Game modes consist of Create-a-car, Quick race, Season mode, Career mode, and practice. Before every race, the player has the option to qualify for a position at the start of the race, get to know the track in practice, or 'race' other cars in Happy Hour. The game has 35 drivers from the 2001 Winston Cup season (minus Dale Earnhardt due to his death, but the game has many tributes to him including a black No. 3 screen on start-up) and several then-Busch Series and fantasy drivers that can be unlocked.[citation needed]
The PlayStation version was separate from the PS2 and Xbox versions, included only 36 drivers, and included an instant-replay feature, fantasy tracks, only 18 drivers per race, and all of the alternate paint schemes were removed. It also has a different intro without the #3 shown before the EA Sports logo. A system of power-up/cheat cards and challenges, similar to Chase/Thunder plates and Lightning/Dodge Challenges in later editions, was a major game mode in this version. It also included the Daytona Beach track.
The PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions received "favorable" reviews, while the PlayStation version received "average" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[2][3][4]NextGen said that the Xbox version was "Graphically, a solid game, with great reflections, sun wash, damage modeling, persistent skid marks, and more."[22]
^Kato, Matthew (December 2001). "NASCAR Thunder 2002 (Xbox)". Game Informer. No. 104. FuncoLand. p. 108. Archived from the original on November 13, 2004. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
^Provo, Frank (October 16, 2001). "NASCAR 2002 Review (PS2)". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
^Boulding, Aaron (November 8, 2001). "NASCAR Thunder 2002 (Xbox)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
