Job Description? Virtual Zoo Keeper :) (Zoo Tycoon 2 (PC))

Member Name: taker4376

Product:	Zoo Tycoon 2 (PC)
Date:	05/02/09 (330 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Addictive, Fun fun fun, play out a dream, all be it virtual?

Disadvantages: Limited playability, Addictive

I am currently meant to be writing my dissertation for a looming deadline. Naturally as a typical student I am finding as many ways as I can to procrastinate lol. Enter Zoo Tycoon 2.

I love Simulation games. The sims 2 is of course my favourite but I find that after a while of constant playing I get bored and so need something else to play. Zoo Tycoon is not as sophistacted as the Sims. If you've ever played games such as Theme Hospital or Theme Park then you will find Zoo Tycoon 2 to be more similar to these.

Have you ever wanted to be a zoo keeper? Well if you have then you should know that different animals need different environments. That you need to cater for their many needs including food, water, shelter and company. You need to know that you really shouldn't put a lion into the same exhibit as a zebra and that if you put a female in with a male then you may just end up with a baby on the way. You need to clean up after them and keep their environments clean, ensure they have privacy away from prying eyes and that the fences and cages they are in are suitably secure to ensure they dont escape. And this is exactly what Zoo Tycoon is about.

But that isnt all. A Successful zoo needs money, otherwise how on earth will you pay for all that food or for people to look after the animals if you cant manage to do it alone? The way you get money in a zoo is customers and as many people will know customers are very hard to satisfy (well not too hard, make sure they're fed, have somewhere to rest and are entertained and then they'll be happy, a little like the animals behind the bars ;) )

And that is basically the premise of the game. Within the game you can enter "zookeeper mode". This is where you can walk around your own zoo and clean up the animals, feed and water them or clean up after the customers. This can also save you money as you dont have to employ people to do it. There are three different modes you can play.

Campaign Mode:- (This is the mode I have been playing most)
There are 17 Campaigns in total. You are given a scenario at the start of the campaign and you need to fulfill the criteria of the scenario. It starts off very easy, with a basic tutorial but soon gets harder and can take several sessions to finish off one scenario. There are incentives of course. On completion of a section you unlock different items to beautify your zoo.

Challenge mode:- This is where you start off with a certain amount of money (you can adjust this to make it harder or easier) and you need to build the ultimate zoo in a part of the world of your choice.

Sandbox/Freeform Mode:- If you one of those people that hate running out of money or waiting for certain animals or objects to get researched (many objects aernt available until your zoo has a certain number of stars) then this is the mode for you. Everything is at your disposal to make the ultimate zoo with no need to work hard to make money or wait around.
Personally I think this mode may seem most appealing but the fun of the game is really the challenge and so theres little to be gleamed from jsut having everything to start off with.

Whats also fantastic about this game is that you can download new content, which is updated now and then by pressing a simple button on the opening menu. No need to open lots of folders and insert the download in the right place, it does it for you. But if you still want more, then have no fear there are expansion packs available:-
African Adventure
Marine Mania
Endangered Species
Extinct Animals

There are of course a few little complaints. Unlike with the sims, you cant speed up the time. So you can be waiting around for the money to come in for quite awhile when saving up for expensive animals. It would be great if like the sims you could fastforward at double or triple time. It would be nice if you could play with the animals as well as just groom them. Or if you could buy things, or go into the gift shops etc. I'ld also like it if dangerous animals like lions and crocodiles acted more dangerous. You can walk up to them in zookeeper mode and wash them and they dont do a thing. It would also be fun if you could mate across species to create new ones.

I can also see that this has limited playability. Although this is expanded with the expansion packs which are now quite cheap. You can buy all of them in a compilation set for around £30 which is cheaper than getting them seperately. However like the sims, its one of those games you play constantly for a while and then get bored of. But after a few months you can go back and enjoy it again.

These are the system requirements to play:-
Windows 98SE/2000/ME/XP
733 MHz processor
256 MB RAM
900 MB of available hard disk space
Quad-speed or higher CD-ROM drive
16 MB 3D DirectX9.0 or later

Still not convinced you want to purchase this game?? Not a problem there is a free trial available to download. So what are you waiting for? (The site is from the USA) http://www.microsoft.com/games/pc/zootycoon2.aspx

Summary: A great game for all the family