Realistic zoos

[iluvpenguins]

I love creating habitats for animals and watching them. But I have a difficult time making my zoos actually look realistic. I don't know where to put buildings, or how to make them look normal. I also feel like my layouts never look right or look unrealistic. I see loads of peoples zoos who have realistic looks to them. But mine never measure up. How do I get better at that

[Nisrii]

Try to rebuild actual zoo buildings by using pictures for reference. Also you can try to use real zoo layouts. Your building skills will rise efficiently. :)

[jillquick2002]

Do you have any zoo's on the workshop? If so, post a link and we can download it and check it out, therefore try and help you with your wishes.

[grampers62]

Sorry for the long comment but....

Try not to compare your zoos with screenshots in the workshop. After all, we are our worst critic. What you think isn't good might be magic to another player. And note that many things you see are done by players with tons and tons of experience. They to started by fumbling about and trying different things till they found something that works for them.

That being said, try downloading some of the things in the workshop you think look really natural and see how they were put together. Or simply try to recreate a scene you saw in a screenshot. Or better yet, look for pictures of places you like and try to recreate those in Planet Zoo.
The more realistic things tend to have more details and little things that are not apparent at first but show up more as we develop our creating skills. So think about how plants will dress up and add life to an area. Think about what sorts of little things would fit within an area. Avoid really bright colors, let colors be a bit more gray. That gives a sense of distance or atmosphere. Keep colors limited so that the important things pop and other things blend together. Avoid using the standard barriers. Instead make your own fencing and use the null barrier to create habitats.
It often helps when we create a little back story for our zoo. It need not be too detailed, Just enough for the who, where, when and why part. As we create the zoo we think about how what we are doing fits in the story. It really does help to make one's zoo be more complete and in a neat cohesive look.
So don't fret over how your zoos compare, just take in what you've done and expand on your thoughts.

[Varick]

And, if you are having a problem achieving what you want due to the game mechanics, let us know as I am sure there are many people who would be glad to help. :)

[Andrasta]

Do what you love. And you can use workshop blueprints for buildings.

[CoolCapybara13]

Good, but also unfortunate, I'm not the only one with this problem lol

[iluvpenguins]

Originally posted by jillquick2002:

Do you have any zoo's on the workshop? If so, post a link and we can download it and check it out, therefore try and help you with your wishes.

I have never completed a zoo before, I always have given up and tried again

[Anthracite]

Planning beforehand is a major part of realism. Ok so you want rhinos in your zoo? How will you get the rhinos through the park gate and into the habitat? Where will the delivery truck send their supplies? What other habitats will you have around them and how will your keepers look after these animals within a reasonable walking distance (while theoretically pushing a wheelbarrow of hay, or buckets of poop)? Will you have one keeper hub for every habitat or split them into sections? How will you block off guest areas from staff areas? What architectural theming will your baseline be and will you do any other sorts of theming (African, Chinese etc.)? Where is your zoo located and how will that affect the animals you keep and how you keep them (in terms of temperature requirements, animal availability etc)? What is the in-lore budget for this zoo?

Figuring all that out first, although it's a lot, will lead to a more realistic zoo, because you're having to think of all the practical things real zoos do. Obviously you also have to factor in PZ's... quirks, but that's all part of the fun.