DLC18 discussion and predictions

[Chuditch]

But what I find most striking is that it is the only time so far that a zookeeper has been included in the keyart.

Not the case actually, there was one in the Aquatic Pack keyart and less prominently in the Conservation Pack keyart:

It's the first time one has been included in the keyart for an animal pack though, or shown doing anything besides going for a stroll. Why the zookeeper is there I don't know.

 

[Naturaroca]

Not the case actually, there was one in the Aquatic Pack keyart and less prominently in the Conservation Pack keyart:

It's the first time one has been included in the keyart for an animal pack though, or shown doing anything besides going for a stroll. Why the zookeeper is there I don't know.

Exactly, I'm referring only to the animal packs like North America, Barnyard, etc...
In those where the background is shaded, they've never put a zookeeper.

But I could be wrong.

 

[Chuditch]

Exactly, I'm referring only to the animal packs like North America, Barnyard, etc...
In those where the background is shaded, they've never put a zookeeper.

But I could be wrong.

It's also the first time items like the water pipe and hanging feeder have been included in the keyart of an animal pack to my knowledge.

 

[The Aardvark]

Not the case actually, there was one in the Aquatic Pack keyart and less prominently in the Conservation Pack keyart:

It's the first time one has been included in the keyart for an animal pack though, or shown doing anything besides going for a stroll. Why the zookeeper is there I don't know.

Man is that aquatic pack keyart nostalgic...

 

[yoav_r]

Not the case actually, there was one in the Aquatic Pack keyart and less prominently in the Conservation Pack keyart:

It's the first time one has been included in the keyart for an animal pack though, or shown doing anything besides going for a stroll. Why the zookeeper is there I don't know.

The aquatic pack art is so pretty

 

[Mjmannella]

Not the case actually, there was one in the Aquatic Pack keyart and less prominently in the Conservation Pack keyart:

It's the first time one has been included in the keyart for an animal pack though, or shown doing anything besides going for a stroll. Why the zookeeper is there I don't know.

I think that plus the party-oriented decor is what hints at this being a grab-bag. The light-blue colouring may just be to help it be differentiated from the other green-coloured themes (and Frontier already uses the staple green for the base game or console bundles).

I remember when everyone thought the last JWE2 DLC Pack was going to be a Cenozoic Pack because they teased with an Otodus, so this isn't Frontier's first rodeo with deceptive (intentional or not) key art.

 

[synthetase]

My favorite pack art is actually probably Barnyard. NOT my favorite pack... But I love the feel of the advertisement.

 

[CharlieXGaming]

Yeah I like the idea of having multiple key arts. Have 2 more arts that they release within next week (1 mountains, 1 tropical, 1 Savannah) and have a keeper in each of them to ultimately hint towards a ZooKeeper Celebration Pack the following Monday.

 

[Veah]

Indeed, everything is so mountain/highlands coded. The baboons are sitting on a little mountain made of rock, the pallas cat is sitting on a rock, the fog is giving mountain/highlands cover.

Pallas cat is a good choice as focus animal for mountain/highlands pack, but for zookeeper/anniversary pack, it's a very odd choice.

All that is true, but I'm going to play the devil's advocate (in fact I prefer it to be highlands) and going to ask:

• Why the baboon mountain is smaller than those very big trees behind it? It's such a small hill, barely a big rock...
• What are those leaves in front of the cat, at the bottom of the picture? They really look like the grapevines we already have in game, and that's absolutely not a mountain plant...

That was a long read and to my surprise in 30 pages speculating on the other 4(+1 maybe) animals came up in exactly one post lol

Haha I mean, it's harder to speculate with a celebratory pack because it can fit absolutely any species combination... Except, well, a combination where every species is from the same continent or biome...

In any case, I'm dying in the hill that the exhibit animal should be a chameleon, long awaited.

 

[Villanelle]

Right. Today my theory is: the animal pack is Highlands, but it comes alongside an Anniversary themed free update, and for the first time (?) the two are combined in the cover art.

Why?

• The colour palette screams highland, not party.
• The species shown are more highland themed than wishlist pink'n'mix.
• Highlands isn't quite the same as Mountains, so there can be rocky ground to represent it rather than a big ol' McSnowFace.
• There are new bunting flags and a new marquee in the teaser, these are the staples of British celebration decor. Every single garden-based wedding/anniversary/retirement/birthday in the UK has them. So when the devs at Frontier think 'Anniversary Party' they will think 'triangle flags and marquee'. The silhouettes look much more like these than anything found in the Himalayas.
• HOWEVER the party decor is faded and in the background, not colourful and highlighted as they might be if they were a main feature/theme of the pack. The overall mood of the art is not party time. The idea that it's a sad party because it's goodbye is a bit too far-fetched and unclear for product marketing. They want to sell this after all. Who is buying 'sad party'?
• Frontier are definitely highlighting the anniversary timing of this release in their announcements and messaging. So overall the artwork is featuring highlands while making a nod towards anniversary and the free update.

Tomorrow, eh, who knows. Hopefully more clues are on their way VERY soon!

Note to add, 'Old World' is just not going to be it. It's not a good product name. It's Western-centric, colonnial and outdated. Even the wine industry is beginning to look at changing it. People lived in the 'New World' long before Europeans started colonising it. Also, it's just too broad and undescriptive for an animal pack name. You don't have any idea what you're gonna get in an old/new world pack. Every other pack name gives you a few instant ideas of what it might include.

 

[Chuditch]

The light-blue colouring may just be to help it be differentiated from the other green-coloured themes (and Frontier already uses the staple green for the base game or console bundles).

We've got several blue-coloured packs already too, including a very similar light blue (Arctic), so I don't think this is a good explanation.

I remember when everyone thought the last JWE2 DLC Pack was going to be a Cenozoic Pack because they teased with an Otodus, so this isn't Frontier's first rodeo with deceptive (intentional or not) key art.

I think revealing a single animal and having to extrapolate a theme from that is different from including three animals that all follow a similar pattern.

 

[Mjmannella]

We've got several blue-coloured packs already too, including a very similar light blue (Arctic), so I don't think this is a good explanation.

The past "blue" packs (Arctic, Europe, arguably Aquatic) are not sky-blue like this one. Those were considerably darker than what's presented in this key art.

I think revealing a single animal and having to extrapolate a theme from that is different from including three animals that all follow a similar pattern.

The thing is that there's 3 "similar patterns" with these animals. They're all Asian, they're all associated with high elevation, and they're all quite high on the meta-wishlist. It's entirely possible that those 3 were chosen purely because they're most similar to each-other and not necessarily with the rest of the habitat animals.

 

[KönigDerKaffeebohnen]

Anyways for what i think about the pack, id bet on highlands and i would be quite happy with it.
Its the easy sensible answer and in 9/10 cases that turns out to be the right answer.

For the makeup of the pack, i hope frontier continues their streak of a bird each pack since oceania and im gonna be so bold and say its gonna be a pheasent.
What pheasent? I dont know, frontier could go for the one with the most captive holdings thats also the most visually striking with its gold, red and blue/purple colloration and black accents. The biggest reason i dont believe its the pheasent though is that its imo a very good choice for the front animal with its eye catching appearance and a community more thirsting for birds then a guy in a desert is for water.
If we get an oddball pheasent, there are many options from monal over satyr targopan to lady ampethyts or edwards pheasent, all of them are distinct, beautiful and would make sense and that goes for allmost all pheasents. Allmost all besides the common also live in mountainous forests in asia, so they are perfect for a mountain pack

There also is the not to be understated option of lesser rhea to give a rep to the andeans. While being a much less interesting species on its own, its arguably just as important for the game and would open up a slot in future packs for more interesting things there, so while basic its important either way and an allright inclusion for that.
Another thing in its favor is that its a good bit smaller then the greater rhea, increasing the size differential to the ostritch and other rhatites more, making them the more unqiue inclusion of the 2. Its also found in the colder grasslands of southern southamerica and both alpine and lower deserts, so theyd bump the biome diversity up by alot.

The other 2 rather obvious choices are spec bear and alpine marmot, both with pretty much the same things going for them.
Both take an animal we allready have, change up its size/pattern by alot (a slim alpine marmot right after hibanation weighs around 3kg, the prariedog weighs around 1kg and the marmot that well fed can easily tripple its weight from there), both are ice age survivors, clinging on a mountain range that has simmilar enviroment to the enviroments they used to live in way back when. Both would also be the first member of their group on their respected continent and would fill a very different niche to anything we allready have there and are among the most iconic animals of their continents most iconic mountain range. Another thing to mention is that the spec bear also covers many different biomes, being found in lush tropical cloud forests, cold alpine deserts, the edge of glaciers and anywhere in between, making them a powerhouse of alpine biome representation.
Both of them simply check lots of boxes while also being rather easy to make while also not being unpopular picks, so just by sheer logic they would be be among the most logical choices to be in this pack.

The last animal imo is a toss up between the tree roo and a second ungulate, but im willing to say that with the cat featuring more or less a reskinned sandcat, bear, prariedog and alpine ibex and potentially even a newly feather mini ostrich, that the chances are pretty good to actually be the tree roo.
We all know and want the tree roo, yes they are mountainous animals, endemic to a specific mountain range in new guinea and would bring some much needed representation for tropical mountain forest, which is with just the spec bear a little lacking. Its also part of the dictionary club for anyone willing to believe in that.

If it is an ungulate my bet is on the (hopefully) domestic yak. Together with the snowleopard its the most iconic animal of the himalaya, the highest and most iconic mountain range on the planet and arguably the most important animal to its cultures while also beeing "just" a shaggy cow with a hump.
Its a very easy, thematic and fitting addition with lots of cultural importance and significance for the region so its again a choice that just makes sense.
Is that a gurantee for it? No, frontier has proven often enough that they love going against the logical choice at times and even then after just getting the highland cattle they might dont want to give us another domestic highland cattle with shaggy fur, but id be happy to see them.

Regarding the exhibits there are many options here, but ill jump on the fact that we dont have a chameleon and most chameleon species are living in mountaineous enviroments so one of those would be nice, africa really needs some exhibits and especally madagascar would benefit alot from one. Going just by how common they are, the veiled is the best choice, not only being the most common and present on all continents, it also would go great with the hamadryas baboon, so arabia has another win and arid another strike against it taken away.

Otherwise id love the titicaca frog to represent lake titicaca in the andeas, but with the amount of frogs and south american animals we got i believe we can skip on them, even if they fit the theme well and would add a mountain lake to the list of biome variety.

 

[Cooper_yang]

To be honest, the excellence of the aquatic bag is a consensus among almost everyone.

 

[Chuditch]

The past "blue" packs (Arctic, Europe, arguably Aquatic) are not sky-blue like this one. Those were considerably darker than what's presented in this key art.

Looks pretty similar to me. It is our first blue animal pack, but our only green animal pack isn't super green either (Wetlands, almost a teal really) so it wouldn't conflict.

It's entirely possible that those 3 were chosen purely because they're most similar to each-other and not necessarily with the rest of the habitat animals.

Why would they do that for a worldwide grab-bag pack where the whole point of the DLC is to include animals from different parts of the world? That's what I seriously don't get here. Like yeah, if there's going to be multiple different keyarts like some people are speculating then it'd make sense, but that's based on nothing but an assumption.

 

[Fallax]

Anyways for what i think about the pack, id bet on highlands and i would be quite happy with it.
Its the easy sensible answer and in 9/10 cases that turns out to be the right answer.

For the makeup of the pack, i hope frontier continues their streak of a bird each pack since oceania and im gonna be so bold and say its gonna be a pheasent.
What pheasent? I dont know, frontier could go for the one with the most captive holdings thats also the most visually striking with its gold, red and blue/purple colloration and black accents. The biggest reason i dont believe its the pheasent though is that its imo a very good choice for the front animal with its eye catching appearance and a community more thirsting for birds then a guy in a desert is for water.
If we get an oddball pheasent, there are many options from monal over satyr targopan to lady ampethyts or edwards pheasent, all of them are distinct, beautiful and would make sense and that goes for allmost all pheasents. Allmost all besides the common also live in mountainous forests in asia, so they are perfect for a mountain pack
View attachment 403023

There also is the not to be understated option of lesser rhea to give a rep to the andeans. While being a much less interesting species on its own, its arguably just as important for the game and would open up a slot in future packs for more interesting things there, so while basic its important either way and an allright inclusion for that.
Another thing in its favor is that its a good bit smaller then the greater rhea, increasing the size differential to the ostritch and other rhatites more, making them the more unqiue inclusion of the 2. Its also found in the colder grasslands of southern southamerica and both alpine and lower deserts, so theyd bump the biome diversity up by alot.
View attachment 403024

The other 2 rather obvious choices are spec bear and alpine marmot, both with pretty much the same things going for them, spec bear and alpine marmot.
Both take an animal we allready have, change up its size/pattern by alot (a slim alpine marmot right after hibanation weighs around 3kg, the prariedog weighs around 1kg and the marmot that well fed can easily tripple its weight from there), both are ice age survivors, clinging on a mountain range that has simmilar enviroment to the enviroments they used to live in way back when. Both would also be the first member of their group on their respected continent and would fill a very different niche to anything we allready have there and are among the most iconic animals of their continents most iconic mountain range. Another thing to mention is that the spec bear also covers many different biomes, being found in lush tropical cloud forests, cold alpine deserts, the edge of glaciers and anywhere in between, making them a powerhouse of alpine biome representation.
Both of them simply check lots of boxes while also being rather easy to make while also not being unpopular picks, so just by sheer logic they would be be among the most logical choices to be in this pack.
View attachment 403025View attachment 403026

The last animal imo is a toss up between the tree roo and a second ungulate, but im willing to say that with the cat featuring more or less a reskinned sandcat, bear, prariedog and alpine ibex and potentially even a newly feather mini ostrich, that the chances are pretty good to actually be the tree roo.
We all know and want the tree roo, yes they are mountainous animals, endemic to a specific mountain range in new guinea and would bring some much needed representation for tropical mountain forest, which is with just the spec bear a little lacking. Its also part of the dictionary club for anyone willing to believe in that.
View attachment 403027

If it is an ungulate my bet is on the (hopefully) domestic yak. Together with the snowleopard its the most iconic animal of the himalaya, the highest and most iconic mountain range on the planet and arguably the most important animal to its cultures while also beeing "just" a shaggy cow with a hump.
Its a very easy, thematic and fitting addition with lots of cultural importance and significance for the region so its again a choice that just makes sense.
Is that a gurantee for it? No, frontier has proven often enough that they love going against the logical choice at times and even then after just getting the highland cattle they might dont want to give us another domestic highland cattle with shaggy fur, but id be happy to see them.
View attachment 403028

Regarding the exhibits there are many options here, but ill jump on the fact that we dont have a chameleon and most chameleon species are living in mountaineous enviroments so one of those would be nice, africa really needs some exhibits and especally madagascar would benefit alot from one. Going just by how common they are, the veiled is the best choice, not only being the most common and present on all continents, it also would go great with the hamadryas baboon, so arabia has another win and arid another strike against it taken away.
View attachment 403029
Otherwise id love the titicaca frog to represent lake titicaca in the andeas, but with the amount of frogs and south american animals we got i believe we can skip on them, even if they fit the theme well and would add a mountain lake to the list of biome variety.
View attachment 403031

Seems we are basically in the same boat with our predictions, though I'm not as confident with the marmot as you are... I would really love to see it pop up though.

 

[Fallax]

Are we actually arguing that the shade of blue in the pack points to it being a zookeeper/grab bag pack. Frontier please release us from this hell.

 

[Mjmannella]

Looks similar to me. It is our first blue animal pack, but our only green animal pack isn't super green either (Wetlands, almost a teal really) so it wouldn't conflict.

The Arctic Pack is definitely darker. There's also a a few touches of green that make it feels more akin to Aurora Borealis to me. The new key art feels more like a foggy morning in comparison.

Why would they do that for a worldwide grab-bag pack where the whole point of the DLC is to include animals from different parts of the world?

Probably to make the pack seem more connected than it actually may be. The other removed dictionary words (dik-dik, sifaka, spurred) are less connected by comparison (and I still have a sneaking suspicion that the spurred tortoise would end up in the walkthrough exhibit). And that's not even getting to Goodfellow and echidna (which are only a pair). "Secretary" is indeed a dictionary word, but it's very possible that this was a red herring with there being no intention to actually add the bird despite its popularity.

 

[KönigDerKaffeebohnen]

Seems we are basically in the same boat with our predictions, though I'm not as confident with the marmot as you are... I would really love to see it pop up though.

best part is ive been confident in that since arid last year lol
Started a thread back then about how id line up packs and the first was a mountain pack with only my headliner being gone, now replaced by the pallas and my choice for goat (barbery) and baboon (gelada) being neglected for the more popular ones. Only change here are the exhibit (which i should have mentioned aswell because the old is real cool) but we allready got a nice selection for europenan exhibits, meanwhile africa, asia and oceania are kind of yucky on that front, and that i had the yellow footed in in place of the tree roo but the evidence is just there that its a real, breathing possibility and the much cooler choice.
+ i dont believe wed get the yellow footed over a second ungulate and i believe marmot, spec bear and especally bird all far more likly

 

[Topaz Star]

Seems we are basically in the same boat with our predictions, though I'm not as confident with the marmot as you are... I would really love to see it pop up though.

I could be the rock hyrax instead.

I'm also expecting the yak to make it, either replacing the tree roo or marmot/hyrax in this line-up