A complete guide to Australia, in the format of my personal regional Australian DLC WISH LIST!
So with the absolute scale of the PZ2 roster, and what seems like most of the original animals returning alongside all the new additions, it got me thinking: if all the obvious animals are already in the game, what will the DLCs look like? My mind went to lots of super localised or themed specific DLC packs**!** That led me to try to create the ultimate, all-encompassing DLC roster for Australia.
Honestly, I find it kind of naff that an entire continent, with basically every biome type bar two, so often gets boiled down to the same environment and the same handful of animals. So instead of another Australia Pack spending half its roster going back over the Australian superstars, I wanted to dig into the overlooked, incredible and often just weird little guys that I think deserve some of the limelight.
That idea is also pretty personal for me. I come from a part of Australia that is very far removed from the stereotypical image of kangaroos, koalas, emus, dingoes and red dirt, and it gets very little representation in media. Growing up around flora and fauna that feels completely different from what people usually picture when they think “Australia” is probably a big part of why I decided to spend probably a good 5/10 hours figuring out and wanted to see just how much of the country could actually be represented!
How I worked out the regions?
Basically, I started with really rough regions, basically the areas I know are distinct enough and far away enough that could realistically stand on their own:
- FAR NORTH WA(Kimberly/sharks bay area)
- SOUTHWESTERN WA(jarrah and karri forests and the kelp forests)
- FAR NORTH TROPICAL QLD
- NORTHERN TERRITORY(Savanah and mangroves)
- SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND
- NSW VICTORIA TASMANIA
- OUTBACK
However, I knew this would be far too broad for what I was going for, so I went through the larger Macroregions and looked for Environmental Ecoregions and any additional ones I might have missed. So, for instance, Far North WA became the Pilbara+Nigaloo and the Kimberly. This new list is as follows:
Far North WA →:
- Kimberley
- Pilbara–Shark Bay–Ningaloo
South-Western WA →:
- South-Western WA
Far North Tropical Queensland →:
- Cape York–Torres Strait
- Wet Tropics–Great Barrier Reef
Northern Territory →:
- Top End–Arnhem Land–Gulf of Carpentaria
- parts of Central Outback–Channel Country
Southern Queensland → expanded into:
- South-East Queensland–Northern NSW Gondwana Rainforests
- parts of Murray–Darling–Riverina
- parts of Central Outback–Channel Country
NSW → expanded into:
- NSW Temperate East
- Murray–Darling–Riverina
- South-East Queensland–Northern NSW Gondwana Rainforests
- Australian Alps–Victoria
Victoria → expanded/refined into:
- Australian Alps–Victoria
- Murray–Darling–Riverina
Tasmania →
- Tasmania (surprise Pikachu)
Outback → expanded into:
- Central Outback–Channel Country
New regions added:
- Kangaroo Island–South Australian Coast
- Australian Oceanic Islands
Basically
- Does this area actually have a strong enough ecological identity?
- Can I get 8ish interesting animals out of it without just stealing everything from neighbouring packs?
- Would building a zoo or section of a zoo around it actually feel unique, interesting, and fun?
Because there isn't much point making 14 packs if six of them are basically "dry eucalyptus woodland but slightly to the left".
How I chose the animals
The animal selection was basically a mixture of four things.
I wanted animals that were really representative of that particular region, genuinely local or endemic animals where possible, some of the big classic Australian animals that obviously still need to appear somewhere, and animals that could add something interesting mechanically and behaviourally in game.
However, as mentioned above, I still wanted to add the big hitters, although I fully expect a kangaroo or koala to be in base PZ2; I was going off what we hard know in the game. I also was trying to be a little bit real with what I think Frontier would add if they made these packs. So I couldn’t make every pack full of absolutely super niche animals. So you still get animals like koalas, red kangaroos, dingoes, wombats, platypus and emus. They just get put into the pack where I think they fit best.
While I tried to keep things as endemic to the region as possible, it’s the reality of well, real life is a bit different. Nature doesn’t care about our arbitrarily defined regions, not to mention how on earth I would have found aquatic and flying animals that weren’t in multiple areas. If something could fit into three different packs, I generally put it wherever I thought it best represented the region or made that particular roster stronger.
I was also trying to find quite striking animals; whether that was exceptionally cute, exceptionally bold markings, or any other distinctive feature. I also didn't force every DLC to have the same balance. Some parts of Australia are naturally better for birds. Some have insane reptile diversity. Some are dominated by freshwater animals. Ningaloo SHOULD have more marine life than the Red Centre; that should all go without saying.
Another aspect was that I completely ignored the actual real-world logistics and history of certain animals in zoos. Let's be real guys, it’s a video game. Having these animals in-game isn’t going to hurt them. While for a majority of players this game may be the only way to experience the animal. So, I would rather someone find a new favourite animal, a love for a specific region, or develop an interest than stay 100% true to life.
Additionally, I tried to include at least 1: mammal, reptile, bird, aquatic creature, invertebrate where possible. Not only to highlight lesser-represented animals but to give a true sense of the real ecosystems I was representing
Also, I deliberately allowed multiple different macropods and possums; zoos can have every deer species under the sun, and 2 different giraffe species. We can have a bit more diversity in macropods and marsupials.
The packs
Red Centre Pack
This is absolutely one of two stereotypical packs, but they had to come somewhere. If the red kangaroo, dingo and emu live somewhere, the huge open grasslands, spinifex and red desert of central Australia feels like the obvious home for them.
But I didn’t want it to just be the pack of animals everyone already knows; I wanted to make sure I included animals I found significant and emblematic of the area: The greater bilby, perentie and thorny devil take it much further into the actual wildlife of the interior, while budgerigars and the letter-winged kite give the skies something other than another big ground bird.
I particularly like the budgie here because while familiar, when put into a reserve setting or even in a large Aviary with 10s to 100s of them, it would be like a moving rainbow across your screens.
Remote Islands Pack
This one is a bit of an outlier because rather than representing an Ecoregion I was still looking at the broader geographic region. However, the lack of land mammals and Island biology are a uniting force within this pack.
Australia has tropical islands, temperate islands and territories stretching all the way into the subantarctic, and they have produced some bizarre wildlife. Things like the enormous Lord Howe Island stick insect, robber crab and Christmas Island red crab, which really lean into that isolated-island weirdness.
The red crab is the obvious behavioural standout. Their enormous seasonal migration from the forest towards the coast is so fundamental to Christmas Island that, if PZ2 ever gets ambitious with mass or seasonal behaviour, this feels like an absolute standout animal to use it on.
Southern Shores Pack
From the very beginning of conceptualising this region, I knew its sea life would be the real showstoppers; its terrestrial animals largely could be added to other packs or substituted; however, there are no substitutions for its two heavy hitters: the giant Cuttlefish and the Leafy Sea dragon.
Huge numbers gather in South Australia’s Spencer Gulf during the breeding season, with males rapidly shifting colours and patterns as they display and compete for mates. Even without adding some completely new game system, capturing those changing colours and displays could make them feel completely different from a normal aquarium animal.
The leafy sea dragon is impressive for almost the complete opposite reason. Rather than being bold and constantly displaying, almost its entire appearance is built around disappearing into its environment. Those elaborate leaf-like appendages make it look more like a piece of drifting seaweed than an animal, and watching one slowly move through a kelp or seagrass habitat would be incredibly striking. They also have the wonderfully weird seahorse-family trait of the male carrying the eggs, so there is another genuinely distinctive behaviour Frontier could potentially represent.
Between the cuttlefish’s colour-changing displays and the sea dragon’s almost absurd camouflage, I think these two could make this one of the strongest marine packs in the entire lineup.
Tasmanian Island Wilderness Pack
Obviously, the Tasmanian devil had to appear somewhere. What I didn’t want was for the rest of Tasmania to disappear behind it. Again, while the terrestrial mammals of the pademelon and quoll are in my opinion charismatic fauna, the coolest addition lies under the water.
The Giant freshwater crayfish is the largest crayfish on the planet (80 cm and 6kg). Extremely rare, and not well-known, I really feel it could be an absolute showstopper with the right updates to exhibits.
The other exhibit highlight in my opinion would be the spotted Handfish, endemic to the area It spends much of its time moving along the seabed using its modified fins rather than simply swimming around like most fish, which gives it something immediately different visually and behaviourally. While probably not a superstar for normies, I can see this one becoming a cult favourite.
Australian Alps–Victoria Pack
This one covers a bigger environmental range than most of the others, so rather than fighting that I tried to make the roster follow it. Honestly, while I really like what I was able to pick im sure there are a bunch of other animals I could pick
You start high in the Alps with the mountain pygmy-possum, southern corroboree frog and bogong moth, then move down into Victorian forest and grassland with Leadbeater’s possum, the helmeted honeyeater and grassland earless dragon.
In all honesty, this was the hardest one; the animals here, while beautiful, are often a lot smaller, less striking, or not suited for a game.
Bush & Coast Pack
Here we have the 2^(nd) part of the stereotypical pack; it’s the most likely thing that comes to mind if you think Australia and you don’t see desert. However, I still tried to keep it a little unique; the bare-nosed wombat and spotted-tailed quoll help with that, while more iconic animals bulk the rest of the roster: laughing kookaburra, broad-headed snake and Sydney funnel-web.
The superb lyrebird is where I think Frontier could have a lot of fun. The huge tail and display already make it visually impressive, but the mimicry is the interesting part. Even something relatively simple, like individuals picking up calls from other nearby species, would make it feel much more alive than just giving it another generic bird call.
Murray Riverlands Pack
This one was a little bit trickier; honestly, it really started with the Platypus and I kind of worked everything around it. After some shuffling around, I got a good roster that works well as representative of the river system.
Platypus and rakali around the riverbanks, squirrel gliders in the surrounding woodland, brolgas and Australasian bitterns moving through the floodplains and wetlands, and then Murray cod, Murray crayfish, turtles and southern bell frogs living in the waterways themselves.
There isn’t really one animal I need to sell as the centrepiece here. The appeal is being able to find interesting spots for each of the animals to bulk out and improve aquatic theming.
Gondwana Rainforests Pack
When people picture Australian wildlife, this probably isn't what they picture. Dense subtropical rainforest, huge old trees, mountain streams, gliders moving through the canopy and giant lizards crawling around the forest floor.
The koala gives the pack an obvious familiar face, but I think the regent bowerbird, greater glider, and long-nosed potoroo are more important for establishing what kind of Australia this is.
I also really wanted the freshwater animals to carry that ancient rainforest feeling. The Australian lungfish fits almost absurdly well alongside the Mary River turtle and Mary River cod. In my opinion, they are really the show stealers with how prehistoric the lungfish feels and how cool the Mary River turtle is.
Arnhem Monsoon Wilds Pack
The black wallaroo is probably one of the best examples of why I wanted to go this regional in the first place. It isn't remotely as famous as the red or grey kangaroos, but it is such a strong Arnhem Land animal that once I came across it there was basically no chance it wasn't making the roster.
The antilopine wallaroo gives the pack another distinctly northern macropod, but this is probably one of the strongest reptile and bird packs as well. Oenpelli python, frilled-neck lizard, magpie goose and Gouldian finch all immediately feel like northern Australia. Then the barramundi and spear-tooth shark bring in those massive tropical waterways.
Wet Tropics–Great Barrier Reef Pack
This one almost feels like cheating. Some of Australia’s oldest tropical rainforest sitting right beside the Great Barrier Reef, so the entire concept is already doing half the work for me.
On land you get the southern cassowary, Lumholtz’s tree-kangaroo and musky rat-kangaroo, with Victoria’s riflebird, Boyd’s forest dragon and the Cairns birdwing making the rainforest even more ridiculous.
Then step into the aquatic section, and suddenly there is an enormous Queensland grouper, giant clam and giant triton.
Rainforest on one side. Coral reef on the other. Huge birds, tiny marsupials, dragons, butterflies, giant fish and enormous molluscs all coming out of the same little corner of Queensland. Honestly id imagine the décor pieces in this would be wild.
Tropical Frontier Pack
Cape York and Torres Strait are where Australia starts feeling much less isolated from the rest of the tropics. It genuinely feels like the land time forgot.
Animals like the Australian spotted cuscus, Bennett’s tree-kangaroo, Australian eclectus parrot and green tree python. If your idea of Australian fauna begins and ends with wombats and kangaroos, this roster looks almost like it came from somewhere else entirely.
Then there is the palm cockatoo, which deserves a bit more attention because the behaviour is genuinely amazing. Males manufacture their own little drumming tools and beat them against hollow trees as part of their displays. This is a behaviour that translates super well to the game, and I think would be very cool in any zoo!
Ningaloo Wilds Pack
Ningaloo has one of my favourite contrasts in the whole project.
On land you have this incredibly dry, rugged part of north-west Australia, animals that look like others found in the rest of the country. But in colourations and patterns unlikely to have been seen elsewhere
However, the water is where the pack really shines. The whale shark is clearly the showstopper here. It is enormous, instantly recognisable and so strongly associated with Ningaloo that I can't imagine making the pack without it. However, the dugong is my personal favourite. Although smaller than their northern hemisphere cousins, I personally think they look cooler; I hope they genuinely make it in the game because I’m sure most people don’t know they exist.
Western Wilds Pack
This is probably the pack that most directly represents why I wanted to do the project in the first place.
South-western WA has an absurd amount of distinctive wildlife, but it gets swallowed up constantly by the generic international image of “Australian bush”.
The numbat and quokka are the obvious headliners, and I’m not going to pretend otherwise, but the western ground parrot, Carnaby’s black-cockatoo and western swamp tortoise are more representative of what I wanted these hyper-local packs to uncover.
Then the turtle frog looks like someone compressed a frog until all the normal frog proportions disappeared, the hairy marron gives us a genuinely western freshwater animal, and the ruby sea dragon takes the pack out onto the southern coast.
It’s exactly the kind of roster where I’d love someone unfamiliar with WA to realise all of this comes from the same part of Australia.
Kimberley Pack
The Kimberley was one of the most interesting regions to investigate; enormous sandstone escarpments, monsoonal woodland, rocky islands, tropical rivers and remote coastline already make it feel completely different from the much drier Pilbara immediately south.
The Monjon is probably the best animal in the entire project for explaining what I was trying to achieve with these packs. It looks very similar to what is already extremely well known while also feeling completely different. While the other animals help make it feel quite diverse and interesting.
Obviously, I do not seriously expect Frontier to release fourteen Australian DLC packs hahaha. This was just my way to in depth dlc Wishlist for my country done in a fun way 😊. There were also heaps of animals I liked that got cut simply because something else represented the region better or could bring a more interesting behaviour.
My actual hope is much smaller.
If Frontier ever sees posts like this, I hope it shows there is a LOT more Australian wildlife to choose from than the same handful that tend to appear in every game, TV show, movie, cartoon, or book. Especially with birds and aquariums becoming much more important, there is so much room to make some properly cool choices.
(i hope this is aloud its wednesday where i live)