NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing

Last updated: January 18, 2026

Overview

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing is a racing simulation developed by Papyrus Design Group and published by Sierra Sports in 1999 for Windows.¹² The game is essentially the truck-racing portion of NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition sold as a standalone product, allowing players to experience the 700-horsepower trucks of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series without purchasing the full NASCAR Racing package.³

The game featured authentic trucks, tracks, and drivers from the 1999 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season, with full 3Dfx accelerator support and an included paint kit for custom vehicle designs.³⁴

Game Info

Developer: Papyrus Design Group¹ Publisher: Sierra Sports¹ Engine: NASCAR Racing 1999 engine³ Platforms: Windows¹ Release Year: 1999¹ Series: NASCAR Racing Protagonist: N/A (player-created driver) Sierra Lineage: Core Sierra

Story Summary

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing is a pure racing simulation without a traditional narrative. Players compete in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving modified pickup trucks in oval track racing across authentic series venues.¹³

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

The game offered both first-person cockpit and third-person external camera views.¹ Players could use various input devices including keyboard, mouse, and racing wheels with force-feedback support, consistent with other Papyrus racing simulations.⁴

Trucks and Competition

Players could drive 700-horsepower trucks against the top competitors of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.³ The game included authentic tracks from the 1999 season and allowed online multiplayer competition.⁴

Key Features:³⁴

• Full 3Dfx accelerator support
• Paint kit for custom truck designs
• Multiple authentic Craftsman Truck Series tracks
• Online multiplayer capability

Compatibility with Other NASCAR Games

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing was designed to integrate with other Papyrus NASCAR products. Players who owned NASCAR Racing 2 with the Grand National expansion pack could add the truck-racing portion to their existing collection.³ Those who already owned NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition had the truck-racing content included and did not need to purchase this standalone title.³

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing received limited dedicated coverage as it was essentially a standalone release of content from NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition. Squakenet described the trucks as “very different beasts from most racing games, which take some getting used to” and noted that “the trucks handle realistically and although the usual sense of speed found in racers like Daytona isn’t there, there’s still a real thrill to take control of these monsters.”⁵

The review praised the game’s “impressive detail levels” and “well implemented physics,” calling it “worth a look if you’re after something unusual.”⁵ The parent game NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition formed the basis of what GameSpot would recognize when naming NASCAR Racing 3 their “Driving Game of the Year” for 1999.⁶

Modern Assessment

Aggregate Scores:

• MyAbandonware: 5/5 (8 votes)¹

The game has been preserved through abandonware archives and remains playable with some configuration on modern systems.¹² Modern retrospectives note that while “this game is kind of a cheat” being extracted from a larger package, it “does make for an entertaining time” for players specifically interested in truck racing.⁵

Development

Origins

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing was developed as part of Papyrus Design Group’s ongoing NASCAR simulation series for Sierra Sports.¹ The game allowed Sierra to offer the truck-racing experience as a standalone product for fans specifically interested in the Craftsman Truck Series.³

Production

Papyrus Design Group had become Sierra’s motorsports development division following their acquisition by Sierra On-Line in late 1995.⁷ The game was published under Sierra’s Sierra Sports label.¹

Technical Specifications

Windows Version:¹

• Download Size: 93 MB (ISO)
• Graphics: 3Dfx accelerator support
• Perspectives: 1st-person, 3rd-person
• Multiplayer: Online support

Version History

Version	Date	Platform	Notes
1.0	1999	Windows	Initial release1

Easter Eggs and Trivia

• The game was essentially a standalone version of content from NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition³
• Players with NASCAR Racing 2 and Grand National could integrate truck content³
• A separate NASCAR Racing 3: Craftsman Truck Series Expansion Pack was released in 2000⁸
• Papyrus was shut down by Vivendi (Sierra’s parent company) in 2004⁷
• The Papyrus engine technology eventually evolved into iRacing⁷

Legacy

Series Context

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing is part of Papyrus’s NASCAR Racing series, offering focused truck racing content.

Related NASCAR Racing Titles:

• NASCAR Racing (1994)
• NASCAR Racing 2 (1996)
• NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition (1998)
• NASCAR Racing 3 (1999)
• NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing (1999)
• NASCAR Racing 3: Craftsman Truck Series Expansion Pack (2000)
• NASCAR Legends (1999)
• NASCAR Racing 4 (2001)

Critical Perspective

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing represents Papyrus and Sierra’s strategy of offering modular racing content to serve different segments of the NASCAR fanbase. By releasing the Craftsman Truck Series as a standalone product, Sierra could reach fans specifically interested in truck racing without requiring them to purchase the full NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition package.³

Downloads

Digital Availability

• Not available on modern storefronts

Preservation / Emulation

• MyAbandonware - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing - Windows ISO download¹
• Internet Archive - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing - Preservation copy²

References

Footnotes

1. MyAbandonware - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing - developer Papyrus, publisher Sierra On-Line, 1999 release, user rating 5/5, download size ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴

2. Internet Archive - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing - preservation, platform information ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. MobyGames - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing - gameplay description, 700 hp trucks, paint kit, 3Dfx support, integration with NASCAR Racing 2/1999 Edition ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹²

4. Race Sim Central - Sierra Announce NASCAR Racing 1999 Edition - truck series tracks, gameplay features ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

5. Squakenet - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Racing - gameplay review, truck handling, physics, visual quality ↩ ↩² ↩³

6. GameSpot - NASCAR Racing 3 Driving Game of the Year 1999 - recognition for NASCAR Racing 3, parent engine ↩

7. Wikipedia - Papyrus Design Group - Sierra acquisition 1995, shutdown 2004, iRacing evolution ↩ ↩² ↩³

8. MobyGames - NASCAR Racing 3: Craftsman Truck Series Expansion Pack - 2000 expansion for NASCAR Racing 3 ↩