Flying under the indie radar, there’s a new Turok game in the wings. It’s called Turok: Escape from Lost Valley, and it is…well, what is it? Its description reads thusly:

Turok: Escape from Lost Valley is a third-person action/adventure game where the player is Turok, trying to find a way back home. The player explores this strange place with Andar, and it will take all their skills to survive the environment, creatures, and other dangers on the adventure through the Lost Valley.

While we’re at it, let’s take a look at its gameplay:

Video from YouTube user Game Clips And Tips

Huh. That’s…interesting? This looks quite different from Turok: Dinosaur Hunter, which I played on our humble Nintendo 64. Based on a comic book series, that game was an innovative and mature first-person-shooter that had our protagonist, Turok, hunting dinosaurs and beasties of all manner. At the time, I had a little first-person-shooting experience under my belt thanks to DOOM, but Turok: Dinosaur Hunter was a different ball game. The game felt visceral and alive, and it served as an amazing layout for the predator versus prey scenario. There were lots of different animals to stalk, ranging from your typical dinosaurs to alien-looking critters. (Accidentally killing one of its non-threatening animals, a deer, put me off the game for a while.) You never really felt safe playing as Turok, as if there was always another monster lurking around the next tree.

Suffice to say, considering that we haven’t seen a Turok game in some time (2008’s Turok looks to be the last one in recent years) Turok: Escape from Lost Valley is certainly a step in…some…direction. Realizing that we are not to judge books by their covers, it is a little hard to get past someone applying an endearing art style to what’s essentially a hunting game. (The character renderings are quite reminiscent of Scribblenauts, no?) That said, it does appear that behind all the cuteness, the developer, Pillow Pig Games, has tried to remain true to Turok’s story. And at least there are some dinosaurs, adorable though they may be.

If you want to take Turok for an isometric spin in all the fluffy goodness of the Lost Valley, you won’t have to wait too much longer. The game is set for release on July 25^th and will be available on Steam.

What do you think of games like Turok: Escape from Lost Valley that present new and independent takes on classic game franchises? Sound off in the comments!

Lede image captured from the Turok: Escape from Lost Valley page on Steam © Pillow Pig Games, Universal Studios Interactive Entertainment LLC