Planet Coaster 2 review – the best theme park sim ever

Water flumes, a amazingly bully communicative mode, and an awesome console power strategy marque Planet Coaster 2 a worthy sequel.

2016’s Planet Coaster was 1 of the archetypal games to let steadfast and developer Frontier to look from the shadiness of abstraction trading sim Elite: Dangerous. A taxable parkland simulator that concentrated connected plan overmuch much than economics, it was hailed arsenic the finest illustration of its genre astatine the time. So its successor, Planet Coaster 2, has overmuch to unrecorded up to.

Happily, it does, with a genial assurance that is underpinned by some slick execution and immoderate cleverly reworked plan tools. Sure, it whitethorn inhabit a niche connected the cozy extremity of the gaming spectrum (although the feedback it perpetually gives, regarding unsatisfied customers’ circumstantial beefs, tin induce momentary panic) but fixed the opportunities it opens up, for you to physique the astir lavish and divers of theme parks, it has a strangely heavyweight consciousness to it.

When you archetypal commencement playing it, whimsy and gentle British humour are astatine the fore. In the tutorial, and the consequent Career mode, you commencement disconnected arsenic the latest worker of Coaster Coast, the renowned taxable parkland plan and improvement institution tally by Oswald B. Thompson and his spreadsheet-loving sidekick Eugene Newton, and indispensable beryllium your design, building, and absorption chops.

A fig of elements basal retired consecutive away, particularly the large summation to Planet Coaster 2: h2o rides. Coaster obsessives whitethorn not get excessively excited by the accidental to physique lavish swimming pools, with elaborate flumes feeding into them, but arsenic with Planet Coaster 2’s rollercoaster-building, pool-building is amusive and easy. This is acknowledgment to an array of tools that fto you, for example, delineate your ain excavation outlines oregon stamp retired excavation areas with elephantine squares earlier smoothing edges. Whereas coasters are rated for excitement, pools are rated by prestige, truthful it’s omniscient to adhd question machines, prima loungers, changing rooms, soothing scenery, and the like.

Another cardinal constituent which Frontier has improved connected for Planet Coaster 2 is the path-building engine; a amazingly important portion of the crippled since your punters request to beryllium capable to scope your attractions and to beryllium shepherded astir your park. Even though we played Planet Coaster 2 connected a console – truthful via a gamepad alternatively than utilizing a rodent – we recovered the path-building precise intuitive, with bully drawback to entrances and exits, and the quality to power curving to a good degree. What was erstwhile a fiddly constituent of the crippled present seems earthy and easy.

Frontier has besides paid a batch of attraction to the Career mode, which felt somewhat cursory successful the archetypal Planet Coaster – not wholly surprisingly, since taxable parkland sims aren’t precisely known for having elaborate storylines. But Planet Coaster 2’s Career mode is beauteous important and successful nary mode resembles an afterthought.

As Coaster Coast’s latest employee, you get to enactment for assorted different taxable parkland companies connected projects that thin to absorption connected circumstantial aspects of plan and building. For example, connected a precocious discovered tract containing past coasters, thought to person been built by the archetypal contention ever to person created roller-coasters, you indispensable repair gaps successful the tracks, earlier designing and gathering your ain from scratch.

Storyline-wise, Planet Coaster 2 keeps things airy and precise overmuch successful the phantasy realm, though you bash get to brushwood Oswald B. Thompson’s nemesis. However, the communicative truly exists conscionable to let you to showcase the diverseness of your skills successful antithetic scenarios, which brings plentifulness of restitution arsenic you crook half-built taxable parks into over-the-top extravaganzas afloat of blessed punters, which besides – providing you respond to the feedback that comes successful by mode of notifications – marque a batch of money.

As successful the archetypal game, Planet Coaster 2’s accent is firmly connected plan and gathering alternatively than taxable parkland economics, but successful the communicative mode you bash brushwood situations successful which you request to, for example, up the prices of your rides successful bid to physique a caller coaster, without alienating your visitors.

For many, the astir charismatic constituent of Planet Coaster 2 volition beryllium its money-free sandbox mode which, with the summation of the h2o attractions and a immense root of gathering materials, contains the means to truly workout your imagination. Luckily, everything successful the menus is grouped successful exemplary fashion, different it would beryllium intimidatingly hard to find. We did person 1 issue, though: erstwhile you person created a gathering it ought to beryllium imaginable to delegate a usage to it, specified arsenic a portion oregon acquisition shop, but it isn’t. Although you tin fell shops nether architectural shells you person created, which seems a spot clunky.

Inveterate tinkerers volition find it dormant casual to make each mode of customized objects and past station them for the usage of Planet Coaster 2’s community. Frontier besides has a roadmap for post-launch downloadable contented that should support said assemblage blessed – hopefully including caller ocular themes for rides (which see Viking and Aquatic astatine launch) and communicative scenarios.

There’s besides a Franchise mode for the astir obsessive and competitory Planet Coaster 2 fans, which lets you make a parkland and invitation others to assistance you physique and amended it, and comes with a planetary leaderboard for the astir lavish and lucrative efforts.

Planet Coaster 2 looks beauteous decent – successful the cartoonish mode invariably favoured by taxable parkland sims – and it sounds bully too: the changeless hubbub made by parkland visitors tin beryllium amazingly thrilling. The summation of h2o features proves a positive and successful general, particularly erstwhile played via a gamepad, its interface (which makes dense usage of the bumpers) is arsenic bully arsenic you could imagine.

We did brushwood 1 facet which could usage a spot of improvement, though, that cropped up erstwhile gathering and renovating coasters: occasionally, the camera would go unhelpful, forcing america to zoom retired past zoom backmost successful again. That quirk was particularly communal with coasters that person precocious vertical sections.

Overall, Planet Coaster 2 is easy capable to support the franchise’s estimation arsenic the champion taxable parkland sim connected the market. It addresses its predecessor’s anemic points, specified arsenic the pathing engine; the summation of h2o features proves a success; it has a pleasantly cheery vibe; and, ultimately, it feels similar the champion imaginable coaster, pool, and taxable park-building simulator you could inquire for. The cleanable crippled for erstwhile you’ve had a hard time and consciousness the impulse to tinker astir with thing inconsequential but rewarding.

Formats: Xbox Series X/S (reviewed), PlayStation 5, and PC
Price: £39.99
Publisher: Frontier
Developer: Frontier
Release Date: 6th November 2024
Age Rating: 3

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