Papyrus has long been known for making great racing games. It all started out way back 10 years ago in 1989 with the Indy 500 Sim game. Since then, Papyrus has made such excellent sims (you really can’t call them games, because they are so realistic) as Indycar Racing 1 and 2, Grand Prix Legends, SODA Off-Road, and of course the famous lineup of NASCAR games. NASCAR 1 was a hit back in 1994 and far above its time. NASCAR 2 did the like wise in 1996.

The problem was, Papyrus had not done a major redesign of a NASCAR game since 1996, even though there was many updates, patchs, and new editions of NASCAR 2, like NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition. Well that all changed when Papyrus released NASCAR 3.

NASCAR 3 is based on the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup and Busch Grand National series. Most all the tracks from Winston Cup are in the game (yes Indy is included, but no Daytona isn’t) and just about all of the Busch tracks are there as well. Most of the popular drivers from the 2 series are in the game, such as Dale Earnhardt Sr. & Jr., Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett, Randy Lajoie, Matt Kenseth, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, Rusty Wallace, Mike Skinner and more. One thing that is missing from the game which was there for NASCAR 1999 is the Craftsman Truck Series. I don’t know why they left the Truck series out of the game, but I’m guessing that Sierra will release a Truck Series add on in the near future. If you really can’t wait that long, you might be able to find some unofficial patchs made by other fans of the game, and make your own calendar, because most of the Truck series tracks are in the game.

Once again, Papyrus has amazed as by having the AI as close as you can get it to real life. New features include double file restarts, and lights on the track that tell you when a yellow flag is out. Tracks are shaped just like how they are in real life, which has always been a trademark of Papyrus. If you like going in to the garage and setting up a race car to your liking, NASCAR 3 will please you. You can adjust just about everything you can think of, including the sway bar and how much tape you want on the grill of the car.

Graphics are good in Direct3D mode and Glide. I have only tested the multiplayer mode over a IPX network, so I can’t really tell you about Internet multiplayer, but if it is like NASCAR 2, it is sure to be good. The game supports Aureal’s A3D 2.0 for 3D sound, which basically sounds pretty much like the older versions, unless of course you have a A3D sound card.

Developer : Papyrus

Overall: 96/100
Gameplay: 100/100
Graphics: 96/100
Longitivity: 99/100
Multiplayer: 95/100
Sound: 92/100

System Requirements

Windows 95/98

Minimum: Pentium 166, 32 MB RAM, 2X CD-ROM, SVGA 800x600 w/64k colors

Preferred: Pentium II, 64MB RAM, Glide or Direct3D supported 3D Hardware, Joystick or Steering Wheel & Pedals, A3D 2.0 Sound

This game was reviewed on 9-23-1999