Jurassic Park
PC
Nostalgia Factor:
Our family got its first home PC in the mid-90s. I spent a lot of time playing around with that thing. Even the most basic function of the computer amused me. History articles, videos of people giving speeches, paint, Minesweeper. It was a fun time. I must have played around on the computer for days discovering everything it had to offer me. And we didn't even have an internet connection!
One day while I was messing around with it, my brother came into the room reading the instruction manual that came with the PC. He asked me if I'd played the Jurassic Park game yet. I was like: "wait... the WHAT?" Apparently this computer came with a pre-installed version of a Jurassic Park game on it, and I hadn't discovered it yet. I made it my mission from that point forward to find where on the computer this game was hidden. Remember, this was the mid-90s. Navigating a personal computer was a lot more complicated back then. Heck, even just loading up and playing a game could be a big ordeal!
With the help of the PC user manual, I was able to find the game and fire it up. Right away I was blown away. I'd played the Genesis and NES versions of Jurassic Park, but this was a whole new beast. Massive levels, great graphics, immersive sound, puzzle solving elements - and even a first person mode. I felt like I'd hit video gaming pay dirt. This game kept me occupied for weeks and weeks on end. It was very challenging, but I was up to the task.
I remember liking the game right up to the very end, when my interest started to wane. I was completely overwhelmed by some of the first person stages. Raptors would just constantly swarm me, and I never had enough health or ammunition to defeat them all. So 95% of the time was me running away and getting lost in a maze like cluster of corridors that all looked exactly the same.
I powered through it and beat the game, but I quickly turned my back on it and never came back to it again. Until now: the year 2023. This game came out in 1993. Assuming this game was new when I played it, 30 years have passed since I last fired this up. My memories of it (until the very end of the game) are for the most part very fond. How would I feel about it now? Let's find out!
Story:
This game loosely follows the events of the book and the movie. You play as Alan Grant. You have to rescue Lex and Tim, restore power to the park, and then get the hell out. You see many areas that aren't in the book or movie - or even other Jurassic Park video games. I always liked that aspect of the game. It follows the same familiar storyline we all know and love while keeping things new and fresh at the same time.
Gameplay:
If you are just looking at screenshots, you might make the assumption that this game is going to be similar to the NES or SNES Jurassic Park titles. But not at all. This game is a whole different beast.
First off: it is very challenging. If you approach this game like you would any other top-down shooter, you are not going to do very well. There are enemies everywhere, and they will take you down quickly. You have to advance through these stages slowly and carefully, picking these dinosaurs off one at a time. Or just run by them. It is up to you!
Unlike most Jurassic Park games, the main enemies you'll be fighting against are spitters (or dilophosaurus if you prefer). This game throws a healthy dose of compies and flying insects at you too. The T-Rex is rarely seen in this game, and velociraptors don't make an appearance until the first person stages at the end of the game.
You only get two weapons in this game. The default cattle prod (which has a very tiny range of attack) and the bullet firing rifle. If you run out of ammo for the rifle, you have to use the cattle prod until you find more ammo. There are no grenades or no other weapon upgrades to be found. This is all you get for the whole game.
I didn't make this connection when I originally played this game, but the whole thing has a very "Ecco the Dolphin" vibe to it. Hear me out, hear me out. There's similarities in the music and in some of the graphical design. But it is the puzzle element that does it for me. The big maze-like levels, the vague directions given to you, the block pushing, all that good stuff. I kept running into brick walls that left me completely stumped as I was playing this, and I had to think outside the box in order to get my way out of these jams. This game doesn't look, control, or have the same theme as Ecco - but the whole time I was playing through this game there was just something about it that gave me the same vibe.
If you are a fan of slow gameplay that requires patience, and puzzle solving that requires you to really use your noggin - you'll probably like this game. If you expect something guns-blazing like other Jurassic Park titles, you probably won't understand the appeal of this title. I'll give you an example.
In the very first stage you have to find Lex, Tim, and the keycard out of the stage. Finding Tim is easy. Lex, not so much. After exploring the stage for like an hour, I eventually found my way into a sewer area. I quickly found the keycard. Lex had to be down there, right? I searched every dang inch of that sewer and could not find her to save my life. I exited the sewer and wasted another hour trying to find her. Eventually I figured she had to be down in that sewer. I went back in there and wandered that maze for the longest time before I finally found her. Only she is hidden in a deep corner, and you have to pass through water on the way back. Lex can't swim or cross water. I remembered a big wooden plank I saw floating near the sewer entrance. I had to leave Lex, push the plank all the way to her location, get her on the plank, and push her all the way back to the tunnel entrance.
I finally had everything I needed to beat the stage. I gathered Lex and Tim, and headed off to level two. And it only took me about three hours. That had to be the toughest damn level one I've ever played in video game history.
It doesn't get easier, either. Other levels have you using kiosks to unlock doors, collecting fruit and berries to distract a charging triceratops, tricking a triceratops into attacking you in order to knock down a stone wall, and goading a T-Rex into chasing you and leading it right into a trap.
Like I said, you have to use your brain when playing this game. You can't just shoot your way through these stages.
The last few handfuls of levels take place from a first person perspective. Your stun gun gets tossed aside and you only have the rifle the rest of the game. You have to explore the visitor center, go outside, restore power to the park, and make your way back to the visitor's cent through some kind of underground exit. There, Hammond, Ellie, and the kids are waiting for you. You get on a helicopter and GTF outta there.
The overhead map makes it easy to tell where you are and where you're going, but these stages are HUGE. I got lost so, so many times. Not just as a kid but as an adult too. Raptors start out easy but quickly turn into bullet sponges that require you using up half your ammunition supply to take them down. Using save states, I was strategically able to pick these raptors off, retreat to get more ammo and health, and then press forward. As a kid, I just ran from everything in sight. These stages are definitely frustrating, but at the same time remain a welcome and sometimes fun challenge.
That sums up the whole game, really. Frustrating but fun. Sometimes I loved this, sometimes I hated it. It is definitely an acquired taste, and definitely not for everyone.
Graphics:
For 1993, this game looks pretty good. The levels are huge, and really do a wonderful job capturing the size and scope of the park. The trees, the water, the environments, the signage: everything looks fantastic. The dinosaur models are some of the best from this era of Jurassic Park games. You can't look at the T-Rex and triceratops and tell me they don't look good.
What this game does best is really capturing the hopelessness of the situation of the first Jurassic Park movie. It's not a fun adventure or an action oriented romp. This is life or death stuff! Nothing captures this feeling better than the first person stages. They are legitimately scary. They may be a little choppy and it may look a little pixelated and rough around the edges, but these stages legitimately kept me on the edge of my seat.
Sound:
Unfortunately you won't be hearing any music from the movie in this game, which is a darn shame. The music is pretty good, though. It has a very grim and serious tone to it. I made this comparison before but it really does sound like music from Ecco the Dolphin at times.
The sound effects are wonderful. All the dinosaur noises are taken right from the movie. It really helps set the stage for what turns out to be a very atmospheric experience.
Overall:
This is a good game, but now that I've played through it twice in my life, I don't see any scenario where I ever come back to this again. It's taxing, it's challenging, and honestly there are many better Jurassic Park games out there.
I like a lot of things this game does. I like the visual style, the atmospheric music, and all the dinosaur sound effects. I like the big levels and all the exploration. I like seeing different areas of the park. I liked the puzzles and how you have to use your head to get through this game.
But there is also a lot of stuff I did not like. The obscure level direction. The respawning enemies. The annoying insects that swarm you. Tedious things like collecting Lex and bringing her out of the sewer through a maze (with enemies attacking you) while pushing her on a raft. The game does begin to feel like a chore after a while. And the first person areas are a good concept but I can't say they are very fun to play through.
So I kinda like this game and I kinda don't. I think if I had to pick a direction it would be more on the like side. But barely. I was going to give this game a higher grade because A) It's Jurassic Park and B) I have such nostalgic memories for the game. But playing it in the present day, I have to say the game is remarkably average. My final score is going to reflect that.
THE GRADE:
C
This will now be the 7th Jurassic game I have reviewed. If you are looking for the six others, look no further!
For a complete index of all my past posts and game reviews, click
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