The PS4 launch of the Two Point Hospital: Jumbo Edition is here, and we can’t wait for you to experience the huge amount of new content coming your way. This is by far the biggest release we’ve ever done, including four huge expansions, two massive item packs, and a free update with some of the most popular community requested features. There’s never been a better time to grab a stethoscope and start building your very own healthcare empire!
Head to the Pointy Mountains with local celebrity, Bartholomew F Yeti, in the Bigfoot expansion, blaze a sterilised trail through the tropical islands with Wiggy Silverbottom in Pebberley Island, or take on the latest and greatest challenges in the two newest expansions to hit consoles: Close Encounters and Off the Grid.
We know, we know… “Aliens in a hospital game?!”, “eco-warrior politicians in a hospital game!?” It’s probably fair to say you might have some questions before you jump in to solve mysterious alien conspiracies, or help the Mayor make the county green again… for the very first time. So why not grab a packet of the cheesiest gubbins you can find and put your feet up while some of our lovely designers, Harry Puttock and Sam Webley talk you through the new adventures that await you in our beloved little Two Point County.
Close encounters
Harry Puttock: Alien conspiracies might sound a little “out there” for a hospital sim game, but we really wanted to go for something a little more fantastical and push the boat out, which is exactly what we did for Close Encounters. The basis of the idea came from our Creative Director, Gary Carr after watching far too many conspiracy TV shows on Roswell, Area 51 and the like.
Sam Webley: Close Encounters has three brand new areas: there’s Goldpan, a small town where rumours of a UFO crash landing began, Camouflage Falls, a town that doesn’t really exist, housing a massive military base, and Chasm 24, a secret government facility. The levels really do go from strange happenings to full-blown government cover-ups as you get deeper and deeper into this crazy conspiracy.
Harry:Throughout the DLC you’ll be encountering lots of different space-themed illnesses. My personal favourite being Lack of Humanity, where you’re actually turning these aliens into people so they can integrate with society in Two Point County. It’s quite a nice twist, because the DLC starts by exposing these aliens that are trying to infiltrate your hospitals, and by the end of it you’re helping them stay here rather than sending them home.
Sam: You can’t talk about illnesses in Close Encounters without mentioning Bowhine though. Patients with this illness have become unenamoured with being human, opting to spend their time in fields pretending to be cows. You need to treat them before they get abducted by aliens! I’m not saying you should purposely not treat them… but it’s pretty fun to watch a UFO snatch someone dressed up as a cow.
Harry: There are some really cool new gameplay mechanics in this DLC as well, like the Robo-Janitors. In Chasm 24 (the game’s 24th level, did anybody get that…?) you’ll need your Robo-Janitors to maintain big mechanical stabilisers that prevent earthquakes and other bad things from happening in your hospitals. A lot of sci-fi technology seems very impressive, but you don’t always get a great sense of what it does. Sure, it has lots of lights, and an enormous button, but what’s it for? The Robo-Janitors are high-tech, but also immensely practical. Every Robo-Janitor has a unique name. My favourite is Sweepy Leroux. The finest brooms-man in Two Point County.
Sam: Don’t forget the actual aliens themselves. Part of your mission in Goldpan is to find aliens trying to infiltrate your hospital. You might notice patients acting strangely, perhaps they’ve not gone to reception or maybe they’re rummaging through bins (because we all know real-life aliens do that… right?), or their cloaking device glitches a little bit. If you see anything like that, you’ll need to send the “patient” home to expose the alien hiding in plain sight. It might seem a little mean, but if they go unnoticed, it can start to mess with your hospitals.
Off the Grid
In Two Point County, voter research has repeatedly suggested that the public’s number one concern is with the environment. To secure her place in office… ahem, we mean, to support the green-minded community, Two Point County’s ever-present mayor, Tabitha Windsock, founded the Department of Green Things. She recently discovered it pays to go green in this time of poor voter polling, so she goes on a campaign trail to tell the world she’ll provide healthcare for everyone participating in her initiative because frankly…the dead can’t vote.
Sam: The core idea for Off the Grid was environmentalism. The first level, Wanderoff, is almost like a big hippy-commune and focuses on health and wellbeing of staff, patients, and your hospital attractiveness to generate money. The second level, Old Newpoint, is a little town where people have opted for an older way of life, to the point where they’ll knock down old buildings and build newer ones to make them look older. In Old Newpoint you’ll grow your own food, which puts pressure on your hospital’s layout and size, as the food and water will require a lot of dedicated space in your hospitals. The final level, Windsock, is a giant eco-city that the Mayor has, very humbly, built using tax-payer’s money. Windsock City doesn’t rely on the usual means of power. Instead, you’ll need to build green energy machines to stay switched-on and self-sufficient. Each of your green energy machines, whether it’s a wind turbine, solar panel or hydro-dam, will increase the power capacity of the hospital.
Harry: I’m a big fan of the illnesses in Off the Grid, they’re all very earthy! A lot of camping and nature-based illnesses. I like Woodworms, where sufferers look like little wooden puppets, the cure for this is essentially being eaten and spat out by a giant whale. There’s Roadstool, Bodily Druids, Stumble Bum and my personal favourite, Chocolate Shorts. Forgive the expression, but I was sitting on Chocolate Shorts for about a year before managing to get it into the game.
Sam: It’s all about going green in Off the Grid. Ignoring that could lead to penalties. So, always remember to place lots of recycling bins, grow your own food in every level and place lots of greenery around the hospitals, otherwise you might find yourself losing money when an inspector comes your way!
We’re super excited for you to jump in and start building your very own healthcare empire, so what are you waiting for! The Two Point Hospital: Jumbo Edition is out today on PlayStation 4.
Scrub up, we’ll see you on the ward.
