Dino Crisis 2

Written by Tom Clare in PSOne Game Reviews, Tuesday 14 October, 2003

Released: 2000
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Virgin Interactive
Genre: Action
Platform: PSOne

Considering the huge hype and critical acclaim that surrounded the original Dino Crisis, its sequel received a comparatively low-key release, and the difference in the quality of the two games goes some way to revealing why.

The first game was a close relative of Resident Evil, fitting snugly into the family of Capcom survival-horror games. Mimicking many of the better parts from this series, Dino Crisis also added some clever twists of its own and had the extra bonus of featuring dinosaurs - it was an outstanding game.

Capcom seem to have bumped their collective heads though for the second instalment - out goes the tense, high-tech facility setting of old and in comes great big chunks of jungle that are positively overrun with dinosaurs. There's no more scrounging for ammo, as you'll have literally thousands of rounds to spare at the end and there is little chance of surprise as there are enemies in almost every area of the game.

It's hard to directly compare it to the Resident Evil franchise or even its own predecessor, as to do so Dino Crisis 2 would have to have retained the primary blueprints of the survival-horror genre. Well, survival is rarely an issue as you are awarded points for killing dinosaurs, which can be cashed in for very generous helpings of medi-kits, guns and ammo. The horror element still lingers (or at least it seems the developers hoped it would) but there is rarely any tension generated because of the constant barrage of dinosaurs being thrown at you. It ends up becoming more action-orientated, and has a fair bit in common with Parasite Eve 2, but simply isn't in the same league as Squaresoft's title.

There are two playable characters in Dino Crisis 2, each part of the same quest - Regina, who returns from the original, and newboy Dylan. The plot involves the two travelling through time to reach the jungle environment and then investigate the mysterious people who patrol the jungle in futuristic clothing. As is standard with games of this sort, the storyline is pretty naff and barely warrants a mention.

The controls are responsive and accessible, which helps the flow of the action. The emphasis on action inevitably comes at a price though. There are virtually no puzzles in the game whatsoever, fans will be disappointed to learn, and the ones that do make it into the game don't tax the brain a great deal, to be honest. Because of the fast-pace and general ease of the game, I managed to complete it in a measly four hours at the first attempt - roughly half the time it took to finish the original. You won't believe just how early the credits roll; this, along with the simplicity of the gameplay, leaves you with the feeling that DC2 is a thoroughly shallow experience.

Though being hampered greatly by its total lack of originality, the one new edition for this sequel, the points for kills system, was basically a slightly less effective version of the one that had just been used in Parasite Eve 2 a few months earlier. D'oh! The appearance of larger dinosaurs such as the T-Rex towards the end are predictable to the point of annoyance, and serve more to irritate than actually scare, purely because you could see them coming a mile off.

Graphically, Dino Crisis 2 is very good. Each arena is packed with detail and the movement and animations of the characters is excellent. Traipsing round the jungle will soon reveal the lack of variety in the environments; understandably, trees and paths in a jungle will tend to look the same but there are rarely any distinguishing features to an area, meaning you'll be constantly having to check your map to see if you are headed in the right direction.

As mentioned earlier, the game is very short, but to the developers credit they have at least added a couple of bonus novelty-game modes that are found after you finish the main game. Novelty is all they are sadly and they soon run out of steam.

It's good-looking and, in patches, great fun to play, but Dino Crisis 2 feels almost lazy in its execution and never once dares to step near original territory. And you'll finish it in a day or two, no problem. Worth renting perhaps, but beware on splashing out too much for it if you are considering buying - it's definitely a case of style over substance. The first Dino Crisis is a far superior option; it's less action packed but a far more balanced, clever and generally memorable package than this.

Leave a Reply