History VideoGame / Carnivores

* NintendoHard: The dinosaurs have an [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard annoying habit]] of detecting you long before you have a chance to spot them. You, at least until you become stupidly rich in-game, cannot have all the dinosaurs at once for a hunt, which means they won't all be on radar. [[RightBehindMe That means they can sneak up on you]].

''Carnivores'' is a [[TheNineties 1998]] FirstPersonShooter/Hunting Game where you, the player, get to be an EgomaniacHunter on a quest to kill "prehistoric reptiles" on the [[LostWorld alien planet of FMM UV-32]]. However, the game is not a generic Deer Hunter clone. No, you are not an invincible [[HumansAreCthulhu god]] able to slaughter your foes in droves. [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame You]] are being hunted as much as you are hunting, and your foe is bigger, faster, stronger, and, [[ArtificialBrilliance occasionally]], [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard smarter]] than you. Can you survive?

''Carnivores'' spawned two sequels: ''Carnivores 2'', and ''Carnivores: [[JustForFun/RecycledInSpace Ice Age]]''. Carnivores 2 is ''generally'' considered the best of the series, although all three are good in their own right. They boast impressive (for TheNineties) graphics which include semi-realistic water effects and well-detailed environments, in addition to an incredible AI system for the dinosaurs, though it can be [[ArtificialStupidity spotty]] at times. They were considered {{Abandonware}} for a long time, until in 2010 they ported the games onto iPod (or at least, ''Carnivores 2'' and ''Ice Age'') as well as the PSP. There was also a [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter HD'', released in 2013. An improved and updated version of the [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter Reborn'', was released on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} in May 2015, in spite of having a failed Website/{{Kickstarter}}. Yet another updated version, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt'', was released on June 1, 2021 for the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, and Xbox One, and is scheduled for a release on Steam in 2022.

If anyone asks, there was, in fact, a fourth game, entitled ''Carnivores: Cityscape''. It turned the game into a full-out generic FPS based around a semi-recycled plot (from ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark''; at least, the movie version). In it, [=DinoHunt=] Corp. is running out of clients; interest in the dinosaurs is waning, and most of the people who might have jumped at the chance to hunt prehistoric creatures are already dead because they tried and failed miserably. [[TooDumbToLive So they decide to bring some dinosaurs from FMM UV-32 to the people as a kind of traveling zoo]]. As can be expected, the dinosaurs escape into [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the city]] that the spaceship carrying them crashes in, and it's up to you (as an "Agent") to kill them, or, if playing as a dinosaur (the campaign has five missions for each), to kill the agents... or something.

[[FanonDiscontinuity It's not brought up in polite conversation with fans of the original series]], and is generally considered SoOkayItsAverage, though it has its share of fans. It was also the first (and, so far, ''only'') game in the series with online capabilities.[[note]]The second game ''was'' planned to have online multiplayer, but the idea was scrapped in development.[[/note]]

* PteroSoarer: ''Dimorphodon'' and ''Pteranodon'' appear as harmless ambients. Also, ''Tapejara'' in ''Cityscape''.

* OneNationUnderCopyright: [=DinoHunt=] Corp. owns the rights to FMM UV-32, and can basically do whatever they like on it. In the second game it's shown that they even tried to put down a colonial settlement--[[WhatAnIdiot even after they said the planet was "inhospitable for colony life"]]--though [[ForegoneConclusion it doesn't end particularly well]].

** Then again, don't forget that [[FridgeBrilliance your character is just some wealthy guy who paid a fortune to go dinosaur hunting on a hostile planet]]. He's no VideoGame/{{Turok}}, just a RichIdiotWithNoDayJob with no former survival training to speak of who finds himself fighting against some of history's most dangerous predators. [[ForegoneConclusion What did you think was going to happen?]]

* KingOfTheDinosaurs: An incredibly terrifying ''Tyrannosaurus''. His only weak spot is his eye, and you have only one chance to aim your shot just right. If you miss that one shot, then pray that the gods will have mercy on your soul!

''Carnivores'' spawned two sequels: ''Carnivores 2'', and ''Carnivores: [[RecycledInSpace Ice Age]]''. Carnivores 2 is ''generally'' considered the best of the series, although all three are good in their own right. They boast impressive (for TheNineties) graphics which include semi-realistic water effects and well-detailed environments, in addition to an incredible AI system for the dinosaurs, though it can be [[ArtificialStupidity spotty]] at times. They were considered {{Abandonware}} for a long time, until in 2010 they ported the games onto iPod (or at least, ''Carnivores 2'' and ''Ice Age'') as well as the PSP. There was also a [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter HD'', released in 2013. An improved and updated version of the [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter Reborn'', was released on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} in May 2015, in spite of having a failed Website/{{Kickstarter}}. Yet another updated version, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt'', was released on June 1, 2021 for the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, and Xbox One, and is scheduled for a release on Steam in 2022.

* MightyWhitey: The PlayerCharacter avatar is white and, via the game's backstory, implicitly insanely rich and out hunting for the sake of it. It's like how rich people were in the early 1900s... but [[RecycledINSPACE in space]]...

* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: Subverted with the third game ''Ice Age'', which revolves around Cenozoic animals instead. Though since birds are dinosaurs, it technically does feature two species- ''Diatryma''[[note]]AKA ''Gastornis''.[[/note]] and ''Archaeopteryx''.

''Carnivores'' is a [[TheNineties 1998]] FirstPersonShooter/Hunting Game where you, the player, get to be an EgomaniacHunter on a quest to kill [[StockDinosaurs "prehistoric reptiles"]] on the [[LostWorld alien planet of FMM UV-32]]. However, the game is not a generic Deer Hunter clone. No, you are not an invincible [[HumansAreCthulhu god]] able to slaughter your foes in droves. [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame You]] are being hunted as much as you are hunting, and your foe is bigger, faster, stronger, and, [[ArtificialBrilliance occasionally]], [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard smarter]] than you. Can you survive?

* StockDinosaurs: They are present, but the trope is subverted anyhow by the presence of many non-stock dinosaurs (and many non-dinosaurs). Also, ''Allosaurus'' is more similar to this game's ''Velociraptor'' than to the ''[[UsefulNotes/TyrannosaurusRex T. rex]]'', while ''Spinosaurus'' has been demoted to being a [[GiantMook slightly-larger version]] of said ''Allosaurus''. A full list can be found at the wiki.
** However, if we are discussing only the first and second Carnivores games, then yeah. All the dinosaurs in the first two games with the possible exception of Moschops (which is a synapsid, a group of reptiles which is closely related to mammals) would be pretty familiar to most players.

* StockDinosaurs: They are present, but the trope is subverted anyhow by the presence of many non-stock dinosaurs (and many non-dinosaurs). Also, ''Allosaurus'' is more similar to this game's ''Velociraptor'' than to the ''[[UsefulNotes/TyrannosaurusRex T. rex]]'', while ''Spinosaurus'' has been demoted to being a [[GiantMook slightly-larger version]] of said ''Allosaurus''. A full list can be found at [[WikiRule the wiki]].

* FakeDifficulty: Results from FridgeLogic. Yes, the dinosaurs (and later, mammals) hunt you, too, but they don't hunt each other. At all. [[UncannyValley It's actually kind of noticeable after awhile.]]

''Carnivores'' spawned two sequels: ''Carnivores 2'', and ''Carnivores: [[RecycledINSPACE Ice Age]]''. Carnivores 2 is ''generally'' considered the best of the series, although all three are good in their own right. They boast impressive (for TheNineties) graphics which include semi-realistic water effects and well-detailed environments, in addition to an incredible AI system for the dinosaurs, though it can be [[ArtificialStupidity spotty]] at times. They were considered {{Abandonware}} for a long time, until in 2010 they ported the games onto iPod (or at least, ''Carnivores 2'' and ''Ice Age'') as well as the PSP. There was also a [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter HD'', released in 2013. An improved and updated version of the [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter Reborn'', was released on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} in May 2015, in spite of having a failed Website/{{Kickstarter}}. Yet another updated version, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt'', was released on June 1, 2021 for the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, and Xbox One, and is scheduled for a release on Steam in 2022.

* EasterEgg: A rather literal example. Manya Jungle, the fourth area of ''Carnivores 2'' and ''Carnivores:Dinosaur Hunter'' has a cave system in the eastern mountains of the place. If one explores this place [[DugTooDeep enough]], you'll encounter a chamber full of large, leathery eggs, some of which are [[{{Film/Alien}} splayed open in four segments at the top, revealing the hollow, ribbed inside.]]

* {{Prehistoric Monster}}: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] for the most part. Since this is a hunting game, most of the dinosaurs behave like simple {{Expies}} of animals hunted in RealLife. But as you will learn below, the ''[[UsefultNotes/TyrannosaurusRex T. rex]]'' is the exception.

** Then again, don't forget that [[FridgeBrilliance your character is just some wealthy guy who paid a fortune to go dinosaur hunting on a hostile planet]]. He's no [[{{VideoGame/Turok}} Turok]], just a RichIdiotWithNoDayJob with no former survival training to speak of who finds himself fighting against some of history's most dangerous predators. [[ForegoneConclusion What did you think was going to happen?]]

* UpdatedReRelease: ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter HD'' was a VideoGameRemake of the first game for the Playstation 3 with more modern graphics and conveniences. This was ported to PC via Steam a year later as ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter Reborn''. 6 years later, the game was ported from the old proprietary engine to Unity (which in theory would make it easier to keep up-to-date with new features) and re-released as ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt'' for 8th gen consoles and later for PC.

* {{AFGNCAAP}}: Your character has no name past the one you give him, and you never see him unless you [[CriticalExistenceFailure die.]]

''Carnivores'' spawned two sequels: ''Carnivores 2'', and ''Carnivores: [[RecycledINSPACE Ice Age]]''. Carnivores 2 is ''generally'' considered the best of the series, although all three are good in their own right. They boast impressive (for TheNineties) graphics which include semi-realistic water effects and well-detailed environments, in addition to an incredible AI system for the dinosaurs, though it can be [[ArtificialStupidity spotty]] at times. They were considered {{Abandonware}} for a long time, until in 2010 they ported the games onto iPod (or at least, ''Carnivores 2'' and ''Ice Age'') as well as the PSP. There was also a [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter HD'', released in 2013. An improved and updated version of the [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter Reborn'', was released on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} in May 2015, in spite of having a failed Website/{{Kickstarter}}. Yet another updated version, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt'', was released on June 1, 2021 for the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, and Xbox One.

''Carnivores'' spawned two sequels: ''Carnivores 2'', and ''Carnivores: [[RecycledINSPACE Ice Age]]''. Carnivores 2 is ''generally'' considered the best of the series, although all three are good in their own right. They boast impressive (for TheNineties) graphics which include semi-realistic water effects and well-detailed environments, in addition to an incredible AI system for the dinosaurs, though it can be [[ArtificialStupidity spotty]] at times. They were considered {{Abandonware}} for a long time, until in 2010 they ported the games onto iPod (or at least, ''Carnivores 2'' and ''Ice Age'') as well as the PSP. There was also a [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter HD'', released in 2013. An improved and updated version of the [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter Reborn'', will be released on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} in May 2015, in spite of having a failed Website/{{Kickstarter}}. Yet another updated version, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt'', was released on June 1, 2021 for the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, and Xbox One.

** Hell, the ''T.rex'' in general; it has absurd senses, high speed and it can only be killed outside of cheats with a shot to a ''very small eye''.

** Then again, don't forget that [[FridgeBrilliance your character is just some wealthy guy who paid a fortune to go dinosaur hunting on a hostile planet]]. He's no [[{{VideoGame/Turok}} Turok]], just a RichIdiotWithNoDayJob with no former survival training to speak of who finds himself fighting against some of history's most dangerous predators. [[RealityEnsues What did you think was going to happen?]]

''Carnivores'' spawned two sequels: ''Carnivores 2'', and ''Carnivores: [[RecycledINSPACE Ice Age]]''. Carnivores 2 is ''generally'' considered the best of the series, although all three are good in their own right. They boast impressive (for TheNineties) graphics which include semi-realistic water effects and well-detailed environments, in addition to an incredible AI system for the dinosaurs, though it can be [[ArtificialStupidity spotty]] at times. They were considered {{Abandonware}} for a long time, until in 2010 they ported the games onto iPod (or at least, ''Carnivores 2'' and ''Ice Age'') as well as the PSP. There was also a [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter HD'', released in 2013. An improved and updated version of the [=PS3=] game, ''Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter Reborn'', will be released on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} in May 2015, in spite of having a failed Website/{{Kickstarter}}.

* DummiedOut: Many things, like the [[WhatCouldHaveBeen Brachiosaurus being a hunted animal]] (it is invincible without cheating), a [[EvilPoacher "poacher"]] in ''Ice Age'' who could have shot at the player (taken out because it was deemed too difficult to fight), etc. Most of these things can be brought back into the game, but often not entirely; for example, the poacher still retains the model, but the AI is lost. One can replace the AI with one of the animals', but then it will just act like said animal, without firing at the player as was originally intended.

* EverythingTryingToKillYou: Well, not ''everything'', but anything that can feasibly kill you ''will'' do so if it is given the chance. So, that ''[[RaptorAttack Velociraptor]]''? It's going to gore you before it eats you. How about that ''Ceratosaurus''? Him too. How about ''TyrannosaurusRex''? [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments He throws you around like a ragdoll instead of actually eating you]].

* GhostTown: The abandoned settlement, Fort Ciskin, is this. It was abandoned after an angry TyrannosaurusRex went on a rampage and destroyed its so-called "Dinosaur Wall." You can go in to find a few buildings and a huge gate, hanging on its hinges. It's rather eerie when thought about [[FridgeHorror too much]].

* ImmuneToBullets: The TyrannosaurusRex is, in a practical sense. It's an instant kill if you hit it in [[EyeScream the eye]], but otherwise it has a stupidly large amount of health which can't even begin to be chipped off unless you enter debug mode (it has somewhere around 1000 health; compare to most of the other dinosaurs, which peak at about 30, and the rifle's damage score, 4). Even in debug mode, it still takes a long time to kill, and if you're too low when it reaches you, it can still kill ''you''.
* ImplacableMan: The TyrannosaurusRex, but only in debug mode. [[ThisLoserIsYou You die too fast to put up a chase, outside of debug mode]].

* {{Prehistoric Monster}}: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] for the most part. Since this is a hunting game, most of the dinosaurs behave like simple {{Expies}} of animals hunted in RealLife. But as you will learn below, the [[TyrannosaurusRex T. rex]] is the exception.

* RoarBeforeBeating: The ''[[TyrannosaurusRex T.rex]]'' does this; it's basically a grace period for you to get a shot in before it hits you like a freight train. It ''will'' be subverted if you're lucky enough to get a shot off ''before'' the ''[[TyrannosaurusRex T.rex]]'' notices you, because if you hit it but do not land the killing blow, it skips to the running-you-down bit. You have to hope you have the luck of a card shark and hit it in the eye at that point. The ''only'' way to survive a ''Tyrannosaurus'' that's noticed you outside of card-shark luck is to either evac the situation before that bastard can kill you or hope there's ground nearby that the thing can't climb, but you can.

* SuperPersistentPredator: PlayedWith. Most things will stop chasing you after awhile ([[ThisLoserIsYou if you're lucky enough to get away, anyhow]]), and sometimes the carnivores will even run away instead of coming after you, assuming you hit them from far enough away. But good old Mr. ''[[TyrannosaurusRex T. rex]]''? ''[[ImplacableMan Oh]] [[OneHitKill no]]''. He's on your ass the ''moment'' he detects you, and unless you go into debug mode, you better hope you can bring him down before he reaches you. If you ''do'' go into debug mode, he will continually chase you across the map until either you kill him or he kills you.

* StockDinosaurs: They are present, but the trope is subverted anyhow by the presence of many non-stock dinosaurs (and many non-dinosaurs). Also, ''Allosaurus'' is more similar to this game's ''Velociraptor'' than to the [[TyrannosaurusRex T. rex]], while ''Spinosaurus'' has been demoted to being a [[GiantMook slightly-larger version]] of said ''Allosaurus''. A full list can be found at [[WikiRule the wiki]].

* TyrannosaurusRex: And an incredibly terrifying one at that. His only weak spot is his eye, and you have only one chance to aim your shot just right. If you miss that one shot, then pray that the gods will have mercy on your soul!

* CriticalExistenceFailure: Averted in a NintendoHard kind of way. You get a life bar if you go [[OxygenMeter underwater]] or [[ConvectionSchmonvection near lava]]. If any dinosaur so much as touches you, you die. No retries, no health kits, nothing. [[TropesAreNotBad It adds to the experience]].

''Carnivores'' is a [[TheNineties 1998]] FirstPersonShooter/Hunting Game where you, the player, get to be an EgomaniacHunter on a quest to kill [[StockDinosaurs "prehistoric reptiles"]]. However, the game is not a generic Deer Hunter clone. No, you are not an invincible [[HumansAreCthulhu god]] able to slaughter your foes in droves. [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame You]] are being hunted as much as you are hunting, and your foe is bigger, faster, stronger, and, [[ArtificialBrilliance occasionally]], [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard smarter]] than you. Can you survive?

->''"2190AD. On a routine exploration, science vessel FMM UV discovered a planet with a suitable climate for humankind. During the initial scouting expedition this young planet, code-named FMM UV-22, was declared inhospitable for colony life due to its unstable terrain and immense population of prehistoric reptiles. News of this amazing planet spread and articles on the "Dinosaur Planet" lead an Earth corporation to purchase the rights to the planet, and create [=DinoHunt=] Corp. [=DinoHunt=] created the unique opportunity for paying customers to become dinosaur hunters for the first time in 50 million years.''

If anyone asks, there was, in fact, a fourth game, entitled ''Carnivores: Cityscape''. It turned the game into a full-out generic FPS based around a semi-recycled plot (from ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark''; at least, the movie version). In it, [=DinoHunt=] Corp. is running out of clients; interest in the dinosaurs is waning, and most of the people who might have jumped at the chance to hunt prehistoric creatures are already dead because they tried and failed miserably. [[TooDumbToLive So they decide to bring the dinosaurs to the people as a kind of traveling zoo]]. As can be expected, the dinosaurs escape into [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the city]] that the spaceship carrying them crashes in, and it's up to you (as an "Agent") to kill them, or, if playing as a dinosaur (the campaign has five missions for each), to kill the agents... or something.

* DeathWorld: The planet in ''Carnivores'' is described as this when looked at from the prospect of colonization, but in practice it really isn't that bad. It seems that most of the land mass is island-based, and although it is very rough terrain, it's not entirely unworkable. The dinosaurs wouldn't be that big a deal, either, although it could be GameplayAndStorySegregation and there are in fact intended to be a lot more than the game could feasibly handle, engine-wise. As for deterring development, [[FridgeLogic you'd think that they could just exterminate the dinosaurs like any other animal]]; [[FridgeBrilliance then again]], [[MoneyDearBoy they're making a killing on it]].

* EasterEgg: A rather literal example. In the iPhone version there is a level with a cave system. If one explores this cave system [[DugTooDeep enough]], you encounter a chamber full of large, leathery eggs, some of which are [[{{Film/Alien}} splayed open in four segments at the top, revealing the hollow, ribbed inside.]]

* FakeDifficulty: Results from FridgeLogic. Yes, the dinosaurs (and later, mammals) hunt you, too, but they don't hunt each other. At all. [[UncannyValley It's actually kind of noticeable after awhile]].
* GameMod: The Carnivores fan community created several of these over the years. Perhaps the most popular example is VideoGame/CarnivoresTriassic, which expands upon the canon of the official series, introducing an entirely new region of the planet with its own unique animals and challenges.

* GrimUpNorth: The Arctic Sector is located on the planet's north pole. It is populated mostly by animals from the Cenozoic era instead of the usual dinosaurs and prehistoric reptiles.

* NoisyNature: Subverted in an intriguing fashion. Almost all of the hunted animals (the ones that give points) are almost silent, only calling back if you use the dinosaur call. Some of the critter dinosaurs make noises (specifically, the flying ones) but not all that often--meaning that it's rather jarring and creepy when they do. Ultimately, the islands are disconcertingly quiet--often, the noise you make from walking are about all you hear.
* NothingIsScarier: The abandoned settlement in the second area of ''Carnivores 2''. It becomes quite creepy when you think about what once happened in the very spot you're standing. Also, the ruins look fairly recent, so who's to say that T. rex isn't still around somewhere, lurking in the shadows, waiting for round two?

* OneNationUnderCopyright: [=DinoHunt=] Corp. owns the rights to the planet, and can basically do whatever they like on it. In the second game it's shown that they even tried to put down a colonial settlement--[[WhatAnIdiot even after they said the planet was "inhospitable for colony life"]]--though [[ForegoneConclusion it doesn't end particularly well]].

[[caption-width-right:256:[[ImplacableMan The creature on this image is one of, if not the, most dangerous]] ''[[ImplacableMan Tyrannosaurus]]'' [[ImplacableMan in gaming history.]]]]

* NintendoHard: The dinosaurs have an [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard annoying habit]] of detecting you long before you have a chance to spot them. You, at least until you become stupidly rich in-game, cannot have all the dinosaurs at once for a hunt, which means they won't all be on radar. [[RightBehindMe That means they can sneak up on you]]. This is even more pronounced in the iPod version, where accessing the map for the radar is only possible when relocating, which has a 30 second cooldown.
** Actually, you can also bring up the map by tapping the compass.

* EverythingTryingToKillYou: Well, not ''everything'', but anything that can feasibly kill you ''will'' do so if it is given the chance. So, that ''[[RaptorAttack Velociraptor]]''? It's going to gore you before it eats you. How about that ''Ceratosaurus''? Him too. How about ''TyrannosaurusRex''? [[CrowningMomentOfFunny He throws you around like a ragdoll instead of actually eating you]].