Autumn DLC Speculation

Fact is...we don't know anything yet..so it could be possible that there are really major changes (I don't think for the small exhibits, but maybe for the new big ones)
Well, we actually do know quite a lot.

We know that the exhibits themselves aren't actually changing. We're getting a new one (walkthrough), and they're transforming the 2D backgrounds into billboards, and they're making it so you can automate breeding management. Nothing else is changing.
 
Well, we actually do know quite a lot.

We know that the exhibits themselves aren't actually changing. We're getting a new one (walkthrough), and they're transforming the 2D backgrounds into billboards, and they're making it so you can automate breeding management. Nothing else is changing.
But we don't know at all how the new exhibit will work or how the new keeper talks work....we basically only have assumptions... 🙈🤔
 
But we don't know at all how the new exhibit will work or how the new keeper talks work....we basically only have assumptions... 🙈🤔
Not assumptions - educated guesses based on how things already work. For example, we know the educators aren't going to physically remove animals from exhibits. What will actually happen is that the animal will disappear from the exhibit and reappear in the educator's hands. How do we know this? The exhibits have no functional access points - keepers already deal with them by simply messing with the windows - and we know the exhibits themselves aren't changing.

As for the new exhibit, again, it's more likely that it will function the exact same way as the current exhibits than making random guesses that it won't. It's going to be a big box that you plop down. Based on the screenshot it will have a door at either end which you will need to connect paths to. Because it's an exhibit (explicitly described as such by Frontier), we can also assume that when you populate it with bats the interior will be automatically generated to suit them.
 
I honestly think they plan this DLC this way, they probably knew fans mix views about it. Hence release this now, and Nov they give us something and Dec is the new pack. Perfect. So upset fans will not be off for too long.

Alright start a winter DLC discussion now. Try hitting 350 pages in 2 months.
 
I honestly think they plan this DLC this way, they probably knew fans mix views about it. Hence release this now, and Nov they give us something and Dec is the new pack. Perfect. So upset fans will not be off for too long.

Alright start a winter DLC discussion now. Try hitting 350 pages in 2 months.
It was started yesterday.
 
After a few days I want to share my opinion about the species we got. For me it is a nice pack because it allows smaller habitats as fillers between the bigger ones. The animal choice is controversial for sure but I like the Integration of all 5 species. I am not the opinion that this was an easy-to-make animals pack. Except perhaps the Red Fox all species are very unique compared to already in-game species in my opinion. Scenery is okay, I have to look at it when the pack finally releases but a bit of theming is okay for me.

Raccoon: I understand its use as headliner. Raccoons belong to the species nearly every children knows. It is not only more common known than the Tanuki but also much more popular on our wishlist than it. So I really do not get these claims that the Tanuki should have been chosen instead of the raccoon. It was just a pick because of more popularity.

Red Fox: I like it. It also allows to expand the European part of our Zoos. And we get a bige amount of color morphs.Now we have 3 different foxes which are all different coloured and are also living in 3 different climate areas (cold, temperate, warm)

Striped Skunk:
The surprise pick and I like it. It was always close to my top 25. I think its appearance is very unique and it has the potential to be my most favourite animal of the pack like it often was the case with surprise picks for me in the past.

Wombat:
The most popular animal and of course I like its Integration, too. Another Oceanian animal which leads to a step by step fullfilling of this area.

Bat:
The unexpected one. And I like it and hopefully its bigger exhibit makes it more interesting to me than the other exhibits. I have to look at it in game first. But it was a great surprise to get a bat.


Outlook:
I do not think we will get birds for December. With Integration of the bats it surely becomes more likely but it is not a given. I could either imagine mountains, taiga or islands animal pack. And it comes very soon which is also very nice.
 
So I really do not get these claims that the Tanuki should have been chosen instead of the raccoon.
I think most people are talking personally rather than generally. The raccoon is more popular according to the data (though still not that popular - not even in the top twenty-five), but what frustrates me and it seems a good few other people is the dominance of garden-variety North American species here (and I know the red fox is a European/Asian animal, too, before anyone reminds me). The tanuki at least would still fit the theme and be a little more...'exotic' isn't the word, considering how subjective it is, but you hopefully get my point.
 
I think most people are talking personally rather than generally. The raccoon is more popular according to the data (though still not that popular - not even in the top twenty-five), but what frustrates me and it seems a good few other people is the dominance of garden-variety North American species here (and I know the red fox is a European/Asian animal, too, before anyone reminds me). The tanuki at least would still fit the theme and be a little more...'exotic' isn't the word, considering how subjective it is, but you hopefully get my point.
I think it’s wrong to assume that the meta-wishlist is the only or even the biggest statistic showing what’s wanted in the game and what isn’t. Most casual players don’t even know this list exists. Just take a look at Twitter, the Raccoon is absolutely beloved right now.
 
I think it’s wrong to assume that the meta-wishlist is the only or even the biggest statistic showing what’s wanted in the game and what isn’t. Most casual players don’t even know this list exists. Just take a look at Twitter, the Raccoon is absolutely beloved right now.
That doesn't tell us much. Every time a new DLC is announced the community acts like everything in it is perfect and something they wanted forever. It's a couple of weeks after that the narrative changes.
The new exhibit is huge they mention we can take care of a colony of bats… so how many bats do you think that means? Up to 50? 100?
It's actually not that big;
20221008173344_1.jpg

That's the size compared to a normal exhibit size. Sure it's bigger but I don't think it's "50+ bats big."
 
That doesn't tell us much. Every time a new DLC is announced the community acts like everything in it is perfect and something they wanted forever. It's a couple of weeks after that the narrative changes.

It's actually not that big;
View attachment 326685
That's the size compared to a normal exhibit size. Sure it's bigger but I don't think it's "50+ bats big."
Looks like a dozen bats probably
 
That doesn't tell us much. Every time a new DLC is announced the community acts like everything in it is perfect and something they wanted forever. It's a couple of weeks after that the narrative changes.

It's actually not that big;
View attachment 326685
That's the size compared to a normal exhibit size. Sure it's bigger but I don't think it's "50+ bats big."
No, I mean that the raccoon was also popular before it was announced. It‘s an animal that‘s just casually beloved, stop acting like it isn’t…
 
I think this pack will sell EXTREMELY well. All five animals in the lineup are so so recognisable by the general public, much more so than other packs we’ve had in the past. Casual PZ players would sooner spend money on five species that they know than niche species that are only popular on some wishlist! I do think that we forget that these forums are certainly not a majority of the player base and do not decide how well a pack does!
I for one cannot wait. Bring on the skunks and bats!!!
 
I'm sorry, what? I could just as easily say the opposite. "It's an animal that isn't casually beloved, stop acting like it is."
There are dozens of people on Twitter and Instagram celebrating the raccoon and how long they’ve waited for it. Remember, there’s a reason why it was included and there’s a reason why it was made the headliner. Raccoons have a similar stance to Capybaras on Social Media, it’s just that some people here in the forums don’t like it, which can definitely give the impression that the majority isn’t fond of its inclusion, stemming from being in this bubble too much. It’s literally part of the Community Managers’ jobs to to evaluate these posts on other social media and gain knowledge about requested animals out of them (or they at least would have a pretty thorough idea of it).
 
I think this pack will sell EXTREMELY well. All five animals in the lineup are so so recognisable by the general public, much more so than other packs we’ve had in the past. Casual PZ players would sooner spend money on five species that they know than niche species that are only popular on some wishlist! I do think that we forget that these forums are certainly not a majority of the player base and do not decide how well a pack does!
I for one cannot wait. Bring on the skunks and bats!!!
this x1000
 
That doesn't tell us much. Every time a new DLC is announced the community acts like everything in it is perfect and something they wanted forever. It's a couple of weeks after that the narrative changes.

It's actually not that big;
View attachment 326685
That's the size compared to a normal exhibit size. Sure it's bigger but I don't think it's "50+ bats big."
These Bats are small compared to other animals in game though I think 30 max could be the limit
 
There are dozens of people on Twitter and Instagram celebrating the raccoon and how long they’ve waited for it. Remember, there’s a reason why it was included and there’s a reason why it was made the headliner. Raccoons have a similar stance to Capybaras on Social Media, it’s just that some people here in the forums don’t like it, which can definitely give the impression that the majority isn’t fond of its inclusion, stemming from being in this bubble too much. It’s literally part of the Community Managers’ jobs to to evaluate these posts on other social media and gain knowledge about requested animals out of them (or they at least would have a pretty thorough idea of it).
"Dozens of people on Twitter" isn't actually evidence to anything, though. Memes self-propogate and don't indicate the popularity of their subject matter, so they aren't actually useful as indicators of anything other than their own viral spread.

Anyway, your post highlights the exact problem with a lot of people; you're looking at "ambivalence" as "dislike". I'm sure a lot of us who aren't happy with the animal choices in this pack would be fine with them in other packs with other animals. If they'd included the raccoon in, say, an Aboreal Animal Pack alongside some more primates, the ocelot, whatever, then it would be easier to swallow. As it stands it's just one among several animals that are on a surface level underwhelming. I have nothing against raccoons - I just don't care about them as a zoo animal. I know they are zoo animals in most of Europe, but they aren't an animal I would look for at the zoo.

The red fox is the only inclusion I actively dislike. I like red foxes just fine, but I don't view it as a good choice for this pack in the slightest.

Edit: Plus the comparison with the capybara falls apart when you examine a key difference - the capybara has a very large and successful global captive presence, whereas captive raccoons tend to be restricted to Europe for the most part.
 
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