Sim Coaster

Bullfrog, the creators of the first theme park simulation game is back with Sim Coaster, a surprisingly addicting and interesting game that is easy to play and easy to learn. In an attempt to unseat Microprose's popular Rollercoaster Tycoon, Bullfrog created a fun, interesting theme park simulation that surpasses its original game. In Sim Coaster you are the inheritor of a theme park franchise and must build it to success. The game begins promptly with a helpful advisor who pops up constantly to give useful advice to help you learn the game quickly. Although the idea of building a financially successful theme park from scratch seems to be a daunting task, Bullfrog has made it painless and fun with the advisor and slick interface. Easily recognizable buttons are laid out across the bottom and sides of the screen to access functions quickly. You must not only construct roller coasters and rides, but also must construct the food stands, attractions, bathrooms and sideshows. It is necessary to hire and train staff members to take care of your theme park, including security guards, engineers, janitors and entertainers. You must also invest in research so that your park can be expanded and new rides can be developed. When you are juggling all of these tasks on one hand, you need to make sure that your park brings in a positive income, while maintaining the happiness of both the visitors and employees. Keeping the park system healthy is a challenge, but the freedom of creativity you are given is great fun.

The entire park's layout is up to you. Rides and attractions can be rotated and placed in 360 degrees, and roller coaster tracks are fully editable. The detail goes further than that with several options pertaining to each type of building. You can edit the cost, size and quality of the food to find a delicate balance of profit and customer satisfaction. The speed and duration of rides and roller coasters are also editable, but you must balance these out with maintenance and customer excitement. As your park grows, the helpful guide will remind you that you need to build more food stands and bathrooms. When the bathrooms get too dirty, you must hire janitors. When the employees are overworked, they demand a pay raise or they will quit. As the park becomes crowded you must add security and attractions for children, adults and senior citizens. If your park has become large enough, new areas will be opened up for further expansion. There is never a dull moment in Sim Coaster - it continuously challenges you with new, exciting tasks and keeps the gameplay pace moving smoothly.

Sim Coaster is a full 3D game, meaning that you can manipulate the camera angle any way you like. You can even hop onto a roller coaster or ride and take a spin in 3D, seeing your entire park as your visitors do. The system requirements are a little high, however. Once the park becomes crowded, all but the fastest computers will begin to take a performance hit, resulting in choppy frame rates. The game is still fully playable despite the lagging frames, but Bullfrog should have taken more time to optimize the game's graphics engine. Still, the graphics are nice and colorful with good variety in textures and design.

Sound effects are well done too, giving the feeling of a real theme park. Each ride has its own sound effects and even give off cues that they are about to break down and need maintenance. Individual visitors make noises as well, from happy kids to grumpy senior citizens bothering your staff. Voice acting is enunciated well and is always clear on what you must do.

Sim Coaster is a fun game, easy to play, and with plenty of appeal. It never gets boring or too frenetic to play and always presents interesting challenges. Bullfrog has done well with this title; it is highly recommended for gamers of all ages.

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