New driving lessons will bring novice drivers up to speed, while track tours narrated by three-time NASCAR(r) Winston Cup Series racing Champion Darrell Waltrip will help even the most seasoned veterans find the fastest way around each circuit. Both novice and seasoned drivers will experience the thrill and excitement of racing like the pros. NASCAR(r) Racing 2002 Season is scheduled for release in February 2002.
"Our vision was to create a driving experience that combined realism with accessibility," said Tom Faiano, six-year veteran of Papyrus and producer at Papyrus Racing Games, "The driving lessons and the new driving aids will help new players get acclimated to actually driving the car. Our continued attention to the details of the sport - NASCAR's new rules for qualifying engines and restrictor plates, including the 2002 drivers, teams and paint schemes- makes our game the definitive simulation of 2002 NASCAR( Winston Cup racing."
"The NASCAR( Racing series is one of our strongest franchises, " said Mike Ryder, president of Sierra Entertainment, Inc., "The game's consistent quality and mass appeal have made it a bedrock in our product line-up."
Building on the highly acclaimed 3D physics engine of NASCAR( Racing 4, NASCAR( Racing 2002 Season's new sound system and enhanced photo-realistic graphics capture the heart-pounding intensity of actual NASCAR( racing better than ever. In addition, the innovative new replay editor allows users to add sound and graphics to saved replays in order to create highlight reels of their favorite races.
ABOUT NASCAR
The NASCAR Licensing and Retail Development team that is based in Charlotte, NC, is committed to creating retail programs that provide value to NASCAR sponsors, promotional partners, licensees as well as drivers, teams and tracks. Under the direction of vice president of strategic marketing and licensing, Steve Boguski, and managing director Dee Scott, the department researches new categories, licenses qualified companies, handles quality control, and develops retail partnerships in an effort to drive sales of NASCAR-licensed product. NASCAR supports its line of licensed products through an integrated marketing strategy including annual trade advertising, a comprehensive retail guide, trade show exhibits, a quarterly newsletter and a dedicated web presence on NASCAR.com.
ABOUT SIERRA
Sierra Entertainment, Inc. http://www.sierra.com, a studio of Vivendi Universal Publishing and part of its Games division, is one of the original developers and largest worldwide publishers of interactive entertainment and productivity software. Sierra is renowned for releasing critically acclaimed and award winning titles that represent a wide variety of computer entertainment on both next generation console and PC platforms.
ABOUT VIVENDI UNIVERSAL PUBLISHING
Vivendi Universal Publishing (VU Publishing), the publishing division of the world's second largest communications group (Vivendi Universal), is an international leader in multi-platform publishing and content distribution. As one of the top three players in the global publishing market and the only publisher with an international reach, the Company's key content areas include literature, reference, education, games and consumer press. VU Publishing publishes content in four major languages, including English, French, Spanish and Portuguese, and has strong local publishing brands, including Anaya, Atica, Houghton Mifflin, Knowledge Adventure, Larousse, Nathan and Scipione. In the games category, VU Publishing is a leading publisher of online, PC and console-based games. Its studios include Blizzard Entertainment, Sierra Entertainment, Inc. and Universal Interactive.