With The Return To Jurassic Park and The Raptor Squad Pack DLC, we are given new skin sets as an alternate choice from the base game dinosaurs, with RTJP even changing the models of some of these dinosaurs. This was super exciting as it provided more options to already existing dinosaurs in the game. Instead of throwing in new dinosaurs that are similar in niche, we now have a fresh take on some old favorites and more options that cater to more players!
With the new skins, this has made me curious if any other dinosaur could do with a new skin treatment. Looking at the roster of dinosaurs we have in the game, some were criticized for the lack of certain skins, such as Herrerasaurus and Troodon not having a legacy skin based on their looks on Jurassic Park The Game, or Jurassic Park Operation Genesis veterans like Carcharodontosaurus or Acrocanthosaurus not having an option that is similar to their old looks. But if I were to limit the choice to one dinosaur that would need it the most, it would have to be the Ankylodocus.
The ankylodocus is a herbivore hybrid that is part of The Secrets of Dr Wu DLC. The ankylodocus is one of my favorite dinosaurs in the game, but I do see how it is often criticized aesthetically in the JWE fandom. The introduction of the ankylodocus has most players believe that we are going to have the genetic peak of a massive tank, something akin to an impenetrable defense unit dinosaur. The looks of the ingame ankylodocus however is less bulky and high endurance and looks rather goofy and docile. It lacked the armor plating of the ankylosaurus, and is instead given the side spikes of the ankylosaur's armor which does not make it feel like it could take a hit. It also has an interesting inclusion of lips which adds to the goofy face it is often recognized for.
But like how some players dislike these features, other players, myself included, find these features cute. I guess you could refer to this as the pug of JWE dinosaurs. Both are genetically modified creatures, and you either find them cute or ugly.
And this is what I think causes the divisive reception to the hybrid. The design of this dinosaur has taken a different approach, it does not feel like a genetically advanced tank that may have some military meddling for advanced defense, it feels like a genetically modified creature to fill in the niche of the Shunosaurus, a dinosaur that has been recorded to have existed in the real world. So players would feel like a slot that was made for the shunosaurus is taken away for this hybrid and not have the armored tank, a compromise does not fit either role very well.
Despite all of this, I think a new alternative skin would help the ankylodocus more than any other dinosaur on the roster and one to make the most of it. Secrets of Dr.Wu focuses on genetic modification more than anything when compared to other expansion packs, and each hybrid in the game would deliver a unique take. The stegoceratops is a combat ready herbivore that attacks with both horns and tail spikes, the spinoraptor is a suped up raptor thanks to the aggression of the spinosaurus and could tackle larger dinosaurs and be the spinosaurus take of the indominous rex. The ankylodocus is a defensive tank, but besides the ingame stats, it is just a spiky diplodocus, so how interesting would it be if this hybrid is unique for having a larger variety of skin choices?
So the hybrid we have in the game could be the more docile and guest friendly ankylodocus. His goofy look and ankylosaurus adornment could be the more approachable ankylodocus, something that we could see in our parks as a cute mascot of sorts. We could see this as ankylodocus that is more diplodocus, or for a more interesting take:"Ankylodocus - Prototype 1.1", as these hybrids, like the indoraptor in Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom, are going through different renditions based on Dr.Wu's research.
The alternative skin is the more fan favored "Armored Ankylodocus". This ankylodocus is a more dense ankylodocus that is built with the recognizable plating of the ankylosaurus. Likewise, other features are present, such as the more armadillo look, the beak-like feature on its mouth, a sturdy and less squishy face, and a more skinnier belly to be more similar to the ankylosaur's belly. One of the more favored fan renditions of the ankylodocus is the artwork made by the Deviant Artist, Tapwing, as shown below. A more scientific approach when compared to JWE and even Luida's take on the ankylodocus.
This artist rendition has a great balance between the ankylosaur and diplodocus genomes. The body is more horizontal in looks, the spikes are organized in a way that matches the ankylosaurus spikes, and it has a weight to it that makes the plating on its neck weigh down the sauropod hybrid. The recognizable armor plating from head to tail really gives off the overall impenetrable tank look. When we think of the ankylodocus, this is often what we have in mind. This rendition has also inspired modders and was inevitably made into a mod for JWE as seen below.
This post is mainly to show that there are still fans out there that would like to see a more armored ankylodocus to be in JWE. The quality of the game's dinosaurs is often outstanding, which is a bit saddening that when the question of 'the least favorite dinosaur' or 'ugliest dinosaur' is brought up, the ankylodocus would often be referenced. The new capability of additional skins that not only add to colors but new models as well makes the inclusion of the more armored ankylodocus possible. And a new addition I would definitely love to see in the game that would give players more options when it comes to how armored their ankylodocus could be.
That and just yesterday, I saw something interesting done to another game I play. Beenox, the developers behind Crash Team Racing Nitro Fueled has introduced a character a few months back, Rilla Roo.
However, the fans were very divisive on the look the old character has. It was not bad but it felt very off from who they recognize as Rilla Roo from the Crash Bash game. Reddit user u/osoascam, made a photoshop edit of the Gorilla Kangaroo hybrid to match what the fans think the character could look like:
Only for then, by complete surprise, CTRNF players were given a "New" character aptly named: "Fixed Rilla Roo".
What I really love is how Beenox approached this issue. They did not replace Rilla Roo in the game, but introduced an alternative version of that character. Dinosaur designs and character designs go through a lot of process in terms of concept, art, modeling, animation, functionality, gameplay and such. So to outright replace an existing model would be harmful as the old rendition of that character/dinosaur would be gone from the game. And players who love the old character would not like that change. By introducing a new character, they have in turn made both sides of the fandom happy. A methodology I wish to see come to the Ankylodocus. The Ankylodocus has its fans, but it could do with an additional alternative look to cater to the notably big fans who favor the more armored look.
Thank you for reading this post!
With the new skins, this has made me curious if any other dinosaur could do with a new skin treatment. Looking at the roster of dinosaurs we have in the game, some were criticized for the lack of certain skins, such as Herrerasaurus and Troodon not having a legacy skin based on their looks on Jurassic Park The Game, or Jurassic Park Operation Genesis veterans like Carcharodontosaurus or Acrocanthosaurus not having an option that is similar to their old looks. But if I were to limit the choice to one dinosaur that would need it the most, it would have to be the Ankylodocus.
The ankylodocus is a herbivore hybrid that is part of The Secrets of Dr Wu DLC. The ankylodocus is one of my favorite dinosaurs in the game, but I do see how it is often criticized aesthetically in the JWE fandom. The introduction of the ankylodocus has most players believe that we are going to have the genetic peak of a massive tank, something akin to an impenetrable defense unit dinosaur. The looks of the ingame ankylodocus however is less bulky and high endurance and looks rather goofy and docile. It lacked the armor plating of the ankylosaurus, and is instead given the side spikes of the ankylosaur's armor which does not make it feel like it could take a hit. It also has an interesting inclusion of lips which adds to the goofy face it is often recognized for.
But like how some players dislike these features, other players, myself included, find these features cute. I guess you could refer to this as the pug of JWE dinosaurs. Both are genetically modified creatures, and you either find them cute or ugly.
And this is what I think causes the divisive reception to the hybrid. The design of this dinosaur has taken a different approach, it does not feel like a genetically advanced tank that may have some military meddling for advanced defense, it feels like a genetically modified creature to fill in the niche of the Shunosaurus, a dinosaur that has been recorded to have existed in the real world. So players would feel like a slot that was made for the shunosaurus is taken away for this hybrid and not have the armored tank, a compromise does not fit either role very well.
Despite all of this, I think a new alternative skin would help the ankylodocus more than any other dinosaur on the roster and one to make the most of it. Secrets of Dr.Wu focuses on genetic modification more than anything when compared to other expansion packs, and each hybrid in the game would deliver a unique take. The stegoceratops is a combat ready herbivore that attacks with both horns and tail spikes, the spinoraptor is a suped up raptor thanks to the aggression of the spinosaurus and could tackle larger dinosaurs and be the spinosaurus take of the indominous rex. The ankylodocus is a defensive tank, but besides the ingame stats, it is just a spiky diplodocus, so how interesting would it be if this hybrid is unique for having a larger variety of skin choices?
So the hybrid we have in the game could be the more docile and guest friendly ankylodocus. His goofy look and ankylosaurus adornment could be the more approachable ankylodocus, something that we could see in our parks as a cute mascot of sorts. We could see this as ankylodocus that is more diplodocus, or for a more interesting take:"Ankylodocus - Prototype 1.1", as these hybrids, like the indoraptor in Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom, are going through different renditions based on Dr.Wu's research.
The alternative skin is the more fan favored "Armored Ankylodocus". This ankylodocus is a more dense ankylodocus that is built with the recognizable plating of the ankylosaurus. Likewise, other features are present, such as the more armadillo look, the beak-like feature on its mouth, a sturdy and less squishy face, and a more skinnier belly to be more similar to the ankylosaur's belly. One of the more favored fan renditions of the ankylodocus is the artwork made by the Deviant Artist, Tapwing, as shown below. A more scientific approach when compared to JWE and even Luida's take on the ankylodocus.
This artist rendition has a great balance between the ankylosaur and diplodocus genomes. The body is more horizontal in looks, the spikes are organized in a way that matches the ankylosaurus spikes, and it has a weight to it that makes the plating on its neck weigh down the sauropod hybrid. The recognizable armor plating from head to tail really gives off the overall impenetrable tank look. When we think of the ankylodocus, this is often what we have in mind. This rendition has also inspired modders and was inevitably made into a mod for JWE as seen below.
This post is mainly to show that there are still fans out there that would like to see a more armored ankylodocus to be in JWE. The quality of the game's dinosaurs is often outstanding, which is a bit saddening that when the question of 'the least favorite dinosaur' or 'ugliest dinosaur' is brought up, the ankylodocus would often be referenced. The new capability of additional skins that not only add to colors but new models as well makes the inclusion of the more armored ankylodocus possible. And a new addition I would definitely love to see in the game that would give players more options when it comes to how armored their ankylodocus could be.
That and just yesterday, I saw something interesting done to another game I play. Beenox, the developers behind Crash Team Racing Nitro Fueled has introduced a character a few months back, Rilla Roo.
However, the fans were very divisive on the look the old character has. It was not bad but it felt very off from who they recognize as Rilla Roo from the Crash Bash game. Reddit user u/osoascam, made a photoshop edit of the Gorilla Kangaroo hybrid to match what the fans think the character could look like:
Only for then, by complete surprise, CTRNF players were given a "New" character aptly named: "Fixed Rilla Roo".
What I really love is how Beenox approached this issue. They did not replace Rilla Roo in the game, but introduced an alternative version of that character. Dinosaur designs and character designs go through a lot of process in terms of concept, art, modeling, animation, functionality, gameplay and such. So to outright replace an existing model would be harmful as the old rendition of that character/dinosaur would be gone from the game. And players who love the old character would not like that change. By introducing a new character, they have in turn made both sides of the fandom happy. A methodology I wish to see come to the Ankylodocus. The Ankylodocus has its fans, but it could do with an additional alternative look to cater to the notably big fans who favor the more armored look.
Thank you for reading this post!