Dinosaurs? Bows and arrows? Aliens? Turok’s Origins seem to be wild.
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/hands-on-preview/77063/turok-origins-switch-2-hands-on-preview
I gotta admit, I think Turok is a bit of a weird series. While I can see how it was groundbreaking for the first-person shooters on console, coming out so shortly after both Quake and Goldeneye, there has never really been a reason for me to get into the series. Pretty much all I knew was that it was a pretty convoluted series where you shoot both dinosaurs and aliens, occasionally with a bow. But that hasn’t stopped Saber Interactive from going all in on a completely new and original game with Turok: Origins. At Gamescom, I got to go hands-on for about 30 minutes and got to speak to one of the developers afterwards as well. I still can’t judge whether Turok: Origins is finally getting me on board, but at the very least it seems to be taking a big swing.
Check out our video preview of Turok: Origins above, which also includes a developer interview with the game's lead designer.
In the long lasting war between the Turok and an invading alien species, you enter the war as one of the chosen warriors. The demo saw me playing a training mission designed to prove my character’s worth as one of the Turok. Structurally the game can be played in both single player and with two others in co-op. Each of its three classes come with their own skills and weapons. I gravitated towards the ‘Raven’ who plays more like a support class who can stop enemies in their tracks, heal allies and fire homing missiles as special attacks. There were three main weapons to choose from: a bow, a laser rifle and a heavy rocket launcher. Each of the weapons felt pretty great to control and provided some strategic advantage against the onslaught of both dinosaurs and aliens.
As I set out across the Lost Lands I was tasked with running to several points to prevent the amassing enemies from reaching our base. Or finding artefacts? Truth be told, as much as the opening cutscene emphasized the epic story going on, it kind of blew past me. Perhaps it was that I was funnelled into a demo, but I also wasn’t expecting to be bombarded with sci-fi mumbo jumbo from the word go. I can see how the team wants to set up this elaborate universe, but it was also quite a bit to take in. Thankfully during the gameplay itself this all washed away quite easily. Controls are smooth and feel like a modern action game. One of the best features is that you can swap between third and first-person with the press of a button. For most of my encounters with regular enemies, the first-person camera proved vital. However, in the boss battle against a massive augmented T-Rex, I switched to third-person to dodge incoming bites and swipes from the beast.
Keeping track of enemies in the thick jungle was quite difficult. Relying on a scan ability provided me with their outline. While the group next to me was playing in co-op, I was playing the game on Switch 2 in single player. The final game will have crossplay with other versions and judging by the arenas I was fighting in, I can see how this will be the main draw for a lot of players. I wasn’t paired up with any NPCs and it could get quite hectic and overwhelming fighting off the hordes of enemies. In a sense it made combat feel quite tight, but it also revealed how linear my progression truly was. Go to this area, interact with this object, take down these two enemies and go back around to open a gate: it all felt pretty formulaic. I wasn’t having a bad time, but near the end of my demo it did feel a bit like a drag.
What was not a drag was the performance on Switch 2. While some of the rendered textures and environments in the jungle were clearly a bit rough, the game remained stable throughout. Particle and VFX effects looked great even, with the jungle getting its fair share of weather effects and enemies looking great and imposing when needed. The game will be locked at 30FPS, but given you can still play with friends on other platforms that should be a compromise I am willing to live with. Especially if you also want to play the game by yourself for the story.
I think Turok: Origins will be somewhat of a departure for fans of the original games. But I also suspect that is a good thing. With Origins, the team at Saber is going for a new approach to the series and setting up a grand sci-fi story. Though it is clear that at its heart, Turok: Origins is designed for a co-op experience. Perhaps that is the new distinction that sets the series apart for the future. Not just dinosaurs, but a gameplay loop and world you can explore with your friends. For now, the Switch 2 version seems like a fine way to experience Turok: Origins, but I remain curious to see how the game breaks up its structure and encounters during this origin story.
Topic: Turok: Origins (Switch 2) Hands-On Preview (Read 17 times)
