What you will get a taste of is what it's like to be in the midst of the roaring engines and on the other side of those glaring windscreens.

The newest in the long-running NASCAR series mixes all of the franchise's favorite bits with a few new superspeedway pluses. One such plus is the addition of Jeff Gordon. (He does more than just pose for the game's cover.) The four-time NASCAR champ's digitalized presence drops by the garage throughout the game to mentor budding racers through contract signing, car tweaking and other aspects of the pro-racing biz.

Gentlemen, Build Your Cars and Start Your Engines
Before you receive Jeff's nuggets of wisdom, however, you have to get your gear in order. Gamers start by choosing the difficulty setting they want to play on. Similar to other racing games such as the Gran Turismo series, the going can be as forgiving or as challenging as one's motoring skills can support. Even racing with or without yellow and black flags can make a big difference in how detailed and precise the driving demands will be.

Of course, what's racing without a super-cool car? NASCAR comes with a detailed customizing bay that offers tailor-made paint jobs, racing stripes, flames and sponsorship logos. Beyond the surface decorations, though, this is an area where some day-mechanic joy can be found if you're so inclined. Serious gearheads can take the time to technically fine-tune their ride before each race—including adjusting the car's suspension, drivetrain, aerodynamics and even weight distribution—detailing it for the specific type of track they're about to face.

Then, at last, it's off to the races in the Nationwide, Craftsman Truck or Sprint Cup series. These championships have racers qualify to set their starting positions before they spin around dozens of tracks located all over the country—from Watkins Glen to Fontana to Daytona Beach. Each track is based on its real counterpart and has its own particular challenges or advantages—tight turns and narrow straightaways to special surfacing and banked curves—that make the motoring experience just a little different with every race.

But just in case you weren't born with a steering wheel (or game controller) in your hand, NASCAR 09 gives you a set of 77 different Sprint Driver Challenges to sharpen your rubber-burning skills. Speed tests, gas-and-brake finesse quizzes and drafting tutorials are all part of the package and, in truth, are sometimes even more fun than the races themselves. And as you master the challenges you earn points that can be used to improve your car's performance.

In addition to striving to hone gamers' onscreen driving skills, NASCAR also works hard to point out that automotive demolition is not to be glamorized. The crunching sheet metal damage is downplayed and crazy-minded hotfoots will not be tolerated. Even the game's background music—which careens from AFI and Theory of a Deadman to P.O.D. and Third Day—can be turned off if that will help cooler heads prevail.

The Checkered Flag
Now, I'll admit that if you're not a NASCAR fanatic—and wouldn't know Jeff Gordon or Carl Edwards from the guy behind the counter at the Chevron station—then you're probably not going to get the full potential out of this title. Sort of like playing a Madden football game if you don't follow the NFL or know who John Madden is. But when you add all these vehicle and track dynamics (along with a choice of several possible camera perspectives) to some realistic engine sounds and the disembodied voice of a pit spotter in your helmet, then you've still got a pretty fun little game.