Top Simulations Games: Theme Park

I am a big fan of "building" and simulation games and many years ago a company called Bullfrog designed a simulation game that appealed to gamers and non gamers alike. If you were alive in that time you probably played some sort of version of this game as there have been continual adaptations of this type of game although Bullfrog doesn't do direct development anymore since being acquired by EA - like so many others.

There are a ton of games like this out there, but this was the first (unless some super nerd out there want's to try to prove me wrong.)

src

There had been other "management simulation" games out there but this was the first one that I can remember that was as simple as you want it to be and also fun for people that were just looking for a casual experience.

The idea behind the game was pretty simple: You build an amusement park with the idea of it being profitable. The idea was to make money while managing staff, rides, concessions and gift-shops, and also managing to keep your customers happy by keeping lines as short as possible and also keeping the grounds clean.

src

As your park grew you would get additional options of rides, games, food stalls, and other structures to choose from but you had to also make sure that things didn't break down and when they did, to have enough full-time mechanics on hand to repair them and get them back to working again. This was one thing that I found irritating because most of the time the mechanics, who were one of the more expensive employees in the game, would just be sitting on the grass doing nothing but you had to let them get away with this because the rides, especially the really cheap ones that you acquire early on in the game would break down frequently to the point where it was better to just eliminate them and opt for something better.

src

As your cash levels grew you would gain the opportunity to make custom rides such as the lazy river, the log plume ride and of course, roller coasters. This is where things could get a little bit tricky because a roller coaster designed with dips and rises that were too extreme would actually throw the customers off the ride.

src

The thing that made this game special was that you could make it as complicated as you wanted it to be. If you didn't want to micro-manage minute details of the game, you didn't have to. You could simply build paths and more rides and leave it at that. However, if you really wanted to dig into the details you had the option of operating rides at a slower pace to ensure less downtime from breakage, or you could speed them up to keep the lines moving. You were even able to micro-manage how much salt was going onto food to encourage the purchase of drinks and then manage how much ice was being put into drinks in order to cut costs and increase your overall profits.

You had to be careful about how you treat yours guests though because later in the game disgruntled customers would return to the park to vandalize it, pop balloons, and even beat up performers (which was hilarious.)

The game never really ended and in this sense it was something you could save and always return to later if you wanted and trust me, most people wanted to return to it.

src
_{getting a functioning roller coaster was one of the most difficult parts of the game}

---

There have been a lot of games that have been made that are similar to this as the years passed by but most of them go by the name of Rollercoaster Tycoon and these games are still fun but as you would expect, far more complicated.

Not many people played this game when it was new because as hard as it is to believe now, not many people owned computers back in '94 and when they did, for most people it wasn't for gaming. Theme Park would later be released on consoles but I never played any of them because as I mentioned just a few articles ago, I can't stand simulation games when using a controller.

If you want a piece of nostalgia, you can get the ROM of Theme Park for free, HERE