Quick answer #
Steam's store page calls Planet Zoo 2 "the sequel to the beloved zoo simulation game".[1] Frontier lists these as its headline changes:
- Fully aquatic and flying animals for the first time, with custom freshwater or saltwater aquariums and customisable aviaries.[2][3]
- Wildlife Reserves: large, customisable natural areas around the world where you release animals and run research and conservation projects.[3]
- Planet Hub: one global menu, available in every game mode, for managing your network of zoos and Wildlife Reserves.[4]
- A "generational leap" in the way terrestrial animals look and behave, improved creative tools and visuals, and new scenery themes.[2]
Planet Zoo 2 is not released yet (it launches October 13, 2026), so this page compares what Frontier and Steam have published, not hands-on play.[2]
Side by side #
| Planet Zoo (2019) | Planet Zoo 2 (2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| Release | November 5, 2019 on Steam[5] | October 13, 2026[2] |
| Platforms at launch | Windows on Steam[5] | PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S[2] |
| Aquatic animals | Fully aquatic species, custom aquariums (new)[3] | |
| Flying animals | Flying birds in customisable aviaries (new)[3] | |
| Wildlife Reserves | New: release animals into expansive reserves[3] | |
| Game modes | Career, Sandbox, Franchise, plus the new Planet Hub[4] | |
| Scenery themes | 4 new themes plus 5 returning from Planet Zoo[3] |
We leave a cell empty when the official pages we used do not describe that feature for the first game.
PC requirements compared #
| Planet Zoo minimum | Planet Zoo 2 minimum | Planet Zoo recommended | Planet Zoo 2 recommended | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 7 (SP1+)/8.1/10 64bit | Windows 10, 11 | Windows 10 64bit | Windows 11 |
| Processor | Intel i5-2500 / AMD FX-6350 | Intel i7-8700K / AMD Ryzen 5 3600 | Intel i7-4770k / AMD Ryzen 5 1600 | Intel i7-10700K / AMD Ryzen 7 5800X |
| Memory | 8 GB RAM | 16 GB RAM | 16 GB RAM | 16 GB RAM |
| Graphics | GeForce GTX 770 (2GB) / Radeon R9 270X (2GB) | GeForce RTX 2060 (6GB) / Radeon RX 5600XT (6GB) / Arc A750 (8GB) | GeForce GTX 1070 (8GB) / Radeon RX 580 (8GB) | GeForce RTX 3070 (8GB) / Radeon RX 6700XT (12GB) / Arc A770 (16GB) |
| Storage | 16 GB | 40 GB, SSD recommended | 16 GB | 40 GB, SSD required |
Both columns are taken from each game's Steam store page (GPU names shortened).[5][1] Our calculation: the minimum memory doubles from 8 GB to 16 GB and storage grows from 16 GB to 40 GB, 2.5 times as much. Full details and what Frontier says about frame rates are on our system requirements page.
Animals #
Frontier's FAQ says Planet Zoo 2 has a diverse roster "including flying and fully aquatic animals for the first time".[2] Steam's description names the Lion and the Western Chimpanzee among the "familiar favourites" that return.[1] The official Zoopedia lists 124 animals so far; see our full animal list.[6]
Dolphins, whales and porpoises are not in the game: Frontier explains it wants every animal to have an environment that reflects its needs and is watching conservation research on cetaceans.[2]
Paths, tools and the living world #
Frontier's features page mentions "easy-to-use pathing systems" alongside scaling, flexi-colour and new foliage and terrain brushes, and says zoos and Wildlife Reserves run "throughout the changing seasons, weather conditions and longer in-game years".[3] Whether paths are better than in the first game is something to judge after launch; Frontier has not published a direct comparison.
What happens to the original Planet Zoo? #
Frontier's support team will keep helping players with issues in Planet Zoo, but the development team is now focused on Planet Zoo 2.[2]
Sources & References #
- Planet Zoo 2 on Steam, About the Game and system requirements, checked Oct 3, 2026 ↩ 1, 2, 3
- Planet Zoo 2 Help and FAQ (official), "What's new in Planet Zoo 2?", launch, platforms, animals, cetaceans and original Planet Zoo answers, checked Oct 3, 2026 ↩ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
- Planet Zoo 2 Features (official), Awesome Aquatics, Frequent Flyers, Wildlife Reserves, Build & Manage and Themes sections, checked Oct 3, 2026 ↩ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
- Planet Zoo 2 Game Modes (official), checked Oct 3, 2026 ↩ 1, 2
- Planet Zoo on Steam, release date, platforms and system requirements, checked Oct 3, 2026 ↩ 1, 2, 3
- Planet Zoo 2 Zoopedia (official), animal count, checked Oct 3, 2026 ↩