Overview

Dirty little secrets

Here’s something I’ve never been compelled to share before (indeed, compelled to not share under any circumstances) – I like NASCAR. Not the actual NASCAR of course, just NASCAR games. That’s because Papyrus’ NASCAR Racing series is the Quake of driving games.

Pre-race screen

Whoah HyperSnap fuglifies the game

Glare

Why is that? Well, for one, NASCAR is a ridiculously simple sport. Like chess or Quake, there isn’t all that much to learn about it. The rules severely limit the amount of modifications possible, leaving the teams with few options for screwing up balance – like fine-tuning and cheating (which is an art form in NASCAR). This simplicity means that as with Quake and chess, wins are determined by a driver’s ability to master the subtlest skills. In real NASCAR, a healthy budget for creative cheats and engineering the living crap out of your chassis and engine tend to fudge the process a bit, but even so the sport is remarkably competitive. NASCAR Racing from Papyrus gives teams no budgets and there’s no way to cheat, so it really is down completely to the skill of the driver.

Realism

Think GT3 is realistic? Think again. The grippiest tires last a ridiculous 3 laps, and cautious driving to conserve rubber isn’t as effective as it should be. Brake fade? What’s that. Fuel? What is this ‘fuel’ you speak of? Body damage? Weight balance? Yeah right, not on a 4MB PS2. GT3 is realistic compared to NASCAR Racing 2003 the way Battlefield 1942 is realistic compared to the real Omaha Beach.

Coming up fast

Zoom!

Drafting

Of course, NASCAR Racing 2003 Season only has to worry about what is basically one car and a rather limited set of modifications to the car, most of which are rather simple – like camber, tire pressure, spoiler angle, weight balance – and even seemingly meaningless changes like the percentage of the grille to be covered by tape. Because so little is allowed, each of these changes is actually more significant for that. When you can’t bump up the horsepower but need acceleration at speed, the 4mph top speed you might gain from going from 30 to 70% grille coverage is invaluable. NASCAR, like football, is a battle that comes down to inches. Over a hundred laps, every single advantage makes a difference. It’s like being able to strafe jump a little bit faster in Quake III. If all other things are equal, that will win you the game. And in NASCAR Racing 2003, everything else is equal.