| Nascar Thunder 2004 Facts : | ||
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| BHMS: ISI is well known by their F1 series. Is the development team for Nascar Thunder 2004 the same as for the F1 series? Did experiance from developing F1 simulation in any way help you with the Nascar title? James Hawkins: Everyone on the development team for NASCAR Thunder 2004 has worked on the F1 series and I think that experience has helped a lot. The quality of the F1 series is one of the key reasons EA SPORTS gave Image Space Incorporated the opportunity to take on NASCAR. BHMS: We all know, that the hard core sim community is pretty hard when it comes to simulation games. What steps have been taken to make this product as "real" as possible. James Hawkins: Above and beyond all else, to be successful, a game must appeal to a players senses and engage them. I want players to describe their experience in NASCAR Thunder as dramatic, exciting, challenging and rewarding. Believable immersion and alternate reality are terms I often use to describe my favourite games. If I believe I am in the world and making the difference, I become immersed and am consequently much more likely to come back and play some more. Scalability and depth of play are also important considerations I think. Believable immersion is the goal. Whilst NASCAR Thunder 2004 models the cars from real specifications, models physics based upon real world principles and uses the rules of NASCAR for racing, I wouldn't say the game was a Simulation or Arcade game as such. The priority is to create an immersive experience that players want to come back to rather than absolute reality. BHMS: There will be a PC specific game engine that provides an authentic NASCAR simulation. How did you get the real life car data, and did Tony Stewart (or any other Nascar driver) have any input on the game development? James Hawkins: We've had several Winston Cup and also non Winston Cup drivers turn some laps and provide feedback and also worked very closely with NASCAR. As the exclusive NASCAR license holder we are able to work with them a great deal. BHMS: Is there realism to the car's phyics and is there an advantage or disadvantage on the car make you choose at a particular track? James Hawkins: The vehicle modelling techniques used in NASCAR Thunder 2004 are very detailed and based upon real life data. The physics system provides full 360 degrees of motion in all directions and is based upon real world principles. The Chevrolet, Ford, Dodge and Pontiac cars are all modeled to perform a little differently as in real life. BHMS: Many people were disappointed when the PC version of NASCAR Thunder 2003 did not include the "Career Mode" that was in the console versions of the game. The press releases of 2004 boast smart AI that remembers and adapts to your driving style and a "Grudges and Alliances" feature. Will these features, and a "Career Mode" where you start as a rookie searching for sponsors, be included in the PC version this time, or will these features continue to be console-version-only features? James Hawkins: The Grudges and Alliances feature is only present in the console versions of NASCAR Thunder 2004 but A.I. has been a major priority for P.C. and there are substantial changes over last year. In NASCAR Thunder 2004, the A.I. drivers will race closely and react to your every move. Career mode is one of the major additions to the PC game this year and places you in the role of team owner/driver, responsible for Sponsorship, R & D and racing! BHMS: Judging by the screenshots, the weather will change during the race. Is this true and if so, how will this affect the car handling? Will we see multiple grooves? It is possible for the weather to change during a race in NASCAR Thunder 2004. Changes in temperature and also tire wear can make different grooves more or less effective. During a race, it's common to see the A.I. controlled drivers use different grooves as the track temperature and their tire wear changes. BHMS: Press release said that NT20004 will have the largest set of car setup options ever offered in a NASCAR simulation including options such as fender flares, rear spoiler angles, tire pressure, wedge, gearing, suspension, anti roll bar, etc. Will there be any in-game setup guide or help on how these setting affect the car? Maybe a driving school? James Hawkins: NASCAR Thunder 2004 does not have an in-game setup guide but that seems a good idea and has been discussed for the future. The game manual for NASCAR Thunder 2004 contains a lot of good information regarding car setups.BHMS: Will we get default qualifying and race setups? Are they based on real life setup values or are they adjusted so that the car drives easy? James Hawkins: In NASCAR Thunder 2004, for each track, there is a default setup for the Qualifying and Race sessions which have been tweaked to be pretty quick. There is also a default Easy setup for each track. Unlike the Qualifying and Race setups, the Easy setups are symmetrical and much easier to drive. BHMS: What has been improved in the multiplayer department. Has the maximum number of players that can join an online race increased? Also, can AI cars be part of an online race? What about dedicated server feature? James Hawkins: We used the F1 Challenge 99-02 project as a test bed for a completely new approach to the problems associated with multiplayer racing. In light of the positive comments generated by that release regarding multiplayer, we integrated that code to NASCAR Thunder 2004 and have since improved it even further. I've had some really good, close, smooth multiplayer races with as many as 16 players connected. The dedicated server application is a major addition for NASCAR Thunder 2004. BHMS: A lot of people out there like to simulate a full season with race lenght set to full. Has "Save Game" feature made it in 2004 version? If not, why do the developers keep forgetting about this? James Hawkins: In NASCAR Thunder 2004, during season mode, the game is saved automatically after each session. BHMS: Will NT2004 be as "moddable" as F1 series is? We heard car skins will be easily updated, customized, and swapped. Tell us more about that as well. Can we expect in-game paintshop? James Hawkins: Thunder 2004 has a flexible, open architecture. If it's anything like last year, the community will have cars, tracks and everything else available right away. There is not an in-game paintshop but that is being discussed for the future. BHMS: Nascar mostly races on ovals. How more accurate are the tracks this time around. Has there been any other improvements beside the graphics? James Hawkins: Most of the tracks in NASCAR Thunder 2004 have been completely rebuilt for this game. The tracks are much more authentic and better looking than their counterparts in last years game. BHMS: Will the game feature full list of current Nascar drivers? Will there be any secret or bonus cars, tracks, drivers...? James Hawkins: NASCAR Thunder 2004 has 40 2003 season Winston Cup drivers, 13 Busch Series drivers and 10 Legend drivers. Most of the drivers feature alternate car maps so there are a lot of different looking cars in the game. Dale Earnhardt has 9 different car maps available representing various years and different paint schemes. Daytona Beach is included as a bonus track for some fun racing on the sand. BHMS: We have seen vertex damage in Nascar Heat and I must admit I personaly loved it. NT2004 will use it as well. How does the game engine calculate body part damage and affects the car performance. James Hawkins: In simple terms, the vertex damage system in NASCAR Thunder 2004 causes points to be moved towards a target point that is determined from the actual impact point, force and direction. Damage impacts mechanical and/or aerodynamic aspects of the car modeling. BHMS: Why should people, who own Nascar Thunder 2003 or any other Nascar title, buy Nascar Thunder 2004? James Hawkins:NASCAR Thunder 2004 - P.C. is not only a very good NASCAR game but very arguably the best racing game of all time right now on P.C. Some of the key features are as follows: Career mode; Easy to learn difficult to master; 2003 season cars and tracks, including the revised banking at Homestead-Miami; Alternate car maps and legends including Dale Earnhardt; Virtual cockpits, unique for Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford & Pontiac; Team Themed user interface. BHMS: Will there be a demo and when? James Hawkins: A demo of NASCAR Thunder 2004 - PC will be available before the end of September. |
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Comments : |
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| Author: Beppy46 | 24-10-2003 |
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I'm sorry. Yeah this game has improved but still needs a ton of work. The track layouts are not even close to the real tracks. The physics aren't even close to being real. We've past September and there still isn't a demo. What ticks me off the most is the fact the the physics aren't even close. Arcade racing is for Playstation, pc people want more realistic racing. So maybe by the time NT2008 comes out it will be decent enough to buy. Til then, I'll stick to nascar racing 2003 season, the by far, more realistic nascar simulation. One more thing, he said this is the best nascar game ever on pc, NOT. Shame people are in it for the money and not the quality, Papyrus had the quality. |
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| Author: Smokin Bob | 24-10-2003 |
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I have to disagree--the physics in this version are damn near Papyrus level in sophistication and feel. Had ISI the same level of interaction with Goodyear as papyrus did, I bet the two models would be difficult to tell apart. Turn the arcade helpers off, and it is a very good driving experiencs. Papyrus certainly has a fantastic simulator....as long as you enjoy multiplayer. 8 versions in a row had crap AI, and the last version, though much better, still has crap AI. For the offline players, NR2003 gets very boring very fast. But, I own them both but mainly play Thunder--the immersion and 'experience' is just a hell of a lot better than papy. Smokin Bob |
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| Author: zenracer | 25-10-2003 |
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Wow, the game sounds great James. Too bad it isn't. I bought it. 45 minutes and off my hard drive. Keep at it tough. Someday you will pass Papy....just not nearly yet. |
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| Author: Incredulous | 25-10-2003 |
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What is this guy smoking: "We used the F1 Challenge 99-02 project as a test bed for a completely new approach to the problems associated with multiplayer racing. In light of the positive comments generated by that release regarding multiplayer..." Is he insane? All I remember is everyone bitching at how crappy the multiplayer was in the F1 game. |
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| Author: BigErn | 26-10-2003 |
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It would be nice if the dedicated server didn't crash after 20 hours or less. The multiplayer seems pretty laggy. There is no way of administering a dedicated server at a remote location from within the game. There is no information as to whether or not anyone's even working on a patch for this game. It would also be nice to be able to run a server with more than 16 players. |
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| Author: Crazy8 | 04-11-2003 |
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the Game has improved from NT 2003, but not enough to make it any more enjoyable than NT 2003. EA Sports and EA Games are here to screw YOU again as they have done many times before! Hey I know, Why dont you dicks at EA charge everyone $10.00 a month to play and than pull support out from under them like MotorCityOnline. Who are you Idiots trying to fool. I bought this Game in hopes of renewing a relationship with EA as I had when I was playing console Games, but These idiots should stay with the console and leave the real NASCAR games with Papyrus. |
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| Author: John Mackey | 05-01-2004 |
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To: EA Sports� �Big Money� didn�t get ya the �Big Game� I have been racing "on line" nascar simulation for 4 years now and have experienced more Seamless paint swapping, heart pounding, phenomenal door to door racing in some of the finest "Road Course" race leagues than anyone could hope for. Theirs a lot of highly skilled racers "on line" but the truth is the car physics are unparalleled, and the graphics so beautiful it brings Tears to the eye via my FX5900 Gforce Video card. My CPU rig is plenty fast with all the bells & whistles which gives it plenty of power to pipe some incredible game play through my high Speed Cable internet connection. However, this hasn�t been my experience with EA's Nascar Thunder 2004 race sim. EA Sports... Sorry, your big money licensing buy out of "all things Nascar" hasn't brought You even close to being in the same arena as Papyrus' Nascar Racing legacy. You'll be "SMOKED" for many years to come by a game that isn't even being improved, or developed for Future releases anymore. It's a shame that EA Sports has the �F..***ng Ba**s� to effect the demise of Papyrus' �world class� sim... and EA Sports can't even duplicate, much less better Papy's game play quality... Sheesh! EA Sports internet play is still infantile compared. (SUP w/ that?) I race with guys @ 200+ Mph while 2" off their bumper... CLEAN, PREDICTABLE, and SEAMLESS! EA's game, The cars are jumping from here, over to there, back over here... its a joke. EA Sports, Spend Some of that big money on some better internet play programming please. Oh, and the car Settings are not very responsive to adjustments either. They�re pushin pigs untill you �over adjust� enough settings that the car suddenly becomes completely loose and Uncontrollable. EA Sports, This is not a prejudicial smear campaign. But if you can't run with the big Dogs, stay on the porch! To prove my point... I thoroughly enjoy EA Sports F1 1999-2002 championship sim. Superb job guys, and... Internet play is your best to date. I have had many awesome races at Suzuka w/ 6 to 8 racers. But regarding the "Nascar Thunder" series race "sim?"... EA Sports needs to �Step up� to the challenge. They have got some mighty big shoes To fill! :) Just One Man's Opinion, Jmaxx (Jmaxx Racing, -=WFO=-) �When in doubt� GAS IT!� & �Check Your Six� jmaxx76@cox.net |
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| Author: murkz | 07-01-2004 |
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An excellent read and confirms my thoughts about how good this sim really is. Jeff |
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| Author: OFxLedzeplin | 12-02-2004 |
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I used to have Nascar, then Nascar 3.. in either case, I did not like the games. Had a difficult time enjoying them. I have now decided to try another racing game, and purchased NT2004. For the first time ever, im having fun racing, and racing online. Granted, I did not have the opportunity to try NR2003 that many here seem to rave about. However I have been in the online gaming world a long time. All the negative comments seem to come from those migrating from another game, and not from those playing for the first time. Coincidence? Is it all because NR2003 is really that much better? Or is it because thier training/skill/expertise they acquired in NR2003 did not fully apply to NT2004? I have seen this cycle in the online gaming world for years. Personally, unless you are a real Nascar crew chief / driver, I believe it would be difficult to fully ascertain what is accurate as far as any Nascar sim is concerned. I love this game. Theres alot of room for improvement I do agree. Easier customization/swapping of cars, etc would be welcomed, and most of all. A dedicated server that doesnt require a high end videocard, that it should never need. 99.99% of any professionally hosted servers do NOT have a Radeon, or GeForce card in them. A dedicated server that allows multiple instances, and a solution for multihomed servers would also be welcomed. Working for a game server host company does give me a different perspective im sure.. Happy racing all - PEACE - OFxLedzeplin |
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| Author: Al.A. | 04-03-2004 |
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All EA sports Nascar car games are JUNK,from the first till now.Only a chump would buy a copy. |
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| Author: Inaccurate Tracks | 09-04-2004 |
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How in the hell does ISI get the straight leading into T1 at Watkins Glen wrong TWICE in a row? The game has it going UPHILL, instead of downhill as it really is. Seriously, how does one miss this obvious fact? |
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