Turok

Turok (PC) Review

The 1997 classic Turok: Dinosaur Hunter makes a return on PC, offering a nostalgic trip into a prehistoric world filled with dangerous dinosaurs, merciless enemies, and intense combat. The game blends fast-paced action with exploration, taking players through lush jungles and ancient ruins as they battle everything from raptors to massive T. rex. The PC version of Turok enhances the experience with improved graphics, including higher resolutions and smoother textures, making the once-blocky visuals much more appealing.

While the controls may feel a bit dated compared to modern shooters, the game’s original charm shines through, particularly with its expansive levels and array of weapons, including the iconic bow and explosive grenades. However, the AI can sometimes be a bit repetitive, and navigating the more maze-like levels can be frustrating at times.

Overall, Turok on PC is a great choice for fans of 90s FPS nostalgia. It may not hold up as seamlessly as some modern shooters, but its thrilling combat and dinosaur-filled chaos still make for a fun, if slightly rough, adventure.

Famously an original N64 game, Turok is an early 3D console FPS that combines exploration with platforming, creating an experience greater than the sum of its parts. Early 3D games had to be finessed with all the limitations such as draw distance and a claustrophobic vertical field of view. One of the earliest Night Dive remasters on its burgeoning KEX engine, the transition to PC is well handled and translates to a genuine feeling that is an extension of the N64 classic.

I caution going in with the expectations of a modern FPS running at a high framerate as it will surely leave you disappointed and diminish what makes this game special. Turok is originally a console game after all, but don't let that deter you from enjoying what is some of the weirdest fun you can have with such a game. Passion and creativity I believe, is why this game is well loved and continues to standout as a unique franchise in the history of modern shooters.

I am 2rock.

Did not like this game on n64, but that's because I was dumb and wanted everything to be like Goldeneye.

This is a very solid game in the Doom/Quake mold and being able to play it without having to eat shit with the n64 controller is a joy.

The best way to play this great N64 game!

One of the first games i've every played as a kid on the N64. Old Classic Retro Fps. Kill Dinosaurs, Robots, and Aliens while playing a Native American; and instant classic. Go in there with low expectations and enjoy the ride. Secrets all over the place, and the boss battles are nothing serious . Chill game to turn your brain off.

excellent. better than most stuff nowadays

I played this because of N64 nostalgia. But how does it hold up today?

First, playing this on PC is delightfully smooth. Turok moves super fast, and while this isn't a crazy movement shooter or anything like that, it's still a nice fluid experience. There is also definitely a retro charm to it, with weird fantasy weapons and the usual stuff like health pickups and lots of secret rooms. The N64 soundtrack also fits this game perfectly.

There are however also some less fun aspects about it. For some reason this game has a lot of tedious first-person platforming, which is very much not enjoyable. It also has some rather ill-conceived mechanics that do nothing for the game except to punish the player. You have a limited amount of lives, if they run out your game is completely over. This isn't that big of a deal since you can just load a save, but I really don't get why this needed a lives system in the first place. Similarly, you can only carry a limited amount of ammo, unless you collect a backpack item - which you lose upon death, and there are only a couple per level.

The overall presentation of this game is also not great, even for its time. There are very few graphical assets, so every jungle area looks the same after a while. Goldeneye, which came out around the same time, did that much better.

So, should you play this - for reasons other than nostalgia? I guess if you wanna dive into 90's FPS and have already played the classics, then this isn't too bad of a pick.

If you have played it on the N64 then its pretty much the same game and I would recommend it. If you haven't played it then I suggest you watch someone play it first. There are very limited save points (the jumping and they dying gets old really fast), some of the keys are really hard to find and level design is frustrating. On the plus side, cheat codes can be found on the internet really easily though you do miss out on achievements.

The reviews by all the kiddies who can't handle games without objective markers are hilarious.

game is bugged, i can no longer use my weapons, dont buy this

I never thought I'd play a game about a native american hunting dinosaurs with an AK-47 and a rocket launcher, let alone having to go up to a space lair with weapons of mass destruction, the game is really good. 10/10

Turok Dinasaur Hunter was always an Awesome game! It was one of the first shooters I played as a kid on PC. Playing through all the levels now that I'm able to collect the keys without getting stuck is nostalgic. I got the urge to play because of the Turok ORIGINS trailer during the Game Awards 2024. Give this one a try its what gave us Turok Evolution and Turok (2008)!

Great boomer shooter and a nice piece of retro gaming that still works well.

It's a classic game. Don't go into this expecting modern game design, it's more definitely boomer shooter like.

Big sprawling levels. You'll do at least as much platforming and exploring as fighting. Lots of different weapons. Hordes of mediocre enemies. Relatively fun & memorable boss battles.

That's about all there is to this, but it's fun.

I fought more people than Dinos. The save system is trash and I was just bored out of my mind.

I have owned this for the N64 and tried many times to play it and adjust to the "old" controls. I could not, thank you Christ for this remaster because now i can move on from the novelty of playing this on the N64 to actually enjoying this game for the really fun and good game that it is

Not as fun as I expected.
The weaponry is just too OP, mowing down every enemy and probably even you if you don't keep a distance from the explosions. If you like wonky enemies that don't fit into a specific story that hunt you down like hooligans then this is for you, but not really for me. (I do like some games that have that kind of stuff, but not this one)

It's a lot of fun but go into it with the mindset of being an old 3D platformer collectathon like Banjo Kazooie or Mario 64 as well as a fast paced boomer shooter. It was an N64 game after all

Great remaster but not a great game. It's fun for a while but becomes more of a chore than anything else.

i still cant properly wrap my head around how astronomically well designed the catacombs and the ruins are

I played this game for the first time in 2018 and it is one of my favorite games. Simply put, it is more fun than Half-Life and, dare I say, Unreal. My only complaint is that the levels can be a little confusing but not impossible. (It's a shame the sequel couldn't live up to the quality of Turok 1).

The remaster changed the levels some, but it streamlined them quite nicely. I remembered almost always missing keys on level 2 and 6 but the remaster changed it around to make them more on the main paths.

10/10. 11/10 with big head mode.

did the rain dance on some losers

Dinosaurs from space make me happy.

This is my Turok

First person shooter where you fight people and dinosaurs, you are an Indian. It is just like "Quake", "Half-Life", those older games however it has a more "Spyro" feel to it as you venture massive levels and find keys / items within the levels, grab shards for more lives. etc. Very fun, surprisingly enjoyable game play for an older game too. Has secrets!

The developer did a fantastic job with this game ,but I forgot how much I just hate the premise of this game.

Find keys in a foggy void of a world combined with killing enemies seems to be pointless cause they'll respawn in 3 seconds or less.

Tldr Easter egg hunt with guns that only stun not kill

Nice Quake-like but I am not fan of the save system and platforming can get frustrating sometimes (it's clearly a console FPS).

If you don't mind the N64 graphics you should take it during sales.

This is much worse then Turok 2. Turok 2 felt a lot, i mean A LOT, better. Didnt enjoy this one, while loved the second one.

I... AM TUROK!

What can be said for such a classic. It is a lot easier than 10 year old me remembers, how i couldn't beat the game back then idk. Its still fun and the music is still a master piece.

+ unique feel in the boomer fps genre
+ cool sci-fi dino setting
+ switch to barber beats music when underwater is unexpected gold
- can totally see how it gives people motion sickness
- hard difficulty setting is hard for the wrong reasons (no ammo drops)
- level designers were likely high on illegal substances
- too many useless weapons
- bosses are pushovers

I love how smoothly this plays!
A fun adventure that leaves you asking "who gave the velociraptor a gun?"

Make me remember the old time!! Great game!

cant see myself finishing this. Find the inability to change ammo type infuriating.

great classic

this game turned out better then i remember, which is strange because that doesnt normally happen. usually its just the same as i remembered but i felt less bored playing this iteration then in the past, probably the QoL, but its hard to say. i feel it is a great game but no where near as good as the second one or rage wars which i hope get released. but, the price is a bit steep considering not much was truly added to this game so it might be better to grab it on a sale despite these turok games being gems

It's worth buying it on sale. Not as good as the second one and gets very tedious towards the mid point of the game. I only came back because i never beat it as a kid

My wife's boyfriend was really cool and bought this game for me! When it came out in '97, I didn't have enough money to buy it so I ended up missing out on it entirely. In fact, the closest that I ever came to a proper Turok game was the Gameboy Color port of Turok: Rage Wars. It's as good as it was advertised back in the day and solid from top to bottom (music, platforming, shooting, NPC enemy difficulty and variety, etc.). The only complaint I have is this weird rhythmic smacking noise that I heard 15 minutes into booting up the game and if I am not mistaken, the noise of a woman being in distress.

If someone could inform me whether or not if this is some sort of unwanted audio artifact that came with being remastered, please let me know.

7/10

My wife likes this game.
My wife REALLY likes this game.

Unpopular opinion on this game I'm aware but I never understood the praise that it gets. It's more of a console first person shooter so it's not really impressive on it's graphics or it's maps. Gameplay is also a bit dated being the fact that it was released for the N64. I'm picky when it comes to classic games and I don't have good impressions with this game but hey everyone else seems to enjoy it so there you go.

Awesome remake! It feels really good to play and brings back a game I haven't played in a long time.

Run very well on modern system

this is a pretty awesome game because you shoot dinosaurs and you can shoot dinosaurs with guns

Fun, but can be a bit annoying at times. Also you face more aliens/humans than u do dinosaurs lol

It's a great game, an absolute classic, but some things really did't age well. the platforming is awful. the jumping is awful and almost every time there's a platform section it slows down the pacing of the game. the second thing is the level designs on some of the levels are very confusing and you have to backtrack and replay levels just to make sure you collect everything you need just to unlock the next level. as negatives go that's all the major issues. besides that it's an extremely fun shooter most of the guns feel great and i constantly find myself swapping guns depending on what enemies are around. the enemies are sometimes pretty brainless, but still fun to fight. oh and the underwater music is amazing.

fun classic

HeLL0 ther, aNimAL h3r3!

I played this back in the late 90s. Our parents got my brother an N64 and I got one a few years later. This was one of the first games we played, along with Goldeneye 007, Star Wars Shadows of the Empire, Star Wars Rogue Squadron, Starfox 64, Mario Kart 64, WaveRace, and Mario 64. It truly was a golden age for console gaming; not many young people spent much time online then either, so we had a lot of time together to share taking turns on console games.

This one was one of my favorites for sure. I still remember the sound of the monkeys in the first level, and was really hyped when I first saw a raptor come at me. I remember how crisp and new the graphics were, and how it felt like games could not get any better. I beat this on Switch recently again, so I'm casually playing through on PC on CRT now.

I am going to play Turok 2: Seeds of Evil next. This is one that I watched my brother play every single day after school; he spent hours lost in tunnels in the Lair of the Blind Ones. I'm looking forward to it. Would love games to return to a simplistic, key collecting, weapon building type again. It was simple, but if studios really took the time, you could make some really amazing weapon damage happen to enemies, and use more creative sounds when enemies take damage from different weapons. To me, imagining that and seeing it was a large part of what made shooting games fun.

Wall of text, TLDR:
N64 WOOOWWWWW

You blast dinosaurs with laser cannons. Five stars