CHICAGO / 7.8.05-7.9.05 - The gaming media got their first, hands-on look at NASCAR® 06: Total Team Control out at the Chicagoland Speedway with EA SPORTS™. As the Community Manager of NASCAR®, I got to attend the event as well! Below is a recap for all you NASCAR fans to enjoy.
Day 1 - 7.8.05: I joined the rest of the EA SPORTS NASCAR 06 team out in Chicago early in the morning. After enjoying a nice breakfast from the hotel buffet, we charged out to the Chicagoland Speedway which was in Joliet, about an hour west from where we were staying. The media folks and a couple more members of the EA SPORTS team would be meeting us out there later that morning.
We arrived at the track and checked-in at the NASCAR credentials trailer to pick-up our garage and pit passes -- our access to several restricted areas of the track, including the pits, garage and other locations within the infield. With our ?VIP? (at least that?s what it felt like) passes in hand, we headed over to the drivers RV compound where EA SPORTS had arranged a very cool RV to show-off the first look of NASCAR 06.
After getting the demo equipment set-up, the gaming media came in to check out what they had been waiting for. The NASCAR 06 team quickly jumped into action, giving the media a thorough demo of the game, calling out some of the exciting new features which include: being a part of and creating your own racing team, the interactive crew chief that lets you communicate with your teammates for blocks and drafts, and dynamic car swapping which allows you to take control of your teammates' cars.
As they were wrapping up with the demo, there was a knock on the RV door. Standing on the other side was none other than the 2004 Busch Series Champion, Martin Truex Jr.! He is not only a great driver, he?s an avid gamer and fan of the EA SPORTS NASCAR series and Battlefield 2™. As Truex was getting a feel for NASCAR 06, we were joined by another well-known driver and avid gamer, Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Earnhardt and Truex immediately jumped into a game of NASCAR 06: Total Team Control for some split-screen, head-to-head racing. Though the action was fast and the racing was tight, Truex pulled-out the win by less than a second at the finish line -- maybe Earnhardt can find Truex for a rematch online once the game comes out. Earnhardt may have lost his race against Truex in NASCAR 06: Total Team Control, but he went on to win Sunday's NEXTEL® Cup race? the one that really mattered! Who knows, maybe his test spin with NASCAR 06 is what helped him clench the win.
After their race in NASCAR 06, Earnhardt and Truex took some time to answer questions from the media, as well as from some of us at EA SPORTS. Both drivers went into detail with their responses, even recollecting a race last year at Talladega in which they used a tactic they had picked-up while playing a NASCAR video game. As cool as it would have been for them to stay and hang out, Earnhardt and Truex headed out to practice and then on to qualify for their respective races. The media then got some more time with the game as well as interviews with members of the EA SPORTS team who work directly with the product.
When we finished with gameplay, we got to take a quick tour of the garage and pits at the track. After a long day, it was finally time to head back to the hotel, grab some dinner, and get some shut-eye. Be sure to out the Day 2 recap of my trip to Chicagoland Speedway for the first hands-on media event with NASCAR !
Chicago Day 2 Diary >>
