NASCAR Legends

A trip back through time with the help of the NASCAR 3 engine.

3_1Sierra and developer Papyrus have made a name for themselves creating NASCAR games, particularly ones that cover the simulation aspect of the driving experience. Hot on the heels of the widely praised NASCAR Racing 3, and using the same game engine, Papyrus and Sierra released NASCAR Legends. Just as Grand Prix Legends recreated the 1967 Grand Prix season, NASCAR Legends lets you travel back in time 30 years to experience the excitement of the 1970 NASCAR season, with period tracks from the NASCAR Grand National series included.

A large part of the excitement in turning back the clock is the significant differences in the older NASCAR vehicles compared to today’s cars. All of these variances are fully modeled in NASCAR Legends. In 1970, the stock cars moved more slowly and featured inferior handling, with lower traction and looser braking. The cars back then were also considerably larger and heavier, sporting longer wheelbases, and each had beefy V8 engines. These were cars built on regular automotive factory assembly lines rather than by specialized racing engineers. And although there was no pit-lane speed limit, the pit stops took a lot more time than they do today.

The wide range of car models includes such gems as the Dodge Charger and Daytona, the Ford Torino Talladega, the Mercury Cyclone, and the Plymouth Roadrunner and Superbird. Many of these are now classic muscle cars prized by automobile collectors. Races may include a full field of 43 cars. Each automobile has distinct performance characteristics replicating the real thing, leading to a lot of different driving styles and challenges.

15_1The wide range of car models includes such gems as the Dodge Charger and Daytona, the Ford Torino Talladega, the Mercury Cyclone, and the Plymouth Roadrunner and Superbird. Many of these are now classic muscle cars prized by automobile collectors. Races may include a full field of 43 cars. If you’re looking for quick action then the game’s got plenty. Besides the given vehicle customization opportunities you may also adjust the number of laps, wind and weather conditions, the presence or absence of damage, and the number as well as the skill of your competitors.

But in spite of all of these features, NASCAR Legends doesn’t contain anything radically new gamewise, or at least nothing we didn’t already see in NASCAR Racing 3, and visually the game is merely okay. Yet as a cohesive package it’s pretty cohesive, and one that racing fans may enjoy.


System Requirements: Pentium 166 Mhz, 32 MB RAM, SVGA, Windows 95


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