Review Oddkins 4/5 · Jan 28, 2013
The precursor and competitor to Half-Life that never really... was. This, my friends, is the game that lost the race.
Here was a game so ambitious, that it imploded inside of itself. If Half-Life was a coin, what you would find on the other side of that coin would not comparatively be a terrible game per-say. It would be Jurassic …
The precursor and competitor to Half-Life that never really... was. This, my friends, is the game that lost the race.
Here was a game so ambitious, that it imploded inside of itself. If Half-Life was a coin, what you would find on the other side of that coin would not comparatively be a terrible game per-say. It would be Jurassic Park: Trespasser. Like me, if you had played the demo on a PC-Gamer disc... you probably where excited for this one to come out. That demo showed much promise and I don't think it actually made it into the final game for some odd reason.
Released just about a month before the afformentioned Half-Life, it strived to do a great many things different in the FPS genre in general and I would argue that it actually accomplished these things. Some terribly, some actually on the verge of brilliance, but in the end just simply wayyy too ahead of their time. Trying to control Trespasser is like what I would imagine flying a jet airplane with a typewriter duct-taped to one hand and having a single, thick winter mitt on the other - and that hand is in the process of being frozen and on the verge of attracting severe frost bite - would be like. In fact these controls, not unlike the game itself, are both literally and hilariously awful... but somehow glorious and trailblazing at the same time. In fact I'ma leave it there I think.
Jurassic Park Trespasser is Hilarious and Awful. But Trailblazing and Fantastic. I loved it. What else can you expect from a game that sticks the health bar on the viewable breasts of the First Person Character in the form of a tattoo? I cannot wait until GOG releases it again.
Best Traits:
- Physics that where practically on par with those of Half-Life 2 at the time (Adjusted for inflation). Albeit with a tremendous amount of bugs and odd occurrences.
- Truly atmospheric and lonely. It definitely captured the essence of the film in an unconscious sort of a way.
- Intriguing level design.
- Almost felt like playing a zombie game, where you are the only survivor. Similar in fact to Minecraft, now that I think of it.