• Let’s start with some thoughts from Watts, who recommends that you “play it like real life: look after your peeps and give good customer service. Be inspired by what real theme parks do. Provide a mixture of gentle and extreme rides and put the big ticket rollercoasters at the back or extremities of the park to draw people in.”
• Not only does placing more exciting rides at the back of the park draw in peeps, but it also keeps incoming customers from seeing a mess if your patrons get sick because of a particularly intense rollercoaster. They’ll turn around and leave if your janitorial staff doesn’t clean it up fast enough.
• In addition, Watts advises, “don’t ignore the basics. Put down scenery to make the park look beautiful and keep peeps happy, make sure there is plenty of food and drink, toilets, benches and cash machines, and have an information desk near the entrance where peeps can buy maps and get to your rides quicker.”
• He also recommends experimenting with pricing, since “peeps don’t mind paying for good value but will let you know in no uncertain terms if they feel they are being scalped.” In fact, we’d add that you should not charge admission to your park and instead fiddle with the individual rides’ prices. You should also try to figure out how much peeps will pay for food, drink and souvenirs before complaining, then keep those prices just below that threshold.
• On the other side of the profit equation, you can keep costs down by lowering the salaries of new staff members. You’ll drive down their job satisfaction if you cut their pay after they’ve been working for a while, but if they start at the lowest level, you can always increase their rates if they become unhappy. In the meantime, you’ll save some money.

• Pay off loans as soon as possible because they charge interest rates that sap your profits. You start some scenarios with loans already in place, so pay attention in those instances and get rid of those burdens.
• Pause the game when you start building. That will give you plenty of time to think through your projects without worrying about in-game time passing too quickly.
• Widen the path at your park entrance so that peeps don’t create bottlenecks when coming and going.
• Check the thoughts of peeps who are heading for the exit; you can see which ones they are by looking at the guest information dialog box. While you won’t be able to change their minds, you should be able to find out why they’re leaving. If that doesn’t help, look at their hunger and thirst meters, which could indicate that you need more food and drink stands. If their energy meters are low, you need more benches. And if their cash is gone, make sure you have an ATM or two in the park, preferably near the entrance/exit.
• If you find your park losing money, try trimming the little things before whacking the big stuff. For example, you can reduce the amount of extras you offer with food and drinks, or you can chop your R + D budget temporarily.

Some of the scenarios in career mode require that you satisfy the requirements of a VIPeep (Very Important Peep) who will soon visit your park. You can also create your own scenarios and include a successful visit from a VIPeep as one of the objectives.

The screen at the beginning of each scenario runs down the VIPeep’s requirements. Make sure you immediately add those rides to your park. When he or she arrives, click the Setup Route button in the Scenario Objectives dialog box. Use that button to create a series of waypoints that take the VIPeep to the rides he or she prefers and then back out of the park.

• Joe Sluggerball: The peeps love Joe, but he doesn’t like being around crowds and hates autograph hunters.
• Clint Bushton: This politician loves working the crowd. Watts recommends that you watch his thoughts when he meets a peep named Monica.
• Kara Oki: This teenaged pop star loves intense rides.
• Cami O: Cami is a beautiful young starlet who secretly wishes her life could be the way it was before she became famous. She hates having bodyguards around and being told what to do.
• Mr. Jobsworth: He’s different from the other VIPeeps because he is the inspector who roves every park you build, whether you’re playing career mode or simply creating the park of your dreams in sandbox mode. Mr. Jobsworth tells you which parts of the park should be improved and rewards you with a trophy and a bonus if he’s happy with your work.

Stumped? Then you may need some help, thanks to the cheat codes that are commonly placed in most video games. They allow you to, well, cheat and change the rules. This sometimes includes activating bonuses, unlocking secrets and accessing hidden levels of gameplay.

To enable the cheats in RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, click on a peep and give it one of the names below to achieve the desired result.

On Your Left... A peep’s-eye-view of a tram that circles a theme park.

Giddyup, Li’l Doggies! One of the kiddie rides available in the western theme park.