PLANET COASTER

COASTERS ARE THE NEW STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN. US$44.99 | PC | www.planetcoaster.com/en

In Planet Coaster, you need to design the kind of theme park that makes your guests tremble with excitement and sends them running into the park wide-eyed, with pockets full of cash to burn. Thankfully, this game has crammed in enough creation and design tools to make sure you’re capable of doing just that. Don’t be dissuaded by the colourful, almost cutesy look — lying beneath is a game that’s hugely complex and offers all the intricacies and options even the most skilled designer could want.

There are three distinct modes: Career, Challenge and Sandbox. Jumping straight into Career is the best way of getting started. You’re charged with completing a certain number of objectives to achieve a bronze, silver or gold medal in a series of scenarios. Challenge mode is the same, but on the management side. You’ll have to work out how to employ the staff members necessary to keep your guests happy beyond the rides. Whether that’s clearing up litter, making sure visitors can eat, drink, poop and vomit in appropriate areas, and even keeping your rides maintained. In Sandbox mode, we would love to see Sim City or The Sims

style tasks, especially as the reactions from the public are often so hilarious.

Building your own roller coaster is intuitive and it’s not difficult to create a ride that seriously impresses both you and your guests. The most complex part is working out how each of the various parts work and combine to create the ultimate coaster. They can be customised, too, just like every other part of your park.

It’s important to test your coaster before you start asking punters to pay for an experience that may kill them — which is actually incredibly easy to do. However, there is a strange elegance in watching coaster carts go flying into crowds of people in slow-motion.

The result is that you’ll spend hours finding out how to make the best coasters and ride layouts, along with improving aesthetics and making everything look as realistic as you can.

Creation is very much at the core of the experience, and that’s what makes it so compelling.