What? This one got a higher "maturity" rating than the first game because you KILL dinosaurs now?
Anyway, this is what you could call a semi-direct sequel to the original Jurassic Park game for the Genesis. In the first game you trekked across the island to escape it as either Grant or the Raptor, and the Rampage Edition begins right where that ends. Grant has escaped the island and is on a helicopter home, but then in come swarms of In-Gen helicopters BACK to the island. Their mission? To retrieve dinosaur and genetic samples to create a second park. Not wanting that to happen, Grant gets in a fight with the helicopter pilot and they make a crash landing back on the island. "Welcome back to Jurassic Park." Your mission as Grant this time is to collect DNA samples, embryos, and dino eggs, wipe out the In-Gen agents trying to collect them, then escape the island in one piece. Your weapons include the good old fashioned tranq. dart gun, a rapid fire tranq. dart gun, a shotgun, a "stungun" that seems to shoot lightning, and grenades...among other things. You get to ride a Gallimimus, too, which is pretty awesome. The last stage is scary, though: Grant in a motored river raft vs. the T-rex.
Just like the original game, you can choose to play as the Raptor as well. This isn't the same raptor as in the first game [or at least it's doubtful], but it's just as smart. This velociraptor is seeking to not only escape the island, but to escape it with a cache of eggs to ensure the survival of its species! You're armed with all the same moves as the original and must face similar threats as before -- humans who are armed to the teeth and the many vicious dinosaurs roaming the island. You're lucky you never see the T-rex, though. And the finale is kinda cool: you're not the ONLY Raptor on the island who has had this little idea. Raptor vs. Raptor! The worst thing they introduced into the Raptor's game is, in my opinion, the "Raptor Rage" thing. Eat enough boxes of lysine [which are laying around all over the place for some reason] and the screen will go red and you'll be invincible. I just ignore the lysine boxes -- I prefer to have more of a challenge.
Unlike the original game, the Rampage Edition is mostly nonlinear. You choose from three stages [slightly differing depending on whether you're Grant or the Raptor] initially, fighting enemies and gathering samples, eggs, etc. Then you go through a couple of final stages and eventually head into the last stage. It's a nice way of doing it and, unlike the original, both games are equally long. Unfortunately, this means they're both equally SHORT. Oh, and it should be noted that this game continues the first's references to the novel -- the aviary is a level, as is one of the ships at the docks. In-Gen's darker role in this game also leans more towards an action the rather unlikeable Hammond of the book would order rather than the grandfatherly figure of the movie. Very interesting.
The first thing you'll probably notice about this game compared to the original is the superior graphics -- they're much cleaner and generally better animated than the original's. Leaves a good first impression. The sound effects are overall better, but the music is sort of lacking [I still hum the original's Visitor's Center stage theme sometimes]. Also, this game is far, far less frustrating than the original. In fact, the difficulty is pretty moderate throughout the game, only getting hard at the end.
My final verdict? It's not as good a game as the original, due to being overall shorter. The nonlinearity is neat, but I preferred the original's nonlinear trek across the island [but that's just a personal preference]. It's a pretty decent game if you're in the mood for some faster-paced, less frustrating action than that available in the first Jurassic Park game for the Genesis.