Jurassic Park is based on the novel and film of the same name.[2][3][4] Following a computer system failure, paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant and others become trapped at an island theme park, known as Jurassic Park, that is populated with dinosaurs.[5]
The player controls Grant, and begins the game armed with a cattle prod,[3] although the game also features five other weapons: tranquilizer gun, shotgun, bolas, gas grenade launcher, and missile launcher.[5] The game features seven different dinosaur enemies,[5] as well as giant dragonflies.[2] The player is given five lives, and two continues when all lives are lost.[5] Grant's health is represented by a red health bar.[2] Food and first-aid kits located throughout the game can replenish the player's health.[5]
Motion sensors set up around the island allow characters in the game to communicate advice to the player,[2][3] although some advice is deliberately malicious.[5] If Grant loses a life, the player is restarted at the last motion sensor with which Grant came into contact.[3][5] Mr. DNA, a character from the film, provides dinosaur facts to the player if the game is paused or remains idle for too long.[2][5] The player must open and close multiple gates to travel around the island.[2] The game's music changes depending on the player's location in the park.[2][6] The player is also required to collect dinosaur eggs throughout the game.[3][5]
The game's exterior portion, played from a top-down perspective,[7] consists of a maze that is made up of jungle trees.[3] The game switches to a first-person perspective when the player enters a building.[3][7] The player must collect ID cards belonging to characters on the island in order to access certain rooms. Other rooms are completely dark and require night vision goggles to enter.[2][3][7] Some buildings contain multiple floors.[8] Jurassic Park supports the Super NES Mouse when playing first-person sequences or operating computer terminals.[5]
To win the game, the player must complete several objectives, starting with powering up a computer to re-activate the park's motion sensors. Once activated, the player's short-range motion sensor can detect nearby dinosaurs.[2][5] Subsequently, the player must determine how raptors are infiltrating the park's visitor center and stop them; prevent raptors from escaping to the mainland on a supply ship; and find the raptors' nests in underground volcanic tunnels and destroy them with a nerve gas bomb. The final objective requires the player to locate a communications center to contact a helicopter, and then reach the helipad to be rescued.[3][5] The game does not utilize a password feature.[9] The player, therefore, is required to play through the entire game in a single sitting.
