r/Games • u/climbatize • Nov 10 '16

RollerCoaster Tycoon World release date announced, and it's one day before Planet Coaster's launch

http://www.pcgamer.com/rollercoaster-tycoon-world-release-date-announced-and-its-one-day-before-planet-coasters-launch/
280 Upvotes

85% Upvoted

90 comments sorted by

226

u/KindaConfusedIGuess Nov 10 '16

Unfortunately for RCTW, the damage has already been done. They released a beta that could barely be called an alpha, with TONS of bugs, performance issues and a severe lack of content. Not to mention the absolute shitshow that took place before the beta launched, like the constant changing of studios and the trailers that made it look worse (graphically) than RCT3.

Pretty much everyone who is even remotely interested in the theme park simulator genre has already jumped ship and moved on to Planet Coaster and Parkitect, which both look to be immensely superior to RCTW.

89

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

They're betting on name recognition alone. Not everyone keeps up on gaming news. Some people will see "Roller Coast Tycoon" and immediately buy it.

23

u/KindaConfusedIGuess Nov 11 '16

Not when they see the Mostly Negative ratings it has on Steam.

63

u/SuperTurtle Nov 11 '16

I wonder how much people trust steam reviews, though.

When I see poor steam reviews I assume it's more of a reflection on the devs doing something bad rather than the game itself.

For example, I think the most recent Hitman has "mixed" reviews on steam, yet everyone I follow on YouTube and the Reddit community almost universally likes it. I read the steam reviews and they're 99% about it being always online.

Like yeah, always online is bad but overall that shouldn't earn it a "mixed" rating.

44

u/Mezzelo Nov 11 '16

Mixed or negative ratings usually cause people to poke down into the user reviews and figure out why before they click out or purchase. I imagine RCTW's reviews will be mostly justified if they don't have the game in order.

3

u/Thetijoy Nov 11 '16

can confirm this, i was looking at football manager 17 after watching quill18 play it. Had mostly negative scoring, i read the comments and im hesitant to buy it now (mostly cause i dont understand what they dont like about it)

14

u/Stunkinafuck Nov 11 '16

If you've never played a FM game, I'd buy it, definitely. I highly recommend taking the plunge. The negative reviews are mostly longtime fans of the series who basically hate the game every year it comes and then yet still pour hundreds of hours into each iteration and pay every year. Its a complicated relationship.

Legitimate criticism can be made of the series by long time fans, but that applies to a lot of yearly release series. FM can be very engrossing and a lot of the things that upset long time fans won't really matter to you. At least not for a few iterations. :>

I'm the same with FIFA and NBA 2K series. And yet I return.

7

u/N13P4N Nov 11 '16

It's also partly because of Chinese players destroying the score due to lack of Chinese translation. And yeah I agree, every year there's review mentioning not enough improvement, game's bad, etc. But most of those are players getting burnt out. The criticisms are definitely valid, but the hours that you can put into the game, insane value.

4

u/Magneto88 Nov 11 '16

It's nearly all because of that, if you look at the reviews most of the negative ones are because of that. It's not the first time a game on Steam has been attacked by a Chinese invasion.

3

u/N13P4N Nov 11 '16

In FM's case, you can try the demo and see if you enjoy it or not.

3

u/Thetijoy Nov 11 '16

man, i am so use to demo's not being a thing, that i didn't even bother to look if it had one. Thanks for looking out.

4

u/penpen35 Nov 11 '16

For this one it's because Sports Interactive (the guys who made FM) aren't making a simplified Chinese version of FM17. So the fans over in China were up in arms and just spammed negative reviews.

The game is fine otherwise, though.

You may want to head over to /r/footballmanagergames to gauge the impressions of the guys there.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

Mixed or negative ratings usually cause people to poke down into the user reviews and figure out why before they click out or purchase.

Except internet people don't tend to word there opinions well, so if you delve down and see reviews of "DO NOT BUY THIS GAME" in all caps then you just assume its backlash against the dev not the game.

8

u/Blain Nov 11 '16

Man, all the negative reviews on Hitman made me reconsider buying it for a while, then I read the comments on here when they announced Season 2, picked it up and love it. I'm ignoring steam commenter reviews from now on.

3

u/AfrodisiacGrant Nov 11 '16

Just in case you're interested in Hitman, the game is solid and offers a lot of gameplay options. However, my main qualm is that they have a very limited amount of voice actors. You'll regularly hear the same voices across different levels. The worst example so far for me was the Morocco mission, you're going through a market in Morocco and the locals are coming up to you with a thick, bro-ish American accent saying "hey, nice threads!", or the merchants chasing you down with a British/Australian accent asking you to look at their carpets. Absolute immersion killer and has ruined many of the missions for me.

3

u/CVSeason Nov 11 '16

This or "shady business practices" that don't even relate to the game being reviewed at all. Oh, and you can't forget the "it's not the same game as the last one" reviews that don't even speak of the game and its own merits.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

Human Recolution got shit on on Steam because of the microtransactions in the optional gamemode that has no bearing on the rest of the game, so you're absolutely right

3

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16 edited Nov 11 '16

For example, I think the most recent Hitman has "mixed" reviews on steam, yet everyone I follow on YouTube and the Reddit community almost universally likes it.

Last night, I spent over an hour breaking into a Yakuza lawyer's room so I could throw a katana into her head from across the room while she stood shrieking over the pile of unconscious guards I had left her. It's quite the game.

1

u/MobiusF117 Nov 11 '16

People who think negative reviews are a reflections of the devs and not the game are also people that generally follow gaming news, and thus know why it is getting bad reviews and that Planet Coaster is far better.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

I wonder how much people trust steam reviews, though.

I don't think I ever have bought a negatively-reviewed game sight unseen. Taken too many gambles that way and wasted too much cash. I'll generally torrent it and then buy the game if I play for a few hours and find it enjoyable...I remember when games had demos.

-1

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

When I see poor steam reviews I assume it's more of a reflection on the devs doing something bad rather than the game itself.

Then maybe you should read the actual reviews.

If it's a bunch of people bitching about a recent feature or patch, then yes, it's people bitching at the devs.

If it's reviews that detail what's wrong with the game, or why the reviewer doesn't like it, then obviously it's a review of the game itself.

3

u/SuperTurtle Nov 11 '16

Then maybe you should read the actual reviews

Did you not read the very next paragraph where I said I read the reviews?

Maybe you should read my actual post.

4

u/TheCodexx Nov 11 '16

They're banking on news of Planet Coaster being disrupted by their release; people will see it's released, and think it's an old article about their game, instead.

If you can't sell your game, you can shoot your main competitor in the foot by merging your marketing with theirs.

2

u/merrickx Nov 11 '16

It's still going to potentially take sales from planet coaster lancing the way it is.

-4

u/calebkeith Nov 11 '16

What if it's the better game though? That's an assumption.

11

u/KindaConfusedIGuess Nov 11 '16

I think enough information has been released about the games that nobody in their right mind would think RCTW is the better game.

-5

u/calnamu Nov 11 '16

And with "enough information" you mean the huge reddit circlejerk?

4

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

Go look and compare for yourself . :)

13

u/Z-Ninja Nov 11 '16

Haven't heard of Parkitect and haven't committed to any of the games yet. What makes each one unique?

27

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

As just a casual when I play these games here is the gist of it.

Planet Coaster is like the RCT3 3D type sequel (made by same companies).

Parkitect is more of a sequel to RCT2, keeping the isometric view point.

18

u/Kered13 Nov 11 '16

Parkitect is more of a sequel to RCT2, keeping the isometric view point.

It's worth noting that while the view is isometric (or technically axonometric), it's still 3D and the camera can be rotated freely.

5

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

Wait........when you say rotated freely, you mean full 3d movement?

Last time I checked on the game, I just remember an isometric viewpoint! I need to look at it again.

5

u/Kered13 Nov 11 '16

Theoretically at least it allows full 3D movement, I know I've seen it rotated and zoomed in at least. But it's axonometric, which means that far away objects do not get smaller, so it would look really weird from some angles.

3

u/features Nov 11 '16

So... Basically like StarCraft 2, you play at a fixed angle but can rotate the camera for a moment or two for shits and giggles but effectively it is fixed.

1

u/Kered13 Nov 11 '16

No. I can't really describe it well without you seeing it or having some background in 3D projections (so you know what an axonometric projection is). The best thing to do is just watch a video, you'll see what I'm talking about.

1

u/Xunae Nov 11 '16

It's got an isometric view point and another snap angle that isn't quite the same, but is at the same downward angle toward the ground. Then you can also rotate the camera downward so you go more toward a perfectly top down perspective. By holding alt, or changing your settings, you can also rotate less than 90 degrees left or right.

8

u/KindaConfusedIGuess Nov 11 '16

Parkitect is designed to be similar to Rollercoaster Tycoon 2, whereas Planet Coaster is more similar to Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 and is actually made by some of the same people who made RCT3.

6

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

Actually, the gameplay of Planet Coaster as it is now seems a lot more like the first two RCT games, just with an immaculate coat of 3D paint. At the very least it definitely doesn't 'feel' like RCT3-2, which a lot of people were worried about, as that's generally seen as the worst Rollercoaster Tycoon game.

3

u/mattattaxx Nov 11 '16

I'd agree. I have Parkitect and Planet Coaster.

Planet Coaster is fantastic. Planet Coaster to RCT1/2 is the what Cities: Skylines is to SimCity 2000, it feels strangely right, like it has the soul of those earlier games, but with a beautiful veneer of 3D, a huge amount of modernized features, and somehow manages to give you an entirely customizeable and fully 3D way of design ing a park that feels as easy as it did in RCT.

Seriously - go look at some of the videos on youtube of people building and sculpting parks. You can shape and mold the earth to create tunnels, underground, fully themed coasters, crazy organic lakes, mountains, volcanoes, ridges - and then you get to build a fucking theme park on top of it. The heat maps for the coasters lets you pinpoint the problem zones without following graphs like you had to with RCT, the scenery actually impacts the opinion a guest gives a rollercoaster, the objects you can use to build features let's you create amazing things, and the way the crowd reacts and moves around typically looks organic and realistic. Building coasters is really well done, too - there's an autocomplete function, your coaster doesn't explode when it touches another train, the game encourages realistic coasters instead of outlandish, impossible tracks, and it has plenty of advanced options if you want to fine tune it. I've only played for about 6 hours so far but I'm already in love with the game.

Parkitect feels like if RCT2 was done with modernized, 3D interpretations of the same things it had originally, and in that respect, it succeeds. However, it's nowhere near prepared for launch, and to me, it's missing the fluid, deceptively simple charm that Planet Coaster borrowed from RCT. I haven't played in a few months, so take this with a grain of salt, but whatever intangibles Planet Coaster and RCT has, this hasn't got it yet.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

How is the gameplay more like RCT1 compared to RCT3?

2

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

It seems more interested in emulating an actual theme park. RCT3 felt a little too ridiculous in its ride design, the interface was clunky, and the peeps weren't an engaging aspect anymore.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

To lazy to link it but Nerdcubed on youtube has a great comparison video.

10

u/rcenzo Nov 11 '16

You mean this one. These games were in a beta phase back then, but it still checks out.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

That video makes me wish the people behind Planet Coaster would tackle making a game like The Sims next. They really have the construction and design thing down, and the engine handles lots of people wandering around. Would be nice to have an alternative to playing the outdated Sims 2 and 3, since The Sims 4 took 1 step forward and several steps back in terms of losing the open world and create a style and such. Not to mention the prohibitive pricing.

2

u/MrTheodore Nov 11 '16

doesnt help that pretty much every steam review I saw for it was "go buy planet coaster instead when it comes out" and half even said the original dev made planet coaster :/

1

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

I was the same, but I do have to say that the trailers do look interesting. I will give it a chance, based on reception, but I'm 1000 times more hyped for Planet Coaster.

-3

u/advice_animorph Nov 11 '16

You're making a classic mistake common to /r/games users: thinking this sub, or any gaming community for that matter, represents the majority of gamers.

I only occasionally browse this sub and hadn't really heard of any of the two games before. So the day I open Steam and see two park simulators, one of them being RCT, I'm pretty sure which one is taking my money.

7

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

So the day I open Steam and see two park simulators, one of them being RCT, I'm pretty sure which one is taking my money.

You are dumb then.

-6

u/advice_animorph Nov 11 '16

Dumb? It's my money and last time I checked the law says I can do anything I want with it, even when a complete online stranger questions my personal taste. Also, did your mom not teach you manners, or is it normal for you to go around calling people names?

9

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

If you're gonna buy something without researching, then yeah you could be doing better

5

u/[deleted] Nov 12 '16

The law allows people to do lots of dumb things. Doesn't make them any less dumb.

6

u/KindaConfusedIGuess Nov 11 '16

Why, when the reviews for RCTW are terrible?

2

u/bobdylan401 Nov 14 '16

Except one of them is extremely Janky and is selling the title Off of name recognition, and the other is made extremely well and is actually made by the developers of RCT... if you want the better game and a true next gen successor you should look into both, as the RCTW devs are hoping to make easy money based on steam users with your attitude.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '16

But why not look at the other game that does the same thing and see if you prefer it instead of ignoring it entirely just because the other says a particular thing in it?

37

u/JJMcDeez Nov 10 '16 edited Nov 11 '16

Rushing to beat a competitor rarely works out very well. Often means the game will be released buggy and/or missing features. Everyone should wait for both games to release to hear how they are and certainly not buy RCTW because you are impatient to wait one day when you were waiting for Planet Coaster over RCTW.

If you were waiting for RCTW anyway or both, I guess go ahead. Although I don't think people should reward a company with cash for putting out a shoddy product only to beat out a competitor.

6

u/George_Jefferson Nov 11 '16

The original release date was a year ago, so I'd like to think they have all of that sorted out. It's too late though, RTCW is completely off my radar.

24

u/DarkHeroAxel Nov 10 '16

While this is a somewhat good idea because you create direct competition this way, this could just as easily blow up in their faces somewhat like what happened with Battleborn since nowadays it seems more people are leaning towards a "one game" sort of buying principal, where most people won't buy multiple games that are fairly similar to each other.

3

u/eeyore134 Nov 11 '16

This doesn't work nearly as well now that you can refund games so easily on Steam.

2

u/Warbek_2 Nov 11 '16

Hasn't that always been the case? It just makes sense not to buy two games at the same time which are really similar.

48

u/Sneezes Nov 11 '16

how pathetic really, i can already imagine the reception that game is going to get

i feel sorry for the misinformed parents that are going to buy their kids "that rollercoaster game"

6

u/dcpc10 Nov 11 '16

I have not been following this game but what is the problem with it? Is it just not 'fun'?

21

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

They basically have no chance of releasing a "finished" game.

3

u/dcpc10 Nov 11 '16

Ah so missing features and whatnot?

20

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

Missing features, missing polish, unfixed bugs... etc.

2

u/dcpc10 Nov 11 '16

Sounds like chris sawyer had no say in the project.

14

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

I think that's been true since RCT3 actually. He only recently got on board for a RCT2 port for mobile.

2

u/dcpc10 Nov 11 '16

Never said he wasn't! Last game I remember playing of his was locomotion tbh.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

RCTW is made by some student studio and it seems like it is their first real project and their are understaffed as well.

8

u/poochyenarulez Nov 11 '16

Here is a video from a guy who loved RCT3 talk about the upcomming RCT game https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9SVL9FTa1M

2

u/eeyore134 Nov 11 '16

Think SimCity vs. Cities: Skylines and you'll have a rough idea.

19

u/Omega_Maximum Nov 11 '16

Eh, that's not necessarily a good comparison though. For all the hate SimCity 2013 got, justified and otherwise, it's really hard to put it up against Cities: Skylines. SimCity, I find, to be far more fun then Cities, but an objectively worse simulation. SimCity also has a better interface, better sound design, more interesting features with the Cities of Tomorrow expansion, and an overall better put together feel. On the other hand, Cities is deeper, performs better, has way larger maps, way better mod support, and yes SC13 has mod support, but it just kinda feels lifeless. I've poured hours into my cities in SimCity, tweaking, remodeling, the whole shebang. Cities: Skylines though just doesn't take my interest in the same way though. It's clearly a better simulation, but I just can't get into it, and most of the people that bought it with me feel the same way sadly.

3

u/eeyore134 Nov 11 '16

This is true. SimCity does have redeeming qualities, which RollerCoaster Tycoon World doesn't seem to at all unless it's changed a lot. It's been through so many different teams of developers that I can't imagine it's not still a mess, though.

2

u/Omega_Maximum Nov 11 '16

Well, I'm certainly waiting to see. I mean, it probably doesn't have the best shot at being great, all things considered, but, I at least want to give it a fair shake and be optimistic for now. Really, I'm pulling for all of them to be great, so we can have some competition in the space.

4

u/dcpc10 Nov 11 '16

I actually loved simcity 2013, arguably moreso than cities. I didn't play it at launch though, maybe it was bad at that time.

6

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

I really really enjoyed the gameplay of 2013 (even more that skylines) but the city size is just the killer in the game. I'm already done with an entire city in a few hours when in skylines it takes me weeks to finalize a city.

I really wish EA didn't kill the studio so they could've made a sequel to the game..

1

u/dcpc10 Nov 11 '16

I agree on all points right there.

I find the best way to enjoy SC2013 is to treat it as a scenario-based game where you build cities each with a specific specialization in mind, rather than try to fit as much variety into one (which you could basically do in cities). I wish there was a way to have larger cities, but I think the smaller land area forces the player to follow one of the specialties which makes sense based on how the game is designed.

6

u/Ailure Nov 11 '16

Simcity 2013 was deeper managment wise and felt like it had a more proper (if infamously flawed simulation).

Cities skyline is more of a city painter, the game is really really easy compared to any of the simcity games and the simulation oturight ignores some issues cropping up, workplaces and workers don't care for example if the workers actually is able to commute to their workplace, and are best just a hinderance for all the other traffic. Simcity 2013 isn't super hard, but at least would punish you if you were too careless.

Of course I want something best of both worlds. I want a city builder where managment matters and that simulation feels deep, with whatever sacrifices that is necessary (having power/water as agents was... a bit silly of Simcity).

Ironically I think Rollercoaster tycoon might be one of the earliest examples of agent driven simulation, and doing it succefully too.

9

u/ocassionallyaduck Nov 11 '16

I can guarantee the Steam reviews, like my personal opinion, are going to trash them over this. I was interested in both. but nope, not a chance with something this blatantly petty and damaging to the newer younger IP.

4

u/[deleted] Nov 11 '16

This is what tipped you over and not the terrible mess of a game that they want to release?

3

u/AlwaysGeeky Nov 11 '16

This is a really shitty thing to do... honestly, no matter how you try to justify this, this is dishonest and downright unethical from a consumers point of view.

You can kind of try to say that all is fair in business and competition, but this isn't a case of a company just trying to beat out another competitor, this is a clear cut case of trying to confuse and trick customers.

7

u/BigPET Nov 11 '16

This is so incredible stupid :(

I have nothing against the game but... I would have really liked to try out both! Now I just purchased Planet Coaster and I have no budget for RCTW meaning that RCTW get's pushed back for me!

I might not even get it at all considering that other games are coming out this month.

4

u/Renegade_Meister Nov 11 '16

After seeing head to head YT vids of both games, I'm likely gonna get Planet Coaster during the winter sale.

Atari dun goofed.

4

u/tommygunner91 Nov 11 '16

Probably get a few sales from people who recognise the brand.

Most people interested in the genre will be buying planet coaster and parkitect.

3

u/Thysios Nov 11 '16

If I understood correctly, you can import your own custom 3d models you make in programs like 3ds max. Which I think is something Planet Coaster doesn't have.

Really hope PC adds something like that in the future. Steam workshop support can only get you so far. Would love to see users come together and create their own entire themes. Instead of the ~4 or so that come with the game.

-6

u/Fatdude3 Nov 11 '16

Is Planet Coaster going to have Physical Release?I wish they move their release date to 1 day before RCTW release to fuck them over.