March 31, 1999
That's the day that a new game called RollerCoaster Tycoon was released - a construction and management simulation video game that simulated amusement park management. Developed by Chris Sawyer Productions and published by Hasbro Interactive, the game was released for Windows computers.
That was the beginning.
Hard to believe that 20 years has now passed since then...
The original game was followed by RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 in October 2002 and RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 by Frontier Development in October 2004. Followed by a number off far lesser games that just use the RCT name...
Several similar games such as Theme Park Studio attempted to build on the success of the originals, but it wasn't until the release of Frontier's Planet Coaster that we had what many people consider a true spiritual successor to the original three games.
Some of us in the community have been around almost since the beginning, while others of the community are more recent in taking up the games. Some of us have played all three of the main RCT versions, others have played one or two, some have never experienced them. But however many versions people have played, or the differences in how they play (park building, coaster building, scenario play...), there's always seemed one over-riding theme that united all these different people who's made up this large community over the past two decades...and that is a true love of this type of game.
While the spiritual successor of the original series certainly seems to now carry a different name (thanks Frontier!), here's to RollerCoaster Tycoon and it's successors...may the future of this wonderful game genre be bright and the community that shares it enjoy yet another 20 years!
That's the day that a new game called RollerCoaster Tycoon was released - a construction and management simulation video game that simulated amusement park management. Developed by Chris Sawyer Productions and published by Hasbro Interactive, the game was released for Windows computers.
That was the beginning.
Hard to believe that 20 years has now passed since then...
The original game was followed by RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 in October 2002 and RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 by Frontier Development in October 2004. Followed by a number off far lesser games that just use the RCT name...
Several similar games such as Theme Park Studio attempted to build on the success of the originals, but it wasn't until the release of Frontier's Planet Coaster that we had what many people consider a true spiritual successor to the original three games.
Some of us in the community have been around almost since the beginning, while others of the community are more recent in taking up the games. Some of us have played all three of the main RCT versions, others have played one or two, some have never experienced them. But however many versions people have played, or the differences in how they play (park building, coaster building, scenario play...), there's always seemed one over-riding theme that united all these different people who's made up this large community over the past two decades...and that is a true love of this type of game.
While the spiritual successor of the original series certainly seems to now carry a different name (thanks Frontier!), here's to RollerCoaster Tycoon and it's successors...may the future of this wonderful game genre be bright and the community that shares it enjoy yet another 20 years!
. Back then I never would have thought that there would be a game that I would play for 20 years. To me it’s timeless, just like Planet Coaster. Many more years to come! 
