I Lurrrrrve It, But.......

[TerrierMom]

The new game controls and format are taking some getting used to after years of playing ZT1! Still trying to get the hang of some of those, like laying fences down, and paths. I make the messiest ugly paths and fences, even with the rectangle and octagon fence makes, and those triangles and not a square placement technique makes my brain want to unravel. And walking in my zoo, you'd think I'd been drinking , and I don't drink at all! And I keep wanting to make my exhibits and animals have 100% suitability and happiness, but ZT2 isn't like that. I think the level of green, red or yellow in those boxes indicates level of satisfaction or distress because it increases up or down, and for pregnant animals it goes to the top just before the animal has the baby. I just haven't figured out how to place stuff for maximum effect yet I guess. I kinf of miss being able to place all the terrain myself instead of just brushing it on. But I looooooove ZT2 all the same. Even with the minor glitches, like watching a Maintenance man walk right through a child guest. Or watching a pair of lions walk through each other------perhaps this is where Baby Lions come from?! Or watching a beaver run through its food dish--hey my terriers do that at home, it's realistic!


And best of all, it is not nearly so frustrating and buggy as the RCT3 I bought week before last! The issues for me are related tolearning a new way of doing things, not a more fundamental problem with the game itself. And for those with system issues, well, from what I can see MS is much better about addressing them than Atari is about RCT3

[I'dRatherBeZooing]

LOL, yes my zoos are looking like they were planned and built by a bunch of drunks as well. I am still trying to get the spacing down as well. I still have kind of a hard time judging distances between objects, buildings, etc.

[I'dRatherBeZooing]

[QUOTE=TerrierMom,Nov 14 2004, 08:04 AM] Or watching a beaver run through its food dish--hey my terriers do that at home, it's realistic![QUOTE]


I got a kick watching two of my chimps chase each other around a tree. They did this for like two minutes.

[Quicksilver]

I agree with you, TerrierMom. It takes a while to get used to. I kinda miss the suitability ratings. And also I miss the zookeeper feedback, such as "Cheetah 1 needs more foliage to keep it happy," etc. I don't exactly get the foliage placement. Seems like you can put as much or as little as you want and the animals still stay happy? Hmmmm.

The triangles are a bit confusing, I must admit. And one thing I noticed, only one object fits per square. What I mean by this is that in the original you could place say a bench and two trees in one square, but in the new game you can only place one bench.

The fences are irritating to me, especially the rubber band mode. You have to click, draw out the fence, then click again. And no automatic placement of the gate. I forgot to place a gate and one of my zookeepers was stuck in the exhibit. One good thing about gates, though, is that you can place more than one. Still, having to remember to place them is a challenge!

Seems like in every exhibit I've built thus far, as soon as babies arrive, the animals complain about needing more space. I don't like this at all, because you have to adopt out or release one if not both of the parents right away. Sure, you can always expand the exhibit but that's assuming you haven't built another one right next to it.

And what's this with the buildings? You can't change the colors!!! And the buildings are just way too cartoony for my taste. I can't stand that yellow roof on the gift shop.

Anyway, I really like the game but there are some issues that I need to figure out. I guess my expectations of the game were "Zoo Tycoon only kicked up a notch" and this isn't really that. It's all new, and will take some time getting used to. I mean, the big thing is that you can get up close and personal with the animals. That's what a lot of people wanted so that's great. And guest mode view is awesome (too bad you can't build in that mode, though).

My rating thusfar = B+

EDIT: Ok, I just went back to playing and it turns out that the game prompts you to place the gate as soon as you finish constructing the fence when using the rectangular or octagonal mode, but not when you use the rubberband mode.

[I'dRatherBeZooing]

I agree with you, TerrierMom. It takes a while to get used to. I kinda miss the suitability ratings. And also I miss the zookeeper feedback, such as "Cheetah 1 needs more foliage to keep it happy," etc. I don't exactly get the foliage placement. Seems like you can put as much or as little as you want and the animals still stay happy? Hmmmm.

The triangles are a bit confusing, I must admit. And one thing I noticed, only one object fits per square. What I mean by this is that in the original you could place say a bench and two trees in one square, but in the new game you can only place one bench.

The fences are irritating to me, especially the rubber band mode. You have to click, draw out the fence, then click again. And no automatic placement of the gate. I forgot to place a gate and one of my zookeepers was stuck in the exhibit. One good thing about gates, though, is that you can place more than one. Still, having to remember to place them is a challenge!

Seems like in every exhibit I've built thus far, as soon as babies arrive, the animals complain about needing more space. I don't like this at all, because you have to adopt out or release one if not both of the parents right away. Sure, you can always expand the exhibit but that's assuming you haven't built another one right next to it.

And what's this with the buildings? You can't change the colors!!! And the buildings are just way too cartoony for my taste. I can't stand that yellow roof on the gift shop.

Anyway, I really like the game but there are some issues that I need to figure out. I guess my expectations of the game were "Zoo Tycoon only kicked up a notch" and this isn't really that. It's all new, and will take some time getting used to. I mean, the big thing is that you can get up close and personal with the animals. That's what a lot of people wanted so that's great. And guest mode view is awesome (too bad you can't build in that mode, though).

My rating thusfar = B+

EDIT: Ok, I just went back to playing and it turns out that the game prompts you to place the gate as soon as you finish constructing the fence when using the rectangular or octagonal mode, but not when you use the rubberband mode.

I for sure want to get the strategy guide when it comes out. Sheila77, I kind of have a problem with the buildings as well. Like you said, a bit too cartoony. Especially when you compare it to the level of detail on the animals. I am also going to need more than an insect and reptile display. Like you said, I don't like being stuck with the same colors for the buildings.

In some ways it seems like they made this one more child friendly with the colors and building styles. In some ways I feel as though I went from the skinny crayons to the jumbo fat ones, if you know what I mean. A few more path choices would be nice too.

Hopefully, it doesn't take them too long to release more animals, objects and buildings.

There are some things I like though. I like the way you can have animals outside of exhibits. On one of my zoos, I have peacocks walking around among the guests. I also like the way you can fix exhibits with natural walls and fences so you don't have to rely on the manmade one. It's also neat the way you put fences, walls and buildings at angles.

If I had to rate it, I would give a B+ or A-

[Quicksilver]

That is a good way to put it - going from a box of skinny crayons to jumbos! I know the focus of the designers was probably animal details, and those are great, no complaints there. But the detail is definitely missing on the buildings.

Wow, you have peacocks walking around? That is cool! I'm going to have to try that. I have all my animals behind fences, but that is a great idea.

One thing that's kind of neat is how the guests and staff members are assigned "real" names. No more Guest 837 and Zookeeper 22.

[I'dRatherBeZooing]

The opened/closed feature is pretty nifty too. I'm still having trouble with the brushes and terrain editor though

[I'dRatherBeZooing]

Ok, I am starting to miss not having wolves in my zoo. I hope this gets taken care of pretty soon.

[TerrierMom]

I played the game for a few hours yesterday, the first scenario, the Zookeeper In Training one, long after I'd won it, for practice in getting used to the game before moving onto the harder stuff. It was so much fun. Everyone was happy! The guests were beside themselves , the animals were giddy, and the staff over the moon. I got used to more of how the game is played, but still struggle with the fences. Getting much better with paths though.

[I'dRatherBeZooing]

I played the game for a few hours yesterday, the first scenario, the Zookeeper In Training one, long after I'd won it, for practice in getting used to the game before moving onto the harder stuff. It was so much fun. Everyone was happy! The guests were beside themselves , the animals were giddy, and the staff over the moon. I got used to more of how the game is played, but still struggle with the fences. Getting much better with paths though.

Do you have any tips on the use of the Biome Brushes, and the building of exhibits?

[TerrierMom]

I just discovered this tonight. When you are using the Biome Brush, you can pick from different types of terrain within each Biome type. There's shallow and deep water, plus several others. Pick the Savannah one. You'll see this sort of grid. Each grid represents a different type of terrain you can use within the Savannah Biome. All of the Biomes have it. It's the same idea as deciduous and conifer, or grass and rainforest or dirt and savannah grass in ZT1.

[I'dRatherBeZooing]

Thanks for the info. I was looking at the brushes, just a minute ago and got to thinking I wonder if the terrain is lined up according to the recommended order in which you brush it on. For example, do the deep water, then the shallow, then the next one, then the next one, and so on?

[bluememaw]

Do any of you have a problem with a shaky cursor? I went through the tutorials last night and had to point and click guessing that I was hitting the X. This continued while I was attempting to build an exhibit in a freeform zoo.

From what I've read, we are all walking around drunk, so it's not just me and my nervous cursor causing that effect.

I am reserving judgment until intense practice while I'm off next week. I am not too happy with the buildings. As you say...too cartoony. I prefer the more life-like look of my buildings in ZT.

One question...when did you ever drop $30 in a donation box in front of the elephant cage?

Oh yeah...I have an educator who yaks even when no one is around. Boy, does she yak. Her "educator's thoughts" says "I like the sound of my voice." Well, I guess she does. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah... How do I shut her up?

[Quicksilver]

That's funny about the educator. I haven't used an educator yet. Maybe once I do I'll see if I can get he or she to be quiet.

I know what you're thinking about the donation box. I don't think the amount of money guests carry is realistic, either. Some of them have over $500 in their possession! When I go to the zoo I have $80 max, and that's if I'm taking a bunch of kids with me.

I haven't had trouble with the cursor. One thing I like about ZT2 is that there's no blinking cursor this time around - but that's too bad if it shakes for you. I wonder if there's an option in the "control panel" of the game to fix that?

[bluememaw]

Thanks for the suggestion, Sheila77. I checked the control panel and speeded up the cursor. I want to see some more animals. All I have so far are elephants and giraffes. It takes me F-O-R-E-V-E-R to place a fence. I'll let you know if that works.

My two get $20 each and we don't buy food there. It's too expensive and not that tasty. We have wonderful gift shops in two buildings. They buy crafts or educational games...I bought a small, stuffed bald eagle that squawks (sp) when you squeeze it!