21 Games Like Roller Coaster Tycoon
Our collection of games like Roller Coaster Tycoon (RCT) offers other tycoon and business management challenges for fans of this subgenre.
While the original Roller Coaster Tycoon title (and future games) weren't the first to offer a blend of business management and amusement park construction together the games are often credited as being one of the innovators in the genre by achieving a fine balance between creation and management. This attractive balance has also seen the RCT franchise be one of the most successful in the genre with several titles and expansion packs expanding on the original vision.
Roller Coaster Tycoon has mainly featured the same core gameplay throughout the series with changes mostly focusing on new challenges, rides, graphics and additional side content. In each game of the RCT series players must tackle a number of scenarios that all involve the creation and maintenance of an amusement park with various objectives from monetary goals or appeasing guests with the likes of park ratings. By designing rides, setting prices, hiring staff and shaping the landscape players have all the tools to achieve these objectives.
The games like Roller Coaster Tycoon found here offer a similar blend of construction and management to that of the RCT series allowing you to manage the finances or build impressive structures based on your preference.
My Sunny Resort
Create your dream resort complete with sun, sand and palm trees in My Sunny Resort, a browser based management game from the Upjers team who are well known for their browser based experiences with a host of titles across genres and settings. My Sunny Resort is also available on Windows, Linux through Upjers Home or through Steam (Windows only). Taking the popular and successful formula from their other management games such as My Fantastic Park and My Free Zoo Upjers has changed up the setting w...[Read Review]
My Free Zoo
My Free Zoo has a similar feel to Upjers other popular tycoon management game My Fantastic Park with your ultimate goal to attract guests for profit to reinvest in your attractions. Focused on animals this free to play game is available across computer and mobile platforms providing a wealth of content that will take hours and hours to create the ultimate zoo. In My Free Zoo players will be approached by the director Welmington as he begs you to help save the zoo from financial disaster. The zoo...[Read Review]
Zoo 2: Animal Park
Build out a fantastic and visually impressive zoo with Upjers Zoo 2: Animal Park with the help of your granddad by your side. Building on the formula used in My Free Zoo Upjers has revived its zoo tycoon inspired franchise with a sequel that greatly expands the visual design of the game while also offering a larger range of animals. Like any good tycoon franchise you’ll be building from the ground up as you meet with your granddad to restore the basic zoo infrastructure already in place. W...[Read Review]
Rail Nation
Rail Nation is a free to play transportation MMO that puts you at the head of your own rail empire. The game comes from Travian Games who publish other popular games such as Travian and Miramagia so you know that you are in good hands. At the heart of the game you’ll find a strategy experience that offers more depth than you might expect. You’ll focus on growing your own railway company from zero to industry leader with plenty of opportunity to achieve this by yourself or team up with a group of...[Read Review]
Evil Genius
Evil Genius mixes simulation, management and real time strategy putting players in charge of their own evil villain lair as they attempt to complete their plans for world domination one country at a time. Originally launched in 2004 Evil Genius still has a strong cult like following of fans with comparison to the popular Dungeon Keeper series of games which launched several years earlier. With age does come some limitations however with graphics and general polish quickly falling behind other mo...[Read Review]
Prison Architect
Maximum security prisons aren’t a common theme for a video game but one that Prison Architect explores in detail with its takes on the management simulation genre as players control a private construction business. With a campaign of several levels that also serve as your tutorial players the majority of gameplay takes place in sandbox setting of prison management. Prison Architect takes place in a top-down 2D environment and clearly draws from a number of classics in the tycoon genre with...[Read Review]
Zoo Tycoon 2
Zoo Tycoon 2 builds on the gameplay of the original game and offers a solid tycoon experience that will have players creating animal exhibits, maintaining the park finances, keeping the guests happy and everything else that comes with running your own zoo. The game was published by Microsoft Game Studios and released in late 2005 (with 4 expansion packs released in future years). Zoo Tycoon 2 is also available on Nintendo DS (note that this review only covers the PC and Mac versions). Gameplay i...[Read Review]
Big Pharma
Ever thought you’d be great at running your own giant pharmaceutical company? Chances are you haven’t but Big Pharma lets you live out this life anyway with a unique setting that combines the likes of puzzles, business management and tycoon games with a sprinkling of ethics. Throwing half a dozen different scenarios at you with over 30 challenges within them Big Pharma is about taking your company from its current position to riches while curing the planet along the way. Scenarios ra...[Read Review]
Wildlife Park 2
Wildlife Park 2 is the second game in the popular business simulation game series and has a number of similarities to the Zoo Tycoon series although flips the script slightly towards a large park with your own selection of rare and unique animals. Originally released in 2006 Wildlife Park 2 was later expanded with four expansion packs (Crazy Zoo, Marine World, Fantasy and Dino World) that expanded on the number of animals and attractions while going even beyond the real world. Like similar video...[Read Review]
The Movies
Imagine being the director of your very own movie set? That’s the vision that The Movies intends to deliver on with a unique and enjoyable mix of life simulation and tycoon business management. From creating the movie set, writing the script and building the stats of your movie stars The Movies lets you control all of these game elements with the result being an intriguing blend for fans of both tycoon titles and The Sims series of video games. The Movies was developed by Lionhead Studies ...[Read Review]
Fiz: The Brewery Management Game
Home brewing and craft beers are on the rise and Fiz: The Brewery Management Game allows you to jump on this bandwagon without the investment in real world equipment. Available for iOS and Android Fiz gives you the keys to your own brewery and lets you lead the direction your small brewing company will take with a story behind the scenes. Players begin the game within their garage with a few basic recipes and a simple array of equipment, while it might not be the highest quality brew it will be ...[Read Review]
Railroad Tycoon II
Railroad Tycoon II is the second game in the series of railroad building simulation games and expands on the successful gameplay of the original game. Focusing on the refinement and improvements of the core gameplay along with graphical uplifting you’ll find a familiar overall experience to the first Railroad Tycoon. A single expansion pack (The Second Century) was released a year after the original release which was included in a Platinum game edition alongside a large number of community...[Read Review]
OpenTTD
OpenTTD remakes the popular Transport Tycoon Deluxe title, with various improvements this open source recreation of the franchise is ideal for fans of the original or tycoon gamers in general. Introducing a host of additional map sizes, new languages, refreshed UI, custom AI and multiplayer OpenTTD has a list of features to entice any player of the original title. OpenTTD also has the benefit of being playable on more modern systems as the original release in 1994 does not have the same flexibil...[Read Review]
Chris Sawyer’s Locomotion
Chris Sawyer’s Locomotion is the spiritual follow up to Transport Tycoon, using 2D isometric graphics reminiscent of the original RollerCoaster Tycoon this challenging title also serves up plenty of nostalgia for fans of either game franchise. Centred around the period of 1900 to 2100 Locomotion explores the railroad, tram, airline, ship, truck and bus industries. Connecting these transportation methods together allows players to conquer more than 40 scenarios with each offering 5 difficultly le...[Read Review]
Simutrans
Simutrans is a unique open source and free to play game like OpenTTD. While similar the game does take the transport tycoon and management genre in some interesting directions thanks to its far reaching community of contributors. Your objective in Simutrans is simple but achieving it is anything but, ensuring a real challenge for players. This objective is to create and maintain an efficient system for transportation while staying financially viable. Similar to other titles this means transporti...[Read Review]
Game Dev Tycoon
Dream big as you create your own game development company in this business simulation game appropriately titled Game Dev Tycoon. Launched back in 2012 this tycoon game allows you to develop the games, hire your staff and conquer the gaming world in the process and has become one of the highest rated titles in the genre. Game Dev Tycoon is known for more than just it’s gameplay though and equally known for its unique attempt to counter piracy by releasing a cracked version of the game which...[Read Review]
Theme Hospital
Theme Hospital is another gaming classic developed by Bullfrog Productions and puts you at the head of controlling your own hospital with a twist of humour. The game originally launched in 1997 for Windows and Mac eventually making its way to the PlayStation, it is still available through the PlayStation Store for PS3, PSP and PS Vita. Theme Hospital takes place within a hospital that players build themselves using a variety of room types and objects. Once you’ve setup your hospital you will att...[Read Review]
Empire TV Tycoon
Empire TV Tycoon is all about guiding your own television channel to become the most viewed in the world of broadcasting. Step into the shoes of TV manager as you acquire your audience, choose advertisers, select your staff and even find appropriate actors to develop your own TV content. When it all comes together it’s a familiar blend of tycoon and management that you’ve seen before but in an entirely fresh real world inspired setting. If you’ve ever wanted to lead your own me...[Read Review]
Monopoly Tycoon
Monopoly Tycoon aims to combine the popular world known board game of Monopoly with the tycoon video game genre. Monopoly Tycoon represents a nice change of pace from all the other Monopoly based video games on the market which historically have focused solely on transforming the board game into a video game without changes. For the most part Monopoly Tycoon achieves its objectives in offering something new and alternative as far as Monopoly video games go although that doesn’t mean it wil...[Read Review]
Dream Builder: Amusement Park
Dream Builder: Amusement Park puts you in the CEO chair of your own park. You’ll have to choose the hottest rides, the right concession stands and a range of decorations to make the most popular and profitable theme park possible. The game is in the same vein as other tycoon games and with a handful of levels and the dozens of rides it has enough variety to keep you engaged for countless hours. Dream Builder: Amusement Park also packs in quite the challenge which will require you to carefully ba...[Read Review]
Sid Meier’s Railroads
Sid Meier’s Railroads lets players take control of the railways in a addicting and fun business simulation environment that encourages you to become the railroad tycoon you’ve always dreamed to be. The game is the successor to Railroad Tycoon 3 with a similar feature set and was developed by Sid Meier for Windows (2006) with a Mac release being published several years later (2012). From the surface Sid Meier’s Railroads is a 3D business simulation/tycoon game but also incorporates a health...[Read Review]