Planet Zoo 2 Speculation and ideas

[DarthQuell]

I'm really kicking myself for not having saved the beta .ovl files so those could've been preserved in full quality

I'm sure somebody got them somewhere

 

[Chuditch]

Just noticed that the old springbok Zoopedia pic has red desert rocks in the background, which is funny given they were only added officially in update 1.3

 

[Marvinb]

To be honest i think the whole interspecies enrichment needs a complete overhaul anyways. Because for the most part it doesnt really make any sense.
Like if anything the whole system should be about education for guest rather than benefiting the animals. Because i think the cases where the animals actually benefit from sharing their space are probably few and far between, for alot its likely indifferent coexistence, and alot would probably also prefer to just be on their own.

And if we assume the animals do get something out of it, then why are the enriching ones only ones they share a range with irl (for the most part).
Like if we say the wildebeest benefits from living with gazelles for whatever reason, mabye they feel safer with other prey animals around doesnt matter. Then why is it only thomson and springbock and not the blackbuck. Because they dont live in africa? The wildebeest doesnt know that, and even if it knew i doubt it would give a hoot about it.
Thats why i think the whole cohabitating animals should be about education for guest

 

[SanRazo]

I'm really kicking myself for not having saved the beta .ovl files so those could've been preserved in full quality

Every now and again they pop up for a community challenge

 

[SuzieSky]

To be honest i think the whole interspecies enrichment needs a complete overhaul anyways. Because for the most part it doesnt really make any sense.
Like if anything the whole system should be about education for guest rather than benefiting the animals. Because i think the cases where the animals actually benefit from sharing their space are probably few and far between, for alot its likely indifferent coexistence, and alot would probably also prefer to just be on their own.

And if we assume the animals do get something out of it, then why are the enriching ones only ones they share a range with irl (for the most part).
Like if we say the wildebeest benefits from living with gazelles for whatever reason, mabye they feel safer with other prey animals around doesnt matter. Then why is it only thomson and springbock and not the blackbuck. Because they dont live in africa? The wildebeest doesnt know that, and even if it knew i doubt it would give a hoot about it.
Thats why i think the whole cohabitating animals should be about education for guest

Sometimes the benefit could be mental stimulation more than comfort. Interacting with another species would give them something new to observe and perhaps challenging to think about. Some stress is good; you just don't want to scare them to the point of doing harm in the long run.

 

[Eletan888]

This is probably controversial, but I hope we get the Magellanic or Humboldt Penguin in a PZ2. Subbing the African Penguin just doesn't do it for me. Obviously, flighted birds are the priority, but I want more penguin options

 

[The_Riot22]

• An adjustment to animal AI or other changes to the way stress and temperature are measured. If there are sufficient available hiding places for the animal, I shouldn't get a notification every 30 seconds saying it's stressed out. If there is a heatwave every second hour that makes them uncomfortable, but I've specifically created areas they can go in to stay cool, I'd like them to recognise that. I realise that would be a stretch for processing power, but it is so liberating playing on sandbox and not worrying about it at all

This shouldn't be too difficult. From what I can tell, stress is calculated by foliage and guest interference(guests in habitat and viewing). But they made it far too sensitive where an animal is 1m away from a bush, but since there is a bunch of guests in the habitat, they feel stressed. This is ridiculous. If you have enough foliage, and an animal is okay with guests, then they shouldn't feel stressed ever.

• A huge one for me: some kind of automated animal storage for habitat animals. Currently, the only feasible way to run a large scale zoo is to put everything on contraception, or otherwise deal with animals fighting every 2 minutes. I'd like some improved options for this

Yep

• Education is an utter mess. The habitat education boards are at least 2x bigger than they should be, and having to put educational speakers at every single habitat is so obnoxious. I can't think of any zoo I've ever been to with a single educational speaker...

Yep. Education stations, both interactive and non-interactive, along with keeper talks seems to represent by far the bulk of modern education. Ambassadors and displays(including speakers) are a small minority.

• Likewise, guest satisfaction is a terrible system. Guests annoyed at seeing facilities is the opposite of real life. When I played challenge mode in tropical biomes, I felt like I had water everywhere and yet I couldn't get higher than 3 stars for thirst. Improvements to these mechanics would make challenge/franchise mode a lot more bearable.

Yeah. Getting away from treating zoo guests like theme park guests would be a major plus for PZ2. They would need to change the major income away from guests paying for services, and towards donations. Then they can change the need for guests to get a hotdog and water after every habitat visit. Here's some categories I thought up off the dome:

• Guest Needs - which encompasses food, drink, toilet, rest and entertainment
• Cleanliness
• General Animal Care - how well the animals they have viewed are treated
• General Education - your general educational props
• Special Education(maybe a different name lol) - your more unique educational props such as Keeper Talks, Education Booths, Ambassador Animals, etc.

 

[Artemisya]

I just imagined a hilarious scenario: if Planet Zoo 2’s base game comes out with the African elephant and the Asian elephant, then Frontier will be in their office thinking about an Asia DLC and suddenly remember: "Oh wait, we already have that great tiny elephant model that barely needs any work!" Wouldn’t it be amazing if we got the pygmy elephant in another DLC?

 

[TheDuckKnight]

Okay but am I the only one quasi-dreading this seemingly inevitable sequel?
Like scaling tool and better pathing sure, but I am NOT enjoying the idea of paying $59.99 to finally have aviaries, start from scratch, and THEN having to wait circa 2029 to finally have a proper roster, with what I assume will be a slow, grueling rollout for the previous animals.

 

[TheDuckKnight]

Ignore this double post!

 

[TremendousTimAllen]

Okay but am I the only one quasi-dreading this seemingly inevitable sequel?
Like scaling tool and better pathing sure, but I am NOT enjoying the idea of paying $59.99 to finally have aviaries, start from scratch, and THEN having to wait circa 2029 to finally have a proper roster, with what I assume will be a slow, grueling rollout for the previous animals.

Bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush .. although we don't currently have many birds...

I agree with this sentiment and given how close the game feels to "complete" (no matter what there will always be another species to add, but core species are close to Done) it would be nice to finish this to guarantee we have something to play for a long time yet. But who knows, hopefully the sequel will be a masterpiece and immediately supersede the original

 

[SanRazo]

Okay but am I the only one quasi-dreading this seemingly inevitable sequel?
Like scaling tool and better pathing sure, but I am NOT enjoying the idea of paying $59.99 to finally have aviaries, start from scratch, and THEN having to wait circa 2029 to finally have a proper roster, with what I assume will be a slow, grueling rollout for the previous animals.

Exactly why I want all our roster there at launch. It’s just so shady to make us wait and potentially charge us for them

 

[Mjmannella]

I wouldn't mind if PZ1 species were added in for free over time, but having to pay for them in a sequel is where I draw the line

 

[SanRazo]

I wouldn't mind if PZ1 species were added in for free over time, but having to pay for them in a sequel is where I draw the line

I agree but if they drag it out over multiple years and we don’t have the full PZ1 roster back after the first year and half or so it will get grating and annoying fast

 

[Mjmannella]

Yeah there'd definitely be some antsiness if it takes longer than a year, but I think there'd still be some comfort knowing we won't have to pay extra

 

[NachoB]

Okay but am I the only one quasi-dreading this seemingly inevitable sequel?
Like scaling tool and better pathing sure, but I am NOT enjoying the idea of paying $59.99 to finally have aviaries, start from scratch, and THEN having to wait circa 2029 to finally have a proper roster, with what I assume will be a slow, grueling rollout for the previous animals.

I'm not dreading it but i'm not excited either. People are talking about 80 animals for base game and i think that would be a scam. I think that at the very least the habitat animals should be around 80-85% of the roster we currently have, maybe leaving out some that could use the remaster treatment in a DLC and some oddballs that tbf i barely use anyway.

But mostly this...

I agree with this sentiment and given how close the game feels to "complete" (no matter what there will always be another species to add, but core species are close to Done)

Is so close to be almost perfect with it's current limitations. I was looking at the META wishlist for a thread i was planning and just by considering the top 30 all of those animals are so important and iconic that i can't believe game 1 will end without them: coati, pelican, grey crowned crane, greater kudu, musk ox, sea otter, rockhopper penguin, walrus, secretary, nile crocodile, american black bear, squirrel / howler / spider monkeys, tamarins, guereza, ducks, pheasants, tamandua, echidna, tree roo, patagonian mara, etc.

Even on final pack (+ 1 anniversary animal), if done right with good selection and no unwanted surprises like the elephant, would do so much to get very very close to perfection. I don't expect all of those, but honestly some of these omissions are just mind boggling, specially when you see how many oportunities there were for them to add them and how some of them lost their chance in favor of animals that honestly weren't in many's people wishlists or thoughts. And is even more surprising when some of these already had a very good base to start with to make the animal and other than maybe a handfull aren't really big names that would drive sales for sequel so the argument that they are saving them for that doesn't hold any ground to me.

So yeah..

 

[TremendousTimAllen]

Speaking of one final pack, if you were put in charge and could choose any species (within current constraints so unfortunately no aviary birds) for one last pack of 7, no regards for theme, what would you pick?
I'd have:
1. Golden Lion Tamarin
2. Australian Pelican
3. Asiatic Lion
4. Coconut Crab
5. Mantled Guereza
6. Black Howler Monkey
7. Patagonian Mara

 

[Milurian]

Speaking of one final pack, if you were put in charge and could choose any species (within current constraints so unfortunately no aviary birds) for one last pack of 7, no regards for theme, what would you pick?
I'd have:
1. Golden Lion Tamarin
2. Australian Pelican
3. Asiatic Lion
4. Coconut Crab
5. Mantled Guereza
6. Black Howler Monkey
7. Patagonian Mara

pushing the game constraints to their max

1. chinese giant salamander
2. coconut crab
3. green sea turtle
4. rhinoceros iguana
5. alligator snapping turtle
6. perentie
7. giant south american turtle

 

[Fossa]

I'm sure planet zoo will only have around 100 animals at launch, probably even 80, and we have to wait YEARS again before it's finally complete, people screeching for Bonobo's and Himalayan Brown Bears to be added incoming...

While I would like it to happen (planet zoo 2), on the other hand I just want them to add my 50 missing animals into planet zoo 1 and be done with it, I'm sure planet zoo's big thing will be aquariums and bird cages, things I like, but not really need a new game for...

I don't want to wait for Markhor or Ratels like YEARS again, but on the other hand I'm sure they only start with 80 or so animals, so there is gonna be HUGE losses, and I have a very bad feeling for Saiga, Proboscis Monkey and Pronghorns to never appear again, they probably use Bonobo and Chimps again BOTH in a 80-animal only roster and then never give love to Pronghorns again, a game without pronghorn is a game I don't even want.

If it's only 80 animals on the start of the second game, you know it's gonna be all overrated/overused animals again like Lions, tigers, giraffe, zebra, elephants, one rhino, wolves, ostrich, flamingo ect ect.... No space for unique and strange animals at launch...

Also I think they gonna get rid of Gemsbok and Sable Antelope in favor of the HORRID Scimitar-Horned Oryx... (my two favorites gone in favor of my least favorite antelope)

 

[Fossa]

ANIMALS I NEED AT THE START OF PLANET ZOO 2 (OR IN THE FIRST YEAR OF EXPANSIONS:

Aardvark / African Crested Porcupine / African Elephant / Alpine Ibex / American Bison / American Flamingo / Arctic Fox / Babirusa / Bactrian Camel / Bighorn Sheep / Blackbuck / Blue Wildebeast / Bongo / Orangutan / California Sea Lion / Capybara / Caracal / Cheetah / Pangolin / Clouded Leopard / Capuchin Monkey / Ostrich / Warthog / Wombat / Sifaka / Cougar / Fallow Deer / Fennec / Fossa / Gemsbok / Gharial / Giant Anteater / Giant Galapagos Tortoise / Giant Otter / Giant Panda / Hippopotamus / Honey Badger / Peafowl / Indian Rhinoceros / Jaguar / Dik-Dik / Koala / Komodo Dragon / Little Penguin / Malayan Tapir / Mandrill / Maned Wolf / Markhor / Meerkat / Moose / Nile Monitor / Armadillo / Beaver / Kiwi / Okapi / Polar Bear / Platypus / Zebra / Palla’s Cat / Proboscis Monkey / Pronghorn / Przewalski’s Horse / Pygmy Hippo / Pere David’s Deer / Red Panda / Red Kangaroo / Red River hog / Giraffe / Ring-Tailed Lemur / Sable Antelope / Saiga / Saltwater Crocodile / Siberian Tiger / Snow Leopard / Cassowary / White Rhinoceros / Spectacled Bear / Spectacled Caiman / Striped Hyena / Sun Bear / Takin / Tasmanian Devil / Gorilla /

DON’T MIND WAITING FOR THEM: African Buffalo / African Penguin / African Spurred Tortoise / African Wild Dog / American Alligator / Amur Leopard / Small-Clawed Otter / Baird’s Tapir / Binturong / Black Rhinoceros / Prairie Dog / Bush Dog / Peccary / Coyote / Dingo / Dromedary / Emu / Eurasian Lynx / European Badger / Greater Flamingo / Greater Rhea / Baboon / Grizzly / Indian Elephant / Japanse Macaque / Gibbon / Lion-Tailed Macaque / Llama / Nilgai / Ocelot / Quokka / Red-Crowned Crane / Reindeer / Spotted Hyena / Springbok / Skunk / Thompson Gazelle / Wolf / Lion / Chimpanzee / Wild Boar / Water Buffalo / Wolverine /

PS: I still want the above animals, just not in a hurry to get them, not my favorite animals, but I of course know they are needed for zoo's, but I think Lion's are overrated and overused, never been a fan of wolves, and I really hate Chimps, worst animals next to humans, so not a fan, I know they are zoo-favorites so i included them in the wait-for list...

ANIMALS I WOULDN”T MIND BEING CUT AND NEVER RETURN: African Leopard / Aldabra Giant Tortoise / Alpaca / Alpine Goat / American Standard Donkey / Arctic Wolf / Bengal Tiger / Black Wildebeast / Black-and-White Ruffed Lemur / Bonobo / Bornean Elephant / Dwarf Caiman / Dhole / Grey Seal / Highland Cattle / Hill Radnor Sheep / Himalayan Brown Bear / Tanuki / Nyala / Red Ruffed Lemur / Sand Cat / Scimitar-Horned Oryx / Siamang / Sloth Bear / Sussex Chicken / Tamworth Pig / Wisent /

REPLACE IT WITH ANOTHER: King Penguin (Emperor Penguin) / Nile Lechwe (Waterbuck) / Mute Swan (Black Swan) / Somali Wild Ass (Onager) / Wallaby (Rock Wallaby) / White-Faced Saki (Howler Monkey) / Asian Water Monitor (Perentie) / Dama Gazelle (Gerenuk) / Addax (Great Kudu) / Raccoon (Coati) / Red Fox (Grey Fox) / Formosan Black Bear (American Black Bear) / Red Deer (Elk) / Dall Sheep (Mountain Goat)

I HOPE IT ADDS THE FOLLOWING MISSING ANIMALS: Secretary Bird / Goodfellow’s Tree Kangaroo / Walrus / Black-Howler Monkey / Musk Ox / Grey Crowned Crane / Shoebill / Echidna / Pelican / Aye-Aye / Generuk / Gaur / Marabau Stork / Scarlet Ibis / Ground Hornbill / Golden Pheasant / Leopard Seal / Mandarin Duck / Muntjac / Puffin / Western Capercaillie / Greater Roadrunner / Victoria Crowned Pigeon / Indian Giant Squirrel / Coati / Serval / Mara / Tamandua / Gelada / Greater Kudu / Alligator Snapping Turtle / Helmeted Guineafowl / Giant Eland / Roserate Spoonbill / Fishing Cat / Yellow Throated Marten / Wild Yak / Giant Armadillo / Rock Wallaby / Wild Turkey / Elephant Seal / Kakapo / Perentie / Black Swan / Gray Fox / Aoudad / Brown Hyena / Superb Lyrebird / Waterbuck /