The answer is a building generator. Here is what it is and some of what it could do. This is sorely needed in RCT3 and would go far to fixing the game to really blow open the platform for creativity rather quickly. One note here. All buildings should be in this 3D game able to be placed at any directional angle. Not right left forward backward as in RCT2. This is 3D. Now what the Building Generator is and what it does and how it could easily fix the tunnel problems.

There is a need for a "Building Generator". This is more than just a building editor. It would allow you to pick a design, intermix other designs, than stretch the building over the area you want it to cover. The building based on the architectural designs selected, number of floors windows and doors would than be generated. For instance lets say I want a Congressional Hall for a Confederate Square. I merely select capitol building and make it using the building generator. But this tool goes a step beyond. Now that we have an empty building it must now be assigned. For instance:

Restaurant
Show
Restaurant/Show
Animatronics Show
Theater
Cover Existing Attraction (Shell Decor)
Internal Shops (Galleria)
Penny Arcade/Shooting Gallery/Games

You get the general idea that this building can be assigned and lets say we call it a restaurant. Suddenly the lower floor is converted to 3D Chairs and Tables. Guests could theoretically enter a large restaurant.

Let's say we want Space Mountain, but we need that Giant Futuristic building to cover the open pit where the coasters will go. We merely would select Cover Existing Attraction after we have built the attraction and established Queue lines. Than select the style we want to use and plop it over the attraction. There it is done in an instant.

Now lets say we want a combo ride with tunnels and mountains. We want to have a Log Flume and Mine Trains in shafts. We select Mountain as a building. Than we stretch it over the attraction and plop it down over the attraction. Wherever the flume or mine train tracks stick out will be the cave exits and entrances the rides comes out of. In addition the mountain building could allow trees to be planted atop it and even feature crystal stalactites and stalagmites in the caverns. We could even put the animatronics inside as well to spruce up the ride. A Track Tunnel Option could be applied to certain parts of the track within the mountain and lighting control too....see next paragraph!

Building options would include indoor lighting adjustments. For instance Space Mountain is pitch black inside, or almost. Pirates of the Caribbean is dimmer in some parts than in others. Lighting would vary in the tunnels the boats go through.

The different building types that could quickly be generated would cover many of these architectural considerations, and they could be added in future expansion packs. This would negate for a long time, the need for tunnels and tremendous programming times, and provide a fairly quick solution to the ride maker's needs. Buildings could also be prefabricated in this but also could be modified or expanded quickly into new buildings.

Western
Futuristic
Sci-Fi
Contemporary
Generic Building
Mountain
Caverns
Old American
Caribbean
Scary
European (Dutch/German/Italian)
British (Includes Castles and contemporary)
Asian
Polynesian
Alien Planet Landscapes (Mountain)
Midway (Historical)

This type of add-on "Building Generator" would easily allow for such settings as Pirates Of The Caribbean, The Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, The Bigfoot Matterhorns, Big Thunder Mountain Railway, Main Street. With a "Building Generator" the parks could really become themeparks and very quickly. A more detailed example below.

I believe for all of the trouble Mr. Braben you and Frontier will go through doing Tunneling this would be much more ideal, and it could be created or amended to the building editor in much less time. It would be a wickedly powerful utility and with all of the different types or combinations of sized buildings including hollow mountains it would become essential.

A Building Generator would be a great ticket to resolving the tunneling issues and allowing instant themed parks with grand themed buildings that could accomodate almost every need. There would almost be no need for individual pieces of scenery for building stuff anymore as the Building Generator would be so flexible as to negate this.

The Building Generator would open up worlds for the RCT3 platform and solve many issues if it follows the guidelines laid out in this topic.

The endless possibilities that can be created by a Building Generator would make every park unique. Making caverns or mountains and tunnel would be a snap.

You could build any dark ride easily. Just lay out the track and queue lines. Plop down the props next to the track. Than select the building style. If you need to select the corners, rounded squared angled than do so. You could use any one of a number of styles. Let’s say you want a generic building. Than select the cover track option on a button. Stretch the area you want to cover. A blue arrow will point to the front area of the building. You could select an open area for queues and loading ramps. After stretching the building, just click and instantly the building ghosts outline is set up. You can than set the building interior to adjust the lighting. In fact you could make certain parts very dark and other areas lighter. You could select walls at corners option so when the building covers the tracks, there will be walls at turns to divide up the rooms the track ride goes through. you could select the entry and exit doors for the dark ride. Once these parameters are quickly set just click the add button and the building is done. You can do this in less than 2 minutes.

Space Mountain is even easier. Lay tracks, select space or futuristic buildings and than stretch and place over the ride. Before finalizing it, you set the lighting to dim over the queue lines and select the wall around queue. Select the space walls. Than leave the overall building dark. Make sure the building entrance is correct and click add. Time to make Space Mountain building 30 seconds.

Pirates Of The Caribbean. Make a hole in the ground place your tracks. Select cavern building and stretch it and place over areas of the track you want the boats to ride through caverns. You will need some time to plop your themes down and set up you animations. Over those areas set the water level around the boat track. Than use the building generator and select caverns. Stretch caverns over area and select the open room button on the caverns selector. Place the caverns building over that area of track. Next cover the remaining rooms as you want to. Finally after this is done go back to the Building Generator and select a different Building Style. Select Caribbean Building. Stretch it across the landmass of the whole ride. Select 2 stories or 3 if that suffices. Select the entry area. Than plop it over the whole area. Time to make this ride about less than an hour. Done.

Log Flumes Timber Mountain. Create and test the new log flumes track. Place it. Than go to the building generator and select the Mountain building option. Select the tunnels option for tracked rides. Tunnels exit entry for tracks should be checked. This means wherever tracked rides protrude the mountain will open exits and entry for the ride. Select Mountain Style. Smooth, Forest Covered, Snow Covered, Matter horn Style, Rocky Peak Style etc. After selecting the Timber Mines Mountain option, Stretch the Mountain Building over the log flumes. Make sure to select where the blue arrow points towards the queue areas. Than select ghost adjust. click adjust mountain over attraction. Pull the sides of the mountain until you like its shape. Finally click and plot the mountain down and you have your log ride going through the mountain complete with a generic forest of brush and limber pines randomly selected atop it. You don't like the pines, and want snow covered pines right. Easy to fix. Right click on the mountain and select tree, foliage type and select winter-snow. Select type of pines, like Spruce or Jeffrey pines. Click change button or add to button, your preference. Now select change mountain environment or type. Select snow covered or snow capped. Click the change button. The whole mountain changes instantly. Time to do all this with the average user including the time to make the log flume, less than 30 minutes.

Haunted Mansion. Lay track, place the animatronics. Select Old American for your building. Select amount of stories in this case 3. Select cover tracks. Select walls at corners. Select walls at queue lines. Select scary for interior walls. This will add animatronics ghosts to the entry and exit line walls. Stretch the building over the area, position the blue arrow at queue lines and loading station. 10 Minutes and you are done. Track time and animatronics placement included.

Large Restaurant. Select style. Caribbean. Name restaurant than select assign button. Make the building a large Restaurant. Tables and chairs added to all levels first level no levels. Select how many stories the building will be. Select 2. Now select which side generic food counters are at. Than select what type of food they will serve patrons. Shrimp and soda. Now select where the building will go and stretch it over the area. The bigger the building the more tables and chairs inside. The bigger the building, the more attendants that will be working there. Position the blue arrow where you want the entrance and click add. Time to create is less than 3 minutes.

Hotel for Tower of Terror. Plop down the tower rides where you want them. Select the building generator. Select Early American. Select hotel from the list. Select creepy as building theme. Select cover ride. Stretch the building over the area you want and plop it down. Done. Time less than 2 minutes.

Disney Hotel and Monorail. Select Monorail or train and lay down tracks. In this case the monorails are selected and they are elevated. Place the tracks. When you are done with this. Go to the building generator and select the "Futuristic" building option. From this select the building meets tracks option. Now select how many stories the hotel will be. In this case 10 stories tall. Select the create generic rooms. Stretch the building at the edge of the monorail track. Make sure the blue arrow points at the station lines of the elevated monorail. Below that will be the main building entrance. Select add and click. The hotel was completed by itself in less than 2 minutes.

And this my friends is how the building generator can be applied and this is just the start.

Frontier would add a wickedly powerful tool to the game that would blow open the RCT3 doors. RCT3 is a new platform requiring new ideas and solutions. In placing the buildings you can place them at any horizontal angle. You could use a built in alignment manager to aid in getting that just right position. Frankly I think that this will become a major future add-on with this game.