PC Gamer

What’s wrong with learning about

tranquilliser darts while the park is

closed? If this theme park

management sim allowed me to fire

employees I would be shoving this

guy on the next helicopter out of the

Muertes Archipelago.

However, it does not.

Jurassic World

Evolution is in a tricky

spot. It’s a gorgeous

game in terms of how

the dinosaurs look, but

it’s beholden to the

movie franchise in

ways which disrupt

management sim play. I’m also many

hours in and really starting to chafe

against the game’s lack of depth in

multiple areas.

You begin your dino park

management career on Isla

Matanceros. You learn the core

patterns of the sim, so placing

buildings, making sure they’re

powered and connected to pathways

and then start to fulfil contracts that

gradually unlock more options.

Completing key missions opens

up new islands. Each island has its

own challenges, so on Matanceros

you get your bearings, Isla Muerta is

wracked by storms which can

damage buildings and release dinos,

Isla Tacaño’s park is bankrupt so you

must make the island profitable. By

contrast, Isla Nublar

• the setting for the
  original book and
  movie – is an unlimited
  sandbox area.
  You’ll research
  upgrades to buildings
  and genetic modifiers
  and medications for
  dinosaurs, digging for
  and analysing fossils to increase your
  genetic databank, and generally
  keeping an eye on the visitor
  experience in the park. You can move
  between islands at any time,
  augmenting older parks with new
  research and new dinos.
  Balancing out the Security guy
  who seems to hate security, you have
  an Entertainment sector and a
  Science division, each of whom can
  offer you their own contracts and
  thus fill your coffers. The three exist
  in an uneasy triangle so boosting a

relationship with one can tank the

opinion of another.

To paraphrase another ’90s movie

icon,Jurassic World Evolution is a

full-on Monet. It looks exactly right

at first glance, but the closer you look

the less well it holds up.

At first there’s a real sense of

wonder. The first time you see a

dinosaur get released is amazing.

Actually, that cinematic is always

amazing, as is watching the dinosaurs

loll about as they’re airlifted. I loved

watching them fight for the first time,

too (I thought the carnivore would

prioritise eating live goats over

another dino). The initial thrill was

also true of using a tranquiliser in a

first-person view or taking photos or

piloting the helicopter.

TAKING SIDES

The problem is that over time the

lack of variety in the game emerges.

With the bankrupt park, you simply

pick buildings to sell to get out of the

red. After that it’s building and

expanding as usual. Selling off

different assets altered the starting

difficulty a little bit but only in that I

needed to deal with longer waiting

periods until my money engine was

up and running.

The Entertainment, Science and

Security tension is a way to distil the

themes of the franchise but in

practice it feels bizarre. Pursuing a

faction too hard means you’re at risk

of sabotage from the others. I was

building up my Science reputation so

the Security team opened the gates

and let the dinos out. Another

scenario saw a faction give my dinos

avian flu. It trades one venal jerk –

Dennis Nedry – for three whole

factions of them.

Missions can also feel really

ham-fisted in trying to engineer

action. My Entertainment specialist

popped up with a $400,000 contract

to get one dinosaur to win two

combat victories. But this isn’t a

response to visitor boredom. You

don’t need to make them fight in

front of a viewing area, or at a

NEED TO KNOW

WHAT IS IT?

A dino-centric theme

park management sim.

EXPECT TO PAY

£45

DEVELOPER

Frontier Developments

PUBLISHER

In-house

REVIEWED ON

Core i7-5820k, 16GB

RAM, GTX 970,

Windows 10

MULTIPLAYER

None

LINK

http://www.jurassicworld

evolution.com

The first time

you see a

dinosaur get

released is

amazing

M

y Security advisor in Jurassic World Evolution has

offered me a contract. I can improve my standing with

the Security team by breeding a velociraptor. This

sounds pretty ill-advised. Even more ill-advised is his

demand that I breed it to have a genetic modification

that makes it even more aggressive. By the way, this is the same Security

guy who wanted to test the park’s security system by letting a dinosaur

loose in a park full of visitors because the game had decided to teach me

about tranquiliser darts.

SCALE MODELS

JURASSIC WORLD EVOLUTION looks gorgeous

but lacks bite. By Philippa Warr

THE LIFE OF PIP How one magnificent dino lived and died

2

Pip immediately

picked a fight with the

bigger dinosaurs then ran

away, terrified.

3

Pip then became

terrified of drinking

near the bigger dinosaurs

so I had to relocate them.

4

Pip contracted

hookworms and

died of old age in the

middle of a lake.

1

Realising you can name

dinosaurs led to this

plucky Dilophosaurus

named Pip.

Jurassic World Evolution

REVIEW