RollerCoaster Tycoon/Thrill Rides

The more exciting counterpart to flat rides, thrill rides are categorized as attractions that have a higher intensity and nausea rating than gentle rides. How high those stats are depends on the ride and the variables are much higher compared to gentle rides. A downside is that a good chunk of these rides will cause guests to vomit with a nausea rating that can end up going above 5 in some circumstances. Only two rides are classified as indoors, which can be useful for rainy parks. A couple of rides like the Go Karts and Whoa Belly can give great stats and profits if built right and can draw in guests almost as well as a roller coaster.

3D Cinema
Cost: $560 Size: 3 by 3 Indoor: Yes Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

A theatre with a large, spherical dome covered by a triangular mesh. A maximum of 20 guests can watch one of three movies that you can set with this attraction: Mouse Tails, Storm Chasers, and Space Raiders (or Alien Invaders in EU). Each movie has slightly different stats, but overall, it isn't too significant. It's a great ride to have while it's raining and its decent stats along with low nausea makes for a decent price of admission, though its novelty can wear off after a year or so.

Enterprise
Cost: $800 Size: 4 by 4 Indoor: No Appearance: Loopy Landscapes

The Enterprise is the largest flat ride in this category at 4 by 4 squares. It consists of a wheel with 16 pods that spins fast and gradually tilts up. It's an exciting and intense ride, but very nauseating as well with the default 12 rotations causing a nausea rating around 7.60. It's highly recommended to put some benches and a handyman nearby to mitigate the puke, but otherwise you can charge quite a lot to ride it.

Go Karts
Cost: $920 upwards Size: Variable Max Height: 29 ft Indoor: No Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

A real cheap moneymaker, the Go Karts ride simply has tarmac road and up to a dozen karts depending on the length of the station. With its tiny turns and option to set the number of laps, you can make a short track with only four turns or a long circuit that weaves around trees and hills. Either way, it'll be one of your more popular rides with an excitement rating that can go from 5 to 9. The only downside is that building at least 3/8s of the track underground will divide the excitement by 2.

There are two modes: race mode and continuous circuit mode. The former will have guests race each other in a set number of laps until one wins. The winner will perform one victory lap afterward. The other mode has one or two cars at the front drive off and make one lap around the track instead of all cars. It's recommended to use race mode for short to medium tracks as it goes through guests much faster while continuous circuit is more suited for very long raceways.

Gravitron
Cost: $580 Size: 3 by 3 Indoor: No Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

The Gravitron (or Top Spin in the EU version) is a gondola sandwiched between two rotating arms. It comes with three operating modes: Beginner, Intense, and Berserk. The more intense modes can bump up all three stats significantly, but even the Beginner mode causes a lot of puke with a nausea rating in the high 5s. Incidentally, the Berserk Mode makes Gravitron one of the few flat rides that will be ridden in parks that only have intense-seeking guests like Adrenaline Heights.

Motion Simulator
Cost: $440 Size: 2 by 2 Indoor: Yes Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

The smallest flat ride of all the thrill rides and a covered ride at that, the Motion Simulator is a simulator vehicle on a hydraulic arm that shakes it up. There are only two shows with slightly different stats for both of them: Avenging Aviators and Thrill Riders. Very compact, popular in the rain, and cheap to build, Motion Simulators can really come in handy if you're low on space but need a ride more thrilling than a Spiral Slide.

Roto-Drop
Cost: $880 upwards Size: 3 by 3 Indoor: No Appearance: Corkscrew Follies

Roto-Drop has a ring of seats around a circular tower. The seats slowly go up to the top and then drop down very quickly until it breaks at the station. It is very similar to the Whoa Belly as a cheap tower ride with great stats to match. The main differences between the two are that the Roto-Drop can hold 16 guests to the Whoa Belly's 8, but the ride is much slower and slightly more expensive than the Whoa Belly. Regardless, it's very good at making money at a low construction cost.

Scrambled Eggs
Cost: $360 Size: 3 by 3 Indoor: No Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

Scrambled Eggs (known as the Twister in the EU version) is a spinning ride where three pairs of seats are lifted and rotated by three metal arms. With a maximum capacity of 18 and the cheapest construction price of all thrill rides, it's a decent ride to build when starting out. The rotations start at 9 but can be increased in sets of 3 to 18. Despite this, the excitement stat barely goes above 2 at 18 rotations, making the stats pretty paltry compared to other rides.

Swinging Inverter Ship
Cost: $424 Size: 1 by 4 Indoor: No Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

A smaller and more intense version of the Swinging Ship, the Swinging Inverter Ship has its vehicle connected to one rotating arm that can swing it up to a full rotation. The stats are much better with the default 9 rotations giving an excitement rating of 3. However, it's also more nauseous than the Swinging Ship, so keep benches and handymen nearby. The entrance and exit can only be built on one side, so be sure the side with the boarding platform can be accessed. Rotations can go as low as 7 or high as 15.

Swinging Ship
Cost: $387 Size: 1 by 5 Indoor: No Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

The Swinging Ship is another ride you'll usually find already unlocked in some scenarios. The ship is suspended by supports and swung around by a set number (the default being 11 swings). Like Scrambled Eggs, it's a cheap, easy ride to build and perfect for starting out in an empty park. The stats are decent, but nothing spectacular, with the default swings having all test ratings at 2. The amount of swings can be lowered to 7 or increased to a ludicrous 25.

Whoa Belly
Cost: $800 upwards Size: 3 by 3 Indoor: No Appearance: RollerCoaster Tycoon

Known as the Launched Freefall in the EU version and RCT2, the Whoa Belly is a tower ride where a vehicle is launched up by pneumatic cylinders and then drops down by gravity. How fast the car shoots up is set by you. Be careful as cranking the speed too high will have the car fly off the tower and crash down. With how fast this ride operates, how easy it is to increase the intensity rating, and how cheap it is to build, this ride is effectively the best flat ride in the game. It not only goes through guests quickly, but it makes a lot of money doing so.

In Corkscrew Follies, an additional operating mode is added, Downward Launch. The vehicle will slowly go up to the top instead of launching up, then drop down suddenly. Although just as fun for guests, it goes much slower than the default launch mode, so it's not recommended to use this mode unless you want to switch things up.