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Official ConsoleSports.net Review of NASCAR '06

by bcorby

EA released its NASCAR 2006: Total Team Control without much fanfare, as you'd expect for a NASCAR game. They're not exactly hot sellers, so the investment in them tends to be small.

My wish for 2007, however, is simple: EA needs to either make a NASCAR game that's playable, or sell back the license so Papyrus can get back in the act. Basically, they need to either crap or get off the pot. The problems with NASCAR 2006 are many and varied, as they were for 2005. At times, in fact, I often wondered if 2006 is anything more than just a superficial roster update for 2005, with a few new toys thrown in. I'll start with the actual racing, and move on from there.

The cars are slightly easier to control than last year, with a slight twitch on the analog stick no longer sending you flying off in that direction. That's a huge step in the right direction, as is the downplaying of the "Share Draft" and "Intimidator" features. The problem is that the minor fixes in the driving model are outweighed by the problems they didn't fix--and the new ones they created. For instance, while the cars may be easier to drive and respond more realistically in terms of speed to bump drafting, they spin out when you're just driving straight for absolutely no reason. I tested this with three different controllers to rule out a faulty controller problem, and it happened with all three.



But hey, it's no big deal. Even with the damage set to "realistic," you still won't have to do more than get back up to speed after slamming headfirst into the wall--thanks for the great "new" damage model, EA. But at least you'll look good as you roll over, flip, smash into the wall in an impact that would kill most people, and then rev up and drive away with no significant impact on your speed. Just be careful on superspeedways--my fuel cell burst during a routine bump draft with no other damage to my car, leading to red sprites on the back of my car that were supposed to be fire. EA might have put in a bunch of "good-looking" new animations, but they don't solve the basic problems.

EA also advertises new "driver personalities." If these exist, I have yet to see them. Kurt Busch is calm as a cu*****ber, and Jeff Burton has run me into the wall purely as retribution for me catching him up in one of the many spinouts this game will cause you to have. That's the exact opposite of the real Jeff Burton.

As for the "total team control" aspect, you're now able to issue orders to your teammates, and even take control of their cars mid-race.

Wait...team orders? Isn't that exactly what NASCAR does not stand for??? Team orders are a Formula 1 tactic designed to make sure snooty Europeans like Michael Schumacher don't get their butts handed to them by the Kimi Raikonnens of the world, and they're a tactic despised by NASCAR's teams and sanctioning body alike. While it might be a neat feature for the casual gamer, the hardcore fan should be offended by it, as I am.

There are some advantages to the "interactive crew chief" who issues you team orders, however. When you're using a headset to communicate with the computer and you call the guy a (paraphrased for a PG-rating) "flippin' female organ," he comes back at you with a warning about NASCAR fining you. And hey, with enough skill points, you really do get to race the UPS truck! Hardy har har. Why in bangpow's name did EA waste time putting an easter egg like that in instead of, ya know, fixing the problems???

Once you get past the awful racing mode, there's not much left to the game. Fight to the Top returns intact from last year with only minor differences. The stupid, illegal street drag races with NASCAR stars are still there, as are the painfully vindictive computer racers, who will stop trying to race you and start trying to kill you if you so much as look at them funny.

Buying a team in Fight to the Top works slightly differently as well, and I'm still confused by it. You only have control over your one race team in the shop, but you pay to upgrade your entire operation, meaning all teams. Make sense to you? It doesn't to me, either. Am I buying one satellite team, or am I buying an entire operation? I wish EA would've made this more clear, by either not giving us any control over our teammates or giving us total control, including the hiring and firing of drivers. Again, this is mostly a hardcore fan gripe, and one the casual fan won't notice.

The roster is mostly complete, and all the Cup tracks are included for once. This next complaint is mostly for the hardcore fans among us who want to see realistic schedules in all series, not just Cup. I want to see Mansfield, Nashville, and Gateway--not "UPS Speedway" and "Mr. Clean Raceway." I'd also love to see more realistic rosters in the Busch and the trucks, but that may be asking too much of a product that needs to start small in righting its wrongs.

For the hardcore gamer/fan, NASCAR 06: Total Team Control borders on unplayable. The driving model is awful, the team orders are laughable, the damage engine will make you cry, and Fight to the Top won't make up for it this time.

For the casual gamer, NASCAR 06 probably isn't something you'd be interested in. If you want a racing game, there are far better out there, even for the PS2.

NASCAR 06: Total Team Control is a total dud, no matter what you're looking for in a game. As I recommended with Madden, save the $50 and put it towards a 360 or PS3. If you follow both of those instructions, you're already 1/4 of the way to your very own XBOX 360 package. Enjoy it.

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