NASCAR 06: Total Team Control - Review
Added September 6th, 2005 by Kisan Parikh
Introduction:
As is true with many EA SPORTS titles, due to their exclusive license, NASCAR 06 doesn’t have to contend with other NASCAR games. Exclusive licenses aren’t acquired for the benefit of consumers, and games released under these licenses can end up making little or no progress from its predecessors. Let’s take a look at the new features offered in Total Team Control and see if EA has abused its exclusive rights to NASCAR games.
Gameplay:
During your first load, you, as Jeff Gordon, are immediately thrown into the midst of the Pepsi 400 trying to hold your lead after your teammate has crashed. This sequence is your introduction to car swapping, a new capability in Total Team Control. Car swapping is a part of a bigger feature which is the only significant in-game addition to NASCAR 06. This feature is Interactive Crew Chief Control. This feature allows racers to take full control of their team and use strategy to achieve the best possible team finish.
As is true with many EA SPORTS titles, due to their exclusive license, NASCAR 06 doesn’t have to contend with other NASCAR games. Exclusive licenses aren’t acquired for the benefit of consumers, and games released under these licenses can end up making little or no progress from its predecessors. Let’s take a look at the new features offered in Total Team Control and see if EA has abused its exclusive rights to NASCAR games.
Gameplay:
During your first load, you, as Jeff Gordon, are immediately thrown into the midst of the Pepsi 400 trying to hold your lead after your teammate has crashed. This sequence is your introduction to car swapping, a new capability in Total Team Control. Car swapping is a part of a bigger feature which is the only significant in-game addition to NASCAR 06. This feature is Interactive Crew Chief Control. This feature allows racers to take full control of their team and use strategy to achieve the best possible team finish.
Interactive Crew Control operates out of the bottom-right corner of your screen. You have the option of selecting a driver to issue a command to and are then presented with a listing of commands to give. You can tell your teammates to prevent cars from passing, allow you to pass, share drafts, and even pit together. Other commands include instructing your teammates to move aside in order to allow you to pass, hold their position, or follow your car. Truth be told, the eighth command really isn’t a command at all.
The car swap “command” involves switching cars with a teammate. By doing this, you are able to bring slower cars to the front of the pack and set up blocks to assure a first place finish. This works best in longer races, where you actually have time to set your cars in the desired locations. I think this was one of the better additions to the game, as it really brings out the teamwork and strategy of NASCAR.
All of the commands can either be given through your controller or your headset. Total Team Control offers voice recognition to give commands, change options, change view settings, and even obtain information. In theory, this is a great addition to the Interactive Crew Control feature. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always pick up on your voice. You will find that the voice recognition software will have problems with certain words and you will end up saying things such as “HUD off” into your headset for double the amount of time it takes to manually change it with your controller. I like the idea and there aren’t problems for many of the commands, but sometimes the error in voice recognition will cause something completely undesirable to happen.
Besides what is mentioned above, the in-game mechanics are basically the same. The only improvement to AI is the new ally and rival system. This allows you to make friends or enemies on the track based upon your driving etiquette. The drivers you ram into will take an exaggerated amount of runs at your car and prevent you from sharing draft. Your allies, on the other hand, will tend to act as friendlier opponents.
That is it for in-game changes. NASCAR 06 is the same exact game as Race for the Cup, from an in-race perspective, aside from the items mentioned above. The main mode of play this year, Fight to the Top, has changed as a result of the more team-oriented gameplay. Fight to the Top involves joining a team to gain revenue. Eventually you will earn enough to purchase your own team to build your individual and team prestige. Team prestige is determined by the quality of your team in both racing and business aspects. You are able to invest in three different aspects: Cars, Crews, and Administration. As the owner of a team, you can control a team of racing superstars, but be cautious and select your drivers carefully. Despite the talent of your racers, if your team doesn’t have a good chemistry rating, you won’t be very successful as a team.
One thing I did like about the main single-player mode of play was the fact that the settings were very customizable. Diehard NASCAR fans can opt to participate in races that are 25% of the real races, and casual gamers can choose to compete in races that can be as short as 4% of the real thing. You can adjust the car damage to only affect the game from a visual standpoint. You also have the option to toggle things such as unlimited gas and tire wear. I think this was a smart move by EA to present an enjoyable game to both the casual and hardcore fan.
Another aspect of the game that could be appealing to gamers without Xbox Live is multiplayer through Play Now. Here gamers can race head to head for bragging rights on a single console. This will always provide a bit of fun. Who doesn’t like beating a buddy in a neck-and-neck race?
This being said, Fight to the Top is, on the grand scheme of things, too shallow to be considered a decent step forward for the franchise. It adds some interesting new aspects, but doesn’t really take them anywhere. The only reason to improve your prestige is for the sake of improving your prestige. I’d like to see some more depth added to this mode of play with little extras and perks to keep your prestige up. They could have included visual representations of a successful career in the form of cut-scenes, improved garages, and more of the like. EA SPORTS has managed this in other games, but they left it out of NASCAR 06.
Graphics:
At the end of a console’s generation, you don’t really expect to see a huge graphical leap, but you would still like to see some improvement. NASCAR 06 isn’t as visually crisp as many would like, and the game feels a bit sluggish at times. The main reason for this, I know, is the large number of cars on the screen, and it is also due to the detail present in the race tracks. The game does feature some nice damage displays after crashes, even if the crash animation can be clunky.
The car swap “command” involves switching cars with a teammate. By doing this, you are able to bring slower cars to the front of the pack and set up blocks to assure a first place finish. This works best in longer races, where you actually have time to set your cars in the desired locations. I think this was one of the better additions to the game, as it really brings out the teamwork and strategy of NASCAR.
All of the commands can either be given through your controller or your headset. Total Team Control offers voice recognition to give commands, change options, change view settings, and even obtain information. In theory, this is a great addition to the Interactive Crew Control feature. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always pick up on your voice. You will find that the voice recognition software will have problems with certain words and you will end up saying things such as “HUD off” into your headset for double the amount of time it takes to manually change it with your controller. I like the idea and there aren’t problems for many of the commands, but sometimes the error in voice recognition will cause something completely undesirable to happen.
Besides what is mentioned above, the in-game mechanics are basically the same. The only improvement to AI is the new ally and rival system. This allows you to make friends or enemies on the track based upon your driving etiquette. The drivers you ram into will take an exaggerated amount of runs at your car and prevent you from sharing draft. Your allies, on the other hand, will tend to act as friendlier opponents.
That is it for in-game changes. NASCAR 06 is the same exact game as Race for the Cup, from an in-race perspective, aside from the items mentioned above. The main mode of play this year, Fight to the Top, has changed as a result of the more team-oriented gameplay. Fight to the Top involves joining a team to gain revenue. Eventually you will earn enough to purchase your own team to build your individual and team prestige. Team prestige is determined by the quality of your team in both racing and business aspects. You are able to invest in three different aspects: Cars, Crews, and Administration. As the owner of a team, you can control a team of racing superstars, but be cautious and select your drivers carefully. Despite the talent of your racers, if your team doesn’t have a good chemistry rating, you won’t be very successful as a team.
One thing I did like about the main single-player mode of play was the fact that the settings were very customizable. Diehard NASCAR fans can opt to participate in races that are 25% of the real races, and casual gamers can choose to compete in races that can be as short as 4% of the real thing. You can adjust the car damage to only affect the game from a visual standpoint. You also have the option to toggle things such as unlimited gas and tire wear. I think this was a smart move by EA to present an enjoyable game to both the casual and hardcore fan.
Another aspect of the game that could be appealing to gamers without Xbox Live is multiplayer through Play Now. Here gamers can race head to head for bragging rights on a single console. This will always provide a bit of fun. Who doesn’t like beating a buddy in a neck-and-neck race?
This being said, Fight to the Top is, on the grand scheme of things, too shallow to be considered a decent step forward for the franchise. It adds some interesting new aspects, but doesn’t really take them anywhere. The only reason to improve your prestige is for the sake of improving your prestige. I’d like to see some more depth added to this mode of play with little extras and perks to keep your prestige up. They could have included visual representations of a successful career in the form of cut-scenes, improved garages, and more of the like. EA SPORTS has managed this in other games, but they left it out of NASCAR 06.
Graphics:
At the end of a console’s generation, you don’t really expect to see a huge graphical leap, but you would still like to see some improvement. NASCAR 06 isn’t as visually crisp as many would like, and the game feels a bit sluggish at times. The main reason for this, I know, is the large number of cars on the screen, and it is also due to the detail present in the race tracks. The game does feature some nice damage displays after crashes, even if the crash animation can be clunky.
Total Team Control is definitely not going to win any prizes for its visuals, but the graphics featured will get the job done. I know many people would have liked to have seen some cleaned up animations, but I guess now we’ll have to wait until the next generation.
Audio:
The in-game sound quality of NASCAR 06 stays consistent with the previous installment of the series. The engine sounds are as good as ever and the same is true for the crashing sound effects. It does a great job of taking you to the races in a way that the graphics cannot. The soundtrack of Total Team Control is solid, just as you would expect of an EA SPORTS game, and the tracks included stay within what you would expect for a NASCAR game.
The single thing I disliked about the audio is listening to the voice messages left on your phone during Fight to the Top mode. I wish they would have just stuck to text messages instead of hiring lame voice actors! Other than that, the audio in Total Team Control is superb.
Controls:
The control scheme of Total Team Control worked well with the game. I liked how the new Crew Chief Control features were implemented into the control scheme. They fit right into the driving system, because using the right thumbstick doesn’t cause you take your finger off the accelerator. I feel that the NASCAR 06 was really lacking more in-depth tutorials to help new NASCAR gamers get acquainted with both the controls and the NASCAR gameplay, which differs greatly from your average racing game.
Replay:
NASCAR 06 offers a wide variety of game modes, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that it has good replay value. One major mode of play is Season mode. Here you can choose to race in any of the four series (Whelen, Craftsman, NNS, and Nextel Cup), and then you are able to simulate or participate in races as your season progresses. The next major mode of play is Chase for the Cup. This mode of play is one of the better ones as it throws you into a season with 10 races left and only 5 points separating each driver in the standings. Winning in this mode of play allows you to earn Skill Points.
Skill points can be used in Dodge Challenges, a mode of play that throws you into moments from NASCAR history. The closest thing to a tutorial takes the form of the Dodge Speedzone mode. In this particular mode, you are able to practice your skills in passing, blocking, drafting, and time trials. Each of these skill categories can be played in multiple difficulties. The final mode of play is, of course, online multiplayer via Xbox Live. The online aspect of the game functions exactly the same as it did in NASCAR 2005 with Quick Match, OptiMatch and Leaderboards.
As you can see, NASCAR 06 offers a ton of game modes, but the fact that these game modes were included with a bare minimum of changes from the previous version keeps these modes from becoming spectacular in terms of replay value. Gamers who enjoyed last year’s game will quickly tire of the same thing over and over again.
Audio:
The in-game sound quality of NASCAR 06 stays consistent with the previous installment of the series. The engine sounds are as good as ever and the same is true for the crashing sound effects. It does a great job of taking you to the races in a way that the graphics cannot. The soundtrack of Total Team Control is solid, just as you would expect of an EA SPORTS game, and the tracks included stay within what you would expect for a NASCAR game.
The single thing I disliked about the audio is listening to the voice messages left on your phone during Fight to the Top mode. I wish they would have just stuck to text messages instead of hiring lame voice actors! Other than that, the audio in Total Team Control is superb.
Controls:
The control scheme of Total Team Control worked well with the game. I liked how the new Crew Chief Control features were implemented into the control scheme. They fit right into the driving system, because using the right thumbstick doesn’t cause you take your finger off the accelerator. I feel that the NASCAR 06 was really lacking more in-depth tutorials to help new NASCAR gamers get acquainted with both the controls and the NASCAR gameplay, which differs greatly from your average racing game.
Replay:
NASCAR 06 offers a wide variety of game modes, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that it has good replay value. One major mode of play is Season mode. Here you can choose to race in any of the four series (Whelen, Craftsman, NNS, and Nextel Cup), and then you are able to simulate or participate in races as your season progresses. The next major mode of play is Chase for the Cup. This mode of play is one of the better ones as it throws you into a season with 10 races left and only 5 points separating each driver in the standings. Winning in this mode of play allows you to earn Skill Points.
Skill points can be used in Dodge Challenges, a mode of play that throws you into moments from NASCAR history. The closest thing to a tutorial takes the form of the Dodge Speedzone mode. In this particular mode, you are able to practice your skills in passing, blocking, drafting, and time trials. Each of these skill categories can be played in multiple difficulties. The final mode of play is, of course, online multiplayer via Xbox Live. The online aspect of the game functions exactly the same as it did in NASCAR 2005 with Quick Match, OptiMatch and Leaderboards.
As you can see, NASCAR 06 offers a ton of game modes, but the fact that these game modes were included with a bare minimum of changes from the previous version keeps these modes from becoming spectacular in terms of replay value. Gamers who enjoyed last year’s game will quickly tire of the same thing over and over again.
Summary:
NASCAR 06: Total Team Control is a solid game when viewed by itself, but the fact that NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup is identical except for a few new features is really disappointing. I like the Interactive Crew Chief Control, but the fact that it is basically the only well implemented new feature really hurts the overall value of this game. I think that this one should be picked up by the hardcore NASCAR fans, but I suggest that other gamers steer clear of this one, at least until they can buy it for a cheaper price.
NASCAR 06: Total Team Control is a solid game when viewed by itself, but the fact that NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup is identical except for a few new features is really disappointing. I like the Interactive Crew Chief Control, but the fact that it is basically the only well implemented new feature really hurts the overall value of this game. I think that this one should be picked up by the hardcore NASCAR fans, but I suggest that other gamers steer clear of this one, at least until they can buy it for a cheaper price.
