... and wanted to make a zoo/building game, what would it be?
(this is not a post for complaining about the meanies at Frontier who won't do x, y, or z thing that they obviously should do, this is a post to have fun fantasizing about what you'd love most)
If I had a billion bucks and could make a zoo building game of my dreams it would have the level of animal detail we see in Planet Zoo - in particular
the sound effects, from the environment to the guests and their imaginary language and especially the details of the animal vocalizations are spectacular.
I also love the way the animals are able to have pretty complex interactions with their environment and would love to expand that even further.
I'd work to expand the animals interactions with each other. In my imaginary game, the flamingos would do their crazy/wonderful group courting when mating season rolls around. More grooming among the primates, more obvious herd behavior in the herd animals, more play fighting/play among the sub-adults.
I'd have 'nest' requirements for flamingos and crocodilians; the mud mounds and detritus mounds would be habitat pieces and without them, the animals wouldn't successfully breed. Ostriches males would raise the chicks (as they do) in big groups.
I'd have the focus of the game be the animals and building things (habitats, buildings, zoo campuses etc), and keep the management - especially
the money/guest happiness/staff satisfaction very light. No multiple tabs for what each guest in a group is carrying in each hand etc. Games that make it a struggle to do the very thing the game is designed for (in this case, building zoos with happy, interesting animals) really annoy me. I would have that the guests dress based on the biome - so we don't have hypothermic guests in shorts in the Antarctic.
I'd have a different system for the ... conservation credit/conservation emphasis in the game:
The inspection reports would have much more meaning - low performing zoos either wouldn't have access to certain rare/highly endangered or delicate animals, or wouldn't have access to high star/value animals. High performing zoos would get access to better/wider variety of animals as well as a financial boost (a pot of money). This reflects a little better why zoos are accredited/inspected in the first place. High quality zoos with a proven history of good animal care get to participate in breeding programs and etc.
The credits you receive for releasing animals in the wild would reflect more strongly the endangered level of the animal, the genetics of the animal - and albino animals would be worth almost nothing, conservation-wise. Yes, some white/albino animals survive in the wild but it's less common (albino prey animals almost never do, for example). You could sell them for as much 'regular' money as the market would bear (because humans be like that) but albino animals/low genetics aren't useful for species preservation.
I would have a genetic system in the game; where you could learn to somewhat predict melanistic animals/genetic outcomes. It'd be much simpler than real genetics, of course and I wouldn't tie it so closely to having a successful zoo with fun animals (see my point above about making the core part of the game intrinsically frustrating). If an animal was genetically 'small' that'd reflect in the animal's visuals in the zoo. Plenty of color variation.
I'd release animal packs based not only on geographic location but endangered level, species type, etc.
I'd also have 'expansion packs' that were more expensive, significant additions or changes to the game such as: an aquatic expansion pack that had fish, animals, etc. An extinct animal pack, a sci fi pack (who wouldn't want to build a zoo on mars?) and so on. A map pack with interesting or challenging terrains. Selling them as separate items would allow those who find the idea of extinct animals/whatever odious to not have them while allowing those who want to play with them to have the chance.
Some scalability in building items.
What is the zoo building game of your dreams?
(this is not a post for complaining about the meanies at Frontier who won't do x, y, or z thing that they obviously should do, this is a post to have fun fantasizing about what you'd love most)
If I had a billion bucks and could make a zoo building game of my dreams it would have the level of animal detail we see in Planet Zoo - in particular
the sound effects, from the environment to the guests and their imaginary language and especially the details of the animal vocalizations are spectacular.
I also love the way the animals are able to have pretty complex interactions with their environment and would love to expand that even further.
I'd work to expand the animals interactions with each other. In my imaginary game, the flamingos would do their crazy/wonderful group courting when mating season rolls around. More grooming among the primates, more obvious herd behavior in the herd animals, more play fighting/play among the sub-adults.
I'd have 'nest' requirements for flamingos and crocodilians; the mud mounds and detritus mounds would be habitat pieces and without them, the animals wouldn't successfully breed. Ostriches males would raise the chicks (as they do) in big groups.
I'd have the focus of the game be the animals and building things (habitats, buildings, zoo campuses etc), and keep the management - especially
the money/guest happiness/staff satisfaction very light. No multiple tabs for what each guest in a group is carrying in each hand etc. Games that make it a struggle to do the very thing the game is designed for (in this case, building zoos with happy, interesting animals) really annoy me. I would have that the guests dress based on the biome - so we don't have hypothermic guests in shorts in the Antarctic.
I'd have a different system for the ... conservation credit/conservation emphasis in the game:
The inspection reports would have much more meaning - low performing zoos either wouldn't have access to certain rare/highly endangered or delicate animals, or wouldn't have access to high star/value animals. High performing zoos would get access to better/wider variety of animals as well as a financial boost (a pot of money). This reflects a little better why zoos are accredited/inspected in the first place. High quality zoos with a proven history of good animal care get to participate in breeding programs and etc.
The credits you receive for releasing animals in the wild would reflect more strongly the endangered level of the animal, the genetics of the animal - and albino animals would be worth almost nothing, conservation-wise. Yes, some white/albino animals survive in the wild but it's less common (albino prey animals almost never do, for example). You could sell them for as much 'regular' money as the market would bear (because humans be like that) but albino animals/low genetics aren't useful for species preservation.
I would have a genetic system in the game; where you could learn to somewhat predict melanistic animals/genetic outcomes. It'd be much simpler than real genetics, of course and I wouldn't tie it so closely to having a successful zoo with fun animals (see my point above about making the core part of the game intrinsically frustrating). If an animal was genetically 'small' that'd reflect in the animal's visuals in the zoo. Plenty of color variation.
I'd release animal packs based not only on geographic location but endangered level, species type, etc.
I'd also have 'expansion packs' that were more expensive, significant additions or changes to the game such as: an aquatic expansion pack that had fish, animals, etc. An extinct animal pack, a sci fi pack (who wouldn't want to build a zoo on mars?) and so on. A map pack with interesting or challenging terrains. Selling them as separate items would allow those who find the idea of extinct animals/whatever odious to not have them while allowing those who want to play with them to have the chance.
Some scalability in building items.
What is the zoo building game of your dreams?
