Something I realized while playing Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered was just how little time I spent with the original when I was a kid. Its predecessor, Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, was one of my favourite games on the N64—being one of those rare mature games that always felt like we were getting away with something when we played it—but aside from one-weekend rental, it never stood out to me more than Turok: Rage Wars or even the 2008 reboot.
But thankfully, we live in the era of gaming when ideas are sparse and the remake/remaster reigns supreme. After spending more time with it now than I ever did as a kid I can see now why it never resonated with me, even with the remaster treatment. Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered is not only an unremarkable game, but it also feels like a step backwards in terms of these remasters.
What’s notable about Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion is it has much more story than either of its predecessors featuring not only a lengthy opening cutscenes but several story cutscenes throughout the entire game. I would recommend looking up the Wiki for Turok 3 cause the story is a TRIP, but the short version is: after the events of Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, Joshua Fireseed is living with his sister and younger brother Joseph. He’s been having visions of a child who he claims needs to be protected. During the night, Oblivion teleports its forces into their home and Joshua dies protecting his siblings, who are then tasked with destroying Oblivion and claiming the mantle of Turok.
“Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered is not only an unremarkable game, but it also feels like a step backwards in terms of these remasters.”
Having finally paid attention to the story in Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered, one thing that struck me was how un-Turok it felt. Maybe it’s meant to resemble the Turok comics more closely, but there’s a genuine lack of imagination or charm compared to its immediate predecessor. Turok 2: Seeds of Evil always felt like it had a good mix of sci-fi and fantasy, with a little mix of horror for some of the later levels but never belaboured the game with too much exposition. Alternatively, Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion feels very boring and far too grandiose for its ridiculous premise.
Gameplay feels equally un-Turok, even compared to the remasters. It almost feels like a genuine step backwards compared to Turok 2: Seeds of Evil Remastered. For starters, control feels a little off and makes aiming feel stiff and clunky. I started playing Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered with my PS5 controller and even after tinkering with the settings, it felt like aiming was so incredibly imprecise that I had to switch to mouse/keyboard.
What’s more, QoL features that were present in Turok 2: Seeds of Evil Remastered, like objective markers, are missing from this “remaster.” Even fun things like cheat codes seem to be missing, with cheats seemingly being unlocked by playing the game? I suppose this is fine, but a lot of the fun of replaying the previous Turok was being able to reinput the master cheat and just go in guns blazing on any level. Forcing the player to play through the game before they can just go nuts and have fun seems counter-intuitive.
“Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered isn’t terrible, but on the long list of sub-par “remasters,” it certainly feels like another one.”
Lastly, there’s a distinct lack of splatter in this game, which just feels wrong for Turok. A lot of enemies are generic armoured humans so hitting them even with a shotgun results in sparks on their armour instead of big, gooey splatters of blood. Even some of the fleshier enemies have very subdued splatter effects. While certain body shots can result in some over-the-top gore, but for the most part, the game feels a bit toned down.
In the audio/visual department, Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered is a bit of a mixed bag. It looks mostly fine—it’s an N64 game with a coat of HD paint—but like with most of the game, most of the enemy designs are just kind of boring. With the exception of some creative bosses, most of the enemies are either generic humanoid types or chunky amorphous blobs. Even the dinosaurs don’t even look particularly good.
The audio is a bit of a mess too. For starters, the game is still using a lot of the N64 audio, and almost none of it has been cleaned up so it all sounds like it’s coming out of a 90’s radio. Also, the game’s mixing is totally imbalanced and in a few cutscenes, the character voiceover is completely drowned out by the BGM. I’m not sure what I was expecting for this remaster, but I hoped it would be a bit better than this.
Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion Remastered isn’t terrible, but on the long list of sub-par “remasters,” it certainly feels like another one. Considering how great its predecessor was in terms of quality and actual gameplay updates, this just feels slapdash. If you’re a true fan of Turok, maybe it’s worth a look, but if you’re looking for 2000’s era shooters, there’s a lot better out there.
