Planet Coaster

Roller coaster simulation game

Planet Coaster is a premium simulation game made by Frontier Developments. It's an amusement park game wherein players can build a roller coaster park of their dreams. They can create any ride that they want and can choose from multiple game modes.

Planet Coaster takes cues from Rollercoaster Tycoon 3: Platinum!, made by the same developer. It still features a fully interactive map in a top-down view, with the most notable change being graphics. Everything from the character models to the background scenery, and the structures have all seen a great boost in fidelity and presentation.

Is it any good?

Originally called Coaster Park Tycoon before it was officially released back in 2016, Planet Coaster is a simulation game that basically lets you construct and manage your very own amusement park. Despite what its name might suggest, you are not actually limited to building just roller coasters. You can pretty much create any ride you want, and the tools available in the game will let you do that.

Coaster Park's Sandbox Mode, in particular, has received praise for letting players have full creative freedom in designing and building. Other modes include a Challenge Mode, wherein you will work with limited funds for your park. Scenario Mode will let you create custom tasks and challenges of your own. Finally, experience the whole construction and management aspect of the game from start to finish in Career Mode.

Speaking of Career Mode, this is one aspect where the game has received criticism and ultimately falls short. Some of the tasks and objectives needed to be met in the game required purchasing DLCs. Considering it's an integral part of the game's experience, this decision was considered by many as underhanded and seen as a sort of money-grab move by the developer.

What’s new?

After a sales slump in the past few years, Planet Coaster is having a moment recently. Sim enthusiasts and newcomers are finding renewed interest in this construction game, precipitated mainly by the staggering price discount. Aside from paving the way for many curious players to take a dip, the sudden price cut has given birth to speculations of a potential sequel circulating in online gaming communities.

Build an architectural marvel of your dreams

The controversial Career Mode notwithstanding, Planet Coaster is really good and is worth considering for fans of construction and management games, in general. If all you want is to build the amusement park of your dreams and you don't mind skipping some parts of the game, you should definitely check this one out.