Video Games

Jurassic Park III: Dino Defender (PC)

Jurassic Park III: Dino Defender is a side-scrolling video game developed and published by Knowledge Adventure in 2001. It is available exclusively on the PC.

Plot You control a player depicted as a person in a bio-mechanical suit, hired by InGen/Jurassic Park to bring back power to the electrified fences and capture all the free-roaming dinosaurs. Gameplay The game consists of six levels with fast-paced quick thinking challenges. You must move around obstacles and find supply boxes, as well as switch on circuit breakers while avoiding dinosaurs. Supply boxes containing nets, tranquilizers or a distractor flare are dropped by Helicopters throughout levels. “Call boxes” can be used to attract dinosaurs in order to capture them. “Circuit breakers” are also scattered around the island and can be switched on to activate the island’s electricity.

Some levels involve underwater swimming and while the player is underwater a “air” gauge appears and slowly decreases the longer you stay underwater. If you do not resurface before this runs out then the player will die. If you complete the game you are awarded with printable trading cards which show the dinosaurs that you have captured through the game.

Jurassic Park III: Danger Zone! (PC)

Danger Zone! is a video game developed and published by Knowledge Adventure in 2001. It was available exclusively for the PC.

Plot The game consists of the player or players moving around a virtual board game map, completing missions along the way. InGen’s supply of dinosaur DNA is nearly destroyed after an earthquake hits Isla Nublar. You play as a Dino Defender who heads into the park to retrieve new DNA samples. Gameplay The game can be played as either single player or a multiplayer option. The Dino Defender Chief (from the previous game) returns and voices the narration to guide you through the game.

There are also recycled cutscenes, menu designs, animations and audio from Dino Defender present in this game. Tokens are Ford Explorers from Jurassic Park and can seat two players. You must collect four DNA samples from a dinosaur chosen at the start of the game, and dinosaur include Tyrannosaurus Rex, Spinosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Compsognathus, Velociraptor and Stegosaurus. You can buy items to use as weapons against dinosaurs.

The game includes a number of mini-games which are usually side-scrollers featuring the armoured character that you play as in Dino Defender. “Raging Raptors” is another mini-game that involved the player controlling and Velociraptor and fighting against another one. When the player has filled the “DNA meter” with the DNA of the chosen dinosaur, the creature is then cloned and the player wins the game.

Scan Command: Jurassic Park (PC)

Scan Command is a fighting/strategy video game developed and published by Knowledge Adventure in 2001. The game is exclusively for PC and involved the use of a physical barcode scanner known as the Scan Command. A version of the game was released in 2002 which doesn’t feature the barcode scanner and is called ‘Dinosaur Battles’.

Plot Dr. Irene Corts is an evil scientist who has taken over Jurassic Park with her army of genetically altered dinosaurs and plans to use them for world domination. Your aim is to stop Corts and locate five children and help them escape Isla Nublar. Gameplay The game features eight playable creatures from the first three movies, including the Velociraptor, Spinosaurus, Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus Rex.

You unlock various dinosaurs as levels are completed and in total there are seven levels which include caves, jungles, swamps, abandoned InGen laboratories and steel pyramids. The final level is set inside an active volcano.

Scan Command included a portable, battery-powered barcode scanner that was capable of storing up to 25 barcode scans at once. The barcodes obtained by the player are used as “genetic codes” in the game and are loaded into the game by connecting the scanner to the computer via USB. The genetic codes can be used to enhance the player’s defenses and attacks in the game, as well as additional customizable traits such as agility and strength.

You can also trade genetic codes. After reaching a certain power level, the player’s creature can fight in real-time battles against other creatures controlled by evil scientists at InGen. In addition to solving puzzles, the player must also defeat enemy dinosaurs to advance to each new level.

Jurassic Park III (Arcade)

The Arcade game for Jurassic Park III is a light gun game and developed by Konami. It was unveiled at the Japan Amusement Machinery Manufacturers Association in September 2001. It reach the USA in 2002. The game uses the same cabinet and motion sensor technology as Police 911, requiring players to dodge the oncoming dinosaur attacks. Alternatively, the standard cabinet provides a left and right button to perform evasive maneuvers.

Plot Two U.S Military Rangers land on Isla Sorna with orders by Alan Grant to rescue survivors that crashed on the island earlier on in the story (not shown). The Rangers soon see a pack of Compsognathus attacking one survivor. The player now has to fight Compsognathus, Dilophosaurus, and Velociraptors until the survivor is found. The plot follows a similar path to Jurassic Park III from this point, fighting your way through the island to reach the boat. Gameplay The main target to shoot at with the light gun is dinosaurs and you start with eight bullets. You must reload by shooting outside of the screen.

A health bar is shown on screen which depletes if you receive damage from a dinosaur. It is game over when the bar completely drains, unless you put in more coins to continue. After a boss is defeated, the health bar is sometimes increased if the player did well fighting the boss. Weak points on boss enemies are indicated by red crosshairs on certain body parts. There are also two left and right arrow buttons on the dash of the console, which allows the player(s) to “Run away” from the dinosaurs to avoid taking damage during boss battles.

Jurassic Park III: Island Attack (Game Boy Advance)

Island Attack is a survival game developed by Mobile21 and published by Konami for the Game Boy Advance. It was released in 2001 alongside Jurassic Park III and was originally known as Jurassic Park III: Primal Fear.

Plot After crash-landing on Isla Sorna, Dr. Alan Grant contacts the coast guard and is told to reach the island’s coast to be rescued. Playing as Grant, the player’s goal is to travel through eight areas of Isla Sorna to reach the coast. Gameplay In the game there are two types of levels, firstly “freeroam” and secondly “forward only”.

Every level uses freeroam with the exception of three levels. These three levels themselves also use cross-section camera angles while the rest of the levels use an overview camera. While playing as Dr. Alan Grant you can use a stun gun to fire at the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs fight back and cause significant damage, so you are better off running from the dinosaurs.

The game features a number of interior and exterior locations which are common for a Jurassic Park video game, and a number of dinosaurs from the three films are included such as the Spinosaurus and Velociraptors. There is a level where you ride a motorbike and avoid dinosaurs and objects.

Jurassic Park III: The DNA Factor (Game Boy Advance)

The DNA Factor is a side scrolling and puzzle game developed by Konami Computer Entertainment and published by Konami for the Game Boy Advance. It was released for the Game Boy Advance.

Plot A cargo plane flying over the five deaths is struck by lightning and crashes on Isla Sorna. The dinosaur DNA that the plane was storing is thus spread across the island and you must retrieve it, playing as either Mark Hanson (a photographer) or Lori Torres (a pilot). You wonder around the island in a side-scrolling format collecting the missing DNA and avoiding the wild dinosaurs.

Gameplay
Each level allows the player to switch between a background or foreground pathway. Each pathway either allows the player to collect weapons and DNA samples or to avoid oncoming dinosaurs. At the end of each level, the player will use the DNA that is collected in a short puzzle game, in order to create more dinosaurs. Upon completion of the minigame, more areas of the game will unlock for players to explore.

At the end of the game, the military bombs Isla Sorna and you escape on a small plane, wondering if dinosaurs should really have a place in the modern world.

Jurassic Park III: Park Builder (Game Boy Advance)

Jurassic Park III: Park Builder is a construction and management simulation game for the Game Boy Advance that was developed by Konami and released in 2001.

Plot Park Builder challenges you to design, build and run your own Jurassic Park theme park on an island. The player must first send an excavation team to one of eight worldwide locations to search for fossilized mosquitoes that contain dinosaur DNA, which is then used to create dinosaurs. Gameplay Much like Operation Genesis, the player can construct buildings in the park such as hotels, restaurants and shops.

Hurricanes and earthquakes feature and damage the park’s buildings and enclosures. Advertising plays a part in that you must advertise your park to drive visitor numbers up. Visitors view the dinosaurs on tour busses and you begin with three busses, with more available to purchase.

You have a maximum of eight holding pens for dinosaurs and the dinosaurs can share enclosures. There are six different environments on the island including jungles, beaches, plains and a desert. Dinosaurs can become ill and require medical attention. To keep the dinosaurs healthy you must place them in the environment that best suits their natural habitat.

The game features a whopping 140 creatures that include the Brachiosaurus, Mosasaurus, Pteranodon, Spinosaurus, Stegosaurus and Tyrannosaurus Rex. The dinosaurs are grouped into varying categories, three for carnivores and three for herbivores.

Jurassic Park: Survival (Unreleased)

Jurassic Park: Survival is a cancelled video game developed by Savage Entertainment and was to be published by Konami. It was an action-adventure third-person video game that was scheduled for release on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in November 2001. The game was also planned for the PC and GameCube.

According to Wikipedia, the cancellation was due to the following: Development began in October 2000. Initially, the game was to be based on the 2001 film, Jurassic Park III. However, the film was in production at that time and could not provide visual reference to the game’s development teams, who had to devise their own designs and ideas. Vivendi Universal ultimately decided that the game would only be inspired by the film, rather than based on it, and subsequently chose to include elements not featured in the film. In July 2001, Savage ended development due to payment conflicts with Vivendi Universal, which was dissatisfied with the progress of the game.

Plot
The plot for the game was never officially released, but various websites reported what they believed to be the plot. IGN reported that the game’s story involved a secret third island where wild dinosaurs roam and some are contained in security areas. The United States Government are concerned about the dinosaurs overpopulating the island and sends a security team there to aid scientists who are studying the animals’ behavior. You play as David Vaughn, explores the island and rescues scientists after a “shadow organisation” launches an attack on the scientists and takes control of the island.

According to GameSpot, David Vaughn would have been a security officer at the now-closed Jurassic Park, where his job would be to prevent dinosaurs from escaping the island and multiplying. Unknown to Vaughn, his boss and head of security on the island, has made a deal with a shadow corporation to supply it with dinosaur DNA, followed by the destruction of the island to give the shadow corporation an edge in DNA research. Vaughn’s mission would be to keep the dinosaurs on the island while rescuing his security co-workers.

And according to PlanetPS2.com, the game would have been set on Isla Sorna, with Vaughn as a security design technician.

Gameplay
The game featured a third-person perspective described as being similar to the Tomb Raider games. In the game’s preview video, the gameplay appeared to be similar to a survival horror game, with action-adventure elements such as climbing, crawling, rolling, shooting, jumping and swimming.

There were eight dinosaurs included in the game and four different types of military officers. A Troodon with glowing eyes was to be featured in the game (and later appeared in Telltale’s Jurassic Park: The Game) and the Dinosaur AI was said to be an integral part of the game, with dinosaurs luring you into traps, hunting in packs and retreating when necessary.

You had a number of weapons including a pistol, electric prod and a grenade launcher. You also carries a PDA with you which could be used to contact team members for assistance. An item known as the “phero pack” could also be carried around and dropped in certain locations to lure dinosaurs to Vaughn’s human enemies and attack them. Puzzles were also to play a major role in the game. Stealth was also a significant part of gameplay, as Vaughn could complete objectives easier by avoiding detection from guards and spotlights while inside enemy encampments. Vaughn could also use computer terminals located throughout the game to access security cameras for a better view of the area and nearby enemies.

The game was to feature twelve large levels including locations such as swamps, dense forests, huge underground caves and a network of tunnels, military outposts, a marina, terrorist camps, jungles, a hatchery, and a large aviary to house the Pteranodons. The game’s dark cave level would involve Vaughn using a mining helmet equipped with lighting to find his way through. A tram was used to transport you from one location to the other and a driving mode was also planned for the game in which Vaughn could commandeer vehicles he finds throughout the island. In a canyon cliff level, Vaughn would be able to take control of an all-terrain vehicle as part of an ensuing chase through a dense jungle. In another instance, Vaughn would drive a Jeep being chased by a Tyrannosaurus.

Cancellation
Savage Entertainment announced on July 31, 2001 that they were no longer working on the game, due to Universal being dissatisfied with the game’s progress and poor animations. On November 5, 2001, Savage confirmed that they were no longer working on the game due to conflicts with Vivendi-Universal who had stopped providing funding to Savage. A spokesperson for Savage later said: “We were looking forward to finishing [Survival] up and getting it on the market […]. Unfortunately, we can’t finish it without funding to pay our people and Universal wasn’t providing that.”

On November 19, 2001, a Universal spokesperson told fansite JPDatabase that the game’s development would continue with a new developer and release sometime in 2002. According to Universal: “We simply weren’t happy with the progress of the game and we felt that it deserved more time with a new developer.” The website was later asked to remove this quote as it was “not an official statement”.

Later in November, another Savage spokesperson said a new developer would likely start from scratch on the game and assumed that Universal had yet to find said developer. The spokesperson said: “Universal has crunched the development cycles of some of its titles in the past and failed to realize that carries with it a necessary compromise on quality. It would be good for them to give the team working on the title sufficient time to do the franchise justice.”

From this point on, talks of the game settled down and ultimately it was never finished. It is unclear why Universal decided to drop the game. We recently interviewed the lead art director for the game Robert Stahl who revealed some more information about the game along with some artwork. Be sure to read that review here!