RollerCoaster Tycoon 2

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RollerCoaster Tycoon 2
RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 box art
Developer(s)	Chris Sawyer
Publisher(s)	Infogrames, Atari
Designer(s)	Chris Sawyer
Platform(s)	Windows
Release date(s)	JP July 15, 2003 NA October 15, 2002 EU October 18, 2002
Genre(s)	Strategy, simulation
Mode(s)	Single-player
Rating(s)	ESRB: Everyone
Media	CD-ROM
System requirements	Intel Pentium II 300 MHz CPU 64MB RAM

RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 is a simulation computer game that simulates theme park management. Developed by Chris Sawyer and published by Infogrames, the game was released on October 15, 2002. It is the sequel to RollerCoaster Tycoon and is the second game in the RollerCoaster Tycoon series. RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 is followed by RollerCoaster Tycoon 3.

Gameplay

Six Flags Magic Mountain with X (X²) and Viper seen in the scenario.

The premise of the game is to complete scenarios by successfully building and maintaining theme parks. Players can choose many roller coaster types and can also build other rides. The player can also build their own roller coasters. Furthermore, the player can modify the land and theme of the park. Players must also satisfy the needs of the visitors by building food stalls, drink stands, bathrooms, souvenir shops, and facilities, like ATMs, information kiosks, and more. Players must balance their budget in their expenses and income.

One of the most notable differences from the original game is that RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 features a more robust system for building structures. In the original game (expansion packs only), the player could create large buildings by raising the terrain in blocks and then painting in wall textures, roof tiles, and windows on the cliffs. In RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, the player can create buildings by laying each piece of wall and roof pieces individually. To make constructing buildings easier, the player can lock the position of a wall or roof piece by holding the SHIFT key and moving the mouse up and down to adjust the height. The CTRL key can be held down to lock in the height of a piece. These changes gave the player much greater flexibility when it came to constructing buildings. Using the SHIFT key, the player can also raise or lower any ride or shop to a desired elevation, allowing for entire rides and shops to be built underground. Previously, only rides that had tracks could be built underground, since the player had to build the first piece above the ground, then extend the track below ground afterwards.

Many of the rides from the original RollerCoaster Tycoon have been modified and/or renamed. For example, "Scrambled Eggs" has been renamed "Twist". Also, some old ride designs have been merged into others. For example, the "The Wooden Twister Coaster" is now included in the "The Wooden Roller Coaster".

One feature that proved to be quite popular was the addition of a feature that allows players to import and use user-created scenery items. Another popular inclusion was a scenario editor. Players can select an objective with no time restraints and no money restraints, creating a sandbox mode. The game is also licensed by Six Flags to include scenarios based on five of their real parks (such as Magic Mountain, Great Adventure, and Over Texas). Furthermore, many popular rides in Six Flags theme parks can be used in RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 but not edited. The game also contains a variety of new themes and music for attractions. Players can also view park guest status, as well as rename and track guests, by clicking on them. Guest AI was improved, allowing for the creation of paved areas, whereas previously any path wider than a single terrain square would cause them to become 'confused'.

Unlike the original RollerCoaster Tycoon, where the player had to complete currently available scenarios to unlock new scenarios, all of the scenarios in RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 are available from the start. In this title, scenarios are divided into five folder tabs (Beginner Parks, Challenging Parks, Expert parks, "Real" parks, and Other Parks) according to their difficulty and content. The "Real" parks folder tab contains five real-life Six Flags parks with many attractions already built, and the "Other" folder with empty versions of each of the Six Flags parks. When creating a scenario, the player can save the scenario in any of the five folder categories.

As with the previous game, players can upload their saved track designs onto the "ride exchange." Track designs from RollerCoaster Tycoon and RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 could later be imported into RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 (which would render the tracks in 3D for the first time).

Reception

Initially, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 was not entirely popular with fans of the first game, as the game engine and interface were the same as RollerCoaster Tycoon, with minor improvements in graphics (e.g. more images for coaster cars, allowing for smoother animations). Like the original game, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 still uses an isometric perspective. Nevertheless, the game proved successful and attracted more people to the series, revitalizing the older fan base.

RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, as of 2005, has been the most successful game in the RollerCoaster Tycoon series.^{[citation needed]} This game is the last in the series to use isometric viewpoints. For the next release in the series, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, a new 3D game engine was implemented and the interface completely redesigned.

Expansion packs

Two expansion packs were released for RollerCoaster Tycoon 2. The first, Wacky Worlds, is a world-themed expansion. All seven continents of the world are featured; each has a unique park entrance, large scenery group, and several attractions themed to it. The second expansion pack, Time Twister, is based on a time theme. It is somewhat similar to Wacky Worlds in that the new scenarios are presented as additions to the existing RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 ones, and that there are several major new themes, each with plenty of new rides, scenery, and a park entrance. Both of these expansion packs are now available in a Triple Thrill Pack with RollerCoaster Tycoon 2.

External links

• RollerCoaster Tycoon on the Atari website
• RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 at GameSpot
• RollerCoaster Tycoon Wiki, an external wiki