Concerns about customisation in parks.

[Kierangibbs13]

Firstly I want to say the game does look amazing and it's the only decent modern dinosaur park building game that isn't terrible and/or amateur, so i'm grateful to frontier for creating the game.

However does anyone else feel like the lack of attraction and decorations is a massive let down? while I understand there is potential for inclusion in patches, things like sand (which is a texture already shown in the game) hasn't been implemented into the terrain tools. literally just small things like viewing domes, jeep tours etc would make thr game feel so much more like a park builder rather than using the same THREE attractions on every exhibit which will no doubt be boring and repetitive.

Just something bugging me that I hope gets fixed in a patch, everything else looks amazing and I im still excited for the game.

 

[eddiehead]

I get the feeling this is in hand as a large number of us have voiced the same concerns and suggested improvements. Terrain paints (if not outright tools) to add different textures would be nice - there aren't many that are needed given the environment anyway. Park decorations on the whole seems to be an unknown at the moment, but I really can't see things like lights, benches, bins, signs, planters etc not being in the game. Same goes for more guest attractions. I get the feeling as all the dev talk has been stating only the 4 current attractions, but I can't believe they'll leave it there

I'd say wait until after the Fallen Kingdom DLC. The main game is done and ready, the DLC probably near enough is too as that'll be maybe a couple of weeks. Once both are out we can all take stock and put our suggestions forward again for consideration in the next major content drop which will likely be in the next 3 months (for a free drop) or 4 months (for paid DLC)

 

[Baryonyx]

Agreed.

Everybody's park is gonna end up looking pretty much the same because there's so little that can be done to differentiate them.

Very disappointing. Some people try to excuse it by saying "consoles!" which ignores the fact construction games like Tropico work fine on consoles and the placement of small items is pretty simple.

 

[eddiehead]

yeah tbh, screaming "consoles" is pretty much a null and void argument by now. Sure you don't get the ease and precision you get with KBM, but by no means are the limitations on terrain and decor down to a console version. I've played plenty of games on consoles over the years that had you rotate, scale, move and place objects about the world and while some of them were a bit tricky to handle they were still all doable

 

[Captain Kiwi]

I kinda figured at first that benches/bins would already be placed on paths when you lay them down. I hope to see some decorations, fountains, statues etc.

 

[Andrew2018]

yeah tbh, screaming "consoles" is pretty much a null and void argument by now. Sure you don't get the ease and precision you get with KBM, but by no means are the limitations on terrain and decor down to a console version. I've played plenty of games on consoles over the years that had you rotate, scale, move and place objects about the world and while some of them were a bit tricky to handle they were still all doable

I hate that argument. It usually comes from Peoplevthst don't understand how easy that stuff is to do on them. I never expected or wanted detailed customization like planet coaster. And don't forget with more advanced paths you will get benches, cans etc

 

[SharkH]

It would be strange if the customisation options would be lacking.

I mean they have a lot of 3D assets (like benches , trash can, statues, street lamps , pavement tiles, wall tiles etc.) already for planet coaster what uses the same engine and a similar type of game I am not an expert but I don't get why a lot of those assets can't be used here (after a little bit of work of course, retexturing ,scaling etc.) to make the customisation just as good as in Planet Coaster. Maybe its due to a strict license so they can only show trash bins designed and displayed in the films also? ehh Or it is possible that because the Dinos have a very high poly count to make them look exceptional it was a design decision to keep the variations of other assets low for the sake of performance but than we get back to the "console game debate". ehh

 

[Arutha86]

I had concerns too about customization of the park but I saw in one of the last videos that we will have a good choice of paths. I am pretty confident about the customization now. I am sure we will find some nice features when the game will be released. If not, we will figure out some tricks to build things as we want with terraforming for example. Moreover, I am sure that the DLC’s won’t only be new dinosaurs.

 

[Andrew2018]

I had concerns too about customization of the park but I saw in one of the last videos that we will have a good choice of paths. I am pretty confident about the customization now. I am sure we will find some nice features when the game will be released. If not, we will figure out some tricks to build things as we want with terraforming for example. Moreover, I am sure that the DLC’s won’t only be new dinosaurs.

I think there was 6 maybe even more? we are only seeing the same type of path in every demo so it makes me wonder what they have up their sleeve.

 

[Kierangibbs13]

I think there was 6 maybe even more? we are only seeing the same type of path in every demo so it makes me wonder what they have up their sleeve.

For sure wait until the game is out, but I mean at the minute all the parks look really bare and boring, even the short clip of tacano a while back looked really empty' even JPOG had fountains and bench options etc and more attractions to choose from. Will have to wait until release to know for sure but just something that bugged me.

 

[xyphic]

The developers have to focus their efforts on what they think are the important gameplay elements. In the case of JWE, I'd say they've focused more on management of your park's animals and less on management of your park's aesthetic. Planet Coaster was criticised for the opposite; for some its park management was lacking due to them concentrating on creativity. Whether they're successful will - in my opinion, obviously - depend on how busy and engaged the game will keep you, not on how you can differentiate your park from those of other players. In the end this game is less about creating a beautiful park, and more about keeping a functioning park with happy animals. Then a dinosaur carnage simulator.

It won't bother me too much if there isn't a lot of customisation. It will bother me if the basic gameplay loop isn't engaging enough to keep me interested for long periods, and that means providing varied challenges.

 

[Evolution]

The developers have to focus their efforts on what they think are the important gameplay elements. In the case of JWE, I'd say they've focused more on management of your park's animals and less on management of your park's aesthetic. Planet Coaster was criticised for the opposite; for some its park management was lacking due to them concentrating on creativity. Whether they're successful will - in my opinion, obviously - depend on how busy and engaged the game will keep you, not on how you can differentiate your park from those of other players. In the end this game is less about creating a beautiful park, and more about keeping a functioning park with happy animals. Then a dinosaur carnage simulator.

It won't bother me too much if there isn't a lot of customization. It will bother me if the basic game play loop isn't engaging enough to keep me interested for long periods, and that means providing varied challenges.

I don't necessarily want a full blown customization in my park like Planet Coaster, but something basic like what JPOG had with a few decorations (fountains ,dino statutes, and dino skeleton) trash cans, and benches. JPOG also had maintenance that helped keep the park clean.

 

[Kierangibbs13]

I agree completely, I just want a few pre made attractions and decorations that still have the jurassic park novelty nothing too massively in depth like planet coaster had. Just a developed version of what JPOG had.

 

[Benjwri]

The developers have to focus their efforts on what they think are the important gameplay elements. In the case of JWE, I'd say they've focused more on management of your park's animals and less on management of your park's aesthetic. Planet Coaster was criticised for the opposite; for some its park management was lacking due to them concentrating on creativity. Whether they're successful will - in my opinion, obviously - depend on how busy and engaged the game will keep you, not on how you can differentiate your park from those of other players. In the end this game is less about creating a beautiful park, and more about keeping a functioning park with happy animals. Then a dinosaur carnage simulator.

It won't bother me too much if there isn't a lot of customisation. It will bother me if the basic gameplay loop isn't engaging enough to keep me interested for long periods, and that means providing varied challenges.

For £45 I would expect more than an engaging basic gameplay loop. That's the kind of game I expect many, many hours of gameplay from. This in no way is that. Sure there are the first 5 islands to keep you busy, and then the Nublar sandbox, but then you run out of things to do because there isn't enough to change with the sandbox. Customisation will fix that, you would be able to constantly change the look of your park. I am nowhere near expecting the playtime I got from planet coaster, even with these customisation features, and that costs £30. There is no way I can justify this being worth £15 more. I really hope they have something special to pull out

 

[Six-Foot Turkey]

Firstly I want to say the game does look amazing and it's the only decent modern dinosaur park building game that isn't terrible and/or amateur, so i'm grateful to frontier for creating the game.

However does anyone else feel like the lack of attraction and decorations is a massive let down? while I understand there is potential for inclusion in patches, things like sand (which is a texture already shown in the game) hasn't been implemented into the terrain tools. literally just small things like viewing domes, jeep tours etc would make thr game feel so much more like a park builder rather than using the same THREE attractions on every exhibit which will no doubt be boring and repetitive.

Just something bugging me that I hope gets fixed in a patch, everything else looks amazing and I im still excited for the game.

Yep.

This is the biggest issue I have with the game. I could accept the lack of day/night cycle, the small island space etc. but lack of customization in a park builder just seems crazy to me. Every video I've seen the parks looks so bare, especially the paths. Most buildings looks similar and grey. Even the paddocks look bare.. I'm hoping the terrain tool is a good one so we can spice up the enclosures a little bit. But I'm so immensly disappointed by how every park will look the same.

 

[Six-Foot Turkey]

Agreed.

Everybody's park is gonna end up looking pretty much the same because there's so little that can be done to differentiate them.

Very disappointing. Some people try to excuse it by saying "consoles!" which ignores the fact construction games like Tropico work fine on consoles and the placement of small items is pretty simple.

Being on consoles is the worst excuse. It's not like we're after extremely complicated stuff like Planet Coaster, just some simple things to place down to stop everything looking so empty .

 

[WR3ND]

...

However does anyone else feel like the lack of attraction and decorations is a massive let down? ...

I'm mostly here just for the dinosaurs and don't really care so much about the park building and managing elements – a means to an end of getting a dino sim fix.

 

[xyphic]

For £45 I would expect more than an engaging basic gameplay loop. That's the kind of game I expect many, many hours of gameplay from. This in no way is that. Sure there are the first 5 islands to keep you busy, and then the Nublar sandbox, but then you run out of things to do because there isn't enough to change with the sandbox. Customisation will fix that, you would be able to constantly change the look of your park. I am nowhere near expecting the playtime I got from planet coaster, even with these customisation features, and that costs £30. There is no way I can justify this being worth £15 more. I really hope they have something special to pull out

I know that I'm in a minority here, but in my mind I'd expect a £45 game to give me something in the region of 15-20 hours of non-repetitive gameplay. I haven't seen enough of the game yet to determine if that's likely to be the case, but given there is something of an ongoing story, I am hopeful that it'll achieve that. How much more time I put into it will depend on what the sandbox part of the game has to offer.

Planet Coaster's price was lower because the game's development costs were lower. This is a licensed franchise, with original voice actors. They won't have come cheap. PC is also one of those games where if it's your thing, you can get far better value for money out of it than any other game. There are people who've put thousands of hours into it (the same with Elite). But on the other hand, there are those who aren't interested in the creative side of things and have only put in a handful of hours. I don't see JWE as that sort of polarising game; I fully expect it to be a game that I'll play through, hopefully enjoy, then come back to when there's compelling DLC.