Exhibits are compact enclosures for small animals: reptiles, amphibians, insects, spiders and small fish. In Planet Zoo 2 they're far more flexible than before. They can be aquariums, they can be sunk into paths, and they no longer need a direct staff path connection to work.
Exhibit types
- Exhibit boxes: rectangular, in several sizes, including corner pieces.
- Exhibit tubes: round, in small and large sizes. The small tube splits neatly into land and water for amphibians.
- Aquatic exhibits: any exhibit can become a fish tank.
- Pre-decorated exhibits: themed blueprints (tropical, for example) that already contain rocks and plants.
Placement tricks
- Sink exhibits into the ground or path with the "cut through path" option. Hidden glass and half-filled water turn a round exhibit into a pond.
- Raise exhibits into walls or plinths. Keepers still service them.
- Combine two corner exhibits, set their glass to none and add glass panes between them, and they read as one big tank.
- Back-to-back small exhibits let you show two species at different heights.
- An exhibit only needs about 51% of its spawn point inside to display the animal, which helps with tight custom builds.
Build a koi pond from exhibits
- Place a large round exhibit on a path, sunk so only the water shows.
- Hide the glass and fill the water halfway.
- Repeat with several overlapping exhibits and cover the seams with "fake water" cubes and rocks.
- Add koi. They only fit the larger exhibits; small tubes take smaller fish such as common rudd.
Limitations: exhibit water colour can't be changed (only real water can), and fake water doesn't ripple from fountains.
Which animals go in exhibits
Seen in exhibits so far: yellow anaconda, boa constrictor, poison dart frogs, fire salamander, giant Malaysian leaf insect, giant centipede, scorpions, Nile monitor, American bullfrog, giant slippery frog, Danube crested newt, tiger snail, plus exhibit fish such as clownfish, palette surgeonfish, moon jellies, African tigerfish, bannerfish, bluespine unicornfish, rainbowfish, common rudd, blunthead cichlid, Boeseman's rainbowfish, clown loach and giant gourami.
Exhibit care
- Temperature and humidity are set per exhibit. Tropical fish overheat moon jellies, which want 9–19 °C.
- Population: fast breeders like moon jellies, scorpions and centipedes trigger "habitat is too small". Quick release the extras.
- Cleanliness: fish disappeared from a 50%-clean exhibit. Keep keepers nearby.
- Old age: exhibit animals can die quietly. An empty exhibit still has education boards pointing at nothing.
Decorating exhibits
Vines are the star piece: they make rocks lush in seconds. Small plants for insect exhibits are limited at the moment, but branches and sticks work well. Mist sprayer pieces were not working reliably in early builds; standard mist effects work but only show from a distance.
Making a wall of exhibits look great
A row of identical glass boxes looks like a pet shop. A few ways to make each one feel special:
- Give each tank its own look. A dark natural cave for common rudd, a broken tree trunk for cichlids, bamboo for rainbowfish, a sunken boat with glowing portholes for an octopus display.
- Light each tank in its own colour. Planet Zoo 2's lighting is excellent; coloured tank lights make a dark aquarium hall glow at night.
- Make it look like separate rooms. Frame each exhibit differently so it feels like the animal has a bigger space behind it.
- Use pre-decorated exhibits as a starting point. Frontier's themed exhibit blueprints can be taken apart and reused.
- Add a custom info sign for each species. You can make your own sign graphics outside the game.
Building a reptile house
A rocky reptile area doesn't have to be a building:
- Place several pre-decorated tropical exhibits in a curve.
- Surround them with big rocks and cover the rocks in vines, which do most of the work.
- Raise some exhibits into the rock face at different heights.
- Leave open areas looking out onto palms or an aviary instead of closing every wall. It looks lovely.
- Hide donation boxes in the rock work near the windows.
Middle exhibits without a roof suit animals that can't climb or jump out, such as leaf insects.
Settings to check on every exhibit
- Temperature: tropical fish and moon jellies want very different temperatures.
- Humidity: reptiles and amphibians have a humidity need too. It's easy to forget.
- Water type: fresh or salt water for fish exhibits.
- Population: watch for "habitat is too small" as fast breeders multiply.