When will NHRA get serious about a video game (2 Viewers)

[Thrill]

I just bought NCAA 09 for my xbox 360 by EA Sports. I can't comment much about NHRA Countdown because I'm not a PS3 owner.

Those of you who have played EA games know that they are just about the standard in sports games. Can you imagine if NHRA commissioned EA to do a Drag Racing game how big of a deal that would be? Even if they get one of the other companies like 2K sports to do a game, it would be huge for the sport.

Why?

It's much more than just making a cool game for us vid game fans. NHRA ARE YOU LISTENING? THIS IS HOW TO REACH THE YOUNGER MARKET!

People buy an EA sports game because they know it's a quality game. Going with the low bidder, nothing agains Lucky Chicken, isn't going to do much more than get existing drag racing fans to buy the game.

Such a game will also give NHRA and it's sponsor Full Throttle, some shelf space exposure it might not have got.

Anybody who's played a Wii....can you imagine how fun a two handed drag sim would be? Steer with one hand, shift or brake with the right...just a thought..

NHRA is spending big bucks on PR firms, Marketing firms, etc. Hopefully they'll pick up on this. With some effort it shouldn't take much to get sponsorship dollars to underwrite such an endeavor. Hell, Full Throttle should be ALL OVER this. The energy drink certainly markets to the younger crowd.

The big trend in sports games these days is the 'role playing' element of starting at the bottom and working your way up. I know I'm really dreaming, but maybe one day there could be "Lucas Drag Racing 09" for the sportsman classes and "Full Throttle Drag Racing 09" for the Pro's.

NHRA reads this...let's speak up!

 

[Bullet]

Hey Will. You and I buy Drag Racing PC and Console games as we are die hard Drag Racing fans.

I think that the problem is that Drag Racing games do not appeal to a large enough audience to commission someone like EA to produce a game.

 

[D]

Will
That makes so much sense, it will never happen. We've consistently seen NHRA miss opportunities to market and grow the sport, this is just another one.

S/F
D

 

[JFrechJr]

Yea Will that would be awesome if they did! I would be inline to get one. The game for PS2 was alright but lacked a lot design to be like the football games. Forget about the old PC games, they were terrible. A really good designed game would be awesome!

Maybe start with building up a street car and racing for pinks on the streets and advance to throwing together different engine combinations for use on the track. Throw in a little random consequences for the street racing. Maybe include sportman classes since these new game systems can hold so much more information than the old systems. Street -> Sportsman -> Pro

Hell maybe someone other than NHRA should throw a game together like that. I mean I love NHRA but in all there games I have played all you can really do is pretend to be "Warren Johnson" or "John Force". Id be a lot more rewarding to "you" and building up the chance to take out the pros.

 

[Thrill]

NHRA is the number two motorsport in america. I'm pretty sure NHRA is going to have to pay EA to make a game. Kind of like they have to pay for TV time. It's an investment in the sport and potential new fans.

 

[Kris]

Yes! I played the one on my PS2 a few times but I dunno ... just didn't pull me in. We are a one-console home now, the Wii, and a drag racing game is ideally suited for the wireless control system Nintendo developed for the Wii. Maybe toss in a little foot pedal system just for funsies?

And a nice quality graphic version for the Xbox 360 tied into Xbox Live could have a ton of potential, too, as online gaming is a huge hit.

I'm on board with it! May never happen but I love the idea.

 

[Sean D, shondoo]

I have been playing the Main Event game on my PC for years, so when I got a chance to play the PS2 game awhile back, I thought it was freakin' awesome and really enjoyed it. Yet, you guys are kinda saying it sucks.

Man! I must really be behind the times! LMAO!!!

Sean D

 

[Bullard Anderson]

On the surface, I don't see that the game can be that exciting for a single player. Now 16 or 8 players could be fun if you could get them in a room. Some sports just don't make a good game.

You could put a break out number on the windshield of your passenger car and go down to the strip this weekend!!! That's a good idea.

 

[T.Smith]

I'm a huge fan of Gran Turismo. I have completed all four previous editions. My Gran Turismo 5 Prologue(PS3) on my HD LCD 52" is just incredible looking. The game play is second to none.

Hustling a car around The Nürburgring is one of the toughest things I've ever done since I began playing video games at the age of 10.

That makes it very tough for me to get into the current drag racing games. The graphics for those games just don't do it for me. Although the game play on the NHRA Countdown game(PS2) is the best of all the drag racing games, but there is still much, much room for improvement.

I think the key for a drag racing game will be getting a graphics/sound engine that can really display the uniqueness of drag racing.

I wonder if a nostalgia type game would have a better chance, since the car cars had so much more personality back then. Grand Prix Legends was hugely popular PC game.

 

[Joker]

To me, Burnout Championship Drag Racing was the best drag racing game made but its not pro's. Just bracket racing and stuff. I liked it better than the other games. I played the PS game once and it didnt really do anythign for me and the IHRA game really really sucks.

 

[.]

I hope it'll be Vista compatible.

 

[Bmoy]

This would be amazing if NHRA would do this. If they only made it for Wii, I would go out and buy a Wii. I would rather it be for Xbox360, so we could race each other on Live. Maybe Rich Christiansen will come out with a game soon. He's a very enterprising man. Hey, if Deadliest Catch and Pimp My Ride can be a game, Pinks can be a game! Put your Pink slips on the table on Live and Race 'em Balls Out! P.S. Possible tagline or advertising pitch.

 

[Thrill]

I think Tony Smith makes the point. It's not that the current NHRA sims they have come out with for the PS2 were bad, it's just that they are way behind in terms of graphics and gameplay that takes full advantage of the platform they're offered on.

Speaking of platforms...I don't know why NHRA would get in bed with a company limited only to PS2, and this was after PS3 was released I believe.

I think XBox Live racing would be huge.

I think street cars need to be worked in, that's a huge market right there. Maybe a NHRA Street Legal would work.

Not to mention a bracket racing part of the game. There's a lot of bracket racers out there. You can eventually figure out the perfect tune up and beat the computer most of the time, but racing the stripe can be a challenge all the time if done right.

NHRA if you're reading, I'll help design this game for free...

 

[Mooseman]

they need to have a game where you make your character and at the start of the game you are given a limited amount of money and you can buy a car off maybe something similer racing junk thats within your budget . Then as you progress you win race money and get sponsers and stuff and you can upgrade you're car and parts with parts you would be able to buy in real life . Then as you progress further and win money and get sponsers and stuff you can progress through whatever classes you choose to progress to .

Thats only a quick discription but I think that would be cool

 

[Thrill]

"Career Mode"

I was thinking something along the lines of getting an entry level car to start off with. Camaro, Mustang etc. Not the new ones, a few years older one like someone would really start off with. Start off with a few bucks and the goal to move up would be to beat some "local" hot shot racers heads up. Race at bracket races to earn money to buy 'go fast' parts for heads up races. Have a 'classifieds' section where used cars would come available, also 'chassis shops' to buy new chassis. New would obviously be faster than used. Basically work your way through street legal type stuff, to Top Dragster and Top Sportsman with the same mix of bracket races to earn money to buy go fast parts and run heads up. Have the option of moving up to go down different paths ranging from Pro Mod to TAD or TAFC. The next step would be the pro ranks.

 

[JFrechJr]

Man Will that sounds like an amazing idea to me. It would be nice if there was some third-person out of car movement. Instead of going from menu to menu to menu to inside car on track back to menu.

It would also be cool to throw in some mini side game type things. Like a practice Tree for pro and sportsman. In career mode actually make it possible to "attend" an national event: watch from the stands, compete in a couple of the pit-side games. Gain entry with the money earned from racing.

Have a side career route where you can become a fuel team crew member.

Ohhh the sweet possibilities that will probably never come tru

 

[qtermile14]

I just bought NCAA 09 for my xbox 360 by EA Sports. I can't comment much about NHRA Countdown because I'm not a PS3 owner.

Those of you who have played EA games know that they are just about the standard in sports games. Can you imagine if NHRA commissioned EA to do a Drag Racing game how big of a deal that would be? Even if they get one of the other companies like 2K sports to do a game, it would be huge for the sport.

Why?

It's much more than just making a cool game for us vid game fans. NHRA ARE YOU LISTENING? THIS IS HOW TO REACH THE YOUNGER MARKET!

People buy an EA sports game because they know it's a quality game. Going with the low bidder, nothing agains Lucky Chicken, isn't going to do much more than get existing drag racing fans to buy the game.

Such a game will also give NHRA and it's sponsor Full Throttle, some shelf space exposure it might not have got.

Anybody who's played a Wii....can you imagine how fun a two handed drag sim would be? Steer with one hand, shift or brake with the right...just a thought..

NHRA is spending big bucks on PR firms, Marketing firms, etc. Hopefully they'll pick up on this. With some effort it shouldn't take much to get sponsorship dollars to underwrite such an endeavor. Hell, Full Throttle should be ALL OVER this. The energy drink certainly markets to the younger crowd.

The big trend in sports games these days is the 'role playing' element of starting at the bottom and working your way up. I know I'm really dreaming, but maybe one day there could be "Lucas Drag Racing 09" for the sportsman classes and "Full Throttle Drag Racing 09" for the Pro's.

NHRA reads this...let's speak up!

Actually, the best NASCAR games were the NASCAR Racing series which ended in 2003. They came from Papyrus, which was founded by Dave Kaemmer, and was eventually run under the Sierra banner. The only reason this series ended was because EA threw enough money at NASCAR to secure an exclusive deal to provide an inferior game compared to NASCAR Racing. Back then, Papyrus were the only ones who had a gaming engine in which the cars could actually flip, and realistic looking at that. Unfortunately, Dave is involved in partnership with John Henry (yes the Red Sox John Henry) in an online only motorsports simulation enterprise called iracing.com Motorsports Simulations, iRacing.com Motorsport Simulations . Maybe after he has this running full time, he may be interested in adding drag racing.

 

[willy]

I have been playing the Main Event game on my PC for years, so when I got a chance to play the PS2 game awhile back, I thought it was freakin' awesome and really enjoyed it. Yet, you guys are kinda saying it sucks.

Man! I must really be behind the times! LMAO!!!

Sean D

I like Main Event as well, Sean..and Justin's Burn Out reference..I was in with that, too.

My offspring and I hook up the wheel/pedals and have a blast. Have a nice sound system/video card..crank it up..forced feedback on the wheel..shakes and all. Whether it's Pro Stock shifting, Funnies, rails (I like the inside car view looking out over the hood...barely) I enjoy that game.

I don't have the PS's and my gaming is PC based..but I love it.

 

[skapykat]

To me, Burnout Championship Drag Racing was the best drag racing game made but its not pro's. Just bracket racing and stuff. I liked it better than the other games. I played the PS game once and it didnt really do anythign for me and the IHRA game really really sucks.

I agree with you on that one. The amount of detail and options you had in the first three versions was amazing. Then, Bethesda seemingly gave up and started putting out really bad cartoonish type of game. I think that anyone of the major publishers could have there development teams make a really good game. It's just that there probably isn't a huge market for Drag Racing Sims, unfortunately. However, They could probably take the blueprint for the EA NASCAR games and make it work with NHRA very well.

As mentioned before, the PS games aren't bad, just not as polished and slick as the GT or Forza series.

 

[Sean D, shondoo]

I like Main Event as well, Sean..and Justin's Burn Out reference..I was in with that, too.

My offspring and I hook up the wheel/pedals and have a blast. Have a nice sound system/video card..crank it up..forced feedback on the wheel..shakes and all. Whether it's Pro Stock shifting, Funnies, rails (I like the inside car view looking out over the hood...barely) I enjoy that game.

I don't have the PS's and my gaming is PC based..but I love it.

Yeah, I'll just have to continue with my PC stuff until I can get a PS-2. Hell, I don't even have the wheel and pedals. I have to run 'er off the keyboard. I wouldn't know how to act with all of that cool stuff!

How is the "offspring" doing? You guys going to make it to Eddyville next month? If so, I look forward to seeing you again!

Sean D