General / Off-Topic RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic - iOS and Android

[samhimburg]

Atari has just released RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic, a "new" game for mobile based on the Atari-produced theme park sims. Classic takes its cues from the original RCT and RCT 2, offering a more simple take on park design, construction and management than more recent titles in the series. It's also the first RTC game for mobile that isn't stuffed full of microtransactions. Instead, you pay $6 (£4.50) once and then you own the game. Innovation!

Okay, so there are a few in-app purchases. Two content packs -- "Wacky Worlds" and "Time Twister" -- based on the RCT 2 of the same name are available for $1.99 (£1.50) each. There's also a Toolkit that lets you edit scenarios, design rides and so on. It also lets you import / export saved parks with cross-platform support for RCT 2 on PC, but that comes at a price: another $6.

All-told, unlocking everything would cost $16, but unbundling it in this way makes sense given many will have no interest in the Editor or additional content.

After the microtransactional mess that was RCT 4 for mobile, and the poorly received RCT World for PC, it's genuinely surprising to see that Atari actually understands what people want from an RCT title. You can check it out on Google Play or the App Store now.

Source: Engadget

I've been playing around with it for a bit. This is the RCT mobile game I've been wanting for years. It's basically a direct port of RCT2 optimized for touch. They've changed some of the controls and menus to make it easier to use on a touch screen, and even added some new features like the ability to speed up time.

If you're at all a fan of this genre, this purchase is a no-brainer.

 

[Heinold]

Thank you for your short review! I think I will buy it. [up]

 

[The Stig]

I love the classic RCT games, but I wish the money didn't go to Atari.

 

[biobazard]

Atari is dead... since rct4, and since they don't give rct (true) 4 (world) to frontier...

"I love the classic RCT games, but I wish the money didn't go to Atari. " <= me too
"

Thank you for your short review! I think I will buy it" <= please no...

 

[breezerHOG1]

Classic RCT was developed by the original creator of the RCT series, Chris Sawyer, so at least some of the money goes to him.

You can also buy RCT3 mobile which is made by Frontier if you wanted to support them too.

Just stay away from RCT4 and RCTWorld

 

[samhimburg]

Me: "Hey, here's a cool thing. I should share it with the community that also likes cool things like this."
Community: "THAT THING SUCKS! YOU SHOULD HATE IT!"

 

[The Stig]

Me: "Hey, here's a cool thing. I should share it with the community that also likes cool things like this."
Community: "THAT THING SUCKS! YOU SHOULD HATE IT!"

It's not you, nor the game.
We just what Atari has done to RCT.

 

[Crowdpleaser]

I remember that Chris Saywer stated in an interview that he was porting the classic RCT to mobile. This seems to be it. Even though Atari will get some of the Cash, i will buy it just to support him. At least it doesn't seem to be a microtransaction heck-hole.

 

[CmdrJacks]

I never played the old RCT games but I'm thinking about getting RCT3 Platinum in the steam sale. I just wonder if it will be a let down after playing PC.

 

[Joël]

It's not you, nor the game.
We just what Atari has done to RCT.

I also don't like what Atari did to the franchise, and I don't like what Atari did to the community, to put it mildly. For me, Atari being the publisher of RCT Classic is enough reason for me not to buy that game. I simply won't give another penny to that publisher. I'd rather play RCT 1 and 2 on my tablet using the pc version. Something I still enjoy on occasion.

Of course, everyone is free to buy and play RCT Classic. I recommend it to anyone who has played RCT 1 and/or 2 in the past, because it's great that people can finally play the classic RCT1 and 2 in one game on mobile devices. From what I have seen of the game (my brother has bought it), it's a great game that really has everything from the original games. .

A big [up] to Chris Sawyer for making that happen.

 

[Harbinger]

It's a shame Atari get to publish the mobile version of Chris Sawyer/Origin8's RCT mobile port, understandable being that they still hold exclusive publishing/distribution rights on RCT1/2 but a bitter pill none the less after what they've done to the brand in recent years.

I am of course happy for Chris Sawyer and Origin8. I would also hope that Frontier as the original developer of the Time Twister/Wacky Worlds expansions being resold as in-app purchases also get a cut of the profits.

Chris Sawyer/Origin8 have probably managed to bail out and plug the leaks in that sinking ship know as Atari with this port. Whether or not Atari choose to do the honourable thing and reinvest in getting RCTW up to scratch remains to be seen.

 

[Serpentrax]

Completely lost track of time this morning while playing ye olde Forest Frontiers and Bumbly Beach on the couch. Apart from some minor frustrations with the scenery stacking (was to be expected without a keyboard) and the missing option to build slopes on tracked rides (must be a bug since the prefab layouts do have slopes), it is really good.

I was unpleasantly surprised to see the Atari publisher name though, although I guess it was unavoidable since this...well..."company" still owns the brand. Makes me wonder how Frontier got away with RCT3 for iPads, since it also bears the now defaced franchise name.

I can understand why the RCT2 addons are separate DLC/ IAPs (must be some sort of lega issue, here's hoping Frontier still gets a small cut). I personally never liked Wacky Worlds and Time Twister, sorry Frontier! The artstyle was overly detailed, chaotic and didn't match the original objects from RCT(2), the giant human figures made no sense and there was no actual new content. Everything was a reskin of an existing ride, and rather ridiculous ones as well. Who thought it was a good idea to have Rollercoaster trains shaped after a giant Koalabear or football? A Tommygun shaped Turns flatride, wut? I'm not paying for that nonsense again, and because it is a separate purchase II don't have to, thank you very much!

The third DLC ifor Classic is the Toolkit, which contains a scenario editor, the track editor (both were in Vanilla RCT2 for free) and the import/ export tool that supposedly can exchange files with the desktop version of RCT2! That sounds quite interesting, although I don't understand why this is a separate purchase that costs more than the entire game. Can't shake off the feeling that this was a decision on Atari's side as some kind of twisted consolidation price because they can't rip off consumers with stupid Tickets, Coins or Cards this time! I refuse to believe that this was Chris Sawyer's decision, also not sure if I am willing to play along with their little joke; How are the experiences with this Toolkit?

 

[Harbinger]

I was unpleasantly surprised to see the Atari publisher name though, although I guess it was unavoidable since this...well..."company" still owns the brand. Makes me wonder how Frontier got away with RCT3 for iPads, since it also bears the now defaced franchise name.

Frontier signed an agreement with Atari to grant them additional rights to RCT3 back in 2013 when Atari was going through Chapter 11.

 

[portside]

So this is the Chris Sawyer RCT that he mentioned in the interview! But for 5.99, considering the fact that I'm gonna be straining my vision on a fairly small screen, II think that for the time being. I'll just stick to OpenRCT2.

 

[Harbinger]

Yes. It's the port he said they were working on in the Eurogamer interview.

"As the creator of the original RollerCoaster Tycoon ® PC games many years ago, I have seen how much excitement and entertainment they have brought to players all over the world," said Chris Sawyer, Producer. "It was my long term ambition to bring the classic game to modern touch screen devices as its visual style and tactile nature are so well suited to smartphones and tablets. Working with Origin8 Technologies' development team, we have been able to modernize the classic gameplay for touch screen devices while preserving the unique graphical style of the original RCT games. I believe fans of the RCT series will greatly enjoy playing the classic titles enhanced on a new platform."

 

[The Stig]

*Facepalm*

Atari, Atari, Atari..... [rolleyes]
https://www.reddit.com/r/rct/comments/5k2xxc/rctc_why_can_i_only_build_flat_tracks_was_the/

 

[Serpentrax]

Yeah that is probably a slight oversight by the devs (Chris Sawyer and/or Origin8) which will hopefully be fixed at some point. Why would you blame Atari for that? Those guys have no experience or even affinity with the gaming industry, let alone the skills to develop a game on their own.

Unless they actually ordered the devs to intentionally leave it out and create a "slopes pack" as In-App Purchase. Which is unlikely, although not unthinkable in Atari's case.[bored]