Rollercoaster Tycoon VS. Sim Theme Park
Written: Jun 25 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Fun and lots to do.
Cons: Hard to learn.
The Bottom Line: I feel Rollercoaster Tycoon will keep you busy for weeks, possibly months because it takes that long to figure out:)
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| ImAmes's Full Review: Roller Coaster Tycoon For Windows |
I recently recieved Rollercoaster Tycoon for my birthday, and after playing it for a straight several hours and pretty much my entire Sunday- I decided that an Epinion comparing Sim Theme Park, which I have owned for several months now, and Rollercoaster Tycoon, may help those of you out there looking to build an excellent Theme Park without having to bang your head against the computer monitor a few times! So, let's begin....
OBJECTIVITY
In Rollercoaster Tycoon, your main objective is to have a thriving theme park, using your rollercoasters as your "hook" for your parks. You also get the opportunity to build water rides, trains, monorails, and burger and soda stands. Oh, and heaven forbid you forget to build bathrooms-trust me, make sure you do! You will be timed, month and year in your right hand corner, so you have an idea of how much you need to make by the given date and year the game gives you. When it comes down to it, you want to make a successful theme park without gong bankrupt.
In Sim Theme Park, the objective is pretty much the same idea. Build a thriving theme park, but you are not timed at all. Here, you need to build rides, concession stands, and staff your park so you can gain awards that access you to keys, which will open up the surrounding theme parks. Once you have all the keys, and all access to the other parks, the game is to see how long you can have your park run, while fixing rides, taking out loans, and gaining more rides and such as you go.
VARIETY
In Rollercoaster Tycoon, you have a vast variety of things to make. First of course are the many rollercoasters and other rides available, including rides that can be custom built or ones you can make that have been built already for you. With a choice of several different lands, such as deserts, forests, lakes, and hills, you get three times as much as Sim Theme Park. Parks are not the only thing you get more here, you also have a TON of landscaping ideas, such as choice of shrubberies, trees, fountains, fences, and park benches. Along with that you have a wide variety of land and path choices. Each ride and staff member can has over 20 colors to choose from, for example, on the rollercoaster, you can make each car a different color.
In Sim Theme Park, the variety is not as great. You have your choice of only 4 lands and only 8 rollercoasters. You can not have any rollercoasters with loops until you earn them after making quite a high amount of money. Path choice is decided for you, and whenever you want to make a path, you just add on from a previous one, in Rollercoaster Tycoon, you must keep going to the key overhead and clicking the appropriate button. Color choices are made for you, and rollercoasters must be custom built, none are made for you to build. Even though your rollercaoster tracks can overlap each other, they cannot go through tunnels, like Tycoon. Sim Theme Park does not offer renaming the rides either, and does not include a carousel which plays music, like again, Tycoon.
LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY AND UNDERSTANDING
This is where the two games take completely different roads here. Rollercaoster Tycoon is DIFFICULT to get used to and understand, ESPECIALLY if you have played Sim Theme Park! The rollercoasters are quite hard to custom build, and so are the water rides. Half the time I cannot get anywhere, because you cannot build on trees, and I have yet to figure out on how to rid of all those darn things!! The Parks seem alot smaller and don't seem to hold as many rides and stands as Sim Theme Park does. I also feel it is complicating trying to delete something, and making a body of water will drain your pocketbook before you realize that you haven't made anything but a puddle! Also making waiting lines or paths on hills can cause some large headaches,and yes, I DID read the Manual that came with the game.
Sim Theme Park is ALOT easier to understand and follow. Even though it does not have as much variety as Tycoon, it is much easier to build rides. For example, when building a rollercoaster in Sim, you have a guide on the land to help you place the pylons. In Tycoon, you are on your own, they place the starting piece where you have chosen, and then you are on your own with a very VAGUE key to choose and decide from.
In each park, you can decide the direction of each ride, stand, and bathroom.
THIS N THAT
Here are some of the odd quirks between the games that could use an honorable mention.
**Tycoon charges an admission to EVERY ride, including your bathrooms- Sim charges ONE FLAT admission at the gate!
**Sim provides themed rides that coincide with that park, Tycoon uses the same type of rides with each park.
**Research is done in both parks, and you can upgrade or lower the rate at which it is done at. I found though, that in Sim, they seem to clarify a bit better as to what is being researched, and more at one time, then Tycoon which seems to show only one thing being researched at a time.
**Staff is similiar- janitors, mechanics, entertainers, and security guards. Sim has researchers who walk through out the park, while Tycoon keeps their researchers in their offices. Sim's has janitors who have one job- to clean up messes- while Tycoon has "handymen" who are told what to do by you- cleaning, mowing the lawn, or sweeping the park.
Entertainers in Tycoon have so far been a Elephant, Tiger, or Panda Bear. In Sim, you can find entertainers who are themed with that Land. Such as in the Halloween Land, you can find Frankenstein or Dracula scaring your guests!
**Financial Status- In both games, they offer loans for when you need them and have a itemized agenda of what you have spent, or you will need to spend money on. The difference I have found is that in Sim, your staff is given raises as a group, whereas in Tycoon, you can give raises or lower wages individually.
THE VIEW
The view is how you can view your custom built theme park. Again, this is another area where the games differ tremendously.
In Rollercoaster Tycoon, you can view the park by hitting the add or minus sign from the key that is on top of the screen. You do not get very close, so it is hard to see things up close and personal. A neat feature of Tycoon, is that you can see the rides without the people, or with them, along with the land area, and so on- Sim does not have this feature available.
But in Sim Theme Park, you have the cool choice of seeing your people up front. You can get as close as you like, even standing on the ground and watching them walk by you. Another great perk, is that you get to ride any ride you wish, and that comes in handy when custom building your own. You get to feel what a real guest would feel, and it helps to know if some areas are to slow, fast, or steep.
IN CONCLUSION
I know, quite alot of information, but it helps to know what you are looking for in a game. In conclusion, I would like to say that it is this Author's Epinion that if you are looking to build all types of rollercoasters, buy Rollercoaster Tycoon. If you are looking to ride the rides that you build, and variety is not a key element, then buy Sim Theme Park. Sim Theme Park is sold at $19.99 at Best Buy Chains and Rollercoaster Tycoon is sold for $29.99 at the same chains as well. I hope I have helped you choose what is best for you, and have a great time building the Theme Park of your dreams.
Recommended:
Yes
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ImAmes
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Member: Amy Joy
Location: Midwest
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