What Update 1.15 Should Have

[DarthQuell]

Updates are getting smaller and smaller. Last few kinda show that. So, it's not likely that a huge game changer will appear in the next couple updates. Or will it?


Something that many are asking about is if there can be enrichment updates, allowing more species to use certain enrichment objects, such as the aardvark and chimps and bonobos using the termite mound, more cats and bears and the primates using the hammock, etc.
Updating the entire roster to use some of the DLC enrichment objects will greatly add some use to many as well as making habitats more versatile.

Now, for the other aspect: animal updates. Many of the base game animals, and some DLC animals, look very different or are plain bad compared to the DLC species. Updating their models to fit the current day quality will be amazing and everybody will be happy. We've seen them change the been-too-wrong binturong in only 2 days, so it shouldn't be too long to update models either



I'm sure that this will seem small, but it's a huge game for much of the fanbase and everybody will be happy

 

[Marvinb]

I have a couple smaller update ideas:

- A sandbox option to let you choose the animal you actually want. Namely an option to pick the size percentage, color variation of your animal and disable scars

- More variety for terrain brushes. I really want that tropical dirt with bark and sticks in there on my temperate map

- A null option for terrariums. I know that different sizes and stuff are also requested, but this is such a small thing that would already go such a long way

 

[Villanelle]

There are a few big update features to help with landscaping that I don't expect to come anytime soon, if ever. But I've been so pleasantly surprised by some of the free update features in the past so I have faith in you, Frontier! If any of these came along, I'd be gassed.

#1 is a foliage brush a la Zoo Tycoon. Pick your region and biome or better yet, cherry-pick (see what I did there) a few specific species that you want, and then brush them over the terrain in large satisfying strokes.

#2 larger terrain manipulation tools so that we can create hills, valleys, mountains and lakes much faster. The current size does not allow me to edit my park as a whole, just tiny bits at a time and it takes a eeeeally long time. I have tried with the usermaps thing, it doesn't work very well, the gradients come out all funny and then changing them takes just as long as starting from scratch. I've tried several different art software for this including Gimp, Krita, Infinity Design and simply Paint - I'm not a novice and I can use these software to a decent level. They all result in the same issue when the map loads in game - bumpy unnatural textures that don't look like landscape at all.

#3 Alternative suggestion to #2, an in-game usermap generation tool. After selecting your region and biome, you could have a button under the preview map that says 'Create new' and you could go in there and draw out your map with simple, user-friendly tools, like a river brush and a forest brush and tools to raise and lower the terrain over large areas. This in-game map generation feature would soften out the gradients so we wouldn't have the issue that we get with uploading drawings made in separate art and design software.

I'd far prefer these over remodellings of the animals, contrary to what may seem like popular opinion, I really don't care if the earlier animal models get updated or not. I'd prefer that new things get added, not old things get reworked. I'm sure I'm not alone in that in spite of how loud those tapir people are!

 

[tigris115]

Something I'd like is the ability to make custom skirts.

By that, I mean make a custom area outside the border of your zoo. Make it a different size or shape.

Then put it in the steam workshop

I made a much bigger post about it here

Custom made map skirts

While I deeply appreciate the new feature of map skirts, I still feel like the maps being out in the middle of nowhere leaves a lot to be inspired in terms of inspiration. I prefer to have the backdrop of a city or suburb before I start building. Thus, I ask that Frontier allow its players to...

forums.frontier.co.uk

This is the update that would make me the happiest

 

[AlexSea]

There's three things that I've been wanting in a free update more than anything else:

• Foliage brush
• The ability to use all terrain pains in all biomes
• An overhaul to the exhibit system

 

[sumcherish82]

Foliage brush
New transportation
New staff - staff with animals mascot

 

[ElectricMonk]

• User defined climate (in sandbox),, I.e, ability to set probability of precipitation and temperature range.
• Ability to have a zoo in the Southern hemisphere (sun crossing the northern sky)
• City map skirt
• Exhibit overhaul
• Ability to select biome paints (in sandbox)

 

[TheNamesJonas]

More consistent animal signs would be nice, especially for animals that don't have any corresponding decorations (Komodo, Thompson's Gazelle). A small thing that would be nice is to have a music selection menu that includes the songs that play at random in-game and the songs included in the music players, as most of the DLC have four songs but I'm guessing most people haven't even heard of them.This would be a nice addition for zoos based around a certain region and you can have the corresponding songs playing for said region.

 

[arafan]

My biggest wish is still brachiation for the orangutan and at least a city skirt map.

 

[Markiz]

I'm just gonna copy/paste my take on the major community wish regarding animal diversity. I just stitched together many ideas I've seen floating around the community, but I fell like it wouldn't be such a simple task to tackle. Regardless such update could accompany somewhat "weaker" DLC to make up for it

Horns, Tusks and Antlers

The easiest way to tackle this topic is to go after animals with most striking physical features in shape of horns, tusks and antlers. Simplest changes to this features would give your animals whole new ''personality'' with enough options. I feel this could ''reintroduce'' some of the older animals in game and zoos as if they were brand new DLC additions. Animals that could be affected by this update would be: Elephants, Hippos, Rhinos, Deers, Antelopes, Bovines and Caprids. Just like color morphs and variations these would be randomly generated with variable levels of rarity. These are the ways I would go about implementing this kind of enrichment:

Size

Just like we have variety in different colors, variable in size of tusks and horns would go a great way to breath new life into our animals. I chose Hippo with enlarged tusks and Moose with somewhat smaller antlers to show how different ''feel'' these new adjustments give to the animals.

Variety

Next to size different variety of shapes is the other thing that would enrich our animals greatly and give them unique feel. More ''branches'' to antlers, or less, different curve to the horn, straightening the tusks are some of the possibilities where this one could go.

Damage

Damaged or half broken tusks and antlers give a feeling of personal history to that one animal in your zoo. It prompts whole new story for your residents. One team that did mods for ZT2 actually successfully pulled this off in one of their Elephants/Mammoths pack, where each bought animal would randomly generate different tusks.

Human Element

This one I am not that sure about, or how well it would go with childs game, but I still choose to suggest it. If anything it could have highly educational effect on younger players. By human element I mean hunting and poaching. Ideas for this could be Rhinos with sewed off horns, elephants with missing tusks...It could even add more of a conservative or rehabilitation aspect to the game.

Patterns, manes and tails

Other different ways of implementing more physical differentiations could be patterns (big cats, giraffes, wild dogs...), manes (that would be specific to lions) and I don't mean colors (which would also be welcomed), but shape, volume and whatnot. Tails could be another factor: Wolves with shorter tails, Foxes and Raccoons with longer and fluffier tails, different lengths of Monitor tails...

SANDBOX SLIDERS

Final but one of the most important (for me) parts of this update would be the Sandbox ''Animal adoption Sliders''. These would help you pick perfect specimen for your zoo. Not realistic at all, but if anything, in true nature of Sandbox mode, where you can escape animal shop and randomness it brings. In these sliders you could pick and choose age, size, fertility, color morphs, variations and any potential physical changes this fictional update would bring.

 

[Colehunter35]

I'm just gonna copy/paste my take on the major community wish regarding animal diversity. I just stitched together many ideas I've seen floating around the community, but I fell like it wouldn't be such a simple task to tackle. Regardless such update could accompany somewhat "weaker" DLC to make up for it

Horns, Tusks and Antlers

View attachment 358113
The easiest way to tackle this topic is to go after animals with most striking physical features in shape of horns, tusks and antlers. Simplest changes to this features would give your animals whole new ''personality'' with enough options. I feel this could ''reintroduce'' some of the older animals in game and zoos as if they were brand new DLC additions. Animals that could be affected by this update would be: Elephants, Hippos, Rhinos, Deers, Antelopes, Bovines and Caprids. Just like color morphs and variations these would be randomly generated with variable levels of rarity. These are the ways I would go about implementing this kind of enrichment:

Size

Just like we have variety in different colors, variable in size of tusks and horns would go a great way to breath new life into our animals. I chose Hippo with enlarged tusks and Moose with somewhat smaller antlers to show how different ''feel'' these new adjustments give to the animals.
View attachment 358114

Variety

Next to size different variety of shapes is the other thing that would enrich our animals greatly and give them unique feel. More ''branches'' to antlers, or less, different curve to the horn, straightening the tusks are some of the possibilities where this one could go.
View attachment 358115

Damage

Damaged or half broken tusks and antlers give a feeling of personal history to that one animal in your zoo. It prompts whole new story for your residents. One team that did mods for ZT2 actually successfully pulled this off in one of their Elephants/Mammoths pack, where each bought animal would randomly generate different tusks.
View attachment 358116

Human Element

This one I am not that sure about, or how well it would go with childs game, but I still choose to suggest it. If anything it could have highly educational effect on younger players. By human element I mean hunting and poaching. Ideas for this could be Rhinos with sewed off horns, elephants with missing tusks...It could even add more of a conservative or rehabilitation aspect to the game.
View attachment 358117

Patterns, manes and tails

Other different ways of implementing more physical differentiations could be patterns (big cats, giraffes, wild dogs...), manes (that would be specific to lions) and I don't mean colors (which would also be welcomed), but shape, volume and whatnot. Tails could be another factor: Wolves with shorter tails, Foxes and Raccoons with longer and fluffier tails, different lengths of Monitor tails...
View attachment 358118

SANDBOX SLIDERS

Final but one of the most important (for me) parts of this update would be the Sandbox ''Animal adoption Sliders''. These would help you pick perfect specimen for your zoo. Not realistic at all, but if anything, in true nature of Sandbox mode, where you can escape animal shop and randomness it brings. In these sliders you could pick and choose age, size, fertility, color morphs, variations and any potential physical changes this fictional update would bring.
View attachment 358119

yes please!!! i need all of these ASAP

 

[Skalea]

Seconding the posts for custom map skirts and larger (more user friendly) terrain manipulation tools.

 

[Firestar97]

User defined climate (in sandbox),, I.e, ability to set probability of precipitation and temperature range.

Why in Sandbox? I want to be able to play with more realistic Weather without being forced to play in that Mode

 

[RedPandaReggie]

Brachiation for Orangutans, deep diving for Nile Monitors and much of the features above, particularly the unique features of animals such as horn/tusk/antler/mane/pattern variety.

 

[synthetase]

The unique models for individuals would bring the game closer to completion for me. Especially if personalities were added somehow. Then, your zoo would feel more alive than it ever has.
Unique models are cool. Using the Timber Wolf as an example, some could have larger ears and longer legs, these guys would represent desert subspecies. So people wouldn't need to wish for Mexican lobos anymore. The Arctic wolf would still exist in this update as the only white form. Even that subspecies could vary though to represent more southern white wolves. There was a famous white wolf in Yellowstone once or twice... They could add diversity.

 

[jcp011c]

All of these are great ideas and many of them have been suggested for a while. I think we can theorize that a standard exhibit revamp with modular shapes and options isn't going to happen, but even that's not for sure. It ain't over til it's over.

 

[Old Country]

I agree with basically everything everyone already listed. So I'll try to list things people haven't mentioned yet.
Everything in Bold is what I consider to be my most wanted or important features.

• Giraffe and Rhino Guest Feeding. Giraffe Feeding being the most important one, it's a key feature in many modern zoos.
• Other animals feedings include Giant Tortoises, Hippos, other ungulates like Zebra and Deer)
• Scratch points. Just like sniff point have certain objects that work as scratch points for animals to rub up against.
• New bedding options. Sleeping rock, sleeping basket, sleeping tree etc. I would love for animals to be able to sleep in more realistic areas.
• Sandbox option to turn off scars
• Flexi Color Paths
• More Water Behaviors. Allow certain animals to splash, play and roll around in shallow water.
• Running Water for creating more realistic streams and rivers
• Not so much a free update thing but please Frontier, more rocks. Jagged cliff rocks, more faux styles, kopje basically anything at this point
• Flexi Color Trees to better depict changing of the seasons
• Rotational Habitat gates. Allow animals to rotate between habitats so it's easier to manage inbreeding, also makes the game more realistic
• Gift Shops and Gift shop pieces
• Sea Lion Show
• Animal Amphitheater, allow certain animals to be taken to a show to educate guests as ambassadors
• Null elevated path
• Different Skyfari ride more akin to something like the one at Oakland Zoo
• Splash Pads for Guests (mainly children)
• Playgrounds
• Null Vista Points, tour points and animal talk points
• New Food options like in Planet Coaster
• Null Waterfalls from Aquatic Pack
• Updated Signs in the style from the past few packs for all the animals
• More Billboard options. Curved, Borderless in all sizes
• More Fonts
• Zoo Map feature (something like a more updated version from ZT2)
• Simpler Trade Center UI
• Terrain Paints like from ZT2 and JWE
• Guest Misters for hot days
• Guest and Animal shades (LideR has an awesome blueprint for this, but building these on your own is very difficult)
• Shade points. Areas where guests and animals will actively seek out shade
• Drinking Fountains for Guests and water bottle refill stations
• 2 in 1 Trash cans where one side is garbage the other is recycling
• More Effects like fire, thinner waterfalls, smaller water splashes, waves, rain, snow, sand blowing
• Strobe lights and lights that mimic lightning
• Blinking Lights, Color Changing Lights
• More foliage that blows in the wind
• Null Benches and Tables
• Events (Weddings, parties, birthday parties, meetings, gatherings etc)
• Smaller Walkthrough Exhibits for Butterflies and the Sloth
• Non Walkthrough variant of the Walkthrough Exhibit
• Greenhouses for feeding animals fresher food. For franchise this could add a tier 4 to food for certain animals.
• Gardeners. New staff type that waters plants and hoses certain things down in the zoo, so aka grounds crew.
• Guest Photo Ops. I see a lot of zoos that ask me if I'd like my picture taken in front of certain things, so why not in PZ?
• Bus or Car tours
• More Natural Enrichment items. Leaf piles, sticks, bones, trees (for rubbing against or eating from)
• Null Enrichment Items. Mud Bath, Hammock, Forager, scratching posts, water jets, etc
• Realistic Sprinklers for gardens
• Keepers hiding animals food. Have certain trees or rocks where a keeper can walk in and hide the animals food for them to find.
• More mother and baby animal interactions (Giant Anteater riding on moms back as an example)
• Staff Vehicles
• Ability to sell baby animals in Sandbox
• Touch Pools
• Animal Bone Tables for guests to examine and learn about (Skulls, Horns, Tusks, Tortoise Shells, etc)
• Movie Theaters (Considering we can already make movies this is more just about the seating areas)
• Climbing Towers for Guests
• Carousel
• Zoo Mascots
• Live Music (Bands playing on stage)
• Moving in the wind Flags for every country
• Selfie Points (Guests can take selfies in front of whatever you want)
• Any new moving Objects. I've heard a lot of people talk about how the game at times can feel static so any new objects that move or adding in a feature that has the ability to rotate pieces on any axis would be great!
• More Map Skirts. City, Beach and Forest come to mind.
• Terrain Selector. (Ability to select desired brushes before going into the map)
• One way paths
• And last but not least, obviously Aviaries and Bird demonstrations.

 

[Leaf Productions]

I agree with basically everything everyone already listed. So I'll try to list things people haven't mentioned yet.
Everything in Bold is what I consider to be my most wanted or important features.

• Giraffe and Rhino Guest Feeding. Giraffe Feeding being the most important one, it's a key feature in many modern zoos.
• Other animals feedings include Giant Tortoises, Hippos, other ungulates like Zebra and Deer)
• Scratch points. Just like sniff point have certain objects that work as scratch points for animals to rub up against.
• New bedding options. Sleeping rock, sleeping basket, sleeping tree etc. I would love for animals to be able to sleep in more realistic areas.
• Sandbox option to turn off scars
• Flexi Color Paths
• More Water Behaviors. Allow certain animals to splash, play and roll around in shallow water.
• Running Water for creating more realistic streams and rivers
• Not so much a free update thing but please Frontier, more rocks. Jagged cliff rocks, more faux styles, kopje basically anything at this point
• Flexi Color Trees to better depict changing of the seasons
• Rotational Habitat gates. Allow animals to rotate between habitats so it's easier to manage inbreeding, also makes the game more realistic
• Gift Shops and Gift shop pieces
• Sea Lion Show
• Animal Amphitheater, allow certain animals to be taken to a show to educate guests as ambassadors
• Null elevated path
• Different Skyfari ride more akin to something like the one at Oakland Zoo
• Splash Pads for Guests (mainly children)
• Playgrounds
• Null Vista Points, tour points and animal talk points
• New Food options like in Planet Coaster
• Null Waterfalls from Aquatic Pack
• Updated Signs in the style from the past few packs for all the animals
• More Billboard options. Curved, Borderless in all sizes
• More Fonts
• Zoo Map feature (something like a more updated version from ZT2)
• Simpler Trade Center UI
• Terrain Paints like from ZT2 and JWE
• Guest Misters for hot days
• Guest and Animal shades (LideR has an awesome blueprint for this, but building these on your own is very difficult)
• Shade points. Areas where guests and animals will actively seek out shade
• Drinking Fountains for Guests and water bottle refill stations
• 2 in 1 Trash cans where one side is garbage the other is recycling
• More Effects like fire, thinner waterfalls, smaller water splashes, waves, rain, snow, sand blowing
• Strobe lights and lights that mimic lightning
• Blinking Lights, Color Changing Lights
• More foliage that blows in the wind
• Null Benches and Tables
• Events (Weddings, parties, birthday parties, meetings, gatherings etc)
• Smaller Walkthrough Exhibits for Butterflies and the Sloth
• Non Walkthrough variant of the Walkthrough Exhibit
• Greenhouses for feeding animals fresher food. For franchise this could add a tier 4 to food for certain animals.
• Gardeners. New staff type that waters plants and hoses certain things down in the zoo, so aka grounds crew.
• Guest Photo Ops. I see a lot of zoos that ask me if I'd like my picture taken in front of certain things, so why not in PZ?
• Bus or Car tours
• More Natural Enrichment items. Leaf piles, sticks, bones, trees (for rubbing against or eating from)
• Null Enrichment Items. Mud Bath, Hammock, Forager, scratching posts, water jets, etc
• Realistic Sprinklers for gardens
• Keepers hiding animals food. Have certain trees or rocks where a keeper can walk in and hide the animals food for them to find.
• More mother and baby animal interactions (Giant Anteater riding on moms back as an example)
• Staff Vehicles
• Ability to sell baby animals in Sandbox
• Touch Pools
• Animal Bone Tables for guests to examine and learn about (Skulls, Horns, Tusks, Tortoise Shells, etc)
• Movie Theaters (Considering we can already make movies this is more just about the seating areas)
• Climbing Towers for Guests
• Carousel
• Zoo Mascots
• Live Music (Bands playing on stage)
• Moving in the wind Flags for every country
• Selfie Points (Guests can take selfies in front of whatever you want)
• Any new moving Objects. I've heard a lot of people talk about how the game at times can feel static so any new objects that move or adding in a feature that has the ability to rotate pieces on any axis would be great!
• More Map Skirts. City, Beach and Forest come to mind.
• Terrain Selector. (Ability to select desired brushes before going into the map)
• One way paths
• And last but not least, obviously Aviaries and Bird demonstrations.

I agree with Elderly State

 

[jcp011c]

I agree with basically everything everyone already listed. So I'll try to list things people haven't mentioned yet.
Everything in Bold is what I consider to be my most wanted or important features.

• Running Water for creating more realistic streams and rivers

Among the other amazing ideas here, this one specifically. I never really thought about this, and now that I have, I really hope we can get something like this.

 

[Marvinb]

Among the other amazing ideas here, this one specifically. I never really thought about this, and now that I have, I really hope we can get something like this.

Yeah, i mean we got those vfx effects. But i would prefer something thats not a raging torrent, so i down for that