Why no games that let you be a lion or a eagle or something?

[Anthony1]

Last night I played a little bit of Ecco the Dolphin on Sega CD.


And I couldn't help thinking, why don't developers make some more games that let you play the role of a certain animal. Basically this genre would be "animal simulation".

Think about it. Just like Ecco allowed you to be a Dolphin, or Kolibri allowed you to be a humming bird, why no game that allows you to be a lion? Or a Grizzly Bear? Or a Shark? Or a Killer Whale? Or a Bald Eagle? and on and on and on.


And I'm not talking about platform games that have animals as the characters. Like Lion King. I'm talking a real animial "simulator". Where you actually have to try to live and hunt like a real animal.

In a fight for survival.

Now, it wouldn't have to go the extremes, and include all the really boring parts of being an animal, but it could have all the cool stuff. Think about being a fox, and having a sort of "night vision". Or some other nocturnal animal.

Ecco and Kolibri were cool games, but they weren't really animal "simulations", like I'm thinking about. But I thought that they would be the inspiration for somebody to make a real "animal" simulator.


Oh, by the way, while we are on this topic, let's list every single game that lets you take the role of an animal. Note: Don't include the games that let you take the role of an animal for only a super brief period of time in the game. It has to be a major theme of the game. Also, I don't think it would be right to list Bubsy, and say that you played a cat. Or Wonderdog, and say that you played a dog.


Ecco the Dolphin - Dolphin
Ecco the Dolphin 2: Tides of Time - Dolphin
Kolibri - Humming Bird
Jurrasic Park (Genesis) - Raptor
Jurrasic Park Rampage (Genesis) - Raptor

[Parodius]

Well, there's Dog's Life(PS2). Read the review in Edge(#132) and it got a so-so 5/10.

"As with everything in Dog's Life there's something brilliant being hinted at, but never realised"
-E

[Half Japanese]

In the age of the internet furry crowd? No thanks.

I guess Lion King (Genesis, SNES, GBA) should count.

I personally think an "animal simulator" would be fairly boring unless done really well. Even then it'd probably be boring after a few minutes.

[ubersaurus]

Mr. Mosquito seemed pretty straightforward mosquito life.

[Cmosfm]

Hmmm, cubivore maybe? I dunno, cant think of anything else at the moment

[Anthony1]

In the age of the internet furry crowd? No thanks.

I guess Lion King (Genesis, SNES, GBA) should count.

I personally think an "animal simulator" would be fairly boring unless done really well. Even then it'd probably be boring after a few minutes.

I don't think that Lion King should count. That would be like saying Sonic the Hedgehog lets you live the life of a hedgehog.

Now, I did say before, that regarding a "animal simulator" game that it would have to not include the boring parts of the game. But if you look at Ecco the Dolphin, that game doesn't have me bored. It might not be a "true" animal simulator type game, but it's pretty damn close, and it doesn't have me bored.

Couldn't you imagine a game where you are a Panther living in the jungle? You would have to hunt and do certain tasks and stuff. With great jungle sound and stuff going on in the background. I think that would be sweet.

[DDCecil]

E.V.O. for the SNES of course.

[Sotenga]

Ever heard of an extremely obscure Jaleco title for the NES called Totally Rad? You're able to transform into both an Eagle and a Lion, and you can also become a Merman too.

[TheRedEye]

BIRD WEEK!

[digitalpress]

If Ecco the Dolphin counts on your list, does Eeek the Cat or Family Dog count? Also have you ever played Kolibri? It's really not a hummingbird simulator, is it... I mean, how many hummingbirds can fire missiles? And if that's a hummingbird simulator then Deep Blue is a fish simulator, which you may find more of, by the way (Shark! Shark! and Amazing Sea Monkeys spring to mind)...

[Raccoon Lad]

Desert Falcon was a fairly accurate portrayal of being a falcon, right?

[digitalpress]

Don't forget Joust. What more does an animal simulator need than a "FLAP" button?

[Sniderman]

Don't forget Joust. What more does an animal simulator need than a "FLAP" button?

A "LICK ONESELF" button.

[digitalpress]

Don't forget Joust. What more does an animal simulator need than a "FLAP" button?

A "LICK ONESELF" button.

I didn't realize you needed a button for that. Seems once again I have raised the bar for the competition.

[Bratwurst]

There was a Win95 game released around 1996 or so that let you play as a lion in Africa, semi-realistic. You even had to 'sleep' most of the day. Heart of the Lion or something else it was called, I'm too lazy to dig up the advertisement in my old mags.

[Trellisaze]

There were a couple of things like this on the PC while back, and look to be more on the simulation than the game side. Always wanted to try 'em, but I never got around to picking them up.

Wolf
Lion

[Dire 51]

What about Aquanaut's Holiday for the PS1?

[NE146]

How bout one of my all time favorites: FATHOM for the 2600.

You play both a Bird and as a Dolphin

[ManekiNeko]

Would I buy a game that let me play as a grizzly bear? Hell yeah.

Unfortunately, today's games only let you shoot them. When I saw Cabela's Most Dangerous Hunts at the local video store I rolled my eyes so hard they were left spinning in their sockets for three hours. I just LOVED the way they drew the bear on the front of the package as a red-eyed monster with huge claws and teeth. Whatever, dumbasses. If anyone on the front of the box deserved to be demonized, it's the drunk redneck hunters desperately trying to overcompensate for their tiny weiners.

JR

[hydr0x]

There was a Win95 game released around 1996 or so that let you play as a lion in Africa, semi-realistic. You even had to 'sleep' most of the day. Heart of the Lion or something else it was called, I'm too lazy to dig up the advertisement in my old mags.

the same game came to my mind when reading this topic, i don't have my mags at my appartment here so i can't check it's name but it was a lion simulator, yeah, it wasn't too good though as far as i can remember


btw @anthony

if u count Ecco (Genny version) than you HAVE to count Lion King, i wouldn't count them both, i would count the following games:

that lion game of course
Mr. Mosquito
Ecco (Dreamcast) though not very simulation-like, it has some aspects of a simulation
Dog's Life
E.V.O. maybe