Park Beyond: Innovating the Theme Park Genre
I’m late to the party in trying Park Beyond, and I’m late to the review as well. But what has been played of this story-driven, point-and-click coaster builder is quite impressive. Despite a few issues, the experience so far, and with the Sandbox mode yet to be explored, is promising. Park Beyond stands out from the likes of Roller Coaster Tycoon and Sunshine Resort, offering something fresh and different.
Everyone has a genre they gravitate towards, and for me, anything with 'Tycoon' in it immediately piques my interest. However, most games in this genre fail to gain popularity or success. With so many theme park builder games saturating the market, it becomes difficult to distinguish one from the other. That being said, Park Beyond's point-and-click style coaster building mechanic feels both familiar and unique.
Both the story-driven campaign and sandbox modes utilize a similar point-and-click style for building coasters. Each ride in the game has a regular version and an Impossified version, with Impossification being the core feature. It allows you to expand rides and shops, making them bigger, more exciting, and ultimately more profitable for guests.
Impossification: Expanding the Possibilities
Impossified rides and shops offer some of the most incredible and unique experiences in a theme park. They satisfy both the adrenaline and imagination of guests. While staples like ferris wheels, go-kart tracks, monsters, and rollercoasters may seem familiar, they can be transformed into impossible creations once Impossified. This adds to the uniqueness and intrigue of your park.
The game features two types of rides: track rides and flat rides. Flat rides, such as bumper cars, haunted houses, and drop towers, serve as simple and relaxed attractions in any park. However, they can be upgraded to create impossible yet believable experiences. For example, a haunted house can be transformed into a mansion reminiscent of American Horror Story, complete with unique rooms and hallways that entertain and frighten guests. Each room can be adorned with themed decorations and art.
Building Rollercoasters: Easy to Grasp, Challenging to Control
Rollercoaster building in Park Beyond is intuitive, but controlling and adjusting them can be challenging. Similar to RailWorks, you lay down sections of the track and then switch to a 3D interface to make adjustments until you're satisfied. However, moving sections for height changes and other coaster elements can be difficult, causing you to lose track of your cursor during adjustments.
Customizing shops and buildings can also be cumbersome, requiring too many clicks. While you can upgrade floors and install attractions, equipping vending machines and bathroom stalls involve excessive menu clicks and selections. This seems like a missed opportunity to streamline the processes and create a more user-friendly interface.
A Captivating Campaign and a Sandbox of Possibilities
The campaign mode features a compelling story that starts with you as a new employee of Paradiso Corp, responsible for four theme parks with a fifth in the works. Your objective is to ensure each park generates significant profits. The initial levels are enjoyable as you learn the unique coaster building process. Although not particularly difficult, it takes time to adjust.
However, the later missions in the campaign become brutally challenging, to the point where I had to double-check the difficulty level. In comparison to RCT4 and Sunshine Resort, Park Beyond offers less room for recovery from mistakes, adding excessive stress to an already intense situation. Additionally, meeting the goals within the three-day limit feels overwhelming.
The Sandbox mode is where Park Beyond truly shines. In this mode, you are free to choose from a variety of themed maps and unleash your creativity without any limitations. Building a park in the Sandbox has been enjoyable so far, with a moderate difficulty curve. While the menus and interface may have room for improvement, the gameplay and mechanics themselves offer a fun and unique ride that cannot be missed.
