Silkius
18-11-2004, 18:04
I may be fairly fresh to this forum, but I have been playing RCT since it first came out. I loved RCT1 (okay I didn't like RCT 2, but largely due to its restrictions and lack of real improvement over RCT1)
I like RCT3 a lot, and for me there has been very few problems in its setup and running, even with the demos, but then I do have a pretty decent PC, which is pretty much up to date. (P4 3.2, 1gig of ram, 2x 120gb HD, ATI 9800, xp pro etc.,)
RCT3 has been working fine, the patch made it better (on the whole) but on some pretty heavy playing and even adjusting my play style to accommodate the new version, (afer reading the manual and the faq 100 times) I have noticed a few areas that (IMO) leave room for improvement. This is not a whine, just observations on what I believe could make a good game great.
Generally it runs great, I have noticed some graphic glitches i.e. peeps sitting on benches - often loose legs (well thighs anyway) & Imported Music appears too quiet - whether in the my music/rct3 folder or copied into the real music folder and editing the music ini/config file - I do use WMA's on the whole & would actually like to see the option to just point to the 'my music folder' - I have loads (Which I pay for - I support OD2)
Peeps and Peep Ai
The new peeps are great and the group idea is almost ingenious, however I noticed a few areas the really do leave scope for improvement.
Single Minded – it appears once a peep has made a decision it seems to lock on regardless of park changes. Okay so it can be broken by pickup and drop, but who wants to do that with 200 peeps? Is there a way that they can still take that 1st preference, but do a re-check every x-mins in case there is now a loo or shop etc., that isn't five miles away. (I have seen peeps take six weeks to get to the loo, only to find it full, return to the group and start again.)
Group decisions:- On loos, drink food etc., can the group decision be made for the party – i.e. in real life if little Joey needs the loo, most of the family attempt to empty bladders etc., while they are there, and when the family decide to eat they all eat. Otherwise by the time peep 1 has peed and returned Peep 3 needs the loo, but the party want to now go on a ride. -
Oh and why does it still seem impossible for a peep to at least head for a loo when feeling sick? Also seem less likley now to sit and wait for nausea to wear off.
Sundry items:
If you are offering good deals... peeps (but especially mini peeps) should want ice cream, donuts etc., no matter what time of day, or how hungry they feel. But this should be balanced with the possibility of their nausea level increasing (i.e. If you eat cookies, an ice cream and donuts while not really hungry you might end up being sick even on a Merry Go Round). Souvenirs should also be more desirable than they are now. We all know these are cash cows for all theme parks. (especially entry price only parks) On long term pay on entry parks it appears very hard to make long term profits with these shops now.
Oh and please – please! bring back the customisation of brollys, and the t-shirts – I used to use this along with balloon colours to determine at a glance which stalls were selling more – i.e. 50 red brolly to 1 blue brolly tells you you might want to re-locate the blue brolly/info stall.
And Please put the option to charge for ride photos back (name me one park that doesn't charge) also would like to see the increase desirability of themed Souvenirs if placed next to ride exit of similar theme.
Also (IMO) cool goods should possibly affect small peeps when they see them – i.e. If they see sherif balloons their desire for these tacky items might start to take over and they could nag parents into buying one (I want one of those .....) Again this is more true to little peeps behaviour.
Oh and what happened to the option to build 'load and unload' stations on a ride?
Ride preferences:
I note in the peep generator you can select ride type from mild to extreme – but not type as in Roler Coaster, Thrill, Gentle etc., Maybe even coaster type – in life this is true, some are dedicated woodies – maybe even a coaster AND other ride (random) favourite.
i.e. Peep 1: Ride preference: Coasters, Fave Ride = Steel Coaster Peep 2: Ride preference Thrill, Fave Ride : Zipper.
Peep 3: Ride preference: Coaster Fave Ride: Any
I think this would be a great addition and possibly boost the desire for gentle/transport/fairground type rides. An empty que of rides not over priced should generate a random desire to ride it anyway – I think many of us have been known to jump on a ride just because we didn't have to queue for it. (and been pleasantly surprised on occasion) _ taking another game or two into account ZT and Wildlife Park both use this feature (favourite animal).
I quite like to build parks like the way you describe in the FAQ (basic rides in entry areas Big Coasters in centre and near the back) – but all this seems to do at present is give me a big dead area.) Still seem to be seeing too many 'extreme' or 'uber' peeps often with no nausea tolerance (I'm good at RC building, but that is a tall order to achieve)
Transport Rides:
Are better, but still need peeps to know that they are a means to get from a-b especially when well priced (I often used to run these at barely enough to cover running cost – i.e. 20P but although peeps like to ride them they don't really see it as how to get to the back of the park quickly) – maybe a selection of ride type in the config – possibly at the slight cost of excitement. Otherwise what is the real point of the elevator? Option to buy a circuit ticket would be also good – must be annoying to be a peep who wants to go to far end of park but gets kicked off at the next station 1/3rd way round.
Thrill Rides:
Still seeing too many empty queue lines – despite running rides at a loss, good placement, sensible path placement etc., Many RC nuts still have a soft spot for fairground type rides, side shows etc., The above random ride type preference, would solve this. (and make park planning a little easier). Also many euro RCT players like building fairground type areas and parks. (still think that would make a great addon pack)
Staff & Staff ai
Seems to be getting better and better – but training selection needs to be in their info/action screen. Also Vendors Training should not cost 350 (also agree with most requests to auto-name vendor after ride/stall. Also would like to be able to select vendor from kiosk or stall. Janitors – I like the fact you can pick a ride and call a mech to it – would like to see the same on litter/puke. In wildlife park you can pick on any item and call the relevant staff to it (i.e. sweep up poo, water plant etc.,)
Mechs seem a little too fussy and liable to quit – also why is there only one pay rise option on all? Surely there should be a smaller rise on each training level, for all three levels. (i.e. Mech goes from 55-60-65-70 at top)
Ride Age
This has been one of my biggest bugbears in ALL RCT carnations.
Why do they get too old too quickly at cost of both performance and desirability? – I agree they should not be able to demand a 10.00 credit fare from day one to year 25 – but there is such a thing as vintage and old favourites – for e.g. I might be wowed by the latest corkscrew zero g floating coaster – but I still have a softspot for a good OLD wooden coaster. How many people travel 1000's of miles to ride on the old greats?
Also for old thrill rides (often faves for older park goers) it is soul destroying to try and replace a thrill ride that is surrounded by hours of theming work. (so you can't just remove/replace) after only 3 years!
Maybe there should be a happy medium. Yes there is a drop off to the point that it is almost impossible to run at a profit, but if you persevere and the ride reaches say 5 years – it can become vintage and actually cost you to remove it. A vintage ride then gains a point or two in desirability because it is vintage – it might still be slightly unreliable, but should stabilise if you keep the inspections very regular, and if it reaches historical status (say 10 years) – it could become even moreso?
Okay this is a personal gripe but - Please, make coaster and ride research work in relation to real discoveries – I find it stupid to discover a hyper coaster before a wooden or Virginia reel. (or at least make it an option in scenario creation)
Also why have CS, Frontier or anyone never thought of future coaster types? What about hover coasters, or true friction-less coasters – or tunnel tubes so coasters could go through water etc.,-
Paths – Is it just me? But path selection seems to have gone to one type of laying, what happened to the other methods – depending on your view restriction – the old style is sometimes necessary.
Future Improvements:
Why not a real tycoon set of scenarios?
i.e you start with a basic fairground type park, with various objectives, (i.e. Needing a loans, high interest rates, small amount of land, little research etc.,) through to basic theme parks,(next scenarios) then a franchise, all the way up to six flag level- with each scenario you take your cash with you (and keep your old park – or sell it for more cash) get, more land, bigger loans, lower rates, sponsorship, possibly offers from spies (researchers) to sneak into other parks and steal technology, (and train your own security staff to stop the same happening to you). Offers from other staff to join your park from a rival (i.e. Super mechs with lots of training... exp etc.,)
Overall it is a fantastic improvement on what is now an old theme - as I said this isn't a list of gripes - just thoughts on what could turn it from good to great.
I like RCT3 a lot, and for me there has been very few problems in its setup and running, even with the demos, but then I do have a pretty decent PC, which is pretty much up to date. (P4 3.2, 1gig of ram, 2x 120gb HD, ATI 9800, xp pro etc.,)
RCT3 has been working fine, the patch made it better (on the whole) but on some pretty heavy playing and even adjusting my play style to accommodate the new version, (afer reading the manual and the faq 100 times) I have noticed a few areas that (IMO) leave room for improvement. This is not a whine, just observations on what I believe could make a good game great.
Generally it runs great, I have noticed some graphic glitches i.e. peeps sitting on benches - often loose legs (well thighs anyway) & Imported Music appears too quiet - whether in the my music/rct3 folder or copied into the real music folder and editing the music ini/config file - I do use WMA's on the whole & would actually like to see the option to just point to the 'my music folder' - I have loads (Which I pay for - I support OD2)
Peeps and Peep Ai
The new peeps are great and the group idea is almost ingenious, however I noticed a few areas the really do leave scope for improvement.
Single Minded – it appears once a peep has made a decision it seems to lock on regardless of park changes. Okay so it can be broken by pickup and drop, but who wants to do that with 200 peeps? Is there a way that they can still take that 1st preference, but do a re-check every x-mins in case there is now a loo or shop etc., that isn't five miles away. (I have seen peeps take six weeks to get to the loo, only to find it full, return to the group and start again.)
Group decisions:- On loos, drink food etc., can the group decision be made for the party – i.e. in real life if little Joey needs the loo, most of the family attempt to empty bladders etc., while they are there, and when the family decide to eat they all eat. Otherwise by the time peep 1 has peed and returned Peep 3 needs the loo, but the party want to now go on a ride. -
Oh and why does it still seem impossible for a peep to at least head for a loo when feeling sick? Also seem less likley now to sit and wait for nausea to wear off.
Sundry items:
If you are offering good deals... peeps (but especially mini peeps) should want ice cream, donuts etc., no matter what time of day, or how hungry they feel. But this should be balanced with the possibility of their nausea level increasing (i.e. If you eat cookies, an ice cream and donuts while not really hungry you might end up being sick even on a Merry Go Round). Souvenirs should also be more desirable than they are now. We all know these are cash cows for all theme parks. (especially entry price only parks) On long term pay on entry parks it appears very hard to make long term profits with these shops now.
Oh and please – please! bring back the customisation of brollys, and the t-shirts – I used to use this along with balloon colours to determine at a glance which stalls were selling more – i.e. 50 red brolly to 1 blue brolly tells you you might want to re-locate the blue brolly/info stall.
And Please put the option to charge for ride photos back (name me one park that doesn't charge) also would like to see the increase desirability of themed Souvenirs if placed next to ride exit of similar theme.
Also (IMO) cool goods should possibly affect small peeps when they see them – i.e. If they see sherif balloons their desire for these tacky items might start to take over and they could nag parents into buying one (I want one of those .....) Again this is more true to little peeps behaviour.
Oh and what happened to the option to build 'load and unload' stations on a ride?
Ride preferences:
I note in the peep generator you can select ride type from mild to extreme – but not type as in Roler Coaster, Thrill, Gentle etc., Maybe even coaster type – in life this is true, some are dedicated woodies – maybe even a coaster AND other ride (random) favourite.
i.e. Peep 1: Ride preference: Coasters, Fave Ride = Steel Coaster Peep 2: Ride preference Thrill, Fave Ride : Zipper.
Peep 3: Ride preference: Coaster Fave Ride: Any
I think this would be a great addition and possibly boost the desire for gentle/transport/fairground type rides. An empty que of rides not over priced should generate a random desire to ride it anyway – I think many of us have been known to jump on a ride just because we didn't have to queue for it. (and been pleasantly surprised on occasion) _ taking another game or two into account ZT and Wildlife Park both use this feature (favourite animal).
I quite like to build parks like the way you describe in the FAQ (basic rides in entry areas Big Coasters in centre and near the back) – but all this seems to do at present is give me a big dead area.) Still seem to be seeing too many 'extreme' or 'uber' peeps often with no nausea tolerance (I'm good at RC building, but that is a tall order to achieve)
Transport Rides:
Are better, but still need peeps to know that they are a means to get from a-b especially when well priced (I often used to run these at barely enough to cover running cost – i.e. 20P but although peeps like to ride them they don't really see it as how to get to the back of the park quickly) – maybe a selection of ride type in the config – possibly at the slight cost of excitement. Otherwise what is the real point of the elevator? Option to buy a circuit ticket would be also good – must be annoying to be a peep who wants to go to far end of park but gets kicked off at the next station 1/3rd way round.
Thrill Rides:
Still seeing too many empty queue lines – despite running rides at a loss, good placement, sensible path placement etc., Many RC nuts still have a soft spot for fairground type rides, side shows etc., The above random ride type preference, would solve this. (and make park planning a little easier). Also many euro RCT players like building fairground type areas and parks. (still think that would make a great addon pack)
Staff & Staff ai
Seems to be getting better and better – but training selection needs to be in their info/action screen. Also Vendors Training should not cost 350 (also agree with most requests to auto-name vendor after ride/stall. Also would like to be able to select vendor from kiosk or stall. Janitors – I like the fact you can pick a ride and call a mech to it – would like to see the same on litter/puke. In wildlife park you can pick on any item and call the relevant staff to it (i.e. sweep up poo, water plant etc.,)
Mechs seem a little too fussy and liable to quit – also why is there only one pay rise option on all? Surely there should be a smaller rise on each training level, for all three levels. (i.e. Mech goes from 55-60-65-70 at top)
Ride Age
This has been one of my biggest bugbears in ALL RCT carnations.
Why do they get too old too quickly at cost of both performance and desirability? – I agree they should not be able to demand a 10.00 credit fare from day one to year 25 – but there is such a thing as vintage and old favourites – for e.g. I might be wowed by the latest corkscrew zero g floating coaster – but I still have a softspot for a good OLD wooden coaster. How many people travel 1000's of miles to ride on the old greats?
Also for old thrill rides (often faves for older park goers) it is soul destroying to try and replace a thrill ride that is surrounded by hours of theming work. (so you can't just remove/replace) after only 3 years!
Maybe there should be a happy medium. Yes there is a drop off to the point that it is almost impossible to run at a profit, but if you persevere and the ride reaches say 5 years – it can become vintage and actually cost you to remove it. A vintage ride then gains a point or two in desirability because it is vintage – it might still be slightly unreliable, but should stabilise if you keep the inspections very regular, and if it reaches historical status (say 10 years) – it could become even moreso?
Okay this is a personal gripe but - Please, make coaster and ride research work in relation to real discoveries – I find it stupid to discover a hyper coaster before a wooden or Virginia reel. (or at least make it an option in scenario creation)
Also why have CS, Frontier or anyone never thought of future coaster types? What about hover coasters, or true friction-less coasters – or tunnel tubes so coasters could go through water etc.,-
Paths – Is it just me? But path selection seems to have gone to one type of laying, what happened to the other methods – depending on your view restriction – the old style is sometimes necessary.
Future Improvements:
Why not a real tycoon set of scenarios?
i.e you start with a basic fairground type park, with various objectives, (i.e. Needing a loans, high interest rates, small amount of land, little research etc.,) through to basic theme parks,(next scenarios) then a franchise, all the way up to six flag level- with each scenario you take your cash with you (and keep your old park – or sell it for more cash) get, more land, bigger loans, lower rates, sponsorship, possibly offers from spies (researchers) to sneak into other parks and steal technology, (and train your own security staff to stop the same happening to you). Offers from other staff to join your park from a rival (i.e. Super mechs with lots of training... exp etc.,)
Overall it is a fantastic improvement on what is now an old theme - as I said this isn't a list of gripes - just thoughts on what could turn it from good to great.