Arriving in October 2021, the reboot of the NASCAR series will be one of the first releases to show whether Motorsport Games and their recent acquisitions are producing interesting new racing games. And there’s now a NASCAR 21: Ignition early gameplay video shared to start building the excitement.
It’s a 50-second clip from the roof of the Motorsport Games #78 Team Live Fast Motorsports Mustang in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona. Described as a simulation, rather than a game, NASCAR 21: Ignition uses Unreal Engine and the rFactor physics engine acquired along with Studio 397.
As the car of BJ McLeod chases the Mobile 1 Ford of Kevin Harvick, the main things that stand out are the scenic lighting from the race tower, neon signs and other elements, the momentary dusk sunlight, and the audio of the wind and turbulence.
It’s still a work in progress, so we’ll have to wait and see what else might be added or improved before the release date. And a roof cam doesn’t reveal much about the in-car driving experience yet, so it’s still very much an early teaser of the game.
But the idea of repackaging the very capable rFactor physics in a title which has more accessibility through the UI and official NASCAR license looks like it’s still on track so far. And also bodes well for the previously announced BTCC game and eSports series planned for 2022. As much as I can appreciate the early graphical fidelity of Daytona, as an English motorsports fan, it’s got me more excited for what they might do with Knockhill and Snetterton in the future…
NASCAR 21: Ignition standard and champion editions are available to pre-purchase for the PC via Steam, Xbox consoles via the Microsoft Store, and will be coming soon to the PlayStation store. In the meantime, keep up with the latest NASCAR 21: Ignition news, updates, DLC and more, here.
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