3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball

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3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball
North American box art
DeveloperDynamix
PublisherSierra Attractions
Series3-D Ultra Pinball
PlatformsWindows, Mac OS
ReleaseDecember 1, 1998[1]
GenrePinball
ModesSingle-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]

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
Review scores
PublicationScore
Computer Gaming World3/5[7]
IGN3/10[8]
PC Gamer (US)65/100
Gamezilla!79%[5]
Happy Puppy5/10[9]

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. Brence, Corwin (November 28, 2011). "Hardcore Gaming 101: 3-D Ultra Pinball". www.hardcoregaming101.net. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  4. "3-D Ultra Pinball: Turbo Racing Manual".
  5. Houghton, Suzanne (April 21, 1999). "GameZilla Review of 3-D Ultra NASCAR Pinball". Archived from the original on 2001-02-12.
  6. 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. "3D Ultra NASCAR Pinball". IGN. 1999-01-28. Retrieved 2025-12-10.
  9. 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.