Planet Coaster

What to Know

Critics Recommend

Average Score

Total Reviews: 46

Play It

An exemplary amusement park management sim that keeps things fun, fast, and endlessly entertaining.

Play It

Critics Recommend

Critic Reviews: 46

Critics Consensus

# Reviews: 46

An exemplary amusement park management sim that keeps things fun, fast, and endlessly entertaining.

Where to Play

** VSG may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.

Critic Reviews for Planet Coaster

Reviews

High Score - 100/100

Low Score - 70/100

Silver TIER

% of scored reviews fell within the range of 86 to 92 / 100

Matt Wales (Eurogamer)

Recommended

“Despite lackluster management options, Frontier creates one of the finest park construction simulators yet.”

Read full review

Luke Plunkett (Kotaku)

Recommended

“Planet Coaster is best when treated as a giant LEGO set. A sunny, cheery tabula rasa, lying there waiting for you to go nuts in a never-ending quest to make yourself as happy as the grinning faces of the people lining up to take your rides for a spin.”

Read full review

Jonathan Leack (Game Revolution)

4.5/5 stars

“Planet Coaster isn’t just a wonderful game, it’s an important one. It’s effectively resurrected a dead genre, providing an act to follow that is as inspiring as it is fun to play. At a reasonable price point, it’s a great pick-up for anyone who enjoys the process of creation and management.”

Read full review

**Read all 46 critic reviews on the desktop version of VSG.

Read the Reviews (46 total)

Outlet	Author	Score	Date	Quote	Read
Ars Technica	Sam White	Recommended	11-24-2016	Despite the weak career mode, the depth of Planet Coaster’s tools and the strength of its community make it a thoroughly engrossing experience. Old-school PC gamers can rest easy: this is the theme park game you’ve been waiting for.	Read review
BaziCenter	آیت سلطانی	7 / 10	11-25-2016	Offering an incredible amount of freedom in creating your own world, Planet Coaster is simply the best theme-park simulator game available.	Read review
CGMagazine	Jake Yanik	8.5 / 10	02-06-2017	It’s not a perfect game, but in its own little way, it sort of is, and I’d expect no less from the team that brought us RCT2 and 3	Read review
COGconnected	Thi Chao	85 / 100	11-30-2016	The real treat to this game is it’s challenge mode, in which players will have to manage their guests happiness, customization, construction and employees all the while trying to stay within your budget.	Read review
Cubed3	Sandy Wilson	9 / 10	12-24-2016	Without a doubt, Planet Coaster is the definitive theme park simulator. The customisability is key; it’s so in-depth and detailed that hours can be spent just crafting the scenery! With intuitive controls and expansive modes, the potential for time sinking is huge for both old-time fans of the genre and those who are willing to venture into this new territory. Polished visuals, as superb soundtrack, and immaculate systems in place, are just the icing on the top. Frontier has excelled itself in almost every way possible, making this not just an easy game to heartily recommend, but one that demands your attention.	Read review
Destructoid	Patrick Hancock	7.5 / 10	12-21-2016	For better or for worse, there just isn’t a lot of depth in Planet Coaster. There are a ton of options, however. The process of coming up with coaster ideas and seeing them executed is wonderful, even if the building process is a bit janky. There’s not much to challenge the player after they build a self-sustaining park, so this is definitely an experience for those who can challenge themselves to always think and dream bigger.	Read review
Digitally Downloaded	Jim S	5 / 5 stars	12-23-2016	Planet Coaster is everything I could want in a simulation game of this type. Good management tools, good building tools, and most of all, it is extremely fun to play. It’s the best amusement park simulation we’ve seen yet, and any complaints that you might have with the variety of rides that it offers are mitigated brilliantly by the use of Steam Workshop to allow the community to broaden the experience. In this way Planet Coaster feels both nostalgic and yet eminently modern.	Read review
Eurogamer	Matt Wales	Recommended	11-21-2016	Despite lacklustre management options, Frontier creates one of the finest park construction simulators yet.	Read review
Everyeye.it	Angelo De Martini	8.5 / 10	12-11-2016	Planet Coaster is a hymn to creativity. It is a simulative drug, with the flavor of the old Roller Coaster Tycoon and the beauty of a modern game engine. It’s intuitive, satisfying, and allows the player to make very distinctive and unique parks.	Read review
Game Informer	Ben Reeves	8.3 / 10	11-22-2016	This is as close as you can get to visiting an actual theme park without leaving your home	Read review
Game Rant	John Jacques	4 / 5 stars	11-27-2016	Frontier Developments has produced a fine theme park simulator with Planet Coaster, a polished title which keeps things fun, fast, and consistently entertaining.	Read review
Game Revolution	Jonathan Leack	4.5 / 5 stars	11-17-2016	Planet Coaster isn’t just a wonderful game, it’s an important one. It’s effectively resurrected a dead genre, providing an act to follow that is as inspiring as it is fun to play. At a reasonable price point, it’s a great pick-up for anyone who enjoys the process of creation and management.	Read review
GameGrin	Tyler Spectre	9 / 10	12-01-2016	Planet Coaster isn’t innovative. It doesn’t change up the gameplay from Roller Coaster Tycoon, and it definitely doesn’t shy away from sticking close to its roots. What it is, is a modern take on the theme park management genre, and a spectacular one at that. Planet Coaster feels like RCT, even if it isn’t. Frontier has delivered an incredible followup to their past games. Unfortunately, it’s a little light on content at the moment. Despite this, I’m confident in saying that Planet Coaster has a great core game, and even though it doesn’t have as much in it as it should, it’s the best theme park game out there.	Read review
Gameplanet	Toby Berger	9 / 10	11-18-2016	Planet Coaster is a celebration of everything Frontier Developments did well back in the Rollercoaster Tycoon days, with new mechanics and systems piled on top. Its variety of customisable buildings, scenery, objects, coasters, and rides make for an incredibly special game.	Read review
Gamerheadquarters	Jason Stettner	8.6 / 10	11-21-2016	Planet Coaster is a beautiful and special experience allowing players the ability to create an amusement park however they’d like.	Read review
GameSkinny	Autumn Fish	10 / 10	11-19-2016	Revolutionary creative sandbox tools make Planet Coaster the best theme park simulation game ever to hit PC. And when we say ever, we mean it.	Read review
GameSpew	Jack Bampfield	8 / 10	11-25-2016	Planet Coaster gives you such an incredible degree of freedom in creating what you want that any obstacles just become part of that meticulous process of building the perfect park.	Read review
GameSpot	Edmond Tran	9 / 10	12-05-2016	Planet Coaster is an exemplary amusement park management simulation with fantastic construction tools and a wealth of high-quality user-created content.	Read review
GameWatcher	Christian Vaz	9 / 10	11-17-2016	As someone who started playing Planet Coaster without any real expectations, I can safely say that the game is well worth your time if you are the least bit interested in a game reminiscent of the classic Rollercoaster Tycoon games. Frontier have created one of the best games in the genre, and judging by their support of Elite Dangerous post-launch, it seems that there’s still more to come from the developers.	Read review
Gaming Nexus	Michelle Morris	9 / 10	01-04-2017	Planet Coaster is well at the top of the list for roller coaster games. It is easy to get lost in for hours on end and lets you explore the depths of your imagination with nearly limitless creation and design.	Read review
GamingTrend	Ron Burke	90 / 100	11-26-2016	There are very few games that consume me like this. Frontier has made a game where obsession over every detail is somehow fun. While there are a few elements that need improvement, such as the staff management and some much-needed heat maps or location services, Planet Coaster delivers in terms of rollercoaster customization and sandbox flexibility. Let inspiration be your guide and check out this incredible thrill ride.	Read review
Hardcore Gamer	Kyle LeClair	4 / 5 stars	11-28-2016	Planet Coaster clearly has aspirations of expanding itself through a larger base of players, embracing user-created content to the fullest and allowing players to show off their various parks to each other.	Read review
IGN	T.J. Hafer	8.5 / 10	11-23-2016	While it may not be an amazing capitalism simulator, Planet Coaster is a fantastic theme park-building sandbox that rarely ever took an idea I had and told me, “No, you can’t do that.”	Read review
IGN Italy	Tommaso Campion	8.5 / 10	11-20-2016	Creative, intuitive and long lasting: Planet Coaster is the best park-builder on the market.	Read review
Impulsegamer	Chris O’Connor	3.9 / 5 stars	11-30-2016	The safest way to experience an amusement park… and to make the scariest ride you can subject other people to.	Read review
Kinglink Reviews	Unknown	3.5 / 5 stars	08-03-2018	An excellent roller coaster builders. Build theme parks or amusement parks, share your creations online, explore other’s and have fun. However, the career mode is brought down by micromanagement.	Read review
Kotaku	Luke Plunkett	Recommended	11-21-2016	Planet Coaster is best when treated as a giant LEGO set. A sunny, cheery tabula rasa, lying there waiting for you to go nuts in a never-ending quest to make yourself as happy as the grinning faces of the people lining up to take your rides for a spin.	Read review
LevelUp	Guillermo Navarrete	8.5 / 10	11-25-2016	Although Planet Coaster belongs to a niche genre, it is a well-crafted product that we hope will keep being polished. Despite imperfections that certainly affect the experience, its achievements and potential are worthy of admiration and it is a game worth playing.	Read review
Metro GameCentral	GameCentral	8 / 10	11-22-2016	The best theme park sim of the modern era, even if a few underdeveloped elements mean it’s not quite the ultimate roller coaster ride yet.	Read review
PC Gamer	Jody Macgregor	75 / 100	11-21-2016	Better than RollerCoaster Tycoon World, but doesn’t do much to innovate on the formula.	Read review
PC Invasion	Paul Younger	8 / 10	11-21-2016	A cracking sim for coaster fans that embraces creativity and a passion for theme parks.	Read review
PCGamesN	Robert Zak	8 / 10	11-16-2016	Planet Coaster isn’t Rollercoaster Tycoon, nor is it Theme Park. This may put off those looking for a simpler, more nostalgic take on the genre, but it’s nonetheless the most creative, technically intricate theme park sim to date.	Read review
PCWorld	Hayden Dingman	4.5 / 5 stars	11-22-2016	Planet Coaster is one of the most player-centric builder games ever made, setting you loose with its tools to create the theme park of your dreams. And then some.	Read review
Press Start	Mehdi Zadnane	8 / 10	11-21-2016	Planet Coaster isn’t perfect yet, but what’s there is just incredibly fun. There’s a lot of learning to do along the way, but with all of the customization and freedom, Frontier Developments has delivered one of the best possible successors to the Rollercoaster Tycoon franchise.	Read review
pressakey.com	Tim Bissinger	Recommended	11-27-2016	Planet Coaster ist ein wahnsinnig starker Editor für großartige Achterbahnen, dem es aber noch etwas an anderen Attraktionen, Feintuning und Herausforderung mangelt.	Read review
Rock, Paper, Shotgun	Fraser Brown	Recommended	11-17-2016	Like Cities: Skylines, Planet Coaster gives new life to the management genre, and even if the launch version does little to improve what I’ve played during the beta, this would still be essential for anyone who dreams of packing in their old job and running a theme park.	Read review
Saving Content	Harry Harrison	5 / 5 stars	12-13-2016	Planet Coaster captures that real-life theme park feeling, bakes it into one hell of a delicious cake and oﬀers you, and a growing community, a slice with a smile and a balloon.	Read review
SpazioGames	Daniele Spelta	8 / 10	11-17-2016	Planet Coaster manages to be a worthy heir of RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, with a powerful rollercoaster editor and thanks to its beautiful graphics. Least successful is the management part.	Read review
Stevivor	Andrew Harrison	8 / 10	11-18-2016	Frontier has done a wonderful job of maintaining the excitement, visual appeal and overall happiness of both a theme park and a theme park builder. If you’re at all interested in the genre, then Planet Coaster is a game you should be picking up today.	Read review
TechRaptor	Robert N. Adams	8.5 / 10	11-28-2016	While Planet Coaster has some flaws with management and automation, it is nonetheless an excellent theme park simulator that adds many new tools for the aspiring rollercoaster tycoon.	Read review
The Digital Fix	Edd Harwood	9 / 10	12-28-2016	With its incredible level of customisation Planet Coaster is the pinnacle of theme park management games, however be warned that this depth comes with a vicious learning curve.	Read review
TheSixthAxis	Dave Irwin	8 / 10	11-29-2016	Planet Coaster feels like a step into more modern times for the genre. There are bugbears when it comes to the camera and the subsequent patience required to build your perfect theme park, but should one have the stamina to intricately design features for their park, the possibilities are nigh on endless. Managing can feel simplistic at times, but for those who want to have the amusement park of their dreams, even if they use mods from Steam Workshop to supplement their masterpiece, Planet Coaster has it in spades.	Read review
Twinfinite	Yamilia Avendano	4.5 / 5 stars	11-17-2016	Planet Coaster truly is the spiritual successor to the king of tycoon games. You’ll have as much of a blast playing it as your park attendees will (hopefully) have riding your rides.	Read review
Wccftech	Emma Matthews	9.5 / 10	11-25-2016	It’s an understatement to say that Frontier Developments have outdone themselves with Planet Coaster. With its beautiful cartoon-style, incredible levels of customization and a small selection of fun modes to choose from, Planet Coaster has set a new standard for the genre. Nonetheless, it’s still early days and with the foundations of the game being so solid, it’s likely that we’ll see the developer continue expanding the game so that it can reach its full potential. I thoroughly enjoyed playing Planet Coaster and can’t wait to get back to my parks. Despite its long-awaited release, Planet Coaster does not disappoint and is well worth at least a few hours of your time.	Read review

** Learn more about how to become a MetaMeter-approved Critic.

About Planet Coaster

Game Description / Storyline:

Planet Coaster is a construction and management simulation video game. Similar to its spiritual predecessor, the game allows players to build different theme park rides and roller-coasters. These player-created attractions can be shared through a mechanic called “global village”.

RELEASE DATES:

DEVELOPER(S):

PUBLISHER(S):

GENRES:

SERIES/FRANCHISE:

GAME MODES:

GAME ENGINE:

DLC:

BUNDLED IN:

DIRECTOR(S):

PRODUCER(S):

DESIGNER(S):

PROGRAMMER(S):

ARTIST(S):

WRITER(S):

COMPOSER(S):

LINKS:

ESRB RATING:

Detailed Information

GAME MODES:

GAME ENGINE:

DLC:

BUNDLED IN:

DIRECTOR(S):

PRODUCER(S):

DESIGNER(S):

PROGRAMMER(S):

ARTIST(S):

WRITER(S):

COMPOSER(S):

Developed by Frontier Developments. All titles, content, brand names, trademarks, logos, artwork, and associated imagery are trademarks and/or copyright material of their respective owners. © All rights reserved.