NASCAR Thunder 2002

"As close as I'm ever gonna get to racing NASCAR..."

The 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup season is almost over, but that didn't stop EA Sports from releasing the latest in their NASCAR series. Released in time for yesterday's EA Sports 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, NASCAR Thunder 2002 came in with a lot of hype, as Madden NFL developer Tiburon took over the project. After the solid yet disappointing NASCAR 2001, EA had to prove that when it came to stock car racing, they were still King of the Consoles. A new graphics engine, a full 43-car field, and a slew of other features were promised, but many gamers (myself included) were questioning how well things would turn out. So how is Thunder 2002? Is it better than NASCAR Heat 2002? Is it the game everyone made it out to be?

Simply put: YES. I can say with the utmost confidence that NASCAR Thunder 2002 is the best NASCAR game ever created, PC or console. It's not the greatest racer ever created (that award goes to Gran Turismo 3), but if you love NASCAR, this is definitely the game for you.

After an opening tribute to Dale Earnhardt (which, honestly, I could see coming from a mile away), we're treated to a nice intro movie set to Lynard Skynard's ''Sweet Home Alabama'' (Talladega's in Alabama--get it?). This sets the mood for the game perfectly, and by the time it loads you can't wait to put the pedal to the metal. The game gives you three modes of play: Quick Race, Season, and Career. Here's how the three modes work:

-Quick Race: Pick a driver, pick a track, and go race. You can run as many laps as you want and you can turn certain features (such as caution flags and tire wear) off and on at your leisure. Great for getting a handle on how the game plays.

-Season Mode: Your chance to run the 2001 Winston Cup schedule. You can choose to run a 12, 24, or the full 36-race schedule. Go the full season to see if you have what it takes to claim the title of Winston Cup champion.

-Career Mode: The pride and joy of NASCAR Thunder 2002, Career Mode is the game's best feature. In Career Mode, you create a driver and have 20 seasons to win 8 championships (the record is 7 by both Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt). You star out wit minimal equipment and little money, so obtaining sponsorship is an issue. Once you get the sponsors you want, it's time to go out to the track. Each season in Career Mode is 12 races long, starting with the Daytona 500 and ending with the EA Sports 500. By winning races and performing well, you win money and sponsorship offers. The more money you get, the more upgrades you can buy for your car and your crew.

Each sponsor that gives you an offer will have specific goals in order for that sponsorship to be honored (Ex: finish in the Top 30 three races in a row). Meet these goals, and you'll get more money, as well as other sponsorship offers. In about your third season, you'll start to get more high-profile sponsors.

With the money you win, you can upgrade certain aspects of your car, such as engine, pit crew performance, and car durability. The more you upgrade, the better your car performs and (hopefully) the better your results on the racetrack.

As you progress through your career, you'll notice that older drivers will retire and will be replaced by new ones (Ex: Kyle Petty retired from the #45 ride and Greg Biffle took his place). Eventually, if you do good enough, you'll be able to take over a high-profile ride, like Jeff Gordon's or Kevin Harvick's. This is sort of like how NASCAR works in real life, and this little touch adds a great deal to Thunder 2002's value.

The only problem I have with Career Mode is how long it is. You can only run 12 races a year and you can only run at 5% race length. While this makes running a career fast and easy, some of us more hardcore NASCAR fans would love the chance to run 20 full seasons. It's a minor gripe, considering everything else is executed so well, but it's a gripe that can't be ignored.

Other features in Thunder 2002 include over 50 real NASCAR drivers, a full 43-car field (a first in the console world), and all 23 tracks on the Winston Cup circuit (a first for NASCAR games period, PC or console). Race as Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Dale Jr, Bobby Labonte, and Jeff Green, or create your own driver and take to the track. Wanna race at new Hampshire? Go ahead. Pheonix? Yup. Pocono? Affirmative.

As for the racing itself, it's not perfect, but it's a lot better than it was. First of all, the framerate is much smoother this year, as opposed to 2001's horrid slowdown (which could be worked around, but never should've been there in the first place). With a smoother framerate, the racing experience is much better.

In terms of control, Thunder 2002 is as good as NASCAR games come. OK, so the analog button feature that the DalShock2 boasts isn't there, but this is one of the better-controlling racers on the console. The controls are responsive, and while you may wind up fighting your car in the turns, you won't be fighting your controller (or steering wheel, if that's what you use).

Thunder 2002 boasts a two-player mode and a four-player mode, both of which are executed very well. Neither one features a 43-car field, but the racing is just as intense and again, we see a silky-smooth framreate.

The problems with the actual gameplay will likely only be noticed by the hardcore NASCAR fan. Take the draft for instance. In NASCAR, the draft is where one car runs right behind another car, taking it's air and picking up a few extra miles per hour. Get close enough to the car in front of you, and you can slingshot past them. In Thunder 2002, the draft seems a bit backwards and it doesn't work quite right. It'll take you a race or two and then you'll figure it out, but it's not quite right.

Secondly, it is nearly impossible to wreck in this game. Yes, AI cars get together and spin and such, but hardly do you ever see a full, all out wreck. The AI makes seemingly miraculous saves, and it's even possible to pull incredible saves of your own. I still cannot fathom how Kevin Harvick can hit the wall in turn 4 at Lowe's and blow by me on the high side at the start/finish line....

Graphically, Thunder 2002 is pretty, if not perfect. The car models are exquisite, each track is faithfully recreated and as I stated before, the framerate is awesome. However, a few jaggies are still present and the level of detail in the cars isn't at the level it was at last year. But think of it this way: EA is sacrificing high detail in favor of a 43-car field and a smooth framerate. If you ask me, they made the right choice. ''It's not as pretty as GT3,'' some say. Well, GT3 only has 6-car fields; if it had 43 cars, it would look like this game does. Thunder 2002 is a very nice-looking game though.

All in all, NASCAR Thunder 2002 is the quintessential NASCAR game. Granted, it won't convert naysayers of the sport, but you'll be hardpressed to find a better, more accurate representation of America's fastest sport on a console. Only NASCAR Racing 4 on the PC comes close to this game's appeal. NASCAR Thunder 2002 isn't just NASCAR; it's a racing RPG.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/29/01, Updated 10/29/01