Tour de France 2020 Game Review: Get playing before the Peloton this summer

The Coronavirus pandemic has ripped a hole through sport this year.

Wimbledon - Cancelled. Euro 2020 - Postponed. Tokyo Olympics - Postponed.

2020's Tour de France is another pushed back, but for the first time, you can play the game well before the biggest cycling event of them all.

Tour de France 2020 Launch Trailer

First Impressions

For those who have played the Tour de France games before, there have been a few tweaks, including redesigned interfaces providing better anticipation of the course and position of competitors, as well as a new first-person camera.

If this is to be your first time playing, you're in for a treat, but Tour de France games come with a warning - they are for pro cycling hardcore fans.

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STUNNING VISUALS - Cycle through the incredible French scenery

Every single stage of 2020's Tour de France is on the game, plus other popular tournaments including new addition the Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

For first-timers, you may be scared off by the length and detail of the game, with the first stage alone taking around an hour to complete.

BUY NOW: Grab your copy of Tour De France 2020 here!

Fear not, as you can simulate ahead to different parts of the stage that are more relevant to you, as in the Tour de France different riders and teams have varied goals.

The incredible detail of the game puts in on-par with the F1 series, and it's mechanics in terms of racing lines and braking points make it similar to the Codemasters hit - but with some energy gels thrown in.

Game Modes

As well as the Tour de France itself, there is plenty that can be done on Tour de France 2020.

Race

This is where you can compete in the biggest cycling tours in the world, most notably the Tour de France.

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NEW MAN IN TOWN - For the first time, Tour de France 2020 arrives on PC

As you pick up XP in your races you can unlock other tournaments.

Here is the complete list:

• Tour de France
• Criterium du Dauphine (600 XP)
• Paris - Nice (400 XP)
• Euro Tour (200 XP)
• Open Tour (100 XP)
• La Route Corse
• Breizh Cup

READ MORE: Everything we know about Tour de France 2020

There's also single-stage competitions to play and unlock:

• Liege-Bastogne-Liege
• Paris Roubaix (400 XP)
• Brussels (300 XP)
• Vlaanderen Classic (200 XP)
• London (200 XP)
• Innsbruck (100 XP)

Lastly, you can also choose "My Tour" allowing you to select the stages you fancy to create the ultimate race from around Europe.

Challenge

Want to push yourself?

Go up against the online community in a series of challenges to set the best time.

These include:

• Downhill - Ride down from mountain passes as fast as you can and try to set the online record
• Sprint - Take part in sprints and try to win with the biggest possible margin
• Downhill versus - Be the fastest to descend to the bottom from a mountain pass in order to score more points than your opponent
• Sprint versus - Win the most sprints in order to score more points than your opponent

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about F1 2020

Pro Team

If you're a managerial mastermind, then you'll want to try your hand at Pro Team.

Here you can manage your team and move up the world ranking in order to be invited to the most prestigious races, and recruit the best riders.

Choose your team name, your jersey as you commence or your road to glory save, as you start from the bottom and look to make it to the top of world cycling.

Pro Leader

Pro Leader is the single-player version of Pro Team, in which you control a rider instead of the team.

Your objective is to become the best rider possible and dominate the individual Pro Cycling ranking.

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ONE STEP AHEAD - Can you come out on top against the Peloton?

To progress, you need to achieve career objectives, with each objective earning you money.

You must, however, race as a baroudeur - "a breakaway specialist who is specialised in attacking the race from the start" - as you cannot race as a leader until you have proven yourself.

Verdict

Tour de France 2020's realism is incredible, but that could be a turn-off for some.

That said, you have the option of quick simming the stages that are not relevant to you, and you can fast forward races when acting as a team manager.

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If you can master "following" other riders to utilise their slipstream, as well as team comms to share the workload then you're on track for success.

The beauty this year is you can take the yellow jersey almost three months before 2020's Tour de France takes place and get pedalling.

RealSport Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Tour de France 2020 is out now on PS4 and Xbox One for £44.99. A PC version arrives in August.