Reddit AMA

Hi All,

We hope you have all been enjoying Zoo Park: Run Your Own Animal Sanctuary. Just a tiny bit of news if you're interested in the company. Chris (That's me, who manages this blog!) is running a Ask Me Anything on Reddit. If you have any questions about the game or Excalibur Publishing, visit the following URL and say hello!

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1eazhp/hi_i_work_at_excalibur_publishing_a_video_games/

Become a Zoo Keeper!

We've got an exciting new competition to launch with the success of Zoo Park: Run Your Own Animal Sanctuary... If you've ever wanted to care after real life animals maybe this'll tickle your fancy!

Visit our official competition page at www.IWantToBeAZookeeper.com and participate in a few small short questions to stand a chance of winning this awesome competition.

Good luck to all of you who enter!

Zoo Park Reviews 09/05/2013

Zoo Park: Run Your Own Animal Sanctuary released last week for both PC and MAC last week. In that short time we've had two excellent reviews on the game. Check them out below!

Ghostwolfe:

"Zoo Park is an enjoyable experience for the whole family and is going to be a great way to teach kids about the different animals in the game. Parents will enjoy the fact that they can utilize the game to benefit their childrens growth of knowledge"
Score: 8.2 http://ghostwolfe.com/blog/game-review/zoo-park-pc-review/

GamerCast

"you aren't striving for the most money, the biggest sanctuary, or the most satisfied customers, the animals are your main priority, and the real end goal is freedom, something very different to the normal scope of gaming, which may be difficult for some to stomach."

Score: 4/5 http://www.gamercast.net/zoo-park-review

The Zebra

Location: Africa
Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan: 25 years in the wild

The Rhinoceros

Location: Africa
Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan: 35 – 40 years

The Panda

Location: Asia
Diet: Omnivore
Lifespan: 20 years in the wild

Zoo Park: Run Your Own Animal Sanctuary Is Out Now

We’re pleased to announce that Zoo Park: Run Your Own Animal Sanctuary is now released for both PC and MAC! It’s been a great thrill developing the game and we hope that you enjoy how the game has turned out. 

A YouTuber known as BestInSlot has uploaded a let’s play video showcasing many of the elements included in Zoo Park. So if you've got twenty five minutes to spare and want to see a very detailed video check out the YouTube link below:

The Crocodile

Diet: Carnivore
Lifespan: Up to 70 years

The Meerkat

We have just one more day before Zoo Park: Run your Own Animal Sanctuary is launched for PC & Mac! Today we'd like to share just a couple more animals. First up is the lovable Meerkat!

Location: Africa

Diet: Omnivore

Lifespan: Up to 7 years in the wild

The Mustang

Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan:  Between 25 – 30 years in the wild

The Moose

Location: Northern areas
Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan Up to 20 years in the Wild

The Indian Elephant

Location: Asia
Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan: up to 60 years in the wild

The Grizzly Bear

Location: America
Diet: Omnivore
Lifespan: 25 years in the wild

The Gorilla

We have a few animals to reveal today! Stay tuned as we post up several animals included in the final game when it hits store shelves this Friday!

Location: Africa
Diet: Omnivore
Lifespan: 35 years in the wild

The Coyote

As we approach the final week of release for Zoo park: Run Your Own Animal Sanctuary, it’s time to meet the Coyote! Traditionally in tales and traditions of native Americans it is usually considered as a clever beast. One such example is the coyote’s resourcefulness to adapt to the changing landscape of America.

Location: America

Diet: Omnivore
Lifespan: Up to 14 years in the wild
Interesting fact: The coyotes are actually very good swimmers, they have actually colonized the Elizabeth islands of Massachusetts thanks to this incredible skill.

Here’s a video of coyote pups emerging from a den:

The Wolverine

Listen bub! It’s time to introduce you to the Wolverine! Many people will probably remember the name Wolverine as one of the famous members of the X men . I need to brush up on my comics knowledge but I remember Wolverine not being the most tallest character in the animated TV series, maybe because he was slouching, but that may have been why Logan was named Wolverine. The animal Wolverine is the size of a small bear, but it’s incredibly powerful and of course, they are solitary creatures so they do match the characteristics of a certain member of the X men.

Location: North America

Diet:Omnivore
Lifespan: up to 12 years in the wild
Interesting fact: A wolverine may travel 15 miles in a single day to search for food.

We found a video that shows a wolverine in super hero mode as it pulls someone out from an avalanche.

The Tapir

The TV show South park aired an episode called “When an elephant makes love to a pig” relatively early during the cartoons lifespan.  If this were to happen or we cross bred the two animals an animal looking similar to the tapir could come to mind!  It’s one of the most bizarre mammals on the planet in terms of look as it can also sport a selection of different coats ranging from plan, black and white to even sporting cheetah style patterns.

Location: South America

Diet: Hebivore
Lifespan:  up to 30 years in the wild.
Interesting fact: Despite their body looking quite densely built they are excellent swimmers and can even dive to feed on aquatic plants.

As for a video to share, we have  found this awesome (and quite cheesy) video titled “What in the wirld is a Tapir?” Check it out for more info on the tapir!

The Koala

We’re going down under for today’s Animal A Day feature! The Koala is one of Australia’s mascots, because of their teddy bear like features, they are sometimes mistaken to have some relatives in the bear family, in fact, it’s a Marsupial, a pouched mammal which will catty their young in a pouch very similar to a kangaroo.

Location: Australia

Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan: 20 years in the wild
Interesting fact: A koalas main food source, Eucalyptus leads are poisonous, but due to the koalas special digestive system they can eat eucalyptus leaves without any severe side effects.

With our game featuring a rescue and rehabilitation aspect, we enjoyed this short video for a television series called Koala hospital.

Reindeer

Zoo Park is just over two weeks until launch. Today’s animal A Day feature introduces you to the Reindeer, those creatures that pull Santa’s/ st Nick’s/ father Christmas’s etc sleigh.

Location: Cold Climate

Diet: Hebivore
Lifespan:  12 – 15 years in the wild
Interesting fact: Depending on the season, the reindeers hooves will adapt to change with the terrain. During the summer periods their footpads become sponge-like but in the windter they shrink and tighten to prevent the reindeer from slipping on Ice.

Here’s a video showing off the reindeer whilst telling you how they became the legendary creatures that pull santa’s sleigh

The Hippopotamus

The Hippopotamus was named by the greeks as the “river horse” because they love water, they can spend up to 16 hours a day in rivers and lakes to keep themselves cool in the African sun. If I spent that long in water, there’s a chance the wrinkles would make me look like some sort of giant raison

Location: Africa
Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan: Up to 40 years in the wild
Interesting fact: When hippos bask on the shoreline they can often be seen to leak an oily red substance, this started a myth at how hippos sweat blood. In fact the liquid is a skin moistener and sunblock which can also provide protection from germs.

Here’s an extraordinary video of Karl Pilkington visiting a family that have a hippo as a pet. We really would not recommend this, but we do love Karl pilkington’s reaction!

The Raccoon

The raccoon is one of those instantly distinguishable animals. Known mainly for its bandit style mask markings, there’s no wonder why a video game was made called sly raccoon which told the tale of a Raccoon thief!

Location: America
Diet: Omnivore
Lifespan: 2 to 3 years in the wild

Interesting fact: Considering their relatively small lifespan, raccoon in the northern parts of America will gorge themselves in spring and summer and then spend a great deal of the winter asleep in a den.

To celebrate the raccoon interesting markings we found a video of a thieving raccoon in action who must be beginning work on decorating his den. 

The Red Kangaroo

Can you imagine hopping to get anywhere? Probably not, but perhaps that is a charity event in the making! The red kangaroo not only hops as its main method of traveling, but it will reach speeds of over 35 miles per hour and can jump 25 feet in a single leap. Despite becoming an efficient hopper myself (I once won the bronze trophy in my primary schools sack race) I am always in awe whenever I see a kangaroo!

Location: Australia

Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan: Up to 23 years
Interesting fact: To get a bit more oomph to their punch, they can lean back on their tail to box.

Now for another David Attenborough documentary showing boxing kangaroos!

The Polar Bear

Roaming the arctic ice sheets, some argue that the polar bears coat is merely just covered in so much snow that it covers its beautiful rainbow coloured fur! Of course, that’s not true, but could you imagine if it was? The polar bear is one of the Arctic’s mascots of animals living in extreme conditions.

Location: around the Arctic ocean
Diet: Carnivore
Lifespan: 25 – 30 years in the wild
Interesting fact: A polar bear cub will learn the survival tips of the North from its mother over the period of 28 months.

The video we’d like to share features playful polar bears playing with dogs. Considering the size of these creatures and the conditions they live in, it’s great to see that they have an opportunity to add play into their lifestyle!

The Chimpanzee

Today’s animal is the Chimpanzee, they are our closest living relatives with their DNA matching more than 98% of humans!

Location: Africa

Diet: Omnivore
Lifespan: 45 years in the wild
Interesting fact: Chimpanzees are among the smartest animals on the planet, considering how closely their DNA matches a humans it’s not that surprising! However, Chimpanzees are one of the few animals who use tools, but they can also be taught to use some basic sign language.

Here’s a clip showing a chimpanzee’s problem solving skills!

The Black Bear

Another day rolls on towards the 3^rd of May release for Zoo park. We can’t wait for you to play the game! We’ll be sharing some details very soon of an exciting feature that we hope you all will enjoy. But for now, back to our Animal of the day. Today, it’s the Black Bear!

Location: America
Diet: Omnivore
Lifespan: 20 years in the wild
Interesting fact: They are not true hibernators, while they do not eat, drink, or urinate during the winter months, they will awake if disturbed.

We found a video narrated by the legendary  Sir David Attenborough which shows a man who has been feeding bears, now; it’s not recommended to feed black bears because they will return! And as seen in this video, they’ll come back with friends!

The African Elephant

It’s Monday! Which for many people is the beginning of a massive work week, so we've decided what better way to celebrate Monday than to celebrate with the most massivest (yes, that’s not a word) land animal on Earth!? It’s the African Elephant.

Location: Africa
Diet: Herbivore
Lifespan: up to 70 years in the wild
Interesting fact: Never offer to treat an elephant to dinner at a fancy restaurant as they can consume up to 136 kilograms of food in a single day! This does make them one of the more expensive animals to keep in a zoo!

Considering how enormous these creatures are, it’s interesting to see how these creatures take shape from a new-born. Here’s a lovely video documentary series from a wildlife documentary legend!

Cat Artwork!

We have ran out of all of our big cats that are included in the game, so what we wanted to do now was share all artwork for the cubs, male and female cats in one single blog post. Look below for all art work. We’ll be sharing some more animals next week so stay tuned!

The Bengal Tiger

Bengal Tiger Cub

Female Bengal Tiger

Male Bengal Tiger

The Black Panther

Black Panther Cub

Female Black Panther

Male Black Panther

The Cheetah

Cheetah Cub

Female Cheetah

Male Cheetah

The Puma

Puma Cub

Female Puma

Male Puma

The Jaguar

Jaguar Cub

Female Jaguar

Male Jaguar

The Lion

Lion Cub

Female Lion (Lioness)

Male Lion

The Snow Leopard

Snow Leopard Cub

Female Snow Leopard

Male Snow Leopard

The Snow Leopard

The snow leopard, while a popular mac OS, (we are releasing zoo park on MAC too you know!) did you know that it’s actually a big cat from Asia? Of course you do!  With only 6,000 left in the world they are in danger of disappearing off the planet due to their warm coats and their organs being used in traditional Chinese medicine.

The artwork below is for the baby version of the snow leopard! you can have cubs in Zoo park!

Location: Asia
Diet: Carnivore
Lifespan: 12 to 15 years in the wild
Interesting fact: Snow leopards prey upon the blue sheep (Bharal –  we checked, they aren’t that blue!) located in Tibet and the Himalaya. Incredibly enough they can kill animals three times their own weight!

Why don’t we have more playful kittens on our blog? Well, here you go, courtesy of Seattle’s woodland park zoo, you can see Gobi and Batu explore their outdoor exhibit!

The Jaguar

For our first cat of today we have the jaguar! The name jaguar has always been relatively exciting to say. I knew of the Jaguar cars before I heard of the Jaguar animal, even the jaguar gaming console was something that I was quite interested to get my hands on when I was younger. Even if it did have one of the craziest control pads known to man!

Location: South America

Diet: Carnivore
Lifespan: 12 to 15 years in the wild
Interesting fact: The jaguar is one of the largest cats in South America, but when they are born their new-born are blind and helpless so the mother will stay with them at birth, protecting them fiercely from any animal that approaches them, even if it’s the father!

As a great deal of gamers follow this blog (we are making a game you know!) we thought we’d relive one of the most incredible and insulting games console advertisement I can think of, which so happens to be for the jaguar! Check it out below!

The Puma

In part 2 of our cat feature today we have the Puma, also known as a cougar and mountain lion. The puma is one of the most prolific big cats in the world, present in several areas of the Americas.

Location:  America
Diet:  Carnivore
Lifespan:  8 – 13 years in the wild
Interesting fact:  Despite their presence across most of America, there are very few reports of attacks from the puma, in fact there are as few as four attacks and one human fatality each year in all of U.S and Canada.

At Tierpark zoo in Germany, they had a new-born puma cub. You can watch the unveiling of the cub below

The Cheetah

We’ve decided that this week is cat week! We’ll be sharing all of the big cats that are included in our game this week so stay tuned for a selection of catty goodness! Today and tomorrow as promised we have two a day; our first is the Cheetah, the world’s fastest land mammal!

Location: Africa
Diet: Carnivore
Lifespan: 10 to 12 years in the wild
Interesting fact: When the cheetah hunts, it will sprint after its prey at great speed to attempt to knock it down. While this uses a massive amount of energy, these chases are over in less than a minute.

Here is some lovely footage here recording a cheetah hunting its prey. We love the way they have slowed down the footage, really shows you just how powerful and fast the cheetah can be! 

The Black Panther

The Black Panther is not necessarily a species in its own right, more so a colour variant of jaguars or leopards which is caused by a genetic mutation. We wanted to include as many types of animals and this genetic variant interested us.

Therefore our information on the animal is going to be a little bit different to the animal a day features from earlier so we’ll be sharing some info regarding the leopard which the black panther is a subspecies of.

Location: Africa
Diet: Carnivore
Lifespan: Around 21 years in captivity
Interesting fact: Lions and Hyenas will attempt to take away a leopard’s kill if they can. The leopard will store their larger kills in trees where they are able to feed on them in safety.

How could I not share the jungle book!? Check out below for a brief video, we’ll be watching the Jungle Book later this week!

The Bengal Tiger

Due to the Easter holidays and a mixture of one of the team coming down with an illness, our Animal a day feature has been briefly interrupted, so we've got to catch up! The next few days will feature two animals a day! Today we've decided to focus on the cats for our animal a day!  

Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger is known worldwide for its bright orange colour but it also happens to be one of the faces of our game Zoo Park and is a prominent animal in our retail box packaging!

Location: India
Lifespan: 8 to ten years in the wild
Diet: Carnivore
Interesting fact: The tiger’s roar can be heard as far as 2 miles away!

We did come across several videos of families that have taken Bengal tigers into their houses but we really wanted to show off a more natural habitat, so check out the video below for a beautifully shot video: