Not that bad...
User Rating: 6.7 | Zoo Tycoon DS DS
Zoo Tycoon DS is, essentially, a portable remake of the 2001 pc game with reworked controls. There are a number of scenarios to play through, with certain requirements to meet within a set amount of time, such as what the guest or animal happiness should be at or how many exhibits you should have. You have to do the scenarios in order, unlocking more as you complete them. For those who just want to play the game their way, there is a freeplay mode which pretty much lets you do whatever you want. The tutorials are informative, quick, and give you a basic understanding of how to control the game, how to run your zoo, how to make your guests and animals happy and such. You use the D-Pad to navigate around your zoo at the top screen, and use the touch screen to do just about everything else. The touch screen controls can be troublesome at times, but it isn't too big of an issue. You take care of your animals by first setting up a fenced in area. You have to think about what you're doing, for instance choosing certain fences depending on the strength of the animal you wish to adopt, or how much space a certain animal needs. After you've put up the fence, you can adopt the animal and place him/her. Each animal has different exhibit requirements. There are plenty of different terrain, trees, rocks, shelters and other things to choose from; You'll make the animal happy and your exhibit rating will go up if you place things accordingly.
Your guests will generally be pleased if you decorate your zoo nicely, make sure your animals are happy, provide places to eat and drink and use the bathroom, benches to sit down on, and plenty of exhibits to see. The game really isn't as bad as it's made out to be. The controls can give you issues, and it can get frustrating, but it isn't unplayable. The graphics have been downgraded considerably, but they aren't horrible. The sound......well there isn't really much sound. If you like animals and have an open mind, you may enjoy this game.
