Deja-vu? Well, a little since I previewed this game in October of last year. But we dove in again to see where the progress is, and we say, I’m still looking forward to this one.
Park Beyond
To quote Lander again:
Theme Parks are a place filled with magic. From thrilling rides to gorgeous decor, when done right, a theme park can certainly leave a lasting impression. And yet, they all are a bit identical, offering variations on the same concept. In different parks, you’ll often find similar types of rides, most of the time with different decorations of course, but the ride itself often feels familiar. In Park Beyond they want to go beyond that (roll credits). In this game, you’re hired as a new visionary, someone who dares to think outside of the box and create some of the most impressive rides of your life. Some might even say impossible rides. Blasting from one canon to the other, hovering in the air, being slapped around by a real yeti… Those are impossible things for theme parks but nothing is impossible in Park Beyond. They even named a mechanic after it!
By impossifying normal rides, you turn a pedestrian experience into something right out of the extraordinary. The rides you’re creating here aren’t that straightforward, the game pushes you to think outside of the box and even in the short introduction level I played, I managed to create a rather spectacular rollercoaster in the end.
New Additions
I tested the game again on my little less-new Steam Deck, and I still recommend playing this game with a mouse and keyboard. Since the game is still scheduled to release on the current generation of consoles (PS5 and Xbox Series X/S), the final product will support full controller support. The developers assured us that creating your park will be as easy with the controller as with a mouse and keyboard. And boy, they didn’t lie. Playing through the missions I could play in this build was a solid and fluid experience. I would have loved an option to skip the tutorial since it’s pretty tedious and crash-heavy (at least in this build).
As stated in my first preview, the first level introduces your character and the creative process of building the Rollercoaster of your dreams. I needed to follow a golden paper plane by making some tracks to follow it throughout the park. Using the control sticks and trigger buttons on my Steam Deck, I created a crazy rollercoaster coursing through my little city. From taking sharp curves to gaining height and dropping down low, my tracks were under control in no time. It started as a simple rollercoaster, but the more I created, the crazier it all got. In Rollercoaster Tycoon 1, I used to create a backward looping rollercoaster, in which the train got a bit of airtime before crashing back to the tracks. Well, Park Beyond embraced the same idea and gave us ramps and cannons – since why not. Before I knew it, I built a ramp to propel my coaster over some helipads into the fountain and through the mountains. And like our good friend Phil states, asking for forgiveness is better than permission. This might be the reason the company almost went bottom up…
Second Story Mission
In the second level, I managed an actual theme park in the mountains of Park Beyond’s country. During a pitch meeting, I picked themes, demographics, and more. I ended up with a Candy Ironic Hipster paradise, in which adults could sip coffee and ride candy teacups, ironically. The full version will have more options, so go nuts – remember that there is a lot of competition, and your park needs to stand out! Follow the different instructions and objectives to get acquainted with all the mechanics that will make your park a success, from placing the suitable rides and buildings to cater to your target demographic and their basic needs to managing your employees, how to hire, and assigning tasks, and even playing with pricing, by adjusting the price of consumables in your parks’ shops.
I love the additions like heatmaps, which show the most accurate areas for toilets, janitors, and profit. The extensive heatmap options help precisely place certain facilities and rides. On the other hand, we have hooks – which can be used while designing coasters. Since my theme park catered to adults, I built a rollercoaster that only went ‘forward’ and traversed over 2 kilometers so that it could become a scenic route. Since the park is in the mountains, I dropped my coaster through a hill, through an aqueduct, and gave them a ride through the clouds. The Rollercoaster became thrilling (reaching speeds towards 100km/h) and scenic, spanning 2,5 kilometers of fun and nature, which could be enjoyed ironically. With a cup of gold brew, yes, you read that right – gold. Move over pumpkin spice.
Sandbox
This time, I spent a lot of time in the Sandbox mode, which is usually my favorite part of the game once I get the hang of it. Mainly because the story missions crashed quite a few times and still felt wonky without a keyboard and mouse. Sandbox gives you a complete command of park creation and its components, introducing the park rating, amazement level, and our unique impossiflcation feature. Sandbox will test your newly acquired management skills. With no more objectives to follow, you’ll have the freedom to run your park and all the challenges that come with it. You’ll be able to place food and drinks shops, as well as other elements like benches and trash bins, for the well-being of your visitors. Eight flat rides will be available to place. Some must be unlocked through the research tab when reaching a specific park rating.
Sandbox will also open a new world of customization by looking at the first stages of Modular building. You can purchase the essential working elements of shops and access a whole library of assets from themes “Candyville” and “Park Beyond” to create your buildings and decorate them entirely to your taste. This was highly satisfying and filled one of those holes Rollercoaster Tycoon never filled. But since the Sandbox mode drops so many mechanics, it’s hard to figure out how everything works. I recommend you play through the story before diving into Sandbox Mode once this game drops its retail version. It has many aspects, tweaks, and mechanics, and you’ll cut yourself short if you don’t fully master their basics.
Conclusion
This preview again fueled my love for theme park building, and I’m genuinely convinced Park Beyond is the next big thing for the genre. It’s easy to start creating your theme park, but the options will force you to think outside the box and create some craziest rides. I can’t wait to dive deeper into the story mode and see what I can cook up with Phil to make the board drop their jaw even further.
