SimCity’s new Amusement Park is a tourist attraction like any other, to be plonked somewhere within your town’s tight bounds. But Maxis say it’ll require a little more work than your average casino or landmark to make the most of the not-inconsiderable space it occupies.
Parks will make money via their guests, who will dutifully ride the ‘coasters and purchase sustenance from concession stands. However, to maximise efficiency players will have to make it as easy as possible for them to do so.
“Running a successful Amusement Park is almost a mini-game in itself,” wrote gameplay scripter Jason Halvorson in an exhaustive blog post. “You’re really going to need to pay attention to the layout of your park in order to maximise profits.”
Once you’ve placed one of three main gates for your park – each with one ride, one concession stand and a stub of road – you can start playing with the various park modules available to you. Main Attractions include roller coasters, go-karts and Ferris wheels, and bring in huge numbers. After guests have exhausted them, they tend to turn to Secondary Attractions – the drop towers and carousels. They’re cheaper and boast lower maintenance costs, but don’t satisfy as many riders or boost ‘attraction’ so notably. Concession stands are cheapest of all and perform an additional function – ‘refreshing’ your guests so that they can begin the cycle again.
Elsewhere there are mini train stations – you can manually plot their course throughout the park, like you would roads. Signs, finally, attract more guests to your park and benefit your entire city’s tourism industry.
Said Halvorson: “I highly recommend placing a sign as soon as possible as it’s a fairly cheap module that pays for itself rather quickly.”
Not all modules will be available immediately, instead unlocking as you increase your daily profit and upgrade your park.
Do you think you’ll be burying your head in this new corner of SimCity? Or have you long since moved on to less disappointing climes?
Thanks, Eurogamer.