City/Urban DLC (animals, mechanics, pieces....!)

[zoosaurus]

You see the title "City Zoo" a lot of PZ Youtube Videos so that (alongside my personal wishlist for animals) gave me the idea for this DLC. I hope it is in the right spot in this Forum, as it suggests animals alongside building items! I tried keeping it realistic and think of what would be useful overall for the game


I'd love to hear your thoughts and additions!


Animal Options

Virginia Opossum
Red Fox
Raccoons
Bunnies
Coyotes
Ducks
Skunks
Boars (overrun Berlin lol)
new deer species (eg. Sika Deer, considered a pest in Japan)

Ex: Rats/Mice/Cockroaches /Ants/Hedgehogs


New Mechanics

Sliding- / Revolving Doors, Elevators, Escalators!
Smaller Exhibits (space is a big concern in a city!)(and smaller exhibits are a big concern in PZ )
Noise needs (adds noise stats to buildings, animals, guest groups, etc and has animals get stressed by those)
Phone Charging Station (like ATMS, gives guest an option to charge their phone - improves rating, makes guest stay longer and spend more money)
Pollution Rating/Public Transport:
A new entrance that is a placeable Subway Station. (And maybe a tram in the same way you can place busses and boats from the Europe Pack as Entrances) This could improve marketing in Franchise and maybe tie into a new pollution rating, allowing franchise players to get a better rating through using renewable energy sources (already in the game) and giving them options to change building settings to more eco friendly options as their game and bank account progresses (like the 3 different food grades for animals). I think this could be amazing to support PZ's attempts at education on climate change!

New Pieces

faux cars/tram
construction side scenery (fences, tools, sand piles,...)
faux power lines
round billboards (rounded around corners)
stars on the ground (walk of fame like)(maybe as memorial signs as seen before in the game?)
grafitti art! (maybe another cool contest for players to submit art like that? :O) (or maybe billboards that can show transparent PNGs!!!)
placeable, useful trash (bottles, crumpled papers, flyers(!), deflated ball,...)
T-Shirts, balloons and mugs (popular souvenirs from both cites and zoos! )
more neon signs (maybe neon sign font)

other

glass path, metal grating path (both seethrough when placed away form ground!)
light path made from huge concrete slabs
ambiance speakers that give city noises

 

[KönigDerKaffeebohnen]

I really like that noise idear, that would be a really neat new management aspect

 

[Swjosdotschka]

Kinda like the idea and I take any pack that has skunks and racoons in it and the red fox is missing in the game.
Suggestion for the free update: Backdrops options. Give us a city in the background instead of just green field, that would be neat.

 

[zoosaurus]

Kinda like the idea and I take any pack that has skunks and racoons in it and the red fox is missing in the game.
Suggestion for the free update: Backdrops options. Give us a city in the background instead of just green field, that would be neat.

Ohhh I absolutly love that idea!! Like in Zoo Tycoon 2 they had a city map! that is totally missing from PZ

(pic isn't mine, I just found it lol)

 

[ElectricMonk]

Not super keen on the theme but the bigger issue is lack of diversity - almost all temperate and all from the northern hemisphere (mostly NA). I don’t think this’d be an animal pack - there’s plenty of good scenery options to include (indeed, you’ve suggested quite a few) so my pick for animals would be:

Red fox
Grey langur
Black swan
Raccoon
A gekko species (ex)

 

[zoosaurus]

Not super keen on the theme but the bigger issue is lack of diversity - almost all temperate and all from the northern hemisphere (mostly NA). I don’t think this’d be an animal pack - there’s plenty of good scenery options to include (indeed, you’ve suggested quite a few) so my pick for animals would be:

Red fox
Grey langur
Black swan
Raccoon
A gekko species (ex)

True, that is an issue, I was thinking of the Asian Water Monitor, that is common in Singapur and Bangkok, but to me personally that's not really too interesting (not a reptile person lol). The other thing that came to mind were macaques since they are known for stealing from tourists, but we already have them so the langur is a good idea!
But I gotta say I'd much rather have animals like the opossum or bunnies cause they are an entirely new type of animal, rather than another monkey

But overall this pack to me is more appealing for the building/mechanic possibilities. I'm a builder first to be fair so an animal really only interests me if they challenge me to a new way of making their enclosure

 

[SalamAnders]

The other thing that came to mind were macaques since they are known for stealing from tourists, but we already have them

I need to defend the monkeys a bit here, since they are already thrown under the bus by Frontier.

There 20+ macaque species, we got one in the game. In comparison there are 12 species of foxes, we got 2 in the game and a third is suggested here.

The rhesus macaque would probably be the most logical choice for this theme, but I kinda get if that seems too similar to the Japanese. So looking at a different type of monkey for this, makes sense. And as ElectricMonk suggested a grey langur is a good match here.

We have barely scratched the surface of monkey species, and they are such important zoo animals with a lot of diversity, so they don't deserve to fall under the "another" term with only 4 species in the game. I know it was done with no bad intentions, we are just a lot of people who thinks that monkeys in no way got a decent amount of representation in this game.

 

[Tatanosaure]

I love the background idea. Currently if you want a "city" zoo then it is needed to build city buildings and skyscrapers which is a huge impact on the performance of the computer.

For the mechanics I don't really know what to add to the suggestions already made. I like the idea of a drinking fountain from another thread.

Here is a list of animals considering an animal pack

North American raccoon (headliner) (NA)
Red fox (Northern hemisphere, Eurasia)
Any swan (black to cover Oceania)
Yellow weasel (Asia, saw them very often in my campus in Shanghai)
Chacma babboon (Africa)
Wild boar (Eurasia)
Opossum (NA)
(I have no knowledge about South American urban animals

Sika deer or Roedeer could replace the boar or the weasel

For the exhibit well I would probably go for a mammal like hedgehogs even if my favorite one would be the European Hamster a perfect example of this is the Central graveyard of Wien.
But more likely would be a Gecko.

 

[ElectricMonk]

But I gotta say I'd much rather have animals like the opossum or bunnies cause they are an entirely new type of animal, rather than another monkey

Really? In my opinion monkeys are the third most needed group of animals (behind birds and marsupials) - in terms of representation in RL zoos vs. representation in-game they’re only behind birds. If you really, really want ‘something like’ an opossum then an Australian possum (either ring- or brush- tailed) would be better for continental diversity. For myself, I’d prefer the langur (and I’m known for being obsessed with the lack of Oceanian representation currently in the game)

 

[Doran]

Sure it would need trash can as enrichment items for opossums, red foxes and raccoons.

Rats as exhibit species? Y U C K
This animal should be habitat species, so everone could fill entire zoos with them walking around. Brown Rat is literally king of urban wildlife.
Perfect animal for DLC cover. Everyone knows them. True embodiment of city fauna. Flagship!
And its completly new type of animal. What to not love? Perfect addition.

 

[zoosaurus]

I need to defend the monkeys a bit here, since they are already thrown under the bus by Frontier.

There 20+ macaque species, we got one in the game. In comparison there are 12 species of foxes, we got 2 in the game and a third is suggested here.

The rhesus macaque would probably be the most logical choice for this theme, but I kinda get if that seems too similar to the Japanese. So looking at a different type of monkey for this, makes sense. And as ElectricMonk suggested a grey langur is a good match here.

We have barely scratched the surface of monkey species, and they are such important zoo animals with a lot of diversity, so they don't deserve to fall under the "another" term with only 4 species in the game. I know it was done with no bad intentions, we are just a lot of people who thinks that monkeys in no way got a decent amount of representation in this game.

I mean, you and Electric Monk are right, but this isn't really about monkey representation, but a city DLC, the fact that I'm stating that I'm personally not excited about monkeys doesn't really have to do with the thread overall

 

[zoosaurus]

I love the background idea. Currently if you want a "city" zoo then it is needed to build city buildings and skyscrapers which is a huge impact on the performance of the computer.

For the mechanics I don't really know what to add to the suggestions already made. I like the idea of a drinking fountain from another thread.

Here is a list of animals considering an animal pack

North American raccoon (headliner) (NA)
Red fox (Northern hemisphere, Eurasia)
Any swan (black to cover Oceania)
Yellow weasel (Asia, saw them very often in my campus in Shanghai)
Chacma babboon (Africa)
Wild boar (Eurasia)
Opossum (NA)
(I have no knowledge about South American urban animals

Sika deer or Roedeer could replace the boar or the weasel

For the exhibit well I would probably go for a mammal like hedgehogs even if my favorite one would be the European Hamster a perfect example of this is the Central graveyard of Wien.
But more likely would be a Gecko.

Yes I saw the drinking fountain thread right after I made this thread, I thought it would fit perfectly!

Also really love the animals you suggested I totally didn't think of swans

 

[zoosaurus]

Sure it would need trash can as enrichment items for opossums, red foxes and raccoons.

Rats as exhibit species? Y U C K
This animal should be habitat species, so everone could fill entire zoos with them walking around. Brown Rat is literally king of urban wildlife.
Perfect animal for DLC cover. Everyone knows them. True embodiment of city fauna. Flagship!
And its completly new type of animal. What to not love? Perfect addition.

lol okay?

 

[LindaBroer]

I like the idea. Also the paths you are suggesting. The metal grating path could even be made to be impossible for (certain) animals to cross so you can make nicer looking walkthrough habits without the gates or the elephant grass trick. It works in real life, so why not in PZ. Don't know if this is possible coding-wise, but it would be cool.

 

[zoosaurus]

I like the idea. Also the paths you are suggesting. The metal grating path could even be made to be impossible for (certain) animals to cross so you can make nicer looking walkthrough habits without the gates or the elephant grass trick. It works in real life, so why not in PZ. Don't know if this is possible coding-wise, but it would be cool.

Yea absolutely! I've seen this done irl many times with lemurs I also think it would make for more realistic backstage and lower budget stairs!

 

[Cynogale bennettii II]

I also thought that an Urban Animal Pack could be a fun option. These are my animal choices (I have chosen them to represent all six inhabited continents):

1. Common brushtail possum - One of the few native Australian mammals to have benefited from urban sprawl; comes in a very wide range of colours as well.
2. Common raccoon - An obvious choice, that lives throughout cities in North and Central America as well as having been introduced to Europe, Russia and Japan.
3. Eurasian red squirrel - A charismatic European species; recent research has found that cities may serve as refuges for declining populations of red squirrels.
4. Malayan sambar - The largest native species from the city state of Singapore; a rare rainforest deer that has inspired the building of wildlife bridges over roads in Singapore.
5. Marabou stork - A large and imposing bird that is common in African cities, especially the Ugandan capital Kampala; they play a major social service in removing food waste.
6. Striped hyena - A large carnivore that is making itself at home around cities in places like Israel, Lebanon and India, where it scavenges on rubbish dumps.
7. Either pied tamarin or golden-headed lion tamarin - Both are highly threatened South American primates; the pied tamarin lives entirely within the city limits of the Amazonian capital Manaus, while the golden-headed lion tamarin was introduced to Rio de Janeiro - these were then used to restock habitats in their native range.
Exhibit. Madagascar giant day gecko - Would be the first gecko, African lizard or Madagascan exhibit species in the game; they have adapted to urban environments and hunt insects on the walls of buildings.

All the habitat species are kept in captivity, ranging from extremely abundant (raccoons and red squirrels) to more rarely kept (sambar), and all can also be kept in large outdoor enclosures.

 

[zoosaurus]

I just remembered that I opened this thread a while ago so I though I might give it a little push, since we've actually gotten a lot of the animals named in this thread and WEs as an option, but none of the mechanics/pieces!
I'm still desperate for Elevators and a city backdrop

What species might be relevant now?

I think this would actually be an option to get some ground dwelling birds in?
Ducks and swans are basically in any body of water (in Europe at least) and also... storks!
I think monkeys are now a must here!!
The wild boar remains in Berlin and remains a good pick
Rabbits, Weasel, Coyotes are more and more wanted around here feel like?
Squirrels, suger gliders and small birds could make a good WE! Maybe even ravens for aviary?
The wished for american black bear is also known to wander into cities, isn't it?
variety of deer are also still on the list
My personal favorite would still be an opossum because I've never seen one irl and find them super cute, solid reason, I know
The geckos are also still cool ideas in case we'll ever have more normal exhibits



Any more mechanic/build piece ideas??

Drinking fountains like @Tatanosaure mentioned
I'd say a variety of cartboard boxes to decorate storage/staff/keeper areas
A few types of animal carriers/transportation boxes
Options to make lights blinking
flexicolor seamless stained glass (maybe with a opacity toggle??)
Billboards that change between 2-4 pictures like a slide show
Maybe artdeco architecture? idk

And I think playgrounds might also work for this!!!

 

[SalamAnders]

Billboards that change between 2-4 pictures like a slide show

You can already put videos on billboards, so all you have to do is to save a slideshow as a video.

 

[zoosaurus]

You can already put videos on billboards, so all you have to do is to save a slideshow as a video.

I know, but being able to to it directly would make it a lot easier

 

[YesIndeed]

I feel like this isn't very likely now since we got the raccoon. Mainly cause I can't think of another animal that could headline an urban pack.