Dino Crisis

Dino Crisis (1999) came from Capcom under Shinji Mikami, the creator of Resident Evil, as a survival horror with dinosaurs instead of zombies - the same tension over scarce ammo and narrow corridors, but with enemies that are faster, less predictable, able to break through the very door a player just hid behind, and prone to sudden face-to-face encounters that trigger a snap reaction sequence with only a split second to respond. The lead character was agent Regina, sent to a cut-off research station where genetic experiments had brought creatures from another era back to life, and the game was defined by that helplessness against foes that conventional weapons barely slow down unless the player lures a tyrannosaur into a trap instead.

Dino Crisis 2 (2000) swung away from horror toward action - ammo suddenly became plentiful, the player faced waves of dinosaurs alongside Regina and new character Dylan Morton, and a points system for kills doubled as currency for new weapons and gear, encouraging aggressive play over cautious sneaking. Players welcomed the tonal shift as a fresh spin on the formula, even as it drifted from the horror roots of the first game.

Dino Crisis 3 (2003) was an Xbox exclusive that moved the series into space, aboard an abandoned colony ship where mutated flying dinosaurs appeared and the player gained a jetpack for zero-gravity movement, while Regina returned with a newly redesigned look. That sci-fi turn, along with the unfamiliar three-dimensional movement controls, met a mixed reaction from fans, and no further entry has followed since - the series has stayed dormant, though it keeps a loyal following.