Is RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 really one of the greatest management games ever made, or are we remembering it through rose-tinted glasses?
This week on Critical Arcade, The List sent us back to RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, the legendary 2002 theme park simulator developed by Chris Sawyer and published by Infogrames. More than twenty years later, we revisit one of PC gaming's most influential tycoon games to see whether it still deserves its legendary reputation.
We discuss everything from the complete lack of a narrative, the charming isometric visuals, authentic sound design, and the iconic custom roller coaster builder, to the surprisingly unstable performance we encountered on modern hardware. Along the way we compare it with games like Theme Park World, Planet Zoo, Zoo Tycoon 2, and the modern Two Point series to ask whether management games have simply evolved beyond RollerCoaster Tycoon 2.
Most surprisingly, we couldn't even agree on the final verdict. One of us still sees a timeless classic, while the other would rather revisit Theme Park World.
Do you think RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 still holds up in 2026, or has nostalgia been doing the heavy lifting all these years?
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