Is there a middle ground?
I get exactly what you mean. I think Planet Coaster 2 has a looooong way to go, there are so many things I love yet also really hate about it, as well as many “Why?”s.
NL2, although fantastic, has its limitations not in terms of technical limitations but limitations in terms of the skills of its user. For example, to make a custom station in PC2 (and make it look good) is a breeze, especially with its seemingly endless list of really high quality assets.
To create a custom station in NL2 (with custom scenery, etc)? It’s a pain. You need to be a relatively okay 3D modeller, and the reality is that I just don’t have the time for that. I’m currently thinking of making a recreation of Thorpe Park’s Colossus in NL2 but the more I think about the level of 3D modelling for even simple things like lighting fixtures in the station, the more I cannot be arsed.
Do you get what I mean? If you’re not a comfortable with 3D modelling, good bloody luck creating custom stations in NL2.
It has to be said though that if I want to build a coaster that’s as realistic as possible and without any “jank” (for lack of a better word), then NL2 is my go-to. I despise PC2’s way of constructing coasters. It just feels like one slight step up from the prefab pieces in RCT but without any sort of smoothness. I tend to build something, think “This’ll be good!”, then ride it, and then realise I need to iron out so many bumps and kinks. I tend to get things right first time in NL2, with only minor tweaks needed once I finish something.
The one thing NL2 is screaming out for is basically FVD++ but fully integrated. I know NL2 technically has a force vector design feature, but it feels very clunky compared to FVD. At the same time, OpenFVD as a project is pretty much abandoned and will only accumulate bugs from now on, to the point where it’s not usable.
ffinelliott posted on May 4th, 2025
I get exactly what you mean. I think Planet Coaster 2 has a looooong way to go, there are so many things I love yet also really hate about it, as well as many “Why?”s.
NL2, although fantastic, has its limitations not in terms of technical limitations but limitations in terms of the skills of its user. For example, to make a custom station in PC2 (and make it look good) is a breeze, especially with its seemingly endless list of really high quality assets.
To create a custom station in NL2 (with custom scenery, etc)? It’s a pain. You need to be a relatively okay 3D modeller, and the reality is that I just don’t have the time for that. I’m currently thinking of making a recreation of Thorpe Park’s Colossus in NL2 but the more I think about the level of 3D modelling for even simple things like lighting fixtures in the station, the more I cannot be arsed.
Do you get what I mean? If you’re not a comfortable with 3D modelling, good bloody luck creating custom stations in NL2.
It has to be said though that if I want to build a coaster that’s as realistic as possible and without any “jank” (for lack of a better word), then NL2 is my go-to. I despise PC2’s way of constructing coasters. It just feels like one slight step up from the prefab pieces in RCT but without any sort of smoothness. I tend to build something, think “This’ll be good!”, then ride it, and then realise I need to iron out so many bumps and kinks. I tend to get things right first time in NL2, with only minor tweaks needed once I finish something.
The one thing NL2 is screaming out for is basically FVD++ but fully integrated. I know NL2 technically has a force vector design feature, but it feels very clunky compared to FVD. At the same time, OpenFVD as a project is pretty much abandoned and will only accumulate bugs from now on, to the point where it’s not usable.
Thank you for understanding where I'm coming from. I genuinely did feel like an idiot after I posted this, but I'm willing to stand by that there is no middle ground out there right now. I'm glad you brought up the customizability of stations and how you need to get gud at 3d modeling to create what you truly want. That just doesn't go for scenery, but for roller coasters and flat rides (for Planet Coasters' sake). Both NL2 and PC2 lack things in their respective ways. No Limits 2 doesn't have many modern train types, but it allows users to create/import their own custom trains (you need knowledge of 3D modeling and coding). Planet Coaster lacks a lot, in all honesty, and is just hard to defend at this point. Let's not pretend that the content (or lack thereof) with both NL2 and PC2 keeps both software from having a Roller Coaster Tycoon type of longevity and content throughput. At this point Keith McVeen should create something because he would outdo both PC and NL in what they lack.
tl;dr from this and my og post: there is an open market right now for a modern contender of RCT. Both No Limits and Planet Coaster can fill this spot, but fail to deliver.
I've been a long-time No Limits player. I remember the old exchange and watching the development process of No Limits 2. It was amazing that a small team of developers could create software that became an industry tool in roller coaster manufacturing and ride promotion. With the ability for users to script coasters and import objects such as scenery, flat rides, or even their custom trains and tracks, there are genuinely No Limits to what a roller coaster builder wishes to create.
Like many of the people here, before the days of No Limits, there were not many roller coaster builders outside of the Roller Coaster Tycoon series. I still hop on RCT3 to this day, and I know others that still play RCT1 & RCT2 (with OpenRCT2). The RCT3 community was/is a community that keeps giving and giving and giving. From Moby's Steel Jungle, all of the scenery objects Vodhin & DasMatze produced, CTR (Custom Tracked Rides) creators like TheCodeMaster and CFR (Custom Flat Rides) creators like CFH Rides and Revolutionary Rides. Users were filling in the gaps and keep the game "updated" in a way. Then things began to go to the next level with track expansion packs and CT (custom tracks), which took coasters from No Limits 1 and imported them into RCT3. What I'm getting at is that passionate users were making an effort to keep the community alive and thriving.
Many can argue that the Planet Coaster series is the modern successor to Roller Coaster Tycoon, and in many ways, they're right. I don't think it's wrong to say that; I've just noticed that now that they're on their second game (Planet Coaster 2), there have been comparisons of it and No Limits 2. Now, look, I know the comparison is bogus, and in a way, it's like comparing apples to oranges, but it made me think: How do the two compare? They don't. One is more for park management and the other one is a flat out simulator. So I looked at them through the lens of coaster building and me being a nerd for coasters. Again, No Limits takes the cake for this, hands down, but Planet Coaster fills the void of seeing peeps react and enjoy your rides.
So here's the conundrum: Planet Coaster 2 has the potential to be a great game, but it seems the level of coaster creativity and freedom will never reach anything close to No Limits. Here we are, a few months into Planet Coaster 2, and it's still very buggy and barely living up as a successor. It's too much to ask for continuous-roll; you can't create shuttle coasters such as Premier Rides Skyrocket II, and you can't create rides such as Volcano: The Blast Coaster or a modern Vekoma tilt coaster despite both the trains and track types being in the game. Transfer tracks and dueling stations are nonexistent. Am I crazy for thinking these things should exist in the game because they are prominently found in the real world? Again, I realize that Planet Coaster is more of a park management game and shouldn't be treated as a sim, and maybe I'm asking for too much It's just frustrating being so limited.
So, is there a middle ground? I ask because the market is wide open. You have the creators at Coaster Galaxy World who have not only created entire parks where you can operate and manage rides and the park but have also added peeps to their parks and even created a pack for peeps for everyone to use. For a small team to create something such as Era-Park within No Limits (which again, is also made by a small team) it's insperational and reminds me of the golden days of RCT3. I don't know if the team at No Limits and CGW need to come together or if something needs to be created from the ground up. I know that I'm not the only one looking for a middle ground between roller coaster creation and park management where you're not limited in your creations, but you don't have to be a code master to make what you want. I mean, even the indie developer of Ultimate Coaster X does a better job at coasters than Planet Coaster. I feel lost and wish I had the knowledge to create something of my own or get a team of passionate people together to create something great. Sorry for this little rant. I just needed to get this out there in hopes I'm not the only one who notices these things and that there's a chance to fix them.