When it comes to Planet Zoo 2, the shining star of the upcoming Frontier Developments sequel is its new animal behavior system. Today, in the first episode of the Feature Focus series for Planet Zoo 2, the developer showcased “Awe-inspiring Animals,” highlighting the West African Lions and their unique behaviors and welfare needs.
The series of Feature Focus videos will continue to offer fans of the park management franchise a deeper dive into the game’s features, animal behaviors, and more as Frontier Developments gets ready for launch.
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About Planet Zoo 2’s released gameplay, we said, “[Animal behaviors] are vital, of course, for players as they will need to tend to their animal needs and will still be able to use tabs and UI to see these things, but being able to look at an animal and see it in their body language or facial expressions was really cool. All of these improvements can really bring the animals to life and enhance the game’s immersion.”
What do we know about the new animal behavior system?
Featuring lioness Zuri and bachelor Tao, the video also offers a deeper look at Planet Zoo 2’s new emotion system, which is designed to make animals more expressive and easier for players to read without clicking into the habitat. With this new feature, animals display dynamic behaviors based on their current mood.
The dynamic mood is an upgrade from what we saw in the first game in the series in 2019. This is influenced by the quality of their habitat and welfare, with animals reacting to the care they receive. A lack of enrichment, food, or fresh drinking water can leave them feeling lethargic, while well-cared-for animals will thrive and exhibit a wider range of natural behaviors.
Watch the Feature Focus Video
What do we know about Planet Zoo 2 so far?
A park management sim at heart, Planet Zoo 2 Zookeepers are tasked with constructing beautiful habitats where species can fully interact with their environments. Whether you’re building your zoo or restoring natural habitats for your animals to return to, the goal is conservation, highlighting the game’s central point, which has been consistent since the launch of the first game.
With the game’s official announcement, Frontier Developments shared a list of the upcoming game’s features, which you can find below:
- New Animals: For the first time, aquatic and flying animals are added, which adds even more to the diverse set of animals available for players – and so are their new habitats.
- Aquariums: Players will build custom freshwater or saltwater aquariums to house aquatic animals.
- Aviaries: Players will also be able to build and customize aviaries using barriers, support poles, and dynamic mesh covers, allowing birds to fly freely and safely.
- Habitats: Construct beautiful habitats where your animals can thrive as they authentically interact with the world around them. In Planet Zoo 2, animals are outfitted with all-new animal behaviors, making the game even more immersive than the first.
- Immersion: From high-fidelity fur, feathers, and scales to authentic breathing, Frontier has been known for its dedication to investing in bringing animals to life (and dinosaurs in other games).
- Wildlife Reserves: Players can take conservation outside their zoos by restoring natural habitats and releasing animals into Wildlife Reserves, expanding conservation’s importance ot the franchise.
- Frontier Workshop: The beloved Frontier Workshop will help the community build together.
Are there pre-order bonuses?
If you’re looking for more decorations, from today, players who pre-order will receive the Bonus Content Pack at launch, which includes the Toucan Eat Shop and Signage, three Unique Animal Donation Bins, and the Tiger Photo Stand-In Wall.
Players looking to go all out can pre-order the Planet Zoo 2: Deluxe Edition, which bundles the base game with the Planet Zoo 2: Deluxe Upgrade Pack. The Deluxe Upgrade adds six additional animal species (golden eagle, axolotl, golden lion tamarin, blue and gold fusilier, hammerhead shark, long-fin batfish) from
across the globe, as well as a selection of exclusive animal signs to decorate their park to match the animals included (minus the axolotl).
