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Primal Carnage

It’s an all out war in Primal Carnage. Humans fight dinosaurs, much in the way Jurassic Park intended.
Primal Carnage Game Cover
76%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:gameplay, graphics
Most mentioned negative aspects:stability, story
77% User Score Based on 3,095 reviews
Critic Score 70%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

PCWindows
Primal Carnage Game Cover

About Primal Carnage

Primal Carnage is a single player and multiplayer open world shooter game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Lukewarm Media and was released on October 29, 2012. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

Primal Carnage is an online multiplayer shooter that will engross its players in skilled PVP combat, team-based strategy and savage class-oriented matches unlike any you've previously experienced; be it an armed human mercenary or a cunning dinosaur, Primal Carnage is sure to unleash the inner beast in anyone who seeks to survive among the fittest.

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Games Like Primal Carnage

Looking for games like Primal Carnage? Here are top open world shooter recommendations with a science fiction focus, selected from player-similarity data — start with Primal Carnage: Extinction, ORION: Prelude or Dino D-Day.

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Reviews

77%Audience ScoreBased on 3,095 reviews
gameplay113 positive mentions
stability78 negative mentions

  • Unique multiplayer gameplay featuring dinosaurs versus humans with well-balanced classes for both sides
  • Good graphics and animations with immersive sound design that enhances the prehistoric atmosphere
  • Fun and engaging to play, especially with friends; offers moments of adrenaline-filled chase and teamwork
  • Multiple game modes including Team Deathmatch and objective based modes like Get to the Chopper
  • Developers provided DLC skins and community trading system to enhance experience
  • The game is largely abandoned by developers with no recent updates and limited support
  • Very low player base resulting in few active servers, making it difficult to find games without friends
  • Game has several bugs, glitches, and performance issues including occasional crashes and lag
  • Lack of tutorial and single player mode leaves new players struggling to learn controls and gameplay
  • Some imbalances exist - dinosaurs often perceived as more powerful than humans, leading to frustration
  • Limited maps and classes reduce replayability without significant progression or leveling system
  • gameplay

    242 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    47% positive mentions, 42% neutral mentions, 11% negative mentions

    Gameplay in Primal Carnage offers a unique and intense asymmetrical multiplayer experience, balancing first-person human shooting with third-person dinosaur combat, requiring teamwork, strategy, and skill. While praised for its fun, fast-paced mechanics, class variety, and immersive prehistoric atmosphere, it suffers from issues like bugs, occasional imbalance (notably favoring dinosaurs), lag, and a dwindling player base that limits multiplayer accessibility. Despite these flaws and some repetitiveness, many find its distinctive gameplay enjoyable and addicting, especially for dinosaur and FPS enthusiasts.

    • “Its stunning visuals, immersive sound design, and balanced gameplay mechanics offer a truly captivating and intense prehistoric battle for supremacy.”
    • “The gameplay in primal carnage largely benefits from stealth for dinosaurs and pterosaurs, teamwork for the humans, and strategy and skill in general for each player and both teams.”
    • “Mechanically, the game feels fluid and the physics and movement are well-designed, both for third-person dinosaur and first-person human play.”
    • “The dissonance between advertised savagery and dated reality recursively drains engagement of purpose, leaving only hollow mechanics.”
    • “Unlike the new 'extinction' release, this game has no singleplayer content so you will be unlikely to get much in the way of gameplay except exploring the maps by yourself.”
    • “Very low population game (3 servers up and had less than 50 people playing), slowly dying due to lack of depth, no progression (achievements don't count), barebone gameplay (deathmatch or 1 team point capture) and unbalanced mess.”
  • graphics

    199 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    53% positive mentions, 37% neutral mentions, 10% negative mentions

    The game's graphics receive mixed but generally positive feedback, praised for detailed dinosaur models, immersive animations, and vibrant environments that enhance gameplay, especially on higher settings. While some users find the visuals dated or mediocre compared to modern standards, most acknowledge the graphics as impressive for an indie title, balancing quality and performance across different hardware. Issues like occasional bugs, clipping, and optimization challenges are noted, but overall, the graphics contribute significantly to the game's appeal and immersive prehistoric atmosphere.

    • “The graphics and animations of this game alone are absolutely amazing and it oozes love and attention to detail, something you rarely see from the big developer names, even Blizzard, these days.”
    • “The game has stunning graphics and is very simple to learn and understand.”
    • “Everything in the game (graphically) is excellent, well made and animated.”
    • “Oh and one other thing, I had the graphics maxed out on a more than capable PC and it never looked anywhere near as good as in the pictures... what gives?”
    • “Graphics are extremely dated by 2012 standards and the textures are really unappealing, limited maps, and gamemodes, soundtrack is dull, etc. etc. I'd say the biggest problem is that no one plays, but I really can't blame them.”
    • “The graphics looks like they were taken from Source, and if I didn't know it was made with Unreal Engine, I would've thought it is a Source game.”
  • stability

    79 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    1% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 99% negative mentions

    The game suffers from pervasive bugs, glitches, and occasional crashes that negatively impact gameplay, with issues such as unbalanced classes, server instability, and broken mechanics remaining unfixed due to lack of developer support. Despite these stability problems and a dwindling player base, many still find the core experience entertaining, especially when playing with friends. Overall, the game is functional but marred by consistent technical flaws and limited ongoing updates.

    • “Wouldn't recommend buying; this one's essentially dead, rarely anyone else online, and buggy.”
    • “The maps are quite old, and each has several glitches that can get you stuck or killed regardless of the team.”
    • “Riddled with bugs and glitches; playing with friends is problematic, you must restart to find servers, and these issues are common.”
  • humor

    54 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game is widely praised for its humor, often described as hilarious, chaotic, and filled with funny moments stemming from quirky animations, ragdoll physics, and amusing glitches. Players find it especially entertaining when playing with friends, enjoying comedic dinosaur antics and unexpected in-game situations that create a lighthearted, Jurassic Park-style fun experience.

    • “This game... although it sometimes has the feel and gunplay of an alpha stage game, there are some hilarious moments to be shared between friends whether you're fighting together or against one another.”
    • “I bought this game for under $1 and it's one of those games you play with your friends not for the fun of actual gameplay but rather the funny animations of the dinosaurs or the hilarious glitches with the player's characters.”
    • “What will prove to be some of the most hilarious, anxiety-ridden, fast-paced, human-eating, dinosaur envy-filled hours of your life.”
  • story

    36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    8% positive mentions, 75% neutral mentions, 17% negative mentions

    The game lacks a traditional story mode or coherent narrative, focusing instead on multiplayer gameplay with minimal thematic context. Many users express a desire for a story mode or missions to enhance engagement, but the current experience remains fun for casual play despite this absence.

    • “I really want to at least have some sort of story to it.”
    • “They should really make a story mode as well.”
    • “But the way the whole story went, from dropping this game after promising a (free) update, which ends up in a new game which people had to pay for, just destroyed the already tiny player base.”
    • “There’s also no single player, no story mode, no NPCs or AI, and you must have an internet connection to play.”
    • “The fact that there is no story to it!”
    • “- no storyline, quests - straight multiplayer”
  • optimization

    16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    31% positive mentions, 50% neutral mentions, 19% negative mentions

    The game's optimization is widely criticized for persistent performance issues such as lag, freezing, and glitches, with many users noting a lack of recent updates and developer support. While some find it playable and relatively better optimized than similar titles, it generally demands high-end hardware for smooth performance. Promised updates and engine improvements give hope, but currently, optimization remains a significant downside.

    • “Still (3.4.2015) better than pce: more balanced, better optimization, the deal.”
    • “Very nicely optimized.”
    • “My final verdict is a solid 8/10; would have been a 9 but the game does have some issues with lagging and other optimization issues, but the devs are working on an update to fix all of these issues!”
    • “No more updates for several years... always the same glitches, the same bugs, drops, lag, freezes... the optimization is still catastrophic.”
    • “Cannot recommend this game in its current state regardless of price; it runs horribly on anything but the most expensive computers. It looks okay but plays awfully due to poor game optimization, horrible map choices, and lack of proper balancing.”
    • “Many balance, performance, and gameplay fixes need to be made but it seems the developers have already abandoned their game with updates being few and far between.”
  • music

    15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    47% positive mentions, 33% neutral mentions, 20% negative mentions

    The music in the game receives very mixed reviews, with some players finding it cool, immersive, and atmospheric, enhancing the gameplay experience, while others criticize it as dull, poorly fitting, or barely present. Certain iconic or thematic tracks are appreciated, but many feel the soundtrack lacks consistency and does not always match the game's tone. Overall, opinions on the music range from enjoyable and fun to annoying or inadequate.

    • “The soundtrack is fantastic and really adds depth to the game and atmosphere in the different levels.”
    • “The gameplay is fun, the soundtrack is awesome, and on top of that both parts are really fun to play even though humans are harder, but still by my opinion the funniest.”
    • “The game is immersive, the background music as humans makes some of the maps extremely suspenseful.”
    • “The music is awful (sorry to whoever made it, but bagpipes? Really?)”
    • “The music was especially bad.”
    • “I don't understand why the multiplayer games have barely any sound in them; if you listen really closely you might be able to hear some music.”
  • replayability

    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    31% positive mentions, 46% neutral mentions, 23% negative mentions

    Replayability opinions are mixed, with some praising the game's fun gameplay, diverse modes, and unique dinosaur theme that enhance replay value, while others find it limited or awkward compared to modern titles. Scores range from low (4/10) to high (8/10), reflecting varied player experiences. The developers' ongoing rework aims to improve overall playability and replay potential.

    • “The game itself is great, with fun gameplay and amazing replayability.”
    • “Great graphics, range of game modes and replayability.”
    • “Replay value: 8/10”
    • “The game engine feels awkward and the title exhibits limited replayability.”
    • “Replay value: rather low”
    • “Replay value: 4/10”
  • atmosphere

    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    50% positive mentions, 50% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its immersive prehistoric setting, natural lighting, and colorful environments that avoid overused cinematic filters. Combined with a fantastic soundtrack and compelling dinosaur-themed gameplay, it creates a charming and thrilling experience that strongly appeals to fans of dinosaur and survival genres.

    • “I would recommend this game for those people who are really into dinosaurs, prehistoric looking maps, and atmosphere because in those parts this game definitely delivers while also providing solid and polished gameplay.”
    • “The soundtrack is fantastic and really adds depth to the game and atmosphere in the different levels.”
    • “If you love AVP II style multiplayer but with dinos, then you can't miss this game. It has an awesome atmosphere as you hide from the tyrant king of dinosaurs, the T-Rex, and the killer of the king, Spinosaurus, and hunt the tiny human mercenary forces as they try to get off the island or just survive the menace.”
  • grinding

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 25% neutral mentions, 75% negative mentions

    Grinding in the game can be somewhat tedious and may require a second life to manage effectively, but it helps make goals more achievable. The vibrant tropical environments provide a refreshing contrast to the typical drab settings found in similar games.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “I've played this with a very small group and it can be a bit tedious, but goals are more achievable at least.”
    • “You'll need a second live for grinding.”
  • emotional

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Users found the emotional experience impactful enough to evoke strong feelings like crying, though some noted that certain gameplay elements and map designs lacked depth and careful balance.

    • “I cried!”
    • “I cried.”
    • “Next thing I know, I get an achievement that requires playing a T-rex all round without touching the class.”
  • monetization

    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    50% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 50% negative mentions

    The game is praised for having no microtransactions or distracting skins, maintaining player immersion during combat. However, some users feel the promised improvements were delayed or replaced by a cash-grab sequel, Primal Carnage: Extinction.

    • “The combat experience is better than Primal Carnage: Extinction and there are no microtransactions or skins that break player immersion.”
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Play Times

500h Median play time
393h Average play time
10-668h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 3 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Primal Carnage is a open world shooter game with science fiction theme. Common tags for Primal Carnage include first-person, indie, trading, dinosaurs, third person and others.

Primal Carnage is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 393 hours playing Primal Carnage.

Primal Carnage was released on October 29, 2012.

Primal Carnage was developed by Lukewarm Media.

Primal Carnage has received mostly positive reviews from both players and critics. Most players liked Primal Carnage for its gameplay but disliked it for its stability.

Primal Carnage is a single player game with multiplayer and local co-op support.

Similar games include Primal Carnage: Extinction, ORION: Prelude, Dino D-Day, Murder Miners, Ace of Spades: Battle Builder and others.