Rocks are a recurring type of purchasable object in the Zoo Tycoon franchise, used mainly for exhibit building.
In Zoo Tycoon[]
In Zoo Tycoon, rocks are a fundamental component for reaching high exhibit suitability for virtually every animal. Most rocks have a biome and world location (most often global) associated to them (with exceptions being the Small Rock, Medium Rock and Large Rock). Most rocks were included in the base game, though the Dinosaur Digs expansion introduced several medium rocks, and the Marine Mania expansion introduced several marine rocks. Other rocks like the Termite Mound and Atlantean Undersea Ruins were available as downloaded content.
Animals will like rocks from the same biome as themselves, as well as generic rocks without a biome. Most rocks can be placed on land or water tiles, but only rocks in the Marine Mania expansion's product filter, as well as Dinosaur Digs' Medium Aquatic Rock, in can be placed in tanks. Animals will enjoy rock tile quadrants (i.e. 1/4 of a tile) in their exhibit up to a certain point.
Only a few small and medium rocks can be placed on slopes.
Not all rocks can be placed on sloped terrain, the few that can be placed on sloped terrain are usually small and medium rocks which take up a 0.5 by 0.5 space.
The iceberg is the only rock that floats in a tank.
One rock, the iceberg, floats. all other rocks are confined to the bottom when placed in a tank.
Rock formations may not affect an animal's suitability needs at all.
Rock formations (internally known as "bwalls") are a special rock type, they do not contribute towards an animal's rock needs, but they still increase the suitability slightly and can be placed for an infinite amount for compatible animals, if it weren't for space limitations of an exhibit.
Only three rock formations implement rock formation behaviour:
- Jungle Rock Formation
- Highland Rock Formation
- Snowy Rock Formation
In Zoo Tycoon 2[]
Lion on top of a large savannah rock in Zoo Tycoon 2.
In Zoo Tycoon 2, rocks are a completely optional part of exhibit building, as animals from any biome can be completely happy in an exhibit with no rocks.
Rocks are non-traversable objects. Like in the first game, each rock has a biome and a world location (Worldwide for all land rocks, and Global Warm Oceans for all marine rocks) associated to it, though the latter has no practical effects on gameplay. Each biome in the game contains exactly three rocks; large, medium and small, except for Pelagic which lacks rocks entirely.
Rocks can be purchased individually, or they can be placed automatically with the biome brush if the rock filter is turned on.
Many animals will interact with medium and large rocks if present, such as climbing on top of them, or scent marking. These interactions can fulfill needs such as exercise, rest and social. Animals do not care about rock biome or location, while guests will complain if they see an animal using a rock belonging to a different biome.
The Heated Rock is an enrichment item used by several animals, but for gameplay purposes it does not count as a true rock.
See also: List of Rocks in Zoo Tycoon 2.