Union

At the intersect between education and technology

Planet Zoo Offers An Insight Into The Ugly Truth Of Wildlife Conservation

What seems like a fun game for fans of SimCity and other similar simulation games like Zoo Tycoon is actually more realistic than given credit for. The game is a lesson in ethics and animal conservation efforts, without the extreme stances often taken by animal activists (here’s to looking at you, Peta). The game runs as any simulation is expected to, you’re head of design, management, and care of the entire business – yes, in case anyone is still wondering, zoos are first and foremost a business, much like any other business on the market, whether you are in the fashion industry, or a digital marketing leader like Webshack Agency Dubai. Businesses offer certain services in exchange for monetary gains. Zoos offer you a chance to look at wild animals in captivity, and in exchange, you buy merchandise and adopt the animals to keep the business going.

The animations are so realistic, and it should be, seeing as how the animators who did the monkeys spent an entire year perfecting how the monkeys move, act, and look. When you buy and play this game, it’s not just a semi-realistic simulation, it’s so real that animal welfare groups will actually knock on you and demand that you treat the lemurs with more respect. It’s insane the level of thought and precision that’s put into this one game but it’s all worth it because you can actually see animals up close in their natural habitats, reacting as they would if they were in a real zoo.

There are plenty of things to keep you on edge as the game starts. You will have to deal with problems with animal enrichment – are they getting enough activities, are they happy? Down to the problem with overcrowding. How do you stop your wolves from interbreeding? The game sharpens your problem solving skills and actually prepares you for real life and real situations. While you might never be faced with the question of what you should do with a sickly bear, it does brush up on your critical thinking abilities along with other management aspects such as unhappy employees, how to maximize profits and keep the animal activists happy all in one fell swoop.

A ten out of ten execution and gameplay. It’s an amazing educational game that everyone who is interested in patronizing a zoo should play. You should know where all those animals come from, how they are treated, and the amount of work that goes into animal conservation. While not all zoos are bad, we can’t deny from this game experience and real life that they are all commercial entities. If you’re more interested in visiting an animal conservatory that actually focuses on helping animals, find one that’s animal oriented instead of human oriented. Interacting with animals is usually a warning sign that they are just out for your money, but that’s a story for another day. The verdict? Planet Zoo should be on everyone’s list.