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| Turok: The Dinosaur Hunter has proven to be chock full of surprises and delights, and is an encouraging sign for other third party developers. Not knowing what to expect after having heard that Acclaim---a company more recently associated with some of the worst games on the market---was working on an N64 title, I was ecstatic when I actually played the game and realized that it had exceeded my expectations. Perhaps this was due to expectations that never would reach the heights of say, a Mario game, but nevertheless, Turok continues to impress in all areas. As anyone with fundamental PC game experience can immediately recognize, Turok is a "Doom" of sorts, but strays from the typical hallway-filled-with-hell-spawned-demons scenario. Actually, there are few hallways to speak of in Turok, save for the occasional temple interior or underground cavern. Most of the action takes place in wide open spaces. Well...in theory. Though the areas themselves are vast and open, the ever-present fog masks most of the level and only reveals the immediate area around yourself, which extends several hundred virtual feet in any direction. While some people will no doubt be inclined to moan about how the fog just masks pop-up, the pixel-free, anti-aliased, light-sourced, 30 fps environment filled with beautiful, polygonal enemies more than make up for not being able to see into infinity. True, the mist is an annoyance, but the graphics that are only possible with the effect are well worth the small price that is paid, especially when fog actually fits in the setting. As for those graphics, they are, in a word, phenomenal. No hint of a pixel in sight, just smooth, detailed textures aplenty. Light sources fill the lost world, as do characters that appear and animate so well that...well, let's just say you'll believe it when you see it. The natives stumble and tilt when they run. Raptors seem to have been miraculously motion captured. Dying sequences show the violent nature and environment of the wild. Additionally, fantastic details such as life-like waterfalls and torches, as well as huge cobwebs swaying in the zephyrs, make this undoubtedly the most visually pleasing game to be found outside an arcade. After seeing a couple levels of Turok, you'll realize a new appreciation for anti-aliasing, this is undoubtedly what a 64-bit game should look like. As for what a 64-bit game should sound like, well, that's another story. True, the music should be simple so as to harmonize with the setting, but I expected a little more than tom-toms and jungle music, as appropriate they may be. Despite all the music's simplicity, you'll notice it adding the perfect amount of tension to the already suspenseful atmosphere, and it works, though could have used the N64's sound chip a bit better. The sound effects are great, with ambient footsteps telling you to beware of that raptor that is about to tear you to shreds and a variety of screams you hear from the...ahem...humans you have to kill. Since this is not a human hunter adventure, the dinosaurs also make appropriate sounds, though some of the sounds (like that oh-so-generic bobcat roar) seem entirely unconvincing and should have at least been altered. Doom's control has its established formula, and Turok took what it needed from the equation and changed to it to suit the game's needs. The control is not nearly as intuitive as that of Doom, but after a training course or two, you'll be a-shootin' those reptiles with the best of 'em. You move Turok with the four 'C' buttons, while the analog stick turns Turok or angles your gun (or sight) up or down. The right shift button is for jumping, the trigger for killing, and the A and B buttons are used to choose your weapon. At first you'll wish that a key configuration was included with a game, but you'll eventually realize that even if it were included, the default setting is the most useful anyway. I must admit that jumping is the biggest control hurdle, and raises the frustration level of this game considerably. The difficulty in jumping made me consider the usefulness of such a feature in a first-person shooter. Nevertheless, after some practice, you will be able to control Turok with motions that give you an acute sense of interaction with his world, and the game sucks you in from there. You'll find yourself entering portals, finding keys, shooting jeeps, swimming, climbing, running---you know---everything that you should be able to do in a virtual world. Unfortunately, the save points and checkpoints have much terrain between them, which eventually leads to a bad case of the "have to do it again" syndrome. At least the second time around is just as entertaining as the first, albeit every bit as difficult. While Turok is a game with several flaws, it remains truly one of the great technological achievements of this year. The game is quite lengthy and vast, and features visuals that would make even a plumber blush. Though Doom clones are not exactly my favorite genre, I couldn't help but be engulfed by the whole atmosphere and beauty of the game, and if that isn't enough, the insane shooting action should make you look twice at this one. As a Nintendo 64 game, it remains a excellent accomplishment, but may function even more importantly as a signal for other third party companies who are apprehensive about developing for the system. Hey, if a company in nearly financial ruin with a recent track record little better than that of a basement development team can make miracles like Turok, what could be the future accomplishments of companies like Capcom and Konami? Learn from observation: Turok rocks. |
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