Last week EA and Maxis confirmed the upcoming Amusement Park expansion for SimCity; however, today they detailed how your very own theme park will operate and the steps you'll need to make to ensure that it becomes profitable.
"The Amusement Park is a tourist attraction similar to casinos and landmarks, however the way in which you use the Amusement Park is very different," explained gameplay scripter Jason Halvorson. "We really wanted to add new content that not only enhances the look and appeal of your city, but also give you even more things to do as a Mayor."
The biggest difference with the Amusement Park is how your city will earn money from it. Unlike other tourist attracts which rely only on the amount of guests that visit, you'll have to actually get guests to spend money at your theme park. This involves having visitors go on rides or purchase goods from concession stands. Managing your Amusement Park has been described as "almost a mini-game in itself."
As explained by Halvorson, your journey as a theme park tycoon begins with the placement of a main gate. Each gate, of which there are three to choose from, includes one ride, one concession stand, and a stub of road that you can extend in order to accommodate more rides and concession "modules."
There are a total of five different modules. Signs are placed by your park entrance and are used to attract tourists to your park. Main attractions -- roller coasters, ferris wheel, go-carts -- are the reason tourists will come to your park and will increase the attraction rating of your city. Secondary attractions -- drop tower, carousel -- are a cheaper, lower maintenance alternative that will provide fun for guests after the main attraction. Concession stands are the cheapest attraction and have small capacity, but churn through guests quickly.
The most intriguing module are the mini train stations which act like a secondary attraction, except that these are customizable. The rail can go through tunnels and over bridges, and can be used to connect two train stations together. This would transform the train station into a transport system for your guests.
Other modules include park gates that are additional entrances into your park and benches because, well, people need a place to sit. When building your first amusement park gates, not all of the modules will be available right away. You'll need to first increase your daily profit and upgrade your park to higher levels before you unlock additional options.
SimCity's Amusement Park expansion will be released on May 28 through Origin. A price has yet to be announced.
Via: SimCity's Amusement Park expansion explained in fine detail
