Planet Zoo - Colour Variation

[NL_Mutso]

While I like mods in certain games. Most people are asking for new animals/different skins, which could hurt DLC sales.
A lot of games thrive on mods but also considering DRM (PZ still not cracked) it would be unwise to provide tools to change gamefiles.
Also PZ has online parts which allow for more cheating when you allow mods.

It's the same deal for ARK

Most people wait for the bargain sales for the DLC. Used to be pretty active in the game for several years but I think the majority on several servers bought it with major discounts.

Just because a sequel is released should not mean the old game should basically have to be 100% abandoned bc there's no more new content for it.

Happens to most games. They abandon the game because they want you to move to the sequel. Same happened to ZT1. But don't see a sequel happening soon or in the next few years.

but it is severely lacking in a lot of content that Zt2 had, for ex, pack/pride hunting, seeking out food before hunting, only hunting when hungry, mothers nursing offspring, mother predators teaching offspring to hunt

For me that's a major improvement on PZ's part - that looks more accurate with actual zoo behaviour. (except for the nursing part)
To me, that was a safari park/nature reserve addition to a zoo game (ZT2)
Also those features were only available for those who bought the DLC or had the ultimate pack. A lot of behavior/pack related stuff were put in a paid DLC.

That's it! AND DLC has localization support. Modders tend to only do english versions, which usually will break your localized version. So no mods for me. But I think, Frontier might go in for mods as soon as there will be no DLCs anymore (many publishers do).

Same here, mods would be great when they decide the game is done.

People will still be active in Zoo Tycoon 2 modding communities, buying the game, playing the game, for YEARS after Planet Zoo's fanbase fizzles out and dies. What happens when Frontier isn't releasing new DLC anymore? The game will die

You lost me a bit at "buying the game" because Bluefang is defunct and it's part of the abandonware side of the internet. (which means most people got it free but still not legal)
There are a lot of issues with ZT2 and Windows10 and a lot of people aren't capable of fixing those issues.
Not sure if ZT2 will be active for many years. Most of this community play for nostalgia reasons but I doubt if people are willing to play a game with poor graphics. While I think it aged pretty well, I mostly care for gameplay and easily play games from the 80s/90s but I know that I'm on the minority on this one - most people point out they can't play a game with poor graphics

 

[LN]

That is understandable, and the same very reason for many of us as a community to respectfully ask Frontier to change their views when it comes to this as it would only promote the game. Plus, isn't the Thememaker's Toolkit found in Planet Coaster and created by Frontier basically just modding? A revamp version of it in Planet Zoo that allows animals to be worked on would not be out of the question then, and add the human characters while we are at it. In short the blueprint for it is already there, created and supported by Frontier.

I know, I don't know either if that comment only applies to JWE.

The TMT is nothing more than an object import tool, you can't design rides, so I don't expect a tool for Planet Zoo to make animals.

If they don't supply the tools, you need acces and insight into the engine of Frontier, which is their intellectual property and it's not the same as something like Unity, where it's a engine that is widely available to anyone on the market. So asking for it okay, but I think their point of view on this is pretty clear.

Also, I don't think everybody is asking it respectfully.

You lost me a bit at "buying the game" because Bluefang is defunct and it's part of the abandonware side of the internet. (which means most people got it free but still not legal)

Apparantly there are still copies out there: https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Tycoon-Ultimate-Collection-Download/dp/B075QNZ1HM

 

[Markiz]

The Humans in these Games look like that for a good Reason because if they would add too many Details, the Game would lagg way earlier. I think I've heard once that Jurassic World Evolution can have such realistic looking Guests because not every Guest that is really in the Park, is also shown walking around but in Planet Zoo, you can see every Guest that is in the Park

Well wait, that's great, why did they changed it ?
Better looking people and zoo looks less crowded ? Count me in

 

[NL_Mutso]

Apparantly there are still copies out there: https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Tycoon-Ultimate-Collection-Download/dp/B075QNZ1HM

I know, a lot of people are unable to get it working for their PC on windows10. It's basically a $ 20,- gamble.
It's quite expensive for a +12 years old game.
Most people I know, used a different route

I think after a few updates to PZ, the ZT2 community will be even less crowded than it already is.
The mods did stretch the life-span of this game (which is pretty awesome)

 

[giu94]

Zoo Tycoon was a pretty good zoo game for its time, I loved it, but the building possibilities of Planet Zoo completely outpowered ZT, I would feel bored trying to create a beautiful exhibit or guest area without all the great tools and pieces that we know have. The animals behaviour and game logic are not muche better in PZ, but the beauty and complexity of the things we can build, definetly killed my interest in ZT

 

[paul78]

I definitely agree with you @giu94. I used to play zt2 all the time and even tho the community was pumping out mods like crazy I was already starting to get bored with the game. They would release a awesome animal or something I wanted and after a little while the excitement would disappear and you were playing the same old game feeling kicked in. I was actually waiting for a planet zoo about four yrs ago. Now that I’ve played planet zoo I could never go back to zt2 even with all the mods in the world. Planet zoo is totally superior to zt2.

 

[giu94]

Planet zoo is totally superior to zt2.

Yes that's for sure! Sometimes I just wish it would be really superior with animals intelligence and behaviour too, but even now that's no competition at all between the two games (unless one really wants sea animals...)

 

[Danny_zoo]

I know, I don't know either if that comment only applies to JWE.

The TMT is nothing more than an object import tool, you can't design rides, so I don't expect a tool for Planet Zoo to make animals.

If they don't supply the tools, you need acces and insight into the engine of Frontier, which is their intellectual property and it's not the same as something like Unity, where it's a engine that is widely available to anyone on the market. So asking for it okay, but I think their point of view on this is pretty clear.

Also, I don't think everybody is asking it respectfully.

You are correct that it would definitely be a stretch to adapt a possible TMT version of Planet Zoo, to mod the animals. In any case, this would only be a viable idea, once official DLC support has ended. While everyone might not be asking for mods to be supported, almost everyone seems to be asking for a much bigger number of animal species to be included in the game, something that might/or might not be possible, even with long term support being taken into account. When we factor in the amount of animals that would be highly unlikely for Frontier to add and weight that against the possibility of some of those models looking great as mods, it does merit at least a pause. When those two merge, and in time they will, it might be the question that everyone starts asking.

Do not get me wrong, I would love official content over anything that can be source outside of the game, even those animal models that have been perfected for a perfectionist as myself when it comes to their realism appeal, would not be possible without the actual Frontier model, so I'm under no illusions there, I fully understand, that more official animal content should always be the priority. But having mods as a viable option for key species when all else fails would not be such a bad thing,

 

[Khaidu]

To me, mods are there to fill gaps until DLC is available, or in case the developers choose not to create that particular piece of content.

Completely agree with this line in particular.

 

[Danny_zoo]

Completely agree with this line in particular.

Exactly the way I feel about it as well, never understood the crowd that believes mods would stop anyone from purchasing DLCs, it is the complete opposite. They either fill in the blanks (Gaur) or serve as a viable option until the Frontier official animal is released (Jaguar). As an example, unless a Madagascar DLC is incorporated, the chances of a Black and White Ruffed Lemur joining the roster are slim, this was/is an easy fix with a mod, since all they did was virtually change color patterns, it was a fantastic mod and it added variety. I do not want to wait 3 years to see if and when Frontier adds this animal, if they did, I would buy the DLC in a split second, but if not, I can live with a mod.

 

[Chante Goodman]

Hayo all!
This thread is about colour variation. Please keep this thread on track. There are other threads available that better suit the current discussions happening in this thread, so please continue this discussion elsewhere.
I hope people have enjoyed seeing the colour variations, and I'd love to know what variations people love the most!

 

[Danny_zoo]

Hayo all!
This thread is about colour variation. Please keep this thread on track. There are other threads available that better suit the current discussions happening in this thread, so please continue this discussion elsewhere.
I hope people have enjoyed seeing the colour variations, and I'd love to know what variations people love the most!

The color variations were beautifully done, all of them in my opinion. The one aspect that really stood out for me, was how every single animal was worked on in such a realistic way that did not deviate from what is commonly found within that species. Great research work by the team there, highly appreciated. The llama is the variation I love the most, since it makes this species a visual treat now. All the other ones were superb as well, but this one in particular is my favorite.

 

[Kamal]

Hayo all!
This thread is about colour variation. Please keep this thread on track. There are other threads available that better suit the current discussions happening in this thread, so please continue this discussion elsewhere.
I hope people have enjoyed seeing the colour variations, and I'd love to know what variations people love the most!

The colour variation is an amazing feature, I just have 2 questions:
[1] How can we get white llamas now?! I have been trying to figure out a way to get white llamas but with no luck Were they removed from the game?!
[2] Can you add 2 or 3 more variations to the existing 3 for the Timber wolf ? I think we still need black, and other colors mixed with black such as black-grey or black-brown

 

[Firestar97]

How can we get white llamas now?! I have been trying to figure out a way to get white llamas but with no luck Were they removed from the game?!

Sadly it seems that it isn't possible anymore to get them. I really hope it was just a Accident and we will get white Llamas back in a future Update. I do have a Llama Farm with multiple Enclosures for selective Breeding and I will let you know if I'm able to get a completely white Llama (but of course I will need to keep it if I get one, so I can try to breed more)

 

[giu94]

The colour variation is an amazing feature, I just have 2 questions:
[2] Can you add 2 or 3 more variations to the existing 3 for the Timber wolf ? I think we still need black, and other colors mixed with black such as black-grey or black-brown

I stil didn't try wolves, do they really have just 3 variations? And the same pattern for everyone?

 

[xTosca]

I stil didn't try wolves, do they really have just 3 variations? And the same pattern for everyone?

Yep. I made a mod that fixes that, though. You can find it on the Nexus.

 

[tigris115]

In terms of more patterns, I think that there should be a more serious effort to reach out to people who know this kinda stuff like fur collectors and animal artists.

For example, deviantART user pookyhorse drew the below graph of wolf pelt colors

Spoiler: Wolf pelt colors by pookyhorse

 

[markun]

Sadly it seems that it isn't possible anymore to get them. I really hope it was just a Accident and we will get white Llamas back in a future Update.

That’s a shame, I really like the white llama and it seems odd it isn’t even a possibility anymore.

 

[Aramar]

Hello!

I love the colour variations, they have made the animals look much better and easier to recognise them individually. However, it seems that reindeers don't have any colour variants (or I have bad luck and all my reindeers have the same colour, brown and white). I am currently living in Finland, so I'm quite interested in these animals. In real life, they have some different patterns and different shades. Some are very light while others are darker. On top of that, the antler shapes change dramatically from one reindeer to another, which makes any group of reindeers interesting since they are all different. However, in the game, all reindeers look exactly the shame. I don't expect antler variations (although having two or three shapes would be awesome and if deer and moose are added to the game, this would be so cool), but please, add some variations to the reindeer's fur at least. They deserve a bit of love as the rest of the animals! Thank you!

 

[turkeyfox]

Hello!

I love the colour variations, they have made the animals look much better and easier to recognise them individually. However, it seems that reindeers don't have any colour variants (or I have bad luck and all my reindeers have the same colour, brown and white). I am currently living in Finland, so I'm quite interested in these animals. In real life, they have some different patterns and different shades. Some are very light while others are darker. On top of that, the antler shapes change dramatically from one reindeer to another, which makes any group of reindeers interesting since they are all different. However, in the game, all reindeers look exactly the shame. I don't expect antler variations (although having two or three shapes would be awesome and if deer and moose are added to the game, this would be so cool), but please, add some variations to the reindeer's fur at least. They deserve a bit of love as the rest of the animals! Thank you!

Reindeer have an albino variant at least.