I personally feel that NASCAR in Gran Turismo 5 will be a hit as long as PD can make the action as fun and as believable as the real thing. A total of 16 cars to a track likely won't make many NASCAR fans happy (at least it's better than 6) for usual NASCAR followers. Usual NASCAR races in the top 3 series feature 43 entries for the NASCAR Cup and Grand National Series, and over 36 entries compete in NASCAR Trucks on a track. It is not easy to convince NASCAR haters to give NASCAR in Gran Turismo a fighting chance. While I'm not a NASCAR fanatic, I do know the challenge involved in getting these cars to turn and to win races in this style of racing. It takes a lot to be competitive in NASCAR. How far Polyphony Digital will go in striking gold with NASCAR in the Gran Turismo realm will ultimately determine if the racing action will be any good with GT5.
--- NASCAR in GT5... to Set the Mood ---
^ from: autoblog.com
Many people will automatically say that NASCAR is absolutely boring and that no real RACING is involved. Many others will say that there is no talent involved. A lot of others will just say that NASCAR is an overly dramatic 800-pound gorilla that rules the American racing airwaves. Leave it to Polyphony Digital to try to get some NASCAR involvement going. Where were you when at E3 2009, Polyphony Digital stunned Gran Turismo fans (including myself) with the inclusion of cars from the World Rally Championship and NASCAR? You probably loved WRC, but disliked the NASCAR notion. We all speculated on how NASCAR would be in GT5. I even made a video speculating on NASCAR in GT5.
--- What is PD Trying to Accomplish with NASCAR in GT5? ---
To me, it's just simply about educating and insighting Japan on NASCAR. NASCAR can be portrayed in a way that doesn't involve constant wrecking and crashing. How PD chooses to do so will ultimately determine whether or not this series will be a hit in the Gran Turismo realm. There's actually an exact science to properly race a NASCAR stock car around a race track. --- Will It Succeed? ---
It depends. The harshest critics will be us Americans, because it's our sport, and most of us don't want our sport to be half-assed or not as immersive as the real thing. PD even admitted that it was us American fans who really influenced PD to include proper damage to cars. The best test of damage in GT5 will be exhibited by NASCAR (as well as the WRC). Being the positive thinker, I want to believe that NASCAR will be just fine in GT5. Even too, I envision running circuits in GT5 in a stock car. Just give me Jeff Gordon's #24 car (because Jeff Gordon is my favorite NASCAR driver) and let me race my booty off in the game.--- Track Considerations ---
Here are a number of things to look into for this game on a track front.Short Ovals.
The common term is short track, but I prefer short "oval" because that's what they are. Go-kart tracks, Lime Rock Park, and Adria International Raceway are my ideas of short tracks. Short track racing has been indicative of aggressive racing. The two major short tracks on the NASCAR circuit are Bristol and Martinsville. Short track racing is known for hard-fought racing and the occasional bit of temper between disgruntled racers. You'll need good acceleration in addition to good brake strength.
Intermediate Ovals.
These are courses ranging from one mile in length to two miles. These allow you to floor the gas a bit more and blast down the straights with a good amount of speed. Twin Ring Motegi's oval is a good example of an Intermediate Oval as far as Gran Turismo tracks are concerned.
Superspeedway Ovals.
These ovals are over two miles in length. Most people will say that any track longer than two miles is a superspeedway, which is true. However, I use superspeedway OVALS because I usually know some superspeedways to be ovals. You don't go full speed all the time on a road course. You just don't. So that's why I included the "Oval" part to this section. Daytona and Talladega easily come to mind for stock cars, but the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is also a great Superspeedway-type oval.
Road Courses.
Many people think road racing in NASCAR is a joke. I personally like NASCAR road racing. I like knowing that these race car drivers are DRIVERS and are willing to go out of their oval racing element to take on road courses. And for a series that isn't overly in tune with road racing, NASCAR picks some pretty challenging road courses. The majority of racing in Gran Turismo is on road courses, so be ready to try road racing. It will be tough, but I can already imagine taking the stock cars to Grand Valley and High Speed Ring. Or if PD really wants to mix things up, how about taking the stock cars around Trial Mountain? That would be a knock-down, drag-out brawl for sure!
The key thing to remember is how to tune and drive each car for racing on these courses. A lot goes into setting up the car for each kind of course. I think PD will need to find more of each variety of NASCAR track to really make this department shine. And by the way... AVOID using Test Course for a Superspeedway! That's more of a high-speed track than a proper racing oval.
Above all else, I remain excited and curious about NASCAR in Gran Turismo 5. It should be a wild ride that we GT fans will not soon forget. NASCAR should be a blast for Gran Turismo 5 if PD executes everything faithfully and successfully. I want to know what you make of NASCAR's influence in Gran Turismo 5.
Just remember to reach up there and pull them belts tight! Boogity, boogity, boogity! Let's go racing NASCAR in Gran Turismo 5, boys (and girls)!
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