Activision Announces NASCAR Unleashed

There was a three year gap in between the release of NASCAR 09 and NASCAR The Game 2011 due to various issues, including a change of publisher from EA to Activision. The latter doesn't want to make the mistake of leaving it too long before the next NASCAR game, so they have now announced that the next game in the franchise, NASCAR Unleashed, is in development.

NASCAR Unleashed will not just restrict players to the usual racing circuits of the Sprint Cup - the arcade style racer will allow players to head out onto the streets surrounding their usual confines. Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt, Jr, Jeff Gordon, and Joey Logano are just some of the 15 Sprint Cup series drivers that will allow players to get behind the wheel of their car and take to the NASCAR circuits. Once racing on one of these tracks, such as the Daytona International Speedway®, Chicagoland Speedway®, Homestead-Miami SpeedwaySM, Martinsville Speedway® or Talladega Superspeedway®, players can choose to break out onto the surrounding pavements, beaches and off-roads of the circuits' city locations for a "completely unchained stock car experience".

Unlike the strict rules of its predecessors, the gameplay in this new instalment has no limits, and the physics rules are lax in an attempt to make the game more of a pick-up-and-play affair. Players are encouraged to bump and grind their opponents out of the way so that they can take their position at the front of the pack. Drafting and sling-shotting will earn 'Boost' power-ups so that players can increase their speed even further. The Heads-Up-Display will show race position, current speed, achievements and unlocks in an easy-to-read arcade style that will suit young gamers too.








Blake Davidson, vice president of licensing & consumer products at NASCAR and board member of NASCAR Team Properties, explains the change of direction for the franchise:

NASCAR Unleashed is a wild and imaginative experience with few real world boundaries. By integrating NASCAR into a high octane, blindingly fast, home racing experience, we can deliver an entirely unique style of racing that will captivate players and help introduce our sport to new fans.NASCAR Unleashed is due to be released this Fall.