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Turok (franchise)

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The Turok franchise is a multi-media franchise, generally centered around a Native American protagonist dubbed "Turok" fighting in a fantastical setting, merging characters, creatures, and locations, among other things from science-fiction and reality together.

While the franchise is known in the modern day for its video game entries, it began with a long running series of comics, running over multiple continuities and characters. The original comic series, published by Western Publishing, began in 1954 and ran all the way until 1982. A new series began in 1993 under Valiant Comics' care, and ended in 1996. A third series, published by Acclaim Comics, was heavily inspired by the then-newly releasing video games and began in 1997, and ran until 2002. A fourth, new series began in 2010 under Dark Horse Comics, and ran for a year, until 2011. Finally, Dynamite Entertainment began a new comic series in 2014, which ran until 2015, and also released more Turok comics during 2017 and 2019.

The franchise' video game entries, which began releasing in 1997 with the release of Turok: Dinosaur Hunter, steadily grew in number and continued up to 2008 with the release of a franchise reboot, Turok. The early game series featured two distinct continuities, with Acclaim Entertainment's original continuity spanning from 1997's Dinosaur Hunter to 2002's Turok: Evolution. Propaganda Games' continuity spanned 2008's Turok, and a cancelled sequel dubbed Turok 2. Following Turok 2's cancellation, the franchise entered a long hiatus, with no new major release in eleven years. Turok: Escape from Lost Valley, a small scale action-adventure game set within the franchise, would release in 2019 to little fanfare or critical reception. In 2024, a modern, large-scale Turok game project was announced at that year's The Game Awards, Turok: Origins.

The franchise would also be subject to a film release, with 2008's Turok: Son of Stone acting as an adaptation of the series' comic roots, rather than the then-most recent game release. Two film projects were pitched at separate times, but both were ultimately cancelled. The first, project undertaken by Adam Beach would be formally announced, and go dark following its announcement in 2008. Another film project involving Greg Russo was apparently in development in the early 2010s, but was cancelled due to issues involving the franchise's rights. The project had concept art released during 2019.

History[]

Original comic era (1954-1982)[]

Main article: Turok, Son of Stone.

The franchise began with a long running series of comics, running over multiple continuities and characters. The original comic series, published by Western Publishing, began in 1954 and ran all the way until 1982.

Valiant's Turok era (1993-1996)[]

Main article: Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (1993).

A new series began in 1993 under Valiant Comics' care, and ended in 1996.

Acclaim Entertainment's Turok era (1995-2004)[]

Main articles: Turok: Dinosaur Hunter, Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, Turok: Rage Wars, Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion, and Turok: Evolution.

In 1995, Acclaim Entertainment and Iguana Entertainment acquired the license to the Turok franchise, and would develop a trilogy of Turok titles, beginning with Turok: Dinosaur Hunter and ending with Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion. All three titles would follow an overarching narrative surrounding the Fireseed family, and their battles against hostile forces that threaten the Lost Land and the universe. While much of the content within the games was original, the games would loosely follow the concepts behind the first two comic runs in the franchise. Additionally, following the development of Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, a spin-off was envisioned and created: Turok: Rage Wars. These four core titles would be released on the Nintendo 64 from 1997 to 2000.

Additionally, while developing the video game adaptations of the Turok comic, a new, third comic series, published by Acclaim Comics, began releasing in 1997 and ran until 2002. The comics would feature an original plotline, but would also introduce characters that would be featured in later video game installments, including Joshua Fireseed and Adon.

Following the release of Turok 3, a next-gen Turok title dubbed Turok: Evolution would enter development. The game would be a prequel to the original trilogy of games, following Dinosaur Hunter's protagonist Tal'Set in his battle against Tobias Bruckner and Lord Tyrannus, who lead an army known as the Sleg. Evolution would release on the PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo Gamecube, and PC in August of 2002, and would receive mixed to negative reviews.

In spite of this, a direct sequel to Evolution, Turok: Resurrection, was pitched within the studio, with preproduction intended to start in July of 2004. Ultimately, past a few pieces of concept art and a document made describing intended features and a production timeline, plans for a sequel would be dashed as Acclaim would lose the license to Turok in the summer of 2004. [1] This would follow a dispute over royalty payments with the franchise's owner Classic Media. Acclaim's final fate would see the company filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, before being shuttered in September of 2004, ending the original run of Turok video games.

Propaganda Games series (2005-2009)[]

Main articles: Turok (2008) and Turok 2.

With Acclaim's bankruptcy in 2004, the Turok franchise would fall into a brief limbo, before the license would be acquired by Touchstone Games, who would then acquire Propaganda Games to develop a new title in the franchise. [2] Development on an Unreal-powered [3] reboot of the franchise, simply titled Turok, began on February 5, 2005. The game would detail a more modern setting, with a cast of marines and protagonist Joseph Turok landing on a backwater planet infested by dinosaurs. Unlike Acclaim's series, the newly rebooted Turok wouldn't rely on the original comics or older titles for narrative and gameplay inspiration, instead opting to look to films like Aliens for ideas on how to develop the game's plot and setting. Turok would release to mixed reviews, but would be a commercial success.

While not initially planned out as a franchise, it was said that Disney-Touchstone possessed the rights to the franchise for the long term, and developers within Propaganda spoke highly of wanting the game to become a franchise. Following the successful release of Turok, a sequel simply titled Turok 2 began development. Work on a vertical slice and trailer for the title had begun, however, the title quickly hit a roadblock with the economic crisis of 2008. Many of Propaganda Games' staff were laid off, and eventually Turok 2 was cancelled alongside some of Propaganda's other in-development titles. Propaganda Games would be closed in 2011 following the release of Tron: Evolution.

A notable campaign known as the "Turok Multiplayer Revival Campaign" began on Facebook in 2011, following the undisclosed shutdown and delisting of Turok's online services and DLC. [4] Intending to gather as much support as they could to get the game's online multiplayer reinstated, the campaign ended up accruing around 400 overall signatures from various individuals and businesses, a far cry from the apparently needed 1,000-10,000 number. In spite of this, Turok's multiplayer content would be unexpectedly reactivated on July 1, 2011 for the Xbox 360. The PlayStation 3 and PC's services would not return, nor would DLC.

Dark Horse Comics' Turok run (2010-2011)[]

Main article: Turok, Son of Stone (2010).

A fourth, new series began in 2010 under Dark Horse Comics, and ran for a year, until 2011.

Dynamite Entertainment's Turok run (2014-2019)[]

Main articles: Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (2014) , the 2017 Turok run and the 2019 Turok run.

Finally, Dynamite Entertainment began a new comic series in 2014, which ran until 2015, and also released more Turok comics during 2017 and 2019.

Night Dive Studios Turok remasters (2015-2023)[]

With the Turok game franchise off the radar for six years, Night Dive Studios tasked themselves with remastering Acclaim Entertainment's original Turok: Dinosaur Hunter and Turok 2: Seeds of Evil. On August 26, 2015, the re-releases were formally announced for both modern consoles and PC. Remade in Night Dive's proprietary KEX engine, Turok and Turok 2 boasted support for modern resolutions, higher quality lighting, and rebindable controls on keyboard and gamepad. While Dinosaur Hunter would initially release on PC in December of 2015, the Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4 ports of the title would not be released until 2018, 2019, and 2021 respectively. In the same vein, Seeds of Evil would release in March of 2017, with the Xbox, Switch, and PlayStation ports following in 2018, 2019, and 2021.

Following the release of the two remasters over the years, a remaster of the original trilogy's final title, Turok 3: Shadows of Oblivion, would be announced in August of 2023. Releasing in November of 2023 on PC, Shadow of Oblivion received similar overhauls to its companion re-releases, featuring higher quality assets, sound quality, performance enhancements, and achievement support among other things.

Pillow Pig Games (2019-2022)[]

Main article: Turok: Escape from Lost Valley.

Following the release of the first two remasters, Turok: Escape from Lost Valley was abruptly announced and released. Not falling into the continuity of either Acclaim or Propaganda's series, the game was an isometric action game, harkening back to the franchise's comic roots in aesthetic and plot. The game would eventually be delisted from modern storefronts in early 2022.

Saber Interactive's series (2024-)[]

Main article: Turok: Origins.

Past Nightdive's remaster efforts and the minor entry seen with Escape, the franchise would fall into a general hiatus following 2008's Turok reboot, with no major projects coming to fruition from 2008 onwards. It would not be the ultimate end of the franchise however, as Saber Interactive set out to revive Turok with a fully new title, Turok: Origins, which would be announced at the end of 2024.

Adaptations[]

Michael Teitelbaum's Turok novel tetralogy (1998)[]

Main article: Novels.

A series of four Turok novels was released in 1998, coinciding with the then-incoming Seeds of Evil's release. The novels see Joshua Fireseed meeting enemies such as the Primagen, Campaigner, and the Gatekeeper.

Films[]

Main articles: Turok: Son of Stone (2008), the cancelled Adam Beach film project, and the cancelled Greg Russo film project.

The Turok franchise was subject to three film adaptations, with only one coming to fruition, and the other two being effectively cancelled. The first, Turok: Son of Stone, was an animated project released in 2008, coinciding with the release of Propaganda Games' Turok. The film's aesthetic and plot were rooted in the comics preceding the then-modern video game reboot, and it was a standalone film, with no sequel being produced.

Two live-action Turok films were proposed in the franchise's earlier years. One was intended to be helmed by Adam Beach, who had proposed the project as early as 2002. The last news from this intended live-action film came in 2008, and since then, this Turok film entered development hell where it's unlikely it'll be made.

A second intended Turok film was pitched and entered development sometime between 2010 and 2012 approximately. It was set to be released ahead of the still-in-development Jurassic World, but issues involving the Turok franchise's rights wound up killing the project.

Merchandise[]

Playmates toyline (1998)[]

Gallery[]

Logos[]

References[]

Turok franchise
Video game series
Acclaim Entertainment series
Propaganda Games series
Saber Interactive series
Miscellaneous projects
Cancelled projects
Auxiliary and extended media
Comics
Novels
Strategy guides
Films
Characters
Notable Turoks
Notable protagonists
Notable antagonists
Miscellaneous characters
Enemies and wildlife
Enemies
Wildlife
Bosses
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