Zoo Tycoon Ultimate Animal Collection is an updated version of the 2013 game 'Zoo Tycoon' that was exclusive to the Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Now it is available for PC as well as Xbox One. The game is a zoo simulation where you build and manage your own zoo. Since the update, there are over two hundred different species of animal available to use in your zoos ranging from elephants and lions to macaws and platypuses. The animal models look fantastic and the animals move and behave like their real counterparts. You place the exhibits down and provide enrichment items, feeding and cleaning stations for your animals and can interact with different animals with feeding, washing and sensory stations. Whilst you tend to your animals, you have to take your guests' needs into consideration and there are plenty of indicators that inform you what your guests need the most. It's a very simple tycoon game which old and new fans of this franchise can get used to.
There are three modes in the game: campaign, challenge and sandbox. There are a total of thirty campaign missions which give certain objectives to complete within the zoo. Challenge mode allows you to build your own zoo with money restrictions, provide different challenges to complete and you have to research all of the animals and items. However, they have made changes to this mode since the 2013 version which I believe damages this mode. You cannot unlock all of the animals in each zoo in the mode which means that some of your favourite animals may not be available. Additionally, they added 'crises' which are events that appear frequently through your game and just become a nuisance. Either your janitors or keepers are on strike, there is a drought or your animals are diseased and you can spend money to end the crisis sooner. These don't make the game fun and often interfere with your zoo rating. Challenge mode has always been my favourite mode but these blocked animals and annoying crises really make this mode less fun to play. Sandbox mode gives you unlimited money and all animals and items researched but can be a bit dull as you fill your zoo within a few hours.
However, the game is not without flaws. In fact, there are a few aspects that bring the game down several grades. Firstly, whilst there are over two hundred different species in the game, they are collected into 56 different types. For example, there are a total of seven different subspecies of lion, nine species of agouti and fifteen different bears! Many animal types - such as zebras, wolves and penguins - are not included and even certain species which have been iconic to the Zoo Tycoon franchise are not included - such as the okapi and giant panda. Additionally, two of the species of bear released as DLC back in 2013 - the sun and sloth bears - look nothing like they do in real life and appear more like the other bears in the game. Whilst this may allow different people to have some of their favourite species of antelope and rhinoceros and shows how diverse some animal types are, it comes across as lazy and disappointing.
The Zoo Tycoon franchise is renowned for being scientifically accurate and educational with in-depth 'zoopedia' entries for each species. However, in this game this aspect is very lacking. Each zoopedia entry consists of a single paragraph, which usually just tells you where the species is from and very little else, and five fun facts. But, in most cases, the five fun facts are not specific to that particular species but for the animal type in general. For example, reading the zoopedia entry of the Southern South American cougar will give you general facts about cougars and not this particular subspecies. Whilst this still educates the gamer about animals, it doesn't teach you about the individual species. Additionally, the game gets some information wrong. They state that the African Bush and African Forest elephant are two subspecies of the African elephant - which is not correct as they are two distinct species! This lack of effort into the educational side is really disappointing especially when looking at the previous entrances to the franchise.
In the previous entries, each guest had their own individual needs. They would walk through the entrance, visit the different enclosures and use different facilities when they became hungry, thirsty, tired, bored or need to use the restroom. Here, they do one of two things: walk aimlessly around the zoo or stand/ sit at an attraction. The AI at the attractions will swap out when you come back to an attraction after a while but you never see them arrive or leave. Even the staff have lazy animations. Zoo keepers and breeding specialists are almost always standing outside and exhibit and do nothing else, whilst janitors walk around the zoo and sweep a section of the path every now and then. I know that for a game called 'Zoo Tycoon' the humans are probably the highest priority for the gamer, but it's disappointing that a game that was made years after the original two have weaker AI.
Designing the zoo and the exhibits is incredibly basic. Enclosures and facilities are pre-built and you cannot alter the layout or design of them. You can add different tables and tree planters in some facilities but you cannot place them wherever you like. Anything you want to place down can only be placed in specific spots. This limited freedom in the design is a definite step back in this franchise.
Finally, the game has bugs that force you to reload your game. Your animals will become glitched in one spot of their exhibit and will not move from it. Other times when you adopt, sell, release or move an animal the helicopter will not arrive and you will be sitting for around ten minutes before they immediately spawn in or leave. This can be infuriating when trying to complete a campaign mission or challenge. However, the worst part of these bugs is that they were in the game back in 2013! This is embarrassing and shameful of the developers that they failed to fix these bugs in the space of four years!
Whilst I may have come across as hating the game, I actually enjoy playing this game. There is enjoyment to be had when playing for a couple of hours at a time. It's an improvement over the 2013 version but it's not as good as the original two. However, this updated version suggests that the developers have listened to fans and want to improve the game. Hopefully they will release an update in the near future which fixes these bugs, improves the zoopedia entries and allows greater freedom in the design of the zoo.