'Dino's' Bite Beats 'Persia's' Beauty

By AARON CURTISS

Nov. 11, 1999 12 AM PT

If you’ve ever examined the bones of Tyrannosaurus Rex, you know he’s not the sort of guy you would want hanging around the neighborhood. There are, of course, those flesh-tearing teeth. And there’s that none-too-neighborly disposition--displayed in everything from Sid and Marty Krofft’s “Land of the Lost” to Steven Spielberg’s “Jurassic Park.”

T. Rex lives up to his terrifying reputation in “Dino Crisis,” a dark PlayStation adventure from the creators of the legendary “Resident Evil” series. His presence--even when unseen--dominates “Dino Crisis” as players creep through a mysterious island laboratory in search of a mad scientist.

OK, so it sounds familiar. But “Dino Crisis” executes its tired story line so well that players quickly find themselves engrossed in the shadowy maze of bunkers that makes up Ibis Island.

As in “Resident Evil,” players find themselves at the beginning of the game poorly equipped and only vaguely aware of what lies ahead. The story unfolds as players inch forward, progress slowed by constant attacks from relentless creatures whose intelligence seems greater than their pea-sized brains should be able to muster.

Players begin “Dino Crisis” as special agent Regina, a redheaded weapons expert who modifies guns as a hobby. Regina starts the mission not knowing Rex is out there. She thinks she’s just supposed to track down some crazy chemist. But the royal showdown is inevitable.

Until “Resident Evil 3: Nemesis” hit stores last week, “Dino Crisis” was my favorite adventure game. Like “Resident Evil,” “Dino Crisis” has the potential to scare the bejabbers out of unsuspecting players. Much of the game takes place in shadow--making attacks that much more surprising and that much more terrifying.

The camera angles in “Dino Crisis” are better than any previous “Resident Evil” game, though. As players walk, the camera tracks them more fluidly, changing perspective only when Regina turns a corner or steps into a tight spot.

And the level of realism is surprising. In “Dino Crisis,” Regina may limp along as she takes hits. But she can also suffer a bleeding wound that leaves a trail behind and slowly saps her strength.

Graphically, the game holds its own against any title on any platform. Yes, it’s a PlayStation game and the 4-year-old, 32-bit rig is beginning to show signs of age. But designers lavish on details in appropriate spots--making the game look richer than it actually is. The dinos fill up the screen and move smoothly. The edges may not be as smooth as they are on a PC or a Dreamcast, but “Dino Crisis” looks great.

I’m still pretty sure I don’t want T. Rex living next door, but he was a wonderful house guest for the week it took me to play through “Dino Crisis.”

‘Prince of Persia 3D’

Although more beautiful in many ways than “Dino Crisis,” Red Orb Entertainment’s “Prince of Persia 3D” is a lesser game. With the advantage of PC graphics hardware--which is required--”Prince of Persia 3D” renders beautiful dungeons and palaces with subtle lighting and fluid movement.

But what’s pretty to look at is not always fun to play.

It seems that “Prince of Persia 3D” cannot decide what it wants to be. Is it a raucous action game? Or is it a more thoughtful adventure? Like “Dino Crisis,” it tries to marry the two, but the results are not at all happy.

Control is too sluggish to make the action component work well. That spoils the game because so much of “Prince of Persia 3D” consists of the video game trinity of run, jump and attack. The gross movements are too hard to master, let alone the subtleties required to beat the game.

Sad.

“Prince of Persia 3D” requires a Pentium 266 with at least 64 mb of RAM and about 400 mb of free hard disk space. The game also requires a 3D accelerator with at least 8 mb of RAM.

‘Soul Calibur’

Good games on Sega Dreamcast are really good. “Soul Calibur” is a good game and the Dreamcast version offers the sort of lightning play and sharp graphics that make gamers drool. An arcade standard, “Soul Calibur” challenges players with tasty swordplay.

Why spend another quarter?

Dreamcast’s graphics processors deliver perfect motion and the control is dead-on. Characters have distinctive fighting styles, making the game enjoyable for weeks as players master each on various levels of difficulty.

“Soul Calibur” brings a kind of elegance to Dreamcast that classes up the whole library.

‘WCW Mayhem’

“WCW Mayhem” is anything but elegant. Players control half-naked oxen from World Championship Wrestling as they slug it out in realistic rings in front of screaming fans. From Randy Savage and “Diamond” Dallas Page to Sting and Goldberg, the WCW’s “finest” fill the screen with grunts and lunges.

As a wrestling game, “WCW Mayhem” for Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation fits the bill. Players can perform rope jumps, pummel their opponents into submission, whip the crowd into a frenzy and generally act like shirtless hooligans.

Awesome.

To borrow from Thomas Hobbes, “WCW Mayhem” is nasty, brutish and long. The default length for the rounds is 30 minutes. During that time, players do their best to not only pin their opponents but humiliate them. It’s not easy. Mastering the different moves takes time.

But the payoff is sweet: Spin some bruiser around and then send his back cracking against your knee. Like televised wrestling, “WCW Mayhem” is over the top. Its violence is comical and surreal--made even more so by the strait-laced commentary that runs with every round.

To comment on a column or to suggest games for review, send e-mail to aaron.curtiss@latimes.com.

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Essentials

Dino Crisis

Platform: Sony PlayStation

Publisher: Capcom

ESRB* rating: Mature

Price: $49.99

Bottom line: Spine-tingling fun

Prince of Persia 3D

Platform: PC

Publisher: Red Orb Entertainment