Jurassic World Aftermath

Jurassic World Aftermath is a 2020 virtual reality stealth game for the Oculus Quest and Oculus Quest 2. It is based on the Jurassic Park franchise.[1] It was developed by Coatsink Software and published by Oculus Studios. It takes place on the island of Isla Nublar, two years after the events of the 2015 film Jurassic World. For much of the game, the player is hunted by velociraptors while proceeding through a facility on the island.

Jurassic World Aftermath
Developer(s)Coatsink Software
Publisher(s)Oculus Studios
SeriesJurassic Park
Platform(s)Oculus Quest
Oculus Quest 2
Release
  • NA: December 17, 2020
Genre(s)Stealth

Coatsink Software is planning a continuation in the form of paid downloadable content (DLC), scheduled for release in 2021.[2][3]

Gameplay

Jurassic World Aftermath is a stealth game played from a first-person perspective.[4] It takes place on Isla Nublar, two years after the events of Jurassic World,[5][6] and prior to the events of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.[7] The player takes control of Sam, a silent security expert who is sent to the island to infiltrate its ruins and obtain information. His plane crashes on the island after an encounter with a Pteranodon.[1][2][7] The player is aided by an offscreen partner named Dr. Mia Everett (voiced by Laura Bailey),[2] who is injured following the plane crash and stays behind.[8][9] From her location, she provides the player with mission objectives and updates.[2]

For much of the game, the player moves through a facility while being hunted by velociraptors, the primary enemies. The player must use stealth and distractions to avoid the raptors, who can be lured away with the use of an alarm or radio.[1][2][7] Two other dinosaurs, Dilophosaurus and Tyrannosaurus, also briefly appear as enemies.[4] The player cannot fight against any of the animals and must instead avoid them.[9][10] Sound is emphasized in the game, as listening to the environment is often necessary to proceed with success. Running creates noise which can attract the raptors, making slow movements necessary.[2] Minigames and puzzle-solving also make up aspects of the gameplay.[4][9][11] The island's facility has doors leading into five different areas, and a switch must be activated to access each area. The final two areas are absent from the game and will be included in the DLC.[10]

Development and release

In April 2020, Universal Studios registered a trademark for a future video game to be known Jurassic World Aftermath.[12][13] The game was officially announced in September 2020.[5] It was developed by the U.K. company Coatsink Software.[14] The game was published by Oculus Studios, and was released on December 17, 2020.[15][16]

The game is reminiscent of a scene in the first Jurassic Park film, in which characters use stealth to avoid raptors in a kitchen.[1][2][7] Brian Gomez, an executive producer for Universal Games and Digital Platforms, said, "There were countless hours spent trying to balance the velociraptor because she was just so damn good. AI really [progressed] to the point where it was very few of us that could actually survive her. And I think we finally got to the point where, when you first start, you're probably going to die a lot. You're going to die a lot until you start learning her behavior and … reading her body language and audio cues."[2]

The game uses cel-shaded animation,[7] similar in appearance to a comic book. This was done in order to produce dinosaurs with a less-threatening appearance, in an effort to appeal to a wider audience. Gomez said, "We wanted it to still be scary and affecting and immersive, even if it wasn't filmic — like photo-realism. But we also didn't want it to be so intimidating and so scary … [for] a huge portion of the Jurassic audience that doesn't want a totally visceral R-rated horror experience."[2] Jeff Goldblum and BD Wong recorded dialogue for the game, briefly reprising their roles as Dr. Ian Malcolm and Dr. Henry Wu. The characters are heard, but do not make a physical appearance.[2][7][11]

Reception

Critics stated that the game would appeal to fans of the Jurassic Park franchise.[4][10][11][17] The graphics and sound were generally praised.[4][9][10][11][17][18] Harry Baker of UploadVR wrote, "Despite not being photo realistic, there's something about the comic book-inspired look that almost helps immersion — instead of being hung up on how everything looks compared to reality, you're immediately immersed in a terrifying comic book world littered with dinosaurs."[11] Eric Hillery of Bleeding Cool wrote that the graphics are "more than enough to make the idea of being eaten or jump-scared downright unpleasant, but without bringing the type of gore that some users might find traumatizing."[18]

Ethan Anderton of /Film was critical of the cel-shaded animation, calling it his only major disappointment with the game. He concluded that while he would prefer "a little more variety in the puzzle gameplay as the story progresses and gets more challenging, it's the thrill of being hunted on the abandoned property of Jurassic World that makes this virtual reality experience a solid experience."[8] Nicholas Sutrich of Android Central called it "the Jurassic game I've always wanted to play", praising the simplicity of the gameplay and story. However, he criticized the AI, stating that the raptors mostly behave like guards patrolling an area, rather than the intelligent animals depicted in the films.[17]

Alex Perry of Mashable opined that the game's premise of sneaking past raptors was "irritating and tedious", and stated that the game "harkens back to an archaic era of stealth game design where detection means failure". Perry concluded that the kitchen scene in the first film "is a classic, to be sure, but it doesn't work as the basis for an entire video game. Only the most devoted Jurassic Park-heads should go anywhere near this game."[4] Baker also found the gameplay to be repetitive.[11] Eric Switzer of TheGamer praised the stealth gameplay and compared it to Alien: Isolation, while writing that Aftermath "engages your body better than any other non-workout VR game I've played."[10]

Francesco Destri, writing for IGN Italia, praised the game for its tension and variety of gameplay.[9] Benjamin Bullard of Syfy Wire stated that the game has an appropriate level of anxiety like the films, and wrote, "It's fun to feel that first 'gotcha' fright of being snuffed out by a clever raptor, though the brutal difficulty of escaping, once you've been spotted, means you'll be setting out from a previous checkpoint more than once." He concluded that the game is "half a day well spent…so long as you don't mind a good cliffhanger".[19]

Hillery considered the game too short, at approximately three hours.[18] Some reviewers criticized objects throughout the game that are not interactive.[9][17] Others complained of the game's abrupt ending and the need to purchase DLC.[3][9][11][15][17] Baker stated that the game felt "rushed, repetitive and oddly-paced" because of the ending, and wrote that "it does feel like this game was originally meant to release as one whole portion, not two."[11]

References
  1. Sheridan, Connor (December 16, 2020). "Jurassic World Aftermath is basically a "raptor in the kitchen" simulator and it's out Thursday". GamesRadar. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  2. Volpe, Joseph (December 16, 2020). "'Jurassic World Aftermath' lets you play VR hide-and-seek with a cartoon velociraptor". Mashable. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  3. Switzer, Eric (December 20, 2020). "Facebook Is Being Dishonest About These Unfinished VR Games". TheGamer. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  4. Perry, Alex (December 17, 2020). "'Jurassic World Aftermath' shows VR doesn't make a bad game good". Mashable. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  5. Squires, John (September 16, 2020). "VR Experience 'Jurassic World Aftermath' Brings Dino Terror to the Oculus Quest". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  6. Denzer, TJ (September 16, 2020). "Jurassic World Aftermath VR will put you up against deadly dinos on Oculus Quest". Shacknews. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  7. Anderton, Ethan (December 17, 2020). "'Jurassic World Aftermath' Trailer: This VR Game Will Have You Hiding from Velociraptors". /Film. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  8. Anderton, Ethan (December 17, 2020). "'Jurassic World Aftermath' Review: This Hair-Raising Stealth Game Keeps You on Edge But Needs More Variety". /Film. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  9. Destri, Francesco (December 21, 2020). "Jurassic World Aftermath – Recensione". IGN Italia (in Italian). Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  10. Switzer, Eric (December 21, 2020). "Jurassic World Aftermath Review: Stealth VR Done (Almost) Right". TheGamer. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  11. Baker, Harry (December 23, 2020). "Jurassic World Aftermath Review: Satisfying Stealth Falls Short". UploadVR. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  12. Sheridan, Connor (April 21, 2020). "Jurassic World Aftermath could be the next Jurassic Park game". GamesRadar. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  13. Bailey, Dustin (April 22, 2020). "Plans for a Jurassic World Aftermath game leak in trademark filings". PCGamesN. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  14. Skrebels, Joe (October 5, 2020). "Thunderful Group Acquires Jurassic World Aftermath Developer". IGN. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  15. Feltham, Jamie (December 20, 2020). "Quest Is Hiding Unfinished Games In Its Holiday Content Push". UploadVR. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  16. Metz, Axel (December 18, 2020). "Jurassic World: Aftermath brings stealthy dino horror to Oculus Quest 2". TechRadar. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  17. Sutrich, Nicholas (January 5, 2021). "Jurassic World Aftermath review: Making dinosaurs terrifying again". Android Central. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  18. Hillery, Eric (December 24, 2020). "Life Continues To Find A Way In VR's Jurassic World: Aftermath". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  19. Bullard, Benjamin (December 18, 2020). "The Week in Gaming: Milla Jovovich on her 'embarrassing' favorite game; Jurassic World Oculus hands-on; & more". Syfy Wire. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
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