Features

• Cockpit design alike actual car models
• Original FIA GT Series cars and courses
• Real racing teams featuring more than 70 racecars, including the Porsche 996, Viper GTS-R, BMW Z3 M, and Ferrari 550 Maranello
• Car physics based on actual racecar telemetry data
• Sounds recorded from actual racecars

Reviews (3)

Best racing sim on the market
This is, without doubt, the best racing sim on the market. Models are outstanding, physics are tops, sounds are awesome, support is excellent, and the 3 new add-ons are definitely meant for the American market: the creators of GTR have already added 3 ovals to satisfy left-turn-itis... You have 3 levels of difficuly: Arcade, Semi-pro, and Simulation. Simulation is very difficult, while Arcade is quite easy. Lots of cars, lots of tracks, lots of options. Have fun!!

drivers heaven !
this is the best experience i have ever made in racing game !
forget about gran tourismo 4. i am now on the game since 1 week and playing it nearly 12 hours a day. my opinion now, this is the most realistic and hardcore game of all categories...

and i love the porsche`s in it... :-)

GTR FIA GT Racing Game PC
If you have any interest in racing games, and you own a PC, then this is the game for you. Two words: Incredibly Detailed. You can customize nearly every aspect of the game.For example, want to drive in the cockpit view but can't see over the dashboard? No problem - use the hotkeys to adjust the drivers seat. You can even tell the game to add driver head movement so you can actually look through a turn the way real drivers do.You can adjust every part of the car to make it handle exactly how you want it to handle.
The graphics are fantastic.You can adjust so many graphic settings that it should run on most computers.The car detials are exact, though most of the race car sponsors are unfamiliar to me.The cars have different paint schemes and customizations.Even the cockpits are exact replicas of the real sports cars.
The gameplay is near perfect.That is, you can modify the game to make it as hard as you want it to be.The cars all exhibit real physics with down forces and tire wear just to name a few.The game gives you three modes to play, from Arcade mode to Simulation.Remember, this game is designed as a simulator, so the game has a steep learning curve.I recommend a good two analog stick game pad to get the most out the game. And practice changing the setting to make the game comfortable to play.
Overall, the game is fun and deep, with excellent graphics and sound.What more could you want in your race car driving simulation?

---Update: For a game with so many settings, you can't adjust the number of laps in the arcade mode.Seems like they should have added that.Also, the game is very hard.I have spent most of my time playing in Arcade mode.Just be prepared to practice, ... Read more

Product Description

You may have seen it on the World Poker Tour, you may have seen it on Celebrity Poker, and you may have seen it on ESPN, now experience it for yourself! Play tournaments true to actual poker tournaments with a modern interface. It comes with nine predefined tournaments including Poker Night, Card Room and the 2003 and 2004 World Championships, or create your own tournaments. ... Read more

Features

• Whether you are playing in poker tournaments during your local poker night, at a nearby card room, in Las Vegas or preparing for the grand-daddy of them all, the World Series of Poker, Donohoe Digital Poker is for you!
• No other poker software lets you practice your tournament skills and experience what the pro's do as well as manage your local poker night no-limit holdem tournaments. Donohoe Digital Poker is easy to use, has beautiful graphics and features an advanced learning AI.
• Unlike online casinos where you have to risk real money or use "play money" tables where the opponents don't necessarily act rationally, Donohoe Digital Poker lets you hone your skills against computer opponents who behave as if there is something at stake. This doesn't mean they are completely predictable or incapable of bluffing. However, they will give you better practice than the play money tables.

Reviews (35)

Save your money
I was so excited when I bought this and so totally disappointed!!! There are many on-line sites where you can practice playing poker for free against real people. Anyone of them is more entertaining and a better learning experience than wasting time with this. The graphics are on a par with playing "pong" on your TV in the seventies.

Totally realistic poker software
This is an excellent holdem game - it is really the only one that simulates what real tournaments are like - from the blinds, to the chip races, to allowing you to customize tournaments to your liking. Unlike hoyle or pokerstars, it has a strong AI. Other people have commented on how hard it is to hit a straight or flush, but that is real poker. The odds are that 9 other players you play against will get better cards more often than just you. Plus, version 2 is coming out soon and that promises to have online play and more! A truly great game.

Reviewed by y'all way to high!
This game is marginally better than that Hoyle Casino joke, but it has no resemblance to a real game. The AI is OK, but there are WAY too many great hands, that seem to ALWAYS beat you on the river card. I've played hundreds of hands, and when I cheat to see what all the community cards are I end up missing my straight, only if I fold first. I NEVER hit it when I'm digging for it!!! EVER!!! Can't tell you how many times I've been sunk by a boat when I do hit my flush. Hole cards are awful for my hand, but every one around me is getting AA, KK, OO, JJ, AK. I think this game is poor, and only gave it 2 stars because Hoyle's was my only comparison, and it's palin awful!

Helps a lot for beginners but AI makes big mistakes too..
Overall, it isnt a bad game. The AI opponents do often call allins with nothing.Also odd is how occasionally a whole table will call ur allin's during a tourney!
The odds regarding starting hands-ie Ak beats A6 normally, is fairly good. If you want to learn holdem (only NL in this game) this really helps but it wont help good players much.
It's surely worth 20 bucks simply b/c of the fun factor.

A disappointment
I bought this and played in several of the 40-player tournaments, winning one of them and finishing second in another.The program does a good job of making the experience fun and easy, and there are some nice features that you can turn on or off as you see fit, including what they call the "cheat mode," which lets you look at the cards of uncalled hands and see community cards not dealt when nobody calls.When there is a showdown after somebody has gone all-in the probability of winning the pot for each hand is given as it is on TV.You can speed up play or slow it down, and you have the option of jumping to the end of the hand after you fold--an option that one soon chooses and stays with!

There are three levels of difficulty, although I didn't play long enough to get a real feel for the differences.I did notice a rather annoying and ultimately totally off-putting bug (or perhaps, in the spirit of some programming traditions, maybe this is a "feature" that helps the neophyte player win).Quite simply some of the computer players called with hands that could not beat the board!

Now it is true that there are times when it is correct to call with a hand that cannot beat the board.These are very rare however and typically occur when there is a straight on board.Everybody has that straight (at least), and if it is the best hand, the players left at the showdown split the pot.Clearly if the board is AKQJT, with no more than two cards of any suit, it is the nut hand and no matter what the bet is you have to call and split the pot.However, in this program some computer players were calling with hands that made no pairs, no flushes, no straights and were undercards to the board.For example, one board was something like A89TQ of three different suits.One of the computer players called with something like 64.As any hold'em player knows that call makes no sense.It is just throwing money away.

This discovery really turned me off the program because even at the most elementary level of play, real players do not make such suicidal calls.

The package also claims that "Computer opponents learn and adapt to your style of play."What this statement should mean is that the program does things like fold a lot when it notices that you don't bluff much or call a lot or raise if it records a lot of bluffs from you.This "learn mode" is what makes poker-playing 'bots very difficult to beat, and would be an essential part of any program that presumed to be able to beat sophisticated human players.My problem with their learn mode is that I didn't see any evidence of it!

I would like to note in passing that some years ago Mike Caro, the self-styled "Mad Genius of Poker," developed a poker engine that was able to beat some very good human players.However, I am not aware of a program that can play at the highest levels of the game, a program that could beat a table of world champions, for example, a program comparable to chess-playing programs that can beat grand masters.Maybe such a program exists and I am not aware of it.My guess is that such a program is possible, but very difficult to write.

Anyway, I would not recommend this program and I am sorry that I bought it. ... Read more

Product Description

FLIGHT SIM 2004 CENT/FIT WIN32 EN DVD BOX CD ... Read more

Features

• Dynamic weather system based on realistic atmospheric physics, with true three-dimensional clouds that form and dissipate, and automatic real-world weather updates when you're connected to the Internet.
• Weather "themes" that generate a wide variety of stunningand challengingflying conditions with just a few clicks of a mouse
• Enhanced interactive air traffic control (ATC), including traffic at all airports around the world (including non-towered airports), altitude changes en route, pop-up IFR clearances, and precision and non-precision approaches to multiple runways
• Interactive 3D "virtual" cockpitstune radios and operate key aircraft controls and avionics by pointing and clicking in the virtual cockpit view.
• Scenery improvements, including taxiway and runway signs, enhanced auto-gen 3D objects, more high-detail airports, and improved lighting and sky effects

Reviews (101)

The best FS till date!
I've had MSFS2004 for the last 3 months and there's not a single day that I haven't played it. Its just that absorbing! Some reasons for this are much improved GPS navigation, more interactive ATC and ofcourse, the new airplanes.

But I'm not a huge fan of classic aircraft, and I fly my favourite plane, the 737, all the time and it is an absolute joy to fly it on MSFS2004 with the new GPS system. Its accurate to the T for precision landings. The detail paid to accuracy is mindblowing, specially runways and airport layouts. I live in a relatively smaller city of India and I was stunned to find that the airport layout is almost exactly the same as the real one here!

I do face some problems with the game, mainly with screen resolution which flickers when I have the game on high or ultra-high display settings. Also, external scenery transition isn't smooth with high display settings. Microsoft could also have done a better job with the aircraft paint jobs - the orange scheme of Soar Airlines is disgusting.

PROS:

- New additions like GPS and interactive ATC are excellent
- Airports are accurately detailed (there are almost 25,000 of them!)
- Good value for money

CONS:

- Doesn't work smoothly with high display settings. Images are not crisp
- Cockpit graphics are substandard

TIPS:

- If you're looking for some real challenge alongwith great scenery, try flying the ILS approaches into Princess Juliana Airport in St. Maarten, Madeira in Portugal, Male in the Maldives and Osaka Kansai Airport in Japan (built on an artificial island)
- Try flying the polar route and check out the Northern Lights at night! Eg: Taipei-Anchorage, Moscow-New York etc.

Also, I have a question which I hope readers can help me with. I'm unable to turn the aircraft left or right while on pushback. I've tried using the numbers 1 and 2 key as mentioned in the handbook, but it doesn't work. Can somebody help me with this? I would really appreciate the help.

Enjoy this game!

Item Good Seller NOT
I don't have a problem with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004. As expected it's good. The store that is selling this particular item is the problem!

I've seen where many customers have had good experiences when they get what they ordered from this company but those of us that didn't get what we ordered have had nothing but problems.

Don't believe the advertised Limited Edition Tin box. It isn't! When trying to contact customer service: The first time the gentleman on the phone was nice and said a manager would reply the next day. The manager didn't. After a week I called, waited on hold for 22 minutes, the lady on the phone argued with me that the manager did reply by e-mail, although my inbox showed nothing from this company other than the original purchase verification. When I asked if it could be re-sent she said no. When I asked to speak to a manager, she said he was in a meeting. Her overall tone was rude and not at all helpful!

When I finally received a return authorization number, I prepared the item for return and then wanted to make sure shipping would be reimbursed also. After e-mailing Gamestop 3 times, I finally got a reply and stated only the price of the item would be refunded. (Wow their e-mail actually reached me this time!)

This company has no customer service as demonstrated by the false advertising, the rude associates, the difficult customer-company communication, and the fact that when they advertised a product and didn't deliver it as advertised, they feel that they are the ones who shouldn't live up to their promises. The $29.99 price is higher than even Amazon because you think they are selling the Limited Edition. Don't be fooled, save $5 and buy somewhere else.

Bottom line: DON'T SUPPORT GAMESTOP OR PURCHASE FROM THEM AT YOUR OWN RISK! I know I'll never buy anything from them ever again!

best sim so far
I OWN TWO PREVIOUS VESIONS MICROSOFT FLIGHT SIMULATOR 95,98 AND NOW 2004 A CENTURY OF FLIGHT.IN MY OPINION MICROSFT HAS DONE A BETTER JOB WITH THE 2004 VERSION,MORE AIRCRAFT TO FLY A REALY GREAT FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR ROD ,IMPROVED ATC,ONE THING THOUGH LETS HOPE THAT WHEN 2006 COMES OUT(IT'S ALL HUSH HUSH AT MICROSOFT HQ)THAT THEY WILL AT LEADT ADD NEWER AIRCRAFT MY FAVORITE BIENG THE AIRBUS A321 WHICH I FLEW TO EUROPE ON,AND THE CITATION X BY CESSNA.

Good Sim, But Remember the "Sim" Part!
I have been using flight simulators since MS Flight Simulator 4.0, and have more diverse experience than only Microsoft's offering to call upon.While any simulator can be made quite realistic with the latest hardware and enough money, it is important to note that Microsoft's offering is no different - you cannot, as they say, make a silk purse out of a pig's ear.This means that if you're running an underpowered system, you will not be able to run the simulation optimally.

Published system requirements:
* Pentium 450 or greater processor
* 64 MB RAM for 98/Me, 128 MB RAM for 2000/XP
* 8 MB/3-D with DirectX 7.0 or later videocard
* 1.8 GB hard drive space

My recommendation:
* P4 2.x GHz processor; the faster, the better
* 512MB RAM, with ideally 1GB under the hood
* 128MB / 256MB AGP video card that pushes TONS of pixels - the more, the better
* At least 5GB free hard drive space - You'll want to do a full install, and that comes in just under 3GB (2.88GB, I think)

I run on:
* P4 3.0GHz processor
* 1GB RAM
* Windows XP PRO (SP1)
* 256MB 8xAGP GeForce 5700 series NVidia video card
* Sidewinder joystick (soon to go, thanks to some pedals and a yoke I ordered!)
* On-board surround sound processor

The software itself is practically infinitely extendable, with software and hardware add-ons supported.A quick look around in the flightsim community will support my assertion that the software is CHEAP compared to what can be done to augment it.Add-on packages are available to augment FS2004's admitidedly weak "ground mesh" mapping - flying through Norway's waterways and coasts with the default scenery is nothing next to the real thing, and pales in comparison to some of the add-on packages (both for photo-texturing and mesh-building) out there.But of course, these things cost money (sometimes), as does building and maintaining a system that can fully take advantage of the software.

This is a SIMULATOR, remember - a dozen years ago something like this with a set of pedals and yoke would have been a BIG deal and far out of the reach of the home consumer.Now, as the bar of admission lowers, it is important to realize just how MANY numbers are being crunched every second (most of those in graphics routines), and spec a system appropriately.It might not be a multi-million dollar prospect to own any longer, but to adaquately run the simulator and get something "real" out of it, it is certainly not unheard of to run multi-head (throwing many monitors onto a machine) for a partial panoramic view - but, of course, realism comes at its price.

Excellent tool
This verison is better than ever and a great tool for learing to fly IFR. The dynamic weather is amazing to say the least.

For fans of the other versions this is a must have. ... Read more

Features

• All the new features included in the official Steam Service Pack 1 plus Passenger Service Pack 2 so you can now transport people to and from stations and set up train "portals" to generate new trains onto your route
• The powerful but easy to use Trainz Paintshed which lets you create new paint schemes for your locos and rolling stock in minutes
• The official TRS 2004 fan pack including logos and extra content so you can add Auran approved content and graphics to your personal Trainz fan site
• A huge bonus CD containing additional Australian content including locos, rolling stock and more

Product Description

As well as the Career challenge, you'll be able to jump staight into a 4WD championship, take on a single rally or individual stage, and then take on the world in online rallies with up to 8 players.The all-new stages feature interactive scenery, so if you push too hard and hit a tree (or when, to be more accurate), you'll see it shudder from the impact and drop leaves from the branches. Collisions will also result in a dazed effect, where your vision will be blurred for a very short period ... Read more

Features

• Over 30 featured cars, from the Volkswagen Golf MK5, Toyota Celica GT-FOUR, and Alfa Romeo 147 GTA to the Lancia Stratos, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII, Peugeot 206, 205 T16 Evo2 and the distinctive VW Beetle RSi
• 4-wheel drive, 2-wheel drive 4-wheel Classics, Super 2-wheel, Rear Wheel, Distinctive and 4x4 classics
• Non-linear Career Challenge, with over 20 individual rally events and over 300 stages
• Race in 9 international locations, with 8 stages each in the UK, Sweden, the US, Finland, Australia, Spain, Greece, and Japan
• Incredible detail, as individual damage models recreate everything down to paintwork scrapes and post-crash dazed visual effect

Reviews (5)

Great Game, But The Path Getting To Play It Is Not Great
The good news is this is a great game. There are a great number of races and cars available. The physics relative to the tracks and cars are excellent. Although I have spent only about 10 hours playing this game, I can see many hours of enjoyment from the challenges and graphics it provides.

The bad news is it may take you a while to figure out how to get it to work with the computer hardware you have. It took me several hours. This is the reason I gave it a 4 rather than a 5 star rating. Before purchasing this game you can go to www.codemasters.com and download a demo. As I have not done this I am not certain how it compares to the retail game.

If you purchase this game and run into technical problems, the web site Codemasters provides does not have a menu item for technical support. You can get to a web forum with people going crazy over trying to figure out the problems they are having though. If you have problems typing the word "support" in the search box they have will get you to a form for technical support. I have no experience with what kind of response that would provide.

A summary of some of the problems I encountered are given in the text below. If you are going to be using a keyboard to play this game I would suggest skipping the rest of this message. If you are going to be using a wheel, the length of the following comments might seem to be discouraging.

On this I would say if you were to put in to words the steps it took to get into a car, start it, back it out of your driveway and point it in the direction you wanted to go, you would be surprised at the length of the description. Although there are a lot of details about getting the game to work they are not any more complicated than that.

The computer hardware I am using: 2.4ghz Intel; 1.5 gig Ram; ATI 9600XT (128 Meg), and the old (Red) Logitech Momo Racing Wheel.

For some reason the default brake/accelerator setting was set to digital rather than analog.

The default dead zone for steering is set with some play. This must be set to zero. The default zero line was slightly off center on my setup, but could be moved by turning the wheel one way or the other. Doing this would not get it centered exactly, but getting it close and hitting the down arrow worked.

A steering sensitivity set about 60 percent off the center line provided the best response for my hardware/preference.

Changes made to the wheel setting do not go into effect until you exit the game and come back. If you would like to race with the old settings before exiting to get the new ones, the program will let you do that.

Before starting a race you have to go through several menus using the left and right arrows followed by the "Enter" on the keyboard to make menu selections. During this process you might find the keyboard stops working. For me it was after selecting something other than the default car. Moving the highlight on menu selections after that point must be done by rotating the wheel left or right and back to center for each move. The handbrake rather than the enter key is used to make the selected menu item.

After going though all that you might find difficulty in steering the car. I suspect this is a problem many people have attempting to steer the car with experience from the physics used by other games or what is expected from the experience of the real thing.

The natural thing to do with a game like this is to attempt to drive very fast sliding sideways around the curves the first time you are out the gate. The first time you attempt to do this you will find the software does not adjust to the crazy stuff you are attempting to do, and it should not. While it might be very hard to do, driving very very slow for two or maybe three stages and keeping the car on the road will give you the knowledge about the software physics aiding in developing faster sideway skills you will be proud of.

Rich

Bait and Switch
The game gave me about $5.00 worth of irritation which I will vent here. After buying the game which advertises 30 something cars and 100 or more race courses, you will find that you will either have to "earn" access to the majority of these or pay another $5.00 or so to Codemasters to unlock them. My only other complaint to this otherwise terrific game is that the wheel setup is hard to figure out, but eventually by trial and error it works properly. Good software should be common sense to implement instead of guesswork. I bought a Thrustmaster FF Enzo Wheel and had to get a new driver from Thrustmaster (FFB_DRV_1_0_3) so Colin Mcrae Rally 2005 would work with the wheel. Bottom line, I wasn't too happy having to spend a few hours to get things working and have to pay extra for what is advertised in the game description. One more thing, Codemasters warns you that if you uninstall the game you will lose the extras. That would mean going online again, getting the 8 codes, paying another $5.00, and then reentering them again to unlock the game features. The work-around is to save the entire game folder AND the registry settings, and swap them back in after reinstall. You shouldn't have to go through all this to make software function properly.

Good game...
This game is challenging and fast paced. The co-driver calling out continuous verbal directions adds a whole new element compared to other visual type racing games. This game has rallies in 9 different countries with a total of 76 stages and over 30 different cars, so you can play for hours and never see the same stage. The reasons I didn't give Colin Mcrae Rally 2005 a five-star rating are: The game will not allow me to navigate the menu with anything other than the steering wheel/pedals, which didn't occur until after I configured my "wheel" for this game. This is very frustrating, since the instruction booklet only gives reference to the menu functions being controlled by the keyboard that ceases to function after configuring the "wheel", creating a trial and error button pushing malfunction-fest. This is probably a leftover of the console (game pad) to PC (no game pad) conversion. The other problem I encountered is the fact that this game has many obstacles that are deliberately placed specifically to crash you. For example, immoveable posts alongside of many roadways and also bushes that although wispy and transparent, stops the car dead while others have no effect and can be driven through. Although some may argue that this adds to the challenge, I feel that it just adds frustration. Overall, this game is very entertaining.

Best rally sim on planet
Colin McRae 2005 is without as doubt the very best rally sim ever crafted by humans.

The system specs for the PC version are printed on the box. Read them.

The XBox and PC versions are virtually identical save for the flexibility and extra resolutions on PC.

The physics model is less exacting than Richard Burns Rally but far more so than Rallisport Challenge 2, very meaty and real for the sim purist yet fast, fun and accessible for the gamer.

I simply can't reccomend this masterwork highly enough.

Not for laptops!
I have a Dell Inspiron 8500 with a 64m GeFx4200 Go card and this game is unplayable, even at the lowest settings.The keyboard and mouse controls become unresponsive, as do some of the wheel buttons.This is the response I got from the manufacturer:
>Thank you for submitting your recent request to Codemasters Customer
>Services concerning Colin McRae Rally 2005. Your query was dealt with by
>Paul.
>
>Colin McRae Rally 2005 has not been developed for, nor tested on, laptop
>computers. The reason for this is that most video and sound card companies
>sacrifice DirectX compliance for compactness and portability. Due to this,
>these manufacturers do not offer drivers that are optimized for Direct3D
>games, which means that you may have limited success in running Colin McRae
>Rally 2005 properly.
>
>The only thing we can suggest that you try is to make sure that you have the
>latest drivers for all of the laptop's hardware from the manufacturers
>website. We are, unfortunately, unable to offer any more support than this.
>
>If you need further assistance, please reply to this email and INCLUDE THIS
>LINE IN YOUR REPLY:-
>
>{|CALLID|}=00767473
>
>Or include the entire text of this email.
>
>Regards
>Codemasters Customer Services

Gamestop is not responding to my request for a return, so now I am out $20.Beware ... Read more

Features

• Expansion to Sims 4 allows god-like control over city infrastructure
• Players take complete individual control of roads, rail, air, waterways, and even vehicles
• Choose from modern European or three historical architectural eras
• Introduce new disasters into your city
• For 1 player

Reviews (25)

They will gladly take your money...again.
Since the makers of the original SimCity 4 never actually fully patched that version, they tell you to buy Rush Hour to solve the issues existing with that main version. Throwing in a few additions that could have been made available for download, you must buy this expansion in order for the game to even work with ANY future elements they may provide. Newer building tools or the rare new structure will simply not work with the stand alone version.
But the "situation" even goes much deeper than that-
Problems were not only not fixed, but were actually HIDDEN by the game designers. Observant players of the original SC4 would notice cars driving in circles or driving a highway,leaving and re-entering it at each exit! With Rush Hour, they merely lowered the amount of time automobiles would be displayed so players would think there are no problems. Very sneaky Maxis! Many gamers are none the wiser. It is truly amazing the game developers could get away with such practices... and laugh all the way to the bank.

god like powers
This is the best game since GTA. The best thing to do is name streets and roads and neighborhoods and districts. I wish you could make a ethnic neighborhood then it would be really fun. You can make suburbs like the big city can be very blue collar and crime ridden and bad schools and one suburb can be white collar with mansions and excellent schools depending on what neighborhood you pay most attention to, just one of the best games ever made.

A Must Buy... if your conscious is flexible..
This expansion is a must purchase.It's more than the features they describe, they've refined and improved just about everything is seems from the regular Sim City 4.

My issue however is that there are so many aspects that you get in the expansion that were missing without it (such as say, the ability to click a button to make a certain building historical, which you could do in previous Sim Cities), it really kind of left a bitter taste in my mouth buying this.The ORIGINAL Sim City 4 should have had many of the polished aspects of the expansion.This isn't just a ton of cool new features, this expansion makes the game complete.

Kinda clever.. sell an incomplete game, then make you buy the expansion to get the full product.So it's a must purchase, but I blow my nose at you so called "computer coders", you and all you're silly kinnigits... pbhhhhhtthhh....

Sincerely,

A Frustrated Gamer Who Knows He's Not Going To Be Sleeping Tonight Because of the Darn Game

(or just Graham will do)

A tremendous improvement
I have been waiting for Maxis to improve the transportation features, and finally they've done it!!!I can now control traffic more efficiently in my city by knowing what paths citizens take to and from work.This allows me to determine where I should place new roads, mass transit lines, stations, etc.The monorails allow you to have a much more futuristic city, only you can't build monorail lines over elevated freeways.The surface freeways and elevated trains also make city transportation systems much more realistic.If you have SC4 and don't have Rush Hour, I highly recommend that you buy it now.It is worth every cent.

All the bells, whistles, and sirens a city should have!
After purchasing SimCity 4 and hearing of the Rush Hour expansion, I didn't know what to expect--after all, I just payed $40 for the stand alone version.Yet, to my surprise, RH added a tremendous ammount of gameplay and realism that wasn't available with SimCity 4.While the U-Drive it features are alright, I am extremely impressed with the tremendous addition of ground level highways, (I wanted these for a while now) Chicago-style "el" lines, monorails, and a new slew of roadway tools.Mayors should also take note of the new building sets, greatly improved gameplay performace, and more realistic play.Rush Hour is more than a simple add-on, it's a sequel to a great game. ... Read more

Product Description

Experience the excitement of trains on your PC. Take the controls from the engineer's cab with 6,000 tons of freight behind you and exciting challenges ahead. Or relax in the passenger's seat and enjoy the unfolding scenery. Trains, routes and sounds have been recreated in explicit detail with authentic landscapes and real-world adventures. From steam, diesels and electric engines, immerse yourself in the sights, sounds and adventures of Microsoft Train Simulator

• As Real As It Gets. Real-world rail challenges based on operational events unique to each route, players can choose form a variety of challenges such as keeping to a strict passenger timetable amidst unforeseen obstacles or using helper engines to get a 50-car intermodal train over Marias Pass during a winter storm. Or you can enjoy any of the routes from a passenger viewjust sit back, let the computer control the realistic rail operations, and enjoy the sight and sounds of your journey.
  
  
• Six famous rail routes from around the world. Experience some of the world’s most breathtaking and challenging railroad scenery, covering both freight and passenger operations.
  
  
• Tools that Encourage Enthusiasts. Train Simulator is based on an open architecture and comes complete with tools that encourage enthusiasts, railroad clubs/historical societies, and third-party developers to customize and extend the product by creating new trains, routes, scenery, and challenges.

Features

• Customize your trains, create new routes and activities
• Authentically recreated trains, routes, and sounds
• 11 drivable locomotives with realistic controls and activities
• Hundreds of miles of accurately detailed routes across three continents
• Real-world train operation activities and challenges from novice to expert

Reviews (2)

A roaring ride
This is a simulation game that roars alone the train tracks rather than through the air. Unlike several flight simulation games, this one has no war games attached to it. It includes only the rail routes of six actual lines in history, from Britain's 1920s Flying Scotsman line to Tokyo's modern Odakyu Electric Rail commuter line.

Players get to see the scenic countryside and cityscapes along the tracks, also taken from the lines' real environments. The conductor's voice, train engines, trips into the train yard and locomotive controls all duplicate the real thing--as much as a computer game can.

This is terrific for kids whose parents are sick of destructive games that glorify fights, injuries and death. Kids get the sense that they can control and do something productive. It's my kind of game.

--Alyssa A. Lappen

A Bargain
I purchased Microsoft Train Simulator when it first was released (for around $40) and it is one game which will never leave my hard drive.At $9 it is a steal. ... Read more

Features

• Gameplay combines racing and platform-type elements with an insane stunt system
• Choose from authentic Hot Wheels Highway 35 cars from the special 35th anniversary collection
• Race against your opponents through a volcano, across ice mountains, and bump them off the huge loops
• Original theme song performed by the multi-platinum selling band Smashmouth
• Challenge your friends to some of the most intense head-to-head Hot Wheels racing action

Reviews (8)

5 stars for the content, 0 stars for support & specs.
The game is great, but it does not work with Pentium M processors. I installed and worked perfectly in a Windows 98 with Pentium III (desktop), also in Windows 2000 with Pentium 4 (Laptop), but in my other laptop with Windows XP and Pentium M DID NOT work. The support at THQ (1-818-880-0456) told be to return the item to the store (and hopefuly get the refund). Intel suggested me to contact the manufacturer for an updated version but there is none, and never will be. In conclusion, not good for your Pentium M processors. The software claims to work in any AMD or Intel processor with more than 600 MHZ CPU: Not true!

overall a good purchase, but could be better
pros:
1) Fantastic looking tracks and cars in awesome settings.
2) Good sound and music; intro video music worth playing just for itself.

cons:
1) It supports steering wheel, but I found steering wheel control to be more difficult than keyboard control. Perhaps it is the steering wheel that I have, but then again there is no way during setup to fine tune steering wheel control.

2) All tracks should be available without qualification. I will likely never get access to half the tracks which remain locked. If steering wheel control was better than keyboard control then I could win more races and unlock the additional tracks.

Great game. LOTS of fun for all ages!!
I just purchased this game for my sons who LOVE Hot Wheels, especially the Highway 35 series. They are crazy about this game. It's easy enough for kids to play, but with tracks that will challenge adults as well.

The previous reviewer was correct about how to solve a problem with this game. I'm running a high end machine with Windows XP, and could not initially get the game to work. However, if you are having trouble installing/running the game piece, close it down and then right-click on the game icon. Click on properties and then click on the compatibility tab on top. Choose run in compatibility mode.

I have XP and chose 98 compatibility mode and it worked fine.

Tip on installation
We don't know why, but THQ doesn't include this tip on installation issues in there little manual.If you are having trouble installing/running the game piece, close it down and then right-click on the game icon.Click on properties and then click on the compatibility tab on top.Choose run in compatibility mode ... we have XP and chose 98 compatibility mode and it worked fine.Also, using THQ's website for technical support was excellent, they responded within 24 hours via email with the correct answers to our problems.http://www.thq.com/support/

After we got the game up and running, our 5yr old was off and going with the game ... he loves it.We changed our keyboard controls to be all with the numbers pad on our keyboard.Much easier for little fingers!!

Enjoy.

Absolutely no Tech Support
I bought this game for my nephew for Xmas. My PC meets and exceeds the minimum requirements listed on the box for this game. Yet it will not intall on my sytem as it claims the Athlon cpu is not supported. The box states clearly that Athlon processors are supported.

The website www.thq.com is worthless. There is no tech support. There isn't even a forum where you can post a complaint.

This is unforgiveable. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

SimCity 3000 is back, and it's bigger than ever! Maxis pulled out all the stops for this new version of the bestselling game, adding enough new customized graphics to re-create cities from around the world. The new European and Asian building sets serve up hundreds of new buildings that match the architecture of these diverse environments. From the Great Wall to the Berlin Wall, it's in there. Of course, you can still mix and match--freedom to run a city as you choose has always been the name of this game.

No addition to the SimCity family would be complete without some new methods for destroying your creations, and SimCity 3000 Unlimited has four more devastating disasters than the old version. You can re-create the movie Armageddon by unleashing large chunks of flaming space debris, smite your populace with a buzzing swarm of locusts, destroy seaports and coastal developments with a whirlpool, or uncork some toxic clouds.

The Building Architect, formerly available as a free download, is now packed on the CD-ROM. This 3-D architectural program lets users create the buildings of their dreams, from dilapidated outhouses to towering skyscrapers to works of modern art that are intended for pure decoration. Don't worry if you don't feel like using this powerful tool to create things yourself--the game comes with dozens of new ways to make your cities unique, and you can always head to the SimCity Exchange to download imaginative add-ons created by other users. The infinite expandability and infinite replayability of this game should keep would-be mayors completely occupied until they move to the suburbs of The Sims. ... Read more

Features

• All-new Asian and European building sets with hundreds of new buildings to choose from
• 13 challenging scenarios or create your own custom, goal-based adventure
• 4 new disasters to inflict: plague of locusts, toxic cloud, space junk, and a whirlpool
• 23 new landmarks: Helsinki Cathedral, Japan's Himeji Castle, and more
• Customizable terrain with scores of new options, such as snow, rolling hills, and a desert

Reviews (124)

Very Addictive
I find this game very addictive, and considerably better than 2000. I really like the News Ticker, which gives you great advice on how to run your city. It does take up a lot of memory, though, so it's a good thing my computer has so much. I've heard that it tends to destroy your computer, so if you don't want that to happen, here's my advice: Don't take out the CD until the program is done being exited, don't install it if your computer can't handle it, and when you do take out the CD, be sure to press Ctrl, alt, and Delete and close all tasks that sound anything like "SimCity."

My only complaints are this: it makes your computer run slowly, and when locusts hit your town, the sound effects don't ever go away.

Happy playing!

Great game in its day; rather old now.
This was a great game back in its day. However, it is old and dated now. It was a vast improvement over SimCity 2000 and the original SimCity, offering larger cities and maps and improved graphics and other details.

For all the reviewers who are being so negative, look at the system requirements. This game was designed for Windows 95 and 98, not 2000 or XP. Most games like that will not run properly under 2000 or XP (if at all). For those of you with 2000 or XP, I recommend SimCity 4 (Rush Hour or Deluxe Edition) instead.

Technology marches on, and it is critical to verify that your system meets the requirements of the software programs (and understanding that old programs may no longer work on newer PCs and operating systems).

4 stars for win 98, 0 for others
Like other reviewers, I've had problems with this game on both Win 2k and Windows XP. On 2k, the game installs and loads, but stalls on the first screen. On XP, the game installs but does not load.
I originally bought this in China (legally) and thought that this may be the reason. I used to play it on a Windows 98 machine until that machine crashed, and I had to upgrade to 2k, and have not played it since.
I also contacted EA Tech Support who insisted that this game is/was designed for Windows 98. They suggested I run the compatibility wizard but this was a failure.
Why they're still selling this game escapes me. Maybe they've corrected things on later versions though.
If you can get it to run, this really is a fun game. There are plenty of improvements from Sim City 2000 that I enjoyed, especially the more logical traffic and crime patterns, and the huge increase in map size.
All in all though, don't buy this.

simy 3000
this game is a city.you build roads etc.How is it that no one likes this game anymore?duh!the next one.It is sad that this game is not enough for people anymore.it should be.

Computer Problems
Do not buy this game. I was really, really excited when I bought it, but when my dad and I tried to install it, it didn't work. It just, instead, sort-of-ruined our computer. That made me and my sister not able to buy any more Sims games, which really stinks. Do not buy this computer-breaking game! I'm hoping that this reveiw will save your computer from Sim City 3000 Unlimited's horrible software (when I say horrible software, I mean horrible software). ... Read more

Features

• Advanced 3d engine
• Tropical Map Editor
• Solo or Multiplayer Modes
• Meticulous Attention to Detail

Reviews (6)

I played it twice, then got board
I bought this game because I loved virtual skipper 1.I have not taken anywhere near the enjoyment out of this game.I have a fast computer with a gig of ram and still have performance issues with the graphics.

The thing that makes me the angriest about this game is the disk copy protection.It starts up and goes into a disk protection check.This security feature means it takes the game 5 min+ to start up.By the time that it finally starts up I have normally found something more interesting to do with my time.

Finally, I question the rules they use and the very little feedback I have gotten from penalties.I have been involved in collisions when the starboard tack boat has gotten a penalty.I don't know what is up with that.

Anyhow, I don't play this game much.I still do play virtual skipper 1.I hope this helps someone else not to feel ripped off.

Graphics are misleading, simulation is so so
This wasn't as great as the reviews lead you to believe. The games graphics bog down my 2.8Ghz processor with 512Mb, so I have to run it on low graphics settings to get a smooth game. I have played virtual sailor 2 for over a year now and it is better.

I think that this software has potentials, but wait until they clean up the main menu. Download the demo and you'll see what I mean.

Until then just stick with virtual sailor 2.
Version 3 is no big upgrade.

Even if the Demo Works on your system the program may not
Ignore the stated requirements.Ignore the fact that the demo runs fine on your computer.The program will not run if you have and intel chipset on the VC or MB.That's the story from Enlight tech support.So save your money and buy Virtual Sailor on line.

Satisfy your sailing jones year round
There is absolutely no reason for anyone that loves sailing and has a computer not to own this game. Awesome is an understatement. 4 different boats and they all have completely different sailing characteristics. The simulation of the water and waves is phenomenal. As you pick up speed, the wake gets longer. As you go up a roller, the boat slows down, down the other side and you speed up. Winds shift, current, storms it is all there. The night I downloaded the free demo I was up until 2:00 AM sailing against the machine.

When you reach the windward mark and want to raise the chute, make sure you give the crew enough time to do what needs to be done before they raise it. Similarly, at the leeward mark, if you don't call for the chute drop early enough, you won't round the mark. Sail in an opponent's lee and you will get gassed. Pinch a little, you loose a little speed, pinch a lot and you will stop.

The best part is that you can do it on the internet or on a LAN. A good friend and racing bud has a wireless network in his house. Three of us on lap tops drank beer and sailed in front of the fire yelling "STARBOARD!!!!!" All we needed was someone to throw buckets of salt water on us.

Yes the computer simulation has its faults but they are laughable. If an IACC boat hits a rock, there is a thunk and the boat stops. If the IACC boat hits one of the inflatable marks.... Same thunk and the boat stops. Sail right up to the sandy beach and you don't hit bottom with the 12 foot keel, the hull hits the sand with the same thunk and stops.

There is also a little room for improvement. The camera keys are F1 through F8 and raising headsails is 1 through 4 with 4 being the spinnaker. When you are sailing upwind, and you want to see an alternate angle, make sure you hit f4 and not 4. If you hit 4, you are raising the spinnaker and there is no cancellation or abort key. After the spinnaker, or should I say "drag chute" is up, you then hit 2 to raise the Genoa and drop the chute. Remember earlier I said you had to wait for everyone to do what they need to do, as in real life, this seems to take forever.

My wife bought this for me for Christmas and now has realized that she will be a Wednesday Night Racing widow in the winter too.

Dennis Doherty
A drinker with a sailing habit

For a land lubber and skipper alike!
I am new to the world of sailing having played games such as Sea Dogs, Pirates of the Carib. ect. that really lack the reality of really being on the open sea and focus more on combat which is slow, boring and bad for the most part but when I tried the DEMO out of this game I couldn't believe the detail and the graphics to boot!

First of all the graphics rival those of Far Cry and DOOM 3. Excellent!

The water looks real and the waves splash against your sail boat as if you are really there. You can almost feel the wind as it swings your sail back and forth!

Next, unlike PC Gamers review on this game it's not that hard to learn, really! I figured it out in about ten or so minutes and I'm pretty dense when it comes to PC games.

Al you have to do is figure out what task you want your crew of AI to do and they will get the job done. Focus on the navigational meter on the bottom because that help a great deal with direction and steering your boat to the finnish line correctly. Choosing the sail is a little harder especially if you are not learner with sailing but by experimenting with this in a few mintues you'll have it down.

PC Gamer said because of lack of a trainer the game really lacks but I think you would have to be pretty dense not to accomplish this by yourself. Sorry PC Gamer I think this game is awsome! ... Read more

Product Description

Say Goodbye to Gridlock with Microsoft’s Midtown Madness

Ever want to get behind the wheel and race like a madman through the streets of a teeming metropolis? Here’s your chance to careen your way through Chicago traffic that’s thicker than a deep dish pizza. Forget everything you learned in Driver’s Ed. Run every stop sign, drive the wrong way, or gun-it to jump a drawbridge. No-rules racing means doing whatever it takes to win. With five unique racing modes, ten unique cars, and wide-open, unbridled, pedal-to-the-metal racing, Midtown Madness is the only antidote for rush-hour blues. Now that’s racin’ Chicago style!

Features

• Smash through a mall; play chicken at the airfield; outrun police
• Tour the streets of Chicago as a high-speed racer
• Run stop signs, drive the wrong way, and do whatever it takes to win
• 10 true-to-life vehicles from roadsters to trucks
• 5 ways to race; customizable conditions (including weather and cops)

Features

• Multiple options and choices for an infinite number of mini-golf courses
• Includes 5 fully-made courses to play
• Challenge 10 different computer opponents - from amateurs to Elite Putt Masters
• Select the music, add ambient lighting and even the physics of your golf course
• Includes Mini Golf Master 2, with 18 additional courses

Features

• For 1-8 players (Internet connection required for multi-players games)
• Realistic auto-racing arcade game
• Includes NFSII: SE, NFSIII: Hot Pursuit, NFS: High Stakes, NFS: Porsche Unleashed, and NFS: Hot Pursuit 2.
• Realistic, detailed environments bring to life elements from the real world
• Includes exclusive and exotic cars from the world's most coveted licensors

Reviews (12)

Pretty good game!
This is a great game but is hard to use. I use an XP and the only game i can get to coroperate is NFS HP2. The other games are hard to work. If your are planning to save money, i wouldnt buy the colleacton (unless your useing a XP). But if your willing to take a risk, i would do it (even better with a 98).

This isAwesome.
I got this about a week after I ordered it. It is so cool. The Porsche Unleashed is easy to drive. Hot Pursuit 2 is very cool.High stakes is cool too. Hot Pursuit 3 has a lot of cool stuff. In SE, the graphics don't look too good, but it is ok. I recommend you get these games. It has a lot of cars and police cars to drive. Hot pursuit 2 has really good graphics.

The need for speed series.The collection.It has quirks
For the price you're getting a ton of good games need for speed high stakes is probably the best in the bunch for network play (that's if you can get it working on an XP system).I'll give a quick run down on my thoughts on each game.

Need for speed 2: a decent game.It introduced me to the McLaren F1, which is a beautiful car.Only problem is it doesn't utilize direct 3-DSo the graphics look pretty cheesy.

Need for speed 3: a decent game, introduced a hot pursuit mode, which is fun.When playing on a network with your buddies.This started to utilize some direct 3-DSo the graphics are slightly improved.

Need for speed high stakes: this game is great in network mode you a couple of your buddies as the police officers chasing down the bad guys.It is too fun.Only problem is getting it to run on an XP system.We've been having problems.

Need for speed Porsche unleashed: this game again is the newest of the bunch.Good graphics good physics systems on the cars.Great for helping young ones learn to drive, but no hot pursuit mode and limited network play.Not that great in my opinion.

Need for speed, hot pursuit 2: this game is botched huge!The hot pursuit mode is been totally nuked.You can't be the police officers with your buddies on a network.The graphics are standard for game only a few years old, runs good or older systems, but not having network play with a hot pursuit is just a crime.One of the most disappointing games I've ever played.

So there you have it.In conclusion, you can see the a bunch of games for the price.And if you divvy up the games give out the ones you don't want or even sell them.They are pretty cheap in the long run.But some of the games have serious problems and some of our older.So the graphics are that good.

One important point, Porsche unleashed is a great way to teach young kids to drive get a steering wheel.Make him practice driving no really helped her hand eye coordination.

Have some fun and get it done

NFS-4 AND PORSCHE DO WORK ON XP
two of the best driving games ever made are nfs-4 and porsche.
and are on this compilation disc.

despite what others have said, they DO work with XP. which makes this a MUST-HAVE.

to get them to work,
BEFORE installing just browse the cd intall file
(execute file) , and RIGHT_CLICK on it.
>>>>>enable windows XP compatability for win98<<<<

most older games in general that many say don't work with XP will now play fine.

good
Buy it then sell Porsche Unleashed. It is worth your money cause High Stakes is on their and you'll love that game buy it, and you'll be satisfied. But Hot Pursuit 2 takes up alot of room, so have a fast computer. It is well worth your money ... Read more

Product Description

Need for Speed (NFS) is back and faster than ever in Need For Speed Hot Pursuit 2! Engage in the next generation thrill of arcade racing with the spiritual successor to the highly acclaimed, award winning Need For Speed III Hot Pursuit.Drafting on its award-winning legacy, Need For Speed Hot Pursuit 2 stays true to the heritage of housing a stable of exclusive and exotic cars from the world's most coveted licensors including Ferrari, Porsche and Lamborghini... to name a few.Become the "Champ ... Read more

Features

• Over 20 of the most coveted licensed exotics
• Be victorious in over 60 different racing events to become the "Champion Road Racer"
• Dynamic lighting and real world reflections bring the cars and tracks to life
• Realistic, detailed environments bring to life elements from the real world - rain, brush fires, sunbeams and dust storms

Reviews (74)

awesome!!!!!
I bought this game about 2 weeks ago and I love it. It is awesome! I use along with it a logitech game controller. If you are looking for a fun racing game buy it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is one botched game, what happened in network play
I wanted to post this just as an FYI for anybody who fell in love with the original hot pursuit.This game's hot pursuit mode is totally heinous.EA really botched it.You can't be the police and chase down bad guys with your buddies over the network.We bought a bunch of copies found this out and sold a bunch of copies totally lame.So just a heads up

Good, but maybe not perfect
I've had NFS III hot pursuit for years, so when I saw the newer version come out I decided to try it.Well... I definitely think it could have been better.The graphics are wonderfully detailed, and I love the 3D effects much better than those of the previous version.However, sometimes they are too much for my computer to handle, and everything gets so jerky it is hard to see what I'm doing.When that happens, the graphics tend to lose their effect.

I've found the system of earning the option to race more tracks to be pretty annoying.Even if I win everytime, it still takes a lot of races around the same old tracks to unlock something new, and that can get pretty discouraging.Also, there is not nearly as much control over car tuning as I would have liked.They all tend to handle about the same, so I really begin to miss the customization features of NFS III.

There are some definite high points, though.The graphics, when they work, are incredible.The music is also really nice - it fits the racing mood perfectly, and has plenty of variety.The cars are fairly highly detailed, and the hot pursuit mode works out pretty well (if not a little too easily for the racer on the run).Overall I would recommend this game, but definitely make sure your computer can easily handle the graphics and make it worth your while.

Great game
Recently I downloaded the demo of Hot Pursuit 2, and it persuaded me to go out and buy the game (should be coming soon :)) Anyways, I've played this at a friend's house and have found it excellent. I love the "Be The Cop" mode as well as the cars provided in the game. I find that this game (even the demo, in my case) has high replayability. The graphics for this game are nice, and it runs well on my computer (Intel 4 3.0 Ghz processor, 1GB RAM, and some sort of good video card :P) But as people have said before, all the tracks are practically identical. You might want to consider that before you buy it, but otherwise, it'll be worth your money.

underground is beneath this game
i stupidly sold this game to buy nfs underground.2 months later i sold under ground a bought this again. this game has great cars for any car finatics out there and the play, while not always realistic provided a lot of fun.it has the lotus elise, opel speedster, bmw m5 , bmw z8 ,dodge viper, ferrarri 360 spyder, 550 merronello , f50, and the mcclairen f1 just to name a few. everyone talks about dodging the cops but chasing speeders was even more fun. you can drop explosives, call for back up, and set up spike strips.this game is so much more than underground, which has crappy cars , poor performence, and horrid corses. please buy this and save a hell of a lot of cash ... Read more

Features

• Race an entire NHRA Drag Racing weekend behind the wheel of the best Top Fuel, Pro Stock and Funny Cars.
• Get ready to do half track burnouts, stage and launch, and fight tire shake as you lock horns with the best of the NHRA.
• Experience sensory overload! Hear and feel the engine rumble with the amazing SoundMax sound engine and your Force Feedback Wheel.
• Be the crew chief using the RacePak Data Acquisition Telemetry Software, the same software used by all the NHRA crew chiefs.
• Feel the ear-splitting thunder of 48 Top Fuel, Pro Stock and Funny Cars.

Product Description

Own, Train and Manage your own Thorough Bread Race Horses juggle your funds to purchase new Horses, hire new Jockey's and even have the ability to bet. ... Read more

Features

• Juggle your funds to purchase new Horses
• Hire new Jockeys
• Have the ability to place bets
• Windows 95,98,ME,NT,2000,XP PC
• Has ESRB rating of E for Everyone

Reviews (1)

stable masters 2
Somewhat disappointing and difficult to play.Horse racing games are few and far between, and even fewer of them seem to focus on what I find fascinating...the selection, raising, management, training and breeding of the horses and the understanding and development of good bloodlines for racing in the fictitious world of the game.You don't even get to have the fun of naming your own horses in this game. The races and betting are fun, but you seem to have little power over what kind of horses you end up with.There is no mention of bloodlines or anything, and the only horses you can buy are ones that have been racing or are about to be raced and inexplicably are put up for sale by other "owners".The horses you start with in the game are awful (can't even win a maiden race to save their lives), and the decent ones for sale are far too expensive to afford, and even the cheap ones are selling for far more than it seems they are likely to ever win.Realistic, I guess, but not very satisfying, as there seems to be no way to raise money except by betting....which is somewhat random, obviously.The game does not have a tutorial, and there is no manual in the box.The manual that is available as an adobe file is very limited and gives no details on the mechanics of playing the game.I found instructions on line that were better.

It would be nice if the selection, raising and breeding aspect were part of the game.Worst of all, the training buttons don't seem to work the way they're supposed to and I can't get the downloaded patch that is supposed to fix this bug to execute.I keep getting a message that some graphics file is an "unknown version" so the patch can't run.I tried reinstalling the game, as suggested on ESP software's website, but to no avail. ... Read more

Features

• Single-player game show mode compete to be the winner
• Three events: stunt challenges, races and mini-games
• 24 stunt challenges set within the game show
• 12 race tracks that run through the six environments
• 12 mini-games where player must collect car decals before time runs out

Reviews (2)

Ask before you buy
I bought this game for my son. I tried to put it on his laptop. Toshiba P4 with Nvidia card. It would not load properly and did not work. Went to THQ for answers and after days of Email all I got was that I needed to update my display driver. Only problem is that there is none. Tried it on my Centrino laptop and it would not even load. There are major compatibilty issues with this game. Support is poor.

What a waste
My 8-year old son was very, very excited to receive this item for Valentine's day from a relative to play on the **brand new** Dell computer that he got for Christmas. He ripped the packaging to shreds in his glee to open it and begin play.

It won't work.

We've tried it on his computer (NEW!) and my 3-year old (but then top-of-the-line) Dell and neither will run the game claiming one "hardware failure" after another.E-mail to THQ yielded no assistance whatsoever.
Before you buy this, consider very, very carefully what the minimum system requirements are. ... Read more

Product Description

Flight Deck has been completely revised and is now Flight Deck III! Try your skills with the all-new Flight Deck III's carrier-based aircraft for CFS and FS 2002! Carrier-based flight is the ULTIMATE CHALLANGE in aviation! Climb into the cockpit of these super-detailed, high performance aircraft (and helicopter!) and put your piloting skills to the test. ... Read more

Features

• Includes the following aircraft:
• F/A - 18 Hornet
• Sea Knight Helicopter
• F-14 Tomcat
• E2-C Hawkeye

Reviews (2)

Lack of Cable Stretch at Trap
I recently purchased an excellent gammer system and have re-discovered the fun of trying to land on a postage stamp at 140 knots. Flight Deck 3 is just plain fun.The catapult launch is great.The only change I would like to see is an upgrade that would simulate a more realistic cable stratch at trap.The stop is sudden and takes some of the excitement of wondering "if I am going to stop" out of the landing.

Thanks

Great carrier - Soso planes.
Really 3 & 1/2 stars.

Normally, I shy away from any flightsim or trainsim add-on with the word "Abacus" in front of it. In my experience, Abacus Publishing has had a nasty habit of selling very mediocre products at full pop. However, I must admit that Flight Deck 3 is actually a very decent package.

I was most impressed by the carrier and I can't say I've seen a prettier one for FS2002 anywhere - payware or freeware. The textures are done very nicely (screenshots on Abacus' website don't do it justice) and it also sports moving radar dishes and a modeled lower deck. The elevators don't work, however, and a flag fluttering in the breeze would have been nice. The deck does have some static vehicles and crewmen, but no static aircraft. Night-lighting is also done nicely, though a more knowledgeable bloke informed me that it is not completely accurate and the carrier is conspicuously missing a meatball. While the carrier does have a wake painted in the water, the ship doesn't actually move - an unfortunate limitation of FS2002.
All in all, though, a first-class piece of scenery.

Aside from the gorgeous carrier, the program does come with 5 aircraft: an F18, F14, Harrier, E2C Hawkeye, and a CH46 helicopter. While all of the virtual cockpits are acceptable, I found the exterior modeling and flight physics to be very average compared to other payware planes. I have a FREEWARE F18, F14, and several helicopters that literally put these planes to shame. The F18, in particular, has landing gear that is always in the taxiing "collapsed" position, even when the plane is on approach. The Harrier is probably the best aircraft in the package and, though it doesn't look quite as good as Alphasim's, does have a more realistically difficult flight model. Either way, I would have been perfectly happy with the carrier by itself.

The biggest reason for carrier ops fans to buy this package, however, has to do with the ArrCab program that comes with it. Once freeware, but now solely licensed to Abacus, this program operates within FS2002 to deliver the carrier launches and cable arrested landings that the sim normally lacks. And considering the limitations of FS2002, I thought these effects were very well done. The Abacus package gives you the same carrier (U.S.S. George Washington) in 4 different locations around the globe but, if this isn't enough, the ArrCab utility allows the user to specify their own location for these effects. (namely any freeware add-on carriers)

If Abacus had really wanted to make this an outstanding product, they could have tried to implement some flights with real, recorded carrier ATC. (and hooked up with some better aircraft) Of course, as long as I'm dreaming, I'd also like some static aircraft on the deck, dynamic aircraft in the pattern, working elevators, waving flags, and a pony. The lack of any aural interaction with the tower does hurt the realism factor, but with the prettiest carrier out there and the ArrCab utility, I don't think there's currently anything else on the market to equal Flight Deck 3. ... Read more

Product Description

Awesome tracks, tons of new modes and fully licensed vehicles make the latest installment in the franchise a winner. ... Read more

Features

• ESRB Rating: Everyone
• Genre: Driving
• Mission: Gather your pit crew and prepare for high-octane racing
• Platform: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP

Reviews (6)

What's the problem?
I've read a lot of reviews bad mouthing this game. All I have to say is: Read the manufacturer's specs and don't try running it on an old slow computer. Make sure you have a decent graphics adapter and plenty of RAM. The on-line gaming is great, even using a 56k modem. Half the fun is tweaking your car setups and testing the results on the track. If you love racing (and aren't afraid to put a little effort into learning) this game is a winner.

This game sucks
If you are looking for a realistic Nascar sim, then do not buy this game, or any other Nascar game from EA Sports for that matter.The graphics on this game are good, but the whole thing is just so unrealistic. If you want a true Nascar sim any of the Nascar games from Papyrus is your best bet, i highly recommend Nascar racing 4.

stupid
It is too unrealistic. You feel like quiting on the first lap it is so boring the cars are slow and have bad handling. the graphics are choppy and pausey. This game is for fools. If you want a good racing game expeirience get NFS4 or NR2003 Season instead of this game. Their is only 1 thing good about it. it is cool to wreck that slow, poorly designed car.

graphic
just play the demo
NASCAR racing series 2003 has better graphics(B)
This game a D
not all that better to nascar thunder 2003 graphics

price
i just bougt NR 2003 and Thunder 2003
both of those cost only $28(not evan from the cheaper sellers)
it probaly better than both of them. hopefully
cost This one cost $35 ... Read more