Not every racing enthusiast can take the routes that Dale Earnhardt Sr. or Chase Elliott took in their careers and become superstars in NASCAR. What they do instead is quench their thirst for speed through video games and racing simulators. This addictive hobby got a new turn in 1984 with the launch of the first-ever NASCAR-based video game ‘Richard Petty’s Talladega’.
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This release on Atari 8-bit and the C64 was primitive at best. The technology to create realistic games wasn’t invented at the time, but the game was a pioneer in the field.
Over the next 10 years, there were multiple new games but none presented a significant development over the first. ‘Bill Elliott’s NASCAR Challenge’, released in 1991, was the first game to be officially licensed by NASCAR.
It was in 1994 that the first simulation 3D game was released in the name of ‘NASCAR Racing’ (Developed by Papyrus). It came out on PC initially and then on PS1 in 1996. Featuring 3D cars and fully rendered tracks, it was a true step forward. Notably, it had 25 licensed drivers and nine different race tracks. It also had a championship mode and was the first one to do so.
EA Sports entered the mix in 1998 and developed ‘NASCAR 98’ as a casual SIM racing experience. It was a console-based game and presented another big development in the gaming atmosphere.
It got multiple sequels over the following years before the launch of the NASCAR Thunder Series in 2001. A later sequel, ‘NASCAR Thunder 2004’, is widely regarded as one of the best stock car racing games.
The end of the golden age of NASCAR video games
‘NASCAR Thunder 2004’ was one of the first console games to have online play and gained huge ratings. Following its release, EA Sports received exclusivity over NASCAR’s gaming rights.
However, this move did not end up well for any of the parties as subpar games with minimal technological upgrades failed to impress gamers. The developer decided to drop stock car racing from its portfolio in 2009.
For the next five years, Eutechnyx served as the promotion’s gaming partner. It released many notable games like ‘NASCAR: The Game’ and ‘NASCAR: Unleashed’. It was also the force behind the first NASCAR mobile game, ‘NASCAR: Red Line’.
DMi Games (Later, 704 Games) acquired the gaming license in 2015 and worked with Monster Games to launch ‘NASCAR Heat: Evolution’ in 2016. It was a big flop.
An updated version was launched in 2017 but it still failed to impress fans. However, it did have an Xfinity Series mode and a Craftsman Truck Series mode. Yet another update, titled ‘NASCAR Heat 3’ in 2018 again failed to hit its mark.
The main issue with the series was the driving model and faulty physics. Just as fans were beginning to lose all hope on the gaming front, a big announcement came.
Fans have their hopes renewed with iRacing and Forza Motorsports’ announcement
Motorsports Games, a giant in the industry, decided that it would be investing in 704 Games and take control. This led to big hype being created around its maiden release, ‘NASCAR 21: Ignition’. Unfortunately, fans were disappointed again. Despite being developed on the Unreal Engine, it had multiple flaws and glitches in the gameplay. It was work half-done at best.
There hasn’t been a notable release since this 2021 flop and the license with Motorsports Games stands canceled. iRacing is currently working on a new console release which is expected to come out in 2025.
In the meanwhile, Forza Motorsports has incorporated NASCAR into its American Thunder Tour in 2024. It first did so in 2017 and has answered questions about whether it will do so again.
The Forza Motorsports Update 14 features all the Next Gen cars and gamers can race them in several tracks including the Homestead-Miami Speedway. The update was made available for download on November 4 on Xbox and PC. The bigger focus is on iRacing and its development of the new game. It is expected to revive the lost age of enjoyable stock car racing games.
The words of iRacing President Tony Gardner show promising intent. He said last year, “Having the ability to build a NASCAR console game is a privilege we promise to execute with the utmost care.”
“We look forward to working diligently with NASCAR industry stakeholders to deliver a product that provides an amazing experience for the gaming community and NASCAR fans worldwide.” All that’s left to do now is wait.
