Today's Gamescom conference has offered some fresh looks at upcoming Xbox One games such as Rise of the Tomb Raider (exclusive to Xbox One in 2015!), Quantum break, and Forza Horizon 2. Microsoft also announced a brand new title: ScreamRide for Xbox One and Xbox 360.
ScreamRide comes from Frontier Developments, the UK developer responsible for Kinectimals, Kinect Disneyland Adventures, and the Xbox One launch title Zoo Tycoon. Whereas Zoo Tycoon merged the developer's love for animals with a simulation element, ScreamRide is entirely focused on building a futuristic theme park. That should be right up their alley, considering Frontier has previously developed both the Roller Coaster Tycoon series and the Thrillville series for consoles. Keep reading for our impressions and the announcement trailer!
Fast and furious
ScreamRide looks like a spiritual successor to both Roller Coaster Tycoon and Thrillville. Players will build a theme park filled with gigantic rollercoasters. According to the trailer, "Your measure for success is screams." It sounds like at least one of the goals will be to scare the crap out of park visitors. We certainly see a lot of screaming people riding impossible rollercoasters. (Speaking of which, the cartoonish art style for the humans is pretty hideous.)
Unlike its predecessors, ScreamRide has a big focus on physics and destruction. Roller coasters can actually launch through the air and crash into structures. In real life, that would be a worst-case scenario. But the game description explains that "creativity and destruction are equally welcomed," which implies that players won't be punished for going off the rails and wrecking some buildings.
Microsoft and Frontier promise three unique game modes, although we don't know just what those will be yet. Players will be able to participate in more than 50 unique events, seemingly providing a mission-based structure to the simulation. One of those modes will probably be a free building mode free of goals though, just like in Zoo Tycoon.
Graphically, ScreamRide looks to display some impressive environmental destruction. Hopefully that will make up for the relatively simplistic geometry and less-than-beautiful park visitors. Knowing that Frontier has so much experience with theme park simulations, we can safely expect a large and engrossing simulation from ScreamRide.
ScreamRide is due out in Spring 2015 for Xbox One and Xbox 360. Fingers crossed the Xbox 360 version won't be gimped like Zoo Tycoon was!