Jurassic Park Interactive

Jurassic Park has become a reality on your 3DO. This action intensive game has you taking control of the many systems in this theme park of the future. Unfortunately for you, the computer systems are messed up and a bunch of the visitors are trapped around Isla Nubar--the island you are on. So what you have to do is try to rescue the many people. Some of the zones will require you to drive the jeep with the Tyrannosaurus on your tail. With rain pouring down and a lot of hairpin curves, this one is very nasty. Another has you working your way to one of the people, while Dilophosaurs spit at you. Taser them, or you'll end up being dino chow!

This is the title that all 3DO owners should look forward to. It's an experience that will put you right into the movies. Look for for news in upcoming issues of EGM!

High tech meets high concept in Jurassic Park Interactive. You may think you've seen it or played it jilready, but this version is Brand new for 3DO.

Dinosaurs on Disc

The game is designed by Universal Interactive Studios under the auspices of moviemaker extraordinaire Steven Spielberg himself! Because of the Universal-Spielberg connection, 3DO dinosaur hunters will be treated to 25 minutes of footage from the hit movie. Rather than the real actors, however, you'll try to guide 12 decent look-alikes who stand in for film characters such as Alan Grant. Ellie Statler, and even the villainous Dennis Nedry.

Of course, there'll be dinosaurs galore. The main game will feature three types of first-person-perspective game play based on the film. You'll try to drive away from the terrifying Tyrannosaurus rex as he snaps his sixinch incisors in your rearview mirror. Youl! peer over the barrel of an electric taserto zap a pack of hungry Dilophosaurs (a.k.a. Spitters, a la Escape from Monster Manor). Finally, you'll match wits in a creepy game of hide-and-seek with the voracious Velociraptors.

Prehistoric beasts won4 be the only fossils present. For a change of pace, look for dinosaur-starring versions of Space Invaders, Breakout, and GalaKians! (If you don't remember those classics,.ohhhh, young!)

Movie Monsters

The 'saurs are the stars. This time, you'll try not to become extinct.

Some titles like Star Wars and Alien are just hard to screw up because of the licensing behind them. Jurassic Park was such a monstrous hit that even the Came Gear version had some punch behind it. This 3DO version features average graphics and great sound, but it's missing a crucial genetic link that would've put it ahead of the rest.

Book 'Em, Dino

One great thing about the Jurassic Park games is that every version is different. The Genesis version is a side scroller, the SNES version plays almost like an RPG, and the Sega CD version is thoughtful and informative. Along comes the 3DO version, which tries to be all these things at once but fails to capture the spirit of the movie.

You must help the stranded victims on the island (Dr. Grant, Ellie Sattler, Dr. Hammond, and the rest) reach the Heliport. To do so, you have to brave a car chase with a T. rex, nail some Spitters, and trap some Raptors. All in a day's work.

You also have to get through Dennis Nedry's computer system. To leap that hurdle, you have to play through a gallery of classic arcade games, all with a dinosaur twist. Calaga, Space Invaders, Breakout, and Asteroids are all represented here.

Every time you get a certain amount of points, you move on to the next security level. You'll need the security clearance later on in the game.

The game plays like Jurassic chess. You use the Park map to locate certain members, then you move them closer and closer to the Heliport, one area at a time. So if Dr. Grant is at one end of the Park and there are three stops in front of him (like the Rest Rooms, the Visitor Center, and the Maintenance Shed), you must play three different games to get him from Point A to Point B. If you fail in any part of the process, your human cargo becomes T. rex twinkies...not a very pleasant thought.

With standard, easy controls, the only thing you do is point, shoot, and steer. If you can't handle that, you may need more than a group of paleontologists to help you.

Ex-Stink Graphics

C'mon, people! This is a 3DO machine! Supposedly the best in sound and graphics, right? And at that price, you shouldn't expect anything less. The graphics in JPI, to put it delicately, bite the big one, and I don't mean the T. rex. There are no moving digitized images of the dinosaurs, except for the cheesy Velociraptor that springs out at you in the Pen level (and you see it for all of four seconds). The digitized video of the actors (not the real ones from the movie, but stand-ins) only shows them doing one thing: running. Maybe that's what you should do when you see this game.

The access time in this game is so long, you'll think you're extinct before anything actually happens. A Tricer-atops could run the 40-yard dash before the screen fades from black to action.

At least the sound is top-notch. Every fully orchestrated nuance of John Williams's score is present in the opening sequence, and the prehistoric rumblings and roarings are felt from around every corner.

When the Spit Hits The Fan

Nothing else in Jurassic Park Interactive reaches the stellar quality of the music. The rest of the game is filled with boring driving-and-shooting sequences. For such a great licensing title, someone should have come up with a better game.

It's a sad indication when the designer's credits (see screens above) are the most exciting part of the game, especially when you're dealing with a Steven Spielberg product. But then again, look what happened with FT for the Atari 2600. Although this game doesn't quite sink to the depths of that cart, it does spell a sad decline in the great tradition of Jurassic Park titles.