Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Can a racing wheel save the worst NASCAR game ever made? Today, we are revisiting NASCAR 21: Ignition with the Brook Gaming Ras1ution adapter to see if this game is finally playable. Spoiler alert: It’s a bumpy ride.
Have you ever played a video game so unbelievably bad that it didn't just ruin the franchise for you, but the disaster was so massive that the developers actually had the official license taken away from them? We are going to talk about exactly that right now.
I have been a massive fan and dedicated player of the modern NASCAR racing games on the PS4 and PS5 dating all the way back to NASCAR Heat Evolution. I played a ton of NASCAR Heat 3, skipped over Heat 2 for some reason, dumped hours into Heat 4, and honestly, I still play NASCAR Heat 5 all the time because it is genuinely a solid, fun racing experience.
And then... there was possibly the Worst Racing Sim EVER. NASCAR Ignition 21. Having tested out the Ras1ution and really liked it on Gran Turismo and Nascar Heat 5, Can Brook Gaming Save NASCAR Ignition 21?
NASCAR Ignition was historically, universally terrible. However, there was one variable I hadn't tested: I had never actually used my dedicated steering wheel setup with it. Thanks to the Ras1ution adapter from Brook Gaming—which allows you to seamlessly connect various racing wheels to different consoles—I can finally go ahead and put this game to the ultimate sim-racing test. I needed to see if getting off the controller and onto a proper wheel actually makes this infamous game playable.
So, let's strap in. Of course, we are going to pick Ryan Blaney's car, and we are heading down to Atlanta Motor Speedway to see what this game engine can do.
The Racing Wheel Experiment: A Complete Disaster
Right out of the gate, the warning signs were flashing. I actually had to use a regular PlayStation controller just to navigate the menus and get into the game's configuration screen, which is incredibly frustrating for a modern racing title.
Once the race loaded, the game just abruptly threw my car out into the middle of the track with absolutely zero flow or build-up. But the real nightmare started when I hit the first corner.
Here is a breakdown of exactly why playing Ignition on a wheel is a nightmare:
Floaty Physics: One of the biggest things I immediately hated was the inability to properly set my steering wheel offset. The entire car feels awfully floaty, like it's hovering over the asphalt instead of gripping it.
Hypersensitivity: I was using incredibly little steering input. If I turned the wheel even 3 or 4 degrees, the car darted across the track. It was completely unmanageable.
The Missing Mirror: If you can believe it, there is absolutely no rearview mirror on the screen, and there is no way to activate one in the settings. In a stock car racing game where drafting and blocking are everything, this is an unforgivable omission!
Trying to Fix the Unfixable
I actually had to pause the game, pull out my phone, and go directly into the Brook Ras1ution app to try and make some drastic changes because the raw input was way too sensitive. I went as far as turning the input down to a -7 just to try and gain some control. While it was slightly better, it was still super sensitive and twitchy right around the neutral dead-center of the wheel. I realized I was going to have to take the overall responsiveness down even further and add a massive deadband just to keep the car going straight.
It is honestly hard to completely screw up a basic circle-track racing game, but Motorsport Games somehow did it. I mean, wow. This game is terrible. I dare say that NASCAR Ignition is as fundamentally broken and disappointing as Earthworm Jim 3D.
This game was so profoundly bad that it caused a massive shakeup in the gaming world, resulting in NASCAR pulling the exclusive license and handing it over to the legendary team at iRacing. After testing it with a high-end wheel, my final verdict remains the same: This game is still absolute garbage. Stick to NASCAR Heat 5.
I want to hear from you! What video game have you played in the past that was so bad it completely ruined a franchise for you? Drop your biggest gaming disappointments in the comments down below and let's vent together!
Hashtags
#NASCAR #NASCARIgnition #SimRacing #BrookGaming #Ras1ution #RacingGames #NASCARHeat5 #RyanBlaney #RacingWheel #GamingDisasters
Can a racing wheel save the worst NASCAR game ever made? Today, we are revisiting NASCAR 21: Ignition with the Brook Gaming Ras1ution adapter to see if this game is finally playable. Spoiler alert: It’s a bumpy ride.
Have you ever played a video game so unbelievably bad that it didn't just ruin the franchise for you, but the disaster was so massive that the developers actually had the official license taken away from them? We are going to talk about exactly that right now.
I have been a massive fan and dedicated player of the modern NASCAR racing games on the PS4 and PS5 dating all the way back to NASCAR Heat Evolution. I played a ton of NASCAR Heat 3, skipped over Heat 2 for some reason, dumped hours into Heat 4, and honestly, I still play NASCAR Heat 5 all the time because it is genuinely a solid, fun racing experience.
And then... there was possibly the Worst Racing Sim EVER. NASCAR Ignition 21. Having tested out the Ras1ution and really liked it on Gran Turismo and Nascar Heat 5, Can Brook Gaming Save NASCAR Ignition 21?
NASCAR Ignition was historically, universally terrible. However, there was one variable I hadn't tested: I had never actually used my dedicated steering wheel setup with it. Thanks to the Ras1ution adapter from Brook Gaming—which allows you to seamlessly connect various racing wheels to different consoles—I can finally go ahead and put this game to the ultimate sim-racing test. I needed to see if getting off the controller and onto a proper wheel actually makes this infamous game playable.
So, let's strap in. Of course, we are going to pick Ryan Blaney's car, and we are heading down to Atlanta Motor Speedway to see what this game engine can do.
The Racing Wheel Experiment: A Complete Disaster
Right out of the gate, the warning signs were flashing. I actually had to use a regular PlayStation controller just to navigate the menus and get into the game's configuration screen, which is incredibly frustrating for a modern racing title.
Once the race loaded, the game just abruptly threw my car out into the middle of the track with absolutely zero flow or build-up. But the real nightmare started when I hit the first corner.
Here is a breakdown of exactly why playing Ignition on a wheel is a nightmare:
Floaty Physics: One of the biggest things I immediately hated was the inability to properly set my steering wheel offset. The entire car feels awfully floaty, like it's hovering over the asphalt instead of gripping it.
Hypersensitivity: I was using incredibly little steering input. If I turned the wheel even 3 or 4 degrees, the car darted across the track. It was completely unmanageable.
The Missing Mirror: If you can believe it, there is absolutely no rearview mirror on the screen, and there is no way to activate one in the settings. In a stock car racing game where drafting and blocking are everything, this is an unforgivable omission!
Trying to Fix the Unfixable
I actually had to pause the game, pull out my phone, and go directly into the Brook Ras1ution app to try and make some drastic changes because the raw input was way too sensitive. I went as far as turning the input down to a -7 just to try and gain some control. While it was slightly better, it was still super sensitive and twitchy right around the neutral dead-center of the wheel. I realized I was going to have to take the overall responsiveness down even further and add a massive deadband just to keep the car going straight.
It is honestly hard to completely screw up a basic circle-track racing game, but Motorsport Games somehow did it. I mean, wow. This game is terrible. I dare say that NASCAR Ignition is as fundamentally broken and disappointing as Earthworm Jim 3D.
This game was so profoundly bad that it caused a massive shakeup in the gaming world, resulting in NASCAR pulling the exclusive license and handing it over to the legendary team at iRacing. After testing it with a high-end wheel, my final verdict remains the same: This game is still absolute garbage. Stick to NASCAR Heat 5.
I want to hear from you! What video game have you played in the past that was so bad it completely ruined a franchise for you? Drop your biggest gaming disappointments in the comments down below and let's vent together!
Hashtags
#NASCAR #NASCARIgnition #SimRacing #BrookGaming #Ras1ution #RacingGames #NASCARHeat5 #RyanBlaney #RacingWheel #GamingDisasters
