Planet Zoo Planet Zoo!

[Thomas]

With all due respect, there's no need to just "copy the Zoo Tycoon" franchise. Why can't Planet Zoo just be its own thing?

Like, do we really need a third leopard subspecies when nobody liked the presence of two brown bear subspecies? Or do we really need the Mountain Gorilla when we already have the Western Lowland Gorilla, especially after the complaints about the addition of the American Flamingo?

We've been getting a lot of the classic Zoo Tycoon Animals to begin with in every other pack, and Planet Zoo can be its own thing by including animals that weren't in the Zoo Tycoon Games.

And I see your point of the subspecies.

 

[Thomas]

Here are a couple of Comparison Sheets between Zoo Tycoon and Zoo Tycoon 2 Animals and Planet Zoo, which gets updated whenever any animal from the Zoo Tycoon Games is added by WildandNatureFan.

 

[Thomas]

I agree a lot of the picks are very good, and several I really hope squeak in officially. The walrus, Sea Otter, and Secretarybird would be my highest priority. Come to think of it, I'm rather surprised we only have one subspecies/species of Giraffe - they are a case where subspecies are actually widely held in captivity.

For a few of the choices I'm not sure they're needed based on similarity grounds. Nile Crocodile and Mountain Gorilla aren't all that different from the Saltie and the Lowland Gorilla. A couple others are a little better differentiated, but not sure their chances are real high (Javan Rhino, Barbary Macaque, Iberian Lynx, etc)



If we could replace Himalayan Brown Bear with it, sure.



Arguably the Cloudie takes the tropical Asian slot. Having three subspecies of Leopard in the official roster feels a bit much.

The primary difference between saltwater crocodiles and Nile crocodiles lies in their habitat and size, with saltwater crocodiles being the largest living reptiles and more adaptable to various aquatic environments, including brackish and saltwater. Nile crocodiles, while large, are primarily freshwater and more common in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Habitat: Saltwater crocodiles are found in coastal areas and estuaries, while Nile crocodiles are found in freshwater habitats such as rivers and lakes. Head shape: Saltwater crocodiles have a longer and more pointed snout, while Nile crocodiles have a shorter and more rounded snout.

Nile Crocodiles are more familiar to the Public outside of Australia and are often seen in Zoos.

Mountain gorillas and western lowland gorillas are distinct species of gorillas, differing primarily in their habitat, physical characteristics, and social behavior. Mountain gorillas are found in high-altitude mountain forests, have thicker, longer fur for insulation, and are larger and heavier than western lowland gorillas. Western lowland gorillas, on the other hand, inhabit lowland forests and swamps, have shorter, lighter-colored fur, and are smaller than mountain gorillas.

Mountain Gorillas are well-known due to the studies of Diane Fossey, although none are in Zoos outside of Africa.

 

[ralph]

although none are in Zoos outside of Africa.

And this is exactly why we shouldn't have it in game. Planet Zoo is a zoo simulator. Are there mountain gorilla's in zoos? No.
Frontier has chosen some species that are very rare in captivity in the past (Saiga the main offender) but rare isn't the same as non-existant.
Zoo Tycoon 2 had a bunch of animals that don't exist in zoos, something that already bothered me when I played that game (Ethiopian wolf, Javan rhino, narwhal, leatherback turtle..).

 

[Thomas]

And this is exactly why we shouldn't have it in game. Planet Zoo is a zoo simulator. Are there mountain gorilla's in zoos? No.
Frontier has chosen some species that are very rare in captivity in the past (Saiga the main offender) but rare isn't the same as non-existant.
Zoo Tycoon 2 had a bunch of animals that don't exist in zoos, something that already bothered me when I played that game (Ethiopian wolf, Javan rhino, narwhal, leatherback turtle..).

There were a few animals, none in captivity, in the game like the Goalith Frog and Titan Beetle.

The only place to see captive mountain gorillas is the Senkwekwe Centre in Virunga National Park, a sanctuary specifically for orphaned mountain gorillas.

Javan Rhinos and narwhals have been in captivity in the past, The last captive Javan rhino died at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia in 1907, where the species was so little known that it had been exhibited as an Indian rhinoceros. Vancouver Aquarium and in New York in the early 70s tried keeping Narwhals, but they died right away.

Gumbo Limbo Nature Center rehabilitates Leatherback Sea Turtle hatchlings.

Here is an article that possibly contains the first evidence of a captive Ethiopian wolf.

| Ethiopian Wolf

 

[JVM]

The inclusion of non-zoo species is often to stimulate interest in these species for players who are not already zoologists.

The important thing I would stress personally is from my short involvement in the video game industry, anything that reuses animation is probably "additional" to anything with new animations. Animation is very intensive and time-consuming even compared to model and texture work, and this is usually budgeted low, so games often reuse these whenever possible.

 

[Great Argus]

There were a few animals, none in captivity, in the game like the Goalith Frog and Titan Beetle.

The Titan Beetle is a particularly odd one - it's big but that's about all it has to commend to it. In looking around out of curiosity some time ago, I remember coming across a beetle enthusiast site with a thread about them. Basically everyone said why would you keep them, they spend multiple years out of sight in larval form and then apparently are very short-lived adults even by large beetle standards. General consensus even among beetle fanciers was that they were not worth the effort. Supposedly they would probably be straightforward in captivity based on care of relatives, but nobody's bothered because it's not worth waiting 3-4 years for something to emerge only for it to die a couple weeks later.

 

[Thomas]

The inclusion of non-zoo species is often to stimulate interest in these species for players who are not already zoologists.

The important thing I would stress personally is from my short involvement in the video game industry, anything that reuses animation is probably "additional" to anything with new animations. Animation is very intensive and time-consuming even compared to model and texture work, and this is usually budgeted low, so games often reuse these whenever possible.

Exactly my point, Animal-themed Games introduce people to animals that are not well-known to the public, and the Earth's biodiversity.

For my wishlist, the animals that would include the following Animation Rigs:

Masai Giraffe: Animation Rig from the Reticulated Giraffe.

Secretary Bird: It would share Rigs like the Red-crowned Crane and the Flamingos.

Honey Badger: Share European Badger and Wolverine Animation Rigs.

Gerenuk: The Dama Gazelle Animation Rig can be used.

Olive Baboon: Hamadryas Baboon Rig.

Blackbuck: Animation Rigs would be Thomson’s Gazelle, Springbok, and Nile Lechwe.

Nile Crocodile: The Animation Rig used in the Crocodilians in the Game: American Alligator, Saltwater Crocodile, Spectacled Caiman, Cuvier’s Dwarf Caiman, and Indian Gharial.

Onager: Animation Rig used would be Somali Wild Ass or Donkey.

Gelada: Hamadryas Baboom Rig can be used.

Ethiopian Wolf: The Gray Wolf, Arctic Wolf, and Coyote Animation Rigs can be used.

American Black Bear: The Animation rigs used for all the bears in the game would be used mostly for Giant Panda, Formosan Black Bear, Spectacled Bear, Sun Bear, and Sloth Bear.

Mexican Grey Wolf: The Gray Wolf and Arctic Wolf Animation Rigs.

Japanese Serow: Markhor and Alpine Ibex Animation Rigs can be used.

Barbary Macaque: Japanese Macaque Animation Rig.

Iberian Lynx: Eurasian Lynx Animation Rig.

Indian or Indochinese Leopard: Amur Leopard and African Leopard Animation Rigs.

Javan Rhinoceros: Indian Rhino Animation Rig.

Crested Gibbon: White-handed or Lar Gibbon and Siamang Animation Rigs.

Mountain Gorilla: Western Lowland Gorilla Animation Rig.

Sea Otter: It would have unique animations alongside Animation Rigs from Giant Otter and Asian Small-clawed Otter.

Walrus: The California Sea Lion Animation Rig would be used.

Southern Rockhopper Penguin: African Penguin and Little Penguin Animation Rigs would be used.

Emperor Penguin: The King Penguin would be used for animation rig and model reworking.

Muskoxen: The Takin would be used for an animation rig.

Northern Elephant Seal: Combination of Grey Seal and California Sea Lion Animation Rigs used.

 

[Thomas]

This is from the Planet Zoo 2 Thread for any upcoming DLC Packs for this Year.

Here is my wishlist based on the 25 species of animals that have yet to appear from the Zoo Tycoon Franchise.

Masai Giraffe: I wouldn’t mind if we had a second giraffe species, they're the largest of the Giraffes, with distinctive jagged, irregularly shaped brown spot patches, and they’re of conservation importance, too, as most zoos in North America are breeding this Endangered Species more so than the Generic Giraffes.

Secretary Bird: It’s the Last Zoo Tycoon 2 Bird, and heavily wanted by the fandom, if added, it would make the first bird of prey in the game. It was hinted in the Planco Dictionary.

Honey Badger: Since we got the European Badger and Wolverine, this is a well-known mustelid that is a fearless, tough, escape artist, and they don’t care or give dang especially to people who complain, not wanting it in the game.

Gerenuk: A unique African antelope that can stand on its hind legs while browsing on leaves, and could make a great comparison to browsing ungulates like the Giraffes and the Dik-Diks.

Olive Baboon: Although we got the Hamadryas Baboon, Olive Baboons are the more classic savannah baboons in Africa.

Blackbuck: We could use an Asian or Indian antelope species, especially since they can mix with Water Buffalo and Indian Rhinoceroses.

Nile Crocodile: It’s the classic Crocodile species, most social, and would be a great African river animal alongside Hippopotamuses, Greater Flamingos, Nile Lechwe, and Nile Monitor.

Onager: An Endangered Conservation Important species, an asian equine, and would mix with Bactrian Camel and Przewalski’s Wild Horse.

Gelada: They are a unique primate due to their mountain living, grass diet, and becoming more common in zoos in Europe, and only Two Zoos in North America have them, the Bronx Zoo and the San Diego Zoo.

Ethiopian Wolf: Although none are in captivity, they would make a unique endangered canid to add. They are rodent specialists, they drink nectar and pollinate, and would mix with the Geladas. The Coyote rig could be used as it's the closest relative.

American Black Bear: It’s the last Bear to add to the game and to complete all the bear species represented in the game.

Mexican Grey Wolf: Although it’s a gray wolf subspecies, it makes a great conservation-dependent species.

Japanese Serow: A Japanese animal to add with a conservation story.

Barbary Macaque: This monkey is the only primate native to Europe as well as North Africa.

Iberian Lynx: Unlike the Eurasian Lynx, it’s an Endangered Conservation dependent species that is making a recovery.

Indian or Indochinese Leopard: I wouldn’t mind adding a fifth leopard that represents a tropical asian species to the game.

Javan Rhinoceros: There are none in captivity; they would make a unique endangered species.

Crested Gibbon: I wouldn’t mind if we had a third gibbon to add to the game and make it more diverse.

Mountain Gorilla: The only few in captivity live in a sanctuary in central Africa; they would be an endangered dependent species compared with the Western Lowland Gorilla.

Sea Otter: They would add more variety in the marine mammals, playful, cute, tool-using, and they’re an endangered species with a conservation story, and how they are a keystone species.

Walrus: It’s a highly requested pinniped and would make a great addition to any polar arctic region.

Southern Rockhopper Penguin: A penguin with those yellow feather crests and hopping on rocks would be a great addition.

Emperor Penguin: They are the more famous, well-known penguin species and would make the first true Antarctic native species to the game.

Muskoxen: It’s another arctic ungulate requested for the game and known for their shaggy fur.

What are your Thoughts and Opinions?

I also forgot to add. . .

The Northern Elephant Seal: A handful few zoos had kept them, especially in the past; the Pittsburgh Zoo has one, but had three. This big, unique Pinniped would be a great addition to a coastal area. They are one of the largest of their family, unique animations like bulls wrestling and deep diving animation, and sexual dimorphism between the males and females.

 

[Thomas]

a Another Animal Pack has been annouced being in development.

https://x.com/PlanetZooGame/status/1916925412891939125

 

[James Barber]

Planet Zoo console players will be able to get their hands on the "Barnyard and Zookeepers" packs on 14th May which includes 14 animals and many construction pieces to play with.

I hope the next pack in development will finally include the Blackbuck or Black Howler.

 

[Wildlife Watcher]

Still holding out false hope that we might get an avian or marine pack someday (Come on frontier, I know feathers are hard but it would be so cool).

 

[Thomas]

My Guess is a Safari Pack.

Animal List:
-Olive Baboon
-Masai Giraffe
-Gerenuk
-Secretarybird (It was mentioned)
-Bat-eared Fox
-Serval
-Honey Badger
-Impala
-Grey-crowned Crane
-Black-backed Jackal
-Greater Kudu
-Lesser Flamingo
-Marabou Stork
-Leopard Tortoise
-Common Eland
-Vervet Monkey
-Roan Antelope
-Ellipsen Waterbuck
-Brown Hyena
-Aardwolf
-Ground Pangolin
-Springhare
-Banded Mongoose
-Black Mamba
-African Bullfrog
-Helmeted Guineafowl
-African Golden Wolf
-Egyptian Goose
-Pink-backed Pelican
-Ground Hornbill
-Duiker
-Shoebill
-Rock Monitor

 

[Thomas]

Still holding out false hope that we might get an avian or marine pack someday (Come on frontier, I know feathers are hard but it would be so cool).

Frontier did do Feathered Dinosaurs in Jurassic World: Evolution 2, perhaps they could apply more in Planet Zoo.

 

[Thomas]

Any news on the Upcoming Pack?

 

[StellarChaser]

Based on the Nexus mod website that provides the download of Planet Zoo mods, let's see which animals not offered in the official game have more than 10 thousand downloads. This could be one way to see what animals are favored by the public players. I ignore the remastered works of those officially offered species this time, I also ignore the Red Fox and Wolf subspecies b/c the general Red Fox and Grey Wolf are already provided in the game (although its name is Timber Wolf, but based on the Zoopedia, it is Grey Wolf)

here is link:
Planet Zoo Mods - Nexus Mods

1. North American River Otter: 29.4 thousand downloads
2. Rocky Mountain Elk: 28.5 thousand downloads
3. Green Sea Turtle: 23.6 thousand downloads
4. Persian Fallow Deer: 20.5 thousand downloads
5. Suffolk Sheep: 20.2 thousand downloads
6. Holstein Friesian Cow: 19.3 thousand downloads
7. Ecuadorian Squirrel Monkey: 17.6 thousand downloads
8. Shoebill: 17.4 thousand downloads
9. Gaur: 17.4 thousand downloads
10. Harbor Seal: 17.2 thousand downloads
11. Rhode Island Red Chicken: 17.2 thousand downloads
12. Emperor Penguin: 16.7 thousand downloads
13. Chinstrap Penguin: 16.1 thousand downloads
14. Arapaima: 16.1 thousand downloads
15. Beluga: 15.7 thousand downloads
16. Large White Pig: 15.6 thousand downloads
17. Tufted Capuchin: 15.5 thousand downloads
18. Serval: 15 thousand downloads
19. Bat-eared Fox: 14.9 thousand downloads
20. Nile Crocodile: 14.7 thousand downloads
21. Masai Giraffe: 14.7 thousand downloads
22. Black Howler: 14.6 thousand downloads
23. Sea Otter: 14.6 thousand downloads
24. White-tailed Deer: 14.5 thousand downloads
25. West Indian Manatee: 14.5 thousand downloads
26. Muskox: 14.4 thousand downloads
27. Numbat: 14.4 thousand downloads
28. Red-footed Tortoise: 14.4 thousand downloads
29. Ethiopian Wolf: 13.9 thousand downloads
30. Indian Leopard: 13.8 thousand downloads
31. Orca: 13.7 thousand downloads
32. Alligator Snapping Turtle: 13.5 thousand downloads
33. Thylacine: 13.3 thousand downloads
34. Dodo: 12.8 thousand downloads
35. Leatherback Turtle: 12.7 thousand downloads
36. Pere David's Deer: 12.5 thousand downloads
37. Marine Iguana: 12.5 thousand downloads
38. Zebra Shark: 12.4 thousand downloads
39. Blackbuck: 12.3 thousand downloads
40. Southern Tamandua: 12.3 thousand downloads
41. Black-footed Ferret: 12.3 thousand downloads
42. African Dwarf Crocodile: 12.3 thousand downloads
43. Arabian Oryx: 12.1 thousand downloads
44. Wild Turkey: 12 thousand downloads
45. Black Swan: 11.8 thousand downloads
46. Bottlenosed Dolphin: 11.8 thousand downloads
47. Asiatic Lion: 11.4 thousand downloads
48. Iberian Lynx: 11.4 thousand downloads
49. Hawaiian Monk Seal: 11.2 thousand downloads
50. Javan Rhinoceros: 11.2 thousand downloads
51. Domestic Water Buffalo: 11.3 thousand downloads
52. Aardwolf: 11.2 thousand downloads
53. Bornean Clouded Leopard: 11 thousand downloads
54. Sand Tiger Shark: 11 thousand downloads
55. Nilgai: 10.8 thousand downloads
56. North American Porcupine: 10.7 thousand downloads
57. African Forest Elephant: 10.7 thousand downloads
58. Blue Discus: 10.6 thousand downloads
59. Whale Shark: 10.6 thousand downloads
60. Vulturine Guineafowl: 10.5 thousand downloads
61. Kiang: 10.5 thousand downloads
62. Asian Golden Cat: 10.1 thousand downloads
63. Adelie Penguin: 10.1 thousand downloads
64. Quagga: 10 thousand downloads

I am surprised that several top-demand species that are often mentioned here and from the Frontier Forum like Secretary Bird, Patagonian Mara, Tree Kangaroo and Coati are not even on the list. The Tree Kangaroo's mod is weird b/c it cannot be done well without an exclusive model, which may explain why its mod is not popular. The Secretary Bird Mod just offered one year; it may need more time to accumulate popularity. I also surprised that some niche species like the Hawaiian Monk Seal, Javan Rhino and Bornean Clouded Leopard have such high downloads, also Suffolk Sheep, which I hadn't even heard about this breed before. Some species like Marine Iguana, which is held by only 1 or 2 facilities in the world, often rejected by the fans in the Frontier Forum due to "not realistic" (many of them only like the species that common in Western facilities so can be used for replicating the real-life zoos), but it is quite popular among general players, so general players don't really care about whether the species are common in the real-life facilities.

 

[Great Argus]

Based on the Nexus mod website that provides the download of Planet Zoo mods, let's see which animals not offered in the official game have more than 10 thousand downloads.

The list is slightly skewed as the download count shown on the main page that you are counting is total downloads. This pushes it strongly in favor of the older mods that had to be fixed and redownloaded multiple times early on as well as many of them being remastered along the line. For many species on the list the actual number of users downloading them is roughly half the number of total downloads; the unique downloads on each mod page shows this.

Birds of the World pack: 16.9 thousand downloads (this is a mod packs that includes 35 species of flying birds)

This one should be removed, it is a prop pack and you skipped multiple other prop packs. It would be the old Greater Kudu replacing it at the bottom.

I am surprised that several top-demand species that are often mentioned here and from the Frontier Forum like Secretary Bird, Patagonian Mara, Tree Kangaroo and Coati are not even on the list.

The Secretarybird, mara, and coatis are all pretty new still comparatively, as are the newer set of tree kangaroos. Secretarybird has over 3,700 unique downloads so certainly fairly popular.

I also surprised that some niche species like the Hawaiian Monk Seal, Javan Rhino and Bornean Clouded Leopard have such high downloads, also Suffolk Sheep, which I hadn't even heard about this breed before.

Javan Rhino is riding the ZT2 nostalgia, and so too the Leatherback Sea Turtle, Spanish Lynx, Ethiopian Wolf, and many of the marine species on the list. Most of them have been around a long time too, contributing to the total downloads the list is running off of.

Some species like Marine Iguana, which is held by only 1 or 2 facilities in the world, often rejected by the fans in the Frontier Forum due to "not realistic" (many of them only like the species that common in Western facilities so can be used for replicating the real-life zoos), but it is quite popular among general players

In fairness, the colorful form the mod is based on is certainly attractive compared to most Marine Iguanas. It is also a well known species and the mod has been around a long time.

Also a psa - several of the mods on this list are broken, just so people are aware.

 

[Maguari]

The art for the next animal pack was revealed on the Frontier stream tonight - Honey Badger/Ratel front and centre, and what looks rather like Lion-tailed Macaque in the background, along, oddly, with some elephants.

Looking at the landscape and architecture together with these, India/South Asia looking favoured on the theme front I would say.

 

[JigerofLemuria]

The art for the next animal pack was revealed on the Frontier stream tonight - Honey Badger/Ratel front and centre, and what looks rather like Lion-tailed Macaque in the background, along, oddly, with some elephants.

Looking at the landscape and architecture together with these, India/South Asia looking favoured on the theme front I would say.

If they do that, I hope they cut the crap and FINALLY give us a cobra or python exhibit animal. If they don't, I'm going to be VERY miffed...

 

[Maguari]

If they do that, I hope they cut the crap and FINALLY give us a cobra or python exhibit animal. If they don't, I'm going to be VERY miffed...

I'm assuming 7+scenery for now - but of course, if it is an Indian theme, then we already have quite a lot of Indian scenery from the base game. Time will tell..!