Rollercoaster Tycoon Could Be Coming To The Switch

Mmm...ok, vaguely intrigued. A possible wishlist contender .

Recent releases have been sketchy / mixed and there’s a chance it can be a mobile port.

If it uses a freemium model it can Foxtrot Oscar.

I wouldn't touch this with a 10 mile pole. This game is nothing more than a cash grab on PC and this just feels like Atari want easy money knowing it will be a shoddy port of a seriously flawed game. Avoid at all costs.

Original game on Switch? Sure. Shoddy "upressed" remake/port/whatever it is? No thanks.

Never understood the point in this game, true only played the original on PC, but you couldn't even ride the rollercoaster you created.

But will not be investing in this cash grab

Why would a company as big and profitable as Atari need to resort to crowdfunding? This just seems all kinds of sketchy.

I'd much sooner buy the original game on Steam for six bucks.

I'm sure this project will have plenty of high's and low's.

Give me a port of the first 2 games or I’m probably out. I’ll stick to Planet Coaster on my PC. Would love for that to come to the Switch although I know it’s unlikely.

Blegh.

But hey, someone tell the folks behind Planet Coaster about this, maybe it'll inspire them to show Atari how it's done!

It's from the guys who made the dreadful mobile game. Wouldn't be surprised they just tweak that enough to claim it isn't a port and call it a day.

So... iffy. Like the series.. well 1 and 2.

I’m an unapologetic Rollercoaster Tycoon purist. Either a port of the first two games or none at all for me.

Aw, look at Atari's pathetic excuse for a legacy. They've been piggybacking on that since the video game crash of '83. Their games are very much a product of their time and I would not consider anything by Atari to be a "classic".

They've gone the way of Kodak, another company that stubbornly refused to move forward.

I might consider grabbing Rollercoaster Tycoon (I've never played any of them before) on Switch, but we'll see whether it actually comes to the system first (and they can get stuffed if it's F2P or riddled with microtransactions).

@antster1983 : I feel exactly the same way about The Sims and The Sims 2 after EA's appalling treatment of the franchise over the years.

Booting The Sims 3 for the first time and being greeted by greyed out icons for items (i.e. "microtransactions") that can only be bought at brain-damagingly idiotic prices at The Sims 3 Store was enough to put me off entirely. My God, were the 20+ expansion packs not enough?!

If they ported part 2 (the perfect RCT), I’d buy it.

@sillygostly RCT3 wasn’t as good. Sure you could also build water parks and safari parks, but the game itself was just full of bugs and glitches.

@sillygostly I would agree, everything notable that Atari has done is so far in the past now that the company is almost completely irrelevant. Still, I would be interested in seeing rollercoaster tycoon on the Switch!

@Raylax This is, I think, 4th version of Atari? The original went bankrupt in 1983 when it was then sold by Warner Bros, as 2 separate companies - Atari Games and Atari Inc. Then Atari Inc was bought in 1996 and I think they went under but Atari Games became part of Infogrammes who then became the new Atari only to go bankrupt. So this is the new new new (new?) Atari.

It's Frontier that made Rollercoaster Tycoon 3. They also have a great port of this full PC game on iOS with surprisingly good working touch controls. If Frontier was in on this (Atari and Frontier "CO-own" the brand) I would be going crazy over this but now. No not really.

Frontier actually released the RCT 3 port after the terribly RCT4 freemium game by Atari had damaged the brand.

edit: Also all they mention in the video is how they "own" all these IP's, they haven't made any of them themselves

@Raylax The things is, when people talk about Atari nostalgia - they are talking about the original company from late 70s/start of the 80s.Atari really is just a name that people know, there's really no real sentimental value to them. Kinda like how MGM is in the film industry compared to their heyday.

I miss Theme Park.

I'd rather put my balls in a vice

Don’t care. The people that made it good are gone. Now if you said Planet Coaster was coming to Switch, then I’d be interested.
Atari can’t be trusted with your money, just look at how terrible the lasted game on PC is, now imagine them making a game for Switch. It will probably be a mobile clone, with micro transactions galore....

the Atari Linux based game system will be skipping its 2018 launch, there was problems with launching kickstarter to fund the prototype, looking like the Coleco Chameleon fiasco all over again.

Planet Coaster would be great on Switch.

As noted above the fine print here has all manner of sketch...so they want to hop on the Switch bandwagon, but not just that, remember the crowdfunded AtariBox got delayed? That was meant to be a thing too.

Interesting to see the Atari name effectively be used to scam cash for debt payments.

As it is just a port of RCT touch that is on mobiles, I'll pass.

there is a cool roller coaster game on Wii, just port that instead.

@Marios-love-child Careful! I might hold you to that...

@YummyHappyPills The crowd funding campaign was delayed, so nobody lost money on that. But you're right that people should be iffy on this. Atari should have at least prepared a working demo on Switch to prove that they're actually working on it before starting to ask for money.

Googled to see what the newer games in this franchise are like having not come across one since the late 1990s/early 2000s. Found this:

http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/rollercoaster-tycoon-world

Not a good look. And what on earth does $10,000 get you in this industry? Three billboards for two months on a road no one drives down?

This isn't Atari, this is a French holding company that was once known as Infogrames, which used to actively develop and publish software. These days, "Atari" mostly just licenses their intellectual properties out.

Atari Corporation, the name of owner of the console and computer business after Warner sold it off in 1984 to the Tramiel family, died in 1996 when a reverse merger happened with a disk drive company that wanted access to Atari's bank account.

After emptying it, they sold the name and Atari's IP to Hasbro Interactive in 1998 (Remember all the 3D remakes on the PS1 around that time like Pong and Missile Command? All were Hasbro titles).

Then the French company Infogrames bought Hasbro Interactive in the early 2000's, renaming it Atari Interactive. Eventually, Infogrames itself changed its name to Atari. Now when you hear of a company called Atari, it's usually in reference to a holding company called Atari SA.

@SwitchVogel The old one? Yes. The one they used as a clickbait tumbnail.

Whatever I saw in their video wasn't RollerCoaster Tycoon.

@BionicDodo I believe they also tried a freemium RCT once. Anyway, let's be honest, the only good RCT games were developed by Chris Sawyer, before Atari got the rights to the franchise.

Planet Coaster is a much better and preferred alternative.

@AlexOlney I agree, I initially was excited with that idea, but I realised it’s just the Microtransactions filled trash on mobile.

Even if they do take out the Microtransactions, the experience will still be affected like with Gears Club Unlimited, from their previous existence.

IF Atari need Crowdfunding for a game, Ill have no chance as a nobody to get crowdfunding to start my music career lol They should be loaded.....

Uh, Atari knows video games? They almost destroyed the industry in early '80s. Yes, they have many classic franchises, but it was their reckless decision-making that put them on the block not once, but twice.

This feels like a cash grab. They're crowdfunding their supposed new console too. I'll stick to RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 on my Mac.

Never really the biggest fan of Rollercoaster Tycoon... Zoo Tycoon on the other hand...

@masterLEON : Same here. The port on DS was such a nice surprise. With the new region specific attractions, I found it worthwhile to finally complete the game.

Theme Hospital was a real gem too. It's a shame that good simulation games are so hard to come by these days.

The third (and last) game in the "Theme" series that I played was Theme Park World. It's a real shame that the "Theme" and "Sim" franchises have virtually disappeared.

Crowdfunding of games is so much better.
It is a great way for companies to actually measure the real demand of the market instead of just taking a risky shot at something.
Basically asking the masses if they want a thing to exist or not, and then go from there.

@ferryb001 Frontier don’t co own the ip, Atari own it completely. That’s why Frontier made Planet Coaster.

@Atariboy It's not them either, they went bankrupt a few years back. The name was then bought by another group of people whom are the ones behind this. It is a very confusing situation with Atari.

@FX102A It specifically states on the crowdfunding page that it will be custom developed for the Switch. Though your concerns about their sketchy recent releases are valid. I loved the RCT franchise, but it just doesn't compare to planet coaster. Hope this turns out well though.

@sillygostly I didn't know there was a DS version, I gotta check it out! Incidentally, my nostalgia for Theme Park started with the Atari Jaguar version. It was one of the better games for the Jag, IMO. And you're right, there's not nearly enough good sims out there. What am I talking about though? There's a great one out now, in early access, Oxygen Not Included! It's by the company that made Don't Starve, Klei. It's about a space team that somehow got beamed into the center of a planetoid. You have to dig, build, research, build some more, and do science with your crew in order for them to survive. Check out some videos on YouTube, it's great!

@Hughesy Ah maybe Frontier only owns RCT3 then, let's hope they port over the iOS version with the expansions packs

Came in hoping this was a virtual console release or something. Not interested in a brand new game that only needs $10,000 worth of funding. What?!

I think I'd rather shave my legs with a rusty potato peeler. The new one isn't any good. I these were VC ports of the old games, I'd pay attention.
Now, Planet Coaster... that's a good game worth porting. It's kind of like what Cities Skylines is to SimCity.

Didn't Steve Jobs helped developed RCT at Atari?

Could Atari make a GOOD and NOT SCAM-WORTHY game first? Once that goes through, then I'll think about it

@roadrunner343 @Yorumi @BionicDodo

The page states:
"Irregular Use of Proceeds

We might incur Irregular Use of Proceeds that may include but are not limited to the following over $10,000: Vendor payments and salary made to one's self, a friend or relative; Any expense labeled "Administration Expenses" that is not strictly for administrative purposes; Any expense labeled "Travel and Entertainment"; Any expense that is for the purposes of inter-company debt or back payments."

In other words we can funnel this money into our bank accounts/relatives bank accounts if we so feel like it. Or maybe we'll use the money to take a nice Hawaii trip, it's a good time of year for it.......... Anybody funding this game I feel sorry for.

@Nintendoforlife Yeah, it's definitely not your normal kickstarter. I wouldn't fund it, for sure. You're not funding the game - you're investing in the company, more or less. Which I'd have to have an awful lot of faith in the company to invest in them. Though, my initial response was mainly just to point out that the page states it is to be a custom developed title, not a port of the mobile title.

So in able for this to happen they need money first, those other Roller Coaster Tycoon games didn't make nothing for them? Seriously Atari you're a big corporation, stop e-begging.

Still love RT3 dearly. If they ever make a game as good as that then I’ll be more than impressed.

Port what the people really want! ET

Spawn Wave covered this nicely, they will put the developers of the noble version in charge of this...

Roller Coaster Tycoon 3D for 3DS was awful. I'd rather have the original Theme Park on the Switch.

And here I thought that Donald Trump was good at scamming people out of their money. Turns out that Atari or what's left of that company is even worse. The fact that for $750 you don't even get a copy of that game but a barely noticeable discount is My Nintendo levels of pathetic.

RCT1 was a good start, RCT2 was amazing, but the rest really dropped the ball and weren't that great. I would be skeptical of any "new" RCT game they decide to make.

How about making a new RCT that's actually good instead of porting the original that looks like the blurry faces of the original Xenoblade Chronicles got thrown in a blender and puked out.

@QwertyQwerty They could make that selling a genuine exhumed copy of E.T on eBay. Folk there buy any old tat.

LOL Atari.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE really dude? Your just going to come in with these one line puns? LOL.

@Razer I'm sorry, is there a minimum height length requirement?

@SLIGEACH_EIRE no but there is a minimum entry fee at £250 😎

@progx Nah,I put the blame on retail stores ordering too much stock for crashing the industry.Anyway,this "Atari" is not the real Atari.

@gloom Might wanna check out Planet Coaster then. It was developed by the same team that developed RCT3 and is supposed to be really good.

@Jammy01 Zoo Tycoon died with Microsoft.

@FragRed No, Atari SA (i.e., Infogrames Entertainment) successfully exited bankruptcy.

@MIDP Yeah, but a campaign that asks for a $250 minimum donation, after which you still have to buy the game yourself if and when it eventually comes out? Like I said, all kinds of sketchy.

I would be interested, but who is their target with that 250 min donation? Certainly not regular gamers.

Donation? No way hose or you bring the game and earn money or just leave it at the grave Atari.

@RETRO_J I know, I'm sorry but I didn't want to edit it afterwards. It's one of those grammatical points I sometimes mess up on and I really shouldn't have here. Even as I typed it, I thought, "this is wrong". And as I typed that last line, I stuck quotes around the last bit as that is more accurate. And, sure we could nitpick a lot of things. I sometimes do.

@RETRO_J some also say life is like a box of chocolates.....well Gump did anyway 😉

Man I miss the old Atari!! What good simple times and games! Damn you Bushnell for selling to Warner Bros- you should’ve just taken a vacation instead like you said!! 😡😡

@sillygostly Atari didn’t refuse to move forward- they were sold to a company that had absolutely no clue how to run a technology company...that was the worst thing Bushnell ever did to atari was sell his baby to Warner

@FragRed actually only the home consumer division of atari was sold to Jack Tramiel which became Atari Corporation (atari ST, Jaguar, Lynx) while Warner Bros. Retained the coin op division which became Atari Games (Paperboy, Gauntlet etc) When they went back into the home game market they couldn’t use the name Atari so they created the name Tengen. Atari Games/Tengen was later sold to Namco. Atari Corp gave up after the Jaguar tanked and sold all to a disk manufacturer for $5 million dollars. The assets (basically Atari’s IP’s like Asteroids, Centipede, Tempest etc) we’re purchased by Hasbro and later on sold to Infogrammes who then started to publish games with the Atari name! Once a company who employed 10,000 people, Atari Is a very small company today with under 30 employees. Phew lol!

@Atariboy good job! Well said! 👍

@Nincompoop super breakout he helped create

@progx wasn’t Atari man - Warner Bros was the one making the reckless decisions for Atari including the E.T. deal handing Spielberg $25 million dollars and only giving Robinett 5 WEEKS to make the damn game to have it out by Christmas! If you haven’t seen it yet, please watch the documentary Atari: Game Over...it’s on Netflix. 👍

Atari is dead to me. Hopefully, Frontier Developments will bring PlanetCoaster to the Switch. Thát would be nice.

@Seanmyster6
Really?
"Seeing as this isn’t a KickStarter, the minimum donation amount is $250, but those who pay will get their money back plus a little extra, if all goes well"

I interpreted that as you would get your money back, assuming the game was part of it.

Ok, if it is the way you say it is then it is pretty sketchy yes.

I'll take planet coaster, roller coaster tycoon is dead like theme park before it

@masterLEON I'd go bananas for a Theme Park and Theme Hospital port. Could be just straight up not even a remaster

I really enjoyed RCT 1 and 2 (which in many ways are interchangeable according to my somewhat fuzzy memory ^^). RCT 3 was okay as well, I guess, but honestly, the Switch away from the isometric view and 2D visuals was not for me. Everything just looked ugly to me. Considering that this was the point Atari took control of RCT, I'm not quite sure I even want them to make a RCT game for the Switch.

A port of RCT1/2 to the Switch would be something I could get behind. Anything else though, I'll have to pass. I'm not THAT into the series, and I still have RCT1/2 on GoG anyways.

Still, I gotta say, this funding concept is ... interesting. I'm not sure what to think of it. Maybe I'll take a close look out of sheer curiosity.