Let's rank all DLCs so far

jcp011c

jcp011c
jcp011c said:
oh it's time to do this again. 19 packs including deluxe.

Meh:
19. Barnyard
18. Deluxe (Previously the Komodo was the star, but I bet more people may be getting it now due to Moo Deng)
17. Zoo Keeper
16. Southeast Asia
15. Arid
14. Tropical

Decent:
13. Twilight
12. Aquatic
11. Conservation
10. Grasslands
9. South America
8. Arctic
7. Eurasia

Top Tier:
6. Wetlands - actually bumped this up over Eurasia after some retrospection. I mean, the weird picks are very meh but the good picks are golden. Enough to move it up a notch
5. Oceania
4. Europe
3. Africa
2. North America
1. Australia

Clearly, this year was not that thrilling for me.
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I will put Americas pack at #14....almost put it above Twilight, but I couldn't because my heart is swayed by the Wombat inclusion. It's significantly higher than I expected I'd put it upon full roster reveal, but the Bush Dog has helped incredibly, and the fact we got 5 additional South American animals and a second New World Monkey helps a lot as well. But still...there's no one single animal (or more) I could look at and say that it's one I really wanted, like Twilight onwards was. Though Tropical the Arid, and SEA had a single animal like that, but the overall roster was fairly disappointing for me and I can't say the same for Americas. Thus, it sits at the bottom of my "decent" section.

Actually thinking about the Americas pack more...every other single pack except Barnyard had at least one animal that I was really wanting....and here we are...my wishlist for mammal's top 5 are all from South America..and this pack was heavily South American skewed...and yet NONE of them made it in. The lineup was just crazy. But still...individually each animal is a good inclusion with the Coyote being the weakest link.
 
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yoav_r

yoav_r
KönigDerKaffeebohnen said:
Its literally one must have animal, one butcherd must have that i could continue using female ostriches for and 5 animals that are objectivly filler and hinge on subjectivity.
Personally i can see giving leeway to the ocelot and bushdog, in fact i do so for the ocelot myself, but big horn, coyote and flamingo all 3 are a mix of bottom of the barrel additions, not exciting and just why (i know why, they were easy but comeone is a squirrel monkey or another capuchin that much harder?)
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I dunno I considered the american flamingo a must have
 

jcp011c

jcp011c
yoav_r said:
What's your top 5? Out of curiosity.
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Coatimundi (was #2 but now #1 since we at least have a second New World Monkey
Black Howler Monkey (was #1)
Squirrel Monkey
Patagonian Mara
Brazilian Porcupine

I'd also be really happy with the Southern Pudu, Spider Monkey, Emperor/Golden Lion Tamarin, Grisson or Tayra.
 

Stygi

Stygi
Stygi said:
I'll give it a go:
1. Africa - Pretty good scenery but the pack is filled with essential zoo animals with arguably the strongest roster of any pack, I don't think there is anything I would change about this pack
2. Conservation - Very useful scenery and again a strong roster of key animals, the pack also introduced brachiation and Gibbons which are my favourite animals so maybe some slight bias
3. Grasslands - The best animal pack with a very diverse range of animals from all around the world, gave SA and Australia a boost and also wasn't very ungulate heavy, I like all the picks especially the Maned Wolf, although I would have swapped the Hyena out for a different animal such as the Grey Crowned Crane
4. Aquatic - This pack has wonderful scenery and at the time the animals were revolutionary, however I think the pack hasn't aged incredibly due to some better alternatives such as the Sea Lion and African Penguin although I still prefer the Giant Otter
5. SA - The scenery is very heavily themed but some pieces are useful, some of the animals (Jaguar, Anteater) are essential, however I am still a bit upset that the Llama and Capuchin weren't a Guanaco and Squirrel Monkey, the pack is helped by how desolate SA is which may cause it to drop in future
6. Wetlands - Some wonderful animal choices such as the Capybara and Otter, however some are misses, if we were getting a water buffalo it should have been domestic and I feel the pack missed the chance to add more wading birds such as the Marabou Stork or Shoebill
7. Australia - Pretty good scenery and a nearly perfect roster (Dingo)
8. North America - Some great choices of animals like the Moose and Sea Lion and others that I don't like as much but are also essential for representing certain groups (Beaver and Prairie Dog for rodents)
9. Europe - Wonderful scenery but the animals are a bit of a let down for me (Yes, I am European) I think the Lynx and Deer are great, the Ibex ok and the badger was one of the worst picks possible, I would have much rather had the Wild Boar or Wolverine instead
10. SEA - The pack has definitely gotten better over time as it has been retroactively been fixed although it was a bit of a stinker at launch, I think all the animal choices are good except the Proboscis Monkey should have been a different Primate, the ideal situation would be a Gibbon but that's not realistic, I think the Francois' Langur would have worked a lot better instead
11. Tropical - Good scenery, the animal choices are a bit of a mess, the Red River Hog and Fossa are great animals but for a scenery pack with limited slots probably not the best choices, the Lar Gibbon gets some points for being my preferred species of Gibbon and having much better brachiation but this should have been the Spider Monkey alongside a Siamang remaster, the Asian Water Monitor is just a Nile Monitor remaster but it doesn't even have deepdiving so feels really weird for me, this pack had so much potential but it was wasted, definitely should have been an animal pack where it had the potential for an incredible roster
12. Eurasia - So mixed on this pack, I think the Wolverine, Boar, Swan and Takin were great choices, the Wisent is nice but I think I would have preferred a Bison remaster (again as a European), the Sloth Bear is ok but could've been something else and fills a very similar niche to the Sun Bear, then there is the Saiga (should've been the Muntjac or Blackbuck)
13. Oceania - The scenery is pretty nice and I like the vibe of it, the animals are a pretty good Oceania roster, but some of them don't really do anything for me (Quokka, Penguin), I mean they are nice editions but I'm just not the right audience, although I am a big fan of the Kiwi and Devil
14. Twilight - Some of the pieces are overly themed so are a bit useless for me but others are good, the animals are ok there were definitely much better picks available like the Fossa, Tasmanian Devil or Kiwi, the walkthrough is ok, I don't personally use it and I think it feels a bit out of place (the same sentiment applies to all the walkthrough species)
15. Arid - The Porcupine is great although I would trade it for the rest of the pack being better, the Dromedary is the only other animal I think should have made the pack (actually maybe the Somali Wild Ass as well), the rest of the pack is just boring for me, the wrong antelopes, the wrong cat and another Rhino, there were so many better options like the Baboon, Honey Badger, Tortoise and countless birds this pack also had potential for greatness but left me wanting another African animal pack immediately as it kinda failed at its task
16. Arctic - Ok scenery, two great animals in the Polar bear and Reindeer, one alright animal in the Dall Sheep and then there is the Arctic Wolf
17. Barnyard - Pieces are good and I quite like this potential knew format (although I suspect it was a one off), the animals are mixed, I wasn't a great fan of domestics and they chose some odd breeds as well as some weird misses (Duck, Rabbit), overall I think the hate for the pack is overblown but I agree with many people's points on it, the timing is somewhat unfortunate with fears of the end and a very Ungulate heavy year as well as a Europe centric pack after a Eurasian pack
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Time for an updated list:
19. Barnyard - I acknowledge that petting zoos are a key part of zoos and therefore this pack needed to happen, however the concept isn't really for me and the pack suffers from a weird selection of breeds, an overabundance of ungulates and the lack of a duck, the scenery is alright though.
18. Arctic - The Polar Bear and Reindeer do the heavy lifting of this pack, the Sheep is increasingly redundant with the recent addition of the Bighorn, the scenery is fine.
17. Twilight - This is a pack largely carried by the scenery, although the overly themed pieces aren't my favourites, the Wombat and Raccoon were good additions but there were plenty of other requested nocturnal animals that could have made it in.
16. Arid - A pack that continues to grow on me, the porcupine is excellent and the pack is wonderful for Northern African representation, although it suffers from far too many ungulates there are non I dislike, the pack is further helped with some of the most egregious omissions arriving in Zookeepers.
15. Americas - Despite being my most wanted theme for several years now the pack fundamentally fails to deliver, the Saki is my favourite and absolutely carries the pack, the Rhea which was an animal I was excited for has been massacred, the Bighorn and Coyote are weird choices that could have been anything else, the scenery is just bad for this pack, potentially the worst set ever, most of the pieces are overly themed and copies of one another.
14. Oceania - A fun pack with a vibe I just enjoy, although the Penguin and Quokka aren't choices I am particularly fond of the pack is still pretty decent, the scenery is fine.
13. Zookeepers - A weird pack, I am definitely happier with it now it isn't the last and the lack of a NWM has been amended with Americas but the Markhor and Pallas cat are choices I am not overjoyed with plus the issues with the Sifaka, the scenery has some useful pieces.
12. Eurasia - Some great European species for my local zoos, finally a waterfowl and the Takin is great, the Sloth Bear feels out of place by itself and the Saiga is an unfortunate pick but I really like this pack.
11. Australia - Although the models have aged poorly this pack has 3 animals absolutely essential for Australian sections and the redundant Dingo, no real opinion on the scenery.
10. South America - Similar to Australia, some absolutely essential animals with relatively low quality models.
9. North America - An excellent pack for North America, no real weaknesses in the roster but as a European some of the animals aren't very relevant for me.
8. South-East Asia - A pack that continues to improve with the Tapir remaster, a good selection of species although a bit carnivore heavy and a weird pick of Dhole subspecies.
7. Europe - 3 wonderful species for European sections and the Badger which remains a baffling choice for me, the scenery is also very nice and useful.
6. Tropical - A pack which I also continue to further appreciate, although I am disappointed by the lack of birds and South America in the pack all of the species included are of excellent quality and very useful, also great to get a good model and animations for my favourite species in game. The scenery is again quite overly themed and somewhat similar to South America.
5. Aquatic - A pack that has declined over the years with many alternatives being introduced for all species (except the giant otter), scenery remains useful though.
4. Africa - Just like Australia and South America this is an early pack with many essential animals however the models are all of good quality and all the choices are excellent, I am a bit mixed on the scenery though.
3. Conservation - Wonderful scenery and the Horse and Leopard are great animals, the Oryx and Siamang have both been given better alternatives since but I think the Oryx still retains usefulness.
2. Wetlands - A diverse roster with some real excellent animals a mix of popular animals and oddballs make a wonderful pack, my one complaint is that the Buffalo should have at least been the domestic version but ideally another bird.
1. Grasslands - A diverse roster filled with a vast number of popular animals, includes some much needed animals for both Australia and South America, although the roster is a bit carnivore heavy they do feel fairly distinct and I love the Wolf and Caracal IRL making it more forgivable.
 

DarkTemplar

DarkTemplar
KönigDerKaffeebohnen said:
(i know why, they were easy but comeone is a squirrel monkey or another capuchin that much harder?)
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Yes, Squirrel monkeys are generally much harder than copy & paste animals b/c they require more animations of climbing, grooming and playing
yoav_r said:
I dunno I considered the american flamingo a must have
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I prefer Roseate spoonbill over the American flamingo
KönigDerKaffeebohnen said:
Its a recolor. Im not saying its not usefull but its really nothing even remotly groundbreaking
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The thing is that, the Planet Coaster 2 also fails in sales and the Frontier moves some staff from the Planet Zoo team to save the PC2, so no sufficient labor to work on the PZ now, that is why we see so many copy & paste species in this America pack and the Frontier just ignores those top-demanded New World species like Coati, Patagonian mara, Black howler, Spider monkey and Golden lion tamarins. I doubt the next DLC, which likely be Safari or Savannah themed, will also have rosters with mostly re-skin animals like Masai giraffe, Grevy's zebra and several antelopes (probably Black-backed jackal), but not likely to have the most-demanded Secretary bird
 

SuzieSky

SuzieSky
20. Aquatic Pack:
  • Pros: The faux rocks and plants make it kind of essential. It adds a lot for South America, which isn't as bad as it was but still needs stuff. The scenery set is nice.
  • Cons: The models are a bit older, and it shows. I struggle to build underwater viewing areas, and when I do, I usually use the counterparts for these animals.
  • Still Missing: Ducks and pelicans seem like they could or should have come with this pack. I still see room for a coastal pack with walruses, sea otters, sea turtles, and maybe a manatee. Sharks, rays, and especially cetaceans seem unlikely but cool.
19. Eurasia Animal Pack:
  • Pros: The swan is awesome as the first waterfowl. I also really like the tortoise and wolverine. The texture of the sloth bear's fur is incredible. Now, I can build a good European woodland section and have options for local representation for European zoos.
  • Cons: I rarely build European zoos, and I don't use many of the animals too often.
  • Still Missing: South Asia still needs a blackbuck, cobra, and probably a monkey. East Asia is missing the golden snub-nosed monkey, ornamental birds, at least one deer, maybe its alligator, and maybe a raccoon dog. Europe could still use a critter or two, and there are some clone and bird options that are at least ok. The Eurasian eagle owl would be awesome someday if possible.
18. Arctic Pack:
  • Pros: I like having the option to build Christmas areas. The wooden set is nice. The polar bear and caribou were great picks. The Arctic wolf is a personal favorite.
  • Cons: The models are older, and it shows. The polar bear takes up too much space, and the reindeer (at least last time I played with it) doesn't reproduce quickly enough. Micromanaging populations of a herd of ungulates is odd. The choice of the Dall sheep irritated me, because it takes some of the unique traits of the muskox, bighorn sheep, and mountain goat while not taking the place of any of them. I like the animal IRL, but not in a zoo game with a roster of fewer than 400 or so habitat animals.
  • Still Missing: Muskox. The Dall sheep should have been the muskox. Snowy owls would be great someday if possible.
17. Deluxe:
  • Pros: The animals are awesome. The Komodo dragon is a famous reptile and zoo staple from SEA, and we also got Moo Deng and a staple of previous games.
  • Cons: Without beta access, it is kind of expensive.
16. Tropical:
  • Pros: The scenery set is fun to build with. The animals are fun to build for. I love the red river hog, gibbon, and sloth.
  • Cons: There isn't anything wrong with the pack on its own, but the absence of South American animals hurts it a lot.
  • Still Missing: I still strongly feel the absence of the golden lion tamarin, spider monkey, coati, scarlet ibis, guereza, and tree kangaroo. There should have been at least one more animal from South America.
15. Americas Animal Pack:
  • Pros: I love the ocelot, flamingo, and I'm glad we finally got another new world monkey even if it isn't the one I wanted.
  • Cons: There was no coati, the monkey choice was weird, it was clone-heavy, and the scenery is not great.
  • Still Missing: American black bear, birds, and maybe a wapiti for North America. For South America, the absence of a coati is a strange choice. The saki was super unpopular relative to howler monkeys, spider monkeys, and my beloved, darling tamarins. There are still some great birds, and a mara is still probably needed.
14. Oceania Animal Pack:
  • Pros: The scenery set is nice, and the blueprints are beautiful. I can now build a decent Australian zoo. 2 of the animals were highly requested.
  • Cons: The animals seem kind of random, and they aren't very common in zoos outside of Australia and the neighboring islands.
  • Still Missing: I am still very sad that there was no tree kangaroo. Lorikeets and perhaps birds of paradise would be very cool someday.
13. Zookeepers Animal Pack:
  • Pros: Most of the animals are at least ok/good picks. Baboons, markhor, and spectacled bears were highly requested. I also love the tortoise and Pallas's cat. Tents and party supplies could have a variety of uses.
  • Cons: It seems like a blend of a scrub and an alpine pack. The career map and party supplies would have suited a finale. It doesn't seem very cohesive, but the components are good.
  • Still Missing: As a finale, it would have missed many of the most-requested species. Such a theme could have also covered missing zoo staples. On both fronts, I missed tamarins, waterfowl, flying birds, koi, and coatis.
12. Twilight Pack:
  • Pros: Allows you to build a good woodland area and greatly expands the small mammal roster. The bats, much of the scenery, and fox color morphs are incredible.
  • Cons: Some of the Halloween decor is a bit garish. The animal choices include too much NA stuff for players from other continents, and locals view them as pests.
  • Still missing: maybe a tamandua and an aye-aye?
11. Wetlands Animal Pack:
  • Pros: Animals work well together and apart. The capybara and ASCO are favorites of many, including me. The crane and platypus are also useful and cool.
  • Cons: I don't like building semi-aquatic habitats too much. Some of the picks were a bit random.
  • Still Missing: There are cool options for wetland birds, and I especially miss mallards, Mandarin ducks, whistling ducks, scarlet ibises, and grey crowned cranes.
10. Barnyard Animal Pack:
  • Pros: The scenery is pretty good for such a pack, and it contains everything you need to build a good petting zoo, which is nice.
  • Cons: While barnyard areas are common in IRL zoos, wild animals are more exciting. Some of the breed choices were a bit odd.
  • Still Missing: Turkeys, mallards, and rabbits.
9. Europe Pack:
  • Pros: The animal choices were great, and the scenery is good. I like the buses for the entrance areas. 4/5 were expected, with lynx and ibexes as missing staples from previous games, the fire salamander as the most widely requested exhibit animal, and fallow deer as a basic and unique zoo animal.
  • Cons: I'm not from Europe, and I'm a bit less attached to the pack and the animals than other packs.
  • Still missing: Most of the ones people missed at release have since been added. As I said before, Europe has some good options, but not much seems pressing.
8. Southeast Asia Animal Pack:
  • Pros: Most of the quality issues have been addressed. The Malayan tapir, clouded leopard, binturong, and leaf insect are all pretty useful to me.
  • Cons: Some of the animal choices seemed a bit random.
  • Still Missing: Hornbills and maybe fruit doves would be very nice to have.
7. Africa Pack:
  • Pros: The animal choices are all pretty great, and their quality is good. The scenery is decent, and I like the trees.
  • Cons: Having to pay extra and wait over a year for an African rhino in a zoo game was a little annoying. I love this pack, though.
  • Still Missing: I still hope to see servals, grey crowned cranes, and guerezas in future packs. Grey parrots, red-billed hornbills, turacos, and a vulture would be nice.
6. Australia Pack:
  • Pros: The animal choices cover the continent very well. I think the scenery is interesting, and I love the plants. The cassowary looks fantastic.
  • Cons: The age of the kangaroo and koala shows a little. A kangaroo or wallaby should have been in the base game.
  • Still Missing: Echidnas are on the soundtrack, but they aren't in the game yet. I mostly miss budgies, kookaburras, and cockatoos. There are some other species that I don't miss too much but would be super useful to build Australian zoos.
5. Arid Animal Pack:
  • Pros: This really covers that rare-arid-ungulate-conservation-project that I've seen in so many of zoos. The porcupine is good, and the camel has a bunch of cool color morphs. I like the sand cat. The addax and Somali wild weren't critical picks for me, but I was hoping they'd make it in.
  • Cons: There are too many ungulates.
  • Still Missing: secretary bird and maybe honey badger?
4. Conservation Pack:
  • Pros: The build set is my favorite. They added the most requested animals, the horse, leopard, and gibbon, all in one pack. The lineup was so strong that many thought it was a farewell pack.
  • Cons: It's a minor thing, but it could have covered more regions.
  • Still Missing: golden lion tamarin, tree kangaroo, grey crowned crane
3. South America Pack:
  • Pros: I think I've gotten more mileage out of these animals than any other pack. The black jaguar looks cool. The llamas are funny and have cool morphs. The capuchin is the most basic monkey in the game, and
  • Cons: This entire pack should have come with the base game, and the bench set is not the most useful.
  • Still Missing: The golden lion tamarin, macaws, toucans, and spider monkey were the main ones I missed when it was announced. The spectacled bear, maned wolf, ocelot, flamingo, and sloth were eventually added. Now, I also want/need more wetland birds, coatis, and maras.
2. Grasslands Animal Pack:
  • Pros: This pack covers many important regional gaps. The animals look great. The butterflies are an awesome addition.
  • Cons: No major ones
  • Still Missing: grey crowned crane
1. North America Animal Pack:
  • Pros: The animal choices are spectacular and requested. It covers the continent's regions well. The animals require diverse habitats.
  • Cons: The moose and maybe the mountain lion seemed to be missing from the base game.
  • Still Missing: The black bear and bald eagle are the big ones, but a habitat bird or two and maybe a deer would be nice, too.

In terms of what I would recommend to other people:
I would first encourage people to get the packs with their favorite animals and maybe build sets. Most people also like their local packs. Beyond that...
  • Excellent Packs: Many love these packs
    • North America Animal Pack
    • Europe Pack
    • Grasslands Animal Pack
    • Africa Pack
    • Wetlands Animal Pack
  • Basic 'Essentials' for New Players: Not quite as nice as the excellent packs, but have important animals or scenery
    • South America Pack
    • Australia Pack (maybe could scrape by with just grasslands)
    • Aquatic Pack
    • Conservation Pack (might be excellent instead of essential)
  • Great/Good: Solid packs with minor areas for improvement
    • Tropical
    • Southeast Asia
    • Oceania
    • Zookeepers
    • Americas
  • Controversial and/or Kind of Niche: Good for a specific purpose that varies in terms of usefulness for each player
    • Barnyard
    • Deluxe
    • Arid
    • Twilight
    • Arctic
    • Eurasia
 

Mjmannella

Mjmannella
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Fabian

Fabian
Fabian said:
There are no real front-runners on my list, so even the lowest-ranked pack isn't that much worse than, say, #5 on my list. #1 to #3 are pretty much interchangeable. But here we go:

8. Arctic Pack – I want to jump at this pack's defense whenever I see people outright trashing it, but then I remember that I really don't use three quarters of this pack at all. The dall sheep is my favorite by a wide margin, and I use it in almost all of my zoos. The reindeer isn't too appealing to me, the polar bear is a great animal that I don't really care about too much and have not put into any of my zoos so far, and the arctic wolf is an animal that I have somewhat warmed up to, but still never used regardless. The building pieces are very useful to avoid climbing animals escaping their habitats, but other than that, the pieces are not really my go-to building items. So, last place it is for this pack, even though it still has quite a bit going for it.

7. Africa Pack – this was a tough choice for me to make, but ultimately I came to the conclusion that I liked the other packs more than this one. The building items are all beautiful, but I rarely use them, and while all the animals are utterly fantastic and perfect representations for the African continent, I still felt a little underwhelmed considering that there would be so many more African species to choose from (I'm still sad at the possibility that we might never get secretary birds or servals in the game). The four animals are all some of my favorites, but the building items themselves did not convince me as much as in other scenery packs, even though I can remember a lot of praise for its versatility when it came out.

6. South America Pack – what is in here is great. I love all the animals (even the llama, even though I would have loved to get a guanaco instead), but what's missing is key here. The severe lack of South American fauna in the base game was not really compensated by this pack, and although the Aquatic Pack made up for that to some extent, there are still some iconic species missing. If we had gotten three more species in the base game, such as one more new world primate and something like the spectacled bear, patagonian mara or greater rhea, that might have made me less grumpy at the SA pack for being so slight in terms of much-needed SA representation. Still, the downside of this pack is what's missing, and not what's there, because I really like the building items and frequently use all the animals in here.

5. Aquatic Pack – it's probably unfair to not rank this in the Top Three, but my main complaint about this one retrospectively is that all the animals in here except for the otter have more interesting alternatives by now, and if the Asian Small-Clawed Otter made it to the game, that would make it four. Don't get me wrong, I like all the animals in this pack, but sea lions, african penguins and alligators seem more serviceable to me than seals, king penguins and caimans. That said, I still dislike that we got the grey seal over the harbor seal, and would have loved another Antarctica penguin species (gentoo or southern rockhopper) to put into mixed habitats along with the king penguin. But I guess we'll have to rely on mods for that. Still: the building items are incredible, and I loved the pack when it came out, so the negatives are only mentioned because I needed to somehow explain not putting this on the top of this list.

4. South East Asia Animal Pack – most people rank this lowest, as far as I can tell, but I love almost all the animals in here. The sun bear, binturong, dhole and babirusa are all animals that I couldn't imagine my zoos without anymore (with babirusa & sun bear turning into some of my all-time favorites in the game, and the dhole a rather surprising inclusion that I warmed up to quickly, and now consider my favorite canine in the game second only to the arctic fox). The clouded leopard would join those afore-mentioned species if it wasn't so bugged, and the malayan tapir if it was a better model. The proboscis monkey is a great inclusion, but I have to agree that it's not very useful for making general zoos, and a more generic primate species might have gone a long way to make this more utilizable. Having the komodo dragon in here and one of the other animals (e.g. the tapir) in the deluxe edition instead might have made it more appealing to people as well.

3. Australia Pack – second best scenery pack, in my opinion. The building items are fantastic and very useful for themed areas, and the animals are great all around. Even though more animals from Oceania are still missing and the dingo was an annoyance for many, I can't find myself disliking any of the additions in here, and the kangaroo is still one of my favorites. Would have loved a wallaby as well, but understand why it wasn't included.

2. North America Animal Pack – all-around amazing animal choices. Some people criticize the inclusion of the arctic fox, but I'm so thankful we finally got it, and I love all the other animals from this pack as well. In retrospect, even though I was against it at the time, I think I would have appreciated an American Black Bear as a "clone animal" as well to get more versatility for NA sections, but I wouldn't really know what to replace in this pack.

1. Europe Pack – might be recency bias, but this was the perfect pack for me. The building items and scenery pieces are so useful and interesting, but it's the animal line-up that makes this so great for me. All four of these animals, the ibex, the lynx, the beautiful fallow deer and the badger are now integral staple animals for my zoos. There is not a single thing I would change about it, and I was over-the-moon excited when it came out.
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Time to update this ranking! What a long way we've come since my last ranking.

20. Barnyard Animal Pack
A fine pack that I've never used so far, so my opinion might still change once I do. Domestics were never high on my wishlist and the species choices felt particularly weird to me. But there are some nice and useful scenery pieces.

19. Arctic Pack
Still on the lower end of packs for me. I still don't like the Arctic Wolf, mainly because the base game wolf looks so bad and downright forces me to use the Arctic Wolf instead. I like the dall sheep, but now that we have received better caprine alternatives, the lack of Musk Ox is very noticeable.

18. Zookeeper's Animal Pack
All seven animals are great choices, but they don't work very well together. They were obviously developing a Highlands Pack at one point - just go for it rather than shying away halfway through.

17. Americas Animal Pack
Some very useful additions along with some less useful ones, with the much-discussed lack of a coati as its most glaring shortcoming.

16. Tropical Pack
I like the individual parts of this pack. All five animals are great choices (I even warmed up to the monitor), and the scenery is good-looking. But I don't think the individual elements come together well into a cohesive whole. The entire pack feels all-over-the-place, and considering how many tropical animals were needed at the time (and still are), this arguably should have been an animal pack.

15. South America Pack
This has aged rather badly for me. I don't use the scenery pieces whatsoever and dislike their textures, for some reason. The animals are all good and necessary, but they should all have been in the base game to give us a head start on SA animals and allow us to get more SA representation through this pack. My suggestion: keep the Jaguar as headliner, move Llama and Capuchin into the base game, and then have a pack with Jaguar, Anteater, Squirrel Monkey and a Caiman species. That scenario would have been super-useful at the time.

14. Asia Animal Pack
Six undeniably great animal choices, but the pack as a whole is held back by the elephant as a truly baffling choice. Can't comment on the scenery yet.

13. Aquatic Pack
My issues persist: the Seal and Caiman have gotten better alternatives since, and I still think the Grey Seal should have been the Harbor Seal. I love the scenery, though. Move the Caiman into the SA pack, replace the seal species and add a bird (either a duck, swan or even a pelican) and this would have been an undeniable banger for me.

12. Southeast Asia Animal Pack
I understand the general sentiment towards this pack, but I continue to have a soft spot for it. All the animals are extremely useful to me.

11. Australia Pack
Fantastic scenery and animals. I loved the addition of the Cassowary at the time, still do. Further Australian additions have only made this pack more useful over time.

10. Africa Pack
I'm ranking it a bit higher this time around because the selected animals are great choices and the scenery is so useful. In retrospect, maybe the Fennec Fox fits better into the Arid pack, opening up a spot here for another animal, but I loved its inclusion at the time.

9. Arid Animal Pack
Another pack that grew on me a lot. The Somali Wild is one of my Top Three favorites in the game, and all the other animal choices are equally useful to me. I just felt (still do) that this pack could have been better by going for a more global roster.

8. Oceania Pack
Love the scenery, love the summer vibe, all the animals. A really good pack all-around.

7. Eurasia Animal Pack
A great pack that feels upstaged by the weird inclusion of the Sloth Bear. But I love all the other choices (even the saiga).

6. Twilight Pack
A pack that is only getting stronger over time. I felt like the animal roster should have been more global (the lack of Fossa was my main regret of the time), but all the animals are frequent go-tos in my builds, and the scenery is so useful.

5. North America Animal Pack
In short: a wonderful roster. Great pack.

4. Wetlands Animal Pack
I was a bit skeptical of the animal choices when it came out, but it holds up with a truly wonderful roster that actually feels diverse and global. At the time I was mostly mad to get another caiman, but it's now my favorite reptile in the game.

3. Conservation Pack
Second-best scenery of the game. Plus, there are no complaints with this insanely strong animal roster. The siamang has gotten a stronger alternative since, but remains nice to have. I also love the Oryx, Przewalski's Horse and think the Amur Leopard is one of my three favorite cats in the game.

2. Grasslands Animal Pack
No complaints. This is the best animal pack, without a doubt. Every choice a heavy-hitter. I loved this pack a lot when it was released, still do.

1. Europe Pack
It remains my favorite of the original continent-based packs. The best roster, and the scenery is outstanding. The European Marquee Beam has to be my most-used piece. Probably my most used DLC overall up until now.
 

Mjmannella

Mjmannella
yoav_r said:
I'm curious about your positioning of Grasslands and Zookeeper
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  • The habitat roster for Grasslands is just okay, I think it could've been a lot more. Swap the caracal with a red-legged seriema and the striped hyena with a black-&-gold howler (surprise! They do live in the Cerrado), and this would've been bumped at least one tier. But the inclusion of 5 exhibit animals keeps it in the high-end of the DLC packs.
  • Zookeeper being a big culmination of the game that digs in being so celebratory only makes the absence of exhibit animals all the more detrimental. The replacement scenery pieces are also just a bit too specialised to work well on a broad scale. The habitat roster just doesn't do a lot for me, and it hurts that "highly requested" species weren't actually that high-demand all things considered. For me personally, the tortoise is the only one that strongly interests me. There were so many ways to make this theme work, and it just falls flat in my eyes.
 
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FoxyDee

FoxyDee
yoav_r said:
If you had to pick the most essential 5 packs that are most meaningful "game changers" in terms of content, which would you pick?
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For me it would be:
1. Aquatic - I know loads of people will say that the animals included in this pack now have better alternative, but imagine you are a new player and just want some new way go build - this pack is perfect then as it packs 4 aquatic species at once. Not to mention that it probably has the most “must have” items like the faux rocks, recolourable wooden walls, aquatic plants which really not any other pack have and some toys for aquatic animals, aside from other things.

2. Africa - This pack is one of the strongest in terms of animals in my opinion, as it contains smaller habitat species that the best game have not enough, but at the same time they are all something that you probably dont have yet - I mean Meerkat? That is a basic zoo animal, as well as african rhino species, a fox species and a warm weather penguin that is common in zoos. In terms of of pieces, the flexi colour plaster pieces are extremely useful in more detailed builds.

3. Conservation - Animal wise, this have nice species as Siamang provides a brachiating gibbon, Leopard is an iconic spotted cat (which since got a species in base game but still), and Przewalski Horse and the Oryx are conservation icons at this point. The strongest feature of this pack is however in its building pieces. All kind of wooden frames and panels, ceramic planterns, tools, pipelines, containers and other things that will give your builds realism in the little details. It also contains most plants out of all packs and all of these grasses are super useful.

4. Grasslands - this pack contains no species, but in terms of bulking your animal roster it does several things at once - it boosts two underepresented continents - South America and Oceania. At the same time in case of oceania it add probably the most important species, as the wallaby and emu are probably the most common Australian species included in worldwide collections. And lets not forget the butterflies. Building a butterfly house or an outdoor garden is a really nice feature. Yeah, there will be a free butterfly comming soon, but still with this pack you will be able to combine more species together.

5. Wetlands - this last place is more subjective I think, but this pack also does a good thing in bulking your animal roster, especially with more water loving animals, but at the same time, they are from all over the world and represents all kind of biomes and a nice variety of the creatures.
 
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