It’s great that everyone is excited about the game and it’s future by talking about dlc and future packs. Nevertheless one has to consider that all the dlc talk also says something something about becoming slightly bored of the game. I’m aware this is not the case for everyone but after a while you just run out of things to do in the game which is why everyone looks forward to future stuff. I personally love the game and it keeps getting better with each update but I admit after playing for a while there’s is just nothing new and exciting to do.
And it shows that the poor size of the DLCs does not last for a long further addition in gameplay. One week after the release everybody built 4 new exhibits and that's it.
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I actually thought about this earlier. I’m not bored with it as I play everyday for at least an hour or so. I truthfully think some people ( not all) have gotten used to modding communities pumping out content. Zt2 for example has a lot of user mods being made day in day out. But that’s no different with people wanting more and more with that also. I’m sorry but we’re not going to see full fledged expansion packs with this game but I’m sure 2-3 yrs of support can be expected tho. Maybe more. To me there’s not much difference between a 4 or 8 pack of animals as people will over use the 4 extra animals as well. To me the problem is the time it takes to make the dlc which unfortunately is totally legit since making quality content takes time. So there’s really no way around that since when you try to mass produce at a faster rate you sacrifice quality. This is another point we don’t understand about this game is how much can frontier produce before quality and optimization take its toll. In other words with all the ai involved from guests,animals,staff, ect I would rather have 100-120 excellent realistic animals compared to 150-200 so so animals just to fit more in game. This is why modders started pushing the limits of zt2 as the vanilla brand animals and objects left a lot to be desired. To me this game has the perfect blend of animals and objects to create amazing zoos as some have complained about the building pieces and decor.
Hmm, I dont think you can necessarily say this. I for example still play Planet Zoo alot, its the game that captivated me most for a long time now. For a long while no other game got me into it for such a long time and I am not even always using the DLC animals.
But what I actually want to say is, you can still want more DLC even if you are totally not bored of the game, but still have wishes/hopes for the game and you are very excited to see whats next. Aswell as getting bored of a game and wanting more is also normal, thats still true. However, I wouldnt see this as a bad sign at all.
I can even confirm this for my very active "Sims-addiction-time" (especially during the first years of Sims 3), I was hardly ever bored of the game, but still wanted more and was always very excited for new things to come (even though I dont think I tried out everything avaible) - until I suddenly wasnt, but yeah, as I already said I think thats normal^^ Luckily for me this happend around its last expansion.
But back to PZ, as long as I still enjoy it, I will always look forward to new DLCs and updates until I wont anymore, which might happen in a few weeks or years. I cant tell so far^^ So far I am not bored of the game at all and yet still eager to see what Frontier have planned for PZ in the future
But what I actually want to say is, you can still want more DLC even if you are totally not bored of the game, but still have wishes/hopes for the game and you are very excited to see whats next. Aswell as getting bored of a game and wanting more is also normal, thats still true. However, I wouldnt see this as a bad sign at all.
I can even confirm this for my very active "Sims-addiction-time" (especially during the first years of Sims 3), I was hardly ever bored of the game, but still wanted more and was always very excited for new things to come (even though I dont think I tried out everything avaible) - until I suddenly wasnt, but yeah, as I already said I think thats normal^^ Luckily for me this happend around its last expansion.
But back to PZ, as long as I still enjoy it, I will always look forward to new DLCs and updates until I wont anymore, which might happen in a few weeks or years. I cant tell so far^^ So far I am not bored of the game at all and yet still eager to see what Frontier have planned for PZ in the future
4 new mayan temple exhibit that is. It amazes me how absolutely uncreative this creative community was with the new pieces. Aaaalll the same, no one used it abstract in any shape or form. (I did, though, I refuse to build a temple
)Still, I must say, I'm not exactly bored with Planet Zoo. Still love it, still play it almost every evebing. But that is because I haven't had 3 years of building in Planet Coaster and the building aspect is still what captures me.
With the animals, I really need something game changing. Which won't come soon. And so I wish for the weeks to past sooner, to get to the next DLC and the next, and the next, until, finally, there will be DLCs that actually add something completley new to the game and game play. I mean, the best part of this DLC for me was the free update.
Hm, yes and no. Yes, new content brings new excitement and can refresh the interest in the game, that was the case for me as well. But I wasn't bored by the base game. I think it's normal that after the first hype, playtime decreases due to a) lack of time (my playtime peaks were around christmas and easter = lot of free time which I don't have in my everyday situation) and b) other hobbies besides gaming that become interesting again. Which is pretty normal and also happened when I played The Sims for example - it was coming in waves, but I kept playing, even without new content being added. I'm not the type of player that invests an hour every day, but rather half a weekend at once.
But for me, the new DLC definitely adds more quality than building four habitats. Of course after the release, I also started a fully fleshed out South American section to explore the new animals and items, but why should that mean I'm never going to use them again? I've also built several habitats in different zoos for the tigers from the base game or the warthogs or whatever. It's of course hard to measure the exact amount of time spent with the DLC, but that's because my style of playing can't distinguish the DLC from the rest, since it's incorporated in what the game as a whole offers me.
But for me, the new DLC definitely adds more quality than building four habitats. Of course after the release, I also started a fully fleshed out South American section to explore the new animals and items, but why should that mean I'm never going to use them again? I've also built several habitats in different zoos for the tigers from the base game or the warthogs or whatever. It's of course hard to measure the exact amount of time spent with the DLC, but that's because my style of playing can't distinguish the DLC from the rest, since it's incorporated in what the game as a whole offers me.
Yes some people will find many things to do with their creative minds after the initial launch and hype of the DLC but the average person needs some direction to go in so once they use all the new stuff their play time drops off significantly. Not to say they won’t play here and there but after the large wave of playing some get bored and just look forward to the next new thing.
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My comment was deliberately condensed. Sure, new building pieces give you a million times more combination options with existing ones and can lead to a much a huger time pf play for those who are mainly attracted by building. But if you nail it down, these are mainly reskins of existing pieces (form, size the same) and the four animals are all based on existing rigs as well. Unlike other DLC strategies, the DLCs so far not really added much of additional/ new gameplay (except the two scenarios in the Arctic DLC).
Reskin of existing pieces? I can not really aggree with that. The gold pieces are literrally "shiny and new" and saved my elephant house for Königsgarten, because I needed more gaudiness there. The temple walls, because recolorable, allows to be used in may different zoos and combined with the new path with the robes actually pushed my coastal park.
The anteater, though not my favourite, is pretty unique in itself, in my opinion. The Jaguar added the longing for a breeding project, because the black panther thing. The llama by now is very boring, but when coat variation is finally added (and I pray to the frontier gods that colors are genetic and not random), they will be great. At least when they add a good variety of coats.
While I don't agree on the reskin part of pieces and animals, I do agree that other DLC concepts include more game changing things and that I like them better. Then again, we are in a time where there is obvisouly the need to push out a dlc every three month to keep the game interesting. So we can't really expect a huge game play change with those small and in my opinion cheap (as in pricepoint, not as in conent) dlcs.
I wish there were more developers at Frontier and we could expect this small packs every three month and a larger game changing pack every 6 month or so. Pushing aside that EA content is shallow since Sims 4, that's the only thing I miss comming from their game: Larger, game changing DLCs. Those that do not make you think "oh, nice addition", but rather "woah, leveled up gaming!"
(It was like that with Sims 1-3, lets just not talk 4 here).
The anteater, though not my favourite, is pretty unique in itself, in my opinion. The Jaguar added the longing for a breeding project, because the black panther thing. The llama by now is very boring, but when coat variation is finally added (and I pray to the frontier gods that colors are genetic and not random), they will be great. At least when they add a good variety of coats.
While I don't agree on the reskin part of pieces and animals, I do agree that other DLC concepts include more game changing things and that I like them better. Then again, we are in a time where there is obvisouly the need to push out a dlc every three month to keep the game interesting. So we can't really expect a huge game play change with those small and in my opinion cheap (as in pricepoint, not as in conent) dlcs.
I wish there were more developers at Frontier and we could expect this small packs every three month and a larger game changing pack every 6 month or so. Pushing aside that EA content is shallow since Sims 4, that's the only thing I miss comming from their game: Larger, game changing DLCs. Those that do not make you think "oh, nice addition", but rather "woah, leveled up gaming!"
(It was like that with Sims 1-3, lets just not talk 4 here).
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If that is all people do then no amount of content would keep those people interested for long. Like I said, same as any single player game. Most people finish them within a week. So far, for me, Planet Zoo has kept me interested far longer than any other single player game out there (aside from Death Stranding).
The issue is there is no direction or challenges to do in franchise besides the basic community challenges. Therefor the average player gets bored because after they have spent hours building enclosure after enclosure and breeding their favorite animals there’s is not much else to do. The game gets boring after a while so some people just look forward to DLC which isn’t a bad thing it just tells everyone that there needs to be more to do. Neversaid those other games did it any better this is by far my favorite simulation zoo game ever and because of that I just want it to improve .
Honestly for me the content/gameplay isn't the issue. I do enjoy new DLC's, as they give me motivation to play more, but in general my biggest problem is that it is so difficult to start again. Once the zoo reaches a certain point and my computer starts lagging or if I get a big new idea that won't work in my current build or something I often want to begin anew, but it's so tedious to redecorate everything. Which is in itself frustrating, because I do enjoy the building aspect of the game, it's just that I can only decorate a toilet block so many times before it gets boring.
I enjoy the Game, play just about everyday, and finally getting hang of it. BUT! DLC's are great but can not afford to keep forking out for a few animals and pieces.
As for the Game it is very involved keeping all Happy Guests etc. In the end i disabled Guests complaints about Food and Drink, it is way out of proportion, hardly step in and they Moan lol.
Would also like more speed Controls (slower) gets annoying pausing to sort problems or if you are building
As for the Game it is very involved keeping all Happy Guests etc. In the end i disabled Guests complaints about Food and Drink, it is way out of proportion, hardly step in and they Moan lol.
Would also like more speed Controls (slower) gets annoying pausing to sort problems or if you are building
I might not be typical here but I love designing zoos and for me that’s the primary aspect of interest for me.
I only play in sandbox and am keen on making fairly realistic zoos with specific locations and settings so I’m not really interested in challenges or franchise mode.
I can’t see myself ever getting bored as I have so many different ideas for different kinds of zoos.
I played Zoo Tycoon 2 for 12 years on a regular basis and it was mods and new user made content that kept me engaged but Planet Zoo has such high quality animals and foliage that even if nothing new came out I’d still keep on playing.
My biggest frustration is that I find building - rather than landscaping and gardening so to speak - difficult. But there’s enough to keep me interested and my skills are slowly growing.
I’ve also just started to explore zoos from the Steam Workshop and adapting them which is another fun angle.
Of course I’m keen for more animals - the more the better - to increase possibilities. I can’t just stick any old species in a random zoo, there has to be a specific thinking behind it. For example a small rural zoo in Denmark, a New Zealand zoo, a zoo with only Nordic species etc. So every new species fits somewhere in that thinking for me and that’s always something for me to look forward to.
I only play in sandbox and am keen on making fairly realistic zoos with specific locations and settings so I’m not really interested in challenges or franchise mode.
I can’t see myself ever getting bored as I have so many different ideas for different kinds of zoos.
I played Zoo Tycoon 2 for 12 years on a regular basis and it was mods and new user made content that kept me engaged but Planet Zoo has such high quality animals and foliage that even if nothing new came out I’d still keep on playing.
My biggest frustration is that I find building - rather than landscaping and gardening so to speak - difficult. But there’s enough to keep me interested and my skills are slowly growing.
I’ve also just started to explore zoos from the Steam Workshop and adapting them which is another fun angle.
Of course I’m keen for more animals - the more the better - to increase possibilities. I can’t just stick any old species in a random zoo, there has to be a specific thinking behind it. For example a small rural zoo in Denmark, a New Zealand zoo, a zoo with only Nordic species etc. So every new species fits somewhere in that thinking for me and that’s always something for me to look forward to.
Yes, maybe all the DLC talk does indeed say something...
Of course, it is great to get more animals frequently because a) there are thousands of incredible animals that we all would love to have in our zoos and b) Frontier does such a great job with them.
But as you say, people start wishing for the next DLC right after one has been released. Maybe some people expect and wish PZ to be something that it isn’t meant to be. People that at this stage are getting bored with PZ because they ”built 4 new exhibits and that's it” might need to consider whether PZ is indeed a good game for them.
PZ offers the possibiliy of incredible creativity; that’s its ultimate strength. It allows you to go so far beyond just building 4 new exhibits. For many players, it opens up an almost unlimited replayability potential - different types of zoos, different biome focus, etc., etc. For others, as we can occasionally read in the posts, a completely empty zoo map waiting for the player’s creativity can be very intimidating and overwhelming. I have experienced this myself and I also have at times then simply shut down PZ for the day. It doesn’t help that some players provide examples of the most incredible builds that most of us can only dream of. This can be inspiring, but also demotivating.
There are also posts of players who love the Career scenarios - because they don’t require creativity as some stated explicitly, but rather problem-solving skills (which include a different kind of creativity). These scenarios supply a specific set of goals plus guidance via the step-by-step approach. This more structured approach might be something that lots of players miss in the other modes. Too much freedom can be restricting.
Some players find their own way to play PZ, be it by setting themselves certain breeding tasks or by participating in the community challenges. So together with the Career mode, PZ does cater to a variety of playing styles, but it might not provide a playing style suitable for everyone.
Adding a different type of challenges to every mode might be helpful. The current challenges such as releasing a certain number of certain animals or raising the education level are repetitive and not terribly inspiring. Maybe Frontier could come up with more linear sets of more complex challenges that would reward the player with a special decorative item, for instance. (Or, since they are working on fur variations, a special fur option for an animal.) This might provide a different goal in building a zoo beyond that of building “4 new exhibits and that’s it” and keep more players actively involved.
Of course, it is great to get more animals frequently because a) there are thousands of incredible animals that we all would love to have in our zoos and b) Frontier does such a great job with them.
But as you say, people start wishing for the next DLC right after one has been released. Maybe some people expect and wish PZ to be something that it isn’t meant to be. People that at this stage are getting bored with PZ because they ”built 4 new exhibits and that's it” might need to consider whether PZ is indeed a good game for them.
PZ offers the possibiliy of incredible creativity; that’s its ultimate strength. It allows you to go so far beyond just building 4 new exhibits. For many players, it opens up an almost unlimited replayability potential - different types of zoos, different biome focus, etc., etc. For others, as we can occasionally read in the posts, a completely empty zoo map waiting for the player’s creativity can be very intimidating and overwhelming. I have experienced this myself and I also have at times then simply shut down PZ for the day. It doesn’t help that some players provide examples of the most incredible builds that most of us can only dream of. This can be inspiring, but also demotivating.
There are also posts of players who love the Career scenarios - because they don’t require creativity as some stated explicitly, but rather problem-solving skills (which include a different kind of creativity). These scenarios supply a specific set of goals plus guidance via the step-by-step approach. This more structured approach might be something that lots of players miss in the other modes. Too much freedom can be restricting.
Some players find their own way to play PZ, be it by setting themselves certain breeding tasks or by participating in the community challenges. So together with the Career mode, PZ does cater to a variety of playing styles, but it might not provide a playing style suitable for everyone.
Adding a different type of challenges to every mode might be helpful. The current challenges such as releasing a certain number of certain animals or raising the education level are repetitive and not terribly inspiring. Maybe Frontier could come up with more linear sets of more complex challenges that would reward the player with a special decorative item, for instance. (Or, since they are working on fur variations, a special fur option for an animal.) This might provide a different goal in building a zoo beyond that of building “4 new exhibits and that’s it” and keep more players actively involved.