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Welcome everyone to my blog, especially lovers of video games, the #Hive community and the platform in general. This time I will write about a game that I consider to be retro in terms of Nascar and racing games that we have available today. It is called Nascar Thunder 2003, which is a racing simulation game of the North American NASCAR category, which represents the 6th edition created by the company EA Sports. It was released on September 19, 2002 for PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube, while for PlayStation 2 it was released on September 29 of the same year and on October 16 for PC. On the cover of the video game appears one of the most famous NASCAR drivers, Dale Earnhardt Jr, who is very dear to the world of American motorsport, for being the son of the legend of the series, Dale Earnhardt, who died in 2002 in an accident in the 500 Miles of Daytona, this being the most famous race. Currently the driver is retired but still continues with some functions in sports channels that broadcast races of the category. Although the game is supposed to be a simulator, compared to NASCAR Racing Season 2003 (NR2003) it is not, it is a more arcade game but it has things that are interesting for the entertainment of the players.
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The gameplay of NASCAR Thunder 2003, being a retro simulator of the NASCAR category, players fight against the difficult artificial intelligence (AI) to get the best position in the race for a preset number of laps, depending on the event that is disputed, but however as I said it does not compare at all to other games like NR2003 but others of the time if it is good. The physics of the game is more arcade than simulator, however it also represents a challenge and if we use the hard mode then even more. Within NASCAR Thunder 2003 we have different game modes, one known as Single mode or single player, where we have the opportunity to select our preferred driver and the circuit or oval as in NASCAR tracks are mostly ovals, in addition to configuring the different normal options such as the number of laps to play, the aggressiveness of the AI that in my opinion is not as aggressive as we would like but if it meets, the temperature of the track at the time of the race, the number of AI, among others. That is, the Single mode we have to fight with the AI to achieve victory, which if we put it in easy mode is very tedious so I consider normal or hard is ideal.
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The second mode is the Multiplayer, where the split screen mode is available, which gives the opportunity to play against our friends or anyone in the world, with a number of up to 4 runners. In this mode there is the opportunity to activate and add the presence of the AI, but if we only want to run against real people, we have the option to disable them again. Within the Multiplayer mode there are also two modes available, one is the Quick Race that allows up to 4 competitors to participate in a race created with certain configurations that I mentioned above. Another mode present in the game is the Championship or full season, where we must go through the entire 2003 NASCAR calendar and thus fight for the championship of drivers, but as you can only compete in this mode is with Artificial Intelligence, as many players are not so interested in this mode, but nevertheless no less important. In the Season Mode, we must also configure the normal options of the game. In this mode you must go through the 36 dates that comprise the 2003 Winston Cup calendar.
Each of these modes were interesting, however the ones I like the most are the Championship Mode because it is the same as single player, only you have to accumulate points by running for each of the 36 dates available on the calendar, that is, it simulates a full NASCAR season. And the multiplayer mode because that is where we share with family, friends or anyone in the world, in addition to the interaction, we can also share our achievements. In NASCAR Thunder 2003, we have available all the circuits (36 events), teams and drivers of the 2003 season of the NASCAR Major series. Also I have to point out that as this game is of American origin, it is only available in English.
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The graphics of the game are well done, the truth is that the game looks pretty good, although as I said it is not compared to NR2003 which for me is the best NASCAR, even the current ones. The textures of the tracks look spectacular, in addition to each of the objects that make up the tracks, the modeling of the cars look perfect, very similar to those of the time, in addition to the design of the drivers, they are not perfect but they are more than acceptable and this point (design and textures of the drivers) is not the most relevant of the game. In addition, we have a good lighting and reflection of the cars, but what I like the most is how the damage of the cars is seen when there is an accident either with collisions with other cars or parts of the track. The scenery looks the same as the ones from that time. Now the visual effects is one of the best things in the graphic section, because when the cars skid or brake, the smoke coming out of the tires is very good, as well as the sparks, without leaving aside the good animations of the pit stops that are remarkable for the time. Finally we have the fluidity of the game that generally did not give me problems.
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As far as the sound of the game is concerned, I can tell you that it is one of the best things in the game. The roar of the engines sounds very real and differs one from the other depending on the brand of car you are using, but of course the difference is not much but it is noticeable, both in the exterior camera and in the car cabin. We also have the sound of Spotter, who tells us everything that happens on the track, whether lap times and cars that are around us, which in this type of game is usually very important because as in NASCAR the differences that are taken are very few, as this spotter is important because it gives us information such as cars that we have on the sides, front or back, the state of the car, tires and track, the number of laps remaining, when to enter or not to enter the pits, among other things. The soundtrack of the menu I like a lot, but it is the least important thing, since the rest overshadows this aspect and therefore I think it is the least important, being everything else very remarkable.
The events and clues available in the game are:
1. Daytona 500: Daytona International Speedway
2. Subway 400: North Carolina Speedway
3. UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
4. Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500: Atlanta Motor Speedway
5. Carolina Dodge Dealers 400: Darlington Raceway
6. Food City 500: Bristol Motor Speedway
7. Samsung/Radio Shack 500: Texas Motor Speedway
8. Aaron's 499: Talladega Superspeedway
9. Virginia 500: Martinsville Speedway
10. Auto Club 500 Steve Park: California Speedway
11. Pontiac Excitement 400: Richmond International Raceway
12. Coca-Cola 600: Lowe's Motor Speedway
13. MBNA Armed Forces Family 400: Dover International Speedway
14. Pocono 500: Pocono Raceway
15. Sirius 400: Michigan International Speedway
16. Dodge/Save Mart 350: Infineon Raceway
17. Pepsi 400: Daytona International Speedway
18. Tropicana 400: Chicagoland Speedway
19. New England 300: New Hampshire International Speedway
20. Pennsylvania 500: Pocono Raceway
21. Brickyard 400: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
22. Sirius Satellite Radio at the Glen: Watkins Glen International
23. GFS Marketplace 400: Michigan International Speedway
24. Sharpie 500: Bristol Motor Speedway
25. Mountain Dew Southern 500: Darlington Raceway
26. Chevy Rock & Roll 400: Richmond International Raceway
27. Sylvania 300: New Hampshire International Speedway
28. MBNA America 400: Dover International Speedway
29. EA Sports 500: Talladega Superspeedway
30. Banquet 400: Kansas Speedway
31. UAW-GM Quality 500: Lowe's Motor Speedway
32. Subway 500: Martinsville Speedway
33. Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500: Atlanta Motor Speedway
34. Checker Auto Parts 500 presentado por Havoline: Phoenix International Raceway
35. Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400: North Carolina Speedway
36. Ford 400: Homestead-Miami Speedway
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In conclusion, NASCAR Thunder 2003 is an excellent game, which is responsible for simulating the 2003 NASCAR championship, with a great difficulty in terms of handling but this does not mean that it is the best NASCAR racing simulator because it is not, but I think it gives us great entertainment and we can get to enjoy and more if we are lovers of racing games like me, with good graphics and great sound. The best of the game is the Multiplayer mode, in which we can play with up to 4 friends in split screen, and also activate or deactivate the presence of Artificial Intelligence in the races. If you like or are interested in racing games and NASCAR, I invite you to try this great game.
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