NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup E3 2004 Impressions

From what we've seen on the E3 2004 show floor, the 2005 edition of NASCAR represents a major shift for the series. Not only does it mirror the changes in the NASCAR sport and its new Nextel Cup playoff series, but the career mode also provides a lot more variety, with the introduction of closed-course production car racing, plus additional NASCAR series for modified cars, trucks, and Busch cars.

An early version of the opening cinematic was on display, in which a pro racer pulls up at a stoplight and challenges you to a Viper-on-Viper street race. This race is not only a taste of the variety to come, but also a way for new players to get used to the controls before getting thrown into notoriously touchy Winston Cup cars. After successfully completing this first race, you get invited to "modified" races featuring that series' light open-wheeled cars. But rather than having to exclusively race modifieds until graduating to the next series, before long you'll get an invitation to get in a truck race or two. The system should not only break up the monotony of doing many consecutive races in a single series, but also re-create the sense of how actual racing careers are made.

Last year's system for grudges and alliances is back, with more than a few tweaks. One major change is the addition of a specific intimidation button that you can activate while drafting. Bumping and nudging cars with this button makes your intentions clear, so accidental bumps have been tuned down to do less harm to your reputation with other drivers. At the same time, the consequences for a big grudge are more real than ever, and getting another driver angry may cause him to physically come after you at the close of the race.

NASCAR 2005 is getting a graphical makeover in specific ways, particularly in the more detailed damage modeling. After a collision or two, we saw cars get quite banged up, with crumpled tails and other mostly cosmetic damage. A new physics engine should also keep the action more dynamic. The series' garage mode will see some visual tweaks itself, with better graphical representation of the components you add or tune to eke out extra performance.

While clearly the prestigious NASCAR Cup races are still the core of the game and its career mode, a lot is going into adding production cars and road courses. In fact, of the game's 39 tracks, a total of 13 are road courses. There will be more on NASCAR 2005 closer to its release late this year.