Moto1 NHRA Drag Racing - Lulays Joystick Review

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Name: - NHRA Drag Racing

Moto1 Description:
Strap yourself into a Top Fuel Dragster or Funny Car for the nitro burning racing simulation based on technical performance data from actual NHRA racing computers. Do half-track burnouts, stage and launch, fight tire shake, oversteer with changing track conditions as you attempt to wrestle your earth bound missile to the track's end before NHRA's top teams and drivers.

Tune the engine based on track conditions in the advanced mode
Race against NHRA champions like John Force, Joe Amato, and Kenny Bernstein
Evaluate your performance with instant replay and commentary from NHRA Pros like John Force

12/12/2000  - Finally, a realistic drag racing game has been introduced to the gaming community.  Right up front - this game did not have an overall high score because of some short falls in the game, but this game is simply a blast to play - so read the review and find out what and why we liked it and where it fell short.
This game gives joystickreview.com an opportunity to provide our readers with some great insight from our friend Pro-Alcohol Funny Car race driver Russ Parker.  Russ finished in the top 10 in NHRA points last season for the Federal Mogul Funny Car series and joystickreview.com has a prominent spot on his car (see picture).  Russ also has one of the coolest Funny Car sites around at http://www.russparkerracing.com.

I have been telling him he should play this game and he recently tried it out.  He played, and played, and played, and... you get the point.  Russ is now a bona fide computer sim addict and the only thing that will get him off of his game computer is the real thing (don't you feel sorry for poor Russ?).  I have seen him race several times, it was a different thrill to watch him play the game.  This is one guy who did not need any playing instructions.  He started out in the advanced level (of course) and went to town.  I learned a lot about setups from watching him tune (and I had already experienced great success at the advanced level).  Once he learned how to do a good burn out (he does some of the longest and best in real life) and keep the car out of the wall, he immediately went directly to the finals and won the event!  His comments provide some of the best insight into any game review you will find.

A few points about my drag racing experience.  Games - I have played drag racing games since the Commodore 64 days.  Real Life - I have been exposed to the real sport of drag racing in a way that not many have the privilege.  I have stood within five feet directly beside the cars when they launch; I have been in the pull vehicle when the car was picked up at the end of the run; and I have sat in the seat of a funny car with the body down.  I bring up these points so you will know that I am not clueless to the sport.

Analysis from a Wanna Be and the Pro				68
First Impression and Game Installation	LAZ	The game installed fine, but I had several problems trying to get it to work (it kept locking up at the main menu). I immediately went out to my video card maker's web site to get the latest driver (which I already had). After several emails to ATI, they gave me a special 'non-approved' driver. I tried it out and it initially did the same thing. I changed my video setting from 32 bit to 16 bit, went back in the game and I was in business. You have to understand that I have been waiting a long time for a decent PC drag racing game, so it didn't take much to get me pumped. Dave McClellan does a video introduction to the game that helps get you wound up before you start. I went straight into the Quick Race mode and started making some runs.	7.5	7.5
First Impression and Game Installation	RUSS	In some ways it is more difficult to make a good run in this game, than it is in the real car. Once you establish a feel for the controls (eg. steering, braking) you become wrapped up in the game. Being a racer, the view from inside the cockpit was the only choice. From that view, the game is very realistic. In the funny car I really enjoyed looking over the injector hat, squeezing the throttle in the burnout, and seeing the smoke rise into the cockpit. Within the first few minutes I found myself unconsciously holding my breath when I lit my staging light, just like I do in the real car. At the conclusion of the run, you really do feel the adrenaline rush! And you get this same rush over and over.		7.5

Configurable Options and Ease of Use	LAZ	The options for controllers was ok, but I would like to be able to assign keys to my wheel's buttons from within the game. The options are generally geared toward novice users, and lack any kind of sophistication for people who desire to get the most out of the game on their system. One glaring detail when playing the game was having to push the 'I' key on the keyboard to start the engine. You should be able to assign the keys to your wheel from within the game. The game definitely needs more configuration options.	5	5.0

Graphics	LAZ	Highlights first: The opponents cars look good; the crowd looks good; and the sky background looks good. Due to the standards set by many of the other racing sim games on the market, there is much room for improvement in this game. The tire edge is choppy; the interior view (from the cockpit) lacked detail; there should be support for high resolutions and the nice graphical look that comes with it; and it just generally needs to move closer to a real look from the current arcade look (it leans more toward a real look than arcade, but the graphics limit it to looking too cartoonish).	6	6.0
Graphics	RUSS	Having driven on many of the NHRA tracks, I immediately recognized the facilities… even without the announcement of the location. I was able to easily recognize paint schemes of the opponents cars, even in their burnouts along side me. It would be nice to see more detail in the cockpit view - including definition of interior tin, nice realistic steering wheel (with hands), better definition around the windows (higher resolution will help this area).		6.0

Video at Minimum and Maximum	LAZ	Your video options are Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. A simple approach is nice for the average guy, but most serious sim players have been around the block with video and desire more options to tweak the video to match their system.	4	4.0

Sound	LAZ	I cranked up the volume and it sounded pretty good. It would take quite a sound system and some very understanding neighbors to really duplicate the real thing. As it is, the only way I play this game is with MAX volume.	7.5	7.5
Sound	RUSS	Having tried this game on a surround sound, it was very good. As a matter of fact, anything less than surround sound would really diminish ones impression of the game.		7.5

Beginner thru Advanced Use	LAZ	The game takes some driving practice which involves a lot of crashing. The tuning options in the game are actually fun (and I usually don't like to screw around with settings - I just want to race). These guys really dialed the car adjustments and game play, and the strength in this area simply is enough reason to go right out and buy the game today... which is exactly what Russ did when he was done reviewing. In fact this game is soley responsible for him buying a wheel and getting into computer simulation. I asked him if he thought playing this game could/would improve his performance on the track (and he already boasts one of the best average reaction times in the business) and his answer was... DEFINATELY!! Now when the guys at Moto1/Motorsims hear that, they have to know they hit the mark with their physics!	9	9.0
Beginner thru Advanced Use	RUSS	Just like the real cars, it takes a lot of runs to learn how to keep the car out of the wall, even at a beginners level. However, at the Beginners level you don't have to tune your own car, so it gives you the opportunity to simply concentrate on honing your driving skills. As you move on to the advanced level, tuning your car creates another fun facet of the game. In fact, I found tuning the car almost as fun as driving… almost. Racing at the advanced level - tuning and driving against the recognized stars of NHRA drag racing, really gave me the feel that I was actually running against them. I found myself, thinking about their tendencies - both strengths and weaknesses that would affect my tuning and driving decisions.		9.0

Multi-player	RUSS	No multiplayer yet. Any driving game can greatly benefit from having multiplayer capability. I can't wait to be able to connect with a real person and go head to head. I would relish the chance to race those who don't have the opportunity to drive a real funny car, and if and when they get multiplayer for the internet, I would love to participate online.	5	5.0

Help Instructions	LAZ	A readme file and their online help. It looks like the game was done and someone came in at the last minute and said "it's three o'clock and the game goes to press at five o'clock... hey Johnny whip up a help file!".	5	5.0

Value (price for what you get)	LAZ	Now I have made some occasional rips on the help file and configuration options and the total game score won't reflect the pleasure of this game... but I have to say that this game rocks! The implementation and physics are just great and these guys have an incredible foundation to build on. In fact, the hard work is done - they have a game that is a blast to play and the upgrade to this game will likely be a must have. This is an excellent game value.	9.5	9.5
Value (price for what you get)	RUSS	For $19.95 you will get more than your money's worth out of this game. The endless combinations of tuning and driving styles combined with all the great tracks of NHRA racing will keep you coming back for more.		9.5

Recommend to Others	LAZ	Without question. Go get it, be patient if you initially have to tweak your system or video - because it will all be worth it in the end!	9.5	9.5
Recommend to Others	RUSS	Yes! Not only to those who already follow drag racing, but to those who are new to the sport. The game does an incredible job of packing in the intensity found only in drag racing.		9.5

RECOMMENDATIONS to the Vendor

RUSS

In a real nitro car, if you blow your first burnout attempt - then step back on the throttle you will back fire your supercharger - resulting in a flash of fire and a loud boom.
You should be able to touch the brakes earlier in the shut down area without it unsettling the car.
It would be nice to keep stats on all of your season and lifetime averages (eg. reaction time, ET, and MPH).
Please get the Racepak sorted out and usable. I understand that some have not had a problem, but my inability to use this feature is my greatest disappointment with this game.