RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic just got a Switch 2 port with mouse support

Atari and Graphite Lab just released RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic for the Nintendo Switch 2. The new port adds 4K resolution and integrated mouse controls to the park management sim. It launched today alongside PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions. This fills out the remaining gaps in the modern console lineup.

This game never gets old. Chris Sawyer's original isometric theme park builder has been eating up free time since 1999. Sawyer originally programmed the first two games almost entirely in x86 assembly language. This allowed the game to track thousands of individual guests and complex physics calculations on late-90s hardware without lagging. When the development team modernized the game for mobile and eventually consoles, they had to wrap that original logic in a new shell.

Classic combines the original game, its 2002 sequel, and their respective expansion packs into one massive package. It includes 95 different scenarios. You start with the gentle learning curve of Forest Frontiers and eventually hit the brutal constraints of Micro Park. It first hit mobile devices in 2016 before migrating to PC, the original Switch, and eventually PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S earlier this year.

A fix for console controls

The biggest hurdle for any simulation game on a console is the controller. Managing a sprawling park with thumbsticks is usually an exercise in frustration. You have to snap between menus, carefully align track pieces, and try not to accidentally delete a food stall when you just wanted to check the price of a burger.

The Switch 2 release addresses this directly by adding mouse support for building paths, placing rides, and terraforming the landscape. The original Switch port from late 2024 initially launched without touch controls. It relied entirely on a gamepad scheme that Graphite Lab built from scratch. They eventually patched touch support in, but having native mouse support on a docked console is a much better solution for long play sessions.

The visual side gets a bump as well. The isometric sprites now output at 4K resolution. You can zoom all the way out to view your entire park without the graphics turning into an unrecognizable blur. The game still uses the original 2D art assets, but they scale up cleanly on modern displays.

The upgrade path

If you already bought the game when it came to the original Switch, you do not have to buy it at full price again. Atari is offering a $5 upgrade path on the eShop to get the Switch 2 version. The standalone Switch 2 edition costs $29.99 for new buyers.

The older console versions also received an update today. The original Switch release was patched to version 1.6.686. This brings it in line with the codebase used for the newer systems.

You can still play the open-source OpenRCT2 on a PC if you want community mods and multiplayer. But if you just want to charge guests $50 to use the bathroom from the comfort of your couch, this is the best way to do it.