NASCAR The Game 2011 News Post

NASCAR The Game 2011 Q&A and Impressions

12:47 PM - March 24, 2011 by bluengold34_OS

I received the game this morning at 9 AM. Please keep in mind, I have only raced 4 times so far and practiced at another.

I am going to answer as many questions as I can that have already been asked, then will keep posting impressions and answer as many questions as I can. I have my PS3 in my office hooked up to the same monitor as my PC, so I have to switch over, so If I don't immediately respond to something, it's because I am on the PS3.

On to the questions, from the other topic.

I wanna know how are the Graphics compared to NASCAR 09? I really can't get a good grasp from the videos. Thanks.

IMO the graphics are a bit better than NASCAR 09. NASCAR 09 was a nice looking game, but I think NTG11 does a better job here. There is a very natural, organic look to it, almost like MLB The Show has. The color palate is there, but it's not too crisp, or overdone.

The car models are nicely executed, and tracks look beautiful.

1. I think we are all wondering about the difficulty of the game and if what we saw in the videos was on some easier level. Is the game more realistic than what the videos may have lead us to believe?

2. Is there a true career mode, or is it just a season, and how does that work?

3. Do you get the sense that you are at 30+ different tracks, or does it feel like most of the tracks run about the same?

1. I set the difficulty for the AI on the highest at Tally, Daytona, and Texas. They were very competitive at Tally and Daytona, and Texas were just better than me....flat out! What I really like so far about the AI, is that they are aggressive, but not cheap. They understand that you are also on the track, and try to be cautious of their surroundings. They did bump draft with me at Tally and Daytona, and I could do the same with them...and there was no sign of them being disturbed by it.

2. Have not jumped into career mode as of yet, but will give it a run as the day progresses.

3. There was a nice difference in the feel from Atlanta, Texas, Daytona and Tally. They didn't feel that same at all, and based off early impressions, they did a nice job trying to individualize and realistically replicate each track.

Pre-race presentation-Is there a full pace lap with the driver/grid position rundown like EA did a few years back? Very tv-style touch that was very nice. Also, any featured drivers pre-race?

Wreck/caution-how long is it between the wreck, caution and going into the pace lap? Time enough to 'go thru' the wreck if it happened up in front and you're in the back of the pack, or just 'there's a wreck' and then two seconds later in the caution lap?

Keep in mind, I have not done season or career, but in "race now" option, there was no pre-race or any presentation. It literally took you to the race about 100 yards away from the start finish line.

In regards to wrecking, you get to watch the whole wreck. It doesn't take you away to a cut scene instantly. I was in one at Tally, and it seemed like it lasted 20 seconds, and I was in one at Texas, and it only lasted about 10 seconds. Then it gives you the option to pit under caution...if you choose no, it takes to a few seconds before the green flag drops again.

I am very curious about the realism of the track surface. For example, Are there bumps in on the lowside of turns 1 and 2 at Las Vegas? Do the bumps upset the car and make you create a setup that can handle those bumps?

That leads to my other question. How much does messing with the setup actually change the feel of the car? When the track rubbers up, does the car get tighter?

From what I have seen, the bumps feel like they are barely noticeable. I felt a little bit at Daytona in turns 3 going into 4(keep in mind its still Daytona 10 on my copy) but nothing that really forced me to white knuckle the wheel at all. When an AI car gets into you, you notice that a lot more than any bumps on the track surface. If you're hoping to really feel the surface bumps and have it effect the car....probably not going to be real happy.

I will say the the driving model is really well done though, and you truly feel connected to the track surface.

Ok, going to go test some more, and try to get some photos, but videos may be very difficult. I am trying to find a way to do it right now. I will be back in a few to answer some more questions and give some solid impressions.

Game: NASCAR The Game 2011Reader Score: 4/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS3 / Wii / Xbox 360Votes for game: 15 - View All

NASCAR The Game 2011 Videos

Member Comments

# 1061 shaikio @ 03/29/11 08:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dynamitekid42


	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2djBsPzA9xE&feature=player_embedded If you are on the fence about opening or buying this game watch this, then head back to the store and get a refund. Lots of people are thinking only online is broken but after spending hours with the game, it's the whole thing.

That video probably just saved me $60. I think my copy is being returned to Amazon tomorrow.

Quote:

Originally Posted by �nima


	It's a great game that needs to be finished/polished, period. If that never happens, I feel ripped. If they fix a lot of this, they have a great foundation for a franchise. People are being way too damn harsh. The RACING is better than anything EA ever managed. The Online problems are DAY ONE. The AI is flawed but Papyrus's AI (With NR2k3 being the gold standard, let's go there) was notorious for slamming into you during cautions in NR2k3 and sometimes couldn't even make it to the start finish line at Martinsville in older versions from the series. Nevermind the fact that in NR2k3 the AI WOULD CRASH 100% of the time if things went four wide or more. One car would always creep over towards another and, boom, big one. I'm not trying to say this game is perfect and that people need to stop bashing it for that. Just relax and give them time to continue working on it. They wanted to get the game out near the start of the season. If they weren't obviously working on patches and 2011 updates as we speak, I'd be far more annoyed. There's a lot of fun to be had here if you're willing to laugh a little at some of the random bugs and just roll with it for the time being.

If they patch most of the bugs I'll pick this up again in a few months but right now I have way to big of a backlog to play a game that is currently half broken.

# 1062 Kingsly9 @ 03/29/11 08:43 PM

I have the games for both systems and I have to say, the patch for XBOX didn't seem to work as well as it did on the PS3... I hope Eutechnyx realizes this...

# 1063 �nima @ 03/29/11 08:58 PM

Eutechnyx is aware. I'm happy with their response to today's developments...

Statement from Ice (Community Manager for Eutechnyx):

We are committed to the NASCAR franchise for the long term and want to make improvements not just to this version of the game but also future versions.

We also appreciate your comments good and bad, without negative comments nothing would ever improve and games would just stay the same, we just ask that you do it in constructive and respectful manner.

We will be releasing another patch to fix the issues brought to our attention as soon as we can but these things take time not only develop but to also test and then submit to Sony and Microsoft. So we ask that in the mean time please try to see the good in the game and help us to make a better game for everybody and I'm sure with your help we can.

-----

The fact that they are committed to NASCAR for future years - not just a one off attempt at the game - is a good thing. They'll be working hard to get this game polished ASAP. I like what I am hearing.

If you don't want to deal with the bugs - give the game a month and revisit it. Don't abandon it entirely.

# 1064 UGA14 @ 03/29/11 09:00 PM

Is there any way to change your driver after you pick one? Not seeing how. Also love the fact that my steering wheel is not allowed in half of the menus, meaning I have to UNHOOK IT COMPLETELY, and then turn on my wireless controller so that it shows up in slot 1 to look, then turn it off and hook my steering wheel back up. Really? Nice.

# 1065 chrisasst @ 03/29/11 09:08 PM

Why can't we tune our car after lets say qualifying unless we go back to the "garage"...there just seems to be so much saving or screen delays...

# 1066 TCrouch @ 03/29/11 09:08 PM

My first race of the night was hilariously bad. It was pretty fun for a bit...did a 20% length at Daytona to start my career. Set it to Very Hard on Legend with Manual Tranny.

I qual'd on the pole without any setup tweaks on a plate track...but it was by .1, so it was within the realm of believability.

The bump drafting works pretty well when you're in the thick of it. You really have to keep your car straight if you're the lead car or they'll send you all sorts of sideways. They try to bump draft down the front stretch, which is madness, though. I got wrecked twice when I wasn't quite lined up perfectly with the car behind me, which then send me straight into the outside row. They have 5 rewinds, which is nice on a 40 lapper at Daytona lol

But after a while, I was pulling away, sadly. The fact that I could AT ALL sucked. But then I blinked and brushed the wall, beating up my RF. That let them reel right back in and start pounding on me again. At one point I decided to stick to the low line and I got steamrolled by 7 cars in a row, which was nice. Then it lasted all of about 1 lap as the overexaggerated draft let me climb right back up on them and blow by a few per corner.

Then the green flag stops started.

First round the AI cars from the outside flew across the inside lane headed for pit road. Caution flag flies.

I pitted under caution and came back out in front--despite watching 2 or 3 cars get out first in the "pit stop" movie. Ok, whatever.

Then I proceed to watch 3 cars just drive away from me as they're nose-to-tail and I can't be consistent enough to catch them. That's a plus.

But on the second round of green flag stops, I get a speeding penalty entering, and a pass-through on the next lap. As I'm heading in, some wreck happens and I'm stuck looking at a zoomed out "2nd caution" icon at the top, with cars stopped mid-corner in turn 1. Guys are colliding with each other, cars flying...and it never continues.

After 24 laps of a 40 lap event, I'm bugged and can't even finish. Forced to quit to dashboard to reload it.

I'm not bashing it for no reason--I can't even finish races and every time the AI goes to get onto pit road, chaos ensues. This is basic, basic stuff.

It's really frustrating, because half the time I'm having an absolute blast. But the other half, I want to put my fist through my TV.

# 1067 UGA14 @ 03/29/11 09:23 PM

To add to multiplayer bugs... first races are too short. Anyways, "6" lap race at Atlanta turned in to a 2 lap race. I started first, was instantly 4 laps down and in last... and it ended pretty much as soon as it began.

# 1068 nascarthegame @ 03/29/11 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by �nima


	Okay, so I just got the game and I've been playing for a few hours offline. Difficulty is... ehh. On Hard at Daytona I could pull away without a drafting partner. On Very Hard at Bristol I couldn't keep up with Todd Bodine for 42nd place. I'm hoping you can adjust the difficulty from race to race in career mode when I settle on a real driver (probably a custom one). However, I want to stress that online is BROKEN right now. I'm not talking about buggy, I'm talking broken. Here is what just happened in my first race: Eight players, most of us driving the 24 or the 88 (lol). That didn't bother me. As soon as it loads into the track (Talladega), I am upside down skidding across the pavement. Other people are also spinning, flipping or parked backwards as the race goes green. We have no control as this is happening. As we gain control, my car rights itself and I drive through the spinning and the smoke to find myself in second place. The leader is the only car that wasn't flipping and spinning at the start. He is probably four or five seconds ahead of me. I am one lap down. Over the next five laps, I chase him down and pass him to unlap myself. Nevermind that HE NEVER LAPPED ME. Although I am gaining on him as we actually drive, scoring shows me (and everyone else) continuing to LOSE LAPS. He finishes the 9 lap race while I am on lap 5. I finish second, four laps down, despite winning the race (despite flipping around like the other seven drivers behind him, I caught him and passed him on track, finishing ahead of his car). Online is BROKEN. Someone in the lobby suggested that this bug has something to do with players who are playing without the patch because they haven't booted out and booted back in since the patch went live this morning. That seems reasonable. If you're waiting to get home and go right online to race, temper your enthusiasm and show some patience. Or, at least, bring your sense of humor. For what it is worth, I was laughing the whole time. I always wanted to play in a Beta. :P

I can't wait to see this. I was lmao reading this while my wife is watching TV. She thinks I'm nuts. This is insanity. How can the developers take themselves seriously when this kind of this is commonplace?

# 1069 y2j469 @ 03/29/11 09:31 PM

Unless I'm missing something there doesn't seem to be any way to qualify or change paint schemes in offline multiplayer.

# 1070 Tidefan6869 @ 03/29/11 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TCrouch


	I used a controller and a wheel, and didn't get anything like that. I could cruise up against the wall at Indy without any issue. Same with Daytona. I did have a pretty weird drift at Texas coming off of 4, but that's always a dangerous place for me in any game, so I don't know. I didn't notice anything drastically different about it as compared to NR2003 or iRacing, though.

I just tried it with a controller with the same settings and could drive straight as an arrow

???? What wheel are you using? Maybe I need to fight the wheel more coming off the corner to not ever let it start to drift. Maybe it is actually the force feedback steering the car instead of the game itself?

Oh and don't use 4x wear on daytona everybody. When they tell you to pit you can't make a full lap before you run out of gas and then the race is over. It won't even let you coast to the pits.

That being said, I'm still being open minded and I'm going to give the game a chance. Let's hope they can patch this stuff.

# 1071 acreyman @ 03/29/11 09:41 PM

Took my copy back without opening it and used the refund to by M$ points to purchase the downloadable courses for Tiger. I will keep an eye out for the future patches but it sounds like the game needs some work still.

# 1072 yanksfan72 @ 03/29/11 09:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by y2j469


	Unless I'm missing something there doesn't seem to be any way to qualify or change paint schemes in offline multiplayer.

your missing something. You can qualify and change paint. You go to car to change paint schemes. As far a qualifing in season mode its right in the buttom middle of the screen when you pick your race. In single race I know that you can qualify, I think the option is on the race set up menu.

Hope that helps

# 1073 chrisasst @ 03/29/11 09:45 PM

Also if want to quit a race and move to the next track, you can't.. there is no way to quit a race, finish last. you must race the entire race..
Oh and not every driver does a back flip... Kyle B. does not..( only guy I have raced..) ps3

# 1074 kingcrumb @ 03/29/11 09:45 PM

I can not figure out how to turn on all the options in the highest mode on line.there are all sorts of options grayed out.

Thanks

# 1075 yanksfan72 @ 03/29/11 09:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisasst


	Why can't we tune our car after lets say qualifying unless we go back to the "garage"...there just seems to be so much saving or screen delays...

I agree I think it could be a bit easier. But my experience with most Nascar games is you have to go to a bunch of screen to set up your car.

I love it so far, I think it is hard, most comment I had read is that it was going to be an easy game, but it is hard, I have won a couple of races, but have gotten knocked out when trying to move up quite often, I don't like that when I get knocked out, often no cuation comes out.

On a good note I bought my copy from Toysrus, and to my surprise I got a $25 gift card with it. So that made me happy.

# 1076 petty43 @ 03/29/11 09:49 PM

Short fix for cautions....until they fix this...if I get wrecked and no caution within approx .4 sec. I hit the rewind otherwise it screws up the whole race

Sent from my PB99400 using Tapatalk

# 1077 Mbalmer @ 03/29/11 09:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UGA14


	Is there any way to change your driver after you pick one? Not seeing how. Also love the fact that my steering wheel is not allowed in half of the menus, meaning I have to UNHOOK IT COMPLETELY, and then turn on my wireless controller so that it shows up in slot 1 to look, then turn it off and hook my steering wheel back up. Really? Nice.

What kind of wheel are you using? PS3 or Xbox?

# 1078 chrisasst @ 03/29/11 09:50 PM

what is this rewind thing?

# 1079 yanksfan72 @ 03/29/11 09:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisasst


	Also if want to quit a race and move to the next track, you can't.. there is no way to quit a race, finish last. you must race the entire race.. Oh and not every driver does a back flip... Kyle B. does not..( only guy I have raced..) ps3

Ya, that is something they need to fix with a patch, they said earlier that dnf's were not going to be part of this years game. But they need to add it some how, it affects points if nothing else, and if I race a great race for 90% and get recked I end up finishing 43 and thats not how it works, I should finish more like 38 as other drivers would have problems as they do in every race.
What I have been doing if I get recked and have to quit, I re-do the race on the lowest laps, thats the only quick way to get to the next track

# 1080 the_serz88 @ 03/29/11 09:51 PM

Remember that one time when this game was delayed like a month? Am I the only one wondering what they spent that extra time fixing?

« Previous 1 2…51 52 535455 56 57…80 81 Next »

More Links

NASCAR The Game 2011 Q&A and Impressions