Jurassic World: Aftermath – Part Two [Quest 2] | REVIEW

I enjoyed Jurassic World: Aftermath when it launched on the Oculus Quest late last year, though its somewhat predictable stealth-setup was a little guilty of being repetitive in design. Whilst it was great to face off against velociraptors, the film series it’s based upon prided itself on showdowns with big nasties and all sorts of other majestic creatures. It also ended on a cliff hanger with the promise of a ‘second part’, which did leave a little bit of a sour taste after playing – especially since it was going to be a separate purchase.

Well, that second part is finally here, with Jurassic World: Aftermath – Part Two bringing the dangerous adventure to a conclusion. It manages to improve upon and bring a lot more excitement to the fray than the previous game too, even if it does STILL rely on raptor evading a bit too much.

Check out a gallery of screenshots down below:

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You can check out our review of the first part of the game through this link, where we said:
“Jurassic World Aftermath’s unnerving stealth-adventure will certainly keep players on their toes, even if it can get a little bit repetitive in places.”

The game kicks off directly after the somewhat abrupt conclusion of the original, though I won’t spoil that here. Not that there’s a whole lot to spoil, with Jurassic World: Aftermath not really having the most thrilling of narratives beforehand. Fortunately, it does take a few more interesting turns here as the tale wraps up, so I’m sure returning gamers will be pleased to see that all of their efforts to survive weren’t for nothing in the end. Jeff Goldblum once again returns to provide his voice to the role of Doctor Ian Malcolm too, which is, as always, a real treat.

It’s worth mentioning from the get-go that Jurassic World: Aftermath – Part Two still contains plenty of the same velociraptor-avoiding gameplay from the first entry, so it hasn’t revolutionised the formula too much in the last ten months. There have been some new gameplay mechanics introduced to these sections to spice them up a little, but yeah, there’s a lot of sneaking around and avoiding their gaze if you don’t want to end up as raptor food.

“Jurassic World: Aftermath – Part Two still contains plenty of the same velociraptor-avoiding gameplay from the first entry, so it hasn’t revolutionised the formula too much in the last ten months.”

Now I didn’t mind all of the stealth action from the original game because there is something exhilarating about avoiding the grasp of the vicious creatures, with the stealth sections proving to be well designed and varied. However, they got repetitive the first time around, so being thrown straight into them from the get-go here was a little underwhelming. It is nice to see some new ideas in the mix and they are creative, but it would have been even better to have something a bit more spectacular to kick start the return to the adventure.

Fortunately, you don’t have to wait too long before the excitement kicks in, with Jurassic World: Aftermath – Part Two introducing new dinosaurs and action-orientated set pieces that really up the ante. It brings the thrills and spills that many expected from the first game, and whilst these do often still rely on stealth mechanics, there’s something all the more exciting about being pursued by a god damn t-rex. I’ve tried to avoid spoiling some of the best bits of the game in this review, but come on… there was no way there wasn’t going to be an encounter with Jurassic World’s most iconic dinosaur.

“It brings the thrills and spills that many expected from the first game, and whilst these do often still rely on stealth mechanics, there’s something all the more exciting about being pursued by a god damn t-rex.”

Add to that some dino-related puzzles that bring unique ideas to the game and a thrilling escape sequence that wraps up the experience, and it becomes clear that Jurassic World: Aftermath – Part Two thrives in areas where the original game didn’t. Some parts of the game were actually some of the best that I’ve experienced in virtual reality… it’s just a shame that some of the earlier sections of didn’t expand upon the pre-established formula all that much.

It still manages to look great too, with the cartoony visuals once again feeling perfect in virtual reality. It didn’t stop the dinosaurs being terrifying and it didn’t stop the game from being immersive, with it giving a unique and vibrant take on the Jurassic World universe.

Developer: Coatsink
Publisher: Oculus Studios
Platform(s): Oculus Quest 2 (Reviewed), Oculus Quest
Website: https://www.oculus.com/jurassic-world-aftermath/