It’s been some time since I reviewed a Kairosoft recreation. I feel, maybe, the final one was Legends of Heropolis, which was seven years in the past. At the moment, I felt just like the prolific sim writer’s video games have been simply too much like each other, and it appeared as if it was headed down the treacherous path of free-to-play monetization. So I finished. However Kairosoft certain didn’t, and as luck would have it the video games roughly saved on going with the tried-and-true paid mannequin. I made a decision to verify again in with its newest launch, Zoo Park Story ($5.99) to see what has, or hasn’t, modified.
Let’s begin with the premise. You’re the proud proprietor of a brand-new zoo. It’s not a lot of a zoo, thoughts you. You’ve received a hamster and a capybara. There’s additionally a bench, some merchandising machines, and a tree or two. It looks like maybe it’s best to have been a bit extra ready earlier than opening your doorways, however right here we’re. Hamster. Capybara. Merchandising machines. Bench. Let’s go. You wouldn’t suppose anybody would come to such a zoo, however folks do. Your purpose is to develop your zoo into one thing worthy of the title, filling your pockets with money alongside the best way. As you construct, your zoo will earn stars in direction of a rating. Your goal is attain 5 (and past), a job that may require you to verify off a bunch of missions. Add extra animals. Roll these campaigns. Earn these social media likes. Get. Paid.
I’ll be direct right here: not a lot appears to have modified in Kairosoft’s world. And I suppose if it isn’t damaged, why danger attempting to repair it? Zoo Park Story may have come out seven years in the past and it wouldn’t have appeared misplaced of their line-up on the time. The visuals and sounds are comparable, the UI is comparable, and that acquainted issue curve is right here. Somewhat sluggish, simple, and barely difficult at first, then you definately attain a sure level and the scales tip, providing you with a cushty cruise to the top of the sport. You’ll be able to really mess issues up on this one, which I suppose is new. However most definitely, you received’t.
There’s really a little bit bit extra happening on this one that originally meets the attention. Clearly the primary factor you need to do is add extra animals to your park. A number of of them will simply roll in of their very own volition, however most of them shall be acquired the opposite two methods. First, you may simply purchase them from the Animal Hub. This may require you to both trade objects or Animal Factors. The opposite means is by discovering them and befriending them on expeditions. You’ll have to barter with them to befriend them, which includes tossing cash, Animal Factors, or larger common meals bills. The latter is a technique you may mess issues up, by the best way. Don’t throw your entire finances at a duck, is all I’m saying. Typically talking, the extra spectacular the animal is, the extra it’s going to value you to maintain.
Objects! You should purchase them with cash, yow will discover them on expeditions, and folks visiting the park will provide you with some every now and then. Along with utilizing them to choose up animals within the Animal Hub, you need to use them instantly on the animals to enhance their stats. The extra friendliness they’ve, the extra likes they’ll get on social media and the extra clients they’ll appeal to. Upping their stats and bettering their surroundings with decorations also can earn you extra Animal Factors every now and then. Each animal has their likes and dislikes, and the boosts they’ll get differ primarily based on that. When you get a couple of of every animal kind you may merge their pens, and if they’re of various genders there’s a probability they may reproduce. As their friendliness will increase, they’ll have the ability to work together with clients in new methods.
Except for all of this, you may as well run campaigns to draw guests, add the occasional facility, and attempt to enhance your zoo’s rank. You do this by finishing particular missions, they usually’re roughly issues that may occur naturally as you play. On the finish of every 12 months, you’ll get a abstract from a bizarre chimpanzee king and he’ll offer you another factors you may trade with him for numerous rewards. In comparison with earlier video games, Zoo Park Story looks like makes easy issues unnecessarily sophisticated. There isn’t a lot depth right here, and the tempo could be actually sluggish. All these additional currencies and mechanics do is make these fundamental duties extra convoluted.
I’m undecided if I simply picked a nasty one to leap in on or not, however Zoo Park Story simply doesn’t click on for me the best way a number of the older Kairosoft video games did. Filling out the park simply didn’t really feel satisfying. My zoo didn’t really feel like a correct zoo, and I felt prefer it was too penalizing to have the cool animals filling out the park. The street to success appeared to only contain jamming as many objects as doable down the throats of the most affordable animals I may discover. The sport simply didn’t increase out in as pleasurable a means as I hoped. The Kairosoft attraction retains issues from being disagreeable, however this was most likely as near tedious because it will get for this type of template.
No experiment ought to finish after a single trial. I’ll most likely look into the subsequent couple of releases from Kairosoft earlier than wandering off once more, however I can at the very least say with some confidence that Zoo Park Story hasn’t made me rethink why I finished reviewing this writer’s video games. It’s okay. If it was your first Kairosoft recreation, you’d most likely have a blast. However I really feel like this idea may have made for a much better recreation than what we received right here.
