Well it's been some time since I previewed Hasbro’s upcoming NASCAR HEAT and Ed Martin nicely took time out of his busy schedule (Hey, the game is about to be released!) to answer some questions about NASCAR Heat.

Shall we begin?

BHMS: Since NASCAR Heat is Hasbro Interactive's first NASCAR racing simulation, are there plans to continue or venture onto other types of racing simulation venues? For example: CART, IRL, USAC, Legends (added for Jacob Butner and others), etc.

ED: Well, we already have F1 (GP3) and NASCAR (NASCAR Heat), so we've got the 2 biggest in the world covered. As to where we go from there, to be honest, we're not sure. We've talked a lot about other stuff, but no definite plans yet.

BHMS: Speaking of the future of NASCAR Heat, are there plans for another version? If so, what would be the approximate month for its release?

ED: Lot of plans for the NASCAR Heat series. We're doing the PC & PlayStation versions this year. We've already announced that we're working on the PlayStation 2 version for early next year. Beyond that, I think you'll see us roll out onto other platforms as well as rev the platforms we've already done. How often will we rev existing platforms, you ask? Well, I can tell you that we don't have it stuck in our heads that we need to release a new one every time a calendar page flips to a new year. We're much more focused on revving it when we've got something compelling to put in the box - a lot more than the same game with updated cart art.

BHMS: Experiencing something new in a racing simulation has been a long time coming, how did the inception of the NASCAR Heat's "Beat the Heat" come about? Since we are speaking about new added areas in racing simulations, what other feature besides “Beat the Heat” would you like to see hit the market that's fresh and different than all the NASCAR games out there?

ED: Beat the Heat sort of came about from a lot of different directions. We started talking about the "highlight reel" stuff you see on ESPN - the most exciting moments of that day's race. That naturally evolved into the "greatest moments in racing" discussion. At the same time, we looked at our Atari game play patterns - multiple levels of increasing difficulty are incredibly addicting and fun. Then, of course, GT had their licensing which was always a favorite of mine. Finally, we were intent in bringing the personalities of NASCAR into this game in ways and to degrees that had never been done before. Towards the end of last year, what is now "Beat the Heat" was actually 2 different features of the game. We had a big NASCAR Heat development summit meeting at Hasbro with all of the developers in December of last year and spent a lot of time on those features. Out of that meeting came “Beat the Heat”.

BHMS: If you were given unlimited resources and free creative liberties for project (racing sim), what you do?

ED: I guess it's too easy to say NASCAR Heat, right? :-) Seriously, though, we've had incredibly free reign for NASCAR Heat - Hasbro has really been behind this in a very big way. That's been great & it's allowed us to create something awesome. But what more would I like? Well, given my background, you know that I have more than a passing interest in online racing. We did it 5 years ago with Hawaii & NROS. It was ahead of its time, though. Now as Internet economics & technology have evolved, it starts to become more realistic. To me, that's the holy grail. It is to Hasbro, too. We're launching Games.com soon, which is our online entertainment/gaming site. It's a massive endeavor, and we see Sports as a big part of that.

BHMS: What's the most important aspect of coding for sim racing? Is it the accurate physics, multiplayer capability, graphics, frame rate.. etc?

ED: That question has a different answer for just about everyone you ask. That's what makes our job so tough. I mean, just read through the newsgroups here on bhmotorsports, some people scream multiplayer, others say AI, some claim physics, others want eye-candy. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder"... so is relative importance! :-) That said, as Hasbro is coming out with our first NASCAR racing game, we really need to stake out our territory & make a statement. You know, like, "THIS IS NASCAR HEAT!". And from there, you evolve. So, we focused on what makes our product different & special. It makes no sense to do exactly what Papyrus or EA have done in the past - then you're just another box on the shelf against entrenched competition.

BHMS: What do you see in the future for sim racing?

ED: I think the future is incredibly bright, but it's going to need to expand and evolve and the community needs to realize and accept that. As technology allows us to make things more & more real, that also means that we are able to make things more & more difficult for the potential new user. So, instead of expanding the audience, you can very quickly contract it & you will kill the whole thing. With NASCAR Heat, yes, we've got a kick-butt simulation - aka Expert Mode. But, we front-ended that with our Normal Mode. The idea there is to put something out there that a more casual NASCAR fan can try, have some success with, and have some fun with. Then as they progress through, they get better, and eventually evolve up to the sim levels that y'all are at. Remember, Normal Mode dynamically adjusts to the user so they are always challenged & "pushed". So to me, Normal & Expert Modes aren't really 2 distinct "sides" of NASCAR Heat, they're more of an evolution or a journey. Start at whatever skill level you bring to the table, and the game will adjust to you and you'll have a ton of fun. And you'll always be challenged, no matter what skill level you're at. I just hope people realize that the genre needs to expand, and they don't blow off a game like NASCAR Heat because we put stuff in there to appeal to a broader audience as well as the simulation fans.

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