When a user attempts to navigate to aweb page onGoogle Chrome while being offline, the browser notifies the user that they are not connected to theInternet, with an illustration of apixelatedTyrannosaurus rex shown on the page.[2] The game can then be launched either by pressingspace or↑ ondesktop, or by tapping the dinosaur onAndroid oriOSmobile devices. Additionally, the game can be accessed by inputtingchrome://dino orchrome://network-error/-106 into theOmnibox.[3]
During the game, the dinosaurcontinuously moves from left to right across a black-and-whitedesert landscape, with the player attempting to avoid oncomingobstacles such ascacti andpterosaurs by jumping or ducking.[4] Pressingspace,↑, or tapping the dinosaur on mobile devices will cause the dinosaur to jump. Pressing the↓ key will either cause the dinosaur to duck, or fall faster depending on if the button is pressed mid-air. As the game progresses, the speed of play gradually increases until the user hits an obstacle, prompting an instantgame over.
Once the player reaches a certain point, the game switches from day to night (or vice versa, depending on ifdark mode is selected in the browser's settings). The color scheme and accompanying weather graphics then alternate as the game progresses.[5][6] The game was designed to reach its maximum score after approximately 17million years of playtime, in reference to how long theT. rex existed before it wentextinct during theCretaceous–Paleogene extinction event.[7]
If anetwork administrator disables theDinosaur Game, an error message appears when attempting to play the game, which features an image ofa meteor heading towards the player character.[8]
Development
Thegame over header and restart button after the player runs into acactus
The game was created by members of the Chrome UX team in 2014, which consisted of Sebastien Gabriel, Alan Bettes, and Edward Jung.[7] Gabriel designed the player character, named the "Lonely T-Rex".[2] During development, the game was given thecodename "Project Bolan", in reference toMarc Bolan, the lead singer of the bandT. Rex. The developers chose the dinosaur theme as a reference to the game's function, a joke that not having an internet connection is equivalent to living in the "prehistoric ages".[citation needed]
The game was released in September 2014; initially, it did not work on older devices, so the code was updated and re-released in December of the same year.[9]
Updates
Pterosaurs were added as obstacles with a browser update in 2015.[10]
In September 2018, anEaster egg was added to the game in celebration of Chrome's 10th birthday and the game's fourth birthday, with abirthday cake appearing in thedesert and abirthday hat appearing on the Lonely T-Rex if the cake is "eaten".[11] In November of the same year, Google introduced a feature to save the player'shigh score.[12] The game'ssource code is available on theChromium site.[13]
In July 2020, anOlympic torch Easter egg for the2020 Tokyo Olympics simulating variousOlympic activities was added.[14] Upon reaching the torch, the dino transformed into variousOlympic games such asswimming,running, and many others. Instead of the usualcacti and pterosaur obstacles, the dino encountered challenges related to the Olympics.[15] In 2021, Google introduced awidget in March foriOS 14 which led players tochrome://dino;[16] a similar widget was introduced toAndroid later that year.[17]
In 2024, Google released GenDino, allowing users to type in a prompt and generate a Dino game withAI-generated sprites. The game was made unavailable later that year.[18]
Reception and impact
Statue of the Chrome Dino, located inGyulagarak, Armenia[19]
In 2018, the creators said that approximately 270 million games were played monthly.[7]
In August 2020,MSCHF and100 Thieves partnered to create amodified version of the game titledDino Swords,[23] which featured a smallarsenal of weapons and time-slowing pills; when mismanaged, the weapons could backfire and harm the dinosaur.[24]
See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related toDinosaur Game.
