Nascar Racing 3 - Additional N2/NR99/Icr2 tracks FAQ Version 0.1beta first release.

This will give you the chance to race any Nascar Racing 2, Nascar Racing 2 : BGN Add-on pack, Nascar Racing 99, Nascar Racing 2 (50th Anniversary edition), and finally Indy Car Racing 2 /CART Racing. All those titles are by Papyrus.

In no way this is done to promote illegal piracy of Papyrus-copyrighted files. I would hope that everybody that uses this also has legally the titles above. Finally, please note that if this doesn't work for you it is possible, I did this from a simple test on my PC configuration and nothing is official yet. It's normal it might not work, later FAQ's will be much more complete.

ALWAYS make backup of your files, in case it goes wrong.

1. What is this FAQ for?

So you want to race Pocono in N3 ? Your ashamed at NASCAR for pulling out North Wilkesboro out of the calendar ? Well here is a step-by-step intruction on how to convert those tracks. It's actually more easy than you think! Tools that you should get:

• Pack.exe and unpack.exe (included in many Papyrus utilities and websites).
• David's Noonan N2/NR99 <--> ICR2 Converter. Buy it, the shareware version only gives you a limited choice of track.
• Upcoming Old Engine <--> GPL Converter 2.0

2. What are those tracks?

Here is a list of tracks you can convert to Nascar Racing 3.

2.1 Nascar Racing 2 + BGN Track Pack:

• Atlanta
• Bristol
• Bull Run
• California
• Charlotte
• Darlington
• Dover
• Gateway
• Hickory
• IRP
• Milwaukee
• Martinsville
• Myrtle Beach
• Nashville
• Nazareth
• Bristol Nigh
• Charlotte Night
• Richmond Night
• Loudon
• Phoenix
• Pocono
• Red Rock
• Richmond
• Rockingham
• South Boston
• Sears Point
• Talladega
• Texas
• Watkins Glen
• North Wilkesboro

2.2 IndyCar Racing 1/2:

• Australia
• Cleveland
• Detroit
• Elkhart Lake
• Indianapolis
• Laguna Seca
• Long Beach
• Michigan
• Midohio
• Milwaukee
• Nazareth
• Loudon
• Phoenix
• Portland
• Toronto
• Vancouver

2.3 Nascar Racing 1999 Edition:

• Atlanta
• Bristol
• California
• Charlotte
• Darlington
• Dover
• Evergreen
• Flemington
• Gateway
• Heartland Topeka
• Hickory
• i70
• IRP
• Las Vegas
• Louisville
• Memphis
• Mesa Marin
• Michigan
• Milwaukee
• Martinsville
• Myrtle Beach
• Nashville
• Nazareth
• Bristol Night
• Charlotte Night
• Richmond Night
• Loudon
• Phoenix
• Pike's Peak
• Portland
• Rockingham
• South Boston
• Sears Point
• Talladega
• Texas
• Watkins Glen

2.4 Grand Prix Legends:

(please note that not all tracks are available yet)

• Brands Hatch
• Dubai
• Watkins Glen
• Kyalami
• Mexico
• Monaco
• Monza
• Mosport
• Nurburgring
• Rouen
• Silverstone
• Spa
• Zandvoort

2.5 Please note that user-created tracks may work, but I haven't tested them unfortunately. You may try at your own risk. If there is any other original-Papyrus track I omited, I will feel free to update this FAQ.

I did not include any Nascar Racing 1 track because I did not made any test with it. Maybe in a future version of this FAQ I will. And yes I ommited the Daytona International Speedway from Papyrus on purpose.

3. So how we convert those tracks?

3.1 This will be a little more complicated. As you may have seen in the list above, many tracks appear in different version of Papyrus racing simulations. Somehow this FAQ was also made so that everybody can be racing with the same tracks. Mixing somebody using the NR99 Charlotte with the N2 Charlotte and N3 Charlotte could create some very odd situation, such as reboot, some players being faster than the others (because of the slight track accuracy modification from a title to another).

I do not see any server checksum for the .dat file in Nascar Racing 3 like we had on the NROS, but this is another issue that I won't get into. This FAQ is in no-way pushing people to cheat or try to cheat. In fact it's the opposite, It is here to make a consortium between all N3 users. This way nobody will get mixed up. Here is a list of tracks that are duplicated in titles:

3.1a Nascar Racing 2 + BGN Track Pack:

• Atlanta
• Bristol
• California
• Charlotte
• Darlington
• Dover
• Gateway
• Hickory
• IRP
• Milwaukee
• Martinsville
• Myrtle Beach
• Nashville
• Nazareth
• Bristol Nigh
• Charlotte Night
• Richmond Night
• Loudon
• Phoenix
• Richmond
• Rockingham
• South Boston
• Sears Point
• Talladega
• Texas
• Watkins Glen

3.1b IndyCar Racing 2 / CART Racing:

• Indianapolis
• Michigan
• Milwaukee
• Nazareth
• Loudon
• Phoenix
• Portland

3.1c Nascar Racing 1999 Edition:

• Atlanta
• Bristol
• California
• Charlotte
• Darlington
• Dover
• Gateway
• Hickory
• IRP
• Las Vegas
• Memphis
• Michigan
• Milwaukee
• Martinsville
• Myrtle Beach
• Nashville
• Nazareth
• Bristol Night
• Charlotte Night
• Richmond Night
• Loudon
• Phoenix
• Pike's Peak
• Portland
• Rockingham
• South Boston
• Sears Point
• Talladega
• Texas
• Watkins Glen

3.1d Notice:

If one of your track you want to convert is in that list, please read the whole FAQ before converting, especially the 3.2.1 point. 3.2 Indy Car Racing 2 / CART Racing tracks.

You will need to load the ICR2 <--> N2 converter and convert the ICR2 track you want into Nascar Racing 2 or Nascar Racing 99 Edition. Another time I suggest you really go buy the converter from David Noonan, it is a great utility. After this here are the steps. Copy the now N2/NR99 converted track (found in Nascar2(99)/tracks) into your Nascar3/tracks/ directory. Please note that will only works for tracks that have a different name than a N3 track.

DO NOT overwrite any file. We will discuss this issue a little later. Now you will need to edit a file called all.cal in your main Nascar3 directory. I suggest you open it with Notepad. This file is what we call in Papyrus-jargon the "Calendar file". It list all the tracks you have in your N3 folder. You need to add the tracks you want so that N3 can see them. If per example you now convert the Elkhart track in N3 ; Here is what the line should look like:

31 1 31 0 0 ELKHART Race31 Race31 200 event1.tga biglogo1.tga

One-by-one those settings mean:

• 31 = The track list. Each time you will need to add them in numerical order. I do not know if there is a limit of tracks in N3, but there is probably one. I will modify this for a future version of this FAQ.
• 1 = The month of the race.
• 31 = The date of the race.
• 0 = Hmm I forgot that one, leave it to 0.
• 1 = Means it's a Night tracks (Charlotte, Richmond, Bristol).
• ELKHART = This is the name of the track folder. Always write it in CAPS.
• Race31 = Another time you will have to add this in numerical orde.r
• Race31 = Same as above.
• 200 = The number of laps a 100% Race at that track should have.
• event1.tga = Those are only if you want to add a track logo on the main track list menu. It is not nessecary to have those files in your track folder.
• biglogo.tga = Same as above, but this is the track race Logo (ex: Bud at the Glen)

Note that at the end of your all.cal you should always have this:

32 12 99 0 0 XXXXXXXX

It should always be left that way, except that you add the first number in numerical order (that would mean I have 31 Nascar3 tracks). Open the track.txt in your N3 folder now.

You will have to add the new lines that N3 has. Im not sure yet of all the meaning of them.

SUN 270 80 Add this after the RAIN line. I would speculate that it's the sun position on the track in degrees to set the dynamic shadows and specular hightlights.

BLAPT 55000 This is probably a temporary setting. It's made to set-up the Trucks to run a specific power at that track, so it was placed there in case N3 will have a truck add-on possibily. Just add the line after the BLAP and put the same number in both lines.

RELST 102 Another truck setting, after the RELS line. Another time, put the same number than the RELS line for the moment.

TIRET 62985 5200 80500000 62985 3500 85000000 0

Yet another truck setting, after the TIRES line. It's made to set the grip of the trucks at that specific line. Add the one from the TIRES line, not needed but nessecary. Save and quit. That's all you need. Load Nascar 3, go in the track list menu and you should see the track at the bottom of the list. Happy now?

3.2.1 Now let's go into the complicated thing. We will have to face multiple tracks in multiple shape and configuration. Per example there is Michigan in every Papyrus title. So how will we make this all work? It will be simple, and a little complicated at the same time. But don't worry, be happy :)

The easy way and the most intelligent will be to create a prefix to the duplicate tracks. This way you will be able to tell (from racing offline and also in multiplayer) that the tracks is not a N3 original track, and that also what version it is from. Prefix will be kept simple, since you can't have more than 8letters for each track:

• N1xxxxxx will mean it's a Nascar Racing 1 track.
• N2xxxxxx will mean it's a Nascar Racing 2/BGN add-on track.
• N9xxxxxx will mean it's from Nascar Racing 1999 Edition
• Icxxxxxx will mean it's from IndyCar Racing 2 /CART Racing (the IMS from Icr1 also)
• The only track in Grand Prix Legends that could cause a problem is Watkins Glen, but David Noonan has made that track for N2/NR99 and it's under "THEGLEN" track name, so we will keep it that way.

The tracks that have a possible duplicate name in Icr2 are Indianapolis, Michigan, Milwaukee, Nazareth, Phoenix, Portland and Loudon. Those tracks will be renamed as:

• ICINDY
• ICMICHIG
• ICMILWAU
• ICNAZARE
• ICLOUDON
• ICPHOEN
• ICPORTLA

3.2.1.b So how will we rename those tracks?

It involves some Dos editing. I would say that somebody maybe will automate this action, but Im only a thinker not a creator, sorry for that!. You will have to change the name in many places. They are:

3.2.2 The folder name. Pretty easy, just right-click on the folder and rename it.

3.2.3 The track.txt. This is easy also, rename the track.txt to the appropriate name for the track list above.

3.2.4 The track.dat file. This also is easy, rename the track to the appropriate name.

3.2.5 The files inside the newly-named track.dat. This is the only complicated part. You will need the pack and unpack tools. First of all, unpack the track in an temporary directory.

Open a DOS window and type "Edit". Go in file/open and browse to the temporary directory where the files are now unpacked. Open the file called [trackname].pck Let's say this is the Michigan track from Icr2. So you open the michigan.pck Inside it you will see many files. Only rename the michigan.* list to the new name (here ICMICHIG).

They should be Michigan.dat (depends if you renamed it before or after this), michigan.scr, michigan.cam, michigan.trk, michigan.3do and michigan.pcx . Save the file, and exit the program. After go back to your temporary file directory and name those same files to the new name (.scr, .dat, .cam, .trk, .3do, .pcx).

Now pack the track file, and bingo you have a fresh .dat that is all converted now.

3.3 NASCAR Racing 2/BGN Tracks:

If your track is not a duplicate, do the steps 3.2 and skip the converter part. You simply need to copy/paste the track to N3, and change the settings in the calendar file, and txt file. If your track is a duplicate go the 3.2.1.B point and start from this. But here are the names the track should be set to if it's a duplicate:

• N2ATLANT
• N2BRISTO
• N2CALIFO
• N2CHARLO
• N2DARLIN
• N2DOVER
• N2GATEW
• N2HICKOR
• N2IRP
• N2MILWAU
• N2MARTY
• N2MYRTLE
• N2NASHVI
• N2NAZARE
• N2NBRIST
• N2NCHARL
• N2NRICHM
• N2LOUDON
• N2PHOENI
• N2RICHMO
• N2ROCK
• N2SBOSTO
• N2SPOINT
• N2TALLAD
• N2TEXAS
• N2WGLEN

3.4 NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition Tracks:

Same thing applies than from the previous point. Look at the list under for the new name of the duplicate tracks:

• N9ATLANT
• N9BRISTO
• N9CALIFO
• N9CHARLO
• N9DARLIN
• N9DOVER
• N9GATEWA
• N9HICKOR
• N9IRP
• N9LASVEG
• N9MEMPH
• N9MICHIG
• N9MILWAU
• N9MARTY
• N9MYRTLE
• N9NASHVI
• N9NAZARE
• N9NBRIST
• N9NCHARL
• N9NRICHM
• N9LOUDON
• N9PHOENI
• N9PPEAK
• N9PORTLA
• N9ROCK
• N9SBOSTO
• N9SPOINT
• N9TALLAD
• N9TEXAS
• N9WGLEN

3.5 Grand Prix Legends Tracks:

The converter is not released yet. The only track you may found is from the TPTCC at theuspits.com, it's the GPL Watkins Glen track. It's simple, just continue like the previous titles (N2/NR99).

4.x Other things:

Well that's mostly all, Im sorry for the English grammitical errors if there is some, but like I said this is the first release of this FAQ, done very rapidly since N3 is now appearing in shelves near you. Took me by surprise, and I couldn't test everything I wanted. If you have any comments or suggestions, feel free to send them to yves.menard@sympatico.ca. I will try to answer technical problems, but Im clearly not the person to do that. Im about sure I won't be able to help you :(

5.1 Credits:

François Ménard

The Papyrus Design group for giving us a pretty open file architecture that makes many things possible, and who create awesome racing simulations.

The whole NROS Group that I brainstormed about a solution for this.

Jon Van Ginneken and the whole BB&B Group, which I always admired.