The Lost Wild: Everything We Know

If there’s ever a void that needs filling, it’s the one that both Jurassic Park and Dino Crisis left way back when, right around the time Capcom neglected the idea of producing a sequel, and Frontier Developments favoured the concept of having a tycoon-like business simulation series over a nitty-gritty survival horror one. Fortunately for us, such an idea has recently been established, and it comes by way of Great Ape Games’ The Lost Wild, an invigoratingly atmospheric dinosaur-themed sandbox game that will supposedly cement that very void we’ve been referring to.

So, what do we actually know about the upcoming game? Will it feature a single-player campaign of any sort, or will it pour its resources into being more of an online multiplayer-type game? Well, here’s everything we can tell you based on the facts that have already come to light.

What Is The Lost Wild?

The Lost Wild is an upcoming first-person survival horror game by Great Ape Games, an independent studio based over in Brighton, UK. Its inspiration for the game, which may no longer come as a surprise to most, centers around games including Dino Crisis, Resident Evil, Trespasser, and Alien: Isolation. While staying true to its survival-horror roots, The Lost Wild will also funnel various elements including stealth, scavenging, and mixed but mostly non-lethal combat into the overall gameplay experience.

“The Lost Wild is an immersive and cinematic dinosaur game that captures the reverence and terror of nature’s most magnificent beasts,” the official site reads in part. “Come face-to-face with dinosaurs that behave like wild animals, not monsters.”

Story

Stranded, alone, and without so much as a single tool to keep you afloat in a dinosaur-riddled world, you must embrace the hostile environment and connect the dots that explain how it all came to be. With nothing but a voice serving as a single lifeline on the other end of a radio, you will need to work your way through deserted facilities and utilize both the elements and the natural resources in order to bypass, trick, and threaten the flesh-eating dinosaurs that run wild. The questions you’re ultimately trying to answer: who is on the other side of the radio, and how are you going to reach them?

“You are stranded in a violent primal world,” the official blurb reads. “Your survival depends on mastering its rhythms and anticipating its dangers. A mysterious voice on the radio seems to offer a glimmer of hope. With their help, make your way through the facilities and piece together the story of how this came to be.”

Gameplay

The Lost Wild is best described as being a first-person survival game—emphasis on the survival aspect. Its gameplay, which will mostly teeter towards gathering resources to craft traps and projectiles to distract dinosaurs, will avoid any major combat scenarios. Furthermore, like any survival-horror game that incorporates crafting and exploration into the mix, stealth will also be a major part of the experience. In fact, your survival will depend entirely around your ability to tiptoe between crevices and outsmart the enemy. Let it be said that, contrary to popular belief, you will not be able to kill the dinosaurs, but more sway them away from devouring you as their next meal.

“Explore a prehistoric wilderness where you’re squarely in the center of the food chain,” the website reads in part. “Keep your head down, stay alert, and evade. If all else fails, run or try to intimidate using non-lethal weaponry, resulting in intense cat and mouse-style gameplay.”

According to the devs, The Lost Wild will feature a single-player campaign that will take anywhere from six to ten hours to beat. Will this factor in any additional content such as side quests or cinematics? It’s hard to say at this point, though one thing remains clear: this is a story-driven single-player game through and through.

Development

Great Ape Games first lifted the curtain on The Lost Wild back in 2022. According to the team, work on it had already been completed in the years leading up to its announcement. Unfortunately, this was mostly preliminary footwork for the sake of building the pre-alpha.

“Although we were working on The Lost Wild for years before showing anything, and what we have as of today is playable and very promising, we want to take our time and do things right,” the devs cleared up in an online FAQ. “Expect a production cycle of between two and three years and a launch somewhere around late 2024/early 2025.”

Trailer

So, is there a trailer to compliment the key details? In short, yes, there is! Announced back in July 2022 at the Annapurna Interactive Showcase, Great Ape Games lifted the veil on the dino-infused survival horror in a bid to garner global attention. And it worked, tenfold. Interested to see it in the virtual flesh? You can catch a glimpse of what’s to come in the video above.

Release Date, Platforms & Editions

The Lost Wild will be coming to PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG in Q4 2024. According to Great Ape Games, next-gen consoles are “on the roadmap,” though nothing seems to suggest either the Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5 are currently in mind. If it does come to either console, then it’s sure to be at some stage in 2025.

As it’s still early days, there aren’t actually any special or collector’s editions to pre-order yet. This is likely to change as 2023 draws to a close, though at present it appears the only way you can get your hands on a copy is via Steam, Epic Games Store, or GOG. You can go ahead and add it to your Wishlist on Steam for more updates here.

For more information on The Lost Wild, be sure to follow the official social handle here. If anything new or exciting pops up in the meantime, we’ll be sure to spill all the details right here on gaming.net.

So, what’s your take? Will you be picking up a copy of The Lost Wild when it eventually drops next year? Let us know over on our socials here or down in the comments below.