Pro Tour 2 / Iris' Personal Review

Fatha', that's the best post I've seen in a very long time... from anyone!

father, the thing is the closest an ll park came that was like disneyair to completion was madrone... seeing what would be necessary I would say that bgss is one of the finest ll parks ever made, especially seeing how much better it was than your prior works. It was when you evolved from using architecture as the main point of theming into using actual theme, which is the essence of all of x's parks in the first place (and something I have always tried to live up to). I think the difference in games does have a larger effect than one would think.

father, the thing is the closest an ll park came that was like disneyair to completion was madrone... seeing what would be necessary I would say that bgss is one of the finest ll parks ever made, especially seeing how much better it was than your prior works. It was when you evolved from using architecture as the main point of theming into using actual theme, which is the essence of all of x's parks in the first place (and something I have always tried to live up to). I think the difference in games does have a larger effect than one would think.

It was when you evolved from using architecture as the main point of theming into using actual theme.

Sure, i did create South American themes well in my opinion, but none of theme were engaging....
BGSS in my opinion represents my ride-making skills at its best, but not necesarilly my theming skills as a whole.....Some good points are its atmosphere and landscaping, but the sections themselves as far as layout goes are very poor. And as I said before, none of the themes are engaging.....I have very few spots, like parts of City of God and parts of Machu Picchu and The Amazon, but other than those three nothing really stands out....and El Dorado is the quintessential motif of something looking "pretty." It has no substance.

The difference in game, from a basic standpoint, really isn't that much different in my mind. When I finished BGSS, I said it would be my last LL park...but what I SHOULD have said was this: "After BGSS, for my future works I raise the bar to a whole new stratosphere"....and that stratosphere involves paying attention to detail and creating not a park, but a true "experience." And THIS is what separates good parks from great ones....Again I will give examples:

Parks that are TRUE Experiences:
DisneyAir - Everything in this park is absolutely stunning from an idea standpoint....the rides need work though
RoB - Moreso from a pure ride standpoint....the woodie and Eversio are classsics

Those are only a couple, but in reality VERY few parks can say that they pull you in like these do....and very few draw the admiration that these do. After Tropico Horizons it clicked that no longer would I make something "pretty," and after BGSS it clicked that no longer would I ignore the "attention to detail." The difference between LL and RCT2 is that in RCT2, you can make it look prettier....you don't need coaster roofing, you don't need all the ridiculous hacks that Slime Meridian and BGSS are filled with....but that DOES NOT change anything, because a Sea World Brisbane-like park in RCT1 or RCT2 are no different....only one would probably look "prettier" and slightly more "detailed"

You know its funny....looking at Slime Meridian, I found a park that had a similar basing (located outer space, martian looking theme) from a while ago....called Ganymede. It illustrates the difference in making something pretty and making something that fits with a theme.....Ganymede looks nothing like an alien planet....it looks like a generic forest park with white and red buildings. Ganymede was a BIG failure. Slime Meridian is suppose to be a wild martian gambling town, and it fits the bill...different details like Kiri's boat, the windmill ferris wheel, the cowboy face, those are the details that change a park from being good to being great. And that is why SM is a success. So really, I look forward to my next park (you all won't know what it is until RIGHT before its going to be released, so no screens really) and I look forward to releasing it and finishing it, becuase it really will be a real experience, and one that nobody who sees it will forget.

What purpose does it serve?
The queue line lets people wait for the ride, and the station loads them onto it.

I think. I'm not totally sure.

i agree with you to a point fatha while steve's park does not have all the small details that xcoaster's park does you have to ask yourself is that what it is going for? i mean i have to give steve some credit and think that had he wanted to build a park with the atmosphere of disney or ioa he could have done so quite well but he set off to build a sea world park and his entrance is the closest i think you can get to that in rct. it just feels like a sea world park and i think his pirate ride was just fine pulling off the theme. i think what you have to do while viewing the park is give the creator some credit and think of what his goals where for the park and think to yourself did he reach them.

Whoa, now, guys. When we get up to this level of philosophical parkmaking, you're not going to find a lot of people who agree or even understand you.

Because at this point, you're starting to turn into an architect. (that's an architect's joke, actually; what I mean is you're starting to turn into a design who seeks to imbue meaning and soul into his works, but most people will think you're simply being elitist)

Excellent post Fatha. Somebody should post some more "little things" for some of the PT2 parks, I liked those and I'm too lazy to do one myself.

Ive come to realize that paying attention to little details in a park is far more important that making a park very detailed.

<3

Best thing said on this board in a long, long, time. Thank you.

-ACE

I'll second that.