Planet Coaster. 32 best tycoon and economic video games in 2023

Planet Coaster is a worthy successor to the cult RollerCoaster Tycoon.

Frontier Developments Studio was founded in 1994 by an industry legend - David Braben. His latest work is F1 Manager 2023, but earlier the British team became famous in the world of tycoons with the RollerCoaster Tycoon series, about which you can read a little bit more in further sections of this ranking. Unfortunately, this brand, nowadays developed by a completely new developer, has significantly dropped in terms of quality, as can be seen in the low ratings of RollerCoaster Tycoon World. Fortunately, Frontier Developments stayed true to the genre, and in 2016 released a spiritual successor to RollerCoaster Tycoon series, titled Planet Coaster.

This is a classic - we assume the role of an amusement park manager, with a task to efficiently manage the entire business. The gameplay mainly focuses on the construction of the title roller coasters, while other attractions of the park, although important, play a clearly secondary role.

While you design a railway, you can freely decide on the number, length or slope of crazy turns, and even ride the roller coaster yourself in order to check it and implement other modifications. The financial aspect is obviously an important element of the game , and our duties include setting ticket prices and taking care of park visitors, each of whom has their own individual expectations and desires.

The game is only of few years old, and you can get it easily both in a digital and boxed version. In comparison with other tycoons from our list, Planet Coaster stands out with its favorable graphics, which may delight many players.

It is worth noting that this is not a complex economic tycoon for business sharks. Nevertheless, it was appreciated by both critics and the players themselves, giving the work of Frontier Developments 91% of positive reviews on Steam . Hail to the king, baby! Planet Coaster is a worthy successor to the cult RollerCoaster Tycoon series.

1. Official website of the game
2. The game's page on Steam

Port Royale

Port Royale takes us to the 16th and 17th century Caribbean, right into the golden age of piracy.

The now non-existent Ascaron Entertainment studio has earned its credit in the history of the tycoon genre not only due to the above-mentioned Patrician series. The developer is also responsible for an equally good and much more popular brand - Port Royale series, initiated in 2012, combining elements of Patrician and a pirate-flavored theme inspired by Sid meier's Pirates! Out of the first two installments of the series released in 2002-2004, slightly higher ratings (on our website) were given to the first part, so we have decided to select this one to our ranking.

The action of Port Royale takes place in the Caribbean during XVI and XVII century - during the pirate era. Historical background and real characters were skillfully wrapped into the gameplay. After selecting new game you can choose one of the four nations: Spain, France, England or the Netherlands - each with its own buildings, architecture and ships. Then we set out to conquer the seas and oceans, developing the path of our career in many possible ways. So, you can trade, invest in plantations or manufactories, fight with other nations and complete transport missions commissioned by government officials. Production of Ascaron Entertainment differs slightly from the typical tycoon pattern because, unlike Patrician, the game primarily focuses on combat and sea battles. During the battle we have the opportunity to command a maximum of ten fleets that consists of 10 ships each.

Despite a much more attractive design, Port Royale 3 did not match the level of its predecessors from years ago.

Although Port Royale 2 is still available in popular digital distribution platforms, the first part of the series can be found only in the offer of GOG.com. . Both games can still be played and provide a lot of fun even with old-fashioned visuals.

In 2012, Port Royale 3: Pirates & Merchants appeared, and the story of the Port Royale series ends with Port Royale 4 released in 2020 (also on consoles) which in turn was developed by Gaming Minds Studios. Unfortunately, like many other reanimated brands (like Caesar IV, Patrician IV or Pizza Connection 3 ) this production did not meet expectations, collecting quite low ratings from players.

1. Game's page on the GOG.com