In an announcement as surprising as Activision unveiling a new Call of Duty game, Codemasters have today officially announced F1 2013, the 4th game in their F1 franchise. However this time around it looks like Codemasters are really trying to give fans a reason to pick up the latest iteration with the introduction of a new F1 Classics mode, which will allow us to get behind the wheel of classic cars and race against some of the most legendary names to have ever graced the sport, and on some of the most iconic tracks. Topping it off is the fact that Murray Walker is going to be introducing the mode.

As you would expect the game will feature all of the changes that the real sport has undergone, while the handling model has also undergone some tweaking in order to make it even better.

Another new feature, revealed via IGN and bound to make plenty of people happy, is the ability to save the game during a race and come back to it later, allowing those with limited spare time to take part in entire Grand Prix weekends so that they can also experience the full effects of the fuel and tyre systems.

“What we really wanted to do was just enable people to save the game whenever. So you’re on lap 13, you’ve got to go out for dinner or the phone rings, now you can complete it at a later date. Save and resume whenever you want. I think more people will be able to enjoy what Formula 1 entails and the strategy involved.” Said the game’s creative director Stephen Hood

The real question, of course, is whether Pirelli’s tyres will self destruct mid-corner while racing at Silverstone, for the truly authentic experience. Sadly the Silverstone hot-lap video above doesn’t seem to include this much sought after feature.

F1 2013 will be released on Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC this Autumn and will come in two flavors: the standard version of  the game, and the F1 2013: Classic Edition, which includes two additional packs of classic content.