Jurassic World: Evolution 2 has updated players on the game’s progress with a stunning new trailer inviting fans back to Jurassic Park. After the first title was met with mixed opinions, the sequel works to fix what was lacking before, as well as offering what was missing last time. For the fans wondering, yes, they can finally have a Mosasaurus in their park. Frontier Developments set out to improve the sequel based on feedback from the first game, and the wondrous results of its work can be felt immediately.
Jurassic World: Evolution 2 is much like the first, in that it’s a management simulator title that gives fans of the classic movies the chance to run their own park. Players' decisions are deciding factors between making it a success or releasing their own chaos upon parkgoers. With titles like these, it’s easy to fall into the hole of simply being Jurassic Park in name while being more of the same in the genre, but the Jurassic World: Evolution management games set themselves apart with dynamic dinosaur behaviors and features such as the rangers and the ACU. While the sequel feels like what gamers would expect with a management simulator title, it also envelops them into the world of Jurassic Park with ease. From what can be taken from this preview, it also seems to capture the feeling of managing these parks far better than the first title ever did.
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For the sake of this preview, the game’s “Campaign” and “Challenge” modes took center stage. Players should be familiar with these modes, as they’re common throughout the genre. Gamers who own Jurassic World: Evolution, though, should be ready for a change, as the Campaign mode handles itself much differently than last time for the sequel.
Campaign Mode Gives Players an Adventure in Dinosaur Management
Dinosaur welfare is a dynamic in this game more so than it was in the last one. With metrics showing the dinosaur’s health and needs in more detail than before, players absolutely need to treat their dinosaurs with care. The alternative is that they will die; which is definitely frowned upon on Campaign Mode and may force the player to start again. Where the first title was about building upon the islands the Jurassic Park franchise is known for, JWE2 decides to take a different approach, giving fans a unique story to play through.
As the story involves saving dinosaurs from poachers, themes from the Jurassic World films about how dinosaurs need to be respected comes forward. Players should keep a careful eye on their creatures' vitals as campaign mode puts them at the front of all of the action entirely from the start, from piloting ACU helicopters themselves to having to build against harsher weather conditions such as snowstorms and sandstorms. For returning players, they definitely will find a whole new challenge on their hands here.
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Challenge Mode Lets Constricted Players Breathe a Bit More
One criticism Jurassic World: Evolution faced was that even in Challenge Mode, some players felt constricted and as if they couldn’t make what park they wanted. Some said that the requirements for research were tedious, and Challenge Mode makes it clear that Frontier Developments took that feedback to heart. The mode offers a generous amount of money to starting players, and gives them a time limit to reach 5 stars as fast as they can with the way they get there completely up to them. Challenge Mode allows the players from before more elbow room, but the game is still in development. Some balancing may be made to the game before release.
In challenge mode, players unlock dinosaurs and further attractions through research, as seen in the first game. The requirements made to unlock new amenities and dinosaurs are spelled out clear as day for players to follow, unlocking things left and right before they even realize. While some players may dislike the feature, it is a welcome one as it leads players to learn along the way so when Research Nodes are completed, players feel satisfied and are encouraged to keep playing, diving into the features they’ve just gained. This is where the replayability of challenge mode comes in beyond customization. It’s possible for players to always try to build a new Jurassic Park with different choices on which Research Nodes to tackle first, along with beating it faster, or on higher difficulties much like the first title.
As a whole, Jurassic World: Evolution 2 takes what the first game had and strengthens it, while also freeing it from containment. The game gives players more elbow room in Challenge Mode than what was there prior, while Campaign allows fans to experience their own Jurassic Park story as a staff member. Just like the first title, JWE2 is rather chatty, and characters and staff members will occasionally have a thing or two to say regarding progress. Campaign Mode may have Owen fromthe Jurassic World movies talking to the player about how dinosaurs need to be given care and treated fairly, whereas if fans start Challenge Mode and run into trouble, Dr. Wu might appear to laugh as he tells the player their park looks like a “disaster” in the same attitude the character is known for.
In the end, fans of park management games such as Roller Coaster Tycoon can come into Jurassic World: Evolution 2's biggest, most challenging modesto find something to enjoy, whereas Jurassic Park movie fans will be immersed in the world of their favorite movies with no trouble. The game stands up on its own with all of its improvements and adjustments, so players who are interested can dive right in just fine. For those who long to run their own Jurassic Park, the game invites them in with ease and offers challenges just as big and vast as the creatures players will raise.
Jurassic World: Evolution 2 is set to launch on November 9th for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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