Jurassic World Evolution

Many movie-based games feel like quick cash grabs, but this park management simulation is surprisingly nuanced -- and even a bit funny. Jurassic World Evolution captures the essence of the films, not just in the details of what it takes to create a dinosaur clone, but also the ethical problems. How do you contain and keep an animal happy when its nature makes it want to be free and hunt? How do you teach animals whose genetic makeup is that of a confident alpha predator that humans are equal alpha predators and not to be trifled with? The strategies suggested by some of the park's officials are iffy at best. But thanks to warm, authentic performances from actors like Jeff Goldblum as franchise favorite Dr. Ian Malcolm, players are able to get sage, witty commentary on what's going on at the park, predicting without fail how things are bound to go awry.

Under all of this is a competent -- and surprisingly straightforward -- park simulator. It's not too hard to understand the effects of each upgrade you research and building you construct, and adding facilities like monorails, hotels, and viewing towers to create an appealing resort is satisfying. You can even get down and experience the park at ground level, taking on the role of a jeep ranger or helicopter pilot to tranquilize sick dinosaurs and photograph animals engaged in curious behaviors for a little extra cash. Park finances sometimes teeter-totter a little too much: You may have more money than you know what to do with one moment, then dive deep into the red the next as angry patrons sue you over dino-related injuries. And a couple of tweaks here and there -- like the ability to replace fences as you build stronger ones, rather than build around old fences before demolishing them -- would have streamlined some of the more tedious mechanics. But Jurassic World Evolution is, overall, a surprisingly robust theme park simulation that accurately channels the blockbuster films' familiar atmosphere.