The first time we saw Jurassic Park and witnessed seeing the dinosaurs come to life left a memorable impression on many of us still to this day. Even with its two sequels, The Lost World and Jurassic Park III, it along with the new step in the series with Jurassic World and its series of Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous and Battle at Big Rock, and the sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, many of us have had the thought if we could just visit, even for a brief moment, the possibilities that could be had. Whether it is just being in the environment or hearing the noises it could be truly remarkable. But how many of us actually thought about not if we could, but if we should? What if those possibilities became the real danger and our life depended on every step we took? But does developer, Coatsink, show us the possibility of the danger as well as the beauty of visiting the island of Isla Nublar? Let’s find out with Jurassic World Aftermath: Part 1 & Part 2 for the Oculus Quest/Quest 2.
Jurassic World Aftermath is a suspenseful survival adventure. Crash landing on the island of Isla Nublar two years after the fall of Jurassic World where you will need to explore and solve puzzles while trying to survive the dangers that could be around any corner. So before beginning, there are a few things you will want to make sure of. First, in order to play Jurassic World Aftermath part 2, you will need Jurassic World Aftermath: Part 1. Second, make sure your controllers are fully charged. You don’t want what is ahead to find you when you could have hidden out of plain sight if had the ability to do so. Third, things can get intense for some, so be cautious of that. And finally, have some fun with everything because that’s what it’s all about. With that said, let’s continue…
When you first start the game, the very first thing you will want to do is go into settings and check a few things. The game can be played standing or seated (which is always nice when there are options), so if you want to play seated, make sure you check it. Then you will want to go to Comfort Settings and select your level of comfort. You have comfortable, moderate, and intense. This is to help those who may be prone to VR sickness. It doesn’t happen to everyone, so if you are known to have it, go with comfortable. If you have a tendency to get it, but maybe not all the time, go with moderate. If you have your VR legs and do not get sick from the VR motion that sometimes it can cause, feel free to go with intense or mess around with the custom option. The important thing to remember is that make this experience the best experience for you.
As the game starts on the plane flying to the island of Isla Nublar, you know the place full of safety and the pressing vacation spot where it sets the standard for all those vacation brochures. Over the intercom, is where you start talking with one Doctor. Everett who you will be in communication with for your entire adventure. Of course, being on the plane and going to the island two years after what just happened either shows you are brave or you have nothing else to lose in life, but it’s the choice you made, plus, you are supposed to be getting paid. But it’s when you crash land on the island that you learn a few things. First, your name is Sam, and second, you are not alone.
Being as you are not alone, there is something that you will probably want to get used to very quickly and that is crouching. You see, there are some dinosaurs here that would love to have you as a snack. I’m not talking about the Brontosaurus you get to see enjoying some nice vegetation as you step out into the research facility, I am talking about Velociraptors that are as smart as you might remember. So as you try and make your way to the different sections of the facility while trying to solve puzzles and gather the information that is needed, you will need to be on the lookout not only visually, but aurally as well with their steps and sounds that they make.
Jurassic World Aftermath is broken into different sections. Part 1 is broken into Transport, Residence, and Genome Labs, and Part 2 broken into the last two sections of Corporate and Vault sections of the facility. Each section has different objectives that you must complete in order to have access to the different sections. Luckily, you don’t have to go blindly all over the facility as you are equipped with a Navisist. A device that will point you in the direction you need to go and your objectives that is attached to your wrist. Use it…embrace it as it just may save your life when you need it. Along the way, there will be terminals that you have to access that require different ways to unlock them. They could be hitting the keys in the right order or even turning the dial for different wavelengths. These terminals have different information along with some of them even having files that will need to be downloaded to help assist Doctor Everett who you communicate with.
Hiding spots from the Velociraptors include under desks, lockers, to even small crawl spaces through ducts and walls. I will say the first few times that they got me, made me jump as I guess I was sticking out a little too far. But as long as you don’t move too fast and learn how to hide, you should be fine. The keyword again is should. You also will gain access to other devices that will help such as a flashlight and a multitool. With this tool, you can remotely access things like a radio or sirens that can help distract the Velociraptors so you can get to where you need to go.
Velociraptors are not the only enemies you have to watch out for. Compsognathus’ will scream alerting the Velociraptors, so be cautious around those. Pteranodon will snap at you, and Dilophosaurs’ will spit poison on you that you will need to find some water to wash off. Hit with poison again without washing it off and you will need to start from the last check point. A tip with the Dilophosurs, use your flashlight as they do not like being detected. There is another enemy, but that is something that you should experience for yourself.
Let’s talk about the graphics and sound. The graphics are beautiful on the Oculus Quest 2. Using the cell shading art style really brings everything to life and brings not only the feel of what we enjoy from the movies but allows us to be there with all of the suspense. At the places where you are going in the dark with only your flashlight to have at times flicker with you hearing what is near does add for the fun suspenseful moments that at any moment, could be your last. Seeing the dinosaurs, even though it’s cell-shaded, still gives them detail that is a joy to see. The sound is equally impressive with being in places in hiding and being able to hear a Velociraptor right on top, behind, or even to the sides of you, and seeing their big claw moving just like in the movies along with Laura Bailey as Dr. Ameila “Mia” Everett and BD Wong and Jeff Goldblum do a fantastic job reprising their roles as Dr. Henry Wu and Dr. Ian Malcom with their voices just adds to everything.
There are a few things that I would like to see added. For one, knowing that in order to get the full experience you need both parts. Part 1 does end with a cliffhanger that will leave you wanting more. Part 2 does immediately pick up where Part 1 ended and even gives you a recap of what happened. So adding a scene selection for those that want to replace certain parts to maybe show their friends or family would be a great option to add. To add to that, yes, Part 1 does have three different sections and Part 2 has the last two sections, keep in mind that with those last two sections, just when you think it could be the end, Coatsink keeps along for the ride. So thank you for that. And just more. Yes, Part 1 and Part 2 is a ride that you will want to see all the way through, but I do hope that there is a Part 3 in some form in some fashion with even more variety of dinosaurs and dangers that are being thought about at least.
Jurassic World Aftermath: Part 1 & Part 2 show us how what it’s like when faced with the danger of trying to have humans and dinosaurs being so close to each other. There are times in our lives when we have a choice to make. Sometimes those choices might be the right ones while other times they are not. All we can do is learn from every choice we make. But it’s when we don’t listen to that voice that each of us has inside of us to even those that care about us the most about if we could, it really comes down to if we should. And wouldn’t we all become better people if we just take the time to listen?
Jurassic World Aftermath: Part 1 & Part 2 is out now for the Oculus Quest/Quest 2 on the Oculus Store. A review code was provided.
To learn more about Coatsink, please visit their site, like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, follow them on Instagram, join their Discord, and subscribe to their YouTube channel.
In case you missed the trailer, please enjoy. Until next time, I think I just may have to go and revisit this world.