Motorsport Games 'NASCAR Rivals' will focus on the Next Gen cars.
When Motorsport Games announced “NASCAR Rivals,” the developer made a point to discuss the heated moments between drivers. The Nintendo Switch game’s cover also leans into this with some prominent drivers.
According to an announcement from August 23, the game’s cover will focus on some drivers that have had heated interactions on the track. Ross Chastain is front and center amid a season that has featured incidents with numerous competitors. The cover also features Team Penske’s Joey Logano, Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin, and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch.
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The decision to put Chastain in the middle of the pack is fitting. He has created numerous conversations throughout the season with his aggressive driving, and he has had multiple run-ins with Hamlin. According to Toby Christie of TobyChristie.com, Chastain has been involved in 10 incidents in the past seven races.
Chastain even spawned a new term during the 2022 season. Busch said that he had been Chastain’d after an incident at Richmond Raceway. Though the two-time champion also later cut his peer some slack after rewatching footage of their contact and said that Chastain wasn’t fully to blame given that they were three-wide.
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The Saga of Bowman & the No. 48 Team
Motorsport GamesAlex Bowman is a cover star for the ‘NASCAR Rivals’ video game.
Logano, Busch, Hamlin, and Chastain are all fitting choices for the cover of “NASCAR Rivals” considering that they have had incidents involving each other, including some that have led to fights on pit road.
Bowman, for comparison, is one of the quietest people in the NASCAR garage. He isn’t a loud personality like the rest of the men on the cover, and he generally stays out of the limelight.
Why this choice makes sense is that he has actually been the center of some fiery comments from both Hamlin and Busch. The driver of the No. 18 went on a rant about Bowman “backing into wins” after the Pennzoil 400 Presented by Jiffy Lube at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The 2021 playoff race at Martinsville Speedway also featured Bowman spinning Hamlin during the final stage before going on to win. Hamlin responded by interrupting Bowman’s burnout and then calling him a hack in his post-race interview.
These Drivers Will Play a Role in Multiple Modes
GettyJoey Logano (front) has an aggressive nature on the track.
Prior to the reveal of “NASCAR Rivals,” Motorsport Games Brand Manager Jay Pennell sat down with Heavy to discuss the Nintendo Switch game. He explained the importance of the rivalries, as well as the return of some in-game content.
One factor that he discussed was the impact that driving style will play on other competitors. He noted that certain drivers will respond to how they are raced on a weekly basis. For example, constantly bumping Busch during short track races could lead to future incidents.
How will this affect battles with Logano? He already has a reputation as one of NASCAR’s most difficult drivers to pass, to the point that Bubba Wallace called him the modern-day Ryan Newman. Will this translate to “NASCAR Rivals” and its various tracks? More importantly, will Logano become even harder to pass based on player choices?
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