DLC18 discussion and predictions

Iben

Iben
Eletan888 said:
I swear I'll let this go, but here's my case:
1. The flags, lanterns, and tent are Nepalese/Tibetan. You can easily find pictures on Google that match. I don't think it's an Asia pack, we just had Eurasia and I think the color pallete would be red, because stereotypes. Which brings me to my next point.
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I'm just curious, but what do you search for when you search for Tibetan/Nepalese flags? 😅

Because I can certainly see a point that the lanterns could point to an Asian country and I can agree with you that that could be Tibet/Nepal; but aside from the flag of Nepal which consist of two triangles all the Tibetan/Nepalese flags I see are the square ones. And let's face it, when you say "Tibetan flag" people automatically think of the square ones.
 

Antimony96

Antimony96
SuzieSky said:
For the selfish pack thread, I often put a Shennandoah pack featuring a black bear, white tailed deer, bobcat, wild turkey, bald eagle, and some cabin/camping scenery. With the animals already added, I could make a great wildlife refuge for almost any nearctic region. They have huge ranges and biome diversity. I need all four plus more to build the NA equivalent of a wildpark. I would love more species, but I agree with others that the black bear is the last major icon.

I'm bored, so I looked up the Nearctic animal counts on zootierliste and threw in my two cents for each that seemed plausibly likely. I underlined the few that I can't live without (mainly the black bear), but I'm a bit more flexible with the habitat bird(s).

  • American black bear (177 holdings, 148 in NA)
    • Range: Counting South Florida as tropical, you could probably give them every biome tag. They can be found across much of the continent, but they tend to stick to wooded areas. It's exclusive to NA.
    • Is it a zoo animal: Yes! We keep them in many zoos of all sizes. They are well-known and well-loved. They are sometimes seen in the wild, and people are happy to see them in zoos. They were included in ZT1.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: They have many colormorphs and basically come in every color of human hair. A colormorph bear would be kind of different. Also, all of the other "black" bears are tropical species with a low cold tolerance. I think they would need less space, cheaper food, and be a good starter bear.
  • Bobcat (188 holdings, 155 in NA + 71 Canadian Lynx)
    • Range: The Canadian lynx can be found in the tundra, taiga, and similar northern pine forests. The bobcat range overlaps slightly in the pine forests, and it dominates the temperate forests, grasslands, and deserts. Both are exclusive to NA.
    • Is it a zoo animal: Yes! We keep them in many zoos of all sizes. They are well-known and well-loved. People don't often see them in the wild and are excited to see them in zoos.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: Either would look very similar to the lynx we have. The bobcat is considerably smaller and has more flexible biome diversity, so it would bring the most "new" to the table. However, there are other stronger priorities even in the small cat clade, so I doubt I will see it in the game.
  • American River Otter (170 holdings, 162 in NA)
    • Range: Temperate, taiga, tundra, and aquatic in NA
    • Is it a zoo animal: Yes! We keep them in many zoos of all sizes. They are well-known and well-loved.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: It would be a cold-tolerant otter that would look very similar to the ASCO. The visual similarity and overrepresentation of our small mammals make it an unlikely candidate.
  • Coyote(90 holdings, 83 in NA)
    • Range: You could give it every biome tag across NA. They're everywhere.
    • Is it a zoo animal: Kind of. There is a commonly held belief that these animals were introduced to a lot of areas to control deer populations. This is false, but they did spread into many regions as wolf populations declined. They are widely regarded as a pest for harming pets and spreading rabies. Locally, some people really want them; others don't see the appeal.
    • Other notable features: They were one of the Looney Tunes characters. There are also featured in many Indigenous peoples' stories.
  • Grey Fox (58 holdings)
    • Range: This is our original temperate-dominant fox before our modern settlements attracted the reds. They also range into deserts and grasslands.
    • Is it a zoo animal: Maybe? I haven't personally encountered them in many zoos. I don't think they are very well known, and they don't interact with people much.
    • Other notable features: They are the most taxonomically distinct option for a canid, and a tree-climbing fox would be cool.
  • Walrus(~35 holdings)
    • Range: tundra ocean of Northern hemisphere
    • Is it a zoo animal: Not really, but it's famous! They've been included in prior games and are very famous in their own right. They are extremely popular, and would probably be at least somewhat well-recieved by most.
  • Sea Otter (12 holdings)
    • Range: northern part of Pacific ocean
    • Is it a zoo animal: Not really, but it's famous! They are a well-known and well-loved animal from both ZT games. I think they would be well-received.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: Their white faces, back swimming, and urchin crushing would make them stand out next to the otters we currently have. I think they're somewhat underrated, but they's seem odd without more sea creatures to go with them.
  • White tailed deer (102 holdings, 86 in NA + a handful of specfic subspecies and ~13 mule deer)
    • Range: You could give them every biome tag except tundra in NA and SA
    • Is it a zoo animal: Kind of. They are more famous as the deer on the John Deere logo, the primary game animal for hunters, and a roadkill/backyard species. They did score somewhat highly on the original reddit metawishlist, but they aren't nearly so popular now. They turn up in many wildlife refuges and lower-budget zoos. I think many people have seen more in the wild, but they do have a pretty high presence in our local zoos.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: It's pretty different than the other deer, and its wide range would give it a ton of uses. I worry that it wouldn't be very marketable, and I know it isn't super popular.
  • Wapiti (100 holdings, 68 in NA + ~12 of specific subspecies)
    • Range: grasslands, temperate, and taiga in NA and Asia
    • Is it a zoo animal: Yes! Zoos with ample space and budgets keep them here. They aren't as well-known as the white tailed deer, but they are still good.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: If you took a red deer and streched it to roughly the size of a moose and changed the color to make the neck and legs a bit darker, the back lighter, and the rump nearly white, you'd get an American elk. They also have a beautiful call. The similarity to the red deer makes them a bit less likely than other species.
  • Bighorn Sheep(~20 holdings)
    • Range: every biome except aquatic in NA
    • Is it a zoo animal: Not really, but it's locally famous! They were present in ZT1, and I see them depicted in local media and art often. They are the logo of a truck brand.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: An arid goat/sheep would be different, but its shape would be similar to the dall, making it a lower-priority animal for some people.
  • Rocky Mountain Goat (~20 holdings)
    • Range: temperate, taiga and tundra of NA only
    • Is it a zoo animal: Not really, but it's somewhat famous! It seems like a lot of people from other countries see this as our iconic goat.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: It would most likely look like a differently shaped dall sheep.
  • Muskox (~ 40 holdings)
    • Range: tundra of north hemisphere
    • Is it a zoo animal: Kind of, but it's famous! They are probably the only arctic icon left unless you count the walrus.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: It would be very nice for Arctic sections, but it doesn't do much else.
  • North American Porcupine (150 holdings, 90 in NA)
    • Range: temperate, taiga, tundra, and deserts of NA.
    • Is it a zoo animal: Yes! I see them sometimes in zoos of large and small budgets.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: They would be delightfully unique, but NA is already perhaps a bit overrepresented with small mammals.
  • Virginia Opossum(74 holdings, 68 in NA)
    • Range: temperate, grassland, and tropical NA
    • Is it a zoo animal: Only as an animal ambassador. They like to remind us that it is a marsupial, not a sick raccoon or a rabies vector. I've attended multiple school assemblies featuring them and encouraging us and our parents not to hit them with cars on purpose. Yes, it can get chaotic here. It is widely regarded as a pest, but they're actually kind of sweet irl.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: I think their short lifespan would preclude them from the roster.
  • Wild Turkey(~80 holdings + >500 counting all of the domestic breed holdings)
    • Range: most biomes, but not taiga or tundra
    • Is it a zoo animal: We mostly farm them. They are food for Thanksgiving, but some zoos will keep wild or domestic species.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: Its wide range and usefulness in farming sections means it can do a lot in Planet Zoo. I think they're underrated.
  • Sandhill Crane (~60 holdings, ~50 in NA + 14 for similar whooping crane)
    • Range: temperate, grassland, and tropical NA
    • Is it a zoo animal: Yes. I've seen them often enough in zoos, but they aren't super well known outside of their ranges.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: They would strongly resemble the red crowned crane and thus would probably be the easiest option to grant us a bird.
  • Mallard (>300 holdings, 44 in NA, + many more in zoos that weren't invited)
    • Range: all biomes?
    • Is it a zoo animal: Maybe? They are so common. I see them in almost every zoo, but they are almost never supposed to be there.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: Their wide range would make for some good interspecies enrichment combos and they are useful for barnyards.
  • Wood Duck (>400 holdings, 74 in NA)
    • Range: temperate, grassland, and aquatic NA
    • Is it a zoo animal: Yes! I've seen them fairly often in zoos. Children and adults love this colorful duck.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: It is a good option for a duck.
  • Roadrunner (32 holdings, 25 in NA)
    • Range: grassland and desert NA
    • Is it a zoo animal: Not really, but it's famous! They aren't prevalent in many zoos, but they spend most of their time on the ground. People know of them from Looney Tunes.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: If doable, it would be a very unique bird.
  • Canada Goose (>200 holdings, 34 in NA)
    • Range: all biomes?
    • Is it a zoo animal: Not to us! This is widely regarded as an agressive pest here. I was suprised to learn how common they are abroad.
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: They are very famous, but if NA is to only get 1 or 2 birds, I would prefer a turkey and/or a duck that we keep locally.
  • Brown Pelican (32 holdings, 27 in NA + 52 American White Pelican)
    • Range: coastal NA for the brown, central for the white
    • Is it a zoo animal: Maybe? I really don't see that many pelicans in zoos. I'm unsure what the common consensus would be here
    • How would it look in Planet Zoo: People would be mad it's not the (probably superior) great white pelican, but the coloration is more interesting to me.
  • Bald Eagle (394 holdings, 217 in NA)
  • Snowy Owl (>400 holdings, 33 in NA)
  • Great Horned Owl (~250 holdings, 140 in NA)
  • Screech Owl (106 holdings in NA)
  • Burrowing Owl (~160 holdings, 47 in NA)
  • Barred Owl (128 in NA)
  • Red Tailed Hawk (~180 holdings, 125 in NA)
  • Raven (~250 holdings?, ~50 in NA)
  • Peregrine Falcon (~160 holdings, 40 in NA)
  • California Condor (11 in NA)
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Fantastic overview of North America's position in PZ and what potential future additions could be. A few other things I'd like to say:

1. The river otter is extremely important from an AZA standpoint, but I fully understand why no one outside the US/Canada would have any interest in it. I'll live with the mod.
2. Ironically, for all the animals North America did get, a lot of them aren't really North American zoo animals. Raccoons seem to be much more of a European thing with most American zoos holding them either in smaller nature centers or as ambassador animals. Red foxes and skunks are in a similar boat. The iconic NA smaller mammals for AZA zoos would be the prairie dog (already in game), river otter, and porcupine, probably.
3. A lot more waterfowl which could make good additions, some of which (like, say, the northern pintail and common merganser) also have ranges across much of the rest of the world. Others worth mentioning as both interesting and common in captivity are the ruddy duck and hooded merganser.
4. For the aviary birds section, another that comes up to a couple hundred holdings worldwide (most in NA) is the turkey vulture. As with the bald eagle, almost all are unreleasable rescues.
 

Iben

Iben
FoxyDee said:
It is just a staged picture. Devs have tools to put animals/guests mid-animation as they please. Doubt we would get a Pygmy Hippo walk-about. That just does not make sense.
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Yeah this isn't the first Moo Deng meme they posted either, I think it's just as a way to capitalize on the currently viral pygmy hippo.

Spiderhawk said:
Still annoyed about the lack of answers.
I imagine the African leopard and whatever else comes with that anniversary update is clearly not happening on the anniversary to give space for PC2.
Still doesn’t seem like it will arrive the same time as the new dlc.
What time would you expect the free “anniversary” update to be?
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Huh, what makes you think that? For me the wording of the stream was clear that the anniversary update would come alongside the DLC? What makes you doubt it?



Also, I just wanted to say in general, I hope everyone still takes the speculation about the next pack in good fun and nobody feels offended or targeted.

At the end of the day, either option to me is fine whether it ends up being Highlands or a kind of Celebration pack; both packs have lots of options to have a good roster and the ones that revealed already make me quite happy with whatever it might end up being. I don't care about being right or wrong, I care about getting a good set of animals in the DLC 😂

And even if the roster turns out to be a mixed bag, looking at the 187 animals we already have for this game, it's incredible how far we've come already and how many animals we have. Room for improvement may always be a thing, but heck, I think we can all agree that we've had quite a journey since the start of the game and that it already is a much more fleshed out game than we'd probably expected it would be!
 

FoxyDee

FoxyDee
Iben said:
And even if the roster turns out to be a mixed bag, looking at the 187 animals we already have for this game, it's incredible how far we've come already and how many animals we have. Room for improvement may always be a thing, but heck, I think we can all agree that we've had quite a journey since the start of the game and that it already is a much more fleshed out game than we'd probably expected it would be!
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Yes this. Sure, there are dozens more animals that we all would love to see (birds and monkey being the most obvious), but really, has anyone back then when the game came out thought we would get the likes of Pallas cats, Kiwis, Takins, Maned Wolves, Peccaries… I could continue, but it is incredible how many animals we got, even the niché or lesser known that I would never dream of getting officially. I have expected PZ to just add the big ABC animals but here we are with one of the best (if not the best) animal rosters in ZOO games.
 
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The Aardvark

The Aardvark
FoxyDee said:
Yes this. Sure, they are dozens more animals that we all would love to see (birds and monkey being the most obvious), but really, has anyone back then when the game came out thought we would get the likes of Pallas cats, Kiwis, Takins, Maned Wolves, Peccaries… I could continue, but it is incredible how many animals we got, even the niché or lesser known that I would never dream of getting officially. I have expected PZ to just add the big ABC animals but here we are with one of the best (if not the best) animal rosters in ZOO games.
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In 2020, right after Aquatic dropped, I thought: now this is our last DLC right, the roster is perfect now, what else could they add? We have all the essentials.
Then in 2021 after Europe I was like: ok, NOW we definitely have everything... There's nothing else we need, just a bunch of extra animals that could be interesting but totally aren't a priority. This game is dead now right?
Then in 2022 after Grasslands: OK, SURELY this was our last year of support. There's NOTHING missing from the game... Aside from Tasmanian Devil, but at this point we can expect them to save it for the sequel.
Then after 2023, personally the best year of DLCs, I was feeling sad because well, we got everything now. The few missing animals will be in the sequel...
But then barnyard released, and another DLC was confirmed.
And here we are.

It's incredible to think just how many animals we got over the years
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
USzoofan42 said:
Is the Allen’s Swamp Monkey a need for anyone?
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Of the three African aquatic monkeys, it's probably my last choice - not at all bad, it's just that I would prefer the other two. Top of the three would be the De Brazza's guenon, because it is colourful and common in zoos. My second choice would be the Northern talapoin - they are the smallest African monkey (about the same size as a squirrel monkey) and are also becoming more common in European zoos. Would love to have a row of enclosures for Africa's biggest primate (the gorilla), biggest monkey (mandrill) and the smallest monkey.
 

Przemo

Przemo
The Aardvark said:
In 2020, right after Aquatic dropped, I thought: now this is our last DLC right, the roster is perfect now, what else could they add? We have all the essentials.
Then in 2021 after Europe I was like: ok, NOW we definitely have everything... There's nothing else we need, just a bunch of extra animals that could be interesting but totally aren't a priority. This game is dead now right?
Then in 2022 after Grasslands: OK, SURELY this was our last year of support. There's NOTHING missing from the game... Aside from Tasmanian Devil, but at this point we can expect them to save it for the sequel.
Then after 2023, personally the best year of DLCs, I was feeling sad because well, we got everything now. The few missing animals will be in the sequel...
But then barnyard released, and another DLC was confirmed.
And here we are.

It's incredible to think just how many animals we got over the years
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Yes it's true, nobody expected the game at the end of support to have such a line-up of animals. I am very happy with what we have. Of course, there could be more birds, especially since there were such assumptions (that there should be more birds) set out by one of the creators (I think, but I could be wrong as it was a long time ago) back in 2019.... I don't remember when exactly haha, but I remember how happy we were at the time as one by one the animals were revealed.... How we rejoiced at the turtle, the tiger, the okapi, the gorilla, or even the orangutan (which now, according to what we have, needs a slight visual improvement, but for that time, it was something amazing).... As someone mentioned, I don't even know if it wasn't you, regarding the cassowary, it too looked (for the time of its release) phenomenal.... For me personally, it could get a slight texture refresh, but it still looks fantastic.... Just the fact that it has ‘moving’ elements in the model was something else (for that time, as they even mentioned it in the developer's diary)....
Of course, rather no one wants it to be the end of support (because no one likes goodbyes), because there could always be more animals (the official ones), because most of us will at least try the mod adventure anyway (if support ends, but it's not the same anymore, you know what I mean)....
For me personally, the DLC + anniversary is a symbolic date, a time for the game, so from the developers' side (if they planned to end support), it would be the perfect time.... I don't know either, as they've already prepared for the game's anniversary before, maybe we'll see something for Christmas? It doesn't even have to be a pet pack or general build DLC.... But something... Even a counter-intuitively silly update adding some new scenery, or some easter-egg... I don't know.... I'm afraid that actually this pack will end any news related to the game.... I'd rather they hold out until Christmas and share something over that period too, though I don't know....
If this pack turns out to be a regular pet pack, I'm not hopeful that something will appear for Christmas, because 5 months for a pet pack, (regular pet pack) is a bit long... but we'll see....
I expect any new information on Monday, or Tuesday.
 

Firestar97

Firestar97
Wish they would properly announce it today. Really need this right now. I want to see the Baboons and want to know if the Thing in the Background is a Aviary.
Any Assumptions yet when they might announce it?
 

Swjosdotschka

Swjosdotschka
Iben said:
And even if the roster turns out to be a mixed bag, looking at the 187 animals we already have for this game, it's incredible how far we've come already and how many animals we have. Room for improvement may always be a thing, but heck, I think we can all agree that we've had quite a journey since the start of the game and that it already is a much more fleshed out game than we'd probably expected it would be!
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This. So much this.

I'll be honest, apart from the Eurasia pack, I was not overly happy with the last packs we got and I have huge issues with the quality of the Barnyard Pack. The idea of a mountain pack doesn't excite me at all, though I always wanted the Baboon, so that's awesome. But my lack of excitement just comes from me being spoiled AF from the first three years with the game, getting really all my "must haves", so there is not much left to excite me super much. The game grew so much since release and we've been listened to A LOT (and I'm sure whenever it was possible).

We have a great game on hand, the best zoo game ever and if I absolutely have to, I will be happy and satisfied with the game for a decade. I just strongly suspect we do not need to ;) I can not deniy that I emotionally moved on to Planet Zoo 2, confirmed or not. I am super keen to watch the journey of Planet Coaster 2 to see where our expectations can be with a successor, especially on how they handle DLCs etc. I don't expect rinse and repeat and I do not expect a completly new system either.

Anyway, rambled enough. I would really really really love a bigger expansion pack with the suggested three themes and additional animals. I think that's a pretty out of the left field thing to expect though, so I'm not holding Frontier accountable for my wishes. But a girl can dream. I don't have much to lose anyway, except an South American Coati, a Tanuki (in both cases, mods will do) and a walruss. 😂
 

NZFanatic

NZFanatic
Swjosdotschka said:
I think that's a pretty out of the left field thing to expect though
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Wait, people are expecting it? I thought that was a joke. When I suggested it I was definitely joking. 😅

USzoofan42 said:
Is the Allen’s Swamp Monkey a need for anyone?
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Beyond the baboon, the only African monkey I'm really clamouring for is the Diana monkey (or the Rolloway, since it looks so similar). I've only seen Diana monkeys once, in Edinburgh Zoo, and I absolutely adored them. So beautiful and sleek, and as someone whose country only has New World monkeys (and baboons), it was so utterly fantastic to see something different like that.
 
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