Waterpark Simulator Review

We aren’t really spoilt for choice when it comes to decent waterparks in the UK. The majority of the great ones have been closed down over the years. One of my childhood haunts was a place called The Water Place in Bolton in Greater Manchester. It’s now long gone, reduced to memories. Waterpark Simulator has just made its mark on Xbox Series X/S, and I am shocked at how much of my time this one has consumed, to the point I’ve played nothing else in days. At the time of writing, it has a four-star rating on the Xbox Store and thousands of overwhelmingly positive reviews on Steam.

Gameplay

The premise of the game is quite simple on the surface, but there is plenty of work to be done to get your park up to five stars. You’ll start with an abandoned water park that is scattered with rubbish and derelict parts that need to be demolished before you start over. Every action you carry out accumulates experience points, whether it’s picking up rubbish, serving hot dogs, fixing the toilets or scooping human excrement out of the pool; it all helps towards building a better water park.

As you accumulate revenue by issuing tickets at the front desk, handing out flyers to people outside to drum up more business, you’ll be able to expand. Using points gained from your XP will allow you to upgrade stuff like toilets, loungers, pool and overall facilities. These are constructed with your trusty hammer, although you’ll have to keep your eyes on the park. Elements of the park will go into disrepair and need to be fixed. It truly does become quite addictive as you see your park grow and the money rolling in. Whilst I didn’t test the online multiplayer aspect, you can tackle all this work up to four players online.

Visuals & Audio

Visually, Waterpark Simulator isn’t the prettiest game in the simulator genre. It all looks a little dated, but that doesn’t hamper the gameplay experience and the depth within the core gameplay. Ragdoll physics from customers is a particular highlight; they all tend to be erratic, demanding and clumsy. Watching several people slipping over on unattended puddles of water makes me chuckle every time. That is, until you forget to mop it up and slip yourself. So, whilst I’d love a bit more polish, the game is functional, and that’s all that matters. Attractions, decorative items, and more add some variance to the appearance of your own waterpark.

Audio could also do with a little more work. Whilst there are sound effects for elements like splashing into the water and some ambient noise. It doesn’t really match the atmosphere of a fully bustling water park. Things appear quiet even when the pools are booming with people. The music also came across as very repetitive to the point I turned it off completely after the first half an hour.

Final Thoughts

Being completely honest, Waterpark Simulator didn’t click with me immediately, but once it did, I was absolutely hooked. Turns out that there is a lot of depth to the game, whilst it doesn’t appear to be the case at first. Despite some clunky controls and some jank here and there, it’s actually a brilliant experience that is comparable to games like Planet Coaster. The satisfaction of starting with an empty plot of land and building it up to a five-star waterpark with hundreds of daily guests is fantastic fun. With the ragdoll physics in the mix, there are a lot of moments that actually make you laugh, whether it’s intentional or not.

Cheaper Than Going To A Real Waterpark

At the moment it is 20% off and an absolute steal at £7.99, but even at the full price I would highly recommend it, even at £9.99. For the number of hours you’ll get back in return, it’s well worth the asking price. I’m a little sad that it doesn’t support Xbox Play Anywhere, as I’d loved to have played on PC through my Xbox library, but I loved it so much that I may pick it up on Steam anyway. If you’re after a co-op title that has you working together, it supports up to 2-4 players online as well. If you fancy a copy on Xbox Series X/S, you can pick up one HERE.

Thanks to the team at ID@Xbox and Cayplay Studios LLC for the review code. This game was reviewed entirely on Xbox Series X