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Dino Crisis (PlayStation) artwork

Dino Crisis (PlayStation) review


"Like zombies? Try dinosaurs! Dino Crisis was and is the answer to the question of, "If I can survive zombies, could I survive rampaging dinosaurs?" Okay, maybe that is question not many people, or gamers for that matter, tend to ask themselves but it raises a good point. Are zombies as deadly as dinosaurs? When compared to the thrilling game series that is Resident Evil, they tend to about equal in terms of deadly clawing and biting. Your enemies not only try and devour you for food but, also, b..."

Like zombies? Try dinosaurs! Dino Crisis was and is the answer to the question of, "If I can survive zombies, could I survive rampaging dinosaurs?" Okay, maybe that is question not many people, or gamers for that matter, tend to ask themselves but it raises a good point. Are zombies as deadly as dinosaurs? When compared to the thrilling game series that is Resident Evil, they tend to about equal in terms of deadly clawing and biting. Your enemies not only try and devour you for food but, also, because they have sharp claws and even sharper teeth. The bestiary (enemies) of the game range from the small but quick Compys to the big daddy of the them all, the T-Rex (who you encounter several times along your way and who can kill you with one good bite!). Other types of dino-baddies include Raptors, Pteranodons (the huge flying dinos), as well Therizinos, which is a pudgy Barney, but not purple, that likes to devour.

Dino crisis is one of the titles that never ceased to amaze the player as well as boggle the mind with scientific puzzles. One example being the mixing and combining of different materials for your Medicine Packs for health or your tranquilizer darts for temporarily putting a hungry Raptor into a snooze fest. The aiming and shooting of the enemies can be a science in itself if you have never played a survival such Resident Evil or Dino Crisis, it is basically just aim and shoot but be sure and know when to run and when to stay and fight (specifically with the T-rex battles!).

Speaking of shooting sharp objects into the head and/or foot of your hungry neighborhood dinosaur, the game sports a fair amount of powerful weapons that are both fun to fire and upgradeable. There are three primary weapons that can used, including the sidearm, the shotgun and the ever-so-fun Grenade Pistol (or Launcher, however you want to say it). The Glock, which is your trusty sidearm that you start out with, fires two different types of ammo and is upgradeable from a standard Glock 34 to a Glock 35 and later on a sight can be found to add to accuracy. The Shotgun PA3 is your best friend for the mere fact of providing more firepower than the sidearm and is also upgradeable with a stock upgrade to a SPAS12. The SPAS 12 is more powerful and quicker than the standard PA3 by providing rapid fire for your almighty shotgun. And last, but certainly not least powered, on the arsenal list is the 40mm KK Grenade Pistol which has several different types of ammo for your dino-bashing pleasure, and, as per the history so far, is also upgradeable to a more bang-filled Regina Custom sporting continuous fire.

Along with a vast arsenal is an awesome story involving three main characters and one "determined" evil-scientist. Regina is the main playable character who is, if you have not guessed by now, a weapons specialist attached to a special-ops unit. Other notable characters that you interact with along the game include Gail, who is a male veteran of military action and combat, and Rick, who is a jack of all military trades including computers, medical support, and heavy equipment/vehicles. The main cause of the events that surround the Dino story is a scientist by the name of Dr. Kirk. His character reportedly died, three years prior to the events in the game, because of a freak explosion while he was researching and experimenting with the ultimate clean energy known as "Third Energy".

There is a fair amount of unlockables which includes three different endings, unlockable costumes for Regina (some more revealing than others), a bonus game, and an unlockable feature for the Grenade Pistol that I will not mention here for it would spoil all the fun! The different endings range from bad to good to "never saw that coming", they are lead to by different branch points in the story. The branch points are a great addition to the game because they allow more control over the story for the player, as well as adding a couple of more reasons to beat the game a few more times in different ways.

When the father of the survival-horror genre, Shinji Mikami, imagined and created Dino crisis and went on to spawn a sequel (which is just as good as the first, in this reviewers opinion), I would say that he was done proud by the response that the game itself produced.

Overall I give the game a resounding 9 out of 10 for the creativity, and breaking the mold effect it had when it was released in 1999. As for the camera and controls I would have to give them a separate 8 out of 10. 8 out of 10 just due to the fact that even though Dino Crisis is created off the Resident Evil engine, there is a few spots in the game where the camera points and game controls seem to get you in more peril than the dino-biters themselves. But, as I stated before, if given the chance, I would swear by this game on a stack of Bibles that this is one of the best and most creative, not to mention thrilling, games ever to grace the Playstation (even though some fanatics would not agree with this humbled opinion).

Kudos to Capcom and to Mr. Mikami on a great title for it's time!



LegacyGaming's avatar
Community review by LegacyGaming (December 30, 2007)

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