Below are user reviews of Zoo Tycoon and on the right are links to professionally written reviews.
The summary of review scores shows the distribution of scores given by the professional reviewers for Zoo Tycoon.
Column height indicates the number of reviews with a score within the range shown at the bottom of the column.
Higher scores (columns further towards the right) are better.
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User Reviews (51 - 61 of 213)
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What a wonderful little game!
5
Rating: 5,
Useful: 4 / 5
Date: February 02, 2003
Author: Amazon User
I'm not big on zoos. So I hesitated for a while before purchasing this game. I thought, eh, how exciting can a zoo really be?
It is. It's quite fun. It's not anything mind-blowing, and the premise follows the same SIM format as other games, but it's really quite a delightful little game.
You set up your zoo with various animals ranging from Tropical to North American. Then you set up food stands, gift shops, restaurants, trash bins; everything to make your guests happy and comfortable.
You also hire staff -- from zoo keepers who tend the animals, to tour guides to maitenance staff to keep the park clean -- and fences mended so the lions don't get out!
I could see how this game would be an excellent tool for parents to teach children about wildlife -- its needs, what elements it requires to live happily, its point of origin.
But it's also a fun game for adults if you're a fan of SIM games. The interface is smooth and intuitive, and after the imposed tutorial at the beginning you can plunge right into it.
All in all, it's a great game. Enjoy!
A major bug in the program
2
Rating: 2,
Useful: 4 / 5
Date: December 16, 2001
Author: Amazon User
This could've been a pretty cool game, but I've become frustrated with it in just one week because of a software glitch.
It seems that after you've been running your zoo for a while, you start getting messages that your guests are hungry or thirsty, even if you've added plenty of food and drink stands for them. Although there is a downloadable patch which is meant to address this probelm (...), it didn't work on my system. And the problem multiplies - soon the animals are hungry, even though their zookeepers are right there, and should be feeding them.
It seems to me that even if it HAD worked, it's a little unfair to expect users to have to go download a patch just to make the game work. Microsoft should never have released it with a problem this obvious. Have they not heard of playtesting?
My recommendation is to WAIT until an updated version has been put on the market before buying it.
Tons of fun
5
Rating: 5,
Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 19, 2001
Author: Amazon User
I have never been into sims, but this game proved to be a lot of fun and very addictive. The premise is simple: build a zoo and keep your animals and visitors happy so you can make a lot of money (to improve your zoo). The interface is also easy to master, although I often refer to the manual to get hints on how to do things better. The most fun feature for me is the things you can do to keep the animals happy -- personally I don't really care about human visitors :) -- and this alone has kept me playing the game for hours at a time.
Zoo Tycoon...A must have game!
5
Rating: 5,
Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 15, 2001
Author: Amazon User
Zoo Tycoon is by far the best game I have ever purchased! Not only does it provide for hours of entertainment and fun, it also is very educational and challenging! The graphics are very good, comparable to Roller Coaster Tycoon. The game was very easy to learn, and I was building a zoo in no time at all! Awesome game!
Zoo tycoon
5
Rating: 5,
Useful: 3 / 3
Date: May 23, 2002
Author: Amazon User
I borrowed this game off a friend, and almost refused to give it back! This game was instead of homework for me! I just couldn't stop playing. I found the layout and access to different controls extremely easy, making this fabulous gameplay. The graphics were quite good. I enjoyed feeding the animals and finding out if they had young! You always had to check on them to see if they had food and had suitable exhibits, which was good because it introduced a slight feeling of desperateness. When youre animals were happy or when an endangered animal was born you would earn awards. You have scientists who research different animals, toys, shelters and park equipment such as merry go rounds and stuff. If you made a good enough park with interesting exhibits and side shows, you're park would become a Zoo Tycoon!!!!
Try and be a zoo tycoon yourself by buying this game!
Zoo Tycoon is a must!
4
Rating: 4,
Useful: 3 / 3
Date: September 18, 2004
Author: Amazon User
I have had intrests in animlas since I was about six years old.I went to ToysRUs at around nine and bought this games because I would get the chance to raise my own zoo.When I first bought it,I coulnt put it down!The amimals all have special needs,like some need a specific type of rock or tree.The scenerios are challenging,because sometimes they expect you to make 7-10 exibits and only give you 30,000.The graphics are amazing,everything is it 3D.I was kinda dissipointed though when I saw that there were barely any marine animals,only about three.I soon found out a month after buying and playing the game how to get unlimited amounts of money.If you press Shift and 4 and the same time,your money rises quickley.IN a matter of seconds,you can get a million dollars.But,do this before you put up and cages,because if you do the water in the exibits will become green and the fence will become all moldy,which can allow the animlas to escape.
greatest game ever!!!!
5
Rating: 5,
Useful: 3 / 3
Date: January 03, 2005
Author: Amazon User
I have the zoo tycoon complete collection--which is the best version, i think!!!! You have to select the building tool, then select a type of fence, and make your first exhibit. Bravo! Then, choose an animal. If you have the complete collection, you can choose marine animals, dinosaurs, or land animals. For dinosaurs you have to use a shock fence--if you don't want them to get out. For marine animals you need to use some sort of tank fence. And another thing. For marine animals that also go on land, you can combine the two and get a land--water exhibit. Choose an animal. Click on it, then click on..for dinosaurs: scientist's advice. For marine animals: marine specialist's advice. For land animals: Zookeeper's advice. Then follow the animal's red complaints first. Then follow the black ones. The red ones are the most urgent. Then try to shoo all of the complaints away by completing them. Then create another exhibit, and another and another...etc. Then create paths up to your exhibits for visitors, and buy attractions so your zoo will get more money. Zoo tycoon is REALLY fun, and you should DEFINATELY try it out! I do think that it's the greatest game ever!!!!!!!!! Oh yeah, and you also have to hire zoo staff, to clean up after the animals, and to feed them, and to train them for shows--marine animals. HAVE FUN WITH THIS!!!!!
This game is hard but fun.
4
Rating: 4,
Useful: 3 / 3
Date: December 20, 2005
Author: Amazon User
I got this game yesterday and it is fun but hard.It is hard to keep your animals happy.If your animals are so unhappy,you can't buy them for a while.If you're looking for a fun game or fun and challenging game I recommend this one.
Ok, but after a while it gets boring!
3
Rating: 3,
Useful: 4 / 6
Date: December 04, 2002
Author: Amazon User
When I bought this game I was expecting a game which I could play and it would provide me with hours of enjoyment for years.
I was however slightly disappointed! The graphics are OK but it does get boring after a while. Whilst building a zoo you either loose all your money and have to start again or you build a zoo and that is it you move on to your next zoo. Another problem with it is that it is terribley unrealistic! For example one of the reasons I bought the game was to let the animals out of the cages and let them rip the crowd to pieces! WOW, how down-heartened I was. I let a lion out of its cage and it 'ran' (which was actually the walking pace of the guests) for a while. But then 'bumped' into a guest and that was it!!!
I looked on the guest information panel and it said something like this "Wow, I have just been attacked buy a lion. I am getting out of hear. This place is dangerous." No blood! No gore! Just that! Another problem is that the cages you make can be realy small but the animals accept it. Aswell as this the crowd are easily pleased. In my opinion too easily pleased! Your zoo could be the most ugly plot of land on the earth and the zoo guests couldn't care less!
Even with these problems 'zoo tycoon' is an Ok game. There is for example a sense of pride almost, when you have completed building a zoo!
Lastly you can learn a thing or two about the animals whilst playing this game which is always handy.
If I could have I would have probably given this game three and a half out of five.
But whatever you do DO NOT buy this game for the realisticality of zoo building!!!
Zoo Tycoon
5
Rating: 5,
Useful: 4 / 6
Date: June 08, 2003
Author: Amazon User
Zoo Tycoon is one of my favorite games. I played at my freinds house and now I am begging my mom for it. I really like all of the animals, but it's sort of hard make good habitats for your animals. I found that it's a lot more fun if you have Marine Mania because than you can marine life, plus it includes Dino Digs, so you can have dinosaurs and Wooly Mammoths. It is one of the coolest games I have ever played. Adults might not like it as much as kids, but it is REALLY fun!
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