LEGO Jurassic World Review!!!

My last post was a review on the absolutely amazing movie Jurassic World. Now I am doing a review of the LEGO video game released alongside the movie that I pre-ordered because I am a massive Jurassic Park fan.



Warning: This game may contain spoilers.

Now Lego Jurassic World is a fun game. However it has some problems that bug me (they are very small gripes). But I will save those for last because being negative about a game with dinosaurs in it makes me sad. :(

The concept is tried and true but still has charm. Basically, puzzle/platform your way around LEGO-ified versions of iconic scenes from well-known movies and comic books. This Time around it's Jurassic Park (one of the best block-busters of it's time), Jurassic Park the Lost World (which a lot of people thought was the worst sequel ever), Jurassic Park 3 (the only movie out of the original trilogy I own on DVD) and finally the recently released Jurassic World (SEE: My review on this film!).



Something a little bit strange is that after clearing the first level, you can choose to skip the original trilogy and go straight to the Jurassic World campaign. I played all four campaigns in chronological order because my brain will get confused as to what is going on (and I seen every single movie with the exception of the Lost World. Probably for the better considering the extremely negative attention it got).

Anyway, The human side of the cast is somewhat weak in my opinion. There is 100+ playable characters, yet all the fan favorites are unlocked simply by playing through each of the four campaigns. The rest (which the exception of John Hammond, who always has the rich man swag even as a Mini-figure, and Simon Masrani, who is one of the best characters in the series) are just downright random (Dino Handler Bob, anyone?). But it's still worth getting every character because only a fool would not want to 100% complete a game with dinosaurs in it. Right? RIGHT!?



But the human side of the cast is somewhat overshadowed by the awesome that is playing as a dinosaur. Yes you can play as a dinosaur. There are 20 different dinosaurs in the game and Amber Pieces are required to unlock them. Some of them are easy to obtain (or just downright unavoidable, such as the Triceratops amber), while others are so cleverly hidden that you have to play through the level once you have most (or all) of the characters (at least the ones with the required abilities). And my favorite dinosaur has the most obnoxious hidden amber of all time. Considering they literally named a level after it you think they would put it in that level. NOPE! Took me 4 hours to figure out it's actually hidden in the final boss level. In case you are wondering who my favorite dinosaur is, it's pictured below.


Spinosaurus!

And yes I am aware that there is SOME controversy over the Spino wrecking the T.Rex but still, Spino for life. I'm also aware that it was recently theorized that Spino is a quadruped as opposed to it's bipedal posture as depicted in Jurassic Park 3.

Anyway, another thing of note is that I REALLY like the design of the Velociraptors in LEGO form (see: below)



Although the physical toys that tie-in to the game make these guys look massive. Random raptor fact! In real life raptors are only three feet tall. In just about any movie with dinos in it they are erroneously portrayed as being around six foot 8.

Anyway, one of the highlights of LEGO Jurassic World is the humor. Do you remember that iconic (and terrifying) scene in the kitchen at the end of the first movie? Well now the raptor that gets locked in the freezer knits itself a cap to keep from freezing to death.

Or one of my favorites is how LEGO handled the infamous "Clever Girl" scene.

 
Raptor in a Banana Hat!

Something that is a bit of a twist is that LEGO went the extra mile and even kept most of the jump-scares of doom in the game. Whats worse/better (depending on whether or not you like jump-scares of doom) is that you don't expect the jump-scares of doom because it's a LEGO game and your brain just goes "Oh we'll be fine. LEGO would never put jump-scares of doom in their games". Then you get jump-scare of doom'd.



But on a bit of the combat. This is the least combat focused game LEGO has ever made. You'll run into a fight once in Jurassic Park, three times in The Lost World, twice in Jurassic Park 3, and four times in Jurassic World. Yes combat is so rare you can literally count how many times you were in a proper fight. Bosses were few and far between as well, with only four bosses (among them is my favorite, the Spino!)

Now another bit on gameplay and this is also a tried and true thing on LEGO's part. In order to progress in the level you need to switch to a character with the appropriate ability (EXAMPLE: the paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant can dig up, and then build with, dinosaur bones, while the paleobotanist Dr. Ellie Sattler has the most hilarious power ever. She is the only character that can rummage through LEGO dinosaur....droppings. Of course she has the ability to rummage through dinosaur droppings!).


Dr. Ian Malcolm can use flares to illuminate caves.

Now sadly I will briefly talk about the things I did not like with LEGO Jurassic World. :(

This is by far the biggest complaint from me. This may not apply to you but it applies to me. During the Jurassic Park 3 campaign, there is a very awkward cut when Alan Grant and friends climb aboard the InGen boat. They skip out like the entire second half of the movie! Rather than showing the scene where Paul Kirby gets his satellite phone back, the scene where everyone is at awe of the more peaceful dinosaurs by the river, and much more they instead cut right to the scene where the Spinosaurus attacks them in the river. I understand this is a kids game and you have to keep a stream of action from start to finish, but the fact they skipped over so much of the third film bugs me as a J.P. fan.

The second gripe I have is something that I lot of people agree with. Fighting Compies is not fun In case you don't know what Compies are, they are the second smallest dinosaur in the world (being roughly 3 inches tall) and have a equally small hitbox, making fighting them somewhat annoying. But it gets ridiculous because they can kill you in seconds. The Compies are deadlier than the Raptors and Tyrannosaurs!

And finally, the last negative I have is that they made the Pteranadons and Mosasaurus playable, yet they are restricted to the Aviary and Underwater Arena areas respectively. They could have done so much with theses dinosaurs, as Mosasaurus is the only playable character that can swim, and Pteranadon is the only playable character that can fly. Plus there are objects that only these characters can interact with. These too dinosaurs just feel greatly underused.

SO with all this in mind, I give this game a 7.5/10. Keep in mind 5 is average on my scale because it's the halfway there number.

Jurassic World Review!!!

Jurassic World has released and it is awesome. That's all you need to know. But because this IS a blog I will do a in depth review. WARNING: THIS REVIEW MAY OR MAY NOT CONTAIN PERSONAL BIAS BECAUSE I AM A MASSIVE JURASSIC PARK FAN.

ALSO NOTE: JURASSIC WORLD CONTAINS INSTANCES OF DINOSAUR VIOLENCE AND BLOOD THAT LOOKS LIKE SPAGHETTI SAUCE. IF YOU ARE OFFENDED BY  SPAGHETTI, OR RED THINGS IN GENERAL, DO NOT SEE THIS MOVIE.



In case you somehow don't know what Jurassic Park is, then shame on you! But in all seriousness, Jurassic Park was a film released back in 1993. It is one of my favorite movies (and always will be). Jurassic Park was a science fiction adventure/horror type thing. I never found it scary yet literally thousands of people thought it was terrifying. Well actually there was one scene that was intense, but I won't spoil it for those that want to watch the original.

The basic premise of the Jurassic Park movies is that a company called Ingen used genetic modification to clone dinosaurs to serve as attractions for the titular theme park. Of course, the dinosaurs escape and go on a killing spree (surprisingly, there was only five onscreen deaths in the movie).

There was a sequel that a lot of people didn't like that much called Jurassic Park: the Lost World, where a fan favorite character (a mathematician named Ian Malcolm) is sent to a separate island (also with out of control dinosaurs running amok).

Then came another sequel that enraged long time Jurassic Park fans. Jurassic Park 3. In Jurassic Park 3 another fan favorite (a paleontologist named Dr. Alan Grant) reluctantly returns to Jurassic Park. But the reason Jurassic Park 3 got so much backlash is that the T. Rex (which was the main dinosaur in the first two movies) got killed by, ironically, my personal favorite dinosaur, the Spinosaurus. And in case you are wondering why I like the Spinosaurus more than the T. Rex it's because when I was a kid I saw a picture of it in a book and I thought that it was the coolest looking dinosaur ever.

But the thing about those two sequels is that they kind of didn't know how to follow up to the original. Jurassic World actually does.

In Jurassic World, the park is finally operational. And popular because they receive around 20,000 visitors a day. But of course attendance spike when a new attraction is opened up so using that logic the scientists at Jurassic World use genetic modification to not only clone natural dinosaurs, but also created a brand new hybrid. And as per usual, the hybrid (called the Indominus Rex, which is Latin for Untamable King) escapes.


Yeah. This guy is not going to have a good day.

Now the Indominus Rex is cool. I especially like the fact that Dr. Henry Wu (the only returning character) said that it was part cuttlefish. #Cuttle-Saurus! Anyway, I won't spoil the rest of the I. Rex's DNA. Because there is a plot twist later.

Meanwhile on the human side of the story, the head of security Vic Hoskins wants to use dinosaurs (particularly Velociraptors) as military weapons. And that dude was DESTINED to die a very sad death. The moment he was onscreen the first thing I thought was "you be dead soon".

However, the raptor trainer Owen Grady (fun fact: he is played by the same actor who played Star Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy) says that the raptors accepting him as the alpha is NOT the same thing as controlling them.


Raptors!

And Owen Grady is probably the best character in the entire movie. Seriously, he has some of the best lines ever. Some of which are not said by him directly but said by other characters.

Anyway, also another important thing to know is that the manager of Jurassic World, Claire Dearing, has two nephews that go to Jurassic World to visit her. These nephews, Zach and Gray Mitchell, are also hilarious and have some really good lines as well.

And finally we move to the visual effects and music. First, all the dinosaurs look awesome. Hardcore dinosaur lovers will be disappointed to know that none of the dinosaurs have feathers. But something that is cool is that the final battle is simply epic. I won't spoil it for anyone, but rest assured it is a sight to behold.

And now the music. It has a really good score actually. And they even play the classic Jurassic Park theme! So nostalgic!

Overall this movie is a blast from start to finish. I personally don't see anything wrong with the movie. But will this movie top the original Jurassic Park? Probably not, but this is a movie that is a must watch. So I give it a SOLID 9.5/10 (the .5 is because this is a Jurassic Park film and I am a Jurassic Park fan so it gets bonus points).

Splatoon Review part 2!!!

This is the SECOND part of my review on Splatoon. If you have no idea what Splatoon is, go read the first part! Long story short, this is a game with shape-changing squids called Inklings that compete in paintball style shooter matches, competing to cover as much of the map in their team's paint as possible while slowing down the other team's progress. That is a literal mouthful.


LOGO!!!

Now this part of the review is on Splatoon's multiplayer modes. There are currently two modes for online (the one that I play) and one mode for local multiplayer (Which I can't even play because My Wii U only has one controller).

The first mode is available right at the start. It is Turf War. In Turf War, two teams of four player controlled Inklings compete to see who can cover as much of the map in their team's ink/paint as possible within three minutes.




This mode is the shorter of the two in the game at the moment. Unless you are reading this a 100 years in the future in which case welcome to a article of the past! Anyway, assuming you are NOT from the future, Turf War is fun, but newer players may struggle with it because in my experience there are a LOT of high level players playing this mode at the moment. Says the guy who's been playing this game so much he reached level 13 the day after he bought the game.

There is really not a strategy to winning on this game-mode unless you are like me and find some cheeky little way to wreck people. A very good idea, at least on the Saltspray Rig map (more on the maps later), is to control as much of the platform at the North end of the map. Because I have found that because there is so much land there that the team that controls that area is probably going to be the winner.



Another thing to know is that you can customize your Inkling with hats, shirts/vests/jackets/etc, and shoes. These clothing items aren't cosmetic however, as every piece of equipment grants a perk/buff like respawning quicker when you get KO'd. Or dealing more damage. Or letting you throw bombs father away. Or making your weapon use less ink (every weapon in Splatoon uses ink as ammo).

Right now My Inkling is wearing a Camouflage Hoodie, a pair of Goggles, and pair of Pro Trail Boots. NOTE: I do not have any pictures of my Inkling sadly. Rest assured he looks amazing in his outfit.

A really nice addition is that what is available in the stores changes daily, But if they are selling something you don't want but see another player wearing something you do want, you can talk to a guy called Spyke and he will get you a perfect copy of almost any item in the game (with the exception of the three specialty outfits you get for doing the Amiibo challenge). For a price of course.


Spyke!

Now for the SECOND mode! Splat Zones! This is my favorite of the two. It's actually off-limits until your Inkling is level 10 or higher. Which makes sense because this is the more competitive of the two modes available.

 

Now in Splat Zones, Two Teams of four players fight for control of a specific spot on the map and hold that spot for a 100 second countdown. As one can imagine, strategy is crucial to this game mode. One of my personal favorite tricks is best used on the map Blackbelly Skate-Park (and of course because this blog is open to the public literally everyone reading this is going to try it). On this map there is a cylindrical tower at the center of the map. From the top of that tower you can snipe people from almost anywhere!

Only I don't use the sniper rifle (or Charger as it supposed to be called). I use the AeroSpray RG. Not the AeroSpray MG, but the AeroSpray RG! Completely different weapons. Technically. Not at all. They look similar but one fires much faster than the other.

Now onto the maps.

The first map is Saltspray Rig. It's a oil rig with several platforms and elevators. I have yet to play Splat Zones on this map so I do not have a decent trick for it yet.





The next map is one of my favorites! Blackbelly Skate-Park! It's literally a giant skate-park as one can imagine. As I mentioned above, because of the tower in the center of the map you can snipe almost anyone anywhere!





The next map is very small and favors the close quarters approach. Port Mackerel! This map is a harbor filled with cargo boxes (some of which one can climb up for the occasional snipe). As stated, close range combat is inevitable on this map simply because it's one of the smaller maps and is much more confined. NOTE: I could not find a top down view of Port Mackerel for visual aid. Just go with the picture below.



This map is what I like to call, SNIPE CITY!!!! It's Arowana Mall. It's a mall. What did you expect!? Anyway, there are so many places to attack from above and sneak attack moments it's not even funny! But like I said, Blackbelly Skate-Park is my favorite (at least until the two new maps come out in the form of free updates).





The next map is Urchin Underpass. And I am going to be honest. I have never played a match on this map. AT ALL. So I know nothing!





Oh and there are several more maps coming later on in the form of updates. What I am hoping, is that they add a Pirate ship/Pirate hideout themed map. Considering all the fish puns in the game, and the fact that almost every character is a sea creature, I would love to play a round of Splat Zones on a Pirate Ship. Speaking of which I am building a Pirate Ship in Minecraft Survival World.

As I have stated, I love Splat Zones a lot. I could play that mode all day. I normally only play Turf War simply to test out a newly purchased weapon. But I cannot deny that Turf War is just as fun as Splat Zones, it's just I personally like Splat Zones more because of the more competitive nature of it.

For those worried about internet connection problems don't worry! Splatoon runs surprisingly smooth. The only instance of lag I have seen was in one match where no matter how many times I shot a specific spot on the ground my ink would not appear and I was stuck in enemy ink and then I died a very sad death at the hands of a paint roller.

Overall the multiplayer is the best I have seen in any video game I have ever played. And thus, Splatoon's multiplayer gets a 10/10!! And the final verdict on Splatoon as a whole is a solid 19.7/20!! Go ahead and read part 1 of My review to see what I though of the story mode.

Splatoon is a Wii U exclusive available at GameStop for $59.99. I recommend this game to any Wii U owner.