Jurassic World Evolution 2 (Park Managers’ Collection Pack out May 16th!)

[Gwangi]

Wow! Those designs are superb. Frontier continues to impress with their original designs. I can't wait for this!

[Prehistory Resurrection]

The species in the new aquatic DLC.

[Gwangi]

I'm really surprised they didn't do a megalodon what with Meg 2 coming out and Shark Week just ending.

I see an underwater viewing gallery in those pictures.

[Faelrin]

People are gonna be so mad because everyone thought that Megalodon was included for sure lol (or Xiphactinus and Leedsichthys).

I never would have expected them to add Dunkleosteus though. Earlier on they said they would only do marine reptiles. That's a fish for sure though. No reason they can't add Megalodon then and it was a missed opportunity to not have it here with the new film dropping, unless like it is a secret and coming with the free update, but that's probably unlikely.

But like all the same I am really glad we got Dunkleosteus (and fluked tail), and the three marine reptiles were ones I've wanted to see for a while. Nothosaurus was canon too, so good to finally have it.

Some info about update 7 as well:
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/jurassic-world-evolution-2-prehistoric-marine-species-pack-and-update-7-coming-august-10.618938/

They are adding a lagoon rock platform for both Archelon and Nothosaurus to use. Glad they did that and heard the community's desires when it came to these two, particularly the latter.

They do mention the rest is being kept secret until tomorrow's stream, so that's exciting. I really hope marine animals finally get social behaviors. Long overdue for them.

Edit: More good stuff coming in the update here:



Edit 2: Now as Dunkleosteus is the only fish, and since they updated the floodgates, I hope they do more. The community seems to want Megalodon, Xiphactinus, Leedsichthys, Cretoxyrhina, and Helicoprion.

[Gwangi]

I had no idea that any of this was coming so I'm surprised all around. The selection of marine animals they chose is diverse enough I think, but more fishes and other obscure aquatic animals would be great too. The Dunkleosteus looks much better than I would have hoped. I would have imagined them doing something more like the Schleich Dunk. They would be foolish not to eventually introduce favorites like megalodon, Xiphactinus, Leedsichthys, and Helicoprion.

I just started playing the game again after my last park broke (unable to load). Just building smaller parks and taking it easier on my old X-Box.

[Prehistory Resurrection]

It was indeed a missed opportunity to add the Megalodon with the release of The Meg 2 and shark week and a disappointment for those who expected it to be in this new DLC but at least it's present in Jurassic World: The Game. Hopefully it will be added in the future.
Would like to share my thoughts on each;
Perhaps my favourite; the Archelon. Really like the design; it seems to be based on the modern day Leatherback Turtle which is more accurate as compared to the one in Jurassic World: The Game which seems to be based on the more popular modern day sea turtle;

Reconstructions are of course speculative, but the Leatherback Sea Turtle like reconstruction seems to be the norm now. As this is a Jurassic World Game, I like to think that Leatherback Sea Turtle DNA was used for the creation of the Archelon.
The rock platform is a really nice feature for the Archelon and the Nothosaurus to rest/ sunbathe. With the Archelon being leaked swimming in a group, I hope to see interaction animation for them. Perhaps my favourite in the bunch.

The Dunkleosteus is a big surprise, knowing that there were only marine reptiles in the game until now. Hopefully the addition of the Dunkleosteus will lead to other prehistoric fishes being added to like the Leedsichthys, Xiphactinus; among others.
The signature armored head is covered in skin in Evolution 2 and not bare as in older reconstructions and the tail is crescent shaped and not eel-like, as in older reconstructions. The older reconstruction in Jurassic World  for comparison;

The Shonisaurus is a welcome addition. The ichtyosaur group is a well-known group because of later examples like Ichtyosaurus, Temnodontosaurus, Ophtalmosaurus but the earlier examples such as Shonisaurus, Shastasaurus (was present in Jurassic Park Builder) and Himalayasaurus are often overshadowed by them. But Shonisaurus finally got well-deserved attention. The reconstruction seems up to date, lacking a dorsal fin, having a more streamlined body and lacking a crescent-shaped tail. The older reconstruction in Jurassic Park Builder for comparison;


And finally, the Nothosaurus. Glad to see a canon species being added to the game after so long.

[MLMjp]

People are gonna be so mad because everyone thought that Megalodon was included for sure lol (or Xiphactinus and Leedsichthys).

Actually most of the reactions that I have seen are more like "Oh no...Dunkleosteus though! They`re sad about Megalodon, but the Dunk makes up for it.

[Faelrin]

@MLMjp I thought for sure there would be a lot of people raging on both reddit and instagram, etc (despite setting themselves up for disappointment by assuming it was included). The subreddit seems to have an overall positive reception, same with the youtube comments, where as the instagram comments do seem to be a mix of people upset it wasn't included, and people that are excited for everything here.

Honestly I didn't think Frontier would get me to feel as much hype as I did with the Feathered Species Pack, and so soon, but the madlads really did it. I've wanted all of these in the game for a while (even the Dunk, that I doubt would have ever been added). So it feels so good to have them very soon. Like even though I'm trying to save my money here, these DLC's are typically pretty cheap, so I can afford a temporary minor setback to have some fun with these.

[Eocarcharia]

Wow this looks like another great one, with most of the creatures being ones I've been wanting to see added to the game (didn't expect Dunk, but I'm not complaining). And they all look really good to boot. Excited for some more lagoon improvements too.

Just a thought, but maybe they didn't do Megalodon because they don't want to do any Cenozoic animals? Of course as previously stated they said they would only do marine reptiles, and now we have a fish, so I would think at this point anything goes. On second thought, maybe a Cenozoic pack will be a future DLC (with Camp Cretaceous Smilodon).

[MLMjp]

Just a thought, but maybe they didn't do Megalodon because they don't want to do any Cenozoic animals?

I thought the same, a Cenozoic animal will open a can of worms, as people will demand more species to be added in the game. This DLC includes the first non-movie pre mesozoic animal, but people are not as demanding with those as with Cenozoic creatures, so maybe that's why they took the risk with the Dunk.

I personally don't want any Cenozoic animals in the game, if that means no Megalodon, then let it be. Cenozoic animals just don't fit in the JP/JW franchise in my opinion, Camp Cretaceous made a mistake by adding an Smilodon in season 4 (and more in that Season, but that's beyond the point).

PD: I didn't said what I think of this DLC pack, overall, one of the best alongside the feathered species one.

[Gwangi]

Since it's a shark I don't think it really matters if it is from the Cenozoic. Most people probably don't even realize that. Meg 2 opens with one killing a T. rex for Pete's sake. I do agree with the no mammals sentiment though.

[dragon53]

[Prehistory Resurrection]

Turns out that aquatic creatures will be getting social animations too!

[Faelrin]

Honestly this should have been included in the update highlight post, considering the nature of the DLC. The lagoons and marine animals have been pretty neglected overall (aside from the decoration update back in September of last year from the Late Cretaceous Pack update). Like it was nice that they showed that it would be getting a new viewing dome as well, like can be used on land, aside from the new Archelon and Nothosaurus new rock perch, but it was the bare minimum.

I still hope we are getting things like new brushes (kelp, coral, etc), etc with this update. The lagoons still need more in the way of enclosure customization as well. Honestly it's shocking that kelp isn't even in the game yet, despite being shown on the intro video with the Mosasaurus every time the game is started up. Then again the highly requested benches, trash cans, etc still aren't in the game yet either, nearly two years later.

[Gwangi]

Honestly this should have been included in the update highlight post, considering the nature of the DLC. The lagoons and marine animals have been pretty neglected overall (aside from the decoration update back in September of last year from the Late Cretaceous Pack update). Like it was nice that they showed that it would be getting a new viewing dome as well, like can be used on land, aside from the new Archelon and Nothosaurus new rock perch, but it was the bare minimum.

I still hope we are getting things like new brushes (kelp, coral, etc), etc with this update. The lagoons still need more in the way of enclosure customization as well. Honestly it's shocking that kelp isn't even in the game yet, despite being shown on the intro video with the Mosasaurus every time the game is started up. Then again the highly requested benches, trash cans, etc still aren't in the game yet either, nearly two years later.

I hardly ever use those lagoon decorations. They're just not impressive enough or visible enough to be worth messing around with. Brushes for kelp and coral would be great though.

[Faelrin]

@Gwangi Honestly it's the same here. They are nice to have, but pretty tedious to use as it's the only option to prevent lagoons from feeling barren. That and a bunch of individually placed decorations are less performance friendly then a brush would be.

[Prehistory Resurrection]

[Faelrin]

Frontier accidentally uploaded the release trailer, before uploading the Archelon one:

https://reddit.com/r/jurassicworldevo/comments/15ljomg/release_trailer_leak/

Also new pic of the Dunk:

[Prehistory Resurrection]

The viewing dome looks great. Also, it's a surprise to see that the Dunkleosteus can jump out of the water like the Mosasaurus to feed.

[Prehistory Resurrection]

Came across this video from Evolution Square showing all marine social animations, including the ones for the 4 newest creatures, ranked from worst to best according to her. It is also revealed in the video that the only species not having social animations are the Mosasaurus and Tylosaurus.

My favourite is definitely the animation for the Archelon in water. I was hoping to see its animation and very happy indeed.