With the third installment in the Jurassic World Evolution franchise, Frontier Developments has delivered the ultimate fantasy to Jurassic Park and Jurassic World fans: the ability to build and fully customize your own dinosaur theme park. With all of its new features and improvements to existing systems, I’m convinced that Jurassic World Evolution 3 is the pinnacle of this series.
### Man Destroys God
Jurassic World Evolution 3 is what you’d expect from a follow-up to its two predecessors: a management sim that allows players to build their own Jurassic World through both guided and sandbox modes. The third time around, most of it feels familiar. Still, Frontier manages to pack in enough changes and enhancements that I found myself having more fun than in the previous entries.
### Juvenile Dinosaurs: A Game-Changer
Chief among the new additions are juvenile dinosaurs. Younger versions of dinosaurs have appeared before in this franchise, but they’ve now been revamped with unique traits and behaviors that completely transform how you interact with them.
Now, juvenile dinosaurs take more after their parents, both in appearance and behavior. Certain traits are passed down through breeding and will be reflected in offspring, including unique color patterns that may be atypical for the species. This system rewards careful dinosaur management over an extended period.
The way a dinosaur is cared for during its youth—both by its parents and you as the park manager—influences its disposition as an adult. A neglected juvenile raptor that grew up in an uncomfortable environment may become an aggressive and angry adult. Conversely, meeting a young dinosaur’s needs could lead to a happy and social adult.
Of course, natural tendencies still matter. Some species of dinosaurs are inherently more docile or hostile than others, which plays a significant role.
You can also track an individual dinosaur’s lineage, allowing you to see how specific traits have been passed down through generations as you continue to nurture your dinos. Watching parts of a dinosaur live on in its offspring, especially as they grow old and pass away, was an oddly emotional experience for me.
### Jurassic Campaign: An Extended Tutorial
The Jurassic Campaign once again serves as an extended tutorial. It teaches you everything you need to know about the game—from park management to dinosaur breeding. It’s essentially a must-play experience for first-time players, unless you want to be completely lost when dinosaurs start dying of illness or guests flee in horror during a T-Rex breakout.
More experienced players may find the campaign treads familiar ground. That was my experience in JWE3’s campaign. I appreciated the refresher on all the game’s mechanics and a few significant changes (which I’ll cover later) that required a proper rundown. Still, I wish this mode had more depth.
The Jurassic movie franchise has an excellent roster of fascinating and complex characters, riveting storylines, intrigue, and espionage. Unfortunately, Jurassic World Evolution 3 doesn’t really capture any of that—outside of some fun park locations. Even the return of Jeff Goldblum’s Ian Malcolm feels like retreading old ground.
This year’s campaign uses a non-linear format, which is a nice touch, but I wish there was an actual sense of adventure or story woven throughout.
### Other Modes to Chew On
Challenge and Sandbox modes both return in JWE3.
**Challenge Mode** puts players in challenging scenarios designed to test their understanding of the game’s mechanics. There are levels with both short-term and long-term challenges, and Frontier does an excellent job showcasing the game’s various systems. These challenges have a decent level of replayability as you explore different ways to solve problems.
Personally, my natural progression when playing a Jurassic World Evolution game is Campaign, then Challenge, and finally Sandbox.
**Sandbox Mode** is where the experience truly shines. It puts you in full control of virtually every aspect of running a park. The complete roster of dinosaurs—now numbering over 80—is at your disposal, along with countless items and facilities.
I enjoy setting my own self-imposed restrictions at the start of a run, giving myself some freedom, but not too much. The moment-to-moment challenge of maintaining a dinosaur theme park and managing all its demands is endlessly engaging. No matter how you choose to play, Sandbox mode has everything you need, and its variety of park locations ensures every run feels fresh.
### Customization Gets a Major Boost
Customization has received a big enhancement in JWE3. With the addition of modular building, players can now fine-tune the details of different facilities in their park. Walls, roofs, windows, and other props can all be altered to perfectly fit your vision.
If you love designing beautiful parks, prepare to sink an ungodly number of hours into cosmetics.
### Stunning Visuals
Jurassic World Evolution 3 is downright beautiful. Each game in the series gets prettier, and this one might be the best-looking sim I’ve ever played. I found myself constantly zooming in to admire the dinosaurs or watching ranger teams drive through dense jungle areas.
Lighting and reflections look better than ever thanks to improved ray tracing settings. Even on a combination of high and ultra settings, my mid-range PC handled the game smoothly.
### Chaos Theory: The Series’ Full Potential
Jurassic World Evolution 3 feels like the series nearly at its full potential. The previous games laid an excellent foundation, and the addition of juvenile dinosaurs along with improvements to customization have elevated the experience.
Any Jurassic fan who has fantasized about managing their own dinosaur park will find that dream realized in Jurassic World Evolution 3.
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*This review is based on a Steam code provided by the publisher. Jurassic World Evolution 3 is out now for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.*
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146429/jurassic-world-evolution-3-review-score
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