Parkzones

[Valdo82]

This is really one for 'down the road':

Let us create parkzones, a little similar to the Zoning of Cities Skylines, but also similar to the zoning system in game, you use in the staff zones or buying land in the career mode.

We can paint randomly zones to a map, so we can create our own themed areas:
So far, so good: now we can assign random perks with random requirements:
Thrillzone: Have 2 Coaster with 6+ Excitement in that Zone, and all guests would pay +10% more than the bargain price
Themed Area: The scenary rating of the Area must be over 100000 and the guest queue tollerance gets +10%
Kids Zone: have 5 Attractions that kids can ride and families will come 10% more to that zone
[....]

The list can be really long, but it would even give sandbox players something to work towards: Like the perk Thrillzone Tier 3 is something you really have to commit to and so on.

Additionally: you can put zonemanagement to it: Let us assign power to a zone but each point power gives 1 prestige malus for every ride in that zone: That let us rethink if we really want to put down that coaster with the 6 lsm launches (for non coaster persons: LSM launches are notorious for the amount of power they need), then we could also negate that penalty by assigning the perk 'powerhouse' we placed down 8 Generators in the Zone....

Zones could get penalties for missing facilities like toilets and staff buildings (Staff wage +20%), etc.

I think what PC 1 lacked a bit, that you could really individualize your park but it was all 'head canon' since the game engine couldn't fill that gap and many sandbox parks got lost, cause there weren't any objectives to work towards too. Now if i want to get that mountain village perk, i need to create a height diffrence of 50m in my park and so on

 

[Wagi]

Fine for those who play that way...not so fine for those of us who have zero interest in the park management side and just want to build whatever we want in sandbox without having to jump through hoops to access certain things. I have no interest in 'working towards' something, that's not how I and many others play the game. Now if you can separate those two types of play then sure.

 

[SPRidley]

I suggested during the planco 1 first years that park zones would be cool, same system as city skylines, as you said, but instead of challenges, that may be good for the campaign mode, but not sandbox, in my version, and mostly for sandbox, it was a way to move the guest more intellengetly through the areas. You have a series of checkboxes to check to make the areas have different uses, like on a real theme park. For example the area having a tranport ride station that sends you to a different area, the area being sotre or food heavy, perfect for areas like main street, the area being a children, family or thrillseekers area, highly/mild/low theming, now you could add being a water park area for example. You can check this boxes to create the areas how you want, and guests will actually have an opinion of this areas if those checkboxes arent met or are perfect with what you checked, giving them a happy boost when visiting or a negative rating if they are fullfilled, for example guests could say "I love the qualities of retaurants on Main Street" or "Adventureland needs more theming", etc...

Giving players choice to make the area how you want, for example, could make every type of park possible. You want only a water park were guests behave as they would in a waterpark, you go it. Want a more like amusement park with little theming, you can check those boxes and guest will not be affected by theming (hell, you could even make a fairground where guests have a mind that paying ride for ride is how it works instead from an entrance ticket), you want guests to actually act intelligently and move between areas with transport rides? same thing.
Would this make the game easier? Pobably, but this checkboxes mode is more for sandbox, as its the mode were you want guest to feel like they are actually using what you built to its fullest potential. On campaign and scenarios you could use this areas more in the vein you described in you port, instead of letting the players tick checkboxes, for example. Make a missiosn were you need to build an area with 2 flat rides and a coaster with thrill x or ym make a reastaurant area, etc... The game just need to summong guests looking for that stuff to force the player to actually follow what the scenario is asking.

ANother great thing about coloring and naming areas is giving the players one more tool to make the player feel they are customzing their own park even more. There could be a map mode or an aerial map were you could see the areas actually shown in diffeferent colors with their names for example.

Fine for those who play that way...not so fine for those of us who have zero interest in the park management side and just want to build whatever we want in sandbox without having to jump through hoops to access certain things. I have no interest in 'working towards' something, that's not how I and many others play the game. Now if you can separate those two types of play then sure.

I think you would like my implmenetation more. Im not a huge of a fan of challenging sandbox players with the zone painting, so I think my idea is the best for both types of players, as both gets cool stuff with a similar system.

 

[Valdo82]

So first i think i didn't express myself good enough, since i wasn't able to transfer the idea well enough:

This thing should be optional, so you don't want it? turn it off in your options, like everybody did with ghostbusters features

Second: You can call them perks, checkboxes, little pink pear shaped holy grails: The idea is to give the park some zoning, like many reallife parks and give this zones a meaning, so you can assign things like kids area or so to it. So after you assigned the area of course you should do the area well: If i build some powered cars, tea cups and a junior coaster in it, i should get rewarded by a small bonus like more guests on everyride.
If i build a 5 inversion RMC with 40sek of ejector airtime, a kickflip and a omnimover themed to the worst serial killers in human history the game should ask me, what is wrong with me and either penalise me or don't give me the kids area bonus, within this checkboxes, there should be all possible difficulties: not everyone has the same design or building level, the one person things they are doing great theming by colorizing the queueline, the other player likes to build 48 hours on a station building for a wooden coaster, both players have their right to exist.

Also we need to work within the game: so we can't do 'themed' areas: for example i am right now doing a racing at one of my plazas: There is no racing theme ingame; the we could say we restrict on the 'base themes' mythology, resort etc. Yeah, i think many builders mix the things and use 'good' pieces for other builds aswell. Last but not least, the game doesn't know good theming, it knows theming, but doesn't judge if it is good theming or not (I guess everyone who ever created a run down, janky park as an idea, knows how popular ugly, janky theming can be with the guests)

Lastly we already have a zoning system in game: one for staff and one for electricity, both systems are really undercooked right now: so why not integrate them in this zoning system.