time Trial, and quick-play, this gives you a fast, low-commitment way to get meaningful rewards-without booting a full Grand Prix weekend.

Key Takeaways

• Survival Challenge is a five-car, high-elimination sprint with DRS from Lap 1-expect chaos, overtakes, and big ERS dumps right out of the gate.
• Season Tokens unlock a stack of real-world-inspired cosmetics: Ferrari’s Monza livery, Red Bull’s Japan special, Verstappen’s “Orange Lion” helmet, Russell’s pink Miami lid, and more.
• Driver Ratings get a mid-season refresh based on results from Azerbaijan to Brazil; Carlos Sainz sees a bump, and the rookies get some love.
• Roster shake-up: Franco Colapinto joins Alpine, replacing Jack Doohan across modes. In Career, you’ll need a new save to see the change.

Breaking down Survival Challenge

This caught my attention because Codemasters rarely tinkers with race rules this aggressively mid-cycle. DRS on Lap 1 turns the opening corners into a chess match on fast-forward. The meta shifts: your usual early-lap defensive lines won’t cut it when everyone has drag reduction immediately. Expect players to run skinnier wings than usual, manage ERS like their life depends on it, and bait DRS to counter-attack. In a five-car pack, that slingshot effect is going to define the mode.

Only one driver makes it to the finish, so it’s elimination all the way down-pure pressure, minimal downtime. Survival Tokens drop based on performance, which keeps the grind straightforward: race, survive, unlock. EA hasn’t spelled out if this mode is solo with AI, matchmaking, or both. Given recent F1 seasons’ event structure, I’m betting on a mix. If it’s online-heavy, netcode and contact rules will make or break the fun; the last thing Survival needs is a lag-tap punting you into the shadow realm on the final lap.

Even if you’re mostly a Career-mode purist, this is an easy “coffee break” loop that pays out. I like that it respects players’ time—jump in, take five minutes, leave with progress. It’s the kind of side mode that keeps me logging in between longer sessions.

Rewards, Tokens, and the live-service question

Season 4’s reward slate is genuinely cool because it nods to the real 2025 grid’s style game: Ferrari’s Monza special, Red Bull’s Japan one-off, Max’s “Orange Lion” helmet, Russell’s Miami pink accent, and more. This is exactly the sort of content that makes seasonal grinds feel worth it—you can flex something the paddock actually ran, not just a generic neon wrap.

One thing I’ll be watching: how Survival Tokens sit alongside PitCoin. EA says rewards are unlocked by completing or ranking in Survival events. No mention of buying Tokens. If they stay earn-only, great—pure play-to-unlock with no paywall creep. If they later convert to PitCoin shortcuts, that’ll sour the mode fast. The time window (through Jan 6) also means a bit of FOMO, so pace your unlocks if you’ve got holiday backlog to juggle.

Quick practical note: the update is part of the ongoing season cadence and requires the base game on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, or PC. If you’re joining fresh, the Iconic Edition tosses in the Lewis Hamilton Iconic Pack, an F3 Driver Icons Pack, and 18,000 PitCoin—but none of that is needed to play Survival Challenge.

Driver Ratings update and the Alpine swap

Driver Ratings get a refresh pulling from results between Azerbaijan and Brazil. The headline is Carlos Sainz trending up—apparently off the back of a string of “smooth operations,” including a big Williams podium in Baku and Sprint points in Austin. That’s fun for the narrative and it matters under the hood: ratings in F1 25 influence AI pace and consistency, contract value in Career/My Team, and who over-delivers in simulated stints. If you noticed your midfield rival suddenly punching above their weight, this is why.

The other change is a proper roster move: Franco Colapinto replaces Jack Doohan at Alpine across all modes. It’s a clean swap for Time Trial, Grand Prix, and online, but here’s the important caveat—Career players won’t see it unless they start a new save. That’s standard for Codemasters, but it’s still a pain if you care about having the “real” grid in a long-term file. If you’re early in a Career and want Colapinto on the board, now’s the time to restart.

As always, the full ratings list will do the heavy lifting for debates (“Is X overrated?” Yes, that’s the point), but the bigger takeaway is that Codemasters is keeping the live-season DNA alive. Even if you don’t touch Survival, your Career universe just shifted a bit.

The gamer’s perspective

I’m into this drop because it adds something F1 25 honestly needed mid-season: short, high-stakes racing that doesn’t feel like a watered-down arcade playlist. If the collisions are policed and the matchmaking (assuming it’s there) pairs cleanly, Survival Challenge could become my go-to warm-up before league nights. My only real skepticism is the token economy—keep it grindable, keep it fair, and don’t let PitCoin muddy the water.

TL;DR

Season 4 for F1 25 adds a DRS-from-lights-out Survival mode that’s tailor-made for quick sessions and meaningful unlocks, plus fresh Driver Ratings and Colapinto to Alpine. It’s a smart, player-first refresh—so long as the rewards stay earnable and the racing stays clean.