Courtesy of the folks at IGN, we have a brand-new look at what Saber Interactive have been cooking up in their creation lab with a closer look at some new screenshots and concept art from their upcoming game Jurassic Park Survival, alongside an internal Q&A where Universal Pictures and the Saber team discuss the upcoming title.
An interesting note in the Q&A is how focussed both the Universal team and developers at the game’s studio are on bringing to life locations which are both familiar and new on Isla Nublar. The interview references how we might see distant buildings and visitor accommodation, and the concept art gives us a flavour of this – showing that the decrepit and overgrown emergency bunker we see in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom may have actually been a functional and state-of-the-art piece of island infrastructure in the early 90s.
I really love how the focus here feels firmly on the experiences that visitors would have had when visiting Jurassic Park. In-universe this is, of course, meant to function as a luxury resort – with the novel even referencing swimming pools and tennis courts as mainstays of the luxury location. It is exciting to think about where the creative teams may choose to pull from this reference material. If we get to see a tunnel behind a waterfall created in the style of the Jurassic film universe, then I may explode with excitement. Needless to say, there is a lot of potential to craft a really compelling environment to explore on Nublar.
Whilst the team were still tight-lipped on whether we would see any dinosaurs in the game which do not appear in the 1993 film, they did share that consideration for the terrain on Isla Nublar is a critical part of gameplay. How this transitions into what Maya is doing within the game remains to be seen, but I imagine that a wet and slippery environment may make rock climbing or other accessories much more dangerous, therefore presenting interesting and challenging dynamic which players are likely to have to weigh up.
There is also a reference here to the importance of patience – something which we have seen in other survival titles like Alien: Isolation, where the player sometimes needs to take shelter and wait for the Xenomorph to pass. The article does also hint that there may be more characters left on Nublar than just Maya – implying the InGen evacuation was not as thorough as we would like to believe, or that there may be other shady individuals attempting to take advantage of the ensuing chaos.
Addressing the elephant in the room, Saber Interactive did confirm that the game will not release in 2024 – meaning that recent rumours of a 2026 release date may be accurate when considering recent news about a third entry in the Evolution franchise. In my opinion – let them cook! This is shaping up to be an exciting adventure game which will allow us to truly immerse ourselves in Isla Nublar in a way which has never been realised before. I believe that taking the time to really develop this game and deliver an interesting and immersive story with compelling environments is critical, so I am VERY happy to wait for as long as this game needs.
It’s fair to say that Jurassic Park Survival is one of, if not the most, anticipated projects which is currently being developed for the Jurassic franchise. A survival-adventure game grounded in the nostalgia of the 90s era is something which many fans have been longing for, and I know that I personally cannot wait. I’m incredibly excited to see more from this game – with this initial update already having me VERY excited for what might be in store.
What do you think? Are you excited for Jurassic Park Survival? Let us know in the comments below, and stay tuned to The Jurassic Park Podcast for all the latest news on the upcoming title.
Written by:
Tom Jurassic