Let's be honest— everybody loves dinosaurs in some way. They have a way of capturing the imagination and fantasy of others, which is why so many childhoods are were filled with dinosaur movies, shows, books, and of course, video games. One of the best examples of this is the Turok series of (mostly) gritty action games.
Based on a comic book character that dates all the way back to the 1950s, the Turok games focus on the titular character(s) as he/they battles the prehistoric creatures. Built on the basic foundation of Quake meets Jurassic Park, it spawned its own franchise that lasted for years. And, thanks to recent releases of remasters of the original titles, public interest in the Turok games seems to be on the rise for the first time in a long time.
7 Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (1997)
Light on story, the first Turok game primarily consisted of running through levels and kill dinosaurs and other various enemies. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter was a healthy blend of the Id Software titles like Quake and Doom, mixed with more open-ended Metroidvania-style levels that feature puzzle solving.
It was initially released for the Nintendo 64 and became one of the system's most successful titles, warranting ports and sequels. It was eventually remastered for PC, Xbox One, and the Nintendo Switch.
6 Turok 2: Seeds Of Evil (1998)
The first game mainly focused on the dinosaur aspect with gradual veering into crazy enemies like aliens and robots. Meanwhile, the sequel drops the player right into the insanity as Turok now needs to save the universe from the evil creature known as the Primagen.
The levels are bigger, the puzzles are more challenging, the enemies are more deadly, and there are a ton of new weapons to unlock. Turok 2 is generally considered the better game, though its campaign is long and relentlessly difficult. This game also saw multiple remasters.
5 Turok: Rage Wars (1999)
Taking an EA Games approach, Acclaim made Rage Wars as a non-canon multiplayer spin-off with a tacked-on single-player mode. Due to this, it wasn't as well-received as its predecessors— though by 1999, content-starved N64 owners couldn't afford to be quite so picky and many bought it regardless.
However, from just a multiplayer point of view, it did have refined gameplay and impressive arenas to fight in. If one could get over the lack of a campaign, it could be a fun time for four players, provided they weren't still playing Goldeneye to death.
4 Turok 3: Shadow Of Oblivion (2000)
With Shadow Of Oblivion being the fourth entry in the series in as many years, the game's engine was showing its age by this point, and it just couldn't stack up to what was out there by the year 2000. While it features some neat story concepts, Turok 3 more or less feels like a "been there, done that" kind of sequel.
The game focuses on Joshua Fireseed, the latest member of the Turok bloodline dealing with the aftermath of the Primagen's destruction. The best thing the game features is the ability to save anywhere instead of waiting 45 minutes to find a save point.
3 Turok: Evolution (2002)
After two sequels and a multiplayer spin-off, the Turok team decided to go with a prequel to tell the origins of Turok. This time, Turok waited a few years to get an upgrade on the PlayStation 2 with Turok: Evolution. As a whole, Turok: Evolution was seen as an upgrade from Shadows Of Oblivion, though that isn't the highest of praise.
The gameplay is solid but the story is very lacking, and the whole game has a rushed feeling to it. It also features Tobias Bruckner, a villain so awful that EGM magazine named an award for bad video games after him. Turok: Evolution would be the last game to take place within the original timeline of games before being rebooted years later.
2 Turok (2008)
Rather than try to shoehorn a new sequel into the previous confusing mess of a timeline, some new developers decided to reboot the franchise with the simply-named Tuork. The game sees the titular hero as a futuristic soldier who comes to an alien planet to bring down a radical terrorist, and it becomes the ultimate warzone as he must fend off hordes of alien dinosaurs.
The reboot is an ambitious game featuring a villain played by the wonderful Powers Boothe, a major step up from Tobias Bruckner. However, it suffers from repetitive levels and enemies with unintended weaknesses that are easily exploitable. A decent effort, but not good enough to kick off a new era for the franchise.
1 Turok: Escape From Lost Valley (2019)
For years, fans were under the impression that they would never see another Turok game. In 2019, the gaming world was shocked by the surprise drop of a brand new Turok game— but there was a twist. Turok: Escape From Lost Valley took things in a very different direction than previous titles.
Instead of the gritty, action-packed shooters which fans were accustomed to, the new game was a cute and cartoonish third-person title. Meanwhile, it featured drastically different gameplay that was a far cry from the fast-paced, violent, epic action of previous titles. A decent enough game when taken on its own merits, but not the Turok game anybody truly wanted.