Spring 2024 DLC Speculation

[Milurian]

Some left on their own accord, others were fired. None of the CM's that worked on Planet Zoo (and JWE2) are still working at Frontier atm.

I think it's really obvious that if they are to release the DLC in the same week, the DLC would be available on both platforms. By the time they were working on this DLC they already knew a console port was happening so I'm sure they would already have ported it before starting to port older DLCs.

Honestly, I think people are overthinking it a bit, if they want to release both the DLC and the console version to bank on the holiday sales, they will and they can, most of the hurdles people see are not such a major issue at all.

They wont release them on the same day it will hurt the dlc sales since console will inevitably get more coverage but they could easily do the same week the question is before or after and this positioning will likely determine how it will release on console.

12 agoutis: 2013 Zoo Tycoon pack.

I mean it would scratch my itch of having all the zoo tycoon animals so yes please.

Ok SCRATH EVERYONE have come with! I've got literally the best pack idea that compliment the Arid Animal Pack perfectly! Take a gander!

Desert Animal Pack:
1. Steenbok (Headliner)
2. Red-Fronted Gazelle
3. Speke's Gazelle
4. Hartmann's Mountain Zebra
5. Soemmerring's Gazelle
6. Gerenuk
7. Auodad
8. Saharan Sand Viper (E)

I would buy that for 3 reasons 1 gerenuk enough said, 2 I honestly care more about a pack name than the animals desert is on my list so its an instant buy, 3 I would buy anything

I fully understand why they're including the Wetlands pack. It's aged incredibly well and offers up a variety of species from across the globe. The capybara, platypus, and ASC otter are all still well-loved. The spectacled caiman is better than the prior caiman. And the two oddball ungulates are probably two of the more well-received. Nobody really asked for them but the community seems to have embraced them. Plus: The enrichment items!

Thinking on it, though, inclusion of the SEA pack is a bit puzzling compared to, say, the North America or Grasslands packs.

I do wonder if part of the pick for these deluxe packs is based on what the next DLC will bring to the table. Presuming it's getting released for console at the same time... Wonder if there might be some strategy there (e.g., avoiding packs with animals too similar to those in packs they're making immediately available for console).

SEA compliments the base game roster well since most of the base game is either asia or africa so the animals fit in well without being too much of a stand out like north america or grasslands. wetlands is a good roster but doesnt stand out too much besides the caybara.

Hold on, what’s wrong with another Africa pack? Lol

the fact that close to half our current animals are african which from what I remember is almost 3 times the south american animals. What also doesnt hlep is that most of the african animals are endemic to africa so everywhere else is severely underdeveloped. Africa can definitely benefit from some monkeys and birds like every where else but a dedicated africa pack especially an african grasslands centred pack would be exctly what we dont need right now.

 

[Thylaco]

Can I ask where you're getting this? Hanuman langurs are in basically every zoo in India, and quite common in Europe and other regions. As far as I know, GSNM is only found in East Asian zoos? Given the size of China, Japan and South Korea, it's still possible that the sheer number of zoos there means that there are more GSNM holders, but I would doubt it unless it's literally omnipresent in Chinese zoos. Hanuman langur is like a baseline animal in South Asian zoos.

(I know that grey langur taxonomy is in flux, but I'm referring to Semnopithecus entellus which refers to the Northern Plains grey langur, also known as Bengal or Hanuman langur. Science now seems settled that the Southern Plains grey langur is part of the same species, not a distinct taxon. Northern alone made up most all of the captive grey langurs, which is a huge population on its own. Add in Southern and it's even more widespread.)

In regards to Golden Snub-nosed "Regarding Asian collections outside of mainland china. besides what was mentioned above, they have been kept at Singapore Zoo and Kumamoto City Zoo in Japan. I could be wrong but I think Kumamoto City Zoo still keeps them

In the North America, I know they have been kept at San Diego Zoo, Los Angeles Zoo, San Francisco Zoo, Columbus Zoo, Minnesota Zoo, Cleveland Zoo, Milwaukee County Zoo, Cincinnati Zoo and Toronto Zoo" compiled info by UngulateNerd92 in 2015, apparently absent from Europe.

Overall, probably not the most common, but in California it seems like it might feel that way, being distinct and in three major zoos.

https://www.zoochat.com/community/threads/golden-snub-nosed-monkey.409408/

Also a quote from San Diego Zoo suggesting they still have them "Golden monkeys, with their long golden hair and turquoise blue faces, were depicted in Chinese art for centuries, although westerners thought they were a fable until western scientist saw these monkeys for themselves, in 1869."

Monkey | San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants

animals.sandiegozoo.org

 

[Fallax]

Overall, probably not the most common, but in California it seems like it might feel that way, being distinct and in three major zoos.

The post from ZooChat you quoted was referring to the past tense. There is no snub nosed monkeys in zoos outside of Asia and haven't been for a long time.

 

[Captain Callum]

Also a quote from San Diego Zoo suggesting they still have them "Golden monkeys, with their long golden hair and turquoise blue faces, were depicted in Chinese art for centuries, although westerners thought they were a fable until western scientist saw these monkeys for themselves, in 1869."

Given my research with the San Diego zoo recreation I did, they absolutely haven't had them in a very long time. Their zoo website has so many species mentioned that are covered under their conservation programs but little information telling readers whether or not they have them in the zoo.

 

[wanderoo]

In regards to Golden Snub-nosed "Regarding Asian collections outside of mainland china. besides what was mentioned above, they have been kept at Singapore Zoo and Kumamoto City Zoo in Japan. I could be wrong but I think Kumamoto City Zoo still keeps them

In the North America, I know they have been kept at San Diego Zoo, Los Angeles Zoo, San Francisco Zoo, Columbus Zoo, Minnesota Zoo, Cleveland Zoo, Milwaukee County Zoo, Cincinnati Zoo and Toronto Zoo" compiled info by UngulateNerd92 in 2015, apparently absent from Europe.

Overall, probably not the most common, but in California it seems like it might feel that way, being distinct and in three major zoos.

https://www.zoochat.com/community/threads/golden-snub-nosed-monkey.409408/

Also a quote from San Diego Zoo suggesting they still have them "Golden monkeys, with their long golden hair and turquoise blue faces, were depicted in Chinese art for centuries, although westerners thought they were a fable until western scientist saw these monkeys for themselves, in 1869."

Monkey | San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants

animals.sandiegozoo.org

Interesting historical info here! I'm definitely speaking only in terms of the present. Although I do think that Hanuman langurs would still be the most common if we went into the past, since they also seem to have been more common in Western collections before the contemporary era. Denver Zoo had one until 2021. Now the shift seems to be towards rarer langurs (if at all) or more popular OW primates like gibbons.

In the contemporary era, there are no GSNM in the US or Europe. There still seem to be lots of Hanuman langurs in Europe. Hanuman langur is also omnipresent in South Asian zoos, of which there are now quite a lot. GSNM is found in zoos in China and, as of 2015, in a single zoo each in Japan and South Korea. So my bet is Hanuman would be more common. In terms of popularity, though, GSNM is probably the most crowd-pulling member of the Asian colobine tribe.

 

[RightWhale]

The new post for Frontier Unlocked is locked for comments, I wonder if that’s just because they don’t want people to talk about the new dlc when it will only be about the console release.

 

[Captain Callum]

The new post for Frontier Unlocked is locked for comments, I wonder if that’s just because they don’t want people to talk about the new dlc when it will only be about the console release.

 

[Thylaco]

Interesting historical info here! I'm definitely speaking only in terms of the present. Although I do think that Hanuman langurs would still be the most common if we went into the past, since they also seem to have been more common in Western collections before the contemporary era. Denver Zoo had one until 2021. Now the shift seems to be towards rarer langurs (if at all) or more popular OW primates like gibbons.

In the contemporary era, there are no GSNM in the US or Europe. There still seem to be lots of Hanuman langurs in Europe. Hanuman langur is also omnipresent in South Asian zoos, of which there are now quite a lot. GSNM is found in zoos in China and, as of 2015, in a single zoo each in Japan and South Korea. So my bet is Hanuman would be more common. In terms of popularity, though, GSNM is probably the most crowd-pulling member of the Asian colobine tribe.

It does seem an unusual situation, kind of locally extinct in a way. I'm guessing it's probably a similar short term lease for other Chinese endemics, like they do with Pandas.

 

[TheDuckKnight]

Now here's something to chew on...

What if, hypothetically, we DO get a big, grandiose farewell pack with 20 animals, bringing the roster to 200 on the dot.

Would the current Top 20 on the Meta-Wishlist suffice? Really examine it now.
Can you confidently "YES, These are the exact animals we require to have a complete roster"?

 

[Captain Callum]

Now here's something to chew on...

What if, hypothetically, we DO get a big, grandiose farewell pack with 20 animals, bringing the roster to 200 on the dot.

Would the current Top 20 on the Meta-Wishlist suffice? Really examine it now.
Can you confidently "YES, These are the exact animals we require to have a complete roster"?

View attachment 384322

Honestly not a bad lineup, I wish there was another south american animal or 2 but I can't complain with the worldwide representation that those 20 animals would bring. Even high appeal birds like the crowned crane, pelican and secretary bird are featured.

 

[Doran]

Can you confidently "YES, These are the exact animals we require to have a complete roster"?

 

[NachoB]

Now here's something to chew on...

What if, hypothetically, we DO get a big, grandiose farewell pack with 20 animals, bringing the roster to 200 on the dot.

Would the current Top 20 on the Meta-Wishlist suffice? Really examine it now.
Can you confidently "YES, These are the exact animals we require to have a complete roster"?

View attachment 384322

It would be an amazing roster but we get a shoebill and no duck (and no rhea no mara for me so i would be sad) but other than that i think yes. It would be pretty neat final roster with all that.

I also noticed the manatee is in there. I would LOVE a manatee for the game BUT since i don't think is possible at the moment i would also replace it for something else.

So for me the roster in that list would be perfect with the following changes:

Shoebill for rhea or duck
Manatee for mara or duck

If we get all that then yes, i would be very very pleased with the final roster.

 

[Marvinb]

Now here's something to chew on...

What if, hypothetically, we DO get a big, grandiose farewell pack with 20 animals, bringing the roster to 200 on the dot.

Would the current Top 20 on the Meta-Wishlist suffice? Really examine it now.
Can you confidently "YES, These are the exact animals we require to have a complete roster"?

View attachment 384322

I mean its not the worst. But i also think blindly following the wishlist is not how one completes the roster

 

[Angeł]

Now here's something to chew on...

What if, hypothetically, we DO get a big, grandiose farewell pack with 20 animals, bringing the roster to 200 on the dot.

Would the current Top 20 on the Meta-Wishlist suffice? Really examine it now.
Can you confidently "YES, These are the exact animals we require to have a complete roster"?

View attachment 384322

I mean, this is more than we are going to get so. Yes. Obviously people are never going to be happy. But this is MORE than best case scenario.
Gutted that the Gelada misses out on the top 20 by ONE SLOT, but what can you do. Personally it’s in my top five. But hey.

 

[RightWhale]

Now here's something to chew on...

What if, hypothetically, we DO get a big, grandiose farewell pack with 20 animals, bringing the roster to 200 on the dot.

Would the current Top 20 on the Meta-Wishlist suffice? Really examine it now.
Can you confidently "YES, These are the exact animals we require to have a complete roster"?

View attachment 384322

There would be a couple animals I would replace because I wouldn’t care for them, but overall it wouldn’t be awful.

Personally I wouldn’t follow the meta wishlist 100% right now, consider birds, monkeys, and South American rep I would want the most. But I don’t make the majority of the community, so overall I think the top 20 would make the most people the most happy.

Personally I would swap out the manatee, serval, markhor, and honey badger for Patagonian mara, Rhea, a white faced whistling duck, and then the peere David’s deer.

That way we get two more important SA reps, another bird for SA and Africa (and a duck!) and another deer for Asia.

 

[RightWhale]

Also it’s not that I don’t care for a manatee, I would love one! I just think it’s too much effort to have one fully aquatic animal in the final dlc.

The other animals I wouldn’t hate getting, I’m not gonna diminish someone else’s choice, I just think we already have good options (imo) for that animal.

For the honey badger I’m happy with the Wolverine and badger so I don’t particularly want another stocky mustelid.

For the serval we already have a number of African cats so I’m fine without it.

For the markhor we already have the ibex and takin as mountain caprids so I’m good there too.

Still, someone else might really want that animal, so it’s fine if you find the game is incomplete without them. They are just why I wouldn’t follow the meta wishlist 100% (besides the fact we have no indication the manatee would be made as a fully aquatic animal)

 

[Angeł]

I mean, this is more than we are going to get so. Yes. Obviously people are never going to be happy. But this is MORE than best case scenario.
Gutted that the Gelada misses out on the top 20 by ONE SLOT, but what can you do. Personally it’s in my top five. But hey.

On the other hand, having said this, the top 20 doesn’t feature a single domestic species. I do not think this game will be complete if we do not get at least two more domestic species. So on that principle, no. It’s not enough.

Until we get the African Dwarf Goat and one more domestic species, perhaps a rabbit, cow or sheep, this game will not be a realistic zoo sim.

 

[Captain Callum]

I just think it’s too much effort to have one fully aquatic animal in the final dlc.

The sheer amount of fish mods alone from the manatee rig would be worth it, but most definitely other animals like monkeys would suffer as a result.

 

[RightWhale]

The sheer amount of fish mods alone from the manatee rig would be worth it, but most definitely other animals like monkeys would suffer as a result.

On that front I get it, and I would be no where near mad if we got a manatee. I would love to recreate the Columbus zoo habitat.

I just don’t think we have a sign it will come, and then it comes down to if I want to get less monkeys or other animals. I just don’t know if I can.

But I would be hyped to see a manatee. Even if we get only around 8 animals.

 

[NachoB]

The sheer amount of fish mods alone from the manatee rig would be worth it, but most definitely other animals like monkeys would suffer as a result.

Would be though? Manatee's locomotion isn't very fitting for fish. I mean the advantage of the rig would be fully aquatic mods but i think the movements would still be better with the current aquatic rigs.