3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball

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3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball
3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball cover.jpg
North American box art
Developer Dynamix
Publisher Sierra Attractions
Series 3-D Ultra Pinball
Platforms Windows, Mac OS
ReleaseDecember 1, 1998 [1]
Genre Pinball
Modes Single-player, multiplayer

3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball is a 1998 pinball video game for Windows and Mac OS, [2] and the fourth game in 3-D Ultra Pinball series. It was released under the title 3-D Ultra Pinball: Turbo Racing in Europe. [3] [4] The game uses an improved graphics engine first used in 3-D Ultra Pinball: Thrillride , which takes advantage of greater color depth and resolution up to 800x600 pixels. [3] The game includes multimedia information about four NASCAR tracks, [5] namely Bristol Motor Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, Atlanta Motor Speedway, and Watkins Glen International Raceway; [6] but only includes a single Speedway table alongside Garage and Pit Stop tables. [5]

Contents

Gameplay

Up to four players play a virtual pinball simulation with a NASCAR theme. [6]

Players can play a full season of races racing as Dale Earnhardt, Bobby Labonte, Terry Labonte or Bill Elliott. The choice of driver only affects some graphics, and some callouts by the in-game commentators. [3] Play begins on the Garage table in which the player uses a single ball to hit targets to improve their car for the race. [3] This is followed by a 60-second qualifying lap on the Speedway table which determines the players starting position in the race. [3] [5] Four ramps on this table represent the four turns of the racetrack. [6] When the race begins, players have up to five balls or until a timer ends to finish the race. During a race players can start the Pit Stop table, to increase score and improve efficiency of their car. [6] [4] The players finishing position in each race is tracked across an entire NASCAR season.

Development

The pit crew on the Pit Stop table were motion captured. [6]

Reception

The game was nominated for "PC Family Title of the Year" at the 2nd Annual Interactive Achievement Awards organized by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. [10]

Game reviews were mixed; IGN found the game to be sub-par without attention to detail, with dated physics and graphics, though found the design of the table to be clever. [8]

The Chicago Tribune said the game does a good job of presenting the various stages of a race day, but that only die-hard NASCAR fans would enjoy it. [11]

Gamezilla! found a solidly-constructed fun game with crisp sounds that is entertaining for a modest price, although doesn't break any "significant ground" in gaming. [5]

HappyPuppy criticized the lack of depth. [9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "News Briefs". IGN . December 1, 1998. Archived from the original on August 27, 1999.
  2. ↑ Jones, Art (July 1999). "MacHome Product Review- 3D Ultra NASCAR Pinball". MacHome. Archived from the original on 2000-10-10. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Brence, Corwin (November 28, 2011). "Hardcore Gaming 101: 3-D Ultra Pinball". www.hardcoregaming101.net. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  4. 1 2 "3-D Ultra Pinball: Turbo Racing Manual".
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Houghton, Suzanne (April 21, 1999). "GameZilla Review of 3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball". Archived from the original on 2001-02-12.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Strecker, Candi (1998). "NASCAR turns, tilts and flips the tables". InterAction Magazine. pp. 90–92.
  7. ↑ "Reviews". Computer Gaming World. No. 177. April 1999. p. 174.
  8. 1 2 "3D Ultra NASCAR Pinball". IGN. 1999-01-28. Retrieved 2025-12-10.
  9. 1 2 Garcia, Pablo (October 2, 1999). "3D Ultra NASCAR Pinball Reviewed". Archived from the original on 2000-11-19.
  10. ↑ "Second Interactive Achievement Awards - Personal Computer". Interactive.org. Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on November 4, 1999. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  11. ↑ Kujawa, Kraig (1998-12-03). "NASCAR runs out of gas". Chicago Tribune. p. 71. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
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