Play RollerCoaster Tycoon World Now

RCT fans rejoice: Roller Coaster Tycoon World is now available to play! Yes, you can actually purchase, download it, and start building coasters! Note that this isn’t the official final version of the game, but a working preview that will allow those with Early Access to try it while the programmers work to finish up all the bells and whistles as well as fix problems based on Early Access feedback. Currently Windows only.
“The Early Access release of RCTW contains the core features and content of the game,” says developer Nvizzio Creations, “Throughout Early Access and beyond we will be adding further content, including piece-by-piece custom-built structures, scenario editor, mini-rides and dark rides, additional scenarios, transport rides and more.”

There are two versions of the game you can download instantly: Standard, which goes for $49.99, and Deluxe which will set you back $59.99. What does the deluxe edition include? Everything in the standard edition plus:

• Additional Mascot: Wow your guests with the RCT franchise’s classic “Panda” mascot.
• Digital Art Book: A beautifully designed art book illustrates the story of RCTW art and park elements from concept to in-game.
• 2 Additional Maps: Build your dream park on two new exotic map packs.
• Zipper Ride: A brand-new flatride just for our Deluxe Edition users!
• Golden Park Entrance: Delight guests and show off your solid gold style with an exclusive Deluxe-Edition park entrance.

Other features of RCTW Early Access include:

• Freeform Object Placement: Control and place every single in-game object anywhere on the map at any angle. For our more casual users we are also providing ‘snap-to’ and ‘brush’ placement functionality to make this enhancement easy to use.
• Curved Paths: Select your unique type of path from a of widths, styles, and shapes. You can make them straight or, for the first time in the franchise, curve them at almost any angle!
• Innovative 3D Track Editor: Create the coolest and wildest coasters imaginable with our best track editor ever! For the first time, using our spline based editor, tracks can be fully manipulated in 3D allowing you to create any shape you can dream up.
• Fully Deformable Terrain with Water: Build amazing rides and change your park’s landscape in full 3D with completely deformable terrain and water.
• Expansive Selection of In-Game Objects: Entertain your park guests with many different types of coasters and rides, all in eye-popping next generation resolution. Choose from pre-made rides and coasters to scenery and shops

Get RCTW now and start building your dream theme park.

If you’ve already played RCTW, please share your experiences and reviews of the game in the comments below. We’d love to know what you think of it!

2015 Gift Guide for Theme Park Lovers

The holiday shopping season is upon us once again and if you’re on the hunt for that special gift for a friend or family member who happens to be a roller coaster enthusiast, you’ve come to the right place! The obvious gift is to buy a season pass to your local amusement park, zoo, or aquarium but if you want to give something a little bit different this time then check out our list below.

Coasters 101: An Engineer’s Guide to Roller Coaster Design. Learn how roller coaster designers spend hundreds of hours creating, tweaking, and re-imagining ride paths to push the exhilaration envelope while carefully maintaining the highest safety standards. Features design example problems real roller coaster engineers face in the field today as well as career advice for any aspiring roller coaster engineers. For 25% off, enter discount code: UY8WJQMM when purchasing directly from: https://www.createspace.com/3737443

Theme Park Design by Steve Alcorn. Take a peek behind the scenes, with a theme park engineer – a must read for all aspiring theme park designers! For more information readour review and interview features with Steve.

Creating My Own Nemesis by John Wardley. The story follows John’s professional career beginning with how he got out of the boring family business and into the crazy world of theme parks. If by any degree you’re into magic, illusions, theater production, theme park design, or roller coasters I highly recommend you read this thoroughly entertaining book.Read our full review here.

RollerCoaster Tycoon Triple Thrill Pack Instant Download.  This compilation of RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 and expansion packs Time Twister and Wacky Worlds brings together all the rides, building tools, as well as five real-world Six Flags amusement parks and 25 of their signature coasters.

Want to bring a little piece of Walt Disney World into your home? Looking for an alternative to putting a train around your Christmas tree? Then check out the Walt Disney World Monorail Playset. This working monorail is inspired by the real thing and has sound and light effects.

The carnival is coming to town with this super cool new Fairground Mixer LEGO set. A portable spinning ride and several carnival games can be built with the more than 1,700 pieces.

Google Cardboard - Want to see those virtual reality coaster videos parks are now creating to market and preview their new rides? Get a Google Cardboard. Take a spin on Lightning Rod or Valravn. Google Cardboard is described as Virtual Reality (VR) on a budget. Gives you a taste of the capabilities of the Oculus Rift at a fraction of the cost. Though be warned it may cause motion sickness if the app you’re looking at doesn’t perfectly track your head movement. It’s fun to assemble and play with.

Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Lost Stars by Claudia Gray. If you’re a Star Wars fan like I am you’re probably anxiously awaiting The Force Awakens movie on December 18th as well as the additions of Star Wars Land to Hollywood Studios and Disneyland. This book will wet your appetite before the new movie comes out. The story takes place during the original trilogy but offers a new perspective in which the main characters don’t really know anything about The Force, the Jedi, the Dark Side, etc. which I think is a theme that will carry over into The Force Awakens. The story also ends about a year or two after The Battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi and does contain the Battle of Jakku and how at least one of those Star Destroyers ends up smashed on the desert planet. If you’re only going to read one Star Wars related book, this is the one.

What gifts are you getting your coaster enthusiast friends? Which coaster gifts are you hoping to find under the tree this year? Discuss in the comments section below.

Roller Coaster Video Game Comparison

It's a great time to be a fan of roller coaster video games. The RollerCoaster Tycoon series has been brought back to life with RCT4M and the upcoming RollerCoaster Tycoon World. But that's not all. ScreamRide is an upcoming new destruction type game for Xbox. Parkitect looks to be closely related to RCT1 and RCT2 with updated graphics. WaterPark Tycoon is now available. Oh yeah, and there's the awesome looking Theme Park Studio and NoLimits 2. How to keep all these games straight? And what is the best one for you?

Check out the Roller Coaster Game Guide, a page designed to show you the pros, cons, features, and costs of each game so you can decided which one fits your personality the best.

To learn more and see trailers and game play for each theme park simulator, go here:

http://www.rct4releasedate.com/roller-coaster-game-guide/

Which coaster game are you most looking forward to?

Holiday Gift Guide for Amusement Park Fans

The 2013 holiday shopping season is upon us and if you’re on the hunt for that special gift for a friend or family member who happens to be a fan of amusement parks and roller coasters then you’ve come to the right place! Listed below are my recommended gifts to give or receive this holiday season.

• Coasters 101: An Engineer’s Guide to Roller Coaster Design. Learn how roller coaster designers spend hundreds of hours creating, tweaking, and re-imagining ride paths to push the exhilaration envelope while carefully maintaining the highest safety standards. Features design example problems real roller coaster engineers face in the field today as well as career advice for any aspiring theme park engineers. Available in Kindle or paperback formats from Amazon.com.
• American Coasters: A Thrilling Photographic Ride is a  relatively new book by photographer Thomas Crymes. The pictures are large and crisp. The colors are vivid. The book’s simple design places more emphasis on the photographs. Nothing beats seeing pictures of roller coasters printed on a physical page (sorry, internet).
• Creating My Own Nemesis by John Wardley. The story follows John’s professional career beginning with how he got out of the boring family business and into the crazy world of theme parks If by any degree you’re into magic, illusions, theater production, theme park design, or roller coasters I highly recommend you read this thoroughly entertaining book. See the making of RCT3 with John Wardley.
• Theme Park Design by Steve Alcorn. Take a peek behind the scenes, with a theme park engineer, and learn about the multitude of roles and skills needed to design a world class theme park attraction – a must read for all aspiring theme park designers!
• RollerCoaster Tycoon Triple Thrill Pack Instant Download.  This compilation of RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 and expansion packs Time Twister and Wacky Worlds brings together all the rides, building tools, as well as five real-world Six Flags amusement parks and 25 of their signature coasters. My personal favorite of all the RollerCoaster Tycoon games.
• Transport Tycoon for tablets. Chris Sawyer’s Transport Tycoon is now available on tablet devices everywhere. Reviewers say they managed to bring this classic game to mobile devices extremely well.
• K’nex Rippin Rocket Coaster. Loaded with over 500 KNEX pieces including classic parts, this model boasts over 20 feet of twists, turns, and daring loops. A special motorized blaster launches the coaster car into its exciting journey around the track.
• Coaster Dynamix Models. The most realistic working roller coaster models currently available. Choose from Wooden coasters, steel coasters, Tumble Bugs, and Lego coaster sets.
• Cincy Amusement Park Shirts. From the early days of Chester Park to Americana and Kings Island, these vintage shirts will be a nice stroll down memory lane. This shop not only sells The Bat shirts, but also a few other defunct Kings Island coasters, including Son of Beast, Phantom Theater, and King Cobra!

I highly recommend joining Amazon Prime. If you order something off of Amazon on average once per month then it pays for itself, or if you're ordering a bunch of gifts this holiday season it probably will too. The FREE two day shipping is awesome and everything I've ordered really has come in two days or less. You can also stream movies, TV shows, and get a Kindle book every month. Great alternative for Netflix or Hulu and well worth the investment in my opinion. Cheers!

What's on your 2013 holiday gift list? Share in the comments below!

RollerCoaster Tycoon 3DS Drama

RollerCoaster Tycoon for the Nintendo 3D  was released yesterday... I think. Amazon.com currently lists it as “Out of Stock.” Not surprising, as the game has been hit by delay after delay, which according to one reviewer (who somehow actually got their hands on the game) “took the game from ‘unplayable and terrible’ to just ‘terrible’.” That’s very troubling and disappointing for all RCT fans to hear. It's been eight years since the last RollerCoaster Tycoon game, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, initially hit retailers. You would think in that time span the developers would have thought of some cool new features other than adding a new story mode.

In fact, RCT3D appears to be missing many features which were a staple of past games, like you can’t name your rides or adjust their color scheme, terrain can’t be modified (which means no tunnels!), no weather, no fireworks, no signs, and many missing ride types.I think one reviewer summed it up best: “RollerCoaster Tycoon 3D is a lazy, featureless shell of its predecessors”.

I have not played the game personally, but RCT3D sadly sounds like it does not deliver the goods. You’re better off pulling out your old copy of RollerCoaster Tycoon 3. RCT fans will have to wait until the true RCT4 comes out on PC (if it ever does) to get their coaster building fix.

Have you played Roller Coaster Tycoon for 3Ds? What do you think? Share your review below!

Roller Coaster Design Project

Have you ever wanted to design your own roller coaster? Sure, many of us have. But I’m not talking about using a computer game like RollerCoaster Tycoon or NoLimits. I’m talking about using real roller coaster physics formulas and equations. I recently had the chance to interview a mechanical engineering college student and aspiring roller coaster engineer who has done just that! He has designed his very own GCI inspired wooden roller coaster using only a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and MatLAB. Read all about this roller coaster design spreadsheet on my Excel Spreadsheets Help blog.

RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 Release Date Website

A new website has popped up called RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 release date. While there isn’t really a whole lot of new information, they do list out a timeline of known events and information about the upcoming roller coaster simulation game. They also promise to be the first website to post any updates on the RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 release date as soon as it becomes available, although I don’t expect to hear anything until after RCT3D hits the market.

What is RCT3D you ask? It’s the next installment of the Roller Coaster Tycoon series. However, this latest game is only available on the Nintendo 3DS handheld system. After being delayed several times, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3D is still set for a release date of August 28th (which you can pre-order here).

I also encourage you to sign up for the RCT newsletter to be the first to know about a new giveaway contest I will be hosting coming up soon with some prizes geared toward theme park nerds.

If you haven’t noticed, I added a link above to a new page on this blog called Ride Layouts. Here I plan on including links to all my posts where I’ve displayed ride layouts, blueprints, and diagrams, especially those classic Disney attractions.