I have to say, I loved Theme Park more than the author did. Even at the age of 12 (I think?) when I got it I understood the cynical take it took on the whole industry and found it endlessly entertaining. I haven’t replayed it since (and judging by the article, won’t!) but I’ve got a lot of happy memories. By comparison Rollercoaster Tycoon never grabbed me, despite the fact that I enjoyed Transport Tycoon a lot. It just didn’t have the spark Theme Park had.
Same here. I tried to replicate the experience when developing SimAirport; I'm happy with the way the game turned out overall, though there will always be lots of things I want to tweak/change/improve. That said, Theme Park was and still is probably the most memorable & engaging gameplay experience I've ever had. I can still vividly recall building the "water slide" around my park to improve guest happiness, etc. Many prefer Theme Hospital or similar, but Theme Park will always be the game that really had an impact on me far more than any other game ever has.
