[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jurassic_park_operation_genesis_cover_4471.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[Film/JurassicWorld The park]] is [[HilariousInHindsight open]].]]

->''It's yours: Jurassic Park! It's your job to make it work. Just build the Park and populate it with dinosaurs. Lots of dinosaurs. This will be the greatest theme park in the history of the world! Your job is to keep the Park gates open. Prove to [=InGen=] that the Park is viable...and safe....Oh yes, you have a T. rex. But don't forget, she's a hunter! Design it. Build it. Breed dinosaurs. It's yours: Jurassic Park!''
-->-- '''John Hammond'''

''Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis'' is a business simulator developed by Blue Tongue Software, based on the ''Franchise/JurassicPark'' franchise, and released in 2003 for [[Platform/IBMPersonalComputer PC]], Platform/PlayStation2, and Platform/{{Xbox}}. The player's goal is to build Jurassic Park and make it a profitable success.

In August 2017, a spiritual successor titled ''VideoGame/JurassicWorldEvolution'' was announced for the [=PlayStation=] 4, Xbox One, and PC.

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!!This game provides examples of:

* AdaptationalHeroism: Peter Ludlow, the BigBad of ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark'', could be considered at worst a non-hostile ObstructiveBureaucrat here with the quarterly reports he presents alongside his uncle.
* TheAloner: ''Kentrosaurus'' will panic and run away at the sight of any large herbivore, and is happiest when living with its own kind, or with other Stegosaurs (or ''Ankylosaurus'').
* ArtisticLicensePaleontology: Utilized as an in-game mechanic, no less. If you stick dinosaurs from [[AnachronismStew different time periods]] and [[MisplacedWildlife different continents]] together in the same enclosure, some of the nerdier visitors will point this out, and their enjoyment of the park will subsequently go down. And of course any inaccuracies from the movies are carried into the game, including large raptors, poisonous ''Dilophosaurus'', featherless theropods, pronated front limbs, etc.
* ArtificialStupidity: It isn't uncommon for dinosaurs, especially the large predators, to go on rampages due to not having water- even if there is a lake or river in their enclosure.
* AwesomeButImpractical: Both of the African Dig Sites: The dinosaurs from each individual site cannot stand its neighbors at all, and they are expensive.
* BoringButPractical: Hell Creek Site B. The only site with no carnivores whatsoever. However, it gives you a five star dinosaur (Triceratops), and all three of its dinosaurs are likeable, low-maintenance, and can be housed together for authenticity, cost effectiveness, and further pleasing the fun-lovers. Even the thrill seekers will ''sort of'' like seeing the Pachies rut.
* CarnivoresAreMean / HerbivoresAreFriendly: Played with. While the large carnivores (''Allosaurus'', ''Carcharodontosaurus'', ''Tyrannosaurus rex'', and ''Spinosaurus'') are the most dangerous species that can AND will kill anything (be it herbivores, other carnivores, or even humans), the large herbivores (''Ankylosaurus'', ''Stegosaurus'', ''Triceratops'', and ''Torosaurus'') can hold their own in a fight and even occasionally kill them, as well as wreak havoc on the park themselves. The small carnivores (''Albertosaurus'', ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Dilophosaurus'', and ''Velociraptor'') are easier to control and have a bigger chance of fleeing from a fight they cannot win. Due to its enourmous size, the ''Brachiosaurus'' is invincible from all carnivores but hard to maintain thus making it a potential safety hazard for the park, while the ''Kentrosaurus'' could kill even large carnivores despite its small size. However, all dinosaurs (except for ''Dryosaurus'', ''Gallimimus'', and ''Homalocephale'') will easily chase down humans instead if given the chance.
* CoolVersusAwesome: You can put different carnivore species in the same habitat and watch them fight each other, up to and including the chance to recreate the famous ''T. rex'' versus ''Spinosaurus'' fight from ''Film/JurassicParkIII''.
* DemotedToExtra: The movie characters, since this is a game about what '''you''' do with Jurassic Park. In fact, John Hammond is the only character whose dialogue is not limited to very brief voice clips.
* ExtinctAnimalPark: The game focuses on you customizing your island, building a functioning park, and cloning dinosaurs from fossils and amber. There's also a Site B mode, where you can create a true Mesozoic ecosystem with no human interference beyond hatcheries.
* FirstPersonShooter: When you fly a helicopter, you can take a first-person perspective to shoot the dinosaurs, whether to vaccinate them, sedate them, or kill them. With a cheat code, you can also unlock the ability to shoot to kill from a jeep. Of course, people will be displeased if you kill the dinosaurs for no reason.
* FirstPersonSnapshooter: A few missions (about three or four) require you to take pictures of dinosaurs. The last one you have to acquire 200 points taking pictures of predatory dinosaurs fighting each other, hunting, or eating. If you get too close, they may attack your car or you may bump into them, hurting them and resulting in losing points. Sounds hard, but it's not really. You have to complete these to access the missions after them, but otherwise it's not a real important part of game play.
* GameBreakingBug:
** This game frequently won't run on modern computers due to not being compatible. If you try, it often crashes. There's also guides on the internet for uninstalling the game, because it's prone to not uninstalling correctly.
** While not strictly game-breaking, the Site B mode can be ruined by a case of [[ArtificialStupidity Artificial Stupidity]] wherein the dinosaurs migrate as far to the southwest as they can, potentially starving or dehydrating themselves to death in the process.
* GameMod: Due to the files being editable with just Notepad, modding the game is extremely easy. ADDING actual content, however, is not that easy, due to the strange way the models are coded.
* GiantEqualsInvincible: ''Brachiosaurus'' is too big to be threatened by predators.
* GoodCopBadCop: Uncle and nephew pair John Hammond and Peter Ludlow, respectively. Hammond warmly congratulates you for properly maintaining your park and awards you stars as they are earned; Ludlow sternly brings the park complaints to your attention and will fire you and shut down the park if you do a poor job of addressing them or lose too many stars.
* HostileWeather: The twisters that will destroy your park.
* ImAHumanitarian: Carnivores have no problem feeding on fallen members of their own species.
* TheJuggernaut: ''Brachiosaurus'', which absolutely ''nothing'' can kill thanks to its immense size. It can, however, die of malnutrition. Large carnivores may accidentally bite it, but they will usually simply flee from it.
* LighterAndSofter: Operation Genesis is about making JP into a financial success and bringing dinosaurs to the public. In a way, the game is what Hammond saw in the park in the first place - wonder. As such, the game is far more optimistic and trouble free than ''Film/JurassicPark1993'', unless you deliberately make it into a death park.
* MultipleEndings: There is a "good" and a "bad" ending.
** If you succeed in making your park a successful venture and get up to five stars, John Hammond will announce to the world that you now own the greatest theme park in the world.
** If you are in deficit for a prolonged period of time, Peter Ludlow will fire you, and your park will be abandoned to the dinosaurs.
* PintsizedPowerhouse: The ''Kentrosaurus'', which is perfectly capable of killing large carnivores.
* {{Realism}}: One type of park visitor, the 'Dino Nerds' are easily the hardest fans to please as they're a stickler for realism. They hate any enclosure that has dinosaur feeders or hatcheries and get mad if dinosaurs from the wrong time periods are in the same paddock.
* RaptorAttack: ''Velociraptor'', obviously.
* RedAlert: Emergency mode. If something bad is happening or about to happen to the park, smart players quickly slap the emergency button. This sets off a park-wide alarm that sends visitors scrambling for emergency bunkers[[note]] assuming they've been built, of course, and they're not free[[/note]]. While this tanks your earnings (visitors cowering in bunkers aren't spending money on rides and $7 sodas), it does mean that if someone ''does'' get chomped your reputation hit won't be as severe. It also means that if push comes to shove, your airborne dino containment team can use lethal force against dinos without repercussion.
* TheTeam: Your command staff, of which you are in charge. The teammates include Ray Arnold, who keeps track of visitors and your buildings; Robert Muldoon, your game warden who alerts you to dinosaur rampages and escapes; Dr. Henry Wu, your chief geneticist who not only oversees extraction of dinosaur DNA and dinosaur cloning, but also research regarding improving park amenities and facilities; Jane Powers, your public relations assistant who keeps tabs on the visitors' feelings about the park; and Dr. Ellie Sattler, who maintains the hatcheries and alerts you to health issues regarding your dinosaurs. The team is funded by both John Hammond and Peter Ludlow, your bosses.
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: This game can make even some sadistic choices in other simulation games look benevolent. Want to lower entrance fees to very low to entice park goers just as you take down a gate letting out a few T. rex and maybe a couple dozen raptors for kicks? Go for it!
* VideogameCaringPotential: On the other hand, however, you can spend a great deal of time making sure all your dinosaurs are happy and leading healthy, care-free lives along with improving the experiences for all visitors.
* WhatTheHellPlayer: If you're not in emergency mode, you get fined pretty heavily when visitors are killed, and Ludlow will rip you a new one. Likewise, your visitors will leave ''en masse'', and they will be furious if you kill a dinosaur for no reason (you can only kill a dinosaur in emergency mode without penalty).
* TheWorfEffect: ''Ankylosaurus'' is capable of defeating every large carnivore with ease, including ''Spinosaurus''.
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