Roller Coaster Tycoon 4

[lazyboy97o]

I too am skeptical of this new game, but depending on cost may give the mobile version a try. I would have been ecstatic to just get a port of RollerCoaster Tycoon 2.

 

[shiekra38]

I too am skeptical of this new game, but depending on cost may give the mobile version a try. I would have been ecstatic to just get a port of RollerCoaster Tycoon 2.

Yes a combo of RCT2 with RCT3's ride cam and zoom/fireworks features would be a dream come true

 

[Tobias]

Well, the mobile version is out now. From the trailer, it looked more like a knock-off of theme park and it looked like every other theme park knock-off app out there. Here's a video of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpRblyynIcU

Unfortunately and not surprisingly, the game looks exactly like every other theme park knock-off app instead of a mobile RCT. Compleate with microtransactions. Take a look at the 24:42 mark in the video to see just how high those microtransactions can get. Why there's a $64.99 and a $124.99 MT in an' app that's only $2.99, I have no idea.

 

[Tobias]

Giving this a little bump since a interesting article popped up today, one that gives Atari's reaction to the negative feedback of RCT 4 Mobile.

http://recode.net/2014/04/18/atari-to-rollercoaster-tycoon-fans-we-are-not-deaf/

You can’t please all of the people all of the time, as Atari is finding out with its new mobile take on RollerCoaster Tycoon.

The long-awaited sequel to the classic PC game series has been poorly received since it launched last week, averaging 2.5 stars out of five in the App Store, with reviewers pushing back against the $3 game’s adoption of micro-transactions. But Frédéric Chesnais, CEO of Atari’s parent company Atari SA, said it’s too early to throw in the towel.

“We don’t pretend that we know everything,” Chesnais said in an interview with Re/code. “But it’s very rare for a game to hit five out of five [stars] on first launch.”

He acknowledged that the company is listening to fans’ responses and looking at in-game analytics to fix bugs and possibly change the in-game economy “if needed.”

“We are not blind and we are not deaf,” he said.

A common thread in the negative reviews has been the way RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 Mobile asks players to either wait for new attractions to be built, sometimes for hours, or instead pay real money to buy “tickets” that speed up construction. In game jargon, this is known as an “energy mechanic,” and is found in free-to-play games ranging from Angry Birds Go! to PBA Bowling; last year, Disney abandoned an energy mechanic in its puzzle game Where’s My Water 2 when it came under fire from critics.

The monetization tactic is also common to many mobile simulation games that are like RollerCoaster Tycoon. But Atari’s use of the RCT name, albeit without the involvement of the games’ original creator, Chris Sawyer, means many gamers came in with specific expectations, and having to pay repeatedly was not among them.

Chesnais said those expectations should have been different.

“Yeah, you have to wait a little bit, but so what?” he said. “The world was not built overnight. They’re reviewing a mobile game, and a mobile game can’t be a PC game. … People are mad we did not release the PC game first.”

By that, he’s referring to a new computer entry in the RollerCoaster Tycoon franchise for PC, slated for release later this year, which Atari has already promised will be a “completely different game.” Chesnais said it would have “multiplayer and social features” but couldn’t say for sure if the PC version would use the same micro-transaction model as the mobile game.

“We have not made a decision on the PC game,” he said. “It’s entertainment, but it’s also business.”

Oh dear...where to begin.

You say you're not blind and deaf, but your response to the microtransaction complaints is "Yeah, you have to wait a little bit, but so what?" Only the ignorant would say "So what?" to one of the main complaints about a game.

Also, people arn't mad because you didn't release the PC version first. They're mad due to the mobile version just ain't a RCT game, the microtransactions...and the sheer fact that if you just ported the original games to mobile like originally planned, you'd have a great mobile game right there as well as the games people want.

The last comment is particularly chilling, especially considering the response to the complaints of microtransactions is "So what".

As I've said before, I'd love to be proven wrong, hell I WANT to be proven wrong. But this just doesn't help one bit.

 

[Cruiseshipfan]

I have little to no confidence in Atari as a company. The way they treat fans is just disrespectful, and they don't care about anything apart from money which they have made clear time and time again. I was apart of the Atari forums for years and the company showed no respect there at all.

A basic example was the removal of the ability to post pictures. this was fine for most games on the forums but for roller coaster tycoon (Which made up 99.99% of the forum) it caused major issues as the whole community is formed around custom content and creations which requires the use of pictures. This change completely destroyed the community.

Add that to a bunch of other circumstances and they completely lost my trust to make a decent game, or do anything good at all.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

I lost trust in Atari handling the franchise based on RCT3. Lost all clarity of what made it so good.

 

[knokout1]

Why do people hate on RCT3 so bad? Thought it was the best one, with the best possibilities of recreating a theme park. And Atari is right, people are giving it bad reviews because they wanted Roller Coaster Tycoon 4 but instead they got an average mobile game. The fact that Zoo Tycoon Mobile can get a higher rating but has the same exact waiting mechanics proves this. I think they should have used a different name, but there is no doubt mad fans gave it a low rating just to get their "revenge". And let's wait and see what the PC version looks like before we light a fire under Atari, all they did was release a mobile version.

 

[DisneyDoof]

I loved the 3rd version. The only thing i did not like about it was the whole custom scenery aspect. I've gotten so many viruses from them. It would be nice if the 4th pc version had nicer scenery on the roller coasters.

 

[knokout1]

I loved the 3rd version. The only thing i did not like about it was the whole custom scenery aspect. I've gotten so many viruses from them. It would be nice if the 4th pc version had nicer scenery on the roller coasters.

Hmm, I have several CS packs and never had any issues. Best to stick to the big reputable websites or Atari forums. One thing I am sure RCT4 will have is a built in scenery/support/building designer to eliminate having to hunt all over the web to build a good recreation or dark ride.

 

[DisneyDoof]

Lets hope, because if they do that rct4 will be the best rct game yet. (And we should change this forum around to talk about what rct4 should include.)

 

[ChristopherSE]

A look at the new Roller Coaster Tycoon World. I don't know if any of you have been following the development, but they released a trailer a few months ago that wasn't super well received and the developer was fired and a new one signed on to entirely rebuild the game from the ground up. This video gives me a lot of hope for the game. And while there may not be a lot of options to start (like only having 4 types of track), there will be plenty of patches/updates and I think they want to help players create their own content. I'm not sure how I feel about the coaster builder just yet. It's clearly smooth :clap: but the click-and-drag function in a 3 dimensional space can be tricky. Anyway, it looks absolutely gorgeous and seems to be a great addition to the series.

Also, could we possibly change the name of this thread? Maybe just to "Roller Coaster Tycoon"?

 

[natespf]

Maybe someone should start a new thread for the PC game (if not already), seeing as they will be completely different games.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

A look at the new Roller Coaster Tycoon World. I don't know if any of you have been following the development, but they released a trailer a few months ago that wasn't super well received and the developer was fired and a new one signed on to entirely rebuild the game from the ground up. This video gives me a lot of hope for the game. And while there may not be a lot of options to start (like only having 4 types of track), there will be plenty of patches/updates and I think they want to help players create their own content. I'm not sure how I feel about the coaster builder just yet. It's clearly smooth :clap: but the click-and-drag function in a 3 dimensional space can be tricky. Anyway, it looks absolutely gorgeous and seems to be a great addition to the series.

Also, could we possibly change the name of this thread? Maybe just to "Roller Coaster Tycoon"?

This looks great. Who was the prior developer?

 

[ChristopherSE]

This looks great. Who was the prior developer?

They're actually on their 3rd developer, from what I could gather. It began with Pipeworks Software, was handed over to Area 52 Games, and is now being developed by Nvizzio Creations. It's been a very long process but they're planning to release it by the end of the year for Windows, Linux, and Steam OS (which I did not realize even existed). I really, really hope there'll be a mac version soon because I really don't trust my dell anymore I can't open RCT3 at all anymore, which is a real shame because I had some amazing projects on there.

 

[Tobias]

While this game did drop off my radar due to the horrible trailer they put out in March, I will definitely give it to Atari that they listened to the criticisms and are actually on track on making a proper new RCT.

They definitely made the right choice on changing developers, since if they stuck with their first developer Pipeworks Software, we would've honestly gotten something more akin to the mobile game (without the microtransactions) then a honest to god RCT. Remember that awful trailer they released back in March? That was pre alpha footage made by Pipeworks, and even though it was pre alpha footage it looked like it was going in the same unrealistic direction that the mobile game went in. What makes things even stranger is when that trailer was released, Pipeworks was no longer the developer and Area 52 games was. (Word to the wise, if you're going to release a trailer, don't use year old pre alpha footage from a developer who's no longer working on the game.)

So while the developer history on this has been on the wonky side, ultimately Nvizzio Creations is developing the game and it honestly looks great, this game is back on my radar and I couldn't be happier about that.

 

[ChristopherSE]

Not a lot of new information, but a confirmation that it's coming out this year



EDIT: Also just found this commentated gameplay they live streamed at the event (you can skip ahead 13 minutes)

 

[Parkscope Joe]

I think RCT4 has some scaling issues with the rides, people, and various scenery. Hopefully it'll be worked out.

 

[ChristopherSE]

Yes, but it's a huge improvement over RCT3, where the proportions were sometimes just absolutely ridiculous. I also think it'll look better in a full-size park. That demo is a very, very small portion of the sandbox. And with their huge push for user-created content, fans can easily fix anything they don't like about the base game.

I'm really excited for their shift of attention toward the community. Custom content was an integral part of RCT3 and it was a bit of a hassle. I can't wait to see what happens when it's so available to make and share, without even leaving the game. Plus, with this shift to online gaming, patches and expansions are already being planned. I'm so interested to see where this franchise goes.