a couple of days ago my copy of Nascar Racing 4 finally arrived. While I
played the demo a lot, and seeing lots of its potential, nothing
prepared me for the experience that only Papyrus can create, it seems! I
haven't felt this good playing a sim, be it racing or flying, since
Grand Prix Legends! It sure crushed a couple of myths about Nascar.
Myth No. 1: Ovals are boring.
Plain wrong! The statement is indeed true about the restrictor plat
tracks, where you are flat out during the whole race, and even then it's
only true if you loose contact with the pack. All the other ovals are
exhillarating! Think about what corners you like in GPL, for example.
Most likely you'll choose one of the fast sweepers such as Curva Grande
or a number of them at Zandvoort, for example. Well, on ovals, all of
them are such corners! Brake late but not too late, be smooth on the
steering wheel on entry, and then apply just enough throttle to balance
the car, and slowly applying more towards the exit; no more than is
necessary so you don't hug the wall when the banking drops, though. It's
all very, very technical, much more than migth appear to a casual
observer.
Myth No. 2: Nascar cars are very crude.
Well, the rules indeed make them very unsophisticated compared to
certain open wheelers, but within that they seem to be great feats of
engineering, and contrary to what I thought they actually have
practically nothing in common with the road cars they supposedly
represent. Even the headlights are just decals on the car! A Nascar car
a thoroughbread racing machine, much more than the cars in the European
touring series, it's just the specs make them look like roadcars.
And boy, do they make for a fun experience on road circuits! Drive one
of these beasts around Watkins Glen, and it's like steering a hugely
overpowered boat. You turn in, the nose follows a bit later, and then
the car leans and starts the turn. Brake for that inner loop (a ***
surprise for any GPL-er!), throw it into the corner and, gasp, you just
drift over the curb, ahem, kerb, turn in the opposite direction and
wonder how you ever made it, wih the car apparently being only mildly
upset by it all!
It translates really well on the PC, as the transitions are slow enough
to be clearly discernible sitting in front of a monitor. It just migth
be the series that is best suited for a PC racing sim, and guys and gals
at Papy seem to know it!
All in all, the Americana experience is also well captured, with the
spotter calling you buddy and all, and I'm enjoying it as a change from
the sterile F1 experience. Pass that Bud, will you :)?
-Gregor