| The PS2 is getting its first Theme Park title, and though it�s a basic port of the PC game of the same name, it still retains the tried-and-true formula that Bullfrog has perfected over the years. You�re put in charge of your very own amusement park, and it�s your job to keep the customers happy without going bankrupt. I won�t take up too much time writing about the graphics and sound since those aren�t where the game shines most. The visuals are smooth and colorful, and are easy to look at. The audio, although lacking in the background music department, comes out strong when it comes to sound effects. It�s really quite gratifying when you�re able to listen to the sound of dozens of happy kids roaming around your park. Their screams of delight while they ride down the roller coaster you built, or their sighs of disappointment as a ride gets closed are all accurately implemented into the gameplay. The game has beautiful graphics and amazing sound, but that�s just icing on the cake when you start talking about what Theme Park Roller Coaster is really about. The premise is simple: Start out with a theme, and start building up a park, making sure to bring in a couple bucks. Sounds easy, right? It�s actually much more complicated, and may even seem overwhelming once you start managing your first park. You begin by choosing which theme you want your park to follow. There�s only one at the start of the game, and more are unlocked as you earn hidden Gold Tickets. There�s a grand total of 4 Theme Park themes, which include: Lost Kingdom (prehistoric period), Space Zone, Land of Wonder, and Halloween. Once you begin your journey into park management, you�re greeted by an advisor. He�ll be there to inform you of anything important. Another feature to help out the newbies comes in the form of a sort of e-mail program. Whenever something happens, whether it be customer complaints about the lack of bathrooms or the presence of a litterbug in your park, you�ll receive a message that informs you of the problem. It comes in handy, although it may get annoying when the same message is given to you every couple minutes. So, now that you�ve got your park, it�s time to place some rides and hire some personnel. This is where the real fun begins, as it allows you to really customize things to your personal tastes. Each ride has it�s own unique charm, and each also allows you to configure its settings (speed, duration, capacity) in order to balance the ride�s excitement with its durability. It�s also possible to research upgrades for these rides, as well as unlock different rides which weren�tavailable at the start. Roller coasters play a big role in the game, as you can build one and immediately arrange the track. Your goal is to create as fast and scary �coaster as possible, as this will win you some awards and further your progress in the game. Along with the many rides available for purchase, there�s also other attractions, such as sideshows and shops. These are very important to the success of your park, and lacking in either of them will cause an immediate uproar of customer disapproval. With all of those set, you�re free to change the default settings ofany of the attractions, raising or lowering prices or the winning chance in a particular sideshow. With all that available, it�s obvious that you�ll need a strategic mind if you want a constant income. In fact, the game does a marvelous job of not cheating you, and things play out in an unsurprisingly manner. For instance, placing a fry shop next to a drink shop may not do much for your wallet, but if you raise the amount of salt on the fries, and increase the cost of the drinks, then you�ll soon see a drastic jump in profit. That�s just the beginning though, because what would a theme park be without any workers? In Theme Park Roller Coaster, you have the ability to hire guards, entertainers, janitors, mechanics, and researchers. Each has their own specific role and are essential to the success of your creation. As with the rides, you still have quite a bit of control over your employees. You can train them, set their patrol areas, and (if you�re having a bad day) just downright fire them. After all that, go ahead and travel through your park in first-person mode. You�re able to ride almost any of the rides (and yes, you can ride the rollercoasters), and even take part in some rather addicting mini-games by visiting any of the sideshows you built. It�s amazing what you can do here, and you�re sure to discover how much more power you have within the first 5 minutes of playing. If you�ve ever wanted to own an amusement park, but some sort of financial situation keeps you from doing so, then try out Theme Park Roller Coaster. It allows you to customize an almost unlimited array of elements to create a theme park to call your own. Bright and colorful graphics and realistic sound effects combine to further the greatness of the game. The only thing keeping it from receiving a higher score is the simple fact that the gameplay can wear a little thin after you�ve created your first few parks. With that in mind, I still recommend this title to anyone that wants a solid simulation game for their PS2. Da pike |