(Arcade, Sega, 1997)
There were a host of shoddy games based on Spielberg's Jurassic Park Juggernaut that rampaged through toy stores in the mid 90's, Sega's on rails shooter however, was not one of them.
In fact, it was one of the most atmospheric arcades ever made. Housed in a sit-it cabinet styled like a jeep from the resort, Lost world saw one or two players gun their way through Site B after chaos has ensued and dinos of all shapes and sizes were on the rampage.
The game boasted the Model 3 board and huge polygons displayed on a large screen inside the cabinet for a genuinely panic inducing experience. Sound blasted through loud bass speakers, bringing every roar, growl and scream direct to your ear drums.
Moving at a very fast pace with raptors seemingly leaping from nowhere, it tested the mettle and skills of even the very best lightgun aficionados, with only five shots per reload, speed and accuracy were absolutely essentials. Pickups could be found in crates or received from staff rescued from sticky situations, these included new weapons, laser dot sites and health bonuses. Multiple pathways would open as a result of suceeding/failing certain tasks and epic boss battles took places against some of the biggest monsters in the park.
A clever strategy was in play whereby shooting certain pack leaders would distract other dinosaurs momentarily, or cause some to run off, meaning there was even a science about the game to be learnt.
For those who don't care for such intracacies though, The lost world can simply be summed up and fast, loud, scary and lots of fun.
Emulation of this game isn't really a viable option, so should you see a machine hiding amongst today's generic crap at your local arcade, bang a couple of credits in. Bring earplugs.
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