Customer Reviews

NASCAR 2001

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Being the huge fan of NASCAR that I am and of the ES Sports NASCAR racing games it was a must have for me to pick up the 2001 edition, I now own them all but the first one 98. The biggest improvement by far is the ability to race at Daytona, for the 500 and for the Pepsi 400 under the lights. I was at this past years 400 and I was amazed by the realism of the track and the feel. The new game engine is much more realistic as is the spotter voices and the announcers don't talk so much in this game as in past ones. The ability to create a driver, his car make between Ford, Chevy, and Ponitac is another advantage though I do wish the Chrysler was available. The car set up is a lot trickier than in the previous ones, more like Nascar99 where it gets very technical is setting it up, but that's what the practice is for. The view from inside the car is also much better than in other editions and the ability to do a quick view of whats behind you gives a really feel to a rear-bumper cam, and the rear-view mirror works well. Another feature that I love is the ability to spin another driver, I spun Jeff Gordon a few times, though he tends to recover and keep going. The only downsides are the view damage screen isn't there anymore, you have to rely on the spotter telling you which they do and the pit stops are a little slower since it's all controlled by the computer now. But the yeah's outweigh the nah's by about 99 to 1. This is by the far the best in the series and a must have for any true NASCAR fan who enjoys driving. Another plus was that they have Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin Jr. in the game, so their memories will never fade and they also printed in the front jacket In Memory to Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin Jr. Godspeed.

My friend and I race every Thursday night, as we have for 6 years. Nascar 2000 was a great improvement, but I expected greater things from 2001. The racing is far superior to any other game I've played and more challenging. However, all the fancy graphics and little noticed things happening in or around the grandstand could have been left out. It does not add to the game and my biggest complaint is that it appears what the programmers wasted on the needless additions could have been better served by allowing the saving of car setups. Call them cheat codes, call them equalizers, but 2000 had a list of set ups that guaranteed a pole. It's no fun to win all the time or to always be ahead of the pack. But, we try to get in as many games in one evening as possible, and we are forced to set up our cars after each race. The programmers forgot to allow you to save your settings. Even in 2000 I found it a hassle to have to reset Player 2's car each time, but now you have to reset both cars. Also, the game has an anticlimactic ending, it was fun to see the pace setter, the move of the race, etc. (Nascar 2000). In this game, when it's over, it's over. It's a good game, but it could have been greatly improved with only minor changes. Maybe the programmers will think about this for 2002.

I purchased Nascar 2001 thinking that there would be little changes really making it worth the money. Well, the folks at EA Sports have rebuilt this game from the ground up, and this one by far is my favorite Nascar racing game on the Playstation.

There were several improvements that I noticed. Graphically, this game is better than Nascar 99 and Nascar 2000. The cars are smoother, brighter and seem to look more like their Winston Cup counterparts. More attention to detail was placed on the tracks. Each track has some noticable characterics that stand out. For example: I noticed while driving on the Las Vegas track last night that there was campers parked outside the backstretch fence. The Grandstand at Daytona looks just like the real McCoy. I have been to the Atlanta Motor Speedway and I was amazed how much it looked like the real track when racing there.

As far as gameplay goes, is this game challenging...yes it is. Setting up your car really makes a difference in how you will run. I set my car up wrong for Daytona and I got blown away. I set my car up perfectly for Las Vegas and I won the Pole Position. (But I lost the race to Mark Martin and Ricky Rudd in the last three laps.)

One other thing I noticed is that the Artificial intelligence on the computer drivers was greatly improved. You will not be shocked to see Earnhardt bump someone, or to see Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte running nose to tail. I thought this aspect was nicely done and makes the racing experience a little more real. Something else that I noticed that didnt seem to be in the previous games.....wrecks....yes...wrecks caused by the computer cars not by me. This made for an exciting experience coming into turn one and having to avoid a 4 car pile up at 170 miles an hour.

As far as the stats are concerned, everything is tracked very well. If you race the season mode, you can easily track your progress, as well as seeing how many top 5's and top 10's you have run throughout the season. You can also watch your driver climb (or plummet) in the point standings adding to the excitement in your quest for the Winston Cup Championship.

Something else that is nicely done in season mode is that you can pick the percentage of a race you want to run. You can run a half or full season. You can run each of those, with or without the fantasy tracks. There are other classifications that you can run as well such as the Speedway Challenge, where you tackle only the fastest tracks.

Bottomline, this game was not just thrown together, EA made drastic improvements to the gameplay as well as graphics in Nascar 2001. Its a very fun game and well worth the purchase!

Highly recommended!!

If you want real driving excitement, go take your car on the thruway. This game is poorly rendered, and is really a step backwards as compared to the other Nascar games of the past. The sound of your engine is atrocious, it sounds like the engine of the car from the "Enduro" Atari 2600 game. No, I'm not kidding. Listen closely! It's hard to believe that the same people who put out the awesome Need For Speed series put out this bad game. I would shop the competition before buying this game, I'd recommend only as a last resort.

NASCAR 2001 is a fine game if you're not into NASCAR, but if that's the case then you should be buying Gran Turismo 2 or Ridge Racer R4. If you are into NASCAR like myself than this game is a disappointment to say the least.

If you've ever played any of the NASCAR Racing series of games from Sierra/Papyrus on your PC then stay away from NASCAR 2001 (or any of the other NASCAR games on the Playstation) as they don't even come close.

The game looks alright and does have some nice touches, but it is so unrealistic in terms of racing that you will quickly grow frustrated. Take the effect of the draft for instance. Get anywhere close to the back of the car in front of you and you will slingshot by in next to no time regardless if the track is Bristol or Talladega. Not only is this not realistic, it also takes away the ability to race side by side. Other problems include the fact that NASCAR 2001 only allows 18 cars in the race, their isn't the option for pace laps just a countdown from 3 and that the commentary is very limited and dull.

Bottom line is this: Get Gran Turismo 2 if you have a Playstation, or better yet get NASCAR Racing 4 for your PC.

Well i have played all of EA's NASCAR games, and i must say, they are truly good but they don't "Beat the Heat". If you already have played EA's NASCAR 2000-2001 you shoud try NASCAR Heat by Hasbro.

I have logged about 35 hours now behind the wheel of Nascar 2001 and thought I would share my thoughts. I should premise this by saying I am a die-hard Nascar fan, so I enjoy getting to see the drivers and tracks. Nascar 2001 gives you some 30+ drivers including the standard biggies - Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett, etc.. ,and what I thought was nice, included some of the lesser known, though talented drivers - Wally Dallenbach, Jerry Nadeau, etc.. 2001 lets you race as one of these drivers or you can create a driver. When creating your driver you get to visit the Nascar 2001 Paint shop where you will find a set of templates and graphics to decorate you machine with. This was nice, although a little limiting by the choices. After you have created or chosen your driver you can race! Nascar 2001 gives you all the "real" tracks except 2. The big news this year is that you can race at Daytona! I prefer to race the short-medium tracks. I find SuperSpeedways boring on games like this. At Talledega, you don't have to let you foot(finger) off the gas at all, ever. After 30 laps or so, there isn't anything to do. The game allows you to set your preferences for race length, diffuculty (3 settings - Rookie, Veteran, and Legend.) The racing is fun and the new engine handles well, giving you a more bouncy feel to the action. Who said racing at 180 MPH would be a smooth ride? This is a nice touch. You can race season modes, and choose several options for the tracks you want to race, or you can race them all. There are 8 fantasy road coursed included to mix things up from the standard "go in circles" tracks. The enemy AI is good but not overwhelming, even at Legend level. They race hard, occasionally will try to block you from passing, or will tap you in the back, but it can still be pretty easy to get around them. Pit stops ar e computer controlled. They look nice but are unrealistic. Your pit stop time everytime will be 22.79 seconds.(this assumes 4 tires and fuel) Winston Cup teams log averages of 13-18 seconds. I don't like the pit stops. You get fairly good reports of the race action if you pause during the race and view "Race Stats" , at the end of the race you get some limited reporting, which I found to be too shallow. I want to know margin of victory and how many laps they were down ( or I was)! EA needs to work on this. Overall, the game won't disappoint if you like NASCAR or general racing games. The game seems to be targeted to beginning - intermediate skill levels. Some find going in circles boring, others love it. This is a worthy effort from EA with a few shortcomings. I recommend it.

Played with it some last night and the night race graphics are a step backward from NASCAR 2000 although day graphics seem slightly improved. It seems to play better though -it is far easier to lose the car if you do something stupid but when the car is set up right, it is easier to drive. You still can't spin someone with a bump which is still a HUGE shortfall in my eyes. (Actually unless you go in the grass, spinning is near impossible which is NOT realistic.) The audio is better from a spotter and car sound standpoint, but the music is much worse; more playstation like then good rock in the previous versions. I need more time with it, but a good game all in all.

Well personally i am a nascar fan and have all the nascar games from 1996-2002 :). 2001 one was one of the better ones, although i think 2000 was a bit better but 2001 has better graphics and more realistic gameplay. but the best one yet is nascar2002, over all nascar 2001 is a good game and is worth its price.

This game has massive capabilities. First you decide if you want to quick race, race once or start a season. On a quick race, it picks the car for you. On the other two you pick your own car which includes the ability to design your own car. There are probably about 20+ colors to pick from and then you pick the logos you want on the hood, the roof, the deck and the back. There's an ok selection of logos and you'll definitely find at least a few that appeal to you. You decide if you want your car to be a Ford, Chevrolet or Pontiac and then get to racing.
After you pick your car, you have to decide which track you want to race at. This is the fascinating part. Each track is set up like the real Nascar tracks. You can race Daytona, Talladega, Atlanta and tons of others. If you hit a wall, your car drives like it. If you wear your tires out, you have to get new ones or you won't stay off the wall. You can draft, pass, push, flip and slip. When you pit, you decide if your tires need to be changed or if any repairs are needed and you get more gas. You can have music playing and/or commentaries or just listen to the roar of the engines. This game is eerily real and loads of fun.