Stop charging staff wages & running costs once park closed (please please)

[Venima]

There is a massive penalty to closing the park, which is the staff continue charging wages and the attractions continue their running costs (and they're expensive!). This really makes the feature of closing the park almost pointless. It's just a way to screw over a player who doesn't know better.

My suggestion: When the park is closed and the last guest is gone, staff no longer charge wages and attractions no longer charge running costs. There is an element of creative license here but it's a must, a MUST. This game is a constant barrage of guests from the first opening of the park until you're too exhausted to continue playing the game. I can't close the park, I'd lose too much money, so I am conditioned to suffer on as long as I can take the chaos, rather than affording myself a break every now and then where I can tinker with the park without concern.

Please please seriously consider this feature; it's worth a lot more than you realise. It's not just for pacing, it also allows players like myself to fully immerse myself and watch guests slowly leave the park come closing time.

Planet Coaster kind of lacks park management QoL, this is one of those staple QoL features IMO.

 

[LN]

Why would you leave the attractions open when the park closes?

Close them, they stop charging running costs.
Same for shops.

Staff however is a different game. Just the fact my boss doesn't have anything to do for me doesn't mean he shouldn't pay me. Then he should fire me instead.

 

[christofur]

Why would you leave the attractions open when the park closes?

Close them, they stop charging running costs.
Same for shops.

Staff however is a different game. Just the fact my boss doesn't have anything to do for me doesn't mean he shouldn't pay me. Then he should fire me instead.

A theme park is different. Would a theme park pay their employees during off season? No.

 

[LN]

A theme park is different. Would a theme park pay their employees during off season? No.

Ask a theme park. You think the place is completely empty during off season and there are no costs at all?

No......

I have a different solution, maybe even better....
When the last guest has left the park. Pause the game...... All costs stop immediately....

If the last guest has left and there is still trash everywhere the janitor should leave it there because it's off season?
If you want to refurbish your rides during off-season how would the mechanic do that when he's not paid?

I'm not against the idea when it comes to vendors however. I'm just not sure how you want this to work as you actually hire them as full time employees. then you have to fire them.

Maybe an button in park management with which you can say that it's off-season?
Under the condition that all rides and shops are closed.
But then accepting that you can't refurbish or clean?
Or does it only count for vendors?

 

[Venima]

There are many many examples that show this game is barely true to life, and I really don't think it should be treated as if it was when we're discussing new features. Some realism for the sake of immersion sure, but at the cost of freedom of creativity? Certainly not!

"Pause the game" - Then I can't test any of my rides; since this game does not have the concept of 'simulated testing'. This is especially prominent when you try to build a new coaster. I generally go for templates that other people have built precisely for this reason; if it wasn't for this I would much prefer to build my own.

Why would you leave the attractions open when the park closes?

Close them, they stop charging running costs.
Same for shops.

- To avoid causing myself Repetitive Strain Injury. If this was the intention, then the UI design is atrocious. When my park has 20 attractions and 40 shops/facilities, I really don't want to have to manually click 60 buttons just to close/open the park.

Is Planet Coaster a theme park game, or a theme park simulation (without the game part)? There is no reason (given how much it costs you) to ever close a park once it's been opened, none! It is illogical, unreasonable, it is mechanically masochistic, so I suggest either removing this feature altogether or making it a mechanic that is not incredibly penalising. Why do we have to force the player follow the theoretical footsteps of a real theme park manager? Surely it's about having fun?

Once a park is closed, is it really that hard to forgive a couple hours of free labour while the staff clear up the litter and inspect what rides need inspection? I mean, you are still suffering from money lost because it takes a long time for guests to fill the park when it opens again and the wages & shop running costs don't care how much they're actually being used.

 

[HeatherG]

Why would you leave the attractions open when the park closes?

Close them, they stop charging running costs.
Same for shops.

exactly!

 

[Venima]

exactly!

Are you suggesting there's no problem, or that all the attractions should automatically close when the park closes?

 

[LN]

Are you suggesting there's no problem, or that all the attractions should automatically close when the park closes?

From my side, I totally agree that being able to close all shops/attraction with one click of a button is a must.