Exoprimal’s Announcement Has Dino Crisis Fans Unhappy

The recently-announced Exoprimal takes clear inspiration from Dino Crisis, which has frustrated some fans of the beloved Capcom series. The Dino Crisis franchise, which launched in 1999, tasks gamers with exploring various exotic locations while surviving encounters with vicious dinosaurs. While the recently-announced game also features dinosaurs, Capcom’s Exoprimal gives players powered armor that makes them evenly matched with the prehistoric predators.

By combining dinosaurs and sci-fi technology with a lighthearted tone, Exoprimal looks to be a very interesting new property for Capcom. The upcoming title seems to take inspiration from mech action games like Anthem or Armored Core, with players choosing between various different powered armors that possess their own strengths and weaknesses. However, rather than battling other robotic foes, Exoprimal lets players mow down waves of ancient beasts in various locations. These dinosaurs, which mysteriously pour out of wormholes, look to range from raptors to triceratops to the dreaded T-rex. While many gamers have already begun comparing Exoprimal to Jurassic World, Capcom’s Dino Crisis franchise is an even more appropriate comparison.

As reported by IGN, the announcement of Exoprimal has sadly left many Dino Crisis fans disappointed. Exoprimal’s trailer features many similarities to the survival horror series, including a red-haired woman who strongly resembles Dino Crisis protagonist Regina, despite the two properties being unrelated. Reddit user shigerumiyamotoreal referred to Exoprimal as a “bad joke,” with many commenters agreeing with this assessment, and _HiatusXHiatus_ expressed their disapproval with a hilarious meme. The involvement of Hiroyuki Kobayashi, who served as planner of the original Dino Crisis and producer of its sequels, helps to reassure some fans but further frustrates others.

Many fans are desperate for a new dinosaur survival experience, and a popular Dino Crisis mod for Resident Evil 3 brings the fantasy close to reality. In 2019 and 2020 Capcom released successful remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 3, and many feel that these games could easily serve as a foundation for a modern Dino Crisis game. The surprisingly convincing mod takes advantage of this idea by replacing Resident Evil’s survivalist Jill Valentine with Dino Crisis’ dinosaur slayer Regina, while also swapping the undead hordes with prehistoric predators.

Exoprimal’s blend of sci-fi aesthetic and dinosaur mayhem looks incredibly unique and fun, but Dino Crisis fans feel betrayed by the new Capcom project. There are clear similarities between the two properties, which even leads some to believe that Exoprimal began life as a new Dino Crisis game. While the survival aspects may be lost, Exoprimal looks to faithfully adopt Dino Crisis’ love for massive reptiles and red-haired heroines.

Exoprimal will release in 2023 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC.

Sources: IGN, shigerumiyamotoreal/Reddit, _HiatusXHiatus_/Reddit

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