Career mode differences from Console Edition

[Pandora Pup]

I've played Planet Coaster console edition on Xbox and absolutely loved it.
I re-bought it on steam hoping it would be the same and with better performance.

But I noticed that the Career mode is missing some Tutorial levels, and voice-acted "campaign" NPCs that was on the console edition. Has this always been the case, or is it in the options somewhere?

It's not that big of a deal, but without it, the career mode will be missing some funny dialogue, explanation of the Park's situation, and an ending reveal. It just feels soulless.

[Fluffy Chops]

Yeah on PC the only voice acting and a small tutorial we have is the ghostbuster DLC career mode but, that career mode isn't suited for brand new players but you have said you have played it before so you might be able to beat it, as it does get hard later on in the chapter total. So if we just talk about the base game there are no tutorial no story or voice acting so the game just lets you focus on park it self and its set goals in peace.

I will have to admit that sure this is like one of the best theme park builder games ever but the lack of a training was a small problem but as i've already played RCT3 at least before this game came out, i had a understanding of how to play the game enough to not fully struggle a ton but building coasters were the most challenging to learn all by myself with it being more free built and not preset tracks well mostly as you still got preset loops as you most likely know already.


also i didn't know they was even a story on that platform, is it worth a check on youtube? as i don't want to play this game on console perfer PC then consoles with a lot of games.

[KickAir8P]

Goatlife pretty much answered your question, but to add: the last bugfix for Windows PC was Update 1.13.2 on November 28th 2019, the last feature release for Windows PC was 1.12.4 on June 19th 2019. First console release was in 2020, and Frontier never went back to add the console-specific improvements to the Windows version. Although in Windows PC the three "Beginner" Career scenarios are intended as semi-tutorial levels, the vast majority of early Windows players were RollerCoaster Tycoon (et al) veterans who already understood the general game mechanics -- for genuine newbies, education was considered more of a dynamic community effort than something to be accomplished with static (and further outdated with every update) tutorials.

That having been said, they also never went back to add console-specific limiters like the Oswald-Eugene Counter to the Windows PC version, so there should be at least one improvement to your gameplay experience.

[Pandora Pup]

Thank you for the comments. Yeah, I had gotten all achievements on the console edition. Missing out on the tutorials won't be a problem for me. It wasn't really a "story", but mostly just career dialogues from several NPCs during each mission and when you progress.

I really liked the voice-acted dialogues in the console edition. It consists of describing the mission and situation at the start of each scenario, funny exchanges between characters, and congratulations whenever you earn a star. Once in a while they will explain something about the park, such as how the guests and staff speak a made-up language. Oh, and there is one reveal at the end of the career. I won't spoil it here, but yeah, you can youtube if you want. It's actually kinda big reveal, which makes completing the final level satisfying.

Because I started with the console edition first, having these features gone makes the career mode feel so... incomplete. But I'm not dissing on the PC version either. Console some limitations too. On the Xbox One X, the performance really struggles above 2,300 guests. Plus the graphics are much better on PC.

Also, a few things I haven't found in the PC edition (please correct me if I'm wrong):
There is no grid placement or grid snap feature. This helps things with balance and symmetry.
You cannot bend stairs. In the console edition, you can bend them like paths and make spiral staircases.

[KickAir8P]

Originally posted by Curious Critter:

. . . Also, a few things I haven't found in the PC edition (please correct me if I'm wrong): There is no grid placement or grid snap feature. This helps things with balance and symmetry. You cannot bend stairs. In the console edition, you can bend them like paths and make spiral staircases . . .

You're wrong, yay! (Well, mostly wrong, sorry.)

Playing on Windows (I don't know about Mac or console) you'll find the path controls you're looking for in Paths Advanced Settings ( lower right > Paths button > tab on the far right of the path controls box, marked with a dots'n'lines graphic ), fourth checkbox down is "Curved Slopes", make sure it's checked. Also look at the first two, Flatten Terrain and Tunneling -- useful as they are, they can cause various issues when used near rides or existing paths, make sure they're both unchecked unless you need one right then.

Grids are a bit more difficult. There is no Park grid that can be accessed by the player. However, each Building has its own grid. If you consider a given building your park's centerline you can use that for balance and symmetry, gridded pieces will snap to the grid (which can be set to a Grid Size of 1 meter to 4 meters, and a Grid Height of 0.25 meters to 4 meters). Scenery Pieces will snap to gridded pieces if you have their Position Snap option checked.

Just remember that if you select some gridded pieces of a building that you're editing and split them off into a new building? You can never recombine them into a single building again. Freeform (non-gridded) pieces only form a "Scenery Group", which can be added to a Building (has gridded pieces in it, or gridded and freeform pieces).

Originally posted by Curious Critter:

. . . Oh, and there is one reveal at the end of the career. I won't spoil it here, but yeah, you can youtube if you want. It's actually kinda big reveal, which makes completing the final level satisfying . . .

I've been unable to find this -- do you mind linking to one of the youtube vids? I'll never play console, so I won't get this in situ.

[Pandora Pup]

Thanks for the help. I'm still getting used to the menus and setting on PC.
Yeah, I noticed there is a building grid too. On the Console Edition, the buildings and rides can snap to a Park's grid, and they have a ruler that spans out the X and Y axis so you can align placement. I'm not sure if that feature is here. Right now, I'm just eyeballing everything on PC.

I am also unable to find a video for the console edition of the last stage. Only PC edition.
I'll post it here if I find it.

edit: wow, there is really nothing about the console edition NPCs online. Not even on the wiki. Only a few youtube videos on the tutorial level. I guess I shouldn't make a big deal out of it.

[KickAir8P]

Originally posted by Curious Critter:

. . . On the Console Edition, the buildings and rides can snap to a Park's grid, and they have a ruler that spans out the X and Y axis so you can align placement. I'm not sure if that feature is here. Right now, I'm just eyeballing everything on PC . . .

Windows PC doesn't have that feature, it's why the "Use a Building Grid" suggestion is made to people looking for a Park grid. There's a bit of history here -- while Planet Coaster was being developed, there was much excitement over the possibility of gridless parks. After the initial release there was some dismay that gridless parks weren't optional, they were mandatory. So console players get a park grid? Makes sense.

Originally posted by Curious Critter:

. . . edit: wow, there is really nothing about the console edition NPCs online. Not even on the wiki. Only a few youtube videos on the tutorial level. I guess I shouldn't make a big deal out of it.

But I'm curious, what's the end reveal you enjoyed so much? I think at this point the spoiler's been sufficiently warned for.

[Pandora Pup]

Below is the Career Mode spoilers from the Console Edition.

The NPC name Oswald guides you through each career levels from the beginning. He is seen on the front of the Console Edition's cover art. Oswald mostly explains the park's situations, and provides some hints along the way. He will often praise you for completing parks. Towards the end, you will have to complete harder parks to impress the King Coaster. When you complete the game, by getting a gold star on the final King Coaster level, Oswald will reveal to you that he is King Coaster himself (the official mascot). He congratulates you and passes the title to you, the park builder.

In the console edition, these are just voiced dialogues during the gameplay. The game does a better job presenting it, I'm just summarizing it. It's nothing really big if you don't care about career mode, or if you've already beaten the game on PC. But since I played the Console Edition first, seeing this missing in the PC version make the career mode feel incomplete IMO.

[KickAir8P]

Originally posted by Curious Critter:

Below is the Career Mode spoilers from the Console Edition . . .

Thanks!