“Simply Elite”- Nostalgia Washes Over Racing Fans as Footage of NASCAR Thunder 2004 Videogame Resurfaces

For many video game enthusiasts, the early 2000s comprised hours and hours playing sports video games by EA Sports. Back then, EA hit it out of the park with their innovation in all kinds of sports video games. Soccer, NBA, football, hockey, and even NASCAR games were all the craze back then. A common consensus among NASCAR game enthusiasts is that there is yet to be a game as good as the ones that came out in the early 2000s. One of the most popular ones of the time was NASCAR Thunder 2004 with Tony Stewart on the cover.

Any mention of the game online these days draws a lot of attention from fans these days. And for good reason. NASCAR Thunder 2004 was unlike any sports game that had come out at the time. Fans have been hoping for something that grips them like that one did, but hardly anything has made as much of an impact as Thunder.

Unique feature in 2004 NASCAR game left gamers’ jaws dropped

NASCAR Thunder 2004 had several features that were top class. But one new feature that had come out was the Grudges and Alliances feature. In real life, there are rivalries between drivers, and that is what EA Sports successfully recreated in the game. If a player bumps into another car, even unintentionally, that driver would become a ‘rival’ who would do the same if they came together on track again during the races.

If a player drafts a rival driver or lets them through, the grudge level drops. If the same is done to a neutral driver for long enough, they become an ‘Ally’ who would let the player through or draft them when near. The feature sounds simple enough today, but back then, it was a huge deal to get it to work properly. EA Sports majorly succeeded in getting that right.

There also were several game modes in NASCAR Thunder 2004 like Career Mode, Season Mode, SpeedZone, Lightning Challenge, and several others. These aspects of the game made it such a massive fan favorite. A recent video was posted on X by a page called NASCAR Memes showcasing the gameplay and it sent fans back to the good ol’ days.

Several fans flocked to the comments section to share their love for the EA Sports product. It truly was a coming-together moment for the NASCAR community, a lot of who grew up in the 2000s playing this particular game to no end.

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Fans shower their love on iconic video game released 20 years ago

Over 20 years after its release, NASCAR Thunder 2004 invokes emotions that perhaps no other NASCAR game has been able to invoke even today. One fan made their opinion about the game quite clear as they commented, “This game was simply elite.” Another user called it the GOAT of all video games ever made. “Greatest video game of all time,” they commented.

Fans who grew up in the 2000s shared their memories and stories of playing the game. One user commented, “Man, so many nostalgic feels… still love to hop on my PS2 or the emulator on my PC and play this some. This was NASCAR gaming peak fr.”

“Oh man NASCAR Thunder 2004 it gotten me speechless & yet I gotten this video games for Christmas present in 2003 on Xbox. Don’t give me wrong folks I been loving this NASCAR video games ever since 1998,” quipped another.

Another fan acknowledged that there hasn’t been a better NASCAR game than Thunder 2004 even today. However, they are hopeful of iRacing coming up with something equally good or even better in the near future. “20 years later, there hasn’t been a NASCAR video game close to this in terms of quality.Hopefully iRacing can change that,” they wrote.

What are some of your best memories of sitting in front of the screen immersed in the brilliant game? Let us know in the comments below.

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