"Think they'll have that on the tour?"

Whatever happened to disgruntled Jurassic Park employee Dennis Nedry’s embryo-filled can of shaving cream? Anyone who found it could still stand to make a lot of money…

Such is the basic premise of Jurassic Park: The Game, a heavily cinematic adventure that runs parallel with the first film. It stretches across four episodes running around 90 minutes each, alternating between several characters, headlined by veterinarian Gerry Harding and his 14-year-old daughter Jess. Controversially, this isn’t a traditional point-and-click affair. Rather, it’s more about successfully nailing quick-time events so you don’t get eaten by dinosaurs than about solving puzzles, although there are light riddles to be dealt with, too.

Quite a fish tank they have here...

Yes, Jurassic Park’s QTE-powered gameplay often makes you feel more like an observer than a participant, but the same could be said for the PS3’s stellar Heavy Rain or the coin-op legend Dragon’s Lair. Though some players may find the passive nature of the experience annoying, it’s passable here while you explore different parts of the island, chat with the other characters, and react quickly to avoid becoming a dino’s lunch.

The engaging story kept us interested through the end, but, as in the park itself, there are technical difficulties. Graphics, for one, are what you’d expect from an original-Xbox game. More glaringly, while the voice-acting is good (except for mercenary Oscar, whose meek voice doesn’t match his burly frame), the audio is riddled with pops and gaps. And weirdly, the game has very few sound effects: most scenes are just silent, save for the familiar Jurassic Park theme and the dialogue. It’s off-putting, as if you’re playing an unfinished version of the game.

Still, we couldn’t help but enjoy being back on Isla Nublar, seeing familiar sights and hearing the dinosaurs’ classic shrieks and roars. If only the game’s creators had done it John Hammond’s way and spared no expense on the production values...

PUBLISHER: Telltale Games  •  DEVELOPER: Telltale Games  •  ESRB: Teen  •  MULTIPLAYER: None  •  ACHIEVEMENTS: Fairly easy  •  COST: $40

On Xbox 360

+ Enjoyable story that overlaps with both the film and book.

+ QTE gameplay can get tense; hilarious deaths when you fail.

– Mediocre graphics; sparse, poorly mixed sound; QTE gameplay may bore some people.

? Why doesn’t Samuel L. Jackson’s severed arm make an appearance?

6.0