Not what I was hoping for…
When I first saw the screenshots of NASCAR Arcade Rush I got excited. This is gonna scratch that Daytona itch that has been nagging me for close to two decades. Yeah I know we are finally getting Daytona 2 inside of Like a Dragon, but I cannot wait. I need it now. Then the logos begin cluttering my screen and my heart drops, the Game Mill logo appears and for a second, I got really sad. However NASCAR Arcade Rush still has its moments. Between the fast-paced action and weird car options, this game can deliver a weekend of fun, just not enough to cure my nasty itch of wanting a new Daytona.
Yes this is an arcade kart style racing game. Yes it is fairly simple, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have some fun buried in there. The devs at Team6 Game Studios have taken cues from the best out there. The cars all handle extremely well, the nitro system is simple, and the tracks and cars are interesting enough to keep me going, though sadly there are only 12 tracks, which run their course (heh) way too soon.
MSRP: $49.99
Platforms: Xbox (reviewed), PlayStation, Switch, PC
Price I’d Pay: $29.99
The modes are also lacking. With just a cup series, time attack, and quick race the options die out fast. There is multiplayer and it even has online, but I have no idea how it plays. I tried multiple times and could never get enough people to race with. The online was dead on arrival so unless you have friends you can talk into buying it, or inviting them over for couch antics, then you are forced to deal with playing against the AI.
Oh boy, the AI is something. This might be some of the worst examples of rubber band AI I have ever seen. I can drive perfectly for the entire race and still not get a leg up on the other cars. In fact I lost the first race, which is always a gimme in most racing games to smooth the player into the handling mechanics. Instead the AI said not today sir, I am going to own you right out of the gate. My alien NASCAR stood no chance, and that is just frustrating.
Visually the game looks fine if not a bit uninspired. The music is forgettable, so much so I am not sure it even had any (it does.) Sadly the camera has issues. It sits too low, making it hard to judge corners and turns. I hit the wall far too often until I mastered the tracks, and that probably didn’t help with my losing the opening races. This game punishes you right out of the gate without making it feel like you can do better, instead it just deflated me into not wanting to play it anymore at all.
NASCAR Arcade Rush is disappointing in a lot of ways. I was really just wanting a simple Daytona-style arcade racing game and instead I got an uninspired and frustrating kart racing game with little to keep me coming back. I wanted to love it, I tried to love it, but at the end of the day I went back to better games in the genre. I really want the arcade racing game to have a renaissance, but with entries like this, I doesn’t look likely in the near future.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
