NASCAR Heat

"Not the Best, but a Great Substitute"

Although I am not the biggest Nascar fan on the planet, I do like to play the games they release. Nascar Heat held up to the competition in the Racing genre, but pulls up short of greatness.

Nascar Heat comes equipped with tons of great drivers including, Bobby Labonte, Rusty Wallace, Jeff Gordon and the Late Dale Earnhardt. The list of drivers is exceptional.

The game also comes with a ton of tracks, including Dayton, North Carolina, Bristol and Talledega. The tracks look and feel very real.

Graphics - This is a huge strong point in this game. All of the Tracks were done with precision and care. Daytona and North Carolina are two of the best tracks I have ever seen put on a racing game. Everything from the pit to the crowd looks just as it would in real life.
Another strong point to the graphics are the Cars themselves. Cars were made to clone their real life counter parts and were all nicely done.
The only downfall to the graphics are the Pit Crew and Car Damage. You pit crew looks a little boxy and plus they all have the same face as you! I think that Hasbro could have taken some extra time and made sure that each face was just a little different.
Car Damage is barley even in. You can bang up your car quite a bit and still it looks all right. You can't really total your car at all.
Final Graphics Grade = B

Sound - There are no real complaints with the sound. Your crew leader talks to you during the race, but does get a little on the annoying side.
Engines, accidents and tires are all done well. They may not be the best you have ever heard, but at least they aren't the worst.
Final Sound Grade = B-

Gameplay - This is where the game is a bit weak in my opinion. Controlling your car with a game pad is a little bit too hard for my taste. You may want to become accustomed to hitting walls and having to squeal around corners.
The other racers are a little bit too good on the faster tracks, good luck passing around the corners.
Car Damage and Engine Failure are terrible. You can turn around and go the wrong way, hit another car full speed and head on and you will only loose a couple front plates and be stalled out for a second.
Final Gameplay Grade = C-

Replay Value - If you are a die hard NASCAR fan, then you will probably keep coming back to this game. There are a pretty good amount of options in the Championship mode so you can keep season's interesting.
Beat the Heat mode is really cool. It sets you up with challenges that you must beat to unlock hidden things in the game. Makes for a nice time killer.
Final Replay Grade = C+

Final Verdict = To be honest, this game doesn't get too much play time from me. There are certain days though it is nice to sit down and have a couple races. Is it worth buying? That is really up to the person. If you are really into NASCAR, then try it out. If you are a casual NASCAR fan like me, then you will probably be disappointed.

Final Game Grade = C+

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 09/07/02, Updated 09/07/02