Reviewed: November 5, 2006
Reviewed by: Jeff Gedgaud
Publisher
Microsoft Game Studios
Developer
Blue Fang Games
Released: November 9, 2004
Genre: Simulation
Players: 1
ESRB: Everyone
8
6
6
9
7.3
System Requirements
Screenshots (Click Image for Gallery)
Simulation games have been around since the first Sims like Sim City and Sim Life but basically they all do the same things. Live real life on your computer, have fun and hopefully get some education, at least that’s what many parents hope. Zoo Tycoon 2 came along in 2004 to have you build your own zoo and learn about animal care along with the business aspects like keeping customers happy.
Zoo Tycoon 2 is the second series of the Zoo Tycoon and all the varied expansions for it from Microsoft Game Studios and developed by Blue Fang Games. This second round of zoo games also comes with its set of expansions like Marine Mania, which is also reviewed here. Zoo Tycoon 2 puts you as manager of your own zoo along with all the responsibilities like animal care, money management and guest concerns.
You need to not only take care of your animals which you can do by hiring staff like zoo keepers, maintenance workers and even educators to speak to the public about them you can do the work yourself. Pick up the bucket to fill the water troughs, groom that hippopotamus or even rake your animal’s poo; yep they even include the not so pleasant parts of animal care in your zoo experience. Just like in real life they have learn many aspects of zoology and one of these is cleaning up after your charges.
Zoo Tycoon 2 has three main sections for zoo building and care, campaign, challenge and freeform. In the campaign game play you start out with the basics, kind of a tutorial for the game to learn about building your zoo, the tools for the game and what the animals need in order to keep them not just alive but happy. In later parts of the campaign you get to try your hand at helping zoological societies improve run down zoo parks or take in animals that are found by various organizations to rehabilitate them.
In the challenge portion of Zoo Tycoon 2 you are given simple objectives for each challenge and you start with a limited amount of funds and resources like certain animals and structures. As you complete the first objectives or research more you have the opportunity to make more money and have more animals and resources at your disposal. Your zoo grows when you do a good job and do more research to help your guests enjoy their stay along with helping the animals. As you continue in your challenge area you unlock certain reward themed objects to help beautify your zoo.
In the freeform section you are given all the animals and resources of the game and unlimited funds to create your own zoo as you see fit. You need to outfit your staff with all they need for whatever animals you decide to place and you have the choice of various locations across the earth to place your zoo as far as different types of climates. What can be more of an exotically located zoo than Antarctica for a real polar themed park? In Zoo Tycoon 2 you have a very simple menu panel style arrangement across the bottom of your screen with important information showing across the top in information windows. Other windows with currently selected animals, buildings, staff or guests open as you click on objects in your zoo in the bottom corner for you to get more information about them.
There is important information available about each animal like health, happiness and current needs in the information box as well as detailed information available in the Zoopedia with information like animal facts, what they like to eat and where they are from. This information can come in handy when creating your biome or area of climate and conditions the animals like. You will also get important information about what they like to eat and activities to keep them happy.
Zoo Tycoon 2 has you not only choosing the proper biome for each animal but you can alter the landscape at any time to change the animals habitat more to you and your guests likings. If you want to deepen the area an animal is in to make viewing easier for people than the landscape editor will do this. You can also use this to create the appropriate biome or landscaping that the animals in any particular area need.
Adding food, water and objects as well as buildings and the animals themselves is easy using the panels at the bottom of your screen. Saving is also done from these menus for later work on your zoo to try and improve your zoo’s status as tracked by the amount of guests and the income they bring in. You can also take the more personal approach of zoo management by doing many things yourself. Overall information about your zoo is available in the information panel with things like income, staff, animals, total guests and what they liked.
Zoo Tycoon 2 has you being able to personally manage your animals with things like cleaning up after your animals, grooming or checking out their health in a first person view of your zoo. You can also roam the zoo from this first person perspective to see the zoo from a guest’s point of view to help improve the zoo to their likings. In this mode you can also take pictures and build a photo album with these pictures as you roam your zoo. You can also take pictures from inside the enclosures of the animals for that up close and personal perspective.
Animal and building placement and all the other aspects of Zoo Tycoon 2 work very well and the tutorials are easy to follow. The menus and panels are easy to use and the information like animal happiness is easy to understand. The animal’s happiness or needs are conveyed quickly and easily by using emoticons about their particular status. Happy face means happy animal, party hat on that one is having a great time. Well, you get the idea, with more detailed information available in the animal panel.
Zoo Tycoon 2 also has you researching various things before using them so you need to take the time and money to include many things before using them. In order for animals to remain happy they need to researched and you need to take time to do this so the game included this as a requirement for some things. Many of the things that happen in a zoo you need to delegate as part of peoples jobs like the zookeepers. This is easily accomplished using the assignments for each keeper to make feeding watering and cleanup automated.
The game play for Zoo Tycoon 2 is pretty straightforward and easy to understand and use. The tutorials are not really needed but help make this all go well and are fun to play so you know what is going on. The main parts you need to worry about are keeping staff on top of things with each animal or area so they are attended to. The game play works well and with all the various things going on mesh well into the game to keep things interesting.
With all the almost cartoon menus and panels along with the often times cute animals Zoo Tycoon has some pretty good graphics. The animals do things like roam around, play, sleep and those other things living animals do with some pretty convincing animations. The terrain and buildings are pretty basic but are functional and you understand pretty quickly what all of them are for.
During game play the animals do things that animals would ordinarily do in their busy day of lounging around, eating and napping. Many times they do not move around or play like real animals but it is convincing enough and many times fun to watch them play right when you add something like a ball to keep them entertained and happy. The AI works well so they do not do things too often or close together like eating right after they just ate.
Hearing the various noises of a zoo is pretty convincing in Zoo Tycoon, even the snores of animals as they take a quick nap. You get to hear all the sounds and noises when you get up close to any particular animal for what they are doing at that time. When you zoom out to view more of your zoo the sounds blend into a cacophony of animal grunts bellows and such. The background themes when you enter the game and during loading are a kind of safari music that has a catchy beat when your waiting. The sounds as well as the graphics are pretty good and work well to make a convincing zoo scene and a great sim game.
The campaign mission will keep most people busy for several hours and the challenges will certainly be fun for at least another five or six. Zoo Tycoon will be fun for many more hours of gameplay using the freeform section for you to design and build your own zoo and with the various locations it will keep any avid zookeeper busy for more fun.
Although not necessarily a complete kid friendly game younger kids will be able to play on their own after some help with things like keeping the animals happy and assigning zoo keepers to take care of their needs. Zoo Tycoon 2 is a pretty good game and a great value due to the wide variety of starting zoo locations you can play in and the broad range of animals the game comes with. You can also add more animals and objects from the web site for download that were developed after the game released for even more fun.
Zoo Tycoon 2 is a pretty good basic zoo building game with easy to use controls and functions. The games interface and menu panels work well and placement of all the animals, their needed structures and accessories are simple and with the included zoopedia you can learn or teach kids a lot about animals and their needs.
Zoo Tycoon 2 is a fresh and interesting way for not only kids but adults to learn more about animals and what they need to be happy and healthy.