Which platforms is Planet Zoo 2 on?
Planet Zoo 2 from Frontier Developments launched on October 13, 2026 at 16:00 CEST on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S at the same time. Physical editions for both consoles hit stores on October 20, 2026. There is no physical edition on PC.
| Platform | Where to buy | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| PC | Steam, Epic Games Store, Microsoft Store | Windows only |
| PS5 | PlayStation Store, physical disc | "PS5 Pro Enhanced" |
| Xbox Series X and Series S | Xbox Store, physical disc | Xbox Play Anywhere: buy on Xbox, play on PC too |
| Cloud | GeForce NOW, Xbox Cloud | you play a copy you own |
What is not available:
- PS4 and Xbox One: "There are no plans to bring Planet Zoo 2 to previous generation consoles."
- Switch and Switch 2: Frontier has no current plans for them.
- Mac and Linux: there will be no macOS version, and Steam lists Windows only.
- Game Pass and PS Plus: the game is not in either subscription. Frontier only says "We don't have anything to share", so this is no announcement rather than a no. Game Pass Essential, Premium or Ultimate lets you play in the cloud, but the Xbox Store adds "Game purchase required".
It is a single-player game. Franchise mode is online and needs a Frontier account, more in our multiplayer and co-op article. On Steam the game has full audio in 10 languages, including English.
How much does Planet Zoo 2 cost?
Frontier's list price: $49.99 / €49.99 / £39.99 for the Standard Edition and $64.99 / €64.99 / £54.99 for the Deluxe Edition. Steam prices on October 18, 2026, no discounts:
| Region (Steam) | Standard | Deluxe Edition | Deluxe Upgrade Pack |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poland | PLN 214.99 | PLN 279.99 | PLN 76.99 |
| USA | $49.99 | $64.99 | $17.99 |
| Germany, France, Spain, Italy | €49.99 | €64.99 | €17.99 |
| United Kingdom | £39.99 | £54.99 | £15.99 |
| Brazil | R$154.99 | R$199.99 | R$62.99 |
| Turkey (in US dollars) | $22.99 | $29.99 | $9.95 |
| Ukraine | ₴1,145 | ₴1,495 | ₴460 |
| Kazakhstan | ₸17,400 | ₸23,000 | ₸7,100 |
| Canada | CDN$59.99 | CDN$76.99 | CDN$21.75 |
| Australia | A$70.50 | A$90.95 | A$25.50 |
On Steam the Deluxe Edition is the game plus the Deluxe Upgrade Pack, $2.99 cheaper than buying both separately. We could not confirm PlayStation Store and Xbox Store prices in local currencies or the price of the physical editions. What Deluxe includes is in our Deluxe Edition article.
Console build limit: the complexity meter
Frontier's FAQ answers directly: yes, there is a build cap for console players. The console version has a complexity meter that is meant to ensure "the best possible performance no matter your hardware".
What Frontier has not said:
- how much of the meter animals, paths or scenery take up,
- whether PS5, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S have different limits,
- what the limit is on Series S. We found this value in no source we checked.
Push Square's reviewer on PS5: "Personally, I didn't even get close to the limit." A PS5 player on Reddit says a career level used 18% of the meter, "the most so far", and a new empty map used less. That is one player's report, not Frontier data.
Update 1.0.5 from October 16, 2026 removed an incorrect warning when loading a zoo at 100% complexity, without naming a platform.
In the console edition of the first Planet Zoo (2024), at 100% of the meter you could not add anything new and breeding was turned off. Frontier has not confirmed that Planet Zoo 2 works the same way.
Is there a limit on PC too?
Not known for sure. The FAQ mentions the meter only for consoles, and the 1.0.5 note about 100% complexity does not name a platform. Frontier has not said that PC has no meter.
Performance: 30 or 60 fps on consoles?
Frontier has not announced 30 or 60 fps modes, resolutions, or quality and performance modes for PS5, Series X and Series S. We have not found an independent frame rate test either. The Xbox Store lists "Optimized for Xbox Series X|S", 4K Ultra HD, HDR10, Ray Tracing and "Handheld Optimized", and the PlayStation Store lists "PS5 Pro Enhanced". Frontier has not explained what these mean in practice.
Xbox Achievements describes slowdowns while building habitats, with the frame rate chugging for a few seconds. A PS5 player on Reddit reports a lag spike after every item placed, and in the same thread players on PC and on an Xbox handheld report the same. Update 1.0.5 brought general performance and texture streaming improvements. Known issues: bugs and fixes.
Sites with "tests" of 4K and 60 fps modes on consoles show no measurements. Treat them as unconfirmed.
Gamepad, mouse and keyboard controls
On console you can play with a gamepad or a mouse and keyboard. The FAQ confirms it, and Push Square's reviewer tested mouse and keyboard on PS5. The official controls page shows the Xbox gamepad layout:
| Button | Action |
|---|---|
| LB / RB | Open Browser / Change Tab |
| LT / RT | Zoom Out / Zoom In |
| Left Stick / Right Stick | Move Camera / Pitch and Rotate camera |
| D-Pad | UI Navigation |
| A / B | Select / Cancel, Close, Deselect |
| X / Y | Secondary Action / Tertiary Action, Radial Menu |
| Menu / View | Zoo Management / HUB |
Reviewers say everything is mapped to the controller, but the menus are deeply nested. Push Square lists "Fiddly gamepad controls" as a downside, and Xbox Achievements gave playability 65%. Update 1.0.4 added deleting a whole multi-selected group with a single key, and 1.0.5 fixed "Edit Media" and "Advanced Move" on gamepad.
Frontier Workshop and cross-save
The Frontier Workshop works across platforms: you share your creations and download other players' parks and blueprints "across platforms". Creations on the Workshop site carry PSFIVE, XSERIESX and WINDOWS badges, so it is one shared library.
You save a blueprint from a selection (Save Selection as Blueprint) and upload it with Create and Upload Blueprint. A whole Sandbox zoo goes up through the Sandbox Hub and Upload to Workshop. You download other players' work with Install Blueprint. Frontier has not said how the console meter counts downloaded blueprints.
Frontier has not announced cross-save. The Xbox Store lists "Xbox cloud saves" and Xbox Play Anywhere, but nobody has officially described moving saves between PC and console or between PS5 and Xbox.
Console patches
Consoles do not get separate patch numbers: the notes split changes into "PC", "PS5" and "PS5 & XBS" sections. Update 1.0.4 from October 14, 2026 fixed missing player info in Franchise Animal Trading on PS5, and on PS5 and Xbox the career cutscene audio when opening the system menu. Update 1.0.5 from October 16, 2026 improved Franchise stability, crashes and gamepad controls. With it, Frontier admitted that game stability has been below what it expected.
PC and Steam Deck
Frontier promises above 30 fps on Medium at minimum specs and 30 fps on High at recommended specs. The game is CPU-bound: according to Frontier, changing graphics settings does not affect the frame rate.
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10, 11 (64-bit) | Windows 11 |
| CPU | Intel i7-8700K / Ryzen 5 3600 | Intel i7-10700K / Ryzen 7 5800X |
| GPU | RTX 2060 / RX 5600XT / Arc A750 | RTX 3070 / RX 6700XT / Arc A770 |
| RAM and storage | 16 GB, 40 GB, SSD recommended | 16 GB, 40 GB, SSD required |
The game is Steam Deck Verified (announced September 14, 2026). First-time setup needs an internet connection, and update 1.0.5 fixed connecting to the server on Proton 11 and newer.
Review scores on PC and consoles
| Site | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic PC | 85/100 (16 reviews) |
| Metacritic PS5 | 84/100 (4 reviews) |
| OpenCritic | 83, 88% of critics recommend |
| Steam | 63% positive, "Mixed" (4,530 reviews) |
| PlayStation Store (USA) | 4.47/5 (135 ratings) |
On Xbox Series X Metacritic has no score yet (3 reviews). Console reviews: Push Square 9/10 (PS5), Metro 8/10 (PS5), Xbox Achievements 70%. If you are just starting, read our beginner's guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is Planet Zoo 2 on PS4 or Game Pass?
No. Frontier has no plans for PS4 and Xbox One, and the game is not in Game Pass: you have to buy it.
Does Series S have a smaller build limit than Series X?
Unknown. Frontier has not given numbers for any console.
Can I play with a friend on PC, and is there cross-save?
There is no multiplayer, and cross-save has not been announced. Only the Frontier Workshop works across platforms. We will update this article when Frontier clarifies it.
