Developer: Frontier Developments
Publisher: Frontier Developments
Genre: Simulation, Strategy, Management
Platform: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC (Reviewed)
Release date: 12 Jun, 2018
Find the game here:
Jurassic World Evolution is a strategic park building game brought to you by Frontier Developments, the team that created Planet Coaster and Rollercoaster Tycoon 3. Instead, this time you aren’t building a theme park, but you are building, managing and maintaining dinosaur enclosures and all the research and dangers that come with it. The more hardened Jurassic Park fans out there will remember the 2003 title, Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis, a title that sported very similar goals and features, but we have been blessed with a somewhat upgraded version 15 years on.
Let me start with the price for this title, as I feel like this needs to be addressed. £44.99 / €54.99 / $54.99 is an absolutely unacceptable price for this title. I simply don’t understand how they can value a game of this size alongside some AAA titles. I find it very unreasonable that a park building management game can cost this much, I know of at least 4 people personally that have not bought the game due to its excessive cost and are desperate to play the game, but they are willing to wait for a significant price drop.
To be honest, unless you’re an absolute dinosaur freak like I have been my whole life, then you too should hold-fire until this game at least drops to the £30 mark. Just a quick disclaimer, I am not changing my review score based on the cost of the game, the review score will be based on gameplay, user-experience, graphics, mechanics, content and other game relevant systems.
Now to the good stuff. Jurassic World Evolution has everything you expect from a park management game. You’ve got freedom with building placement, terrain modification, a comprehensive management system for profits and tasks as well as random events that keep you on your toes at all times.
The campaign is spread over a range of islands with varying tasks, landscapes that all offer a unique experience. Personally, I feel like the game could have included a dedicated sandbox mode, rather than an unlockable island in the campaign as well as a lot more content to make the park feel more like your own, they do often feel rather generic. But the variety in contracts makes up for that lack of variation.
Dinosaurs. There’s a lot of them. They are all exceptionally well implemented with fantastic models, an individual profile for each species that includes useful and factual information, in depth factors such as comfort requirements, a dinosaur rating which directly affects your park rating and visitor enjoyment.
Furthermore, you have various combat, lifespan, security and medical statistics which vary for each species as well as specific factors that are vital to your dinosaurs success within the park. For example, some dinosaurs like being in large groups but some are much more solitary, and it’s up to you to find the balance, otherwise you’ll end up with broken fences and the chaos that ensues.
The evolution part of the game feels a bit disappointing. For such a unique idea with so much potential it just seemed to fall short. In its current state, you have very limited options in terms of what evolutionary traits you can use. Don’t get me wrong, it works, but it just feels a little bit empty.
Apart from the very subtle skin changes, there are very few noticeable behavioural differences in the dinosaurs after you have mutated the genome. I would love to see more exaggerated effects on the dinosaurs themselves. I want to be able to see that my changes actually have a real impact on the game to make it worthwhile. I’m not talking about a velociraptor inheriting the unique spine from a Spinosaurus, although… It does sound kind of cool. Am I right?
The gameplay is very solid, the campaign tasks are focused on the factions within the park which are Science, Entertainment and Security. Although not necessary, it is a good idea to keep the faction progress in equilibrium otherwise you might find that someone tries to sabotage your park.
There is always plenty going on in the park, regardless of whether you just started, or have a well-established park. Due to the lack of buildings and visitor interactions that you would find in Planet Coaster and other similar titles, it appears to be very easy to make profit though, making the game feel rather tedious after a certain amount of time.
The features that are offered are great. As I mentioned earlier, they bought back all the great features from Operation Genesis. The fantastic fossil extraction system where you send a team around the globe in search of fossils in which you extract DNA and eventually, you are able to create the dinosaurs and release them into your park enclosure, or let the dinos loose and watch as they massacre thousands of visitors, the choice is yours.
Additionally, new features such as being able to pilot the helicopter and tranquilise a rogue dinosaur or you can hop in your jeep and cure diseased ones. These additions add a new dimension to this genre and you get to explore the park from an authentic point of view.
The graphics are beautiful, especially for a game of this genre. The dinosaurs are exceptionally well textured and fit seamlessly into the world. The weather systems are also stunning, the hurricanes sweep across the islands causing havoc on the park below, so make sure you get your guests in a security shelter. The lighting is great and the game has a sleek user-interface which makes navigating the many menus very easy and pleasant.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my first few days playing Jurassic World Evolution, I seem to be racking up my time played without feeling exhausted. It is such a shame about the price of the game and the seemingly missing content, but I hope that they will add more free content updates and help the game evolve… get it? Jurassic World *Evolution*... Evolve…
Ahh, forget it.
Jurassic World Evolution – 8.0 out of 10
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- Scorpio
i am just pissed off the fact its highly priced and that cqarnivores act like the indominus rex and will just kill for sport