Parents' Guide to Roller Coaster Tycoon 3

Game Windows 2005
Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 Poster Image

Common Sense Media Review

Jinny Gudmundsen By Jinny Gudmundsen , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 9+

A great amusement park simulation.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 9+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

age 6+

Based on 1 parent review

age 7+

Based on 20 kid reviews

Kids say that this game offers a fun and engaging experience for theme park simulation enthusiasts, with a wide variety of customization options and gameplay modes, including a sandbox mode that allows for creative freedom. However, users have noted issues with AI behaviors and controls that may frustrate younger players, with some claiming that earlier versions of the game are more enjoyable.

  • variety of gameplay
  • AI frustrations
  • creative freedom
  • controls difficulty
  • suitable for older kids
Summarized with AI

What's It About?

ROLLERCOASTER TYCOON 3 gives youngsters and their parents the opportunity to design and manage the amusement park of their dreams. But the third installment in this popular franchise also lets kids ride the coasters they've created and enjoy all the fun of their virtual amusement parks up close and personal from the viewpoint of a visitor. Youngsters construct amusement parks in a graphically rich 3-D environment with multiple camera views, and customize the park guests. Once they've finished designing a park, kids can ride or participate in any of the coasters and attractions from a first-person perspective.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say ( 1 ):
Kids say ( 20 ):

As with previous Tycoon installments, kids can play any of several challenging scenarios. For example, they might be asked to build a park on difficult terrain or one designed to attract lots of guests. Tycoon 3 also adds a new "SandBox" mode that gives kids unlimited funds to create the fantasy park of their dreams.

Parents, make sure your computer is powerful enough to run this game. It requires a PC with at least a 733-megahertz Pentium III processor and a 3-D video card, such as an ATI Radeon or NVIDIA GeForce 2 with at least 32 megabytes of video memory. Also, click update in the opening screen of the game to download the latest patches, which help to make the game play better and add bonus features.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about what kind of rides they enjoy designing. Do you like to create rides you would enjoy riding on? Or do you prefer to build wild thrill rides that go farther than you would in real life?

Game Details

  • Platform : Windows
  • Pricing structure :
  • Available online? : Not available online
  • Publisher : Atari
  • Release date : March 4, 2005
  • Genre : Simulation
  • ESRB rating : E
  • Last updated : October 9, 2025

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by

Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 Poster Image

What to Play Next

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate