Traveller’s Tales has been fairly busy in this year alone. It’s currently working on LEGO Dimensions, LEGO Worlds, LEGO Marvel’s Avengers and of course, LEGO Jurassic World. We’re obviously going to be interested in humanity’s biggest mistake since Skynet because, well, dinosaurs. The co-op title will follow the same stylistic approach as its previous LEGO games but explores all four films in the series. That means killing LEGO raptors with gymnastics a la Jurassic Park: The Lost World and we can’t wait. The question is: Can we co-operate with dinosaurs?
GamingBolt posed this essential question to TT Fusion game director Jamie Eden who also discussed why the studio chose Jurassic World when there are so many other blockbusters out this year. What essential moments from the films have made it into LEGO Jurassic World? Find out below.
"Alongside the dinosaurs, you can experiment with LEGO Jurassic World’s Dino DNA customiser to create all new species of dinosaurs with unique abilities, colour schemes and patterns."
Of all the blockbusters releasing this year, why choose Jurassic World as the basis for a new Lego game? Not that we mind, especially since it looks leagues better than Terminator: Genisys.
Jamie Eden: It’s a series of films that has always been asked for by fans of the LEGO games and with the release of this massive film, one of the most highly anticipated in years, there was no better time to do it.
Which characters and dinosaurs can we expect to see in Lego Jurassic World, aside from the characters already revealed?
Jamie Eden: You can expect to see all the characters from the original trilogy, alongside all the cast of the upcoming Jurassic World. One to mention is Mr DNA who you’ll remember from Jurassic Park, he makes an appearance as a playable character with tons of cool abilities.
Lego Jurassic World will feature the same two player co-op as previous Lego titles but we can play as dinosaurs along with human characters. How does this work out exactly? Will the dinos be cooperating with humans at any point?
Jamie Eden: Dinosaurs will definitely be co-operating with humans throughout. In some of the levels we get to heal dinosaurs and take control of them to use their cool new abilities to solve puzzles. As well as this, in Free Play mode, you can play through the levels again as the smaller dinosaurs.
"Alongside the dinosaurs, you can experiment with LEGO Jurassic World’s Dino DNA customiser to create all new species of dinosaurs with unique abilities, colour schemes and patterns."
Aside from featuring dinosaurs, what segregates Lego Jurassic World from its predecessors? Will there be any new unique gameplay features?
Jamie Eden: Alongside the dinosaurs, you can experiment with LEGO Jurassic World’s Dino DNA customiser to create all new species of dinosaurs with unique abilities, colour schemes and patterns. Once these are done, you can put them into the paddocks on the open world islands of Isla Nublar and Isla Sorna to rampage and find new secrets.
On the subject of mission design, how did the property present new ideas for missions?
Jamie Eden: As you’d expect from a series about rampaging dinosaurs, there’s a lot of parts of the films where humans are being pursued by dinosaurs. These are some of the most intense parts of the films and we had to replicate that in the game and make them fun for players. We had to come up with lots of ways to make these pursuits feel different and exciting, as well as keep players engaged.
The game has 20 levels, with five levels making up each film in the saga. Which set pieces can we expect from each film (and please say we can ride with Velociraptors in Jurassic World)?
Jamie Eden: Basically, if you can remember it from the films, we’ve covered it in some way, shape or form. Iconic bits like the T. rex chasing after the Jeep in Jurassic Park, the Mobile Lab hanging off the side of the cliff in The Lost World and the epic showdown between T. rex and Spinosaurus in Jurassic Park III.
"We pride ourselves on being as close to the films as we possibly can and the Jurassic World section of the game closely follows the story of the film."
How closely does Lego Jurassic World tie into the upcoming film? Will it spoil any unique plot points for those who don’t rush to see the movie on opening day?
Jamie Eden: We pride ourselves on being as close to the films as we possibly can and the Jurassic World section of the game closely follows the story of the film. For those who don’t want to experience that part without seeing the film beforehand, you have the option to play through Jurassic Park, The Lost World and Jurassic Park III first and then go into Jurassic World at any time you want.
How do the console versions of Lego Jurassic World differ from their portable counterparts? Will there be any benefit for users who, for example, own both the 3DS and Wii U versions?
Jamie Eden: We’ve tried to make the console and handheld versions match up as closely as possible, with each having different content in between the story levels as well as tweaks to make the handheld levels more suited to playing on those formats.
Is there anything else you want to tell me before I let you go?
Jamie Eden: Go out and pick up the game when it’s released!
