Mythical and prehistoric dlc packs?

[StarshineCat]

Selkie, but its just a horse with some green paint. And you can have it in an exhibit but if the inspector see's it you lose all your stars.
special distracting inspector from fraud animals mechanic..

 

[GojiraGuy1954]

I want recentley extinct animals in the game, like Thylacines, Dodos or Quaggas.

 

[Ryshtyan]

Keep the game real. Fantasy animals, etc. are better suited for theme parks like Planet Coaster. It should never be part of an actual zoo game. Dinosaurs are already in Jurassic World. Keep them there and out of the zoo.

Planet Zoo is aimed at realism, not fantasy. If people want it go to that route, go to mods sites that do that sort of thing. They do exist and they're easy enough to access.

There are actual zoos that have museum setups that include dinosaurs and extinct animals that include statues and robotics, but nothing more than that. If Planet Zoo installed something like this into the game that isn't so bad, but to put them in the game as if those animals still exist among us today takes away the realism and they'll likely be more criticized about it overall by those who've bought the game as opposed to applauded.

 

[wolff000]

All the people that say no way have NO imagination. I would especially love a mythic animal pack.

This is exactly why the game needs more mod support. Modders could create all the things Frontier never will. It would be so much better for the community and long term playability of the game.

The reason so many people still play Skyrim and Fallout years later is because of the mods not because they are such great games. Please Frontier let us really create!

 

[wolff000]

Keep the game real. Fantasy animals, etc. are better suited for theme parks like Planet Coaster. It should never be part of an actual zoo game. Dinosaurs are already in Jurassic World. Keep them there and out of the zoo.

Planet Zoo is aimed at realism, not fantasy. If people want it go to that route, go to mods sites that do that sort of thing. They do exist and they're easy enough to access.

There are actual zoos that have museum setups that include dinosaurs and extinct animals that include statues and robotics, but nothing more than that. If Planet Zoo installed something like this into the game that isn't so bad, but to put them in the game as if those animals still exist among us today takes away the realism and they'll likely be more criticized about it overall by those who've bought the game as opposed to applauded.

Actually there are almost no mods for this that add animals. I found one Unicorn and it replaces zebras. So no mods are not an option and will not be unless Frontier changes and releases some decent mod tools for the game. Currently it is almost impossible to add a new animal. And if you don't like it don't buy the DLC and it is not in your game. Despite what you may think, you are not required to buy everything Planet Zoo puts out.

 

[Lelka]

All the people that say no way have NO imagination.

Now THAT is some seriously jumped exaggeration.
Prehistoric DLC was already discussed so many times, so I'll focus on the Mythical/Fantasy DLC idea. My answer is: it's not worth it. Now let me explain it.

1) Modern zoological parks don't have space for them.
Mythical/Fantasy creatures are either completely made up, based on poor knowledge, or misunderstanding. Unicorn, for example, would be in last category; misunderstood rhino.
Modern science have defined most of the misunderstanding of the past, and Planet zoo is modern zoo build & management game, so most mythical creatures' groundworks are too fragile to fit.

2) What'll be the purpose of them?
What's the purpose of adopting & breeding fire-breathing, big-as-mountain, claws-deadly, magic-using, flies-whenever-it-pleases, mean-greedy looks-like-reptile in the enclosure? Sure it IS entertaining, but does that match the other purpose of the modern zoo: preservation and education?

3) Zoopedia
Imagine that PZ team decided to make Mythical DLC. What could zoopedia say? What's the scientific name of the unicorn(Let alone that they gotta decide WHICH unicorn they're making, since the 'one horned legendary beast' story is spread around the world)? What is their "wild" behavior? The groundwork of the mythical creature is not only scientifically fragile, but also culturally fractured. Devs have to make up most of the things, which won't happen when they are making real, well studied animals.

4) It's the matter of resource, again.
We don't really know how much longer PZ would be supported. Will making a DLC based on imaginative animals worth more than making a DLC based on real-life-wonders? Resource could be invested in making fantasy DLC can be used to make other DLCs, more fitting to modern zoo simulation game.
'If you don't like it, just don't buy it' statement cannot answer that question.

+) Now, about the mod. I disagree with

The reason so many people still play Skyrim and Fallout years later is because of the mods not because they are such great games.

If they weren't great, neither there'd be that lot of mods, nor they had still-active fan community. Do not miss that. RCT is still played by many, is it because of mods? Not really. Mods do enhance the gameplay, but the game itself is what people enjoy, and keeps the community alive.

 

[NZFanatic]

And if you don't like it don't buy the DLC and it is not in your game. Despite what you may think, you are not required to buy everything Planet Zoo puts out.

That is a bad argument, and always has been.

In any case, the desire for mythical creatures in this game is such an impossibly niche market that it would literally be a waste of resources for Frontier to make it. Because if we follow your logic - "don't like, don't buy" - then you'll quickly find that probably the majority of players won't buy it, which means it will probably lose money for Frontier, which means they've invested time and resources into something that very few people even wanted to begin with.

In the case of extinct animals, as has been pointed out many times over the past year Frontier already has a dinosaur zoo game. It's based on a popular movie franchise and is therefore not entirely scientifically accurate, but adding in extinct animals to PZ would force competition with their own game. That's just bad business. So again, probably never going to happen.

This of course ignores all the other great points people have made about the game's apparent purpose, which is to build a realistic zoo. You can do all kinds of unrealistic things in the game, obviously, but that's only because existing features (such as the oft-mentioned terrain tool) are flexible, not because they were designed that way. Adding in unicorns or whatever other nonsense adds nothing of value whatsoever.

 

[wolff000]

Now THAT is some seriously jumped exaggeration.
Prehistoric DLC was already discussed so many times, so I'll focus on the Mythical/Fantasy DLC idea. My answer is: it's not worth it. Now let me explain it.

1) Modern zoological parks don't have space for them.
Mythical/Fantasy creatures are either completely made up, based on poor knowledge, or misunderstanding. Unicorn, for example, would be in last category; misunderstood rhino.
Modern science have defined most of the misunderstanding of the past, and Planet zoo is modern zoo build & management game, so most mythical creatures' groundworks are too fragile to fit.

2) What'll be the purpose of them?
What's the purpose of adopting & breeding fire-breathing, big-as-mountain, claws-deadly, magic-using, flies-whenever-it-pleases, mean-greedy looks-like-reptile in the enclosure? Sure it IS entertaining, but does that match the other purpose of the modern zoo: preservation and education?

3) Zoopedia
Imagine that PZ team decided to make Mythical DLC. What could zoopedia say? What's the scientific name of the unicorn(Let alone that they gotta decide WHICH unicorn they're making, since the 'one horned legendary beast' story is spread around the world)? What is their "wild" behavior? The groundwork of the mythical creature is not only scientifically fragile, but also culturally fractured. Devs have to make up most of the things, which won't happen when they are making real, well studied animals.

4) It's the matter of resource, again.
We don't really know how much longer PZ would be supported. Will making a DLC based on imaginative animals worth more than making a DLC based on real-life-wonders? Resource could be invested in making fantasy DLC can be used to make other DLCs, more fitting to modern zoo simulation game.
'If you don't like it, just don't buy it' statement cannot answer that question.

+) Now, about the mod. I disagree with

If they weren't great, neither there'd be that lot of mods, nor they had still-active fan community. Do not miss that. RCT is still played by many, is it because of mods? Not really. Mods do enhance the gameplay, but the game itself is what people enjoy, and keeps the community alive.

All points are good except the last one. If Skyrim and Fallout did not have mods and especially good modding tools, they would not still be as popular. Both games would have fizzled out long ago like many good games do. Bethesda themselves said so when they created the built in mod store. The longevity of the games from these franchises is the mods.

Also not every one plays with the intention of creating a modern zoo. Yes a small niche but still exists. I have actually never attempted a modern zoo. I build crazy fantastic things that could never really exist. No interest in creating what could really be out there.

Still if Frontier let people actually create mods and animals we could all have what we want.

 

[wolff000]

That is a bad argument, and always has been.

In any case, the desire for mythical creatures in this game is such an impossibly niche market that it would literally be a waste of resources for Frontier to make it. Because if we follow your logic - "don't like, don't buy" - then you'll quickly find that probably the majority of players won't buy it, which means it will probably lose money for Frontier, which means they've invested time and resources into something that very few people even wanted to begin with.

In the case of extinct animals, as has been pointed out many times over the past year Frontier already has a dinosaur zoo game. It's based on a popular movie franchise and is therefore not entirely scientifically accurate, but adding in extinct animals to PZ would force competition with their own game. That's just bad business. So again, probably never going to happen.

This of course ignores all the other great points people have made about the game's apparent purpose, which is to build a realistic zoo. You can do all kinds of unrealistic things in the game, obviously, but that's only because existing features (such as the oft-mentioned terrain tool) are flexible, not because they were designed that way. Adding in unicorns or whatever other nonsense adds nothing of value whatsoever.

When talking about what I would like in a game I could careless what is profitable. It is simply what I want to see in my game.

You realize this is a wish list is and what the word wish means right?

How does my wanting something have anything to do with the value you personally think it may or may not bring? I don't really care if you see "value" in it or not. I do.

 

[ElectricMonk]

How does my wanting something have anything to do with the value you personally think it may or may not bring? I don't really care if you see "value" in it or not. I do.

This is a forum - by posting here you are beginning a discussion. People will, and should respond to you - that's what a forum is. Some people will agree with you, some will disagree. You certainly have the right to suggest or request things you want. That doesn't mean, though, that those who disagree with you don't have the same right.

There's no need to be rude.

 

[Lelka]

If Skyrim and Fallout did not have mods and especially good modding tools, they would not still be as popular. Both games would have fizzled out long ago like many good games do. Bethesda themselves said so when they created the built in mod store. The longevity of the games from these franchises is the mods.

I'm afraid you missed my point. Skyrim/Fallout aren't popular because they have a ton of mods. They have a ton of mods BECAUSE they're popular.
Neither Skyrim earned its 226 GOTYs, nor it's often called one of the most phenomenal games of 2010's because of the mod compatibility it has. its reputation and fame initially comes from the playability, immersion, massive open world, whatever Skyrim ORIGINALLY had.
Fallout isn't that different. Post-apocalypse vibe, free-roaming world, stories that makes you go deeper...those are Fallout's main strength. Mod comes after that. Mod can't explain how Skyrim became Skyrim; the 5th title of Elder Scroll Series. There were communities that loved the games by themselves. Many Skyrim/Fallout players I know don't focus much on mods, but care the vanilla gameplay itself.
Many masterpieces thrive with few mods, or even without any. As I said, RCT has few mods but it's still played by many. its fanbase is attracted by the idea itself: building one's dream theme park. That idea brought the franchise to RCT3, the game that can import some custom objects. Mod does play part in the community, but it's not a sole cause of the longevity of the game.

I respect your wish and the way you plays PZ. I guess you already know;
1. You can build unrealistic, fantastic things in PZ because the game doesn't really restrict things like that. You may not care about realistic zoo, but the main mechanism and designs are focused on realistic, modern zoo. Like, you're not really punished by, say, 'giving an extra toy to lion' in ZT, but it's not really meant to.
2. Your wish will not be fulfilled that easily/quickly. Not only the mythical DLC thing, but also a full mod support. ZT2 animals, which are lot more simple than PZ animals, are already pretty hard to mod. There is little guarantee that much complicated PZ animal mod to be stable, even with full mod support.

 

[NZFanatic]

When talking about what I would like in a game I could careless what is profitable. It is simply what I want to see in my game.

You realize this is a wish list is and what the word wish means right?

You realise what the words "discussion forum" mean, right?

How does my wanting something have anything to do with the value you personally think it may or may not bring? I don't really care if you see "value" in it or not. I do.

You've been making a case for this idea on this thread, so I've made a case against it.

Unfortunately that's the nature of any kind of internet forum.

 

[deanmo19]

Perhaps they should release scenery packs with robotic prehistoric and future animals (no live animals, unfortunately), including:

Tyrannosaurus Rex (full-size)
Apatosaurus (full-size with baby)
Stegosaurus (full-size)
Triceratops (full-size)
Parasaurolophus (full-size with juvenile and nest)
Ankylosaurus (full-size)
Struthiomimus (full-size)
Dimetrodon (full-size)
Pteranodon (full-size)
Elasmosaurus (full-size)
Mosasaurus (full-size)
Ichthyosaurus (full-size)
Woolly Mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) (full-size with baby)
Saber Tooth Tiger (Smilodon fatalis) (full-size)
Giant Ground Sloth (Eremotherium laurillardi) (full-size)
Glyptodont (Doedicurus clavicaudatus) (full-size)
Woolly Gigantelope (Megalodorcas borealis) (full-size)
Desert Leaper (Aquator adepsicautus) (full-size)
Night Stalker (Manambulus perhorridus) (full-size)

 

[NL_Mutso]

I'm afraid you missed my point. Skyrim/Fallout aren't popular because they have a ton of mods. They have a ton of mods BECAUSE they're popular.

I think that plays a major role in this. Elder Scrolls/Fallout have a very huge fanbase since the 90s/early 2000s.
Same would apply to the Sims series. Highly popular even without mods.
But I really think mods help with keeping the interest till the sequel happens, if you only release a sequel every 10 years or so.
I'm not convinced that "modded new animals" won't affect sales for future DLC. Most people I know would settle with the free option.

On the other hand, a lot of games with mods faded away and never played again.
I think open world/RPG benefits the most from mods.

Still if Frontier let people actually create mods and animals we could all have what we want.

There are already some mods, they allow it (own risk) but don't officialy support it. Which is very common among devs.
A lot of games use similar game-engines or open-source, so tools are available for those games. And the cobra-engine is only used by Frontier.
Mentioned it in a different mod discussion as well but DRM could also be the reason for no support. Denuvo games only have few mods and mostly texture related.
For the past 2 years a lot of Denuvo protected games are not being cracked, they don't allow modification of certain files. Releasing tools to do this, could give crackers the right tools (a friend on Discord gave this POV)
Resident Evil 3 is a great example on how good this protection is nowadays. Contract with Denuvo expired and cracked within a day.

Perhaps they should release scenery packs with robotic prehistoric and future animals

Wouldn't mind that. Maybe a bit too much effort for PZ if you already have JWE as a franchise. But no issues with this idea.



There was thread about what animals you don't want in the game and in short: the majority don't want or don't like this.

 

[deanmo19]

Wouldn't mind that. Maybe a bit too much effort for PZ if you already have JWE as a franchise. But no issues with this idea.

But I don't have JWE as a franchise.

 

[NL_Mutso]

Oh I meant Frontier.
Adding robotic animals in PZ doesn't seem logic and a lot of effort because Frontier also made a game with fully working dinos.
Same would apply for some features from Planet Coaster as well.

In short: I think they expect you to also buy that game if you want to experience that

 

[paul78]

I’d rather the game stick to modern animals as there’s still so many needed in this game. I like prehistoric animals but there are already plenty of games that have them plus with prehistoric kingdom releasing spring of next yr ( if all goes as planned) I really see no need for it. Zt1 and 2 combined the options which was a great idea back in the day. I usually combined African elephants with mammoths which didn’t work so well with animal needs. I wouldn’t mind some robotic dinosaurs but still I’d rather have frontier focus on other things since we don’t know how long they are supporting the game. As far as making profit goes on a prehistoric pack I think it would do ok but with only 4-5 animals currently in packs now it’s just not worth it imo.

 

[Kaitrosebd]

I know this is a divisive idea but it's always optional, you never HAVE to use mythical animals but I remember this being a ton of fun when playing Zoo Tycoon back in the day. Unicorns producing random sparkle trails and baby's learning to fly a little. You could build dragon castles and motes with unicorn herds. This is the pack I've been excitedly waiting for even if it's not everyone's cup of tea. It's nice to have a couple less predictable animals in your zoo, it adds a little fantasy and surprise to the game. Always optional but I remember it being one of my favorite elements in Zoo Tycoon.

I'd rather have a few fantasy creatures than any more exhibit animals. I have completely stopped using exhibit animals as they get way too difficult to manage in a large scale zoo. Everyone is either on contraceptive and constantly dying off or you have thousands of baby's in no time at all. Just way too much micromanaging. I would love to see more habitat animals and personally, I'd be thrilled to see a fantasy pack and more color variety/distinction.

Also while I know this is not "Zoo Tycoon" it is clearly derived from it, so comparing the two is not a difficult leap, especially when zoo tycoon was an incredibly successful game played LONG past its expiration date and there is a clear line of influence with many of the game mechanics. So comparing the two seems pretty natural since this is built on the success of that previous game. With that in mind while I'd be less interested in dinosaurs in Planet Zoo (simply due to the existence of Jurassic Park) I do think there would be a fairly strong interest in introducing more recently extinct animals and a couple of fantasy animals, not everyone wants 100% realism and introducing some fantasy opens the door for easter eggs and unexpected surprise elements.

 

[NZFanatic]

I know this is a divisive idea but it's always optional, you never HAVE to use mythical animals

Again, this is not the issue (seriously can't understand why people think it's that simple). It's not a case of "oh, if they do create this, I just won't spend any money on it". It's a case of most players not wanting a "mythical animals pack". As evidenced by the countless other threads over the past year where the same idea has been raised, it seems like the majority of people would prefer Frontier not to waste their precious resources on animals that don't exist anymore, let alone animals that have never existed in all of history like dragons and unicorns.

The thing a few people can't seem to quite grasp is that companies do not cater to minority voices, because there's little to no profit in it. You say that "not everyone wants 100% realism" but the fact is that most people do, or at least most people want as close to 100% realism as Frontier can manage, ergo it's unlikely that they'll go for this idea. Not to mention that even if they did throw you a bone and release a DLC full of magic or whatever, there would be a significant uproar demanding to know exactly what we didn't get instead that more people might have liked. That's grief that I don't think Frontier wants or needs (it's also why they don't reveal their roadmaps, I suspect).

Anyway, I'm not saying you aren't free to want or discuss such a pack, but when I see people saying "I've been excitedly waiting for..." with regards to a pack they're probably never going to see, I feel that it's important to point out the drawbacks.

There's a higher chance of Frontier releasing killer whales and such over mythical creatures, and I don't even think that's very likely, either.

 

[paul78]

I was just going to say I’ll take a whales and dolphins pack over mythical creatures. And like NZFanatic stated that’s probably not going to happen. There’s just way to many regular animals to fill slots yet. To me it’s like choosing a unicorn over one of the African rhinos(just a example). To me it would be a shame to cut out much needed animals for animals that never existed. Same for prehistoric. The pack sizes are 4-5 now so it would take at least 3 packs to end up with a decent selection of animals. A T-Rex for example would look pretty out of place in planet zoo.