NASCAR The Game: Inside Line is the recently released sequel to NASCAR The Game: 2011 and was developed by Eutechnyx. The game was released for PlayStation 3, Wii and Xbox 360 and features 23 Sprint Cup Series racetracks.
Surprisingly the game released towards the end of the NASCAR season, but Activision and Eutechnyx released the following statement on the game's official site explaining why the game release so late in the season:
"Even though the game will ship November 6th, all the content has to be finished by early July. To give us the maximum time to include the latest paint schemes and track changes we decided it would be better to launch later in the year.
For the game to come out at the start of the 2012 season, the assets would have needed to be finished in September 2011. It's practically impossible for the game to be up to date under those circumstances."
So is NASCAR The Game: Inside Line worth picking up? Here is a round up of reviews for the game.
Game Informer says in its review, the game offers a much more robust career mode than the first game in the series and also noted that the cars' damage looked better but the damage was superficial. Game Informer also says, "Inside Line is a step up from its predecessor in every way, but it falls short of being a winner. However, this year's title is like points racing: Even if you can't win it all, you can still make up some ground." Game Informer scores the game a 7.25-out-of-10.
PlanetXbox360 said, "We can't really recommend NASCAR the Game: Inside Line to casual players, mainly because of its bumped-up difficulty, its nearly-empty online lobbies and the refusal to really do anything outside the typical NASCAR set-up. That said, fans may find something to enjoy here, particularly if they're up to the challenge. It just might serve as a decent distraction while you work your way up to race day. Maybe." PlanetXbox360 gave the game a 6.5-out-of-10 score.
PlayStation Lifestyle said in its review, "If you are into NASCAR, and love sim racers, you'll love everything about this game. With forty teams and drivers to choose from, everyone's favorite should be available. Or you can always just be yourself and take on your favorite drivers. Whichever you decide, bring plenty of patience, a good understanding of NASCAR racing techniques and a good steering wheel." PlayStation Lifestyle gives the game a 7-out-of-10.
Review aggregating website Metacritic currently has the Xbox 360 version of the game scored at a 72-out-of-100 based on 4 reviews. The PlayStation 3 version does not yet have a score. Game Rankings currently has the PlayStation 3 version of the game rated a 74.17 percent and the Xbox 360 version of the game rated at 72.5 percent.
You can check out the games launch trailer below and comment about the game.
