Customer Reviews

Zoo Tycoon 2: Ultimate Collection

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(26)

 

 

I had the original Zoo Tycoon 2, and was looking to buy one or two of the expansion packs. While researching my options, I found this Ultimate Collection for about the same price as two of the expansions (there are four). So, I just decided to buy The Ultimate Collection. I can't believe how much content is added with each expansion. Besides the normal Zoo Tycoon 2 content, you get...
-African Adventure (African animals, Jeep Vehicle tours, safari themed items)
-Endangered Species (Help house and breed endangered species, Sky Tram Tours, Elevated Paths)
-Marine Mania (Marine animals, Train Animal to perform in shows, Swim with Animals)
-Extinct Animals (step into a bit of fantasy by digging for fossils, doing research, and eventually creating living animals from long extinct species, such as the cute Dodo Bird, the ferocious Saber-Toothed Cat, even a massive American Mastodon)

You won't believe how much extra content these expansions bring. This is a family friendy game. My 6 year old daughter is not very good at it, she still loves playing. And although there are a LOT of options when you build your zoo, it's not overwhelming. They have tutorials that start with the basics, enclosure building, and they add a few things at a time until you get up to speed.

This is an excellent game at an excellent price. I do have to tell you that Microsoft had a batch of these where the third disc did not work. The copy I got was defective. I called Microsoft and they sent me a new copy within a few days. Maybe I shouldn't say this, but due to their screwup, I now have two copies of the game. See, the third disc is only an install disc. The first disc is the play disc, which I now have two of. So, after installing the game on my computer and keeping the new play disc (disc 1), I took disc two and three and paired it with my original play disc, I installed it on my Mom's computer. Thanks Microsoft!!! Like I said, I maybe shouldn't have said anything, but if you get a defective copy, it's a good thing because then you'll have two copies....

I love this game. It is so much fun. First of all there are three different modes, free form where you have an unlimited budget and don't have to unlock anything besides the things campaign mode and challenge mode unlocks, challenge mode where you can do challenges like taking photos and making new exhibits to earn prizes that you unlock, and campaign mode which is basically a story mode where you have to complete all the scenorinos in that campaign and unlock prizes. There are many animals too. I especially like the african wild dogs and meerkats. It has many popular animals like pandas and some probably never heard of ones too like the short-finned pilot whale. There are also many dinosaur species but I usually get all tangled up in the names and can't remember them. There is also a "zoopedia" which is basically an encyclopedia that has lots of imformation about the plants and animal species you can get. For instance if I never had this game I wouldn't know that to communicate with their young florida panthers chirp. This game has made me push farther towards wanting to become a zoologist when I grow up. Now I have the whole plan on what I will be when I grow up, what kinds of dogs and cats I will have (I got those from Dogs 101 and Cats 101.) and specifically what animals I will help, which is a sea otter. There are many different biomes too like the alpine which is a mountain terrain and the tundra or arctic. You can really interact with the animals too. In zoo guest mode you can groom the animals, go face to face with the animals in their exhibit, refill their food and water, and even pretend like you are a guest. There are some ways to tell the differences with the animals too. You can also take pictures of the animals and save them in an album. Also if you double click on the pictures you can zoom in on them. I've had this game for almost three years now and it is still a perfect game. If you are an animal fan and like simulation games you HAVE to get this game!!

Well when I got the game I thought that I would have to get a new disc 3 but when i put it in the computer and load it it ran fine! I played it and I loved it The best Zoo Tycoon Game out there!

I really liked this game. I got the ultimate collection with all the expansions, though I already had one of the EPs. The CDs installed just fine and I didn't have any trouble playing the game at all on my Windows 7 rig.

Graphics are a little chunky even on high setting, but I guess that's to be expected with this game's demands, and it didn't detract that much from enjoyment levels. The dance of making money versus expanding and making the zoo more "fun" for guests is enjoyable all the way around. Not quite as enjoyable is that one must do campaigns and challenges to unlock the game's full range of objects and animals; I paid for the game, and I expect to be able to use what it has, not have to work for its contents. A sandbox mode that included all of them would be nice. Another sandbox mode with non-unlimited funds would also be nice; it's not nearly as fun to make a zoo with unlimited funds, but there's no other way to play except in "challenge mode," which is like sandbox except it throws challenges like "take a photo of a quagga eating hay" every so often.

But even with all that said, the game is fun. It's entirely okay for even younger kids and would appeal to anybody who prefers simulation games (like Sims 3) or even realtime strategy builder games (Majesty, CivCity Rome, Civilization) over first-person shooters or "RPGs" like Oblivion. There are no cheat codes really to speak of, and the only way to cheat on it is really complicated to do, which might or might not appeal to a player. The animals do all sorts of animal things--meerkats stand on their hind legs and cluck. Gorillas swing from the bars. Lemurs run in circles around each other. Pandas lumber around and eat bamboo. T-Rexes rampage in their enclosures (try putting an elephant bird and a T-Rex together and watch the mayhem). Dolphins put on shows for the crowds.

There's a lot more hands-on stuff in this game than in the "vanilla" version--you can let trainers handle all the marine animals' training, or you can take the helm and train them yourself by clicking the mouse along a path. You can ignore paleontology, or you can enter the dino bone exam center and do jigsaw puzzles and play little games to create your own super-dinos. You can wander your zoo as a zookeeper, doing the routine tasks like emptying garbage cans or cleaning up after the animals, and you can take photos of the animals that go into albums that you can keep game after game--and these photos are one of the most fun features of the entire game! A photo kiosk can eventually be unlocked ingame that lets you display the photos to guests.

Meanwhile, guests wander through and look at the sculptures and mini-exhibits along the way, eat at the venues, and buy gifts. The game keeps track of their possessions, hunger/thirst levels, and how much cash they have, bringing them to the ATM machines you've (hopefully) set along the paths so they can replenish. Each guest has his/her own favorite animal and they can do silly things like flap their arms like flamingos or hop around like kangaroos. It's difficult to learn the ropes of setting up skytrams, elevated paths (HINT: DO NOT SET UP IN TALL ANIMALS' ENCLOSURES), and Jeep drives, but rewarding--the game lets you, through that same first-person zookeeper mode, ride all of them as if you were a guest, and see the game through the those eyes.

The selection of animals will likely delight any player--meerkats, lemurs, monkeys, tapirs, fennecs, penguins, pandas and red pandas, and so much more. It's easy to make the zoo look like what you want, and the size options for the zoo itself are quite generous (though I do wish it were possible to make an even bigger zoo!). You can group animals from similar biomes, as in the first title, but here it's even more expanded. It's also a lot easier to create a suitable biome for an animal than in the first title. Just be careful not to group predators with prey--who would have guessed that a sentinel bird would stalk wolverines?--or too many male wolves or lions in one enclosures, or they will fight and possibly kill each other.

Though one of the older titles, Zoo Tycoon 2 would make an excellent addition to the game library. There's a lot to do, tons of replay value, and I can see a lot of people liking the campaigns that it's got.

After more than six years since Zoo Tycoon 2 came to market, I finally got around to picking it up. The countless hours I have spent playing and researching about the game should say something about it's shelf life and repeated playability, something that not many video games can boast.

The Good:
The number of animals and objects you can use after combining four expansion packs in addition to the original title is staggering and ensures that no two zoos you create are the same. In this title, Microsoft really did their homework when conducting research related to animal information and behaviors. Though the descriptions can be a bit random at times, the game provides a wealth of information related to each animal and more importantly, creates realistic animal behaviors in many cases. It is really interesting to see animals such as the meerkat or sea otter acting just like you would see in a real zoo. Finally, the use of public transportation for your guests also provides an interesting opportunity to make zoos with great infrastructure and they can even be fun to ride on yourself in guest mode.

The Bad:
While Zoo Tycoon 2 does have an extended shelf life and the ability to be replayed over and over, there are some aspects of the game that some players might find maddening. The first of which are some fairly large bugs that did not get completely worked out during play testing. One such bug is animals not eating, drinking, or playing with an object when it is right in front of them. This in turn makes them angry and causes your zoo ratings to go down. These bugs also can affect guests and zoo workers. Animal life spans offer a slightly realistic aspect to the game, however this too can often cause more frustrations than benefits. Just as you begin to get some of the more expensive animals, many of your original animals can begin to die off. To counter this, many players will essentially build self-sustaining farms. Finally, campaign mode can be quite frustrating due to very slow income rates. While it is fairly easy to afford some of the earlier animals, as the player continues I sincerely feel that he/she has to wait longer for people to spend money in the zoo. As a result, players will often never get to use the 4-5 star animals because of the hefty price tags.

The Terrible:
There are two aspects of the game that are absolutely maddening to me. The first is the zoo keepers. Besides having a hefty price tag that will definitely cause a drain on your funds, they can be nearly worthless at times. They operate slowly, alter your exhibits by placing items you did not select, and can also be affected by bugs in the game which causes them not to operate. While this is not as much of a big deal in sandbox mode, players might begin tearing out their hair during campaign mode. The second issue is the availability of animals during campaign mode. When clicking on the animal tab, you are only given a select number of animals depending on your zoo rating. You can essentially "roll" for new animals and then wait a short loading time. This system, however, has no pattern and it ends up being like a slot machine. You will find that you are waiting for often long periods of time which also wastes yours zoo time just trying to get the animal you want.

In the end, is it worth the money? The answer might surprise you. I actually would say that yes, Zoo Tycoon 2 can offer a substantial amount of enjoyment for players despite the flaws that obviously came from a game rushed too quickly to market.

This was literally the best game ever it ran so smoothly and was very easy to play the controls weren't complicated and was really fun.

Found this on the website. Hope it helps

In light of a few instances of a disc formatting issue with Zoo Tycoon 2: Ultimate Collection (SKU# AXB-00033/UPC# 882224717298), Microsoft is immediately replacing the game. We are providing the correct disc to customers who believe they have obtained a copy of Zoo Tycoon 2: Ultimate Collection with the formatting issue. Customers simply need to call the toll-free customer service hotline at 1-800-360-7561 to receive a replacement disc for the game. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and appreciate your patience as we work quickly to resolve the issue.

This purchase was as easy as it gets. The product was not available locally and my grandkids really wanted it for summer fun. It is perfect!

ZT2 works exceptionally on win7, loads fast, ans great graphics. I was worried at first because I've heard of a lot of people having problems with this game on win7, but I had no trouble at all. As for the people who had problems with the 3rd installation disk, I contacted microsoft before ordering and they assured me this problem is completely solved.

Pros: Great graphics, fast loading, easy to install, fun to play, great variety of things in the game.

Cons: None so far!

Overall, this game works great and is well worth the money.

This was a really nice game. Some of the discs seem to have problems, as was mine, but they sent a backup disc to help. This game does not run well on old computers, the screen looks weird. However, it runs nicely on fast computers. You adopt over 100 animals from Zoo tycoon 2 and all of its expansion packs. Its really fun to create awesome exibits. there are also many cool buildings you can build like sushi stands annd aquariums. This is one of the most awesome computer games ever!