Tycoon games (or, to use a slightly more boring term, 'business simulation games') are massively popular with players who enjoy strategically balancing the needs of a business while trying to keep money flowing in. From theme parks to farms to restaurants, the genre offers players the chance to flex their management skills in various settings.
Zoo management games come under this category. They allow players to see some amazing animals up close while juggling the demands of customers and staff. Here are some of the best zoo management games animal lovers will enjoy!
7 Planet Zoo
Planet Zoo was a huge hit when it launched in 2019, and it remains popular, with a dedicated player base and several expansion packs introducing new habitats, animals, and challenges. Planet Zoo is not an easy game; it has a reasonably steep learning curve, although it does guide new players with a tutorial. But it's worth persevering because Planet Zoo offers incredible tools for customization.
If players want to build a zoo atop a series of skyscrapers, a zoo on a remote island, or an enormous zoo tree house, they can do so. The building tools are great, and the animals themselves are adorable. Managing the needs of the animals, staff, and visitors is challenging, but it's an excellent game for creative players.
6 Let's Build A Zoo
A cute pixel art zoo management game, Let's Build a Zoo has a twist: players can use a CRISPR Splicer to splice different species together. With over 500 combinations available, the urge to collect them all is strong. But players need to focus on managing the animals, making it fun for visitors, and fiddling around with animal DNA simultaneously.
Let's Build a Zoo is a fun and pretty moreish game, and occasionally throws a moral dilemma in the players' direction: do they want to work with criminals to grab some extra cash, or will they rise above these temptations and keep everything above board? The decisions players make will have consequences (both good and bad), and this element makes each playthrough an interesting and unique experience.
5 Jurassic World Evolution 2
Jurassic World Evolution 2 allows players to bioengineer dinosaur species. This is obviously exciting but also risky; each dinosaur has its own behaviors and traits, and not all of them want to live a peaceful life munching leaves all day. Players must manage the park and keep track of breakouts, and dealing with constant risk makes the gameplay much more exciting.
It's a nostalgic game for fans of the original Jurassic Park movie, offering familiar settings to play around with. Like all zoo management games, players need to take into account the visitors' needs (and safety), but players will be working alongside recognizable characters from the movies. Plus, there's the Chaos Theory mode, which allows players to recreate moments from the Jurassic World franchise.
4 Zoo Tycoon
A classic series of games, Zoo Tycoon allows players to house and care for up to 200 animals. The original game launched in 2001, and the latest launched in 2013, and players can access a collection including expansion packs on Steam. It's a classic zoo simulation game; players need to build the perfect habitats for animals and create a vibrant, interesting zoo for visitors to enjoy.
There are several game modes, including Specialized Challenge Mode, which throws several crises into the mix. Players can also build a zoo with up to four people, so a traditionally solo game can become a joint project between friends and family.
3 Megaquarium
Now for something slightly different. Megaquarium allows players to run a thriving aquarium, starting off with a few basic tanks and building up to housing amazing species of jellyfish, sharks, and crustaceans. If visitors like the displays, players will earn points, which can be spent on upgrading equipment and finding new species to bring into the aquarium.
Like other zoo management games, players need to balance the needs of the staff, customers, and creatures while keeping the money flowing in. It has ten levels, designed to teach players how to learn the game so that they can go on to master the sandbox mode and create an incredible, immersive aquarium.
2 Wildlife Park 2
Wildlife Park 2 is another classic zoo management game. Players must grow the park from a basic bit of land with a ticket booth to a thriving, interesting zoo. They can do this by hiring the right staff, buying animals, and creating safe and exciting exhibits for customers. There are 20 missions in the main campaign, and other zoo locations to master once players have finished those.
Wildlife Park 2 offers different terrains and climates and some interesting landscaping tools, enabling players to build bridges, create water features like waterfalls or rivers, and build structures. Released in 2003, this is slightly dated, but the gameplay is still engaging.
1 RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Wild!
The RollerCoaster Tycoon games are iconic, but players might have forgotten an expansion pack that takes the franchise in a slightly different direction. Wild! offers new goodies for RollerCoaster Tycoon fans, like new flat rides. It also has some excellent animal attractions, and these need careful management alongside the challenge of running a successful theme park.
Players can build enclosures for animals like lions and elephants, creating a zoo/theme park hybrid, with enormous rollercoasters overlooking sprawling habitats. It's an excellent expansion pack for fans of the RollerCoaster Tycoon series.