My older sister passed away last year. We used to play Zoo Tycoon 2 for hours when we were young. I honestly don’t think I ever touched the mouse, but I loved watching her play! I appreciate you posting this. It genuinely made my day.
@Hale
Those fond memories will live with us forever. Sorry to hear about your sister, man. I’m glad I could make your day better.
Planet Zoo is basically a modern version of these. Pretty good too.
Arlo said:
Planet Zoo is basically a modern version of these. Pretty good too.
Planet Zoo and Coaster are great games, but they just don’t have the charm the old ones had. I don’t know what it is, but the old RCT games hit different.
@Kim
I know what you mean. I think maybe because they were simpler and had fewer options. It’s a bit like the old Sierra city builders like Pharaoh and Zeus. The new ones and remakes just aren’t the same.
@Arlo
This is the reason I stopped playing Planet Zoo. I absolutely love Zoo Tycoon and still play it sometimes. Planet Zoo just has too much going on. In the time you’ve filled a small ZT map, you’ve built one coffee shop in Planet Zoo.
@Mackenzie
I’m not creative enough for Planet Zoo. I look at the absolute masterpieces in the Steam Workshop and just give up.
@Arlo
Planet Zoo is by far the best spiritual successor. It has a great community on its subreddit as well.
@Arlo
I’ve been chasing the high I got from Pharaoh as a kid my whole life. Perfect game at an age when I was obsessed with anything related to Egyptian history.
Frost said:
@Arlo
I’ve been chasing the high I got from Pharaoh as a kid my whole life. Perfect game at an age when I was obsessed with anything related to Egyptian history.
To the marsh I march for the reeds we need! So many hours. I really liked Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom too.
@Arlo
This basket’s too heavy for a little boy like me 
@Kim
FYI and for anyone else possibly interested, the old RollerCoaster Tycoon games (and expansion packs) are available on Steam fairly cheap. I didn’t check Zoo Tycoon since I never had it as a kid. I still play them occasionally for nostalgia.
@Sage
Unfortunately, Zoo Tycoon wasn’t on there last I checked.
Noel said:
@Sage
Unfortunately, Zoo Tycoon wasn’t on there last I checked.
A digital version of Zoo Tycoon 2 with all expansions can be bought for $20 on Amazon. It’s compatible with modern versions of Windows. Just need to look up a video on how to install it because it takes a few steps to do.
@Zola
Thankfully, I still have my copy.
@Sage
I have all of them. For some reason, RCT3 is the one I go back to the most. I guess I just love those pools, lol.
Hayden said:
@Sage
I have all of them. For some reason, RCT3 is the one I go back to the most. I guess I just love those pools, lol.
I remember getting RCT3 from my school book fair catalog (are those even still a thing?) in 2004. Ten-year-old me thought the coaster FPV was the coolest. And yeah, the pools were amazing, along with the fireworks mixmaster. What a great time to be a kid. I’m 30 now and still boot up RCT3 for some nice nostalgia.
@Sage
On RollerCoaster Tycoon 1/2: if you already own it, there’s something called OpenRCT, which brings many quality of life improvements to the original game and adds multiplayer. Highly recommended.
@Kim
The charm is nostalgia. You feel nostalgia for those games because you played them as a kid. In reality, Planet Coaster is pretty much a 1:1 modern remake with advanced features, but they aren’t the game you grew up with.
@Kim
The classic RCT is available on the Google App Store for like $5. It’s pretty solid.