RollerCoaster Tycoon (PC)

Rollercoaster Tycoon Review


Game History

This game Rollercoaster Tycoon was published in 1999/2000 by Chris Sawyer. Chris has also produced on the PC Transport Tycoon which was his first release. His second major project was this game, Rollercoaster Tycoon which was released through Hasbro Interactive. This was soon followed by 2 special add on additions with were called Added Attractions which released in late ...
...released in April of 1999, Rollercoaster Tycoon has been announced as the top-selling PC game overall in 1999, selling more units than any other PC game in the US.


How to install

Installation is simple, open your CD rom drive and insert the CD, and close again. The installation details will automatically appear. Then you simply choose which directory you wish to install the game to, you may accept the default ... more

Rollercoaster Tycoon Review

Game History

This game Rollercoaster Tycoon was published in 1999/2000 by Chris Sawyer. Chris has also produced on the PC Transport Tycoon which was his first release. His second major project was this game, Rollercoaster Tycoon which was released through Hasbro Interactive. This was soon followed by 2 special add on additions with were called Added Attractions which released in late 1999 and Loopy Landscapes released in September 2000. Despite this game only being released in April of 1999, Rollercoaster Tycoon has been announced as the top-selling PC game overall in 1999, selling more units than any other PC game in the US.

How to install

Installation is simple, open your CD rom drive and insert the CD, and close again. The installation details will automatically appear. Then you simply choose which directory you wish to install the game to, you may accept the default type option displayed in the directory if you wish or browse, using the browse button to find the required directory. Once you have chosen simply click on OK to continue. Next another window will appear this time giving you 2 options regarding what sort of installation you require. These 2 options are Minimum and full installation.

Minimum installation – choosing this option installs all of the files required to play the game, leaving some larger ones on the CD. This will cover less of your hard drive space.

Full installation – This obviously installs the whole game, including all the larger files, this option is ideal provided you have the hard drive space.

Simply click the desired option and then click install to continue. Your files will now be copied to your hard drive from the Cd rom. Once all is complete the game is ready to play.

Leave the CD in the drive and select the play option.

A small panel with now appear on the screen, notifying you that the game is loading.

Once the game has loaded the first screen you will arrive at will be about what you want to do. You are again given 4 different options. These are: Start a new game. Show Tutorial. Load saved Game. And Exit.

Start a new game – this option lets you begin a new game, once you have chosen this option you will then be showed another window where you can pick a scenario to play. Once you have chosen a scenario from the list shown, a window will appear telling you what your goal is for the scenario which you have chosen, (so for instance the goal might be to have 500 guests in your park before the end of year 2).

Show tutorial – this is ideal for beginners, it allows you to pick up the game more easily by being shown examples of what to do and how to do thing, such as purchase a shop, hire staff etc.

Load saved games – this option allows you to continue playing a game which you have previously saved

Exit – Shuts down the game

What are the recommended minimum requirements to enable the game to play?

Windows 95/98
Pentium 90
16 mb ram
CD rom drive
50 mb hard drive space
1 mb svga card
Windows 95 compatible sound card
Direct x (also included on CD)
Mouse

What is this game about?

Imagine going to Alton Towers for the day or another spectacular theme park, well wouldn’t it be great if you could have the run of the place and be in charge. You could do so many great things, hire staff for instance, build new rides, design the park to your liking etc; well this game lets you do just that. You are responsible for building the theme park, as well as equipping it with all features (rides, staff, scenery, shops etc) as well as being in full control of finances and decision making. It is your job to keep the guests happy, and to meet certain set goals within the game.

How do I play?

The Control panel options are where you play the game from, this panel is what you will be using during most of the game. The control panel is located at the top of the game screen. There are lots of little boxes which you can click on, which enable you to do certain options. If you hover over these buttons with the mouse, a small amount of text will appear to let you know what the buttons do.

The buttons are:

Pause – pressing/choosing this button pauses the game.

Load/save games/exit and options – this option allows you to either load saved games. Save games you want to save. This option also enables you to customise options such as, turning the sound on and off, displaying the screen in different sizes etc). You can also exit the current game from here as well.

Sound – pressing this, simply turns the sound on and off.

Zoom – enables you to zoom in for a closer view, or likewise zoom out, to enable you to view the game at a closer or more distant view.

Rotate – this simply rotates the game view, enabling you to view the game from different angles.

View options – enables you to turn on or off various features, such as hiding the ride supports, hiding scenery, it even allows you to make the guests in the park invisible.

Map of park – this just shows you the how your park looks on the map, and where it is situated.

Adjust heights – ideal if you want to adjust the land. Sometimes you will find the land uneven; this feature enables you to adjust the land to the same height throughout the park perimeter.

Create water – this allows you to create water, to enable you to build rides on, for instance the paddle boats require water, and without a little water in the park, you won’t be able to install the ride.

Place scenery – you can choose this option, and select different varieties of scenery. The scenery can make the park look more inviting rather than it being just plain. There are a variety of trees to choose from, as well as lampposts, signs, lights, fountains, bins, benches and of course toilets (the park would get really messy without them) , giving you the option to place your own personal mark on your park.

Footpaths/queues- you select this button when you want to build footpaths for the guests to walk on. Without footpaths the guests get lost. You can also select queues from this option.

Build rides and select rides – this option enables you to design your own rides, whether it’s a rollercoaster, transport ride, water ride etc. This option can be quite tricky for a beginner, I myself found it challenging in the beginning, as without you plan the design of the ride right, you could end up with the rollercoaster only going partly way around the track for instance. This option is great if you consider yourself a designer, but it can be challenging.
This option also allows you to choose a ride, to place in the park. There are a number of rides already available to take advantage of and to place within your park, but these are mainly just basic designs. You can always research new rides, or download some off the internet.

Finances – from here you can view all the in and out goings, such as ride sales, shop sales etc, as well as any losses. Viewing this screen is advised, as say perhaps you notice you are loosing money on the park entrance fee, you can raise the price, and wait for the money to roll in, and then you will be able to invest the much needed cash into more rides etc. From this option you can also do various advertising campaigns. For instance you can offer free food or drink to guests; this incentive might make the park more popular to guests, resulting in them visiting your park.

Research/development – this is where you can research bigger/better and more popular rides. Such as a vertical rollercoaster compared to a mini steel rollercoaster. You can simply select which options you want to research (such as shops, thrill rides, gentle rides etc) and you select how much you want to invest in the design. Investing more money will get you the ride/shop quicker, and like wise the less you invest, the longer it will take.

Rides – from here you can view all the attractions you have within your park. They will appear as a list. You can also view which ones are more popular and which are making the most money. From this information you can make careful decisions and changes, which will greatly reward you.

Park info – this is where you can open and close your park, as well as look how many guests you have in the park. You can also change the park fee from here. And should you forget your scenario goal, you will have a chance to remind yourself of it again. You can also view awards from this option. Throughout the game, should you meet a certain task, such as having a lot of rollercoaster’s, having a very clean park etc, then you will receive an award, telling you that you have the cleanest park etc.

Guests – here you can view the guests in the park. They will be listed in either numbers or named (you can select from here, whether you want to refer to them as numbers or names). You can also name guests yourself, and you can keep tabs on them, I sometimes call some of them, my friend’s names, and then pretend that it’s them. You can also read their thoughts, this is advised as it can give you valuable ideas, and makes it easier to please them, if you know what they are thinking.

Staff – no theme park would be complete without staff, and this option enables you to employ some. There are Handy men (who water the plants, sweep rubbish, empty bins and mow lawns). Mechanics (fix rides and check them). Security guards (just patrol) and entertainers (entertain the guests, and they are dressed as animals). You can set your staff areas in which to work, or allow them to roam wherever. You can select which tasks they do. For instance you can select that the handyman doesn’t mow the grass etc. I normally make sure the handy men don’t mow the lawns, as you end up with guests complaining that there is too much littler about.

Recent messages screen – this gives you up to date information regarding things which have happened in the park. You can’t have your eyes everywhere all at the same time. It notifies you of broken down rides etc, so you can make sure they are quickly fixed.

What are the goals of the game?

When you select the scenario (various games), which you want to play, the goal of the game will appear. The goals are mainly having to achieve something within a set deadline. For instance: you may have to have 800 guests within your park by the end of year 4, or say have a park rating of 600 as well as having 1000 guests in the park by end of year 3. I have to say the scenario goals are very similar.

What Rides are available?

There are 5 categories of rides. These are:

Transport rides- such as a monorail, cable cars or train
Gentle rides – such as haunted house, merry go round, Ferris wheel etc
Rollercoaster’s – obviously various rollercoaster’s, such as vertical, wooden, steel etc
Thrill – such as the pirate ship as well as other whirlygiggs
Water – here you will find old favourites such as the log flume, rapids etc

Shops

A certain number of shops will be readily available when you start a new game, however to attain more, you will need to research them. Shops come in a wide range of varieties, such as ice-cream stands, information centre, hot dogs, burgers, candyfloss etc.
You can set the price at which the product is sold for, by simply clicking on the shop and highering/lowering the price. This is one of the things I normally do, as soon as I purchase shops. For instance if it’s a hot day and you make high the drinks cost, guests will have no option but to pay the price. Obviously you can t raise them too high, or you will make no sales, but you can play around with it quite abit until you find what’s right for you.

Guests

Guests are the heart of the park, without them, you would have no sales, no money to purchase shops, rides etc, so treat them well. Place benches for them to sit down, so they can rest, as a tired guest might decide on leaving the park otherwise. Be sure to make pathways accessible, or they could end up getting lost. Serving the guests needs is what will keep them in your park for longer. Be sure to purchase different rides of all varieties else you might find guests who don’t like rollercoaster’s leaving the park due to there being no attraction for them to enjoy. Like wise with food stalls, make sure you have variety, else you could end up loosing money due to different guests not liking the particular types of foods you have in the park. The guests look relatively similar, other than them wearing different coloured clothes, as well as some walking at different speeds they also look relatively life-like (in my opinion). Guests do and will create vandalism within your park, either by breaking the lights in street lamps, breaking benches etc (all of which, you need to replace), its not easy finding out who the culprit is, it’s likely that you will have several within your park. You could invest in a sufficient number of security guards and set them to a designated area, this way you will prevent the vandalism and in the mean while make the park look more presentable as well as saving money.

Crashes

With every theme park, there is health and safety (just because it’s not a real park, doesn’t mean it’s not important). With any ride, it will get older and perhaps break down (by the restraints being suck) for instance. Or on the other hand you could be faced with fatalities, which will result in your park getting a bad name as well as the ride. There will be crashes, these happen mainly on rollercoaster rides, they can’t be predicted they just happen when you least expect it. More often than not, you will have a number of deaths, from the crash. Then all your excellent reputation is in tatters. You can build your reputation up again, but it all takes time, and after a death toll, it’s far harder to regain peoples trust. Be sure to employ plenty of mechanics who will make ride checks, and check from time to time that they do their job correctly.

Money

Make sure you use money wisely, and don’t overspend on items which won’t make a profit. You are better investing your money in a shop/ride for instance rather than a load of bins and park benches, all these will do is keep the park clean, but not bring in any money. Plan in detail the things you consider to be most important, as you can easily buy the not so important things after.

Weather

Within the game you are faced with different weather conditions, these ranging from sunny to rain to thunder storms etc. A quick tip – umbrellas are only available at the information type kiosks and so if you raise the price to as high as possible, the guests will buy an umbrella save getting wet, resulting in you gaining more profits, more quickly and simply.

Sound

The sound graphics are very realistic. When you hover around the screen you will hear sounds ranging from chitter chatter to screeasms of people on rollercoaster’s, as well as each individual rides having an option of music, which you can select from, and choose to turn on or off. My mother often thinks there is somebody in the house, whilst I have often been playing the game, as its so realistic, she thinks she can here real people.

Graphics

The graphics I consider to be excellent and outstanding. For instance if you watch the guests closely, you can see them doing various activities (such as eating/drinking, throwing up etc). The rides look realistic as well, as they are quite highly detailed.

Price

I bought this game soon after it was first released. Back in those days it cost me £29.99, but have since seen it for a mere £5.00 (which to say the least, is a bargain, for such a brilliant game).

Updates

Should you get bored of the same old scenarios (not that you will, but if you should), your luck is in, since there are 2 add on packs available.

Added attractions – basically you will have a few more varieties of rides, shops, scenery with this pack, as well as more scenarios.

Loopy landscapes – this is much the same, however includes new landscapes from rocket ships to medieval castles etc.

Additional info

There are many websites resorting to the game. Of which you can download ride track designs, download patches (for those who have trouble running the game) as well as reading about new and up coming games, finding out cheats and hints etc.

All that’s left for you to do now, is buy the game and play it, I guarantee you wont be disappointed or able to stop and I guarantee you will be playing for hours, days and years to come.
 

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