Theme Park Roller Coaster

"This game has a lot of potential, but it fails to use it properly."

Almost everybody likes theme parks. The attractions, the service, but first and foremost, the rides. So, when I saw this game cheap, I thought it would be great fun, so I bought it. But my hopes were soon dashed.

Graphics: 4/10
Put simply, they are bad. More specifically, the characters and rides look blocky and uninspired, and the animation is sketchy. Things look even uglier when you look close up, with many clearly visible jagged edges. In short, they are not nice to look at.

Sound: 5/10
I cannot really say much about the music, simply because it is really hard to hear. It gets droned out a lot by other noises, which is just as well, because it drones on and on, repeating every few seconds. The sound effects are actually pretty good, what you would expect from a real theme park. You can hear kids screaming on rides and groans when a ride breaks down. However, the score gets marked down greatly by your guide's horrible voice. Even worse is the fact that he speaks so often.

Gameplay: 4/10
As you could have probably guessed, this is a simulation of a theme park. When you first start up this game, the first thing you will notice is the atrocious amount of loading. On average, it takes about 40 to 50 seconds each time. This has to be the worst loading I have ever seen on any console. Once you get to the actual game, anyone under the age of ten playing will get confused within one minute, because of all the things you have to study. In order to do well, you must change the rides to get the most profit, and then study the revenue graphs, and change the ticket price and many other things. Any children playing will stop quickly because of the frustration of it all. This is not good at all, considering that this is the age group this game is supposed to be aimed at, as can be clearly seen when you first play the game.

For anybody who can understand it, this game has a whole lot of options. You make a lot of choices in this game, such as which personnel to hire, whether to build a food or drink shop, and what rides to buy. You get total freedom in what you do, because you start completely from scratch. All you have to start is a patch of land. You then unlock new parks with new themes, such as a horror park or a fairy land. Building a roller coaster can be great fun, if only for a little while. This game is very complex, which for a simulation is definitely a good thing.

Bearing that in mind, this game should have been great. But then, a number of problems begin to appear. For a start, you have a guide helping you that looks a bit like an ant. He always seems to be badgering you about something or another, even if you have done what he said. It all gets very frustrating very quickly. Another problem with this game is the erratic A.I. They respond very strangely to your rides. You may have the best rides, but only 2 or 3 people ride it every year. You may have great quality drinks at low prices, yet no one buys them. They may claim to be hungry, even if there is a burger and an ice-cream stall. This can makes it hard to get a profit within the game at times.

With all of these points in mind, this game quickly becomes rather stale. This is a shame really, since this game had a lot of potential to be great, but a few flaws in the game made it into a boring and forgettable game. Maybe another game will pick up on this and fix its flaws.

Replay Value: 4/10
Unfortunately, because of the flaws discussed in the gameplay section, this game will start to bore you quite quickly. This game could have lasted for hours and hours, yet the developers let some shortcomings get in the way.

Pros:
Realistic sound effects.
Lots of options.
Interesting theme parks.
Building roller coasters.
Very complex.

Cons:
Poor graphics.
Dull music.
That annoying guide!
Horrible loading times.
Erratic A.I.
Fails to live up to its potential.

Buy, rent or avoid: If you really want to know what it is like to manage a theme park within a game, then this might make a good rental. Otherwise, you should steer clear of this game, even if it is less than $10 (which, considering how old this game is, it might well be).

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 06/06/08

Game Release: Theme Park World (EU, 12/08/00)