Sawyer Fans Rescue RollerCoaster Tycoon as Atari Milks Brand

/noclip

Chris Sawyer's theme park simulation survives commercial exploitation and corporate disputes because open-source coders and indie developers preserved the mechanical depth of its original Assembly codebase.

AI-assisted summary of The Story of RollerCoaster Tycoon | Noclip Greatest Hits — original source. Check the original for full context.

Source published: 2021-05-02

Key ideas

Chris Sawyer coded the original RollerCoaster Tycoon nearly entirely in x86 Assembly, using integer-only math and pre-rendered 8-bit sprites to achieve remarkable performance across consumer hardware. (2:31)
The franchise fractured significantly after RCT2, with rights owner Atari steering the brand through troubled releases and derivatives like RollerCoaster Tycoon World, while Frontier Developments forged a separate path with Planet Coaster. (19:58)
Community-driven open-source projects such as OpenRCT2 have preserved and modernized the classic games, providing high-resolution support, modding tools, and cross-platform compatibility across modern operating systems. (11:08)
Sawyer's primary simulation portfolio—Transport Tycoon, RollerCoaster Tycoon, and Locomotion—stands as a rare achievement where every single major title has inspired a full-scale open-source community reimplementation. (32:54)

Detailed notes

## Background Published by Noclip on YouTube on May 2, 2021, this documentary marks the debut of their crowdfunded series Greatest Hits. Chosen by Patreon backers, the video explores the original design, technical brilliance, and enduring legacy of RollerCoaster Tycoon by spotlighting the community members, reverse-engineers, and developers continuing to carry its torch.

## TL;DR Host Danny O'Dwyer traces the origins of RollerCoaster Tycoon, examining how Scottish developer Chris Sawyer hand-coded the beloved classic almost entirely in x86 Assembly alongside artist Simon Foster. After the franchise transitioned to 3D and endured a turbulent period under Atari's stewardship, the spirit of the series was kept alive by passionate fans, content creators like Marcel Vos, open-source preservationists behind OpenRCT2, and indie developers creating modern spiritual successors like Parkitect. Although Sawyer himself declined on-camera participation due to his quiet retirement, the documentary evolves into a heartfelt tribute to the creator's enduring technical legacy and the vibrant community that refuses to let the game fade.

## Atmosphere & style The piece carries an affectionate, warmly nostalgic, and investigative tone driven by Danny O'Dwyer's conversational journalistic delivery. It blends genuine technical awe—particularly regarding Sawyer's Assembly craftsmanship—with playful amusement over the bizarre mechanical quirks and corporate missteps in the franchise's later history. Rather than feeling defeated by the elusive nature of its legendary creator, the narrative builds a deeply appreciative, community-centered emotional arc, turning the retrospective into an uplifting celebration of the passionate hobbyists holding the torch.

## Bulletin - [02:31](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=151s) Chris Sawyer coded the original RollerCoaster Tycoon nearly entirely in x86 Assembly, using integer-only math and pre-rendered 8-bit sprites to achieve remarkable performance across consumer hardware. - [19:58](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1198s) The franchise fractured significantly after RCT2, with rights owner Atari steering the brand through troubled releases and derivatives like RollerCoaster Tycoon World, while Frontier Developments forged a separate path with Planet Coaster. - [11:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=668s) Community-driven open-source projects such as OpenRCT2 have preserved and modernized the classic games, providing high-resolution support, modding tools, and cross-platform compatibility across modern operating systems. - [32:54](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1974s) Sawyer's primary simulation portfolio—Transport Tycoon, RollerCoaster Tycoon, and Locomotion—stands as a rare achievement where every single major title has inspired a full-scale open-source community reimplementation.

## Key takeaways - [00:06](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=6s) Despite a multitude of sequels and spin-offs, the enduring cultural affection for RollerCoaster Tycoon remains focused almost entirely on the first two entries created by Chris Sawyer. - [02:33](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=153s) The series began under the working title White Knuckle after Sawyer became an avid roller coaster enthusiast following his work on Transport Tycoon. - [02:33](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=153s) The original RollerCoaster Tycoon achieved massive commercial success, selling 6 million copies before the launch of its 2002 sequel. - [05:29](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=329s) The game pairs an exceptionally low barrier to entry for newcomers with an extraordinarily deep skill ceiling driven by complex mechanical quirks and simulation systems. - [08:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=525s) Simon Foster's pre-rendered 3D Studio Max art pipeline produced up to 6,600 unique frames per coaster car to account for multiple rotations, animations, and passenger load variations. - [11:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=668s) Started in 2013 by Ted John, OpenRCT2 reverse-engineered Sawyer's Assembly codebase to resolve modern OS compatibility issues, add quality-of-life enhancements, and introduce multiplayer. - [13:27](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=807s) OpenRCT2 balances classic game preservation with community modernization by offering modding APIs rather than embedding gameplay-altering cheats into the base experience. - [16:04](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=964s) By avoiding floating-point math and relying on pre-rendered 2D sprites, Sawyer ensured the engine could simulate thousands of guests with individual pathfinding without bogging down consumer PCs. - [18:58](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1138s) RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 marked a major technical shift to full 3D developed by Frontier Developments, selling over 10 million copies despite polarizing visual purists. - [22:09](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1329s) Under Atari's stewardship, the IP suffered through contentious legal disputes, aggressive mobile monetization, and the critically panned disaster of RollerCoaster Tycoon World. - [23:40](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1420s) Frontier's Planet Coaster emerged as the true spiritual successor to RCT3's expansive 3D sandbox design, surpassing 2.5 million sales. - [25:40](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1540s) Indie sim Parkitect captured the isometric spirit of the early games by focusing on backend park operations and guest line-of-sight logistics. - [31:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1860s) Sawyer consciously stepped away after RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, expressing contentment that his personal vision was complete and declining to interfere with new iterations. - [32:54](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1974s) Sawyer's core simulation trilogy—Transport Tycoon, RollerCoaster Tycoon, and Locomotion—inspired OpenTTD, OpenRCT2, and OpenLoco, marking an unprecedented level of fan-led software preservation.

## Detailed walkthrough ### [00:06](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=6s) The Enduring Mystery of RollerCoaster Tycoon

Noclip host Danny O'Dwyer introduces *Greatest Hits*, a series diving into the history and legacy of classic games chosen directly through backer votes on Patreon. When *RollerCoaster Tycoon* won the program's inaugural poll, Danny was genuinely surprised that an isometric theme park management game could command such passionate loyalty two decades after its heyday. The series produced a half-dozen sequels, numerous expansion packs, and multiple spiritual successors, yet the enduring affection almost universally centers on the first two titles—both of which were programmed virtually single-handedly by Scottish developer Chris Sawyer.

Sawyer has largely vanished from the modern public eye, having stepped away from the games industry after the release of the third entry. To understand why people still revere the franchise, Danny sets out to track down the figures holding the torch today: modern developers advancing the genre, active online communities, and content creators introducing new audiences to 20-year-old mechanics.

> “What is it about a theme park management series that resonated with so many people 20 years after its heyday?” — Danny O'Dwyer

---

[02:33](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=153s) From Transport Tycoon to Theme Parks

The origin of *RollerCoaster Tycoon* traces back to the creative partnership between Chris Sawyer and visual artist Simon Foster. The pair previously created *Transport Tycoon*, an isometric simulation of 20th-century expansionism. Working remotely from one another, they collaborated by mailing physical floppy disks back and forth daily via the Royal Mail. Following the immense critical and commercial success of *Transport Tycoon*, Sawyer took an extended break to travel across Europe and North America, where he became an ardent roller coaster enthusiast.

That passion reshaped his next project. Originally conceived under the working title *White Knuckle*, the game was rebranded under the familiar "Tycoon" banner while retaining Sawyer's specific balance: deep logistical park management paired with intuitive, creative track construction. Players juggle path networks, concessions, restrooms, and staff alongside elaborate custom coasters designed to maximize thrill and park attendance.

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: RollerCoaster Tycoon Franchise Origins accDescr: Progression from Transport Tycoon through Chris Sawyer's travels to RCT1 and RCT2.

subgraph Origins["Early Collaboration"] TT["Transport Tycoon (Chris Sawyer & Simon Foster)"] Mail["Remote collaboration via Royal Mail floppy disks"] TT --- Mail end

subgraph Conception["Inspiration & Design"] Travel["Travels across Europe & North America (Riding roller coasters)"] WhiteKnuckle["White Knuckle prototype"] Origins --> Travel --> WhiteKnuckle end

subgraph Releases["Commercial Releases"] RCT1["RollerCoaster Tycoon (1999) • 6 million copies sold • Written in Assembly"] RCT2["RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 (2002) • Expanded scenery & custom rides • Frontier took over for RCT3 (3D)"] WhiteKnuckle --> RCT1 --> RCT2 end ```

The original game launched in 1999 featuring audio by veteran composer Allister Brimble, selling an astonishing 6 million units before its follow-up arrived. Released in late 2002, *RollerCoaster Tycoon 2* became widely regarded as the pinnacle of the series, expanding tools for scenery, rides, and community architecture just as the wider industry began abandoning 2D engines. Sawyer later served in a consultancy role for *RollerCoaster Tycoon 3*, while primary development duties transitioned to Frontier Developments.

- **Key Staff**: Chris Sawyer (designer/programmer), Simon Foster (graphics), Allister Brimble (music and sound). - **Working Title**: *White Knuckle*. - **Sales Milestone**: 6 million copies sold for the 1999 original before the sequel launched. - **Engine**: Programmed nearly entirely in x86 Assembly by Sawyer to ensure smooth performance.

---

[05:29](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=329s) The Low Barrier and High Ceiling: Marcel Vos

Danny connects with Dutch YouTuber Marcel Vos, whose channel dissects the intricate mechanical quirks of the engine—exploring bizarre gameplay phenomena such as why exhausted guests take longer to drown than energized ones, or how maze pathfinding algorithms can trap visitors indefinitely. Vos recalls that during the early 2000s, *RollerCoaster Tycoon* was ubiquitous in the Netherlands, with kids frequently trading burned CD copies supplied by their parents.

Vos attributes the game's longevity to its remarkably low barrier to entry combined with an almost bottomless skill ceiling. A total newcomer can place down a pre-built merry-go-round or small coaster, immediately open the ride, and watch guests interact with the park without friction. Yet as players invest time, the mechanical depth prevents the game from ever feeling exhausted. Vos notes that his audience includes active players, lapsed fans curious about deep computational mechanics fifteen years later, and casual viewers who do not play at all.

Comparing the game to Peter Molyneux's classic *Amiga* title *Theme Park*, Danny points out that earlier park sims hit clear design thresholds where players ran out of meaningful things to do. Vos adds that modern full-3D spiritual successors like *Planet Coaster* require significant artistic skill and spatial effort just to make an environment look presentable, whereas *RollerCoaster Tycoon 2*'s isometric presentation and tile-based greenery allow anyone to construct an aesthetically pleasing layout simply by planting a few trees.

> “I think one of the main reasons why it's popular is that it has an incredibly low entry barrier.” — Marcel Vos

> “Because RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, you can put down a few trees and it just works.” — Marcel Vos

---

[08:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=525s) Isometric Craftsmanship and Modern Resurgence

The enduring visual appeal of the early entries is exemplified by New Element, an online community that has spotlighted high-level visual design and hosted competitive park-building accolades for nearly two decades. The visuals that support this artistic longevity were created entirely by artist Simon Foster using 3D Studio Max.

Foster rendered thousands of individual 3D sprites and manually exported them onto rough grids for Sawyer to code into the game. To account for four distinct isometric viewing angles, rider animations, and varying passenger capacities, a single coaster car model could require up to 6,600 unique rendered frames. Because Sawyer hand-coded the engine in Assembly, these massive sprite sheets ran smoothly even when parks grew exceptionally large and congested.

``` +-------------------------------------------------------------+ | SIMON FOSTER'S ASSET PIPELINE (3D Studio Max to Assembly) | +-------------------------------------------------------------+ | 1. 3D Studio Max modeling and animation | | 2. Multi-angle renders (4 isometric rotations) | | 3. Variable passenger load frames | | 4. Manual export to 2D sprite grids | | * Coaster car complexity: up to 6,600 unique frames/car | +-------------------------------------------------------------+ ```

Although the Assembly codebase kept the original releases fast and stable, raw legacy binaries eventually became unplayable on modern operating systems and high-resolution monitors. Marcel Vos explains that contemporary content creation relies heavily on OpenRCT2, an open-source reverse-engineering project. OpenRCT2 introduces essential modern amenities such as windowed display modes, high-definition resolutions, game-speed toggles for testing long coasters, and extensive hotkey support, transforming an aging classic into a seamless modern experience.

> “I can't imagine making my videos without Open RollerCoaster Tycoon.” — Marcel Vos

[11:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=668s) Tracking Down the Source and the Origins of OpenRCT2

With episodes crowdfunded through Patreon every two months, Noclip operates on a tight four-week production window to secure and film interviews before editing begins. While trying to reach Chris Sawyer through his management company and various industry backchannels, the team received no response. Faced with silence, host Danny O'Dwyer turned to the only person who understands the codebase just as intimately: Ted John, who started the open-source project OpenRCT2 in 2013.

Ted fell in love with theme park simulations around age seven when he received the first *RollerCoaster Tycoon*. Having played titles like *Theme Park*, he found Sawyer's creation immediately distinctive: “What interested me most about RollerCoaster Tycoon is it didn't feel dumbed down. It seemed quite sophisticated, and the graphics looked really good.” That visual appeal has endured because the sprites are pre-rendered. Ted followed the franchise closely, devouring screenshots and even reading the sequel's instruction manual before *RollerCoaster Tycoon 2* hit store shelves.

Around 2005, Ted encountered *OpenTTD*, an open-source recreation and enhancement of Sawyer’s earlier title *Transport Tycoon Deluxe*. Seeing *OpenTTD* offer seamless cross-platform support, modern multiplayer where players could cooperate within the same company infrastructure, and quality-of-life updates convinced him that *RollerCoaster Tycoon* deserved the exact same treatment. Starting in 2013, he set out to build OpenRCT2—a free program that modifies the original game's installer and data files to run on modern platforms, bringing the classic title to operating system families it never originally supported, including macOS and Linux.

[13:27](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=807s) The Philosophy of Modernizing a Classic

Community demand quickly drove the expansion of OpenRCT2. Players clamored to build vastly larger parks with higher limits on ride types and scenery items, and frequently begged for smarter guest AI. Ted notes that even when players build meticulous pathway layouts equipped with directional signage and park maps, guests still manage to get lost and wander around complaining.

Balancing preservation against modernization requires constant discretion. Danny highlights that Ted essentially operates as "half game designer, half like game preservationist." Ted explains that the team resists features that undermine the original challenge:

> “Yeah, we're very cautious about adding too many new features. I've got a lot of, a lot of people like to request things that make it a bit easier or in other ways, things that we think of as a cheat, I suppose, where it tells you how much you should price the rides and various things like that. And we're not sure whether that should belong in the base game.”

To resolve this tension without alienating different segments of the community, the development team opted to make OpenRCT2 moddable, enabling players who want auto-pricing or gameplay aids to script their own add-ons.

Ted proved uniquely equipped for the technical hurdles of reverse-engineering; in his day job as a software engineer, he specializes in porting legacy COBOL programs to modern hardware. Nevertheless, he deflects solo credit, pointing out that over a hundred people have contributed to OpenRCT2's source code, handling everything from international localization and new art assets to QA testing and documentation.

[16:04](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=964s) The Architecture of a Timeless Simulation

When Noclip asked supporters why *RollerCoaster Tycoon* continues to captivate players—and why surveys reveal a steady influx of young players who were not even born when the game was released—Ted compared the title's enduring appeal to physical building toys:

> “Well, I think a lot of people, they haven't played in a long time. They played it when they were younger and they see the game again. And they realize they can play it. But I think for a lot of other people, it's a toy. It's like Lego and the, you know, you can't get old of it. There's always different things, new things that you can think of building. It's not too complex. It's very uniform. You know, you're talking about isometric grid. Everything's tile or block-based, a bit like Lego and Minecraft.”

Ted also differentiates the core loop between the first two entries: the original game is driven by rigid campaign progression—completing scenarios, meeting financial and guest targets, and researching new rides to check off goals—whereas *RollerCoaster Tycoon 2* serves primarily as an expansive, creative sandbox.

Both games reflect Chris Sawyer’s deep fascination with amusement park engineering. The mechanics demand strict adherence to real-world physics: players cannot build reckless designs without making guests sick or driving lateral G-forces dangerously high, nor can they build an entire park out of terrifying coasters without alienating gentle ride-goers.

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: RollerCoaster Tycoon Performance Architecture accDescr: Technical design choices that allowed high performance on low-end hardware.

subgraph CoreEngine["Engine Architecture"] ASM["Coded in x86 Assembly"] SimpleMath["Integer-Only Math & Table Lookups"] end

subgraph SimulationTasks["Heavy Real-Time Simulation"] Guests["2,000+ Guests with Individual Pathfinding"] Rides["Multiple Coasters with Complex Physics"] end

subgraph VisualPipeline["Rendering Pipeline"] Gfx["8-Bit Palette-Based Pre-Rendered Sprites"] NoFloat["Zero Floating-Point Overhead"] end

CoreEngine --> SimulationTasks VisualPipeline --> CoreEngine ```

Sawyer's choice to write the game almost entirely in x86 Assembly—a practice already fading from PC development by the late 1990s—was not unheard of on consoles, but it gave the PC release an immense performance edge. The engine easily tracked thousands of simulated park guests running active pathfinding routines alongside animated rides and simple physics systems. By relying on pre-rendered 8-bit palette graphics, integer calculations, and extensive table lookups rather than floating-point math, Sawyer ensured the simulation ran smoothly on practically any consumer PC.

- **OpenRCT2 Contributor Base:** Over 100 individuals contributing code, documentation, art, and translations. - **Original Graphic Format:** 8-bit, palette-indexed pre-rendered 2D sprites. - **Key Simulation Constraints:** Strict lateral G-force calculations, nausea ratings, excitement thresholds, and guest intensity tolerances.

[18:58](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1138s) The 3D Shift and the Fragmented Post-Sawyer Era

After shipping *RollerCoaster Tycoon 2*, Sawyer stepped away to build *Locomotion* (2004), his spiritual successor to *Transport Tycoon*. Having amassed substantial wealth from the franchise's runaway sales, Sawyer retained ownership of the IP but transferred management and publishing control to Atari. Atari tapped Frontier Developments—who had previously proved their technical chops by porting the original game to the Xbox and developing both expansions for RCT2 (*Wacky Worlds* and *Time Twister*)—to develop a full sequel, with Sawyer serving in an advisory consulting capacity.

Released in 2004, *RollerCoaster Tycoon 3* represented a massive technical shift. It transitioned the franchise into full 3D, introducing a free-form rotating camera, real-time lighting with day/night cycles, and expanded guest behaviors. Despite selling over 10 million copies and earning positive reviews, it marked a nostalgic fracture point. For many purists, the charming simplicity and hand-crafted feel of Sawyer's pre-rendered isometric dioramas were lost in the move to early 3D polygons.

Behind the scenes, relationships collapsed: - **Corporate Feuds:** Following RCT3, the partnership between Atari and Frontier Developments soured into contentious, largely confidential legal battles regarding royalities, code rights, and IP usage. - **Franchise Stagnation:** Combined with Atari's worsening corporate financial troubles, the mainline series lay dormant for nearly a decade. - ***RollerCoaster Tycoon 3D* (2012):** A poorly received Nintendo 3DS exclusive that recycled RCT3-era visual assets in a fixed, pseudo-isometric perspective. - ***RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 Mobile* (2014):** A heavily monetized freemium mobile release that sparked outrage among long-time fans for aggressive microtransactions and timer mechanics. - ***RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 Mobile*:** An unexpected, straightforward mobile port of the 2004 PC game developed by Frontier that was mechanically solid, yet did little to satisfy fans hungry for a true classic successor. - ***RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic* (2016):** Sawyer returned to active development alongside an external team to produce a faithful remaster combining the scenarios, art style, and engines of the first two PC games for modern mobile devices.

[22:09](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1329s) The Downward Spiral of RollerCoaster Tycoon Under Atari

Following the well-received mobile release of *RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic*—which integrated mechanics Chris Sawyer had previously honed for an earlier mobile port of *Transport Tycoon*—the brand entered an exceptionally rough era under Atari's direction. The second title released that same year was *RollerCoaster Tycoon World*, a full 3D installment that had already spent years bouncing between different development studios and enduring a messy early access cycle. In a dramatic bit of counter-programming, Atari officially launched the game just a single day before Frontier Developments debuted their own ambitious coaster sim, *Planet Coaster*.

While *Planet Coaster* earned enthusiastic reviews from critics and players alike, *RollerCoaster Tycoon World* proved to be a disaster. Danny O'Dwyer describes it as “about as bad a nightmare fans of the series could have possibly imagined,” criticizing it as a buggy, unfinished, and deeply un-fun project that was universally panned by critics. Rather than learning from the failure, Atari spun the wreckage off into a deluge of derivative spin-offs and low-effort ports: *RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch* on mobile, a PlayStation VR on-rails shooter dubbed *RollerCoaster Tycoon Joyride*, and *RollerCoaster Tycoon Story*, a casual mobile match-three game.

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: RollerCoaster Tycoon Port Lineage accDescr: Diagram illustrating how RollerCoaster Tycoon World was ported across multiple formats down to the PC Epic Games Store release. subgraph S1["Mainline Flop"] RCTW["RollerCoaster Tycoon World (PC)"] end subgraph S2["Derivatives & Adaptations"] RCTT["RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch (Mobile)"] RCTA_SW["RollerCoaster Tycoon Adventures (Switch)"] RCTA_PC["RollerCoaster Tycoon Adventures (PC / Epic Games Store)"] end RCTW -->|"Mobile spin-off"| RCTT RCTT -->|"Equity crowdfunded console port"| RCTA_SW RCTA_SW -->|"Port of a port"| RCTA_PC ```

The cycle reached peak absurdity with *RollerCoaster Tycoon Adventures*. Originally an equity-crowdfunded Nintendo Switch adaptation of the mobile title *RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch*, it was later ported back to PC as an Epic Games Store exclusive. Danny quips that this effectively made it “a PC port of a Switch port of a mobile port of the worst *RollerCoaster Tycoon* game.” Observing the relentless milking of the name, Danny notes that “from the fans' perspective, it does seem that under Atari's stewardship, the RollerCoaster Tycoon franchise has become a bit of a cash cow.”

[23:40](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1420s) The Spiritual Successors and the Search for Chris Sawyer

Despite the degradation of the main license, the theme park simulation genre survived outside of Atari’s catalog. Two distinct projects stepped forward to carry the torch. The first was *Planet Coaster*, developed by Frontier Developments—the same studio that had previously partnered with Sawyer on *RollerCoaster Tycoon 3*. After experimenting with console park builders like *Thrillville* and *Screamride*, Frontier treated *Planet Coaster* as their triumphant return to the PC genre. Launched in 2016 to critical acclaim, supported with extensive DLC, and topping over 2.5 million sales, it established itself as the true spiritual successor to *RCT3*.

The Noclip team attempted to get Frontier developers or studio heads like David Braben on camera to discuss their lineage with Sawyer and the franchise. However, communications went silent midway through discussions. Danny acknowledges that Frontier’s reluctance makes sense: the official *RollerCoaster Tycoon* brand carries significant corporate and legal baggage, whereas Frontier had successfully built their own independent, passionate community with a fresh IP. Similarly, attempts to secure an on-camera interview with Chris Sawyer himself hit a wall. Having stepped away from day-to-day development decades earlier, Sawyer remains intensely private—especially in the shadow of historical legal disputes. His rare public remarks, such as a 2016 interview with Wesley Yin-Poole at *Eurogamer*, were handled strictly via email exchanges through his management, making him unavailable for Noclip’s typical conversational documentary style.

- *Planet Coaster* served as Frontier’s spiritual successor to *RollerCoaster Tycoon 3*. - Frontier had previously explored console-based park builders with *Thrillville* and *Screamride*. - *Planet Coaster* surpassed 2.5 million copies sold after its 2016 launch. - Sawyer's sparse modern communications have typically been filtered through management, including his 2016 *Eurogamer* Q&A.

[25:40](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1540s) Parkitect: Tackling the Backstage Logistics

While *Planet Coaster* carried forward the 3D spectacle of *RCT3*, traditional fans still craved a spiritual successor to Chris Sawyer’s original isometric games. That gap was filled by *Parkitect*, built by a lean independent team led by lead programmer Sebastian Mayer and art director/co-designer Garret Randell. Mayer grew up next to Germany’s Europa-Park—one of the largest amusement parks in the world—which instilled in him a deep fascination with both ride mechanics and backend park operations. Together with Randell, who accompanied Mayer on research trips to examine real roller coasters up close, they set out to build a management sim that honored *Theme Park* and *RollerCoaster Tycoon* while introducing real operational friction.

Unlike titles focused purely on sandbox ride design, *Parkitect* requires players to manage backstage logistics alongside guest entertainment. To maintain park functionality, players must construct staff break rooms, training facilities, and employee-only transport paths so workers can move park stock and haul trash without destroying the guest illusion. Guests are put off by the sight of functional infrastructure, making visual sightlines a primary gameplay mechanic. Danny points out how this bridges aesthetics and mechanics: “For instance, each visitor's line of sight is calculated, and so their experience at the park is positively or negatively impacted based on how much of the backstage park maintenance stuff they can see.” This technical trick forces players to use scenery, fences, and foliage not just as optional eye candy, but as functional acoustic and visual screening.

- Sebastian Mayer’s childhood close to Europa-Park inspired *Parkitect*’s focus on the unseen infrastructure of amusement facilities. - The game simulates explicit line-of-sight cones for every park guest to dynamically track exposure to staff buildings, deliveries, and garbage. - Decorative fences, walls, and foliage directly serve gameplay by hiding utilitarian corridors from visiting park-goers.

[27:56](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1676s) The Sim Renaissance and Nurturing a Community

Reflecting on their journey, Garret Randell notes that *Parkitect* caught the leading edge of a broader renaissance across simulation games, sharing the landscape with everything from detailed city planners to unique novelties like nomadic builders set on the backs of giant wandering beasts. When Danny asks about the contrast between *Parkitect* and *Planet Coaster*, the developers explain that the two titles cater to distinct creative desires: *Planet Coaster* functions as an expansive 3D creative suite for breathtaking realism and massive dioramas, while *Parkitect* targets the gritty logistical, budgeting, and spatial management layer of the classic isometric era. Sebastian Mayer emphasizes, “What we hear from players very often is that they enjoy both games for different reasons. And that's really cool that two games that are kind of similar can co-exist.”

Both developers credit active community stewardship for keeping their project grounded throughout its development cycle. Because years had passed without a solid indie theme park builder, expectations risked ballooning out of control. To build trust, Mayer published regular, painstakingly detailed devlogs breaking down the game's underlying math, rendering choices, and mechanical scope. Recognizing that a tiny indie team could never build every ride or prop requested by fans, they invested early in Unity modding pipelines to let players introduce custom rides, assets, and custom code. As Randell summarizes:

> “I think that's the number one most important thing in this entire genre, in any simulation game, if it has a creative element to it is just community.”

[31:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1860s) Sawyer’s Retirement and the Passing of the Torch

Danny concludes that "community" is the defining pillar that kept *RollerCoaster Tycoon* alive long after its original creator departed full-time development in 2004. The game's torch was preserved not by Atari’s sequels, but by the generation who grew up with it: the YouTube content creators exposing the game to brand-new audiences, the OpenRCT2 hobbyists and open-source coders modernizing the codebase for current hardware, and the indie creators who channeled Sawyer's ethos into fresh titles like *Parkitect*.

Sawyer’s representatives eventually confirmed to Noclip that Chris is completely retired from the industry and remains a deeply private person, though he continues to feel genuinely flattered by the modern reverence for his creations. In his earlier years, Sawyer pushed himself to the limit to produce his masterpieces, acknowledging that game creation has only grown more demanding since his departure. His stance on stepping back was outlined most clearly in his 2016 *Eurogamer* interview, in which he explained why he chose to let the series move on without his interference:

> “I think you have to understand that my personal vision for RollerCoaster Tycoon was fulfilled with the last version I created myself, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, and I had no interest in working on someone else's vision for future versions of the game. Much better to let those who have inspiration fulfill their vision of the next iteration of the game and not to interfere. RollerCoaster Tycoon has moved on a long way since its early days as RCT1 and RCT2. And while I'm intrigued to see how the newer games evolve and expand, I'm not the right person to guide or restrict the design and development of games so different to my own.”

Danny observes that Sawyer's prolonged public silence, often lamented by longtime fans, is perhaps his greatest gift to the medium: rather than micromanaging or blocking new interpretations of theme park sims, he stepped aside completely, leaving room for new creators to experiment freely.

[32:54](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1974s) A Video for Chris Sawyer and the Enduring Community

Danny reflects on the original goal of producing the retrospective, admitting that at the outset, his deepest wish was to interview Chris Sawyer directly to discover what inspired the series and what its extraordinary impact meant to its creator. However, searching for those answers uncovered something even more compelling than a single designer's retrospective: the vibrant, passionate player base that kept the work alive. Danny explains that this project ultimately shifted from being a profile *about* Sawyer to a tribute *for* Sawyer—an open celebration of the enduring legacy he created and the global network of fans still obsessively designing theme parks and testing physics engines more than two decades later. As Danny summarizes the shift in perspective: “This video isn't about him. It's a video for him. A celebration of the legacy he left behind and a worldwide community of players who are still gleefully creating roller coasters 20 years later.”

Members of that creative network share what fuels their ongoing dedication. Sebastian points out how rare and uplifting it is that a title nearly two decades old retains such a fiercely loyal, collaborative ecosystem: “It's really cool how supportive the community for these types of games is. I mean, if you look at RollerCoaster Tycoon, game is like, 16 years old, 17 years old by this point. And it still has an active community.” Marcel Vos explains that his motivation comes from pulling back the curtain on complex game mechanics and connecting with other enthusiasts: “I like teaching people stuff or showing off cool stuff I made. And it's just so satisfying to see people, you know, leave nice comments and, you know, also just to watch those numbers go up. I'm a big numbers guy.”

The conversation turns to the sheer scale of Sawyer's technical imprint on gaming history. Ted emphasizes that Sawyer's output as an independent programmer remains unmatched in terms of long-term software preservation and grass-roots reverse engineering: “Transport Tycoon, RollerCoaster Tycoon, Chris Sawyer's Locomotion. And all three of them have now got open source projects replicating it. How many game studios, you know, could admit that?” Having achieved the near-impossible feat of creating three legendary simulation franchises that fans re-engineered from the ground up for modern operating systems, Sawyer's career stands as a singular achievement in video game history, prompting the closing joke: “Drop the mic and walk away, Chris Sawyer.”

```mermaid flowchart TD accTitle: Chris Sawyer's Trilogy and Open Source Legacy accDescr: Diagram illustrating the three core simulation games created by Chris Sawyer and their corresponding modern community-driven open source reimplementations.

subgraph SawyerGames["Chris Sawyer Original Releases"] TT["Transport Tycoon"] RCT["RollerCoaster Tycoon"] CSL["Chris Sawyer's Locomotion"] end

subgraph CommunityEngines["Community Open Source Projects"] OTTD["OpenTTD"] ORCT["OpenRCT2"] OLOCO["OpenLoco"] end

- **Chris Sawyer's Trilogy of Open-Source Heirs**: Across his career, Chris Sawyer effectively developed three core simulation masterworks—*Transport Tycoon*, *RollerCoaster Tycoon*, and *Chris Sawyer's Locomotion*. Every single one inspired an active, community-run open-source project dedicated to keeping the game modern, bug-free, and playable on current hardware (*OpenTTD*, *OpenRCT2*, and *OpenLoco*). - **A Rare Studio Feat**: Ted observes that almost no commercial video game studio in the industry can claim that every major title in their catalog inspired a full open-source community rebuild decades after release.

## Notable quotes > [11:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=668s) What interested me most about RollerCoaster Tycoon is it didn't feel dumbed down. It seemed quite sophisticated, and the graphics looked really good. — Ted John

> [31:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g&t=1860s) Much better to let those who have inspiration fulfill their vision of the next iteration of the game and not to interfere. — Chris Sawyer

## Mentioned Danny O'Dwyer, Chris Sawyer, Simon Foster, Allister Brimble, Marcel Vos, Ted John, Sebastian Mayer, Garret Randell, David Braben, Wesley Yin-Poole, Jeremy Jayne, Frank Howley, Megan Carnes, Dan Silverstone, RollerCoaster Tycoon, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, RollerCoaster Tycoon World, RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch, RollerCoaster Tycoon Adventures, RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic, RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 Mobile, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3D, RollerCoaster Tycoon Joyride, RollerCoaster Tycoon Story, Transport Tycoon, Transport Tycoon Deluxe, Chris Sawyer's Locomotion, OpenRCT2, OpenTTD, OpenLoco, Parkitect, Planet Coaster, Theme Park, Thrillville, Screamride, White Knuckle, New Element, Europa-Park, Frontier Developments, Atari, Noclip, Eurogamer, 3D Studio Max, Royal Mail

## Video description SUBSCRIBE for More Free Game Docs ► http://bit.ly/noclipsubscribe Become a PATRON to unlock more videos ► https://www.patreon.com/noclip

In our brand new series Greatest Hits, we celebrate the legacy of RollerCoaster Tycoon by exploring its original design and talking to the people holding the torch today. RCT was chosen by a subset of our patrons - to pick the next game, consider joining them.

Noclip's work is 100% crowdfunded. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/noclip Website: https://www.noclip.video Store: https://store.noclip.video Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noclipvideo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noclipvideo Twitch: https://twitch.tv/noclip Podcast: https://noclippodcast.libsyn.com/ Podcast Channel: http://youtube.com/noclippodcast

Edited by Jeremy Jayne & Danny O'Dwyer Filmed & Colored by Jeremy Jayne Gameplay Capture by Frank Howley Captions by Megan Carnes

Motion Design by Dan Silverstone (Pica) Twitter: https://twitter.com/pica_creative IG: https://www.instagram.com/vivapica/ https://www.pica.me.uk

0:00 - Intro 2:31 - What is RollerCoaster Tycoon? 5:29 - Marcel Vos 11:48 - OpenRCT2 16:04 - Why Are People Still Playing? 20:01 - What Happened After RCT2? 25:40 - Parkitect 30:55 - The Legacy of RCT 34:14 - Credits

Tracks used; https://au.audionetwork.com/browse/m/track/illusory_145286 https://au.audionetwork.com/browse/m/track/tender-reflections-2_136411 https://au.audionetwork.com/browse/m/track/glowing-moon-2_1027035 https://au.audionetwork.com/browse/m/track/walk-in-the-park-2-60_145010 https://au.audionetwork.com/browse/m/track/smooth-light_1022022 https://au.audionetwork.com/browse/m/track/eon-expansion_1019549

[Source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts4BD8AqD9g)

中文简报

雅达利过度榨取品牌价值之际，索耶拥趸拯救《过山车大亨》克里斯·索耶的主题公园模拟游戏历经商业压榨与企业纷争仍得以幸存，归功于开源程序员与独立开发者维系了其原始汇编代码库的机制深度。主持人丹尼·奥德怀尔回顾了《过山车大亨》的起源，审视了苏格兰开发者克里斯·索耶如何与美术师西蒙·福斯特携手，几乎完全用x86汇编语言亲手编写了这款受人喜爱的经典之作。在系列转向3D并在雅达利的主导下经历动荡期后，热情的粉丝、像Marcel Vos这样的内容创作者、OpenRCT2背后的开源保护者，以及打造出《游乐园建造师》（Parkitect）等现代精神续作的独立开发者，共同让该系列的精神得以延续。尽管索耶本人因低调退休而拒绝出镜，这部纪录片最终演变为对这位创作者经久不衰的技术遗产，以及拒绝让该游戏淡出舞台的活跃社区的由衷致敬。克里斯·索耶几乎完全使用x86汇编语言编写了初代《过山车大亨》，采用纯整数运算和预渲染的8位精灵图，在各类消费级硬件上实现了非凡的运行性能。 (2:31) 该系列在《过山车大亨2》之后严重分裂，版权所有者雅达利带领该品牌经历了《过山车大亨：世界》等问题频出的作品与衍生作，而Frontier Developments则凭借《过山车之星》另辟蹊径。 (19:58) 社区驱动的开源项目（如OpenRCT2）对经典游戏进行了保护与现代化改造，提供了高分辨率支持、模组工具以及现代操作系统上的跨平台兼容性。 (11:08) 索耶的主要模拟游戏作品集——《运输大亨》、《过山车大亨》和《机车大亨》——构成了一项罕见成就，其每一款核心大作都催生了社区主导的全面开源重制。 (32:54)

Reading summary

Chris Sawyer’s RollerCoaster Tycoon achieved enduring influence not through corporate stewardship, but through low-level engineering, accessible design, and a dedicated community that preserved and expanded the genre after Sawyer stepped away from industry development. Technical Craftsmanship and Dual-Layered Design (2:33) The first two RollerCoaster Tycoon titles were programmed almost entirely in x86 Assembly by Scottish developer Chris Sawyer, using integer math and pre-rendered 8-bit palette sprites crafted by visual artist Simon Foster. Foster manually exported 3D models into 2D sprite grids, producing up to 6,600 unique rendered frames for a single coaster car to accommodate multiple rotations and passenger loads. This technical architecture allowed consumer PCs to smoothly run real-time physics calculations and individual pathfinding for thousands of park guests, helping the 1999 original sell 6 million copies. Content creator Marcel Vos attributes the series' longevity to its low entry barrier combined with a high mechanical ceiling. Novice players can build functional, aesthetically pleasing parks using tile-based scenery and pre-built rides without spatial friction, while experienced players face strict simulation systems governing lateral G-forces, excitement ratings, nausea thresholds, and pathfinding quirks. Modern Preservation via OpenRCT2 (11:08) Because legacy binaries eventually became unplayable on modern high-resolution displays, software engineer Ted John launched the OpenRCT2 project in 2013, modeling it after the OpenTTD community rewrite of Sawyer's Transport Tycoon Deluxe. Supported by over 100 contributors, OpenRCT2 ported the game's original assets and logic to modern platforms, adding cross-platform support for macOS and Linux alongside features like game-speed toggles and higher ride limits. The project balances historical preservation with quality-of-life updates. John notes that the development team deliberately resisted requests that would trivialize core management challenges, such as automated ride-pricing tools. Instead, the team introduced a modding API, enabling players to script custom gameplay aids without compromising the baseline simulation rules. Franchise Fragmentation and Spiritual Heirs (18:58) Following RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, Sawyer stepped back into an advisory role while Frontier Developments created 2004's full-3D RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, which sold over 10 million units. However, subsequent corporate disputes and Atari's financial difficulties resulted in years of brand stagnation. Mainline attempts like RollerCoaster Tycoon World launched to critical pans in 2016, sparking an era of derivative mobile spin-offs, casual puzzle games, and crowdfunded console ports. The genre instead advanced through independent spiritual successors. Frontier launched Planet Coaster in 2016, topping 2.5 million sales as an expansive 3D creative suite. Concurrently, indie studio Texel Raptor developed Parkitect to honor the logistics of the classic isometric era. Co-creators Sebastian Mayer and Garret Randell incorporated operational friction—including staff break rooms, depot delivery routes, and dynamic guest line-of-sight calculations that penalize parks when visitors see utilitarian maintenance operations. Sawyer's Retirement and Open-Source Legacy (31:00) Sawyer maintained a private retirement after the mid-2000s, explaining in a 2016 interview that his creative vision for the series ended with RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 and that he felt newer developers should innovate without his interference. His representatives confirmed to Noclip that he remains completely retired from full-time game development, though he remains flattered by the ongoing public interest. Noclip host Danny O'Dwyer and John observe that Sawyer’s technical output represents a rare milestone in gaming history. Every title in his core simulation trilogy—Transport Tycoon, RollerCoaster Tycoon, and Locomotion—eventually inspired an independent, community-driven open-source recreation (OpenTTD, OpenRCT2, and OpenLoco), ensuring the long-term survival of his software architecture. While official publisher initiatives fragmented the commercial brand across low-budget adaptations, RollerCoaster Tycoon remains active through fan-driven preservation, engine reverse engineering, and modern successors that continue to refine its management mechanics.

精炼阅读摘要

Noclip纪录片探讨了《过山车大亨》（RollerCoaster Tycoon）系列在问世二十年后依然保持旺盛生命力的原因，指出其核心在于Chris Sawyer用汇编语言打造的极致性能底层、低门槛高上限的沙盒设计，以及社区驱动的开源项目与精神续作的持续接力。汇编架构与等轴视角的工艺底蕴 (2:33) 苏格兰开发者Chris Sawyer在完成《运输大亨》（Transport Tycoon）并游历欧美后，对过山车工程产生浓厚兴趣，进而开发了代号为《White Knuckle》的原型。1999年推出的《过山车大亨》初代售出达600万套。为了在当时有限的PC硬件上实现流畅运行，Sawyer几乎完全使用x86汇编语言编程，采用8位调色板预渲染精灵图、纯整数计算与查表法，避免了浮点运算的性能开销，从而能够同时处理数千名具备独立寻路逻辑的游客以及多条过山车的复杂物理模拟。Simon Foster则使用3D Studio Max为每种过山车车厢在4个等轴视角和不同载客状态下渲染多达6600帧独立画面，奠定了精致耐看且性能强悍的工程基石。低门槛与高自由度的乐高式设计 (5:29) 荷兰内容创作者Marcel Vos指出，该系列长盛不衰的秘诀在于极低的上手门槛与深不可测的技巧上限。与《Planet Coaster》等需要大量3D空间美学操作的现代作品相比，初代与二代基于方格网格的等轴设计让新手仅需种下几棵树就能构建美观的乐园，而机制底层却足以支撑诸如游客溺水时间差与迷宫寻路死循环等高深研究。OpenRCT2创始人Ted John将这种纯粹的模块化体验比作乐高积木或《我的世界》（Minecraft）。初代作品侧重于目标严苛的战役关卡推进，而2002年的《过山车大亨2》则演变为注重创造力的终极沙盒，在真实的离心力加速度、恶心度与兴奋度等物理约束下，赋予玩家持续搭建与调优的乐趣。商业异化与开源社区的技术拯救 (11:08) 在Sawyer退居顾问并将品牌运营移交Atari后，由Frontier Developments接手制作的全3D正统续作《过山车大亨3》（2004年）虽售出超1000万套，但也因多边形表现与手绘等轴风格的分歧引发了玩家群体的怀旧割裂。此后Atari陷入财务泥潭与诉讼纠纷，相继推出充斥微交易的移动端劣质衍生作以及惨败的《过山车大亨：世界》（2016年）。面对原生老程序在现代系统上的不兼容，Ted John于2013年启动了逆向工程开源项目OpenRCT2。该项目在保留原有物理与难度平衡的前提下，引入现代分辨率、窗口化、倍速测试及模组支持，跨平台移植至macOS和Linux系统。结合汇聚资深建筑玩家的New Element社区，全球开源贡献者与玩家成功挽救了被发行商商业榨取的老作品。后Sawyer时代的精神续作分支 (23:40) 正统品牌的衰退促成了类型模拟游戏的复兴与多元分化。曾负责《过山车大亨3》的Frontier Developments推出了《Planet Coaster》，发售后销量突破250万套，主打华丽的3D视觉与超大规模创意工坊，成为3D时代精神的真正延续。另一方面，受欧洲公园（Europa-Park）启发的独立开发团队制作了《Parkitect》，专注复兴等轴视角的纯正经营体验。该作不仅重现了Sawyer式的网格建造，更创新引入了“后台物流系统”与游客视线锥模拟机制：玩家必须建设员工专属通道并利用围栏植被遮蔽垃圾站与补给站，防止破坏游客沉浸感。两部作品分别满足了视觉沙盒与严谨物流管理两种截然不同的玩家需求。 Chris Sawyer在2004年淡出全职游戏开发，并明确表示其个人对该系列的愿景已在《过山车大亨2》中完满实现，因此选择彻底放手让新一代创作者自由探索。由他独立打造的三大模拟游戏（《运输大亨》《过山车大亨》《Locomotion》）如今均拥有活跃的社区开源项目（OpenTTD、OpenRCT2、OpenLoco），形成了商业游戏历史上罕见的由玩家与独立团队自发延续软件生命力的文化奇迹。

Source quotes

[11:08] Ted John: What interested me most about RollerCoaster Tycoon is it didn't feel dumbed down. It seemed quite sophisticated, and the graphics looked really good. [31:00] Chris Sawyer: Much better to let those who have inspiration fulfill their vision of the next iteration of the game and not to interfere.

Original transcript

[0:06] [PLAYFUL MUSIC PLAYING] [0:15] DANNY: Hello, and welcome to Greatest Hits, the brand new show from Noclip [0:18] where we dive into the history of some of your favorite games. [0:21] And we mean your favorite games, because the titles we cover [0:24] on this show are voted on and selected by our patrons. [0:28] And this episode they've sent us on quite the wild ride. [0:32] [PEOPLE SCREAMING] [0:33] I'll have to admit it. When RollerCoaster Tycoon won our first poll, [0:36] I was pretty surprised. [0:37] What is it about a theme park management series that resonated with so many [0:41] people 20 years after its heyday? Well, it's a good thing [0:45] that's the entire point of this show, to not only talk to the people who made [0:48] these classic games, but to explore their legacy, to figure out what it is [0:52] about these games we consider classic, and what our love for them [0:55] tells us about video games today. [0:58] This series has spawned a half dozen sequels, bunches of expansion packs, [1:03] and more than a few spiritual successors. [1:05] But when people are talking about their love of RollerCoaster Tycoon, [1:08] generally they're referring to the first two games. [1:12] These two games programmed by a single guy. [1:15] These days he's pretty hard to find. That is, of course, [1:18] unless you own a boxed copy of the originals. [1:21] Tycoon designer Chris Sawyer [1:23] all but left the games industry after the release of the third game. [1:26] And by modern media standards, he's almost impossible to get a hold of. [1:30] But if we're to tell the story of this game, we also need to [1:32] figure out who kept the torch lit since Chris' departure [1:36] almost 20 years ago. The developers evolving the genre, [1:40] the communities keeping the game alive, and the YouTubers creating brand new [1:44] RollerCoaster Tycoon fans today. [1:46] Why do people still care about RollerCoaster Tycoon? [1:49] What effect has this series had on the games we played today? [1:53] And can we get Chris Sawyer to turn on his webcam? [1:55] A lot of questions, and the clock is ticking. Welcome to Noclip Greatest Hits. [1:59] [KEYBOARD CLICKING] [2:01] [MUSIC PLAYING] [2:33] Okay. A brief history lesson for those of you out of the loop. [2:37] This won't be long, but it's a bit twisty. [2:38] So please keep your limbs inside the car at all times. [2:42] The original RollerCoaster Tycoon was first released in 1999, [2:46] programmed by Chris Sawyer with graphics by Simon Foster [2:49] and music and sound by veteran composer Allister Brimble. [2:52] Chris and Simon had previously worked on Transport Tycoon together, [2:56] an isometric transport management game set against the backdrop of [2:59] 20th century expansionism. The story goes [3:02] they worked remotely, sending floppy disks through the royal mail [3:05] on a daily basis. The game was a critical and commercial success, [3:09] and Chris used the profits to take a well-earned break. [3:12] The Scottish developer traveled around Europe and across the Atlantic [3:16] to North America, visiting theme parks during his journey and quickly [3:19] developing a love for riding roller coasters. So when it came time to [3:22] create his new game, a new idea was on the tip of his tongue. [3:26] And while the original title of White Knuckle would eventually be dropped [3:29] in favor of continuing the Tycoon brand, he was true to his vision, [3:33] creating a game that satisfied both the management pleasures of his transport [3:36] game and the joyful creativity of designing looping diving roller coasters. [3:42] In RollerCoaster Tycoon, you build and manage theme parks, placing rides, paths, [3:46] concession stands, and toilets. [3:48] And while there are non roller coaster amusements available, the bulk of [3:51] the game's creativity comes from making custom roller coasters from a variety of styles. [3:57] The goal of the game is to attract visitors to your park by creating the most [4:00] exciting roller coasters possible. [4:03] But many players will tell you that the pleasure of RollerCoaster Tycoon comes [4:07] from the craft of park building. Organizing paths, placing rides [4:11] where you want them, adding flowers and flair, and constructing increasingly [4:16] imaginative coasters. The first game sold a staggering 6 million units by the time [4:20] its sequel came out. RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, largely considered to be the [4:23] pinnacle of the series, added dozens of improvements over the first game, [4:27] leaning into the creativity of the community to give the players more options [4:31] with rides, buildings and scenery. By the time it was released in late 2002, [4:36] the strategy genre was ready to leave 2D. [4:38] And while Chris Sawyer did do some consultancy work on the third game, [4:42] Atari handed development over to Frontier Developments for RollerCoaster Tycoon 3. [4:47] The story gets a little bit messier after that. Don't worry. [4:50] We'll check in on it later. But what's important now is that you know [4:54] when people talk about their love for RCT, generally [4:58] they're talking about those first two games in the series, written in Assembly by [5:02] Chris Sawyer with timeless graphics by Simon Foster. [5:06] So what if I told you that despite all the sequels, [5:08] all the spinoffs and spiritual successors, [5:11] there are thousands of people today who were still playing those original games [5:15] and millions watching them? [5:17] Alright, it's time we checked in on the RollerCoaster Tycoon community, [5:21] but like any good club I'm going to need an in. [5:24] And mine is a Dutch guy with a YouTube channel. [5:30] MARCEL VOS: Hello everyone, and welcome to another video. [5:33] Today we will be answering the question that has plagued many generations of [5:38] great RollerCoaster Tycoon players. [5:41] Why do tired guests drown slower than fully energized guests? [5:49] RCT was huge in the Netherlands. When I was a kid, you know, [5:52] like early 2000s, [5:55] you couldn't go anywhere without people talking about RCT. [5:58] Everyone had the game. Like I remember my friend's dads burning it [6:03] onto a different CD for another classmate. [6:05] I think one of the main reasons why it's popular is that it has an incredibly [6:10] low entry barrier. I mean, anyone can, [6:13] who's never played any kind of game like that can pick it up. [6:17] And you can then see your park, and you can put down a merry-go-round. [6:22] You can open it, and then you will get guests. And they will get on it. [6:26] And you can build a roller coaster. You don't have to build it yourself. [6:29] There are plenty of good prebuilds, and most of them aren't too big. [6:33] So you can put them in almost any park, and it just works. [6:36] But then when you get better at it, you can, there are a lot of options. [6:41] So it doesn't get played out very quickly. [6:44] I got a few comments every now and then, people saying, [6:48] I don't even play the game. I just watch the videos. Or people are saying, [6:53] you know, I've played this game 15 years ago, and it's interesting to [6:57] see how it works in depth, even though I don't play the game anymore. [7:00] Also a lot of comments saying people picked up the game again, [7:03] but also still quite a few people that are actively playing, either that are in [7:07] the community or that, you know, [7:10] play on their own and are not necessarily in any community. [7:13] Hello everyone, and welcome to another video. A few days ago, [7:17] I uploaded the video about why certain mazes are nearly impossible to [7:22] solve for the guests because of how the path finding algorithm works in mazes. [7:28] If you haven't seen that one yet, you will not really understand this video. [7:31] So I recommend watching that one first. [7:34] DANNY: But you brought up an interesting point, which is that the game [7:37] I played growing up on my Amiga was Theme Park, [7:40] which is similar in some ways to RollerCoaster Tycoon, [7:43] but you hit that threshold pretty quick. Like the game ends at a certain point. [7:47] There's not much more to do. Whereas RollerCoaster Tycoon, it seems, [7:50] I mean, your channel is a testament to how limitless it is. [7:53] MARCEL: That said, you know, almost everyone isn't going to reach that skill gap. [7:59] And I would not have reached it either if not for a lot of other people and [8:03] the community that, yeah, there's just so much to do with a very low skill ceiling. [8:06] And another thing which I think is very important is the graphical style [8:10] makes it so that you can really easily make something that looks pretty. [8:15] You have, for example, you have Planet Coaster, which is kind of, [8:19] sort of like a spiritual successor, especially to RollerCoaster Tycoon 3. [8:22] But the downside to Planet Coaster is that you need to be better at it to make [8:27] something decent than you need to be in a RollerCoaster Tycoon 2. [8:30] Because RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, you can put down a few trees and it just works. [8:45] DANNY: There are many things a game needs to be in order for it to become a classic. [8:48] But one of the most important things is how it looks. Some games age [8:52] more gracefully than others. And thankfully for RCT, [8:56] there is something timeless about the original two games. [8:59] There's no better example of this endurance than New Element. [9:03] For almost 20 years, this website has been highlighting outstanding [9:06] visual design in custom RollerCoaster Tycoon parks, with accolades handed out [9:11] to the most beautifully crafted levels. [9:13] The latest iteration of their community competition is currently running. [9:17] So it's all the more impressive that the graphics for RCT 1 and 2 were [9:21] created entirely by one person, Simon Foster. [9:25] He used 3D Studio Max to create thousands of 3D renders, [9:29] which he would then manually export and send to Chris on rough grids. [9:33] Once you factored in all the animations, the four isometric angles, [9:37] and the different number of people that may be riding on the coaster, [9:40] one roller coaster car could take as many as 6,600 unique frames. [9:46] It was painstaking work, but it led to a game which looked incredible in its day [9:51] without adversely impacting performance. [9:53] This was absolutely crucial, as levels in RCT could get really complex. [9:58] But with most of the game written in Assembly, Chris Sawyer ensured that even [10:01] at the absolute limit of parks sizes, [10:04] RollerCoaster Tycoon ran well and rarely suffered from computational errors. [10:08] But even the most tightly written code cannot avoid the passage of time, [10:12] and for many years [10:13] the original two RollerCoaster Tycoon games were unplayable on modern machines. [10:18] So how exactly is Marcel playing RCT 2 in 2021? [10:24] MARCEL: I can't imagine making my videos without Open RollerCoaster Tycoon. [10:28] For example, it's got windowed mode and HD resolutions, [10:33] which is really useful. But other than that, you know, a lot more hotkeys. [10:38] You can speed up the game for when you need to test a long coaster or [10:43] have your guests spread out in the park and maybe go ride around a lot. [10:46] There are just so many quality of life improvements. [10:50] There are way too many to list, but they make the original game [10:55] you know, by comparison, playable. [11:00] DANNY: The original RollerCoaster Tycoon was written by a single programmer, [11:03] Chris Sawyer. [11:04] But the person keeping the original RollerCoaster Tycoon alive today does so [11:08] with the help of a global team. Open RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 is a free [11:13] program which modifies the original game's installer to work on modern OS's, [11:18] including several operating system families the original never supported. [11:22] So every two months we're going to have the patrons vote for a new episode [11:25] of this show, [11:26] which means that we only have about four weeks all in all to get the interviews [11:30] locked in to give us enough time to actually edit the episode. [11:33] So pretty quickly we've reached out to Chris, [11:36] at least the company that represents him to try and get an interview. [11:39] And we also have a couple of industry back channels working as well [11:42] to see if we can contact him that way. But so far it's been a couple of weeks. [11:46] We've heard nothing back. [11:48] So while our attempts to contact Chris Sawyer were still going unanswered, [11:52] we decided to reach to the only other person who knows the code as well as him. [11:56] Ted John started Open RollerCoaster Tycoon in 2013, [11:59] but his passion for the series came much, much earlier. [12:05] - I mean, I got the first game RollerCoaster Tycoon. [12:09] I was probably seven at the time. You know, I played other park games. [12:13] I think I played Theme Park in the past. [12:14] But what interested me most about RollerCoaster Tycoon is it [12:18] didn't feel dumbed down. It seemed quite sophisticated, [12:22] and the graphics looked really good. [12:24] They still look good today 'cause they're all pre-rendered. [12:27] and I really liked the second game as well. In fact, [12:30] I remember looking at the screenshots before it came out. [12:35] I also looked at the game manual because that [12:37] was available before the game was released. [12:41] So one of the other games I played was Transport Tycoon, [12:45] which is the previous game Chris Sawyer made before he [12:48] made RollerCoaster Tycoon. And I remember in, I think it was about 2005, [12:54] I found OpenTTD for the first time and was impressed [12:59] at what they achieved and how it was the exact same game [13:03] but had these new features, had multiplayer with many players. [13:08] You could be the same company. [13:09] You could work on the same, on the same infrastructure. [13:13] And it ran on every platform operating system you could think of at the time. [13:18] And I thought that this is great. RollerCoaster Tycoon should have [13:22] the same thing. [13:23] We got it working on other platforms like Mac OS and Linux quite early. [13:27] And then I think the community are quite excited about [13:31] being able to make much, much larger maps [13:36] with a lot more different types of rides, scenery. [13:40] The other commonly asked for request is [13:43] improved guest AI. There's quite often the guests that, you know, [13:47] they get lost and they complain about being lost. [13:50] Even though your park's got brilliant pathing systems, directions, [13:54] they got maps. Yet they still can't seem to find where they want to go. [13:58] DANNY: Your job is like half game designer, half like game preservationist in a way. [14:03] So where do you draw the line between like, oh, this is additive, [14:07] but it doesn't take away from what the original was or is. [14:12] - Yeah, we're very cautious about adding too many new features. [14:17] I've got a lot of, a lot of people like to request things that make it a bit easier [14:22] or in other ways, things that we think of as a cheat, I suppose, where [14:27] it tells you how much you should price the rides and various things like that. [14:32] And we're not sure whether that should belong in the base game. [14:36] However, we know that some people do want that, [14:39] and to sort of please everyone we've decided, well, [14:42] why don't we make the mod for the game moddable so that other people could add [14:46] their own mods on top of that and make the game exactly how they want. [14:50] DANNY: Ted seems uniquely positioned [14:52] to start this project. Not only is he a massive fan of the original games, [14:56] but remarkably his day job as a software engineer is focused on getting COBOL [15:00] programs to run on modern machines. [15:03] He's eager not to take all the credit for this work though, [15:06] as like any successful open source project, OpenRCT2 has benefited [15:10] from a passionate community of developers who have a deep love for [15:14] the design of the game. [15:16] TED: So we've had over a hundred contributors now. [15:19] A hundred different people have contributed to the source code [15:24] in different ways. People translating the game to numerous different languages, [15:29] where we've got some people trying to create new art for the game. [15:34] And some people are just there to test the game or do documentation. [15:39] DANNY: When we asked our community on Patreon why they voted for this game, [15:42] we received a broad range of answers. Some said it was the management. [15:45] Others talked about coaster design or park layout. For some, [15:50] it was a relaxing sandbox experience or just a shot of nostalgia. [15:54] But Ted told me that in recent surveys, they had noticed an influx [15:57] of younger players into RollerCoaster Tycoon, folks [16:00] who weren't even born when it came out. So I asked him, [16:04] why does he think people are still playing this game? [16:07] What makes RollerCoaster Tycoon such a hit? [16:10] TED: Well, I think a lot of people, they haven't played in a long time. [16:13] They played it when they were younger and they see the game again. [16:16] And they realize they can play it. But I think for a lot of other people, [16:20] it's a toy. It's like Lego and the, you know, you can't get old of it. [16:25] There's always different things, new things that you can think of building. [16:30] It's not too complex. It's very uniform. [16:35] You know, you're talking about isometric grid. Everything's tile [16:37] or block-based, a bit like Lego and Minecraft. You know, [16:41] it's easy to place things exactly where you want. [16:44] [EXPLOSION] [16:47] RollerCoaster Tycoon 1, it's all about the progression, you know, [16:51] playing each park gets bigger, and you research more new rides, [16:56] and you have to meet objectives. And then you can tick off those [17:00] objectives. You can complete the game. Whereas RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 [17:03] is your sandbox mode, where you create whatever you want. [17:07] One thing that stands out and you can get this from the game is that [17:11] Chris Sawyer is clearly obsessed with roller coasters and theme parks. [17:16] And he knows, he's read a lot about them. And that is in the game, [17:20] the detail, the different types of roller coasters, [17:26] the different pieces that make up a roller coaster. It's all in the game. [17:31] It's very technical, and you have to be very technical with how you [17:36] build them. You can't build anything you'd want, you have to stick to the rules. [17:39] You have to make sure that the [17:41] lateral G isn't too high, people don't get too sick. Also that they're [17:46] not too boring either. [17:48] And likewise, you can't have a theme park with just really scary rides. [17:51] You have to have a balance between everything, and the game is very good at [17:54] encouraging that. I don't think it's crazy that it was written in Assembly. [17:59] I think lots of games back then were written in Assembly. [18:01] Certainly lots of games written for game consoles were written in Assembly. [18:05] But it must've given it an edge in performance because [18:10] I think it's one of those games where you think it works on any computer. [18:14] When you think, yes, you got a part, you got 2000 individual [18:19] people do path finding logic. [18:22] You got all the roller coasters, and they've got all the animations. [18:27] There's a lot going on. In order to get the performance good [18:30] back then is the graphics are very simple. Palette based, 8 bit. [18:36] There weren't many mathematical calculations. [18:37] It's all very integer based and lots of table look ups. There was no, [18:43] you know, crazy floating point numbers going around. [18:45] It was all very simple physics. And I think that's what allowed the game [18:50] to have that high performance on any machine. [18:58] DANNY: After the release of RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, Sawyer, [19:02] for one reason or another, decided to focus on a new game, Locomotion, [19:06] a spiritual successor to Transport Tycoon. [19:09] By now, Chris had made his fortune with the series. [19:11] So while retaining the rights to the IP, [19:13] he handed control of the franchise over to publisher Atari. [19:17] They in turn hired Frontier Developments, who had done the Xbox port of the [19:20] original and both expansion packs of RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, [19:24] to create a sequel. Sawyer would do a small amount of consulting on the project. [19:30] The result was RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, [19:32] and it would be a significant technical leap for the franchise. [19:35] The first 3D version of the game with a free camera, [19:38] day and night cycles, and significant additions to customer behavior. [19:42] It would go on to sell more than 10 million copies and review well, [19:45] but like a lot of early 3D games, [19:47] many fans of the series failed to connect emotionally with RollerCoaster Tycoon 3. [19:53] The game was well-designed, but for many, much of the magic of those originals [19:57] was simply missing. [20:02] The original RollerCoaster Tycoon games had a beautiful simplicity to them. [20:06] At least the story around what those games are, right? [20:09] It was a Scottish developer who just loved roller coasters, and on his own, [20:13] he created these rich and deep and beautiful, artistic even, [20:18] games about designing roller coaster parks. [20:21] Those first two games play and look pretty similar and have a lot of nostalgia [20:25] with them. But after RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, stuff started to get a little bit messy, [20:30] a little bit more complicated. And not just in the games themselves, [20:34] but also the politics that surrounded them. [20:36] The relationship between Atari and Frontier soured in the years after [20:40] RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, resulting in a complex and largely private [20:44] set of legal battles over the rights and usage of the threequel's code [20:49] and intellectual property. Between this and Atari's general financial woes, [20:54] the franchise would disappear for the best part of a decade. [20:57] And it's here that you can start to feel sorry for serious fans. [21:00] RollerCoaster Tycoon did eventually return in 2012 with the confusingly [21:05] titled RollerCoaster Tycoon 3D, a 3DS exclusive [21:09] which used assets from RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, [21:12] but with a more classic isometric like perspective. [21:16] And this knife was twisted further by 2014's RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 Mobile, [21:23] a freemium phone game that was critically panned in part due to its aggressive [21:28] micro-transactions. Rather confusingly, RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 Mobile [21:32] was followed by RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 Mobile, a Frontier developed [21:38] mobile version of the game, which by and large was actually pretty decent, [21:42] though obviously not the RollerCoaster Tycoon game that [21:45] many fans of the series had been praying for. Okay, you still following along? [21:50] This is where it gets a bit more confusing. [21:52] 2016 saw the release of multiple RCT products and the return of Chris Sawyer, [21:57] though perhaps not in the exact way fans of the series [22:00] were praying for. RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic was a mobile release in the [22:05] style of the original games, created by Chris Sawyer and a team [22:09] that he'd worked on in an earlier mobile release for Transport Tycoon. [22:14] It was generally well received. [22:16] The second RCT game that year was RollerCoaster Tycoon World, [22:21] a new 3D entry that bounced from studio to studio and enjoyed a tumultuous [22:26] early access stint before it was officially launched [22:29] one day before Frontier's new roller coaster game, Planet Coaster. [22:34] Planet Coaster reviewed well, while RollerCoaster Tycoon World was about as bad [22:39] a nightmare fans of the series could have possibly imagined. [22:43] Buggy, unfinished and not very fun. It was critically panned. [22:47] A mobile port of Worlds quickly followed [22:50] under the title RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch, followed then by [22:54] RollerCoaster Tycoon Joyride, an on rails shooter for PlayStation VR, [23:00] and RollerCoaster Tycoon Story, a mobile matching game. [23:05] Oh, and I almost forgot to mention RollerCoaster Tycoon Adventures, [23:09] an equity crowdfunded port of RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch [23:12] for the Nintendo Switch, [23:13] which later came out on PC as an Epic Game Store exclusive, [23:17] which I guess makes that a PC port of a Switch port of a [23:22] mobile port of the worst RollerCoaster Tycoon game. [23:28] Beginning to feel sorry for RollerCoaster Tycoon fans. [23:31] From the fans'perspective, it does seem that under Atari's stewardship, [23:35] the RollerCoaster Tycoon franchise has become a bit of a cash cow. [23:40] But it hasn't been all bad news for fans of the genre, [23:43] as outside of the Tycoon franchise, [23:45] there are two games that have attempted to pick up the baton. Planet Coaster by [23:49] Frontier Developments is the spiritual successor to RollerCoaster Tycoon 3. [23:54] It was their return to the genre on PC, having attempted to do so on console [23:58] twice with Thrillville and Screamride. [24:01] Planet Coaster launched to critical acclaim in 2016, enjoyed frequent [24:05] content updates and DLC, [24:07] and is reported to have sold over two and a half million copies to date. [24:11] We successfully made contact with Frontier and attempted to get some [24:14] spokespeople on to talk to us, perhaps David Brabham [24:17] who worked on RCT3 and knows Chris, [24:19] or even some of the folks who worked on Planet Coaster. [24:22] But sadly, they stopped communicating at a certain stage. And honestly, [24:26] it's tough not to see why. The RollerCoaster Tycoon brand has [24:30] an element of chaos attached to it. [24:32] And in Planet Coaster, Frontier had managed to create a fresh start, [24:36] one that through significant work and support had generated its own passionate [24:40] community. Perhaps this is also why we failed to get Chris Sawyer on board. [24:44] In many ways, he's been hands-off with the IP over the past few years. [24:47] And with all those old lawsuits, [24:49] one could forgive him for being cautious over what he says and to whom. [24:54] His most recent interview was conducted by my old colleague in the UK [24:57] games press, Wesley Yin-Poole over at Eurogamer. [25:00] And even that was conducted via email through the company that represents him. [25:05] Not exactly a prime candidate for the type of off-the-cuff video interviews that [25:09] we like to do. So while Planet Coaster [25:12] may be the tycoon game of choice for many players and a worthy spiritual [25:15] successor to RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, [25:18] what about all those fans of Chris' original games? [25:23] Surely somebody out there can make a spiritual successor to those games. [25:27] Something cute and vaguely isometric. Maybe from a small team. [25:30] One guy who programs and loves roller coasters, and another who does all the art. [25:35] And maybe they answer their emails. I mean, I can dream, right? [25:44] SEBASTIAN MAYER: I grew up next to Europa Park, [25:47] which is one of the the largest theme parks in the world. [25:51] So I always was kind of interested in how a park like that operates [25:56] and all the technology that goes into the rides. [26:02] GARRET RANDELL: I took some pictures when I was out there with Sebastian, [26:05] and it was great to see like how these roller coasters work up close. [26:10] - My name's Sebastian, and I'm the lead programmer for Parkitect. [26:15] - My name's Garret. I am the, I guess art director and co-designer of Parkitect. [26:22] Parkitect is a theme park building game in the line of the classic theme park [26:26] building games such as Theme Park and RollerCoaster Tycoon, [26:30] with more of an emphasis on management specific to like decorations [26:37] and resources in a theme park. [26:39] There's still all of the building and customization, but we wanted to [26:43] get a little bit more into the behind the scenes of a theme park [26:46] when it comes to what people want to see and how the back end is managed. [26:50] To win the game, you're not just building the park of your dreams. [26:53] You're also having to manage the backstage and everything that goes on there. [26:57] SEBASTIAN: The focus is not just on the guests that visit the park, [27:00] but also on the employees that run the park. [27:04] So you have stuff like staff buildings and training rooms [27:08] that you have to build. It's kind of like a real theme park. [27:11] So guests don't enjoy seeing these parts of the park, so you have to [27:17] build decorations and stuff to hide them behind the scenes apart from your guests. [27:24] DANNY: Parkitect seems to have succeeded where so many [27:26] theme park games have failed in keeping things simple on the surface, [27:30] but adding depth where it matters. While Parkitect may boast a cute and [27:34] cartoonish aesthetic, [27:35] under the hood, there's a lot of simulation work going on here. [27:38] For instance, each visitor's line of sight is calculated, and so [27:42] their experience at the park is positively or negatively impacted [27:45] based on how much of the backstage park maintenance stuff they can see. [27:50] An innovative idea which actually incentivizes players to add flair [27:54] and scenery to their parks. [27:56] GARRET: A lot of game companies are very into the idea of innovation, [28:01] especially when it comes to market value and things like that. [28:05] And it's very hard to innovate this kind of game, [28:08] not only for technical reasons, but also just gameplay reasons. [28:12] Yeah, there's kind of been a renaissance in sim games, [28:15] and we kind of got really lucky that we kind of were at the beginning of that wave. [28:19] And it's been really interesting to see all of these different takes on [28:24] 100 different aspects of the genre. Like you've got town builders, [28:26] you've got theme park builders, you've got city builders. [28:29] There's some interesting ones out there, like that one where you build a town [28:32] on the back of a walking creature and like all these cool, innovative takes on it [28:36] that I think is just really cool and does push traffic across the genre [28:40] for people who want more of those experiences, I think. [28:43] DANNY: Do you think there's a difference between the way in which [28:46] people play a game like Parkitect and a game like Planet Coaster, right? [28:50] Because thematically they're very similar, [28:52] but in terms of the gameplay experience, they're worlds apart. [28:57] - What we hear from players very often this that they enjoy [29:04] both games for different reasons. [29:06] And that's really cool that two games that are kind of similar can co-exist. [29:11] So for Parkitect, people are looking for usually is the management part, [29:16] I would say. And for Planet Coaster, the options for building that you have [29:20] in that game are just amazing. And it looks really good too. [29:24] GARRET: Yeah, I've seen some truly amazing dioramas from Planet Coaster, [29:28] just in pure 3D space and realism. [29:31] I will say like it's community that drives these games, right? [29:34] For us community was like the number one thing. We always knew from the beginning [29:38] that we had to build a relationship with the community and kind of keep them, [29:43] keep them happy. And I'm not saying like we had to bribe them or anything, [29:46] but we just had to moderate it and also keep their expectations in check, [29:49] because we were very worried about this getting out of hand [29:52] because there hadn't been a theme park game in awhile. [29:54] So we have the devlog where Sebastian would painstakingly describe [29:58] a lot of the decisions we had made and a lot of the technical stuff [30:01] so people didn't get crazy expectations. 'Cause I think trust is important [30:06] in this kind of endeavor because we are trying to get them to buy [30:09] a product we made. [30:10] But above that, the community just also fuels the game far past [30:15] we ever could imagine too. When it comes to community content, [30:19] we wanted to make it cool for the community. And our mod support is important [30:22] to support after that kind of became a thing way earlier than we imagined. [30:26] And now we support like custom code to a point, using Unity, [30:30] but custom like assets and stuff like that, [30:33] where you can insert your own rides. Because we can't cover everything. [30:36] It would be impossible for us. And there was 1,001 things people want. [30:40] I think that's the number one most important thing in this entire genre, [30:44] in any simulation game, if it has a creative element to it is just community. [30:49] Of course that's true of most games, but especially for these kinds of games. [31:00] DANNY: That's the word that keeps coming to mind [31:02] when I think about RollerCoaster Tycoon. Since Chris Sawyer all but [31:05] stepped away from full-time game dev in 2004, the legacy of [31:09] the original vision has been shepherded by the kids who grew up playing them. [31:13] YouTubers who have introduced the game to countless new players, [31:16] hobbyists who ensured that old fans and new could continue to play this classic, [31:21] and new innovators who, spurred on by a similar indie spirit and love of [31:26] roller coasters, created their own vision for the genre. [31:28] So eventually we did actually hear back from the people who represent Chris, [31:33] and they reiterated what I had already come to understand from looking into this [31:37] story, that he's retired from games and is generally a pretty private person, [31:42] but that he's flattered that people still take such an interest in the games he created. [31:47] In interviews, Chris Sawyer has mentioned how much focus and work games development [31:51] took in his younger days and how even more demanding the world of games creation [31:56] has gotten since he left. [31:57] But there's one answer from 2016's Eurogamer interview that really stood out to me. [32:02] When asked how hands-off he's been with the series since 2002, Sawyer said, [32:07] "I think you have to understand that my personal vision for RollerCoaster Tycoon [32:11] was fulfilled with the last version I created myself, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, [32:17] and I had no interest in working on someone else's vision for future versions of the game. [32:22] Much better to let those who have inspiration fulfill their vision [32:25] of the next iteration of the game and not to interfere. [32:28] RollerCoaster Tycoon has moved on a long way since its early days as RCT1 and RCT2. [32:35] And while I'm intrigued to see how the newer games evolve and expand, [32:39] I'm not the right person to guide or restrict the design and development of [32:43] games so different to my own." [32:46] Perhaps radio silence is Chris's gift to this new generation of devs. [32:50] While many lament his lack of activity, he's also not stood in anyone's way. [32:54] When I started this episode, I wanted more than anything to talk to Chris, [32:57] to ask him why he made the game and what the series means to him. [33:01] But in trying to find the answers for myself, [33:03] I stumbled upon far more interesting stories. This video isn't about him. [33:07] It's a video for him. [33:09] A celebration of the legacy he left behind and a worldwide community of players [33:13] who are still gleefully creating roller coasters 20 years later. [33:17] SEBASTIAN: It's really cool how supportive the community for [33:21] these types of games is. I mean, if you look at RollerCoaster Tycoon, [33:25] game is like, 16 years old, 17 years old by this point. [33:30] And it still has an active community. [33:33] MARCEL: I like teaching people stuff or showing off cool stuff I made. [33:38] And it's just so satisfying to see people, you know, leave nice comments [33:43] and, you know, also just to watch those numbers go up. [33:47] I'm a big numbers guy. [33:48] - So that's what's probably most fascinating is that he's made effectively three games. [33:56] - Right. [33:56] TED: Transport Tycoon, RollerCoaster Tycoon, Chris Sawyer's Locomotion. [34:01] And all three of them have now got open source projects replicating it. [34:05] How many game studios, you know, could admit that? [34:09] - Yeah, it's amazing. Drop the mic and walk away, Chris Sawyer. [34:13] [LAUGHING] [34:24] [MUSIC PLAYING]