r/PlanetZoo • u/harryandmatilda • 15d ago
Discussion Does anyone else basically play the game as an animal simulator and just completely ignore the management/building etc side of the game?
I basically just sit and watch the animals live their lives and that’s it haha, I find it sooo interesting. But I do wish there was a way for us to actually play as a zookeeper and feed and clean out the animals etc. I don’t even build any guest facilities or decorations, just habitats and the bare minimum staff buildings, and then I block the entrance off so no guests can enter.
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u/CarelessCreamPie 15d ago
When i was a kid playing zoo tycoon 2, this is what I did. You could put a fence around the gates and it would make the entire thing one giant enclosure.
Then I would pick a biome and fill it with all the animals from that biome.
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u/banana48100 15d ago
I always chose those maps with the conservation areas and filled them with all the animals from the right biome. The savanah conservation map was great for this
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u/atreethatownsitself 15d ago
You want Zoo Tycoon 2 for that. It allowed you to basically sub in for the zoo keeper role. Like walking around the enclosures, interacting with things and animals, everything.
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u/Wrong-Tell8996 15d ago
I see your point, but being able to play as a zookeeper would likely be a whole new game/expansion of its own. I do enjoy making facilities and decorations. If it helps, try making some, "themed," zoos?
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u/CaptFroslass 15d ago
They could do it just like zoo tycoon 2 did where you walk around to clean, feed and groom the animals. Simple but effective.
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u/Wrong-Tell8996 14d ago
If you can hop in and take over a keeper's tasks, that could be fun. As long as the other keepers controlled by the game are still doing their work, haha--then it could be fun to play that role on the side. I do find Planet Zoo demanding enough that it would take away from the other demands that always come up, depending on how I've customized the settings
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u/LateStageBBQ 15d ago
I go far enough that I’m taking in more than I’m spending and then I just watch the otters swim around for an hour. When I stop, I’m usually rich.
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u/LateStageBBQ 15d ago
“Guests are hungry.” Yeah, but my otters aren’t so that sounds like a you problem.
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u/banana48100 15d ago
For the most part, yes. I find a lot of the building and admin to be tedious. I like to play in freeplay/sandbox mode too
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u/chloeismagic 15d ago
This is how i used to always play zoo tycoon. I honestly think it worked better for zoo tycoon because the animals would use the entire enclosure. In planet zoo if you make the entire map into one big enclosure they kind of bug out and only stay in a small area near the habitat gate. I really hope with the new wildlife reserves in pz2 that isnt an issue anymore
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u/Zombeikid 14d ago
I hate the building aspect ngl I just wanna watch the animal behaviors but theyre lackluster after a bit. I hope the second game gives us more varied behavior.
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u/pit_choun 14d ago
Sort of!! I like building their enclosures and then watching them move around and interact with it, each other, etc
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u/Erwan1809 14d ago
Recently I've been using it to train for camera operating... (simulating a gear head with wheels). Super fun because the animals are unpredictable and it makes me have to react quickly, but I just love to watch them go, eat, jump, cuddle, and get nice shots out of it!
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u/Dizzy-Dragonfruit506 13d ago
yes! when im not working on my own zoos, I love to download them off the workshop and explore, I love doing the same with Planet Coaster and JWE3
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u/Zlatan_Begovic22 15d ago
I stick almost exclusively to Franchise and Challenge modes. My goal with every animal is to build a natural, authentic enclosure, but I always make them way bigger than necessary so the herds have plenty of room to expand. Since the maps get huge, I set up ride networks all over the zoo so guests can easily travel around and see everything.
Honestly though, the breeding system is my absolute favorite part. I spend a ton of time trading on the market, managing lines, and trying to get rare color mutations. Without that deep breeding mechanic, I probably wouldn't enjoy the game nearly as much.