The Isle

READ REVIEW This game can be a lot of fun, yes. But there are some things you should know, both good and bad, before purchase. THE BAD; -When you download this game, the version you have is NOT the version you should be playing. You need to go into the games properties, click on Game Versions & Beta, and download Evrima. That is the version everyone plays on, and you will NOT get the true Isle experience if you do not download it. -This game lags and has bugs and frequently crashes. There is no tutorial and there is no map (unless you go online to islemaps- which is a must), and there is no key for any of the symbols. You need to look up everything to understand what it is you are smelling as your dino, and where you are on the island. -As of writing this, there has been a "bug" for the last two months that deletes your dino even on a safe save. Once you log out, your dino is GONE. I say bug in quotations because it's been happening so long that I do not think it is accidental, but intentional. I don't know if this is a way to try and keep the full grown Rex population down, or if it's a temporary measure, but it is very frustrating. My suggestion (at this time), is that until this is fixed, and unless you are fine with losing hours of progress, not to play the Rex. He takes SO LONG to grow- which is understandable- but spending upwards of 5 hours to grow him just to lose him on a log out is incredibly annoying. -Do NOT go into this game thinking you will automatically get to a full grown anything. There are some very kind players, but the game is about survival. You ARE going to get eaten. As a baby, as a juvi, as an adult, it doesn't matter. Some runs are good, some runs are bad, and some runs are ruined by large packs. It happens, don't get too attached to your dino. -People cheat in every game, and The Isle is no exception. I've had a baby bepi almost murder my full grown Cera with one tiny little peck, and I've seen Rex's with speed boosts and infinite stamina. Just... be aware. THE GOOD; -The game, when it isn't lagging to all hell, is beautiful. Turn that ridiculous music they have all the way down and enjoy the quiet moments. -Having friends to play with in this game makes it 100 times more fun. Your survival rate will go up, too. -Private servers, if you can find one you like, are a much better experience. It will be no less brutal, but there will often be keys and rules that balance the game. -Being a Dinosaur is, believe it or not, a lot of fun. The way your dino moves, the calls and sounds they make, the way they hunt, it can all be very immersive and make for a really entertaining time. -Not all, maybe not even most, but SOME of the players will be very kind. I've had big Rex's hunt for me, I've had herbies adopt me when I'm a carnivore, I've had mix packs come to my rescue. I've had deinos (gators) that think I'm cute and protect me even though I'm a tiny little Troodon, and I've even had an Carno who tested the water before I swam across by hurling themselves in first. Kindness CAN get you killed in this game, but sometimes... it's awfully sweet. This game is a lot of fun, no matter how annoying and frustrating it can be at times. Hopefully, and I say this with doubt, they spend some time fixing the bugs and making it better. EDIT 7/3/26; Not a fan of this update, and no idea if the bug that deletes your dino is even fixed. The new skin selector is actually one of the worst changes I've seen to a game in a while, and (I know it's hard to believe) the game still lags and crashes- maybe even more so now since there was a graphics "boost". Gonna give it a few days but might call it and retire this game if the experience doesn't get better. EDIT 7/10/26; Ok it's been a few days and it's not as hot anymore so I was able to play without being automatically annoyed by the heat. The new skin selector makes me sad, I miss my colorful Cera's. I REALLY liked being able to customize my dino, and now we all just pick from the same few shades. Booooo. Swamp is a LOT different and a much less viable option to grow a baby Rex- just a heads up. Otherwise the map looks okay. There are some rendering issues (a lot of the rocks look smooth and untextured). Redwood is a great addition though. Game still has lag, still crashes, still has random bugs. I can't say if the save bug has been fully fixed. I was growing a deinosuchus and he was gone when I went back to him (which isn't great since they take an enormous amount of time to grow), but the last two Cera's I've grown on official maps HAVE saved. I'm going to try and save a Rex and see if I get him back, will update. Unfortunately for me I still love the game so I will continue to play, but I cannot overstate how much I miss my blue crested and gold crested Cera's.

The Isle will always be a source of good memories for me. Sure, I've been scared to death by Rexes popping out of the shadows. I've been dog-piled by huge packs of raptors. A true classic, I've tried my luck as a Parasaur on steep hills and broken my ankles. The community kept my joy for the game alive, even when updates took a while. I've met tons of great people, and now have some long-term friends to game with and talk to on Discord. But this game is 11 years old. I've played it since I was a kid, when I was about 15-yrs-old (when I shouldn't have been playing it). The point is, this game has been so slow in development I have grown into an adult. I'm now in my 20s, and I'm certain The Isle will still be unfinished by my 30s. I've poured over 400 hours into this game dying from bugs, lag, overwhelming toxicity, and still held out hope until about 2 years ago. We're further back now in progression than we were in Legacy. In Evirma there's far fewer dinos (waited years for Herrera), mechanics are janky, the servers are laggy, updates are at a snail's pace, and the graphics are only good if you have a top-of-the-line computer. The gameplay loop is the same as Legacy, but somehow more annoying and torturous. The Devs tend to look down their noses at you, and talk to you like you're an idiot if you have criticism. Hell, I won't even be surprised if they do the same to this review. I've lost hope for The Isle ever being a finished game. If I knew it would be like this all those years ago, I never would've wasted my money or time on it. I cannot count how many times I've looked at it in my Library and wished I could get a refund.

It is fun and interactive but it takes way too long to grow.

I was nearly a fully grown solo raptor for the first time and happened upon a pack of troodons, they got scared since they are TINY but they couldn't drag a body out of the range of some bees so they can eat it without getting stung. So I stopped to help them instead of attacking and we ended up sharing the food, and it was really cute! And then a pack of three carnotaurus ambushed us out of the trees and tore us all limb from limb.

I played 3 times on the same server, every one was super friendly, all 3 times i got into a group and talked to people. Even people from other groups helped me when I was to small to fight and get my own food. Good game for people who want to chill and spend their evening. Gameplay isn´t difficult, you just have to survive.

+ Cool game idea + A game theme with high development potential - İdiot Developers - Too many bugs - Terrible optimization - No Spinosaurus

Fix the damn fkin game , stop adding new features when u cant even make it enjoyable( lost my 10fkin hour of profress even after safe logout )

Love the game. But there are a few bugs that need to be addressed. One the food glitch where you become nonmobile once you pick up from a fruit tree. Two another food glitch with carnies. You cannot drop the piece of meat or even swallow it. Once these issues are fixed then it should help immensely with gameplay.

This game is unforgiving, heart pounding, enthralling, and a trail-by-fire from your first spawn. I recommend if you like what is almost a Souls-like dinosaur sim game, where you will find an awesome community and make friends, which balances out toxicity. I highly recommend Unofficial servers, with my #1 being Dino Den. There's nothing like this game anywhere else on Steam, to the best of my knowledge or experience at least.