Jurassic Park Survival is a game that I have often glimpsed in my dreams since childhood. An interactive experience where instead of building theme parks or slaying dinosaurs from the comfort of an arcade cabinet, we’re thrust into the events of a fictional movie with few means of self-defense.
With velociraptors lurking in the kitchen approaching, prayers of stray ladles against the tile floor spelling your doom, or stepping out the famous gate to greet a bloodthirsty T-Rex is an inch away. Are not far, knowing that it is lacking. Movement and a bright flare may be the only way to revive it. The trailer for Saber Interactive’s upcoming adventure was mostly bits of horror-themed fan service from the original film, but does it exactly do a good job of selling the game, and why it already has me so excited? Is.
Creative Assembly most importantly, Survival immediately reminded me of Alien: Isolation from Creative Assembly. For years, I’ve been shouting from the rooftops that Jurassic Park is a perfect candidate for such a formula, swapping out unstoppable Xenomorphs for a range of dinosaurs capable of hunting you at every turn. With few means of fighting back, and possibly no training in handling firearms, you have no choice but to hide and outrun your smaller opponents while solving puzzles and figuring out how to escape. It won’t happen.
A game like this writes itself, and I’m very glad that Saber decided to take up the mantle even if the finished product doesn’t lean entirely toward survival horror. The official announcement describes it as an ‘action adventure’, so we’ll have weapons, or at least a solid chance to defend ourselves against hordes of dinosaurs. The trailer doesn’t play into that element, instead deciding to emphasize the loneliness (wow) and the anxiety of living alone on an island full of dinosaurs who want nothing more than to eat your ass.
The only glimpse of actual gameplay footage we get is at the end of the trailer as protagonist Dr. Maya Joshi is left behind on Isla Nublar moments after Alan Grant and friends manage to escape. The fallen dinosaur bones in the visitor center plaza show that the events we commemorated are long gone, leaving nothing but this soggy wet banner. Maya is also injured, clutching her side in pain as a wave of dinosaurs begins chasing her. Some may be curious, while others may have already marked him as a victim. It’s ripe with fan service but still has that classic Spielbergian sense of tension where you can’t help but hang on the edge of your seat. Hopefully, the real thing will deliver.
Survival is going to work on nostalgia appeals, though subverting the familiarity of a movie I’ve seen dozens of times may also serve as its greatest strength. An entire island filled with familiar landmarks and intelligent dinosaurs, you can treat ruined attractions to dead employees, scribbled notes, or chilling clues that point to a deeper narrative. Survival is our primary goal, but that won’t stop us from going to the park or moving slowly for fear of being seen.
No matter how much virtual tourism I allow myself, however, ultimately, I want to face situations where I can do everything I can to bravely stay away from an unknown threat. , aware that only one step in the wrong direction separates me from Him. Jaws of an apex predator. If it can combine that fear with a constant sense of dread and heaps of fanservice, we could see a lot more from Jurassic Park Survival than your typical licensed fare.
