I've always wanted to be a Tycoon...but of a Zoo?

I am always looking for fun diversions from studying for law school, and my most recent has been becoming a Zoo Tycoon.

I had never heard of this game and picked it up on a whim at Target for $19.99. I didn't want to purchase a more expensive game because I had no idea if I'd like it or if I'd have very much time to devote to it between my family, school and work. After a couple of months now, I almost wish I had passed it up. It's much more fun that I thought and way more enticing than reading cases or statutes.

The Premise

This version of Zoo Tycoon, created by Blue Fang, was released in 2003 by Microsoft. Zoo Tycoon: Complete Collection is a simulation game that allows you to become the owner of your very own zoo, featuring over 100 traditional zoo animals, marine life and dinosaurs!

Getting Started

Zoo Tycoon comes with 2 installation CDs. The zoo CD should be inserted in your PC's CD-ROM drive first, and installation will begin automatically. When the first disc is finished installing, you can insert the Marine CD to finish game installation. You must install both CDs to have access to all of the game's features. For me, installation was a breeze and took less than 10 minutes. However, for those that might encounter trouble, the game's instruction booklet offers helpful hints and points you to the game's website if you need further information.

I'm not a fan of reading instruction booklets, so I chose to run through a few of the provided tutorials. They were very helpful showing me how to get started in creating a zoo, implementing the different animals and attractions, and making money. The best thing was that, once I felt I had the gist of a tutorial, I could close out of it and go on to the next rather than having to complete all of the steps.

Playing the Game

There are 2 gameplay options: scenarios or freeform. In the freeform setting, you set the rules and play as long as you can keep your zoo up and running. When you choose this gameplay option, you will set the amount of money your zoo starts with and the size of your zoo. A smaller zoo or budget makes for a more challenging game.

Obviously, the primary task for your zoo is to build exhibits and house animals. You will want to decide which animals you want to adopt and then check out their information screen to determine what type of exhibit would work for them. Animal happiness is at the center of a successful zoo, so you don't want to screw up in the initial stages. You begin by selecting a fence type and then add in suitable terrain, foliage, shelters, rocks, and toys. The information screen for each exhibit will tell you how suitable the exhibit is for that animal on a scale from 0-100.

Once you have a couple of animals in suitable exhibits, you may want to add some attractions to your zoo to increase visitors. You may choose to add restaurants or food vendors, theaters, petting zoos or animals houses. There is also the option to improve the aesthetic quality of your zoo by adding in flower beds, fountains, benches and signs. Guest happiness is important to your profit line, so you want to make sure people are enjoying your zoo by providing them with plenty to see and do.

You also control other zoo operations, such as hiring essential staff and setting admission and attraction prices. While you want to earn money to continue building your zoo, it's usually necessary to be patient so that you don't go into the red.

Zoo Tycoon: Complete Collection also has a ton of scenarios for gameplay. These are games with set time limits in terms of months for you to complete a specified challenge. They are divided into beginner, intermediate, advanced and very advanced scenarios. You may do any of the beginner or intermediate challenges right away, but to unlock all but 1 of the advanced, you must complete all of the intermediate, and to unlock all but 1 of the very advanced, you must complete all of the advanced scenarios.

The scenarios are quite fun, including a challenge to build an endangered all-cat zoo, to revitalize a run-down zoo with too small cages, and to build an inner-city zoo with very little space. Within each scenario are sub-challenges, including attaining certain levels of guest happiness or animal happiness, attracting a certain number of guests, purchasing a specified number of animals, and so on. I have completed all of the beginner and half of the intermediate scenarios and find them to be increasingly challenging. So much for mindless fun!

What I Like

This game requires a lot of strategizing, although you might not think so at first glance. I found out quickly that just starting to build a zoo without thinking too hard about it would put me on the fast track to bankruptcy. The game requires you to think about space, money, animal placement, and aesthetic qualities. It's a challenging game, both in freeform and scenario mode, and I don't expect to become bored with it anytime soon.

I love all the different interacting components to this game. I can click on a guest and see their thoughts as well as their favorite zoo animal or attraction. I can set aside money for research projects in order to unlock more animal shelters, toys, endangered animals and exhibit foliage or rocks to make my zoo a more exciting place. I can hire tour guides to show specific exhibits and allot zookeepers only to certain animals to ensure adequate coverage for exhibit cleaning and feeding. There is a lot to think about and rarely a dull moment.

I like the tidbits that the game provides about suitable exhibits for the animals. When you click on an animal's information page, you'll get a whole slew of information about that animal's natural environment, what they eat, what they like and don't like, and who their predators are. For both kids and adults, it can be an educational experience.

It's fun and funny. I sometimes place animals together in cages to see who will prevail in a fight. This isn't the way to create a good zoo, but it is realistic and sometimes has interesting results.

I like that it's a quiet game. There are "real" zoo noises in the background: animals make noises when they are angry or when you click on them, you can hear money clinking when people enter the zoo, and you can hear noises from attractions when people are inside of them. It's subtle, but realistic.

What I don't like

I hate that I cannot try any of the advanced scenarios before I complete all the intermediate ones. I'm not all that interested in the marine mania scenarios because the exhibits and show tanks take up a lot of room and require a lot of work. Remember, my time is somewhat limited. And really, how much fun is a giant squid?

I hate that there are only 2 screen shots for the game: far away with tiny movements of animals and people or closer up so that you cannot view the zoo as a whole. What happened to the middle ground? From the further view, the people and animals look blurry and it's often hard to click on them for information unless you pause the game. From the close up view, you sometimes miss something going on elsewhere in the zoo because you were focusing too much on one area. I'd like the best of both worlds, please.

System Requirements for Zoo Tycoon

Windows 98/Me/XP/2000
233 MHz processor, 300MHz recommended
128MB RAM for Windows XP; 64MB RAM for all others
1.3GB available on hard disk
4x speed CD-ROM
sound card & speakers for audio (not required)
DirectX 8.0
Mouse