Reviewed: July 30, 2002
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Publisher
Sierra Entertainment
Developer
Papyrus
Released: February 13, 2002
Genre: Racing
Players: 42
ESRB: Everyone
8
8
9
9
8.5
System Requirements
Recommended System
There are two types of racing games in the world of electronic gaming – simulation and everything else, and when it comes to serious racing sims the first and final word out of anybody’s mouth is Papyrus. This company was founded by true lovers of the sport of competitive auto racing, and they have consistently brought us the absolute finest in racing simulations clear back to their original Indy 500 game over a decade ago.
Now that computer technology has peaked (for the time being) we are finally seeing some of the most realistic racing games in the history of the genre. Last year’s NASCAR 4 was arguably the best version of any NASCAR game in the history of the franchise. What few flaws this version had have been addressed and corrected in this year’s latest instalment in the NASCAR series.
NASCAR Racing 2002 Season is what I suspect to be the first in a never ending series of yearly updates in the stockcar racing franchise. Just like every other sports title, each year we get a new game that includes updated rosters, stats, graphics, etc. The online racing community has always been very adept (and thorough) at creating and offering huge libraries of aftermarket custom tracks, paintjobs, and other related data, so it’s only natural that Papyrus moves in for their piece of the pie.
The 2002 Season package includes these features:
- 2002 Teams and Sponsors
- All 23 official NASCAR tracks including Chicagoland Speedway, Kansas Motor Speedway and the Coca Cola Fantasy Track
- Track Tours narrated by Darrell Waltrip
- Driving tutorials and lessons
- Online racing support for up to 43 drivers
- Updated physics engine for ultimate realism
No matter what Papyrus does to expand and perfect this title, gameplay is still limited to endless left turns at 180mph. This means that if you love the intricacies of tweaking your car, micromanaging your fuel, brakes, tires, etc. then finding that perfect racing line to maximize your speed and minimize your lap times.
The sport of NASCAR may be intimidating for those used to playing the more common and less authentic racing games – you know, the ones that GPL and NASCAR veterans scoff such as Need for Speed, Grand Turismo, and Project Gotham to name just a few. Chant the mantra with me now, “If it ain’t got a cockpit view and a damage model it ain’t a real racing game”. NASCAR 2002 attempts to lure unsuspecting newbies into the addicting world of oval racing by offering new driving lessons to get rookies acclimated to the sport.
These lessons contain a wealth of valuable information that even seasoned racers may find useful, but I found the presentation to be a bit automated and non-interactive. There are ten tutorials that cover everything from the basics to the most advanced racing “rules”. Track tours are another helpful instructional tool, but also put you in the role of a “spectator”. They reminded me of those narrated fly-throughs when watching golf on ESPN where the golf pro explains the hole and how to play it. In this case we get Darrell Waltrip giving you insight on each of the tracks, and while it’s useful information, it would be even better (and helpful) if you actually got to drive during the session.
In additional to the tutorials, the 70-page manual does a great job of breaking down the basics of auto racing, the NASCAR Rulebook, explaining the garage and car setups, the paint shop, and every other nuance of this game. In this day of shrinking or even non-existent manuals, it is a welcome change to have such thorough documentation.
NASCAR 2002 allows you to tweak several settings to tailor this game to your own skills or desired level of realism or challenge. Your can disable the damage model and turn on braking and steering assists to the point where this game becomes the equivalent of any standard arcade racer. Or you can turn everything on to make this game harder than driving these cars in real life. The great thing about this system is you can start off easy then slowly increase the difficulty until you have unknowingly become the ultimate race driver.
In additional to the game settings, there are dozens of car settings that can be tweaked to obtain the best possible performance plus the all-too-familiar driver AI slider bars that you can adjust for days until you get the pack driving like their real-life counterparts. My personal advice is to find and download somebody else’s AI settings or leave them alone. As far as car settings, I’ve never fancied myself as Mr. Goodwrench, and until the day arrives where my car is the weakest variable in my racing equation, I will stay out of the garage.
Control is flawless provided you have a flawless controller. Keyboard and joystick racers might make it out of the pit but you probably won’t win too many racers or even have that much fun. This is a serious sim that requires a wheel to be played as it was meant to be played. I blew the dust off my NASCAR Pro Force Feedback wheel for this review, and I am still convinced this is one of the best wheels you can use for this or any PC racing game. You need the wide range of steering motion and a split-axis pedal controller that allows for trail braking (look it up if you don’t know what it is).
If possible, NASCAR 2002 looks even better than last year’s forth installment. Actually, the quality of the visuals is about the same but the frame rate has been perfected to the point where if you are running an adequate machine – in my case a 1.4ghz w/ 512mb and GeForce 3 - you won’t find a single drop in the fluid animation, even with a full 43 cars on the field.
The tracks all look like their real-life counterparts; at least from what I’ve seen on TV, although I have been to Indy on numerous occasions. There are plenty of subtle nuances to expand upon the obvious grandstands full of racing fans. You have trees, trailers, towers, camera cranes, and just about anything else you would expect to see at the track.
The cars look simply amazing, modeled with so many polygons you can’t find a sharp edge on any car unless it’s supposed to be there. The paint jobs are all meticulously detailed and authentic with 2002 sponsors and colors, taking a load off all those Internet paint shop artists. When you see a pack of 20-40 cars coming down the track from a traditional TV camera view you will swear you are watching FOX coverage.
The 3D cockpit view is quite confining and even a bit claustrophobic, but you won't get any more real unless you get behind the wheel of a real stockcar. You can look right and left which is great to check out those cars sneaking alongside you, and being in 3D, the cockpit view bounces and shakes independent of your head so you can almost feel the bumps in the track and the G-forces as the car leans into the turns. Real time lighting and shadow effects are even reflected on your dash and impressive array of instruments for total immersion into the racing experience.
Other views are available such as the chase-view generally reserved for arcade racers, and the bumper cam. Normally the bumper cam is my preferred view, but in NASCAR 4 the camera is so low to the ground that it not only exaggerates your sense of speed, it also limits your field of view. For those who don't like the out-of-car views or the dash view there is a view from the driver perspective but with no cockpit. Only the instruments are present overlaid much like a HUD on a fighter plane.
Special effects are excellent with sparks, smoke, and even a few body parts that will detach themselves during the more serious impacts. This all ties into an incredible damage model that allows you to watch your car dent and start to fall apart the more you crash. Rear-ending a car can actually crumple your hood and block most of your view out the windshield. Crush a fender and you might find your car starts to pull to the left or right. Track details like skid marks, pavement cracks, and scrapes on the walls are all present and new damage remains with the track for the duration of the race warning you of possible trouble-spots.
The replay mode is even more powerful in 2002 with a new Replay Editor that lets you create your own highlight real. Add your own custom graphics and sounds to create custom clips that ESPN would be proud to show, or just email the videos to your friends for bragging rights.
The music in NASCAR 2002 is limited to the menus. It’s about what you’d expect in a racing game – some generic rock tracks that are easily forgettable. But once the green flag waves you will want to crank those speakers to the max.
The roar of the engines has never sounded better and 2002 makes full use of DirectSound for 3D spatial sound effects. You can hear the cars coming up behind you and then to either side as they make their move to pass. If you use the side-look command or change to an external camera the engine noises changes accordingly. If you have a 4-speaker setup you won't hear anything "more real" unless you visit the track.
Other sound effects are perfectly reproduced from metal on concrete as you swing wide and scrape the wall, or bottom out sending a shower of sparks at the guy behind you. Speech is present in the form of verbal info from your spotters and crew chief. As with previous releases, their commentary is annoyingly repetitive and not always accurate, so you are often left to make your own decisions based on visual confirmation.
As with any racing game there is never a true end. You generally play it until the next version comes out. If you want to put a length to this game you can expect 60-80 hours to complete a championship season complete with practice, qualifying and races at 100% length. That's not taking into account if you blow your engine, total your car, or get caught up in lots of yellow-flag laps, etc.
Any serious NASCAR racer is going to want to take their car online and challenge the thousands of other racers looking for something better and more unpredictable than the computer AI. NASCAR 2002 delivers all the quality online racing action you have come to expect from a Papy racing sim.
As with any online game, your weakest link is your connection. While you can join and competitively race with a 56k connection, don't plan on hosting 10-40 racers. Just like GPL, you are going to need a cable modem, DSL, or a T1 if you want to host the big races. You can always bring up the Communication Meter that shows your Q/S/L in real-time. Your goal is to have a high Quality connection with little to no Time Skew or Latency. Even with a T1 line you will never have the "perfect connection", but keeping those final two bars as low as possible is important to smooth racing without cars that jump or warp around the track.
If you are a veteran of the NASCAR series of games then you might not find enough new stuff in NASCAR 2002 to warrant a purchase. Chances are you already know how to drive these cars so the tutorials will be lost on you. And you probably already visit the popular websites and keep your paint kits and data files current with the yearly updates. Even so, the three new tracks – 2 official and one fantasy – are still some nice added-value features, and the game engine and AI model have been modified and improved upon to near perfection.
It’s more than an expansion kit and less than a sequel. NASCAR Racing 2002 Season is a great title to introduce newcomers to the sport of stockcar racing and will offer current fans plenty of enhanced and updated gameplay until the inevitable release of the next installment.