GameOver Game Reviews - Nascar Road Racing (c) EA Sports, Reviewed by - Jube

Game & Publisher Nascar Road Racing (c) EA Sports
System Requirements Pentium 100, 32MB Ram, 4x CD-ROM
Overall Rating 21%
Date Published , ,


Divider Left By: Jube Divider Right

For every good game produced let EA release three mediocre ones. -Reelations 5:19

Electronic Arts, a brand that stands for variety! I cannot think of another company that has such an established pattern of hit and miss releases. Whereas Squaresoft is known for epic RPGs and Ion Storm is known for, well nothing really, EA seems to take pride in releasing the widest spectrum of games possible. After extensive research, I am fairly certain that it is a requirement for EA to release games on a quality ratio. For every game worth playing, EA produces three to five truly substandard and worthless titles. I compiled a small portion of data that quantifies this.

Good games recently released by Electronic Arts:

  • Need for Speed High Stakes
  • Sports Car GT
  • NHL ?99
  • NBA Live ?99

    Shit so bad I wouldn?t let my dog near it:

  • Nascar Revolution
  • Cricket World Cup ?99
  • X-Games Proboarder
  • Gettysburg!
  • Small Soldiers
  • Fighter Pilot
  • Beetle Racing Adventure
  • Knockout Kings
  • Road Rash Unchained

    The latest game to add to this list is the amazingly terrible Nascar Road Racing. This game features 26 of your favorite Nascar drivers running over 12 fantasy road course tracks. Simply put, Nascar Road Racing is a sad attempt at what could have been a mildly good game concept. Taking stock cars out of the oval and tossing them into an interesting mix of road tracks could have worked. However, to make it work would have taken time, creativity, and effort, three elements that were blatantly ignored in an effort to get this flaming heap out to door as soon as possible.

    So I hear that 3D acceleration is going to be the next BIG THING in computers. I hear they make games look better and run faster. Oh wait, this isn?t 1994, nevermind. Nascar Road Racing, in all its retro glory, features fully software rendered graphics. In attempt to "level the computing playing field" EA decided to not include any hardware acceleration, apparently to show anyone with a decent video card what they?ve been missing. Chunky textures, heavily dithered bitmap backgrounds, that great model distortion when objects enter the side of the screen, its all here. Nascar Road Racing shows off all the fantastic graphical innovations that Doom and Doom ][ brought to PC gaming.

    Another mediocre title in the EA line, Nascar Revolution, is the source of 90% of the Road Racing?s sound effects. The basic menu effects, in-game tire screeches and engine roars are all recycled from Revolution?s own mediocre sound banks. The other 10% of sound in Road Racing is the generic rock-a-billy music which thoroughly describes the target demographic of this game.

    After driving around on three test tracks for upwards of two hours, I am fairly certain that Nascar Road Racing is not only not fun, but also not possible to win at. In a 26 car field I found it extremely easy to reach the middle of the pack. Right after passing half of the field a massive gap opened up between my car and the upper placed cars. The only means of winning I had was to blow past the leaders during their pit stops, and hope that I had enough fuel to make it to the checkered flag. I am not sure why the lower half of the field goes 25MPH slower, and the upper half about 25MPH faster than my car, but it simply translates into a game with little rewards and less enjoyment.

    Without any multiplayer features and only one mode of racing, Nascar Road Racing offers little to no replay value. I must admit that I was not expecting much in the way of innovation and engaging gaming. After being thoroughly disappointed with Nascar Revolution?s buggy and unfinished design, I did not hold high hopes for Nascar Road Racing. It is going to take serious effort by EA (read: $$$) to turn this series around.

    As a final note I?d like to voice appreciation for the truthful descriptions of features in this game provided on the Nascar Road Racing web page. If there was a category for honesty I would gladly award full points.

    Rating System
    Graphics2/20
    Sound6/15
    Gameplay6/30
    Funfactor5/20
    Multiplayer0/5
    Overall Impression2/10


  • Rating
    21%
     
      

      
    Screen Shots
    Screen Shot

    Screen Shot

    Screen Shot

    Screen Shot

    Screen Shot

    Screen Shot

    Screen Shot

    Back to GameOver