More than 30 years after Steven Spielberg first unleashed dinosaurs onto the big screen with Jurassic Park (1993), the long-running franchise is finally heading back to its jungle roots — and this time, the dinosaurs will think for themselves.
Universal’s next Jurassic Park project isn’t a film, theme park ride, or exhibit, but a fully interactive experience titled “Jurassic Park: Survival”. Set the day after the 1993 film, the upcoming first-person video game will drop players on Isla Nublar Dr. Maya Joshi (Payal Mistry), an InGen scientist who’s been accidentally left behind to fend for herself.
The game is being built on the same design philosophy that made Sega and Creative Assembly’s “Alien: Isolation” (2014) a cult classic — intelligent, unpredictable threats instead of endless scripted sequences. But here, the threats are packs of velociraptors, tyrannosaurs, and many other AI-driven predators, as each dinosaur will react dynamically to sound, movement, and player behavior, learning and adapting as the story unfolds.
The official website for the game states that every dinosaur on Isla Nublar is “reactive” and has “their own distinct and adaptive behaviors” It also adds that Isla Nublar has been “fully realized,” (as also revealed in a recent behind-the-scenes featurette), complete with familiar landmarks like the Visitor Center and new ones, including an abandoned hotel built for guests who never arrived.
For fans used to seeing Jurassic‘s dinosaurs created with practical effects — whether in the films or on Universal Studios’ attractions such as Jurassic Park: The Ride and VelociCoaster, or in Jurassic World: The Experience — this is new territory. Of course, “Survival” is hardly the first Jurassic game, and there’s an abundance of CG models in the film series, but AI-driven dinosaurs will bring a whole new layer to that wonder and terror.
Related: Next ‘Jurassic Park’ Installment Will Be Perfect for Fans Who Hated Rebirth | Disney Dining
In an era where “AI” is often seen as a dirty word, “Jurassic Park: Survival” is using it to do what the franchise has always done best: make dinosaurs feel alive.
For longtime fans who’ve wanted the Jurassic equivalent of “Alien: Isolation”, this may finally be it — a game where getting out alive depends not on spectacle, but on silence, strategy, and other survival skills.
“Jurassic Park: Survival” will be released on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
Are you excited about the new Jurassic Park game? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below!
