''Grand Prix 3'' is a

computer A computer is a machine that can be programmed to Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as C ...

racing simulator Simulated racing or racing simulation, commonly known as simply sim racing, are the collective terms for racing game software that attempts to accurately simulate auto racing, complete with real-world variables such as fuel usage, damage, tir ...

MicroProse MicroProse is an American video game publisher and video game developer, developer founded by Bill Stealey, Sid Meier, and Andy Hollis in 1982. It developed and published numerous games, including starting the ''Civilization (series), Civilizatio ...

, released in 2000 by

Hasbro Interactive Hasbro Interactive was an American video game developer, video game production and video game publisher, publishing subsidiary of Hasbro, the large game and toy company. Several of its studios were closed in early 2001 and most of its properties ...

Gameplay

The game is known for featuring the 1998 Formula One season (with all drivers except

Jacques Villeneuve Jacques Joseph Charles Villeneuve ( born 9 April 1971) is a Canadian professional racing driver and amateur musician who won the 1997 Formula One World Championship with Williams. In addition to Formula One (F1) he has competed in various ot ...

, who is instead replaced by a fictional character, John Newhouse). In August 2001 an expansion pack, ''Grand Prix 3 2000 Season'', was released, updating the game to feature the 2000 season's cars and drivers (including Villeneuve), as well as the 2 new circuits on the calendar, the

Sepang International Circuit The Sepang International Circuit ( ms, Litar Antarabangsa Sepang) is a motorsport race track in Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia. It is located approximately south of Kuala Lumpur, and close to Kuala Lumpur International Airport. It hosted the For ...

in Malaysia and the

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an automobile racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Verizon 200, and and formerly the home of the United State ...

Reception

Critical reviews

The game received "generally favorable reviews" according to the

review aggregation A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

. It was not quite as well received as its predecessors, but at the time was widely considered to be the best

racing simulation Simulated racing or racing simulation, commonly known as simply sim racing, are the collective terms for racing game software that attempts to accurately simulate auto racing, complete with real-world variables such as fuel usage, damage, tire ...

available. The editors of ''

Computer Gaming World ''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American computer game magazine published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 1993. It expanded greatly through ...

'' nominated ''Grand Prix 3'' as the best racing game of 2000, although it lost to ''

Motocross Madness 2 ''Motocross Madness 2'' is a motocross racing video game that was developed by Rainbow Studios and published by Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Games. This sequel to 1998's ''Motocross Madness (1998 video game), Motocross Madness'' was released in M ...

''. They described ''Grand Prix 3'' as a "precisely tuned" title.

Sales

In Europe, ''Grand Prix 3'' sold 300,000 units in one month. Italy made up above 30,000 sales of this number, while Spain accounted for 6,500. Multiplayer.it attributed the relatively low sales in Spain to that country's rampant software piracy problem. In the German market, ''Grand Prix 3'' sold 40,000 units in its first three days of availability. Debuting at #2 on Media Control's computer game sales chart for July 2000, it rose to first place the following month, before claiming fourth in September. The Verband der Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland (VUD) presented ''Grand Prix 3'' with a "Gold" award at the end of that month, indicating sales of at least 100,000 units across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The game proceeded to place seventh, ninth and 18th on Media Control's charts through the end of 2000. Although ''Grand Prix 3'' passed the 100,000-sale mark in German-speaking countries, Udo Hoffman of '' PC Player'' reported that it had fallen below Hasbro Interactive's projections by late 2000, and that the publisher was "more than a little disappointed" in its performance. The company's product manager, Thomas Sewing, blamed this outcome in part on high competition from other titles with the

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

license. ''Grand Prix 3'' continued to chart on Media Control's top 30 in 2001, placing 19th in January, 23rd in February and 17th in March. In the United Kingdom, ''Grand Prix 3'' received a "Silver" certificate from the

Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment (Ukie) is a non-profit trade association for the video game industry in the United Kingdom (UK). Ukie was originally founded as the European Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), and the ...

(ELSPA), for at least 100,000 sales in the region.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2000 video games Formula One video games Racing simulators MicroProse games Multiplayer and single-player video games Video games developed in the United Kingdom Video games set in 1998 Video games with expansion packs Windows games Windows-only games