Jurassic Park The Game: Review thread - post your impressions here!

[SeanJP]

funny, i have the game and i have replayed it like five times, i am exploring the dialouge especially at the boneshaker between jess and nima, it cracks me up like every time

[bloodkiller630]

Originally Posted by SeanJP

funny, i have the game and i have replayed it like five times, i am exploring the dialouge especially at the boneshaker between jess and nima, it cracks me up like every time

oh when jess is starting to act like a bitch lol, when she says something like i am not going to push it you push it

[Fiarel]

THANK YOU so much for your work. It is very exciting to go back and relive all the feelings that i used to feel many years ago when watched jurrasic park for the very first time, and no words can express it. You did the great, magnificent work, you made a real JP sequel on a high quality level, you brought new features and yet fully saved the original atmosphere. I am not Crichton or Spielberg to say it, but as a jp-fan tottally can tell that you brought an equal part to the juassic park world. Its just EPIC.

[vorna]

I've been debating whether to post this here or not, since this is bound to be somewhat incendiary, but - I think Jurassic Park was the first real miss for Telltale from all the games I've played from the studio (I missed the early CSI game and Bone, so can't comment on them).

I wrote a blog post where I tried to address some of the problems in the game: Telltale’s Jurassic Park – Press Up, Up, Left, Down For A New Cutscene

Before you light your flamethrowers, a few words: I'm a thirtysomething gamer, I've been a gamer since the 80's and I have over a decade in game journalism - so far I've been a big fan of Telltale's episodic approach and games, and I've given the games pretty good reviews, but I genuinely think that this one should've had its game mechanics rethought.

Hands off the flamethrower trigger for a second more: this is the opinion of one dude, who doesn't offer it as an objective truth, just a viewpoint of someone who has quite a lot of mileage with games.

[Vainamoinen]

Very welcome, but belongs in the review thread nonetheless.

[vorna]

Originally Posted by Vainamoinen

Very welcome, but belongs in the review thread nonetheless.

Damn, sorry - feel free to move the message if the board tools allow it, I can copy/paste it too if need be.

[usnusa2003]

Originally Posted by Fiarel

THANK YOU so much for your work. It is very exciting to go back and relive all the feelings that i used to feel many years ago when watched jurrasic park for the very first time, and no words can express it. You did the great, magnificent work, you made a real JP sequel on a high quality level, you brought new features and yet fully saved the original atmosphere. I am not Crichton or Spielberg to say it, but as a jp-fan tottally can tell that you brought an equal part to the juassic park world. Its just EPIC.

hahahahaha...thanks for the laugh man !!! It is finals week coming up. I needed that

[julesimanerd]

http://www.g4tv.com/games/xbox-360/6...e-game/review/

[Faceslasher]

Originally Posted by usnusa2003

hahahahaha...thanks for the laugh man !!! It is finals week coming up. I needed that

RESPECT OPINIONS.

Seriously all you have done is been an ass to people who liked the game. Just like I have been to people who hated the game.

[corruptbiggins]

Originally Posted by Faceslasher

RESPECT OPINIONS.

I think I might need to get my glasses checked because I initially read that as RESPECT ONIONS. Anyway, this has nothing to do with this thread so carry on.

[SeanJP]

Originally Posted by bloodkiller630

oh when jess is starting to act like a bitch lol, when she says something like i am not going to push it you push it

yeah that is the best ahahahha

[Mineral]

Played up to episode 3 of the Xbox version and plan to start episode 4 tonight.

So far I like it, the story is nice and the gameplay is okay. The only thing I'm really disappointed about is the sound bugs in the game. It feels like they didn't really test it for long before releasing the final version.

I also encountered another bug when the characters where walking in the tunnel in episode 3, they moved very weirdly. Well at least it looked like a bug to me ...

[Snugglecakes]

Originally Posted by Sinncrow

For your information, I play many great games like, oh idk, maybe Halo? Operation Genesis? Assassins Creed? Must I go on?

Not at all. Great games.

Originally Posted by Sinncrow

The point is I gave the GAMEPLAY 8.5/10, not the puzzles. The puzzles were about a 6.5/10; it's clear you are a moron who does not take the time to read any thing of what I had to say, and you come from a biased point of view of "it's not a shooter, so it sucks".

I don't like shooters. I haven't played a shooter since Wolfenstein3D. I think they're stupid & boring. Awesome deduction you've made there buddy.

I just honestly can't understand how you can give it 8.5 (call it whatever you want, gameplay then, fine, there isn't any). And 6.5 for puzzles? Ok... but I'm thinking 0.

For me it feels more like an educational title for 3 year-olds. Press the button the screen tells you to press. If you like that kind of thing, cool, but I find it a lot more pleasant to go on youtube to watch this "game" and then go play an actual game. Like Halo. Or Assasin's Creed. Or anything made by Telltale before this. There are budget titles available in your local store's bargain bin that have hundreds of times the involvement and gameplay offered by this total disaster.

The graphics are fine, sound is cool, I like the story, I love the world they've created. Just imagine how good it would be if they ever made a game out of it.

Originally Posted by Sinncrow

Do everyone a favor, and stop trolling, or AT LEAST have more back up to ur opinion than "ur an idiot"

I'm not trolling and I certainly don't remember calling anybody an idiot. I also didn't call anyone a moron or make ridiculous emotionally-fueled false accusations about someone based on absolutely no information. That's all your doing friend.

[REDSLATE]

It's odd that anyone who doesn't agree with the majority opinion is instantly labeled a "troll." If you enjoyed the game, great. In my opinion, it was terrible.

There was nearly no game play which is ironic for something labeled The Game. This "game" feels like is was intended to be released as an animated movie, but had random button "interactions" thrown in. I wouldn't recommend this product.

[Faceslasher]

Holy sweet mother of raptor jesus, I just got my Deluxe Edition Package.

Should I take some unboxing pictures?

[REDSLATE]

Originally Posted by Faceslasher

I just got my Deluxe Edition Package.

Same here.

Not sure if I should keep it or resell it. These Extras are probably the only good thing about the game...

[Lurdiak]

I got this game on sale and I feel so ripped off. I've never been disappointed by a telltale game before, at least not in any way that matters. I bought this game blind because I felt a Telltale game about Jurassic Park couldn't possibly miss. Holy shit was I wrong.

First of all, I find it really strange and off-putting that (so far) I'm stuck playing as these nobody made-up characters in a sidestory of the first movie. They're pretty terrible characters in their own rights, especially the security guard father who completely rips off Jeff Goldblum's character arc in the second film (being a divorced father who's trying to reconnect with his daughter amid dino danger) but isn't nearly as interesting or charming as Ian Malcolm was in either film.

I just about gave up hope that this story would get interesting when I saw the helicopter fly off in the background, you know, the one with all the main characters on it. What is this? Seriously! This is like if the Back to the Future game starred Marty's classmates that we've never seen before, and neither Marty nor Doc Brown were in it. Was it a copyright issue? I know the main appeal of Jurassic Park is the dinosaurs, but I was kind of expecting to see at least one of the characters from the films. So far all I've seen is Nedry's corpse.

I don't care at all about the stereotypical south american badass woman or the little girl and especially not Mr. Not-Goldblum. It's hard to tell if the writing is truly bad or if I'm just annoyed by these lackluster un-engaging characters. I keep thinking about how incredibly stupid the security guard is for not having realized the entire island's security is offline yet after he sees a T-rex fight a triceratops in the middle of the road.

But my main complaint is the gameplay. I was instantly disappointed with the QTE based gameplay as soon as the game started. When I heard JP was going to be more action oriented when it was originally announced, I thought it'd mean we'd get a traditional point and click game with several action mini-games. Things like the car chase in that first Sam and Max episode of season 1. Instead I get neither classic point and click mechanics or any action gameplay. I don't feel like I have any input at all in this game. During the so called action sequences, I'm just watching a pre-rendered cutscene that can end at any moment if I don't mash a directional key fast enough. I don't control anything other than a pass-fail. This game is almost entirely cutscene after cutscene, and making me hit arrows to make sure the cutscene doesn't end and restart doesn't make it gameplay.

This game is supposed to be cinematic? Please. Those scenes have more advanced graphic rendering than the average telltale game, but by no means is it anywhere near as good-looking as a real movie would be, CGI cartoon or live-action. And even if the game really did look as good as it thinks it does, all the button prompts I have to focus on make it difficult for me to really enjoy any of the action going on or appreciate any of the visuals.

But my annoyance with the horrible gameplay goes even further than cutscene after cutscene chained together with boring button-mashing. The investigation sequences are even more awful. I can't make my character wander around or really interact with the environment. All I can do is choose which of 4 camera angles to look at a particular environment from, and then I have to move the camera (not the character, heaven forbid) around until some stupid icons flash. Then I have to interact with each icon one after the other until I find one that makes the story of the scene progress. Again, I understand this stupid garbage is meant to make the game progress in a more linear cinematic way than a monkey island, actually fun, classic telltale point and click would, but all it does is turn what should be a GAME into a movie that I have to keep mashing buttons to keep watching.

The loss of freedom simply isn't worth whatever dubious benefit this tightly controlled narrative is supposed to give. If someone was injured in a good telltale game, I would look around the area for things I need to heal her, and I'd get to examine various things in the area. I could also probably talk to an NPC about various things, and some of his statements would give me hints to what I need to be looking for or where I should look. In this game I get stuck in a dumb pre-set camera angle where I have to click on the only two interactable items in the shot and then I have to press a series of buttons to make what should be automatic actions occur, and then I have to match some moving circles together. It's not rewarding. I don't feel like I solved a puzzle: I feel like I've slapped the side of my VCR a few times to keep the movie going.

I can understand the appeal of QTE-based gameplay for people who don't feel they can create a fun action-packed game: it lets you script and render complicated action sequences without making them part of gameplay, without having to test the thousands of variables that can go wrong with something like a complicated combo-based brawler or expansive platformer, and making them a QTE instead of simply a cutscene keeps the player engaged instead of just sitting there watching. But it simply doesn't work. It's a lazy shortcut that ignores the strengths of a video game and turns them into movies that you can fail at watching. If you can't put real action in your games, then don't put action in your games at all. Stick to what you're good at, instead of trying and failing to be a movie. Movies will always be better at being movies than games.

Lastly, I don't think it's a coincidence that this game is sold as one giant game instead of being doled out in episodes like so many of telltale's other offerings. They knew this game was bad and that chapter 1 wouldn't be good enough to get anyone to buy the rest. That's some sleazy marketing tactics. Well, it worked, Telltale. You got my money. But I'll never blind buy a Telltale product again. I'll never get excited for something you make before I see the gameplay in action. I'll never assume it's good news that you got your hands on a property I like. With this soulless, boring, badly-written, overhyped and non-interactive offering, you've lost my trust. I won't claim I'll never buy a game you make again, because I'll buy any game if it looks fun, but you've lost my loyalty as a customer.

[Valsodar]

Time to add my opinion to the pile because I really feel like this game has gotten an unfair shake for the most part.

Let me start off by saying that as a gamer I have somewhat different standards than most people. To me IT'S ALL ABOUT GAMEPLAY, if a game has an engaging plot, if it hooks me narratively or via an intriguing mechanic, it could be Crysis or it could be Return to Zork. I'll play both happily and get as much enjoyment out of a game with high end graphics as the game with...well, no graphics. That being said unlike most companies who invest primarily in making games shiny rather than gripping, (in my opinion) Telltale has never ever disappointed me in the story department, and they've kept to their usual high standard with JP.

Now I will admit to being a pretty big Jurassic Park fan, but not since Halflife II has a game kept me on the edge of my seat so much.

I found myself yelling at the characters that they must go faster, kicking myself for not executing a QTE properly dying to the raptors in the tunnels 20 times, and enjoying every second of it. The game brought me into the atmosphere of the movie perfectly.

Like everyone else I encountered a few bugs, the mouse pointer disappeared during an exploration scene and I had to restart that scene, when I did the pointer came back. The game was also a bit laggy at first, but I disabled the Afterefects and everything ran smoothly from then on. Sure the game is marginally less spectacular without them, but honestly I'm usually too busy dodging dinos to notice. After I ironed out these relatively minor issues, the game gave me nothing but smooth sailing.

Graphically Telltale has done really amazing work with fairly limited tools. Jurassic Park may not hold a candle to the new Elder Scrolls for example, but it certainly did not have that games MASSIVE Budget (I've heard estimates as high as $100 Million)

and there are good points to being austere with a games graphics as well. I can play JP on my tricked out gaming computer and then hop over to my 2006 Macbook pro laptop and keep right on going. In this way Telltale, like many MMO publishers has ensured itself a broad market. You don't need a machine forged from a 2001 Space Odyssey Monolith by the Dwarves of Middle Earth, to run this game and that's just fine by me.

As mentioned by others, a lot of people are trying to define this game as an adventure game in Telltales usual style. This is a mistake, but it's also a mistake to assume that this is something new.

What we have here is a revival of a genre that had it's heyday in the mid 90's. The interactive movie.

(7th Guest, Phantasmagoria, Star Wars: Rebel Assault II, Star Trek: Borg..etc etc)

I loved all of these games and adored the interactive movie concept, anyone whose ever read a chose your own adventure book knows where I'm coming from. To this end Telltale has executed its purpose flawlessly. I felt like I was watching an exciting new chapter in the Jurassic Park saga, but this time it was up to me how things turned out, and if I wasn't on my toes nearly every second things could turn out badly indeed.

I know not everyone is a fan of this, and to many people it seems monotonous, I don't really know what to say to those people except that I'm sorry you didn't realize what you were getting.

My only major complaint is, like so many others I WANT MORE. I played through all four episodes in a few hours and am likely to replay them again to see if I can get gold medal ratings on everything/ explore the dialogue trees

(unfortunate not cool sentient alien plant things)

But I'm used to TellTale giving us games in batches of 5 and felt a little gipped to get just four. Here is one gamer hoping for a sequel, and one gamer whose going to be coming back to TTG to pick up more titles as they come.

[Vainamoinen]

Sorry that these last two reviews appear a little later than they were originally posted. Seems like the automoderation on this forum is really picky when it comes to the combination new members + long posts. Got to teach that one some manners.

[jpark_08]

Originally Posted by Valsodar

....I don't really know what to say to those people except that I'm sorry you didn't realize what you were getting.

This is such a lazy defense for Telltale. It's been clear from the beginning what type of game we were getting. It was advertised as a plot driven, "choose you own adventure" QTE type gameplay, and so that's what fans expected.

The overwhelming dissapointment is coming from the execution of these elements, not the elements themselves. The writing and characterization is lackluster, the story adventure linear, puzzles non-existant, and the QTE gameplay is distracting and unresponsive. Fans knew what to expect, the problem is that Telltale didn't deliver.