World of Zoo

World of Zoo is a life simulation video game, published by THQ and developed by Blue Fang Games, who also developed the similar Zoo Tycoon series. World of Zoo was released for Windows, PC, Wii and Nintendo DS on October 26, 2009. The game was showcased in the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2009 on June 1, 2009, held in the Los Angeles Convention Center.
The game will also educate players about the animals using facts provided by the National Geographic Society.
==Gameplay==
World of Zoo will simulate a zoo, and players will care for 95 different species of animals, from 11 different families, and place it in one of the 20 exhibits. The goal of the game is to keep the animals in the zoo happy , ways to do this include: feeding the animals, playing with the animals, and improving the animals exhibits. Keeping the animals happy will result in hearts and tokens for the player, who can then redeem their hearts and tokens for food, tools, and new animals.
Certain achievements can earn the player certain objects, for example: new species can be unlocked, or in-game awards earned. One example of an in-game award is the player raising in status with one animal family, for the big cats family, awards range from, lowest to highest, "Junior Big Cat Handler" to "Big Cat Whisperer".
The game will also feature an "Animal Creator", a feature that allows players to create and customize animals' personalities and appearances similar to Spore; along with an "Animal Adoption Network", another way players can add animals.
Every animal has unique personalities and behaviors; the player's goal is to earn trust and happiness of each animal, so the player must find a method to gain trust and happiness from each animal. Trust the animal has in the player is measured via a trust meter; after the trust meter gets to rank six, the player can hypnotize animals.
Minigames are scattered throughout World of Zoo, and often pose as challenges arising in the care-taking of animals, e.g. grooming or healing. 
The Wii version of the game can function as single player; but also can also support multiplayer mode up to four players. The Wii Remote is used to control the game in both modes; in multiplayer, player one controls the camera.
==Animals==
95 animals available in World of Zoo, separated into 11 families: antelopes, bears, big cats, crocodiles, elephants, giraffes, koalas, pandas, penguins, small monkeys, and zebras & horses.
==Reception==
Critics' reception to World of Zoo was muted for the first two months after launch. Most reviewers have, as of December 15, 2009, declined to review the game or give a score. This includes better-known sites like IGN, Gamespot, Gametrailers, 1UP, GameSpy, etc. User scores have generally been positive. The metacritic user score for World of Zoo is 96%.
==External links==
* Official World of Zoo website