NASCAR Legends

Papyrus · released 1999 · discussed in 1,552 posts, 1997-2005 · overall tone mixed

Posts per month

Timeline

1999-05-16 Papyrus said its next NASCAR title (then called NASCAR 2000) and NASCAR Legends would use an enhanced NASCAR Racing 2 engine. The GPL-engine NASCAR 3 was put on hold. thread post post
1999-10-29 Papyrus's NASCAR Legends, a 1970 season sim on the NASCAR Racing 3 engine, reached stores. thread post post
2000-04-18 Papyrus's NASCAR Acceleration Pack went on sale for $50. It bundled NASCAR Racing 3, NASCAR Legends and the new Craftsman Truck expansion. thread post
2000-04-26 Papyrus released a downloadable NASCAR Legends demo, six months after the game's launch. thread post
2001-04-23 The Pits and Dave Noonan released converters that brought Grand Prix Legends tracks to NASCAR Racing 3 and NASCAR Legends. post post

Key threads

Papyrus defends AI line at Riverside in NASCAR Legends 1999-10-29 · 69 posts
Douglas Sharp reported that the NASCAR Legends AI cut far into the dirt at Riverside turn six. Papyrus's Scott Sanford said this was intentional and based on race tapes. Former Riverside racers and marshals disputed it, and Sanford said hostility was why Papyrus staff rarely posted and pointed to tools for editing the AI line. The thread descended into trolling and insults.
First impressions of NASCAR Legends and its spotter 1999-10-29 · 22 posts
Uncle Fester bought NASCAR Legends at release and gave mixed first impressions. Posters asked why a 1970 sim had a spotter, and Papyrus's Charlie Heath explained that it was added late because multiplayer races without one proved too hard. Others reported color problems with imported N2 and N99 tracks, and Scott Sanford of Papyrus answered period-detail questions about the Union 76 branding.
Wish list for Papyrus's next 'Legends' title 2000-05-10 · 87 posts
Fans proposed future Papyrus 'Legends' games, including sports car, touring car, Can-Am, USAC and turbo-era or 1982 Formula One versions of GPL. Ymenard and others doubted Sierra would approve another, since both Legends titles had sold poorly, and Ed Solheim noted that Dave Kaemmer was reportedly not keen on a sports car sim. The thread drifted into memories of Bathurst and touring car racing.
Corner-cutting at Riverside in NASCAR Legends 1999-11-26 · 76 posts
A question about lap times at Riverside in NASCAR Legends became a long argument over cutting through the dirt as the AI does. The poster ymenard argued that it was legitimate because the AI and real drivers did it, while John Simmons and Scott Hoffner called it unsporting, and Simmons muzzled him on his servers. Marc J. Nelson posted photos of real cars cutting turn six, and former spectators said no one did it every lap.
First NASCAR Legends screenshot from Papyrus 1999-08-23 · 41 posts
A poster pointed to a new NASCAR Legends screenshot on Papyrus's site. Michael Barlow and others feared it would use NASCAR Racing 3's physics rather than GPL's, while Scott Husted, who had reviewed an N3 alpha, said N3 was more than a facelift and promised large online fields. A debate followed about whether people should keep complaining that Papyrus had not reused the GPL engine.
Papyrus NASCAR Acceleration Pack angers existing customers 2000-03-19 · 32 posts
Marc Collins noted Papyrus's new NASCAR Acceleration Pack bundling N3, NASCAR Legends and the Craftsman Truck add-on, which undercut what loyal buyers had paid while N3 patches were still unfinished. Others defended it as normal pricing practice. The thread degenerated into insults aimed at ymenard. Late posts noted Charlie Heath's departure from Papyrus and a new 1200 beta patch said to greatly improve online play.
Disputed NASCAR Racing 3 release date 1999-09-07 · 29 posts
A poster claimed NASCAR Racing 3's release had been brought forward to 15 September; Ed Bain said retailers still listed 2 October, which led to taunting from the original poster. Others discussed the upcoming NASCAR Legends and its short tracks, and the history of Talladega's original name.
Prospects for a NASCAR Legends sequel 2001-03-23 · 23 posts
Blues DeVille suggested a NASCAR Legends 2 on the N4 physics engine. Most replies said NASCAR Legends and GPL sold poorly, making historic sims commercially unlikely, and debated whether the subject, marketing or brand recognition was to blame, noting NASCAR 4 sold well on the same engine.
NASCAR Legends compared with NASCAR Racing 3 1999-12-14 · 21 posts
A buyer asked how NASCAR Legends compares with N3. Larry called it the same game with different cars that should have been a cheap expansion, while others praised its more aggressive AI and tyre wear. When Trips complained that stagger adjustment was missing, Papyrus's Scott Sanford confirmed it was done through rear tyre pressures.
Requests to share Papyrus's Daytona track for NASCAR 3 2000-02-14 · 38 posts
A poster offered to share the Daytona track Papyrus made for NASCAR Racing 3, which was only distributed on a Daytona Speedweeks CD. Many asked for copies, others warned about the legal pressure the track owners had applied, and posters discussed making it work in NASCAR Legends.
Why so few play NASCAR Legends online 2000-07-12 · 32 posts
Posters noted that NASCAR Legends online lobbies were nearly empty because NASCAR 3 had taken its players. Robert Platts attacked Papyrus's NASCAR line as repackaged NASCAR 1 and the WON community as newbies, and threatened to pirate future Papyrus games, while others defended N3's leagues. Kai Fuller explained that NASCAR 4 using GPL's physics engine did not mean it would handle like a 1967 F1 car.
NASCAR Legends demo released months after the game 2000-04-26 · 27 posts
Posters noted that a NASCAR Legends demo appeared long after the full game had been released, which several called backwards marketing. Others discussed whether the demo tracks such as Riverside could be used with Dave Noonan's track converter for GPL and the licensing questions involved, and complained about broken download mirrors.
VRF IntelliVIBE tactile feedback seat for racing sims 1999-12-19 · 21 posts
A poster asked about a new vibrating seat pad from VRF. Posters found that it supports an IntelliVIBE mode built into NASCAR Racing 3 and NASCAR Legends as well as a sound-based mode for other games, and an owner praised it in N3. The thread was largely jokes about other uses for a vibrating seat.
Newcomer questions about caution rules in NASCAR Racing 3 1999-10-04 · 20 posts
A newcomer asked about yellow flag rules in N3 and why AI cars passed under caution. Others explained racing back to the line and how cautions work, and noted that NASCAR Legends used the same engine. The thread ended discussing why NASCAR technology changes slowly.

Busiest threads

Corner-cutting at Riverside in NASCAR Legends (25 posts about it)
Papyrus defends AI line at Riverside in NASCAR Legends (15 posts about it)
First NASCAR Legends screenshot from Papyrus (13 posts about it)
I Heard This Rumor! (12 posts about it)
NASCAR LEGENDS: No online racing, WHY???????????? (12 posts about it)
How many racing sims do you have installed? (11 posts about it)
Prospects for a NASCAR Legends sequel (10 posts about it)
NL vs N2, N3 & N4 (9 posts about it)
Why so few play NASCAR Legends online (9 posts about it)
NASCAR Legends demo released months after the game (9 posts about it)
NASCAR Legends compared with NASCAR Racing 3 (9 posts about it)
First impressions of NASCAR Legends and its spotter (9 posts about it)
Need NASCAR LEGENDS files ... believe it or not ........ .......... (8 posts about it)
Nascar Legends (8 posts about it)
Nascar Racing 3 vs. Nascar Legends (8 posts about it)

Sentiment by year

Each post that discussed the sim was rated from −2 (very negative) to +2 (very positive).

Year	Posts	Positive	Negative	Tone
1997	3	2	0	very positive (+0.67)
1998	2	2	0	very positive (+1.00)
1999	633	164	70	mixed (+0.19)
2000	594	109	47	mixed (+0.12)
2001	166	33	15	mixed (+0.14)
2002	66	20	5	positive (+0.24)
2003	56	20	1	positive (+0.41)
2004	14	2	2	mixed (+0.00)
2005	18	11	2	positive (+0.56)