PLATFORM: PC, PS4, SWITCH (REVIEWED), XBOX ONE | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Ever fancied running your own dinosaur theme park? Jurassic World Evolution gives you the chance to do exactly that, taking familiar simulation mechanics from games like Sim City and Theme Park and wrapping them all up in a dino-themed package. Two years after its original release on PC and home consoles, the Complete Edition – containing all previously-released DLC – is now available on the Switch, marking the game’s first foray into the (semi) portable / handheld market.
In a nutshell, JWE‘s story modes give you the job of park manager and ask you to take care of the day to day running of several different islands. Balancing missions based around science, entertainment and security, you’ll be building new attractions (visitor platforms, shops, Gyrosphere tracks and so on), researching technology and sending teams off on expeditions to acquire dino DNA in order to incubate increasingly impressive dinosaurs, travelling around the park by jeep and / or helicopter and generally improving your overall rating to encourage more customers to visit the park. The mission-based structure allows the game to throw some rather exciting set-pieces into the mix, which makes progression feel a lot more engaging than it might otherwise have been if it was a straightforward park-building simulator, and the ability to jump into a vehicle at any time to see the fruits of your labours up close makes for a really pleasing and engaging distraction.
It’s not the easiest of games to get started with, though. There are a lot of menus to get your head around, some of the more intricate mechanics go a lot deeper than you initially expect and some things aren’t explained quite as well as you might like, so a fair bit of concentration is needed, especially in the opening hours. It can take a little while to get used to everything, but it’ll all make sense in the end!
JWE‘s controls work well, with camera and movement bound to the thumbsticks and triggers and the D-pad taking care of the item placement menu. It’s a shame that touchscreen controls aren’t included for handheld users, but perhaps that might be something for a future update. Although, it has to be said, JWE definitely performs much better when docked (the graphics in handheld mode are pretty fuzzy and blurry), so portable use might not be a priority for many JWE players… On the big screen, though, it’s pretty delightful. Just watching your dinosaurs wander around is entertaining enough (there are almost 70 available, all with their own stats, skins and temperaments), but if you slip up and accidentally put a meat-eater in with a carnivore, or leave a gate open, the ensuing carnage can be both heartbreaking and thrilling in equal measure!
Fans of the films will be pleased with the inclusion of many familiar characters, several of which are voiced by their big-screen counterparts. Bryce Dallas Howard reprises her role as Claire Dearing, and BD Wong appears as Dr. Wu, but the most notable inclusions are a few members of the original Jurassic Park trilogy – Jeff Goldblum narrates the opening scenes and pops up throughout the game to offer useful advice and typically whimiscal Goldblumian (yeah, it’s a word) asides, and Sam Neill and Laura Dern turn up as Alan Grant and Ellie Satler.
Despite lacking in the portable performance department, Jurassic World Evolution: Complete Edition offers a huge amount of content, making it a supremely attractive proposition. There are three different story campaigns, a challenge mode, and a sandbox mode which removes the missions and objectives found in the campaign, allowing you to sit back and create the park of your dreams without worrying about completing any specific tasks. The price of admission is admittedly rather steep but, if a dino-themed world-building simulator sounds like your sort of thing, you’ll definitely get your money’s worth.
