NASCAR Heat 2002

After an awesome showing on the PlayStation 2, NASCAR Heat makes its debut on the Xbox with the same outstanding results. Immediately after jumping behind the wheel and playing in the Beat the Heat challenges, you'll start to feel the rush that NASCAR drivers feel every time they race. In fact, Beat the Heat games are the best part of this speedster, cleverly mixing a variety of cool driving techniques with engrossing competition. The cars perform admirably the smooth analog stick makes you feel like you're racing on a multigrooved racetrack. The visuals look just as impressive as those of Heat’s PS2 counterpart, while the solid sounds haven’t changed. If you want a worthy adversary to EA's NASCAR series, Heat is it.

While NASCAR Heat 2002 isn’t the kind of game that will appeal to everyone (if you absolutely hate oval-track racing, you probably won’t like this game either), its diverse feature set, pleasing graphics and entertaining gameplay should satisfy hard-core NASCAR fans and casual gamers alike. The Championship and Beat the Heat modes alone provide an extraordinary level of replay. Yes, there’s still of room for improvement -- hopefully next year’s version will come complete with a more accurate damage model and a create-a-car option. With the magnificent GT3: A-Spec looking over its shoulders, it could become even easier to pass this game up. But as far as this reviewer is concerned, that would be a huge mistake.

All in all, NASCAR Heat 2002 is a great racing game that any NASCAR enthusiast will be happy to own.

NASCAR Heat also includes a Championship, Single Race, and Head to Head mode for you to master. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed playing NASCAR Heat, as the control is immaculate. I was astounded by the realism that its smooth handling brought to the game. I could fly three-wide into a turn and have complete confidence in my ability to come within inches of my competitors and escape without a scratch. However, I think Monster Games missed some of the fun things that are found in EA’s game – like pit stops in shorter races.

I could go on and on about the differences between NASCAR Heat 2002 and NASCAR Thunder 2002. Both are great games that are worth buying. But if I had to choose just one, I'd go with NASCAR Thunder. It may not be as realistic, but overall it's more fun to play.

Overall, this was, up until the mighty GT3, my favorite racing title. Make no doubt; I'll be back to work my way up into the stock car rankings soon. This is easily a title no fan of the sport will want to be without. And it may very well make you a fan in the meantime.

NASCAR heat even excels in the department of customization. How does racing 3 straight hours in one race sound? Not too tempting, eh? To alleviate this, you have the ability to race only a certain percentage of a race. The default setting is set at only 3%, and if you feel the races should last longer, you can always turn it up. And the hardcore of hardcore can always crank that baby up to 100%. For all you grease monkeys out there, you’ll be happy to know that you can tweak and change a huge diversity of things on your car until it’s just how you want it. Although, if you know nothing about cars, like me, then I highly advise that you don’t tinker with anything. You’ll just be creating trouble for yourself.

For some, NASCAR Heat’s pulse pounding reality will be just what they are looking for. For the less inclined, Thunder’s flash may be the ticket. For me the choice is easy, I’ll be hanging with the beer guzzlers playing Heat.

I prefer EA's Thunder – but not by much. Beat the Heat is awesome, the cockpit is cool, and Heat has more car tweaks and replay options. Still, Thunder's more in-depth Career mode means that fans will find both games easy to enjoy.

Heat is pretty hot, giving you challenges (with videos), good opponent AI, and a season chock-full of stats and stuff. I would have loved a draft meter, but there's still lots to like.

What we have here is a solid racing game that has a lot more good than bad. NASCAR fans should not be without this title. If you are an avid racing fan, this is a great portrayal of the NASCAR circuit and should be looked into. It is unfortunate that the game is going to be overshadowed by the massive Gran Turismo 3. It might be overshadowed, but it shouldn’t be overlooked.

NASCAR Heat 2002 boils down to being a good NASCAR game that will appeal to both the hard-core fans of NASCAR and the borderline fans who haven't yet found a NASCAR game that appeals to them quite enough. The extra racing features in the game probably won't win over any gamers outside those groups, but they will add to the fun that NASCAR fans will assuredly get by playing this game.

If you're a diehard fans of both NASCAR and simulations, then you'll find NASCAR Heat to give you a great racing experience, with the ability to tweak your car, customize your race, or play a full competitive mode at your leisure. The Beat the Heat and Race the Pro modes give you a little extra, and multiplayer can fill in some idle time with some friends. Overall however, the game doesn't deliver enough of a broad experience to give less than sim racers the road experience they're probably looking for.

NASCAR Heat 2002 chooses to err on the side of simulation racing and, for the most part, comes off as a highly realistic replica of stock-car racing. A lot of the driving strategy and car customization options that go along with the sport has made it into the game, and the peripheral modes--such as beat-the-heat, race-the-pros, and the option to link up Xbox units for multiplayer races--add much needed longevity to the game. There are some issues that plague the game in general, the most prominent of which is the fluctuating frame rate. Still, NASCAR Heat 2002 should be quite appealing for its intended audience: die-hard fans of NASCAR. However, its laundry list of customization options and relative focus on technical driving may prove frustrating for borderline fans of the sport.

Overall Nascar Heat 2002 is basically a port of the PS2 version with a few enhancements. The link feature is great, but the online play is wonderful. It's a shame there isn't a server to allow people from all over the world to play against one another. Maybe next year, Nascar Heat will take advantage of what the Xbox can handle.

With really nice graphics, solid sound, and easy controls, this game should have held my attention for longer. But, since it missed the boat regarding that special something (fun for extended lengths of time) and it really can be “too much” in the options department, I honestly must say this is for the real race fans -- not the casual gamer.

Nascar Heat is a decent game, but it's still just good ol' Nascar. While it is to some degree better than Nascar 2001, in many ways it is almost the same game (aside from the new foil cover). It features the same oval tracks, same types of cars and the same types of options. Nascar fans - you know who you are - this one's for you, but the more casual racer might want to seek out racing jollies elsewhere.