Gameplay

Micromanage? Or delegate authority?

The game play in Roller Coaster Tycoon is superb. It accommodates everyone from super micromanager/anal people, to laid back, relaxed managers who like to sit back and enjoy the action. Yes, all the little tweaks, like changing the price of each of your rides, foods, drinks, etc is there. You can even change how many trains your coasters run and how many cars per train you want. Change your Ferris wheel from rolling forward to backward. Repaint your rides to all pink. Charge a fee for the bathroom. You can do it all, but at the same time, everything runs fine on its own if you decide not to tweak anything. So long as you have enough staff, the AI is intelligent enough to handle broken rides, trash, etc, by itself.

Compare your rides by popularity, profit, etc

The fun is getting into it

The type A personalities will definitely be able to squeeze more revenue out of their parks though, because micro management means you can get away with less staff. Novices shouldn't fear though - helpful messages pop up along the bottom to inform you of ride breakage, or when you should raise/lower prices, or anything that might be of importance. Mostly the main aspects that EVERYONE has to worry about are allocating a budget for new rides, hiring enough staff, and placing down new rides/stores in your park.

Notice the little people getting umbrellas?

Design your own ride!

Probably the best part of Roller Coaster Tycoon is the ride design feature. It can be kind of tedious to place down each and every section of your roller coaster, but the design feature is very robust because you can throw in twists, loops, corkscrews and more! There are 14 different coaster designs that run the gamut from wooden to steel to water based. You'll be able to find out how fast your coaster goes, and the G-rating, etc. after you're done building. Coasters are also given an intensity rating depending on how nasty you make it. Just remember that not everyone loves a hard core coaster. Keep a good mix in your park from mild to wild and you'll find the best profits that way.