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

# 1181 poulka @ 03/30/11 12:33 PM

I did pick this game up and I am impressed with it. The only problem I have is that when I run other tracks other than talladega my car just plows in the turn with a terrible push. I had this to happen on medium difficulty as well. I would greatly appreciate any help.

# 1182 scottyo60 @ 03/30/11 12:41 PM

Ok so quick impressions... I'm actually better at short tracks. I am awful at Daytona unless I am in first. I feel in this game you actually need to get a feel for tracks and race pretty realistically which in EA games I'll be blunt and say I never did. My spotter makes me mad as hell sometimes because he won't tell me someones there and just goes wow there's a surprise! no really? thanks for almost making me wreck. Lighting is incredible! wrecks are a disappointment and so is damage. I only see it on my car and I can get drilled and little to nothing happens.

Also just cheesing around with cautions last night I found a huge exploit for short races at watkins. I started last and instead of breaking in the first turn I just went all out straight. took out people caution I was like 35. Did it again went to 24, did it again went to like 12... then with 7/8 laps took one more chance and went right at the leader... i guess i hit in front of him because we took caution to the checker and I won. Repeated this again and finished second... Idk how I feel about that, because I know there will be people who do this.

# 1183 seasprite @ 03/30/11 12:48 PM

Racing a lot of private races with 5-7 people last night and had a blast with the game. One thing that we have seemed to figure out was with the crazy starts with cars piled up and everything. It only happened when someone in the race couldnt see all the other racers in the startup lobby. When someone only saw 5 or 6 out of the 7 racers, we would start the race and have the pileup and nonresponsive cars issue. When we managed to get everyone in the lobby to see all the racers, we had no issues. This is with 360 by the way. We had a load of fun racing last night and hopefully they will fix this caution issue and some of the other issues with the online portion of the game and this will be a great title. I still say that this is one of the best "feeling" NASCAR titles, sans the glitches, that I have raced current gen. Cars feel great and you can really tell tire wear later on in the races and damage really affects your car and the way it handles and speed in our private lobbies with damage full at least. I have faith that the devs will get some of these issues fixed and make this the launch game that they envisioned.

# 1184 petty43 @ 03/30/11 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rules


	= Doesn't matter for me as they need to fix the bigger issues you listed above.

ok after playing more i may need to take back number 6 . i think its my own fault.i most times stop and the very end of a gas run where i notice most of the ai stops 2-3 laps before me.while i am running my last 2-3 laps on wore out tires just hanging on there flying on new tires.i tried stopping sooner and it helped.i run 30 percent at x3 wear. you know the game would be greatly improved if they would quick patch the cautions and bunching up problems..then work on the other stuff,

# 1185 mm boost @ 03/30/11 01:39 PM

I have got to say, I played it for an hour this morning before work, I put it on pro assists with hard difficulty. I raced at 2 tracks, Talledega and Daytona. I kept wrecking at Talledega, so I quit, and then tried Daytona (single player race, no career yet). I am driving with my logitech driving force GT, and damn I have got to say, that the RACING in this game is fun as hell and super intense. With that wheel, I had my hand gripped on the wheel and shifter the whole time, and I was sweating bullets. It took me about 10 tries to finish a race without wrecking. In 6 laps, with most of the helpful hint popups turned off and draft wake turned off, I used some hardcore drafting and slingshot maneuvers and moved from 43 to 4th. It was a hellacious race and there was a couple times where I saved the car from whipping around on me and causing a pile up. Overall, I enjoy it so far.

My biggest gripe, and it pisses me off so bad I can't STAND IT. These Devs PREACHED and made promises about the wrecking, damage, crash engine. They said its the most realistic and violent wrecks we've seen. Um...I hear the crickets chirping. This is the WORSE wrecking engine I have ever seen. It reminds me of the old Gran Turismo and Need for Speed days when there was absolutely no damage. It is absolutely HORENDOUS!!!!!!!!!! They have got to fix this in the patch, it kills absolutely all realism. Also, the penalty flags issue bothers me like no other. I am so mad about these 2 aspects. I really hope they patch this, and patch it quick because Nascar is known for the violent wrecks where the cars are torn to shreds. I have only seen my car messed up, and no one elses. Even when I get hit by a car going 180 mph, all I get is a dented fender and they get some scrapes on the bumpers. My God I can't wait for the day we see a completely violent, realistic physics based crash engine where it makes you scared to death to wreck if you are trying to win a race. make us pay for making a bad decision behind the wheel.

# 1186 BadAssHskr @ 03/30/11 02:03 PM

well i've read most of this thread, and did some skimming past unnecessary griping, but can someone in the know, with a rational game assessment tell me the downfalls of the 360 version?

i have a ps3 and promised myself to use it as my racing console, but when i went to gamestop i, being an xbox guy, folded and bought it for the 360.

also, i played only briefly last night, and a bit under the influence, but really had trouble with the force feedback on my 360 wheel. it seemed to be very jerky, has anyone noticed this, and is there a remedy?

# 1187 y2j469 @ 03/30/11 02:09 PM

The illegal pit row entry penalty is starting to drive me crazy.

# 1188 BurghFan @ 03/30/11 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by y2j469


	The illegal pit row entry penalty is starting to drive me crazy.

Yeah, that kept happening to me at Bristol when I would spin and end up down on the apron. It would make me go into the pits and say illegal entry when I never even wanted to go in the pits in the first place.

# 1189 Rules @ 03/30/11 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by poulka


	I did pick this game up and I am impressed with it. The only problem I have is that when I run other tracks other than talladega my car just plows in the turn with a terrible push. I had this to happen on medium difficulty as well. I would greatly appreciate any help.

Start with simple things such as tire pressures and wedge adjustments to see if you can get the nose to turn better. Might even be a camber issue.

# 1190 Rules @ 03/30/11 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by petty43


	ok after playing more i may need to take back number 6 . i think its my own fault.i most times stop and the very end of a gas run where i notice most of the ai stops 2-3 laps before me.while i am running my last 2-3 laps on wore out tires just hanging on there flying on new tires.i tried stopping sooner and it helped.i run 30 percent at x3 wear. you know the game would be greatly improved if they would quick patch the cautions and bunching up problems..then work on the other stuff,

Ok, now I understand what was happening to ya.

# 1191 Rules @ 03/30/11 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottyo60


	Ok so quick impressions... I'm actually better at short tracks. I am awful at Daytona unless I am in first. I feel in this game you actually need to get a feel for tracks and race pretty realistically which in EA games I'll be blunt and say I never did. My spotter makes me mad as hell sometimes because he won't tell me someones there and just goes wow there's a surprise! no really? thanks for almost making me wreck. Lighting is incredible! wrecks are a disappointment and so is damage. I only see it on my car and I can get drilled and little to nothing happens. Also just cheesing around with cautions last night I found a huge exploit for short races at watkins. I started last and instead of breaking in the first turn I just went all out straight. took out people caution I was like 35. Did it again went to 24, did it again went to like 12... then with 7/8 laps took one more chance and went right at the leader... i guess i hit in front of him because we took caution to the checker and I won. Repeated this again and finished second... Idk how I feel about that, because I know there will be people who do this.

That is a problem as the car that caused the yellow has to drop back to the back of the longest line.

# 1192 olefivetime48 @ 03/30/11 02:30 PM

Hey guys, did the xbox patch do anything? My caution lights are still on at every track.

# 1193 Senor Nascar @ 03/30/11 02:38 PM

Message to Developers:

Here are my concerns and suggestions for issues which should be fixed in future patches:

1. Obviously the caution issue which has been well addressed by numerous people.

2. The AI aggressiveness at bump drafting on Auto Club Speedway. I have been wrecked numerous times by the AI simply slamming into the back of me at a place where bump drafting is minimal.

3. The AI difficulty needs to be ramped up especially in Qualifying.

4. The lack of TIRE TEMPERATURE readings. I would really like to see this added in. If you do not know your tire temperatures it makes it really difficult to set up a car properly.

5. The small tire wear indicator needs reworking. It is very difficult to see how much your tires are wearing and if the insides, middle, or outside of the tire are wearing more than other parts of the tire. This is key info for finding out what is wrong with the setup and how to make it better. I would advise using a system like other games. Where the tires are blue, then green, then yellow and then red.

6. The AI needs help when pitting under yellow. Numerous times I have seen them run into each other on Pit Road causing a huge mess.

7. When Pitting, the DEFAULT should be a full gas tank not the opposite like it is now. You already don't have much time to make adjustments so it would be great if this could be reversed so I am not wasting time filling that meter up. If I want less than a full tank than I could dial it down instead.

8. I would like to be able to save more than 50 setups. I know it sounds like a lot but it really isn't if you calculate that you at least have one saved setup for each track (23) and when the update comes you will need at least another 23 for the 2011 models which will handle differently. I would like to see the number of allowed save setups to go up.

9. The spotter should stop saying all clear at odd times like when I am stopped or on pit road. It is just way overdone. Also for future versions of the game I would look at maybe omitting the comedic lines because although they might be funny the first time...they get real old real quick. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard the hot dog line. I would rather the spotter focus on positional info.

10. The bunching up of AI on certain tracks.

11. It was my understanding that there would be an Adaptive AI setting in this game. What happened? It could help solve some difficulty issues for some if it were to be added.

12. I think for future iterations try to make the default setup not so good out of the box. It really takes away from the need to work on your car. I know you are trying to appeal to people who don't want to work on their car but it just kills it for those who do.

13. The draft is way overdone at certain tracks. I think it greatly needs to be toned down overall. I think it will really help with the difficulty as well.

14. The online timer (even in private races) needs to go away. All other racer games have always had a ready up feature which works much better. Hopefully this can be addressed soon. F1 does a good job of this.

15. Better online stability.

16. The wheel support needs revamping. I play with a Porsche Fanatec GT2 wheel for Xbox 360. It is operational but is certainly not tuned for this game and the force feedback seems to come and go. After playing with the g25 on PS3 last night, I can honestly notice a HUGE difference. Hopefully you guys can look at all the wheels people are using and tune them for this game.

17. When your fuel runs out, it should not be an automatic DNF. There needs to be a chance to coast to the pits.

18. The AI needs to be more careful when coming out of pit road and onto the track (Auto Club Speedway is a good example of this) They move all the way over near the wall when not at speed yet and it causes major bunching. They need to stay near the white line till they are up to speed somewhere on the backstretch.

That is what I got in terms of immediate fixes to help get this game on the right path. I am sure I left out a couple of things but overall I think there is a good base here in this game (driving model and AI) and with these fixes the game would be much better.

# 1194 Aggies7 @ 03/30/11 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bluengold34_OS


	I hope no one feels I mislead them at all here, I was giving my honest impression's of how I felt about this game(PS3 version). I posted the video's last night of me racing, and nothing was doctored at all. It sounds like the 360 version is really having some issues though. I will also say that since I got the patch, every time a caution should have come out, it did. I still love this game for the exact same reason I did yesterday, and the day before. On the hard-core mode(which I understand they took out of the 360 patch)with no assists on, it is challenging to win, and a lot of fun. I explained that career mode was thin on options, and I only raced 1 time on-line, but that one time was very smooth and we finished the race with no issues. I also explained the create-a car had no decals, but was just like forza. I have no interest at all if someone buys this game or not, but I gave my true, honest impressions of what I played on the PS3. I still feel like it's the best NASCAR game to date on a console, and I will not back down from that. I am not pointing fingers at anyone at all, but I will stand by my word and how I feel about this game. I do not bow to the pressure of how the majority feels, and I am no conformist.

Don't apologize at all. Yes this game is buggy but I am 7 races in to a season and love it. The game is what you make of it. Game is far from perfect but for a first try I will take it. Just hope eutechnyx take some advise prior to the next game.

# 1195 Brew @ 03/30/11 02:53 PM

I played for awhile last night and I have to saying that the racing itself is great! IMO this is the best Nascar sim to hit a console. Is it NR2003 or Iracing... of course not! Whoever expects that from a console racer especially a first year title are asking a bit much. Driving is a definitely a challenge but it isnt a frustrating challenge like Nascar 09.
Its a very fun challenge. I only put one bar of assist on for ABS, Traction Control and Stability Control and the feel was pretty realistic. You cant drive too hard into the turns and you cant just mash the throttle off the corner or your going to spin out. I found myself posting faster lap times when I went easy on the car then when I was driving really hard. I was impressed by the range of assists that you can use and you can definitely tell when you make a change.

My biggest gripes are the cautions, pit road crashes and AI cars piling up at times. Very frustrating as I did have it happen in a couple quick races but overall the game is a blast. All the issues that are there seem very fixable and once that is fixed... I think this will be a very fun game online and off.

The paint booth is a totally different story... the premise of it is very well thought out but poorly implemented. They say it is a 3D tool like Forza yet they still link layers to a certain part of the car and it shows when you try to move something to another area while it is still designated to another. I found it to be too much of a challenge to put any type of elaborate design or even simple striping all the way around the car without shapes not matching up and lining up right. Its not nearly as good as Forzas but with a few tweaks it could be a nice paint tool. The best part of the paint booth is the decal editor where you can make any logo you want but are limited to only 50 layers per logo which is a big disappointment for me. The worst part is that you cant copy things over from one side of the car to the other and that makes it very difficult to make it look uniform on both sides. I love designing cars and consider myself pretty damn good at it but the paint booth as of now IMO is worse than Forzas and even Midnight Club LAs. The lack of sponsors to choose from is disappointing and Im surprised they didnt put Goodyear, NASCAR race car, and Sprint Cup series decals in the sponsors as those appear on every Sprint Cup car IRL. It is too tedious to make on my own. Ill be much happier when they add the headlight and taillights and manufacturer decals in the 2011 car patch.

The lack of a true career mode(only one season) and more online options is going to kill the replayability of this title for alot of people but if you like NASCAR and love racing... I think anybody could have alot of fun with this game. A friend of mine who doesnt even like racing and always pokes fun at NASCAR played for over 2 hours with me yesterday and said he had to get it. I gave him a few tips starting out and eventually he was using the same amount of assists as me and was finishing in the Top 5 consistently on Medium difficulty.

Overall, I think theyve built a great foundation for a successful NASCAR game franchise and will only get better with future iterations. If you can deal with the issues and like racing especially NASCAR this is a must buy IMO!

# 1196 petty43 @ 03/30/11 02:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by olefivetime48


	Hey guys, did the xbox patch do anything? My caution lights are still on at every track.

o did not play the gamre prepatch.. but from what i read it has not helped us xbox players.sounds like it has improved the ps3,

# 1197 Aggies7 @ 03/30/11 02:57 PM

I will say I agree with the poster that is completely disappointed with the damage model. I heard for months how good the damage and wrecks would be from eutechnyx and this was a complete disappointment. But as stated before I enjoy the racing but shocked how bad the damage and wrecks have turned out.

# 1198 petty43 @ 03/30/11 03:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Senor Nascar


	Message to Developers: Here are my concerns and suggestions for issues which should be fixed in future patches: 1. Obviously the caution issue which has been well addressed by numerous people. 2. The AI aggressiveness at bump drafting on Auto Club Speedway. I have been wrecked numerous times by the AI simply slamming into the back of me at a place where bump drafting is minimal. 3. The AI difficulty needs to be ramped up especially in Qualifying. 4. The lack of TIRE TEMPERATURE readings. I would really like to see this added in. If you do not know your tire temperatures it makes it really difficult to set up a car properly. 5. The small tire wear indicator needs reworking. It is very difficult to see how much your tires are wearing and if the insides, middle, or outside of the tire are wearing more than other parts of the tire. This is key info for finding out what is wrong with the setup and how to make it better. I would advise using a system like other games. Where the tires are blue, then green, then yellow and then red. 6. The AI needs help when pitting under yellow. Numerous times I have seen them run into each other on Pit Road causing a huge mess. 7. When Pitting, the DEFAULT should be a full gas tank not the opposite like it is now. You already don't have much time to make adjustments so it would be great if this could be reversed so I am not wasting time filling that meter up. If I want less than a full tank than I could dial it down instead. 8. I would like to be able to save more than 50 setups. I know it sounds like a lot but it really isn't if you calculate that you at least have one saved setup for each track (23) and when the update comes you will need at least another 23 for the 2011 models which will handle differently. I would like to see the number of allowed save setups to go up. 9. The spotter should stop saying all clear at odd times like when I am stopped or on pit road. It is just way overdone. Also for future versions of the game I would look at maybe omitting the comedic lines because although they might be funny the first time...they get real old real quick. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard the hot dog line. I would rather the spotter focus on positional info. 10. The bunching up of AI on certain tracks. 11. It was my understanding that there would be an Adaptive AI setting in this game. What happened? It could help solve some difficulty issues for some if it were to be added. 12. I think for future iterations try to make the default setup not so good out of the box. It really takes away from the need to work on your car. I know you are trying to appeal to people who don't want to work on their car but it just kills it for those who do. 13. The draft is way overdone at certain tracks. I think it greatly needs to be toned down overall. I think it will really help with the difficulty as well. 14. The online timer (even in private races) needs to go away. All other racer games have always had a ready up feature which works much better. Hopefully this can be addressed soon. F1 does a good job of this. 15. Better online stability. 15. The wheel support needs revamping. I play with a Porsche Fanatec GT2 wheel for Xbox 360. It is operational but is certainly not tuned for this game and the force feedback seems to come and go. After playing with the g25 on PS3 last night, I can honestly notice a HUGE difference. Hopefully you guys can look at all the wheels people are using and tune them for this game. That is what I got in terms of immediate fixes to help get this game on the right path. I am sure I left out a couple of things but overall I think there is a good base here in this game (driving model and AI) and with these fixes the game would be much better.

that is spot on...you fix that and we got a good game,by the way are you playing on ps3 or xbox..what concerns me is that some of the things are so easy to see the first time you play the game it looks like it would have already been fixed makes me wonder if they can even fix it.

# 1199 seasprite @ 03/30/11 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aggies7


	I will say I agree with the poster that is completely disappointed with the damage model. I heard for months how good the damage and wrecks would be from eutechnyx and this was a complete disappointment. But as stated before I enjoy the racing but shocked how bad the damage and wrecks have turned out.

Especially since this was a big selling point from them

# 1200 Giants2003 @ 03/30/11 04:21 PM

Can we return for a refund if we opened and it has all these issues that were promised were ok? The game is fun I like the driving but have not gone online yet.

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