An Accurate Dinosaur Videogame!?

[Panpardus]

So this isn't new to me, but I'm excited for this indie game called Saurian because I'm a huge paleo-nerd and as of the time of this writing it's well on the verge of its planned early access release, so I'm really looking forward to seeing the gameplay via Youtubers until I have the means to actually purchase the game myself.

The game in question is an open world survival simulator set in a scientifically accurate reconstruction of the Hell Creek ecosystem of 66 million years ago in what is now South Dakota. (The entire Hell Creek Formation covers the region of Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas.) You play as one of six local dinosaurs from the environment - Dakotaraptor, Pachycephalosaurus, Triceratops, Tyrannosaurus, Anzu, and Ankylosaurus, in order of presumed release, although only Dakotaraptor will be available during the early access stage - and try to survive from hatchling to adulthood, which means avoiding predators, finding food, dealing with environmental conditions, and ultimately finding a mate (or mates) and successfully reproducing.

There are other dinosaur games out there, but I'm only excited about Saurian because of both its concept and, more importantly, its scientific rigor. Everything from the appearance, behavior, and in-game physiologies of the animals (yes, there will be feathers aplenty on the appropriate animals, T. rex included) to the layout of the terrain, the season and weather patterns, and the plant life, are all as heavily informed by the scientific literature as possible, and the development team has been consulting with working paleontologists to ensure that their game is as accurate and up-to-date as possible. In most video games dinosaurs are pretty much seen as just monstrous creatures (usually depicted inaccurately) to be killed with guns, bombs, tanks, etc., so it'll be nice to see a 'real' view of them in their own environment.

Anyone else interested or already know about Saurian, or just want to talk about? Let's do it here!

[moonsugar33]

That sounds amazing! I'll have to keep an eye out!