Let me preface this preview by admitting I am one of the biggest Nascar4 junkies to ever walk the face of the earth. At first I thought that it may leave me too biased to write this fairly, then I realized that my expectations and judgments of Nascar Racing 2002 Season would be higher than most and more critical than anyone, so really, who BETTER to write this preview?
PREviewed by: Jim "Justifier" Miller
Developed By: Sierra and Papyrus Games
Release Date: Feb, 19th, 2001 (Expected)
Minumum System Requirements: Not Yet Released.
The standard disclaimer goes for this preview as it does for any, this is a PREview and is based solely on the yet to be released demo by Papyrus. There are things here that may be inaccurate on the gold released version scheduled for mid February, but all of the information I have gathered points me to believe that this is what we'll be getting. Basically all I'm attempting to show you here is a lot of screenshots so you know what to expect, and some of my opinions of the "new" game based on my experience with this demo and my past experience with Papy's Nascar line of games.
INITIAL IMPRESSIONS:
When I first launched the game I was amazed at the similarities to Nascar Racing 4. Similarities is almost an understatement, EXACTNESS is a more appropriate term really. The buttons, options, graphic location, everything was identical to Nascar4, the graphics, buttons, and all around appearance was different, but you can tell the coding of Nascar Racing 2002 did not fall far from the N4 tree.
Once I got into some actual game play, the feel was the same, but the graphics were definitely different. I won't say improved because to me improved would be an exaggeration. They looked very good and clean, but then so did Nascar4. The cars were more detailed, as were the spectators, but the overall track appearance wasn't that much different. What really made me say "wow" was the sounds. Papyrus has completely changed the engine sound package and definitely for the better! I'll get more into all of this later, but this is what was going thru my mind upon first boot of the game.
SETUP SCREENS AND OPTIONS:
I'm going to just throw some screenshots of the different setup and option screens at you so you know what they look like and you know what I'm talking about when I reference them later. All images are clickable for a larger view. I would have left them full size but I DO feel some compassion for you dial-up users out there!
MAIN SCREEN:
OPTIONS SCREENS:
RACE SELECT AND OPTIONS SCREENS:
CAR SETUP SCREENS (Sim Mode):
If you are familiar with Nascar4, you'll notice the striking similarities between the two games. Papy added a little bit of eye candy but generally speaking if you know Nascar4, you KNOW Nascar Racing 2002 season, because they're identical in layout.
There are a few new options in this game. Some are pretty cool, some are pretty worthless, some are just there.
DRIVING LESSONS:
Driving Lessons (Selectable on the main screen shown above) is a pretty cool new feature on Nascar 2002. If you're a DW (Daryl Waltrip) fan this will be your favorite thing to check out no doubt. Each track has a driving lesson, which is basically a walk thru of each track and how to drive it. DW gives you a little history on the track, then walks you step by step, including marks to use on the track, every turn and straightaway of the selected track. He mentions when to brake, when to gas it, he even tells you what you'll need to change in your driving line as the tires wear and conditions change. The most helpful part is the green, yellow, and red line going all the way around the track letting you know where to drive and how fast/slow to drive it.
As an "experienced" Nascar 4 driver, I still learned a good bit by watching these lessons, and it was entertaining to boot. Definitely a cool option that Papy is delivering.
Here are a few screenshots of the lessons.
REPLAYS AND EDITING:
The replays work identically to the way they did on Nascar4, only with the additional option of "Edit". Unfortunately the "edit" feature is not activated in the demo version we are looking at today. By all accounts what editing will allow is for you to basically build your own movie of Nascar highlights, including the background music of your choice. This is a very cool feature that can add hours of entertainment to this game alone. Again, another smart move by Papy to include this.
GAME AUDIO:
This is a rather contradictive category. If you are in "in car view" racer, the sound improvement and realism are simply unbelievable. instead of the bland car engine sounds we have grown so familiar with in Nascar4, Papy has replaced the tracks with true to life simulated Nascar car sounds. It is very easy to lose yourself in the simulation with the excellent package they've thrown together for the in car view. That said, the "Chase" view, which so many drivers use, is another story. The sounds are amazingly lifelike of a NASCAR experience, unfortunately they take you a bit too far from the car. The chase view sound affects have a little too much Doppler affect for my liking. It sounds more as if your in the stand rather than 6 feet above and behind the car as the view would suggest. The sounds are fantastic, just not realistic for the view. To quote a racing buddy of mine, Cubby, "It sounded exactly the same as the first time I walked up to the new track in Kansas City while the drivers were turning practice laps". While that is a supreme compliment to the developers, it is an insult at the same time. The sound from just behind the car should NOT be the same as from outside the track.
Papy did one more thing that strikes me as a killer improvement, they added menu sounds. The little acknowledgment clicks and chirps add a lot to the game in my opinion. It adds that "finished touch" to it and I am glad they saw fit to add them. In the demo version at least there is no menu music, which I can live with or without, it will remain to be seen if they include it on the gold version.
The rest of the sound package is pretty much the same as Nascar4. The same spotter voice, and most of the phrases are the same. They did however change the traditional "Gentleman, Start Your Engines!" to a more politically correct "Drivers, Start Your Engines!". While this is no biggy, I find it a little bit comical. Not even in a NASCAR game can we get away from the tit-for-tat politics of every day life..
VISUAL QUALITY:
While basically the same package as Nascar4, Papy did take the time to improve several things on the quality and realism of the game. The primary thing that comes to mind is that in Nascar4 there are literally cardboard cut out spectators. They were flatter than pancakes, no exaggeration. In Nascar 2002 Racing season the spectators are lifelike and realistic. Add that to the slightly more animated graphics set, and it looks pretty spiffy. There is not a great deal I can say here that will be as effective as showing you. Below are two screenshots taken at 4x FSAA, which still left the game at playable frame rates on my GeForce3 Ti200.
You will notice that the cars are definitely more detailed than they were in Nascar4, and there is good reason, they are almost double the resolution of the older game. With FSAA you get very little choppiness and an all around stellar appearance. The sky is remarkably lifelike as is the track surface. While we aren't quite to the "is that really a game and not live footage" mentality, I am definitely impressed with what they are bringing to the table. Nascar 2002 Racing season is build with the same graphics engine as Nascar 4 (as well as everything else just about!) so I expected nothing less than the suburb images that you see above. There will be several more screenshots and the end of this preview to feast your eyes on and to form your own opinion of the graphics.
COMPUTER DRIVERS (AI):
This is one thing that just flat out annoyed the hell outta me in Nascar4. While in N4 the AI was still 100% better than in the competing "Nascar Heat", it still left a lot to be desired. With their hard braking in turns and insane pit dives, it made it difficult to compete as they were always predictably unpredictable. From what I can tell in the demo of Nascar 2002 Racing Season they are a bit for fluid and realistic. Still not the perfection we're looking for, but better than most no doubt.
SETUPS AND CAR FILES:
This is something I was plenty concerned about. For the true Nasca4 addicts out there, we have spent DAYS working on setups to get that extra .4MPH, yes, that's POINT 4. The thought that all that work was down the toilet made me want to blow chunks and I'm not exaggerating one bit. One of the first things I did with this new Nascar demo was to copy my Nascar4 setups into the new demo directories. MUCH to my happiness, they worked like a charm. They were just a tad slower, much in the same way that after the N4 patch release everyone lost a MPH or so, but they worked! Even the outlaw "Hybrid" setups for arcade mode worked, and I expected Papy to put a stop to that for sure.
The car files are another story. It allowed me to use my car file, the number and driver information stayed the same, but the appearance was 100% skewed and altered. I expected as much when I learned they were doubling the resolution of the cars, but this is something we can live with I think. The import image section is not yet complete, but I feel strongly that the templates we've used for Nascar4 will work in this newer version.
FILE STRUCTURE:
This may seem completely unimportant to most but to anally retentive people such as myself it means a few things. For one I'm happy because I HATE change for the most part. I know just where to look for my car setups, my track ini's, my car files, etc.. Everything is identical right down to the folder names. It's a BAD thing because it's further evidence that we're looking at a dressed up Nascar4, and not the new game that Papy and Sierra are touting it as. Whether in the gold version this will be a good thing or a bad thing remains to be seen, but I felt it was worth noting in this preview.
CLOSING THOUGHTS.
Generally speaking I'd have to say I'm disappointed with what I see in this demo. But again, that is a somewhat misleading sentence. I AM pleased with the look, layout, drivability, and performance of the new game, so how can I say I'm disappointed? I'm disappointed because this is nothing more than a slight facelift to Nascar4. A few visual enhancements, a few bug fixes, and a $50 price tag, that's what I see this game as.
There are definitely great benefits of this game, namely all the new paint schemes, sponsors, and all the new tracks including Chicagoland and Kansas City. These are things we definitely want to continue the racing realism we've grown to love and expect from our Papy Nascar racing sim's.
They did fix a few known bugs, the primary one on my mind is that when you go into the pits for a black flag, by default it no longer gives you a full service pit stop. That was EXCESSIVELY annoying when you got a speeding on pit road penalty when you were in for gas and tires, go around the track ONCE, come back in the serve the penalty, and they change your tires again. So yes, there ARE improvements in this game, many more than the one I mentioned but you get the point. I am just left wondering if it's woth the $50 price tag that Papy has slapped on this for preorder.
I DO like the enhancements, have no doubt. The engine sound package, the menu sounds, the improved spectators and car appearances, it all adds up to an improved racing environment. I am truly excited to see the rest of the tracks (The demo comes with only Richmond and Atlanta), watch the rest of the driving lessons, mess with the edit replay features, and to make sure that the online experience is as fulfilling and exciting as it's little N4 brother. All of this we'll have to wait to see, but anticipation is on my, and my fellow N4 racing buddies, minds to be certain.
CONCLUSION:
The conclusion is a simple one. I feel almost held hostage really. Come hell or high water on the 19th of February I'll be the first person in line at my local retailer to buy the gold release of this game. I'll be there because everyone else I run with in my online league will be there, as well as everyone from my primary online racing server, Orion Racing. They'll all be there because I'll be there, and you can see the vicious circle we're going in. This game is DEFINITELY an improvement over Nascar4, the entire package is just a bit better in all regards it would appear, but is it worth $50? I don't think so. I think we're looking at a copy cat crime of Microsoft when they released "Windows98 Second Edition". What is more accurately described as a patch, is being sold off as a new game for a new game price.
To sum it, if you've never owned a NASCAR game then this one will certainly not disappoint you. If you're a current N4 owner that enjoys online racing, you'll have to buy it to ensure large fields on the servers. If by chance you enjoy the offline experience of Nascar4 and can deal without the new tracks, drivers, and paint, then maybe you'll be better served holding off till this drops to the $29 ot $39 sale bin at Best Buy. Me? Take my money and gimme the game, make it quick too, the green flag is about to fall and I need to get back in there..
SCREENSHOTS:
Here are a few live action pics of the game for you to check out if you feel the urge.
Thanks for checking out this preview, hopefully you're leaving with a better idea as to whether this game if for you or not. I know it's for me, but the rest is up to you.
Flames, props, idea's, suggestions? Send 'em HERE. Wanna talk about it? Head over to the OCA forums and be heard, but be careful, they don't hold back in there. :)
| DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware. |
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