Carnivores 2 (PC)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.5 stars Very good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 7.3 (3.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Greg Kasavin
• Reviewed on: 11/12/1999
• Updated on: 02/27/2004
• Released on: 10/31/1999
• Originally published on GameSpot: Carnivores 2 (PC) Review

It's too easy to go on about how terrible most hunting games are. Suffice it to say that such games exist and thrive because they reconstruct a sport whose uniquely violent rules are appealing to a lot of people. These gamers do not specifically want to kill deer; they simply want to experience the hunt. Recognizing this, Ukrainian developer Action Forms created Carnivores, which gave you the hunter's tools of the trade, only you'd hunt dinosaurs instead of deer. Suddenly the ethical argument was no longer relevant - dinosaurs are already dead - and what was left was a great-looking little first-person game that cleverly simulated what it might be like to take on a triceratops with a shotgun. One good idea made way for another, and less than a year later, Carnivores 2 was published. It's essentially identical to the original, but its streamlined gameplay and expanded menagerie make it just as enjoyable.

True to its title, this sequel emphasizes dinosaurs of the more voracious variety. Whereas only three dinosaurs in the first game were meat eaters, Carnivores 2 adds the camel-like spinosaurus and the horned ceratosaurus to the fray, which make for a fine assortment of dangerous game alongside the velociraptor, allosaurus, and tyrannosaurus. There are new plant eaters as well, including the armored anklyosaurus. Some of these, such as the towering brachiosaurus, are present to provide atmosphere rather than sport. As in the first Carnivores, everything that lives and breathes in Carnivores 2 looks terrific. All the dinosaurs are carefully detailed and almost disturbingly lifelike as they graze and go about their dinosaur business. They leave trails of blood if you shoot and wound them, and if you take them out with tranquilizers, you can see them heaving in slumber. These are truly some of the best-looking dinosaurs ever rendered onscreen. They also sound convincing, and while you can't know what a dinosaur actually sounds like, Carnivores 2 poses a pretty good hypothesis. The nine species you hunt all have their own distinctive calls, and the larger ones sound downright scary.

Fortunately, you've got a pretty scary arsenal with which to take these things down. From the conventional 9mm pistol on up to the long-range sniper rifle, these six guns are all functionally different and tactically interesting. All the weapons from the first game are back, and aside from the pistol, the only other addition is a mean double-barreled shotgun that pays homage to the superweapon of the sequel to Doom, id Software's classic. The hunting tools from the first game are back, including camouflage, cover scent, and even a tracking device that shows dinosaurs on your map. Using these tools detracts from the points you earn with each kill, while using tranquilizers boosts your totals but won't put that tyrannosaurus in your trophy room.

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