The garage was a choir of pneumatic whines and the smell of high-octane fuel as the rain lashed against the corrugated roof of the Spa-Francorchamps paddock. For Marcus, staring at the digital dashboard of his virtual Lotus E21, this wasn't just a game; it was a final stand.

As the lights went out, the roar of the V10 engines drowned out the real-world rain outside his window. He moved through the field, late-braking into Paddock Hill Bend, the ghost of 1980s racing legends haunting his mirrors. By the final lap, his palms were sweating against the rim of the wheel. He crossed the line a fraction of a second ahead of Michael Schumacher’s digital avatar.

Tonight, he was tackling the "Classics Mode" at Brands Hatch. He flicked the toggle on his wheel, feeling the weight of the car shift. In the version of the game, the physics felt raw, unforgiving. One wrong move on the damp kerbs and the classic Williams would become a very expensive piece of spinning scrap metal.