Hello Everyone,

We are happy to announce Theme Park Studio fully supports Vive and Oculus, and with our unique physics-based ride simulator you can almost feel the motion in VR.

If you own TPS, and have a Vive or an Oculus kit, we hope you will join our VR beta testing group by clicking here. "VR Testing Signups" [www.instant.ly]

We also wanted to give you a progress report and let everyone know we are working hard, even through the weekends, to finish TPS and implement community requests.

We have started a thread which will itemize each bug fix, community request, improvement, and optimization as they are completed up to release. If you want to review our progress, feel free to follow this thread:
"Bug fixes, Community requests, Improvements, and Optimizations" [forum.themeparkstudio.com]
We will be updating it regularly.

So far, we have implemented Oculus and Vive support, Xbox controller support, Vive controller support, and by community request we added hot keys for quick teleporting to coasters and rides. We even added a ride reset that allows the player to jump right into the seat at anytime. So far, the Gyro Swing, Turbo Force, and wood coasters have received some great feedback, with our unique physics based flat ride solution producing an ultra real VR experience. We will also be posting some great new VR parks, and plan some great dark rides for our VR audiences.

With most of the VR work complete, we will be dividing our time between finishing TPS and polishing VR with our VR test group. We are nearing completion of TPS Gold edition and, after this final round of bug fixes/optimizations, we will add the Platinum features and ship the boxed edition.

In case you missed the previous announcement, here is a summary of what we have been working on the past few months.

Before we completed our final round of cleanup and bug fixes we had one more obligation to meet, VR support. As you may know, we had VR support up and running last year. Back then, Direct mode was not compatible with the graphics library we were using, so we wrote some custom shaders and worked with the best tools we had at the time. Since then, the new Oculus runtime has unfortunately made the entire graphics library completely incompatible. We do understand Oculus decision to drop this API support, and that it was simply due to progress. However, because of this change we were faced with either completely rebuilding our graphics pipeline or abandoning VR altogether. Neither option was good.

Then the Vive was released, and it was truly impressive. Now we had 2 very solid pieces of equipment in our hands. We knew TPS’s extensive customization features, our immersive environment, and Live Parks was a perfect match for VR. So, in order to fulfill our obligations we decided to buckle down, strap ourselves in, go face down for a few months, and completely rebuild a new graphics engine

The results have been fantastic. The engine has been ported, extensive optimizations have been added, and we even rebuilt the multi-threading which is far superior to previous build. We're now getting dramatically higher frame rates in our runtime player pushing the framerate into the area needed for VR.

Multiple requests for VR from the community, and strong support from hardware manufacturers, reinforces our belief that TPS and Live Parks are an excellent fit for VR and we're looking forward to the official release.

If you do not have a VR device but would like to join are expansive Live Parks testing group you can sign up here: http://www.instant.ly/s/s8LhR

We have had strong support from the community for Live Parks and appreciate all those that signed up. Live Parks testing is a lot of fun and includes socializing with other members of the community, competitive racing with leaderboard high scores, exclusive sneak peeks at new parks, and more. We hope you will join us

Since TPS was first announced, the theme park sim genre has grown considerably and there are many new players on the market. It is great to see the genre revive. Our future roadmap goals include expanding on what makes us unique, and separates us from other products, including extensive customization, custom materials, in game physics based animator, programmable particle effects, interactive rides, and of course Live Parks with each park looking completely unique through specialized custom scenery and animations. Here are renders of one of the Live Parks being built by a member of the community. You can follow the authors progress here www.disneyparksearchive.com and on his twitter handle @DPEarchive.






TPS has grown exponentially since our announcement. If you look back to original videos you see it has expanded way beyond our original design. Early Access gave us the opportunity to take it further than we originally planned, which has not only benefited our backers but also helped us to build a product with unprecedented customization options and, through Live Parks, a new immersive social theme park experience.

We appreciate all our backers support, patience, and contributions along this incredible journey. Thank You

Theme Park Studio Team

Hello Everyone,

We wanted to give you an update on TPS development. Before we complete our final round of cleanup and bug fixes we had one more obligation to meet, VR support.

We had VR support up and running last year. Unfortunately Direct mode was not compatible with the graphics library we were using, but we needed to meet our obligations so we wrote some custom shaders and worked with the best options we had at the time. Unfortunately since then Oculus changed their support requirements which made the entire SDK library we used incompatible. We understand Oculus decision to drop this SDK support, and that it was simply due to progress. However, because of this change we were faced with either completely rebuilding our graphics pipeline or abandoning VR altogether. Neither option was good.

Then the Vive was released, and it was truly impressive. The graphical quality and user experience was simply amazing. Now we had 2 very solid pieces of equipment. We knew TPS’ extensive customization features, our immersive environment, and Live Parks were a perfect match for VR. In order to fulfill our obligations we decided to buckle down, strap ourselves in, go face down for a few months, and completely rebuild a new graphics engine

The results have been fantastic. The engine has been ported, we have added extensive optimizations, and have rebuilt the multi-threading which is now far superior to the previous build. We're getting dramatically higher frame rates and we'll be upgrading our shadowing soon.

Since then, we've also been contacted by Razer and plan to support the OSVR platform as well. Multiple requests from the community and strong support from hardware manufacturers reinforces our belief that TPS and Live Parks are an excellent fit for VR and we're looking forward to the update release.

Currently we are looking for VR testers as well as Live Parks testers. If you have a Vive, Oculus, or an OSVR kit, we hope you will sign up for VR beta testing by clicking here: http://www.instant.ly/s/8yq8q

If you do not have a VR device but would like to join our expansive Live Parks testing group, you can sign up here: http://www.instant.ly/s/s8LhR

We have had strong support from the community for Live Parks and appreciate all those that signed up. Live Parks testing is a lot of fun and includes socializing with other members of the community, competitive go kart racing with leaderboards, new interactive rides, exclusive sneak peeks at new parks, and more. We hope you will join us.

After the VR build is released, we will do our final round of cleanup and bug fixes, add the Platinum features, and ship the boxed edition.

Since TPS was first announced, the theme park sim genre has grown considerably and there are many new players on the market. It is great to see the genre revive. Our future roadmap goals include expanding on what makes us unique, and separates us from other products, including extensive customization, custom materials, in game physics based animator, programmable particle effects, interactive rides, and of course Live Parks with each park looking completely unique through specialized custom scenery and animations. Here are renders of one of the Live Parks being built by a member of the community. You can follow the authors progress here www.disneyparksearchive.com and on his twitter handle @DPEarchive. In game screenshots with the new lighting/shadowing will be posted soon.







TPS has grown exponentially since our announcement. If you look back to original videos you see it has expanded way beyond our original design. Early Access gave us the opportunity to take it further than we originally planned, which has not only benefited our backers but also helped us to build a product with unprecedented customization options and a new immersive social theme park experience.

We appreciate all our backers support, patience, and contributions along this incredible journey.

Thank You

Theme Park Studio Team

Hello Everyone,

Live Park testing has been going great. We have most of the network issues resolved and we are looking forward to opening our gates.

The response from our Live Parks testing group has been amazing. There is definitely a unique feel when walking around virtual parks with other live guests. You can socialize, ride coasters together, race go karts for leaderboards status, and more. With Live Parks now officially 'Patent Pending' many people have commented that TPS has found its own unique niche.

We would like to send out a special thanks to Micechat for covering our new "Live Parks" feature. Here is a quote from the article after the author visited one of our Live Parks. "I really like where this is going, and I think there’s plenty of potential. Instead of just being another theme park tycoon game, this really allows Theme Park Studio to find its own footing in the virtual theme park world. Imagine virtual MiceChat meets with your friends online, playing games, in new and recreated theme parks from around the world. This type of feature has never been done in a theme park game before, and it shows lots of potential."
In case you missed it, you can check it out here:
http://micechat.com/119629-theme-park-studio-live-parks-wa

We have a new update coming soon, that not only features our new renderer and front menu, but also has multiple optimizations including lag free immediate placement of trees and objects.

For a limited time we're putting together a Live Parks focus group. If you are interested in helping us test the Live Parks Network, please join our testing group by signing up here:
http://www.instant.ly/s/s8LhR

We will be unveiling the first park soon and look forward to you joining us

Theme Park Studio Team

Hello Everyone


We are happy to announce the ride library should be released this weekend. Even though most of the rides were finished, we wanted to step back and devote some additional time for optimizations, cleanup, and polish. We also enhanced the lighting by introducing fast soft shadows. The new ride library looks great and we are very excited about the release

If you would like to jump in and see them in action, we will be testing a couple parks this weekend that host some of the rides. Which brings us to our special announcement.

We have some very exciting news to share!

Theme Park Studio is proud to announce 'Live Parks'. Theme Park Studio's focus has always been on customization. It is our unique specialty and niche. To continue our vision, we are happy to announce a very special update that will take advantage of all our unique customization tools. This update is not part of our feature list . We love what we do and enjoy interacting with our supporters. It is simply a free bonus we are experimenting with, based on our personal goals, excitement, and vision, since we share the same enthusiasm as our community. If there is enough support for the service, we look forward to keeping it going! It is a feature we are super exited about, as we feel it will provide park builders a unique channel to express their dreams of building and hosting their own custom theme parks!



It begins with Theme Park Studio's new front menu interface. The title now opens with an animated photo book. With the turn of every page, players can select the park they wish to visit. Players can select different categories for parks, including:
"Featured Parks" Highlighted top picks.
"Subscribed Parks" Parks you subscribe to on Steam Workshop
"Live Parks" Parks located hosted by our server.

Live parks are completely unique and operate like real theme parks. They have operating hours, host special events, and include multiplayer rides, games, and activities. They are networked with live guests, stats are tracked, and leaderboards maintained. The author of the park is granted their own leaderboards and achievements, unique to interactive rides they have created for their own park. Finally, they are granted exclusive access to our unique "PHC" panel (Park Host Controller), which allows them to manage live guests, events, and more!



As a case example, when a member of the community has completed their park, it is submitted for live hosting. Once ready, the park is uploaded and a launch date and time is scheduled for opening. Goals for leaderboard status and re-hosting include getting as many live guests as you can to visit your park, and receiving positive ratings from your guests. Leaderboards and achievements will also be setup for unique visitors and satisfactory ratings. Once the opening date arrives, the author is granted access to the 'Park Host Controller'. From there, the host can open his park, and manage it, using specific features in the PHC panel. The host also has access to a special birds eye viewport for visualizing the park scene.

For casual players that just want to experience some great parks and have fun, simply select the park from our new front menu and you will be automatically logged into a live world. After the park opens, you will be able to tour the park, ride coasters, get on the leaderboards through challenging interactive rides, and rate the park to provide the author feedback and leaderboard status

We are super excited about the incredible possibilities this new service provides. Some awesome parks are already under construction by the community, designed specifically for live hosting. Here are just a few screenshots. These parks include (in order of their release):

1: "Enchanted Woods". A beautiful park that will be available at launch. It features go kart racing, bumper cars, coasters, and multiple flat rides. The scenery is simply stunning and beautifully highlights our new lighting. Go karts are connected to a Steam leaderboard for best time. Bumper cars are also connected to a Steam leaderboard for most hits.


2: "Splash Battle". A fun and highly interactive park. In addition to coasters and flat rides, this park features a unique interactive ride on a pirate ship. Each player has their own water cannon used to hit targets and set off special effects. Points are collected with each successful hit, similar to Buzz Light Year or Toy Story ride, and it is connected to a Steam leaderboard to maintain all time high scores.


3: "Majestic Gardens" An innovative park with stunning scenery featuring a hedge maze, interactive gameplay, custom lighting, and a beautiful night time environment.


4: "Four Winds" A beautiful park featuring extensive use of the Scenery Builder. No custom scenery was used and all the decor was constructed using in-game build sets. The park will feature multiplayer activities. Some of the architectural structures contain inside passages perfect for exploring.


5:. "Disney World" A Disney World recreation with 2 versions spanning different decades. Players will be able to tour the park, ride the rides, etc. The author's renders are a work in progress and do not represent the final project. In particular the texturing is only in its very earliest stages and most objects just have placeholder materials and textures for now. It is his goal to be as accurate as possible whenever he can find historical supporting data.. You can follow the authors progress here www.disneyparksearchive.com and on his twitter handle @DPEarchive.






We look forward to seeing the amazing parks the community will design.

Minus a couple new trains coming in the final update, this release completes our committed feature list for the Gold edition. This will free up some time to improve TPS and start a final round of bug fixes and community requests. If you have a specific feature request you would like to submit, now is the time to share your ideas. We have started a thread for another round of community requests here: http://forum.themeparkstudio.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=o2ojnj984dldp9huvj9mmonno0&topic=2300.msg22863#msg22863

We will be doing some initial network testing this weekend. If you would like to join us we will announce the times on our forums. We are starting small, probably only around 50 to 100 concurrent uses, and will grow from there. Special thanks to all our backers who supported us during development.

Theme Park Studio Team

"Theme Park Studio....How many guests will visit your park?"

Hello Everyone


We hope you had a great Thanksgiving! This week we present the 3rd preview of our upcoming flat ride library. This preview includes:

Zamperla Backflash
Go Karts
Paratrooper
Zamperla Rotoshake
Intamin Giant Wheel
Vekoma Sky Flyer
Zamperla Turbo Force

We are looking forward to releasing the library soon, so stay tuned! Thank you for your continued support.

Theme Park Studio Steam