NASCAR 25 was released on PC this week (it already came out on PlayStation and Xbox on Oct. 14), and it has brought about the most excitement seen among NASCAR video game lovers in quite some time.
The game seems to be a raging success, ranking in the top-10 best-selling list for PlayStation and Xbox in October. But how does it stack up among the best NASCAR games ever made.
Eighteen Frontstretch staff members ranked their top-10 best NASCAR video games, with first place receiving 10 points and 10th getting one point. Here are the results.
NOTE: iRacing was excluded from this list, as it is more of a racing simulator than it is a video game.
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10. NASCAR 07 (39 points, 1st-place votes: 1)
Aside from having arguably the most random video game cover athlete of all time in Elliott Sadler (who had not won a NASCAR Cup Series points-paying race in two years by its September 2006 release), NASCAR 07 was a memorable game for other reasons.
It expanded on the career mode of previous EA Sports entries, including the Whelen Modified Series as a potential starting point. If the regular NASCAR tracks got a little monotonous after a while, NASCAR 07 also offered several fantasy tracks from previous games as well as a few new ones. My personal favorites were Dodge Raceway and Speedway Boulevard.
The gameplay always felt smooth and authentic to me. A loose car felt loose, and a tight car felt tight. Crash animation and crash damage also looked more realistic compared to other, more recent NASCAR gaming entries.
The soundtrack was also up there with some of my favorites in not just NASCAR video games but sports video games overall. Who can forget the first notes of Breaking Benjamin’s “Diary of Jane” at the loading screen getting you ready to go racing?
NASCAR 07 was an all-around strong entry to the sport’s video game catalogue. -Andrew Stoddard
9. NASCAR ’15 (41 points)
Other than its immediate predecessor, there’s truly nothing like Eutechnyx’s NASCAR ’15. To me, it was equal parts the most maddening, yet one of the most exhilarating NASCAR games. In some respects, this was like playing a video game while at an EDM rave. The AI on flat tracks were OP (overpowered) but also were ready to go four-five wide at any moment’s notice.
I give credit for the ability to mod the game, create your own twists with paint schemes and immerse yourself in chaos. The spotter system was likely as good as any game has been. You could actually do victory burnouts and had access to some of the biggest pit road adjustments available.
The wall pops were definitely annoying along with every race ever at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Martinsville Speedway, but this game got plenty of bang for its buck. It’s a game I hold in high regard, because you could run multiple lines, cause and earn DNF’s and ultimately maneuver your way through the playoffs against the biggest mixed bag of competition imaginable. -Thomas Dunn
8. NASCAR The Game: Inside Line (45 points)
Where NASCAR The Game: 2011 made headway on including tons of paint schemes and tried to lock down the style of the wingless Cars of Tomorrow, that game left a lot to be desired. Inside Line wasn’t miles and miles better, but it was absolutely a marked improvement over the subpar damage model, weird physics and comical glitches of 2011.
There were definitely some eccentricities — getting out to a huge lead at superspeedways and maintaining it, the odd “male Miss Sprint Cups” in victory lane (not sure what’s offensive about the MSCs in their firesuits) — but Inside Line was, if nothing else, a solid enough entry with decent racing. -Adam Cheek
7. NASCAR Racing 2003 Season (51 points, 1st-place votes: 1)
Unique to the other entries on this list, NASCAR Racing 2003 Season (NR 2003) was developed exclusively for the PC and is decisively the most simulation-oriented of the titles featured here. In its day, it was a popular training tool for the likes of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin, owing to its realistic handling and compatibility with PC-connected wheel and pedal setups. The last NASCAR game published by Papyrus, the source code for this game was eventually adapted to form the foundation of iRacing, but that’s not to say that NR 2003 faded away after iRacing came around.
For over two decades, NR 2003 has been kept alive by a modding community that certainly ranks among the most active and robust in all of gaming. There is hardly a paint scheme from the last 30 (yes, 30, not 20) years of NASCAR competition that can’t be found, downloaded, imported and played in NR 2003, and there are more tracks than one could ever race in a lifetime to accompany the plethora of cars the community has produced. This includes various eras of NASCAR machinery, ARCA and multiple open-wheel mods covering Formula 1 and IndyCar as well as sports cars, late models and sprints. Heck, even stadium trucks.
In years like 2010, when there was no official NASCAR game, the NR 2003 modding community carried the torch and will surely be there to do the same if fans are ever without an officially licensed NASCAR game again. Simply put, NR 2003 will outlive all of us, and thank the heavens for that. -Alex Gintz
6. NASCAR 25 (60 points, 1st-place votes: 1)
It took a decade, but NASCAR 25 is the best overall console entry since the underrated NASCAR ’15. Where many of its predecessors fell short, the newest installment is far and away the best balance of authentic experience, player accessibility and format in ages.
While it does take a little bit to progress through the ARCA Menards Series — much like MLB the Show, which is a good thing — it’s genuinely fun getting the chance to gain experience in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series while honing driving skills and improving equipment.
Other little touches that add to the authentic experience are things like drivers’ paint schemes rotating once DLCs are purchased and the fact that ARCA is actually in the game, rather than the “Xtreme Dirt Series” or whatever was featured in the Heat entries.
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Players having to work their way through the series is a genuinely fun way to do things, and the fact that all — or almost all — of the drivers, sponsors and cars are true-to-life (for the first time in ages) is such a huge leap forward. No game is perfect, but iRacing helming this game and involving Earnhardt and many others was a big step in the right direction. -Adam Cheek
5. NASCAR: Dirt to Daytona (62 points)
Twenty-three years ago from Wednesday (Nov. 12), Monster Games, who developed the NASCAR Heat series, released its best entry. While it didn’t have the popularity of the EA Sports games coming out at the same time, NASCAR: Dirt to Daytona was absolutely groundbreaking for its day.
While NASCAR Racing 1999 edition holds the distinction of being the first NASCAR game to feature multiple series instead of just the Cup Series, Dirt to Daytona perfected it. It was the first of its kind to feature a career mode where a player could start as a local dirt racer and eventually become a Cup superstar, hence the name of the game.
A player would start career mode racing dirt tracks in the Dodge Weekly Racing Series (now the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Racing Series) in the worst equipment. As they won more purse and sponsor money, they could spend to upgrade their equipment and build up to becoming champion. That is how they then moved up to the Featherlite Modified Tour (now the Whelen Modified Tour). Then they’d do the same in that series to move up to the Craftsman Truck Series, and then the same there to finally get to Cup.
Career mode was a grind, but it was more rewarding than any NASCAR video game before and maybe even since. It seemed like Dirt to Daytona put the pressure on EA Sports to up its career modes, as it did in the games that followed.
The gameplay was also solid for its time, especially when considering you race four different types of vehicles and they all behaved differently on track. The biggest knock on the game is it didn’t have all of the NASCAR tracks of the time and it was also missing some Cup and Truck drivers. All of the dirt and Modified drivers were fictional characters. But it had some fictional tracks that were pretty fun to race at.
Most of the NASCAR Heat games are quickly being forgotten, but that has not and will not be the case for Dirt to Daytona. -Michael Massie
4. NASCAR 06: Total Team Control (83 points)
NASCAR 06: Total Team Control was a 2005 release by EA Sports, the ninth NASCAR edition for the company. It was available for play on the Microsoft Xbox and Sony Playstation 2, but unlike previous years, was not given a Nintendo GameCube release.
After several seasons with the word Thunder in the title, this was the second version in a row showcasing a new gameplay feature in the name.
Total Team Control was an element of the game in which a player could switch between team cars in a race. Even on a five car team, the player could instantly change from one to another. The purpose varied based on the situation. It could lead a player to attempt to sweep the top positions at the finish. They could also be lined up as drafting partners.
Additionally, it enabled a bit of race manipulation for a less scrupulous competitor. If one car needed a caution to catch up, a team car could be sacrificed for the benefit of the other.
In hindsight, after the events of the 2013 playoff controversy involving Michael Waltrip Racing, it does seem a bit odd that this officially licensed game of NASCAR seemed to encourage such behavior. But it was a different time, and NASCAR 06: Total Team Control definitely makes for a good one at that. -Frank Velat
3. NASCAR Thunder 2003 (102 points, 1st-place votes: 3)
NASCAR Thunder 2003 was, for me, the definitive racing console game.
Not just NASCAR themed — but all of motorsports. From the moment you powered up the Playstation 2, it felt special. The montage of drivers saying “It’s in the game!”, to Dale Jr.’s backward hat image, as Steppenwolf’s “Magic Carpet Ride” cues up and lightning strikes.
The first time I turned it on, Johnny Benson’s No. 10 Valvoline Grand Prix was the car featured. This has to be a sign, I thought; he’s from my town … he went to my high school. … Heck, he had my second cousin as a Technical Drawing instructor! It’s a sign!
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The actual racing physics, to me, are still the best, as it struck the perfect balance between being a console game but far from a super touchy simulator. The Career Mode option was next level for its time. You had limited funds to spend on engines, chassis or R&D. Different engines and chassis had different power levels, and you even had to deal with crew members with poor morale. I was ruthless; Jack Roush with migraine and a toothache on a Tuesday — SOMEONE WAS GETTING CANNED.
I feel it still holds up. One of my favorite eras of the sport, and the optional Challenges narrated by your favorite drivers sealed the deal for me. –Vito Pugliese
2. NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup (116 points, 1st-place votes: 6)
One of the most iconic NASCAR games made in the EA Sports era, NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup was a true classic in the early years of peak NASCAR video games.
Being the first NASCAR game since Dirt to Daytona to have an in-depth career mode where players start their career in the Featherlite Modified Series before ultimately becoming a Cup Series driver was one of the main highlights of the game.
In addition, fans also got to experience the all-new Chase for the Nextel Cup championship format, which NASCAR introduced in real life before the game’s release, in the game’s Season Mode.
And who could forget the Lightning Challenge mode, one of my personal favorite game modes from the older EA titles, where you get to relive or rewrite NASCAR history and unlock additional paint schemes and fantasy tracks.
Of all the EA NASCAR titles, Chase for the Cup goes down as one of the classics with the in-depth career mode and variety of drivers players have the option to choose from to race as in the game’s Race Now mode. -Christopher Hansen
1. NASCAR Thunder 2004 (125 points, 1st-place votes: 5)
The year is 2003. You get home after a long day of school, plug in NASCAR Thunder 2004 in your PlayStation 2, and you’re greeted by the song “Action” by Powerman 3000, followed by perhaps one of the greatest soundtracks in NASCAR game history.
Then, with adrenaline pumping at the sound of its killer music lineup, you play the game.
While having its in-depth career mode, NT 2004 featured the return of the popular lightning challenges featured in NASCAR Thunder 2003, while also providing new modes such as SpeedZone and Thunder License, a mode that had real drivers training you on different racing lines at certain tracks. It literally taught kids the ins and outs of NASCAR, including MRN Radio introductions of drivers, all while keeping them entertained.
But what made NT 2004 the best NASCAR game ever wasn’t only the real-life features added, but the fictional ones. From unlockable drivers such as NASCAR legends ranging from Dale Earnhardt to Elmo Langley, NASCAR Busch Series (now NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series) drivers including an up-and-coming Kasey Kahne and even the pace car itself, to 27 unlockable tracks including the streets of New York City and a reimagined Daytona Beach and Road Course, NT 2004 had hours upon hours of unlockable content that kept you coming back for more.
And isn’t that what a video game is supposed to do? -Dalton Hopkins
Content Director at Frontstretch
Michael Massie joined Frontstretch in 2017 and has served as the Content Director since 2020.
Massie, a Richmond, Va., native, has covered NASCAR, IndyCar, SRX and the CARS Tour. Outside of motorsports, the Virginia Tech grad and Green Bay Packers minority owner can be seen cheering on his beloved Hokies and Packers.
Thomas is in his first year covering NASCAR at Frontstretch. A Bay Area NASCAR fan for over 15+ years, he found his love for the sport through Jeff Gordon.
Thomas has enjoyed several trips to Sonoma Raceway in his time and currently covers college football in the Bay Area, also writing about the California Golden Bears.
Frank Velat has been an avid follower of NASCAR and other motorsports for over 20 years. He brings a blend of passionate fan and objective author to his work. Frank offers unique perspectives that everyone can relate to, remembering the sport’s past all the while embracing its future.
Follow along with @FrankVelat on Twitter.
Vito is one of the longest-tenured writers at Frontstretch, joining the staff in 2007. He’s a contributor to several other outlets, including Athlon Sports and Popular Speed in addition to making radio appearances. He forever has a soft-spot in his heart for old Mopars and presumably oil-soaked cardboard in his garage.
Adam Cheek joined Frontstretch as a contributing writer in January 2019. A 2020 graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, he covered sports there and later spent a year and a half as a sports host on 910 the Fan in Richmond, VA. He’s freelanced for Richmond Magazine and the Richmond Times-Dispatch and also hosts the Adam Cheek’s Sports Week podcast. Adam has followed racing since the age of three, inheriting the passion from his grandfather, who raced in amateur events up and down the East Coast in the 1950s.
NASCAR At Track Coordinator at Frontstretch
Dalton Hopkins began writing for Frontstretch in April 2021. Currently, he is the lead writer for the weekly Thinkin’ Out Loud column, co-host of the Frontstretch Happy Hour podcast, and one of our lead reporters. Beforehand, he wrote for IMSA shortly after graduating from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2019. Simultaneously, he also serves as a Captain in the US Army.
Follow Dalton on Twitter @PitLaneCPT
Alex is the IndyCar Content Director at Frontstretch, having initially joined as an entry-level contributor in 2021. He also serves as Managing Director of The Asia Cable, a publication focused on the international affairs and politics of the Asia-Pacific region which he co-founded in 2023. With previous experience in China, Japan and Poland, Alex is particularly passionate about the international realm of motorsport and the politics that make the wheels turn – literally – behind the scenes.
Andrew Stoddard joined Frontstretch in May of 2022 as an iRacing contributor. He is a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College, the University of Richmond, and VCU. He works as an athletic communications specialist at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Va.