What are you hoping to see most in Planet Coaster

[SPRidley]

A lot of theme parks are modeled after real-world places, and thus have a lot of buildings that are basically just houses, or other buildings that you could easily find in real life.

http://cdn.wdwmagic.com/imgstore/El...tions/Fullsize/Main-Street-USA_Full_15981.jpg
http://www.orlandoinformer.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/universal-studios-florida-589-oi.jpghttp://cdn4.dlp-media.com/resize/mw...ouille-laventure-completement-toquee_16-9.jpg

Even Six Flags is like this (best picture I could find)
http://themeparksushi.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Promenade-at-night-Six-Flags-Over-Georgia.jpg

Now imagine having to place each wall one by one, each roof piece one by one. It would take hours. A building tool like The Sims 4 would make this stuff much easier.

Im sorry, but what are you trying to tell me you with those screens? Of course I know lots of buildings look like normal houses in theme parks. And again, you also have a bunch of strange buildings that are IMPOSSIBLE to recreate with the Sims system building. Toontown, anything "adventury" with ancient temples, super sci fi structures with strange forms... Just becuase you want and easier way to build normal houses are you going to make it more difficult or nigh impossible for other people to build cool structures that are impossible to create with the Sims system? thats like shutting off a large part of your fanbase.
And i dont need to imagine placing each wall and roof one by one, ive done that my whole life when playing RCT2 and RCT3. Slow? yes, but theres nothing as precise as the "lego" pieces system.
And still, there are changes to the planet coaster piece by piece system, we dont know them yet, but who knows, it could be a click and drag system (dont take me wrong, I would love that, as it would ease work a lot), or something to copy paste big parts easily to create rooms....

BTW those photos, I already see a few buildings there, that because of the restrictive height system of something like any Sims game has (and other restrictions you dont usually mind when buidling an normal family house, but you would with this fancy "houses"), would be really difficult to recreate or will not really look the same as those buildings. The differnt seizes pagodas, the super heigh arches, the "double walls" (like a terrace just besides a wall with a window), the floors with different height in the same builging as you go taller (very typical of theme parks like disney to create the illusion of being taller), curved walls, curved wall finishes...
I do understand where you are coming from, I really do, the improvement the sims 4 brought to the table was amazing, but playing it and trying to recreate super complex things, you could still feel the restrictions. Something I dont mind when I play The Sims, becuase im not really trying to do something super strange for my sism to live, but I would mind finding those types of restrictions i a game like RCT or planet coaster.
I think it would be amazing to have some kind of click and drag though, but I know that wouldnt work with every type of wall. Maybe just for the more basic, and I would already be content with that, becuase you could create the basic structure super fast, and then start adding the piece by piece super details.

 

[Angelis1]

Well, John Laws said its their version of piece by piece and that they are trying to do it as easy and fun as possible to use. Let it be copy paste of walls, modular pieces, click and drag options... Im sure they are implementing something to make the building better.
He is right that piece by piece is still the version of easy building that has less restrictions to players to build anything they want. The Sims constrution has LOTS of restrictions, great for building realistic houses, but not much out of that, and we nknow that theme park buildings are completly different than houses.
You want to do a Toon Town type of twisty building? Impossible trying to make it with the Sims building style.

Hmmm ... Not really.

The old "RCT3 Building Tool" is much more restrictive than the "Sims4 Building Tool"
The "Sims4 Building Tool"is (almost) perfect, the pieces inside are not with a game like PlanetCoaster !!! It's different.

Think about it : In TheSims you only have some "realistic pieces" (realistic walls, realistic windows, realistic doors, etc...). The "restrictions" problem you are talking about is not about the tool itself because if developpers add some "Toon" or "Twisty" pieces, it would be entirely possible to create this kind of buildings (and in an infinite number).

Of course, you right about something : the tool is not absolutely perfect, and many things must be "re-thought" to adapt to the game (well, in fact, i dont know what but surely there are things to improve). But overall, this is pretty close to what we need to have maximum freedom, Frontier just need to add "themed packs".

As you can see, even with these "realistic" pieces, this is what players can build in Sims4 :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGFnMU1eIfI
- 0:10 A pirate ship
- 0:15 An arabian temple
- 1:00 A big manor/castle (imagine this on the center of your parc)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5xPVa5NcYo
- 0:10 A "Car" house
- 0:33 "Temple of Hades"
- 0:42 A Yatch
- 1:00 A "Guitar" house

So now ... Just imagine what players can do with this tool, and some "themed pieces packs" containing pieces from differents themes ??? (like Colonial America, Spooky/Halloween, Sci-fi, Toon, Pirates, Industrial, Wild West, etc...)

The possibilities are endless with these "Themed Pieces Packs" ! The only limit becomes the immagination (and "foodstalls" become useless, amen !)

And if some themed pieces are missing and developers dont put new "theme packs" online with their updates ? No problem ! It's even easier for modders community because creating small 3D pieces is simpler than create entire buildings. (and even someone who dont know how to use Maya/3DS can make a small piece in Google Sketchup with a simple tutorial on youtube, in less than a half hour)

Add to this "Building Tool" a second idea (from TheSims4 too) : "Scripted Object" (topic here) in opposition to the system of the RCT3 (What I call "Scripted Prefabs"), and you have the more powerful "complete building system" EVER in a "Theme park sim game". (I speak of the "building" aspect only and not the rest, like: coaster tool, terraforming tool, guests and AI, game modes, etc...)

At first, when I imagined "Planet Coaster", I said "I want RCT3 but improved". And then I thought about it... And no. I dont want an enhanced version of RCT3, but rather something better, that draws inspiration from other types of games.

I hope they are gone that far during their pre-production brainstorming, and that's what John meant but "their" version (fingers crossed)

 

[SydVic]

@ SPRidley - Good point!

 

[SPRidley]

Hmmm ... Not really.

The old "RCT3 Building Tool" is much more restrictive than the "Sims4 Building Tool"
The "Sims4 Building Tool"is (almost) perfect, the pieces inside are not with a game like PlanetCoaster !!! It's different.

Think about it : In TheSims you only have some "realistic pieces" (realistic walls, realistic windows, realistic doors, etc...). The "restrictions" problem you are talking about is not about the tool itself because if developpers add some "Toon" or "Twisty" pieces, it would be entirely possible to create this kind of buildings (and in an infinite number).

Of course, you right about something : the tool is not absolutely perfect, and many things must be "re-thought" to adapt to the game (well, in fact, i dont know what but surely there are things to improve). But overall, this is pretty close to what we need to have maximum freedom, Frontier just need to add "themed packs".

As you can see, even with these "realistic" pieces, this is what players can build in Sims4 :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGFnMU1eIfI
- 0:10 A pirate ship
- 0:15 An arabian temple
- 1:00 A big manor/castle (imagine this on the center of your parc)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5xPVa5NcYo
- 0:10 A "Car" house
- 0:33 "Temple of Hades"
- 0:42 A Yatch
- 1:00 A "Guitar" house

So now ... Just imagine what players can do with this tool, and some "themed pieces packs" containing pieces from differents themes ??? (like Colonial America, Spooky/Halloween, Sci-fi, Toon, Pirates, Industrial, Wild West, etc...)

The possibilities are endless with these "Themed Pieces Packs" ! The only limit becomes the immagination (and "foodstalls" become useless, amen !)

And if some themed pieces are missing and developers dont put new "theme packs" online with their updates ? No problem ! It's even easier for modders community because creating small 3D pieces is simpler than create entire buildings. (and even someone who dont know how to use Maya/3DS can make a small piece in Google Sketchup with a simple tutorial on youtube, in less than a half hour)

Add to this "Building Tool" a second idea (from TheSims4 too) : "Scripted Object" (topic here) in opposition to the system of the RCT3 (What I call "Scripted Prefabs"), and you have the more powerful "complete building system" EVER in a "Theme park sim game". (I speak of the "building" aspect only and not the rest, like: coaster tool, terraforming tool, guests and AI, game modes, etc...)

At first, when I imagined "Planet Coaster", I said "I want RCT3 but improved". And then I thought about it... And no. I dont want an enhanced version of RCT3, but rather something better, that draws inspiration from other types of games.

I hope they are gone that far during their pre-production brainstorming, and that's what John meant but "their" version (fingers crossed)

Angelis, although i think you are absolutely right where I think they need to tweak the piece by biece system to accomodate super easy things in the building system The Sims has had since its conception (click and drag) and The Sims 4 (the module system), I also think copying it completly is not the solution and the piece by piece to bring in the finer details has less retrictions.
The videos you put of the sims 4 are super great. But I have a problem with them. For example the ship (or the dogs, or the car). I still know its a house trying to look like a ship, while I would like to make a real looking ship on a theme park game you could enter.
Something great RCT2 and 3 has are the lower pieces that, used like lego, could make you super different size walls, or strange pieces that are walls, but do not look anything like them. If there would be a good way to mix the good things Sims 4 brought to the table with that type of piece by piece when you want to get into more detail, that would be amazing.
And we dont know if theres even a real grid sytem on the game or is some type of mix, so who knows how it will work [haha]. I really hope theres an option to take collision of this pieces off as thats when you have all the freedom of the world.

 

[Angelis1]

Angelis, although i think you are absolutely right where I think they need to tweak the piece by biece system to accomodate super easy things in the building system The Sims has had since its conception (click and drag) and The Sims 4 (the module system), I also think copying it completly is not the solution and the piece by piece to bring in the finer details has less retrictions.

This is why i said :

Of course, you right about something : the tool is not absolutely perfect, and many things must be "re-thought" to adapt to the game (well, in fact, i dont know what but surely there are things to improve). But overall, this is pretty close to what we need to have maximum freedom, Frontier just need to add "themed packs".

Im not asking a "100 % copy", but "to learn from this system" and offer us a system that works the same way (with all specifications that a game like PlanetCoaster needs)

The videos you put of the sims 4 are super great. But I have a problem with them. For example the ship (or the dogs, or the car). I still know its a house trying to look like a ship, while I would like to make a real looking ship on a theme park game you could enter.

Huh ? We should not mix everything [happy]

First, we are talking about the "Building Tool", which mean a tool made to let us make "Buildings", not "Custom Scenery". It's not the same thing

Second, with a system like the Sims4, AND some "Themed Pieces Packs", this will provide the opportunity for players who do not master a 3D software to create their own objects directly in the game, and share it. The old "piece-by-piece" system from RCT3 does not allow this.

So, in any case, it's much better !

The "lego" system from RCT3 work is possible with the Sims4 tool, the reverse is not true.

This is why we need the "Modular building" and "Scripted objects" (like i said in this topic) because this can solve many suggestions with one single tool.
(something more powerful than the RCT3 tool, which, in fact, just allow us to place some small pieces on the XYZ axes)

 

[SPRidley]

This is why i said :

Of course, you right about something : the tool is not absolutely perfect, and many things must be "re-thought" to adapt to the game (well, in fact, i dont know what but surely there are things to improve). But overall, this is pretty close to what we need to have maximum freedom, Frontier just need to add "themed packs".

Im not asking a "100 % copy", but "to learn from this system" and offer us a system that works the same way (with all specifications that a game like PlanetCoaster needs)

Huh ? We should not mix everything [happy]

First, we are talking about the "Building Tool", which mean a tool made to let us make "Buildings", not "Custom Scenery". It's not the same thing

Second, with a system like the Sims4, AND some "Themed Pieces Packs", this will provide the opportunity for players who do not master a 3D software to create their own objects directly in the game, and share it. The old "piece-by-piece" system from RCT3 does not allow this.

So, in any case, it's much better !

The "lego" system from RCT3 work is possible with the Sims4 tool, the reverse is not true.

This is why we need the "Modular building" and "Scripted objects" (like i said in this topic) because this can solve many suggestions with one single tool.
(something more powerful than the RCT3 tool, which, in fact, just allow us to place some small pieces on the XYZ axes)

Oh no, dont get me wrong, i udnertanded that you were in the same page, probably phrase my answer badly [haha]

About the custom scenery, was not talking about a big custom ship or car that you added into your park as a theming object. I was talking about a building that really resembles a ship (in this example). While the TS4 version still looks like house walls trying to emulate a ship, what I mean in Planet Coaster (or RCT for that matter) is using strange piece walls to really make a ship (that is really a full functioning building inside) but still you look at it and say, yeah, its a "real" ship.
Its probably the example John Walls gave in the Q&A about someone in the team recreating skull rock in disneyland that look super similar.

That type of facade would be really hard to recreate with the Sims 4, theres a real building behind it but the facade is build of faux rockwork. In planet coaster you would need to mix terraforming, piece by piece rock placement (I really hope the add a no collision option), maybe some piece by piece walls here and there (and yes, you could of course add some click and drag and modules into the mix for the most basic behind structure, that I really hope they add in some way). As theres no complicated terraforming in the sims, the drag and click and modules dont have too many problems, because you are usually working everytime with similar wall heights and flat terrain, but once you start adding that into the mix (terraforming, water works, different height walls and pieces) the click and drag sytem becomes a little more restrictive.

Still, reading your posts I know you perfectly understand copying a sytem exactly as another game is not the best way to resolve the problem, so I think we think exactly the same. [big grin]
Really hope they show us the mechanics soon, maybe in 1-2 months? As a builder fan, im pretty excited to see them, thats for sure.

 

[coencoensmeets]

1-2 months. No, I want it now [squeeeeee]

 

[fultre]

Throwing my hat in the ring:

Scenarios. A lot of scenarios. And a strong scenario editor so that scenarios can be created and shared.

I don't really play the sandbox mode that much, so the option for having lots of scenarios is really important... either, already in the game, or creatable by others

I agree.

Scenarios made RCT! Diamond heights, bumbly beach, Mel's world, Katie's world, karts and coasters, crumbly woods... List goes on and on...

Great scenarios will add replay value and give the game character.

 

[Matthew1]

I'd love to see full queue lines and an even spread of peeps throughout the park. It's always annoying when you build something great in a further back part of your park and no peeps even end up nearby.