If the Planet Zoo series has taught me anything it's that I'm rubbish at animals. Sure, I'm okay with the simple stuff - I do, you'll be relieved to hear, know the difference between an elephant and a flamingo - but the more exotic they get, the second we start dabbling in subspecies, the more clueless I am. That was one of the joys of the original Planet Zoo: a chance to discover a vibrant menagerie of unusual animals, all brought to wonderful life by developer Frontier's typically exquisite artistry. And after spending some early hours with Planet Zoo 2, it's this, as much as anything, that's kept me so completely enthralled.

Did you know, for instance, there's such a thing as a tree kangaroo? Until about 24 hours ago, I did not! But here comes the little fella (or a convincingly lifelike digital recreation of one, at least), bounding enthusiastically across his enclosure, tail whipping adorably as he twirls up his wooden climbing frame, hugging the beams as he goes. I've lost many a delighted minute watching ring-tailed lemurs scamper, or Asian small-clawed otters launching themselves off rocks into pools. I've seen Masai giraffes unfold themselves in a complicated dance as they ready to explore the African savanna, and Hawksbill turtles drifting serenely around my aquarium as manatees inquisitively probe the depths. And the birds! Aviaries are now a thing, meaning I've gawped as practically prehistoric Majestic shoebills show off their extraordinary wingspans. And, yes, it's made me curious enough to Google these fascinating creatures' real-world counterparts in turn, so hello education.

There is, of course, more to Planet Zoo 2 than just looking, but it's hard not to get distracted by such exotic sights, especially when it's all rendered so beautifully. Whatever you might say about Frontier's sims when you start digging deeper into the gameplay stuff, it's impossible to knock the studio's presentational skills. And Planet Zoo 2 gets to be even showier this time. That starts with the new nature reserves; vast stretches of land where animals can roam free. In Africa, hippos bake happily in muddy waters; zebras graze under the cool shade of trees; elephants roam in busy herds, while flamingoes preen in shallow pools. And there I am - in a feature borrowed from Frontier's so-so Jurassic World Evolution series - thundering across the savanna with giddy abandon as I take in the sights, my little jeep careening down slopes and splashing through the water. 'Stop!' I'm suddenly commanded early on in the tutorial, 'take some photos!' And honestly, when it all looks this lovely, why wouldn't you?

Photographs, when snapped on expeditions like these, earn research points. It's another feature borrowed from Frontier's dinosaur series, and to be honest, it feels just as arbitrary here. And while I've really only played for a fistful of hours at this point (certainly not enough to have formed a conclusive opinion), the sense I'm getting is that Planet Zoo 2's big new bullet-point features - much like Planet Coaster 2's underbaked delve into water parks - aren't exactly game-changing, although the new animal types are certainly welcome. Aquariums are essentially just wetter enclosures that need an attached filtration pump to keep them clean and appropriately salinated (freshwater fish aren't going to be too happy if your H2O's salty, and you'll need to keep an eye on temperature and depth too). Aviaries aren't much more involved; they're covered enclosures requiring roof supports so there's enough space for your birds to stretch their wings. As for your nature reserves, ecosystems are pre-defined areas on a larger map that behave like shared habitats with a few more steps - basically enclosures, just barrier-free.

I'm being a touch reductive here, admittedly, but none of this is really a criticism. Unlike the Planet Coaster series, which has always placed park customisation first and foremost, with management depth a very distant second, Planet Zoo 1 was already a far richer, more robust sort of tycoon game, and that carries through to its sequel. Animal welfare is, again, a substantial undertaking in itself as you navigate everything from enclosure management (creating appropriate biomes, ensuring sufficient enrichment, and so on) to breeding, health, and even trading. But then there's a whole other side, as the animal stuff dovetails elegantly into the more familiar logistics of park management.

As ever, you'll need to hire the right staff to keep your zoo clean and well-maintained, and you'll work to keep guests satisfied: fulfilling their food, drink, energy, bladder, and education needs so they leave happy enough that the next lot of visitors aren't going to baulk at your entry fee. Economy is actually important here! And given that happy animals means happy guests, the Ouroboros loop is complete. It's a substantial enough, satisfying enough balancing act that I'm not really concerned the new stuff - the aviaries, aquariums, and reserves - feels more like textural finesse than radical change. And to be honest, I was sold on aquariums the second I saw you could build an underwater tunnel, Jaws 3 style.

There's a lot of other stuff I really like too. The tutorial campaign, for one, is excellent; I remember getting lost quite quickly in the original Planet Zoo as it haphazardly tackled the very basics before leaving me to muddle through. Here, Frontier's charmingly voiced cast of recurring characters patiently and thoroughly introduce you to all the important bits in clear, logical fashion as you bound across biomes and continents. And the UI, although still a little fussy, feels more intuitive, more navigable too, especially if you're using a controller.

There are welcome new features like the nature brush - particularly handy for larger enclosures, when you don't have the stamina to place 300 trees one-by-one. And seasons are a lovely addition, powdering your park with snow or giving it a more autumnal hue - even if I'm not sure how meaningfully the weather affects the management side of things right now. Frontier also seems to have learned its lesson from Planet Coaster 2, which launched in such an anaemic state (now much improved after fan outcry) it felt like a cynical ploy to flog post-launch DLC. Here though, builders and aesthetes get a more generous nine themes to tinker with at launch, and 136 different species of animals - some from Planet Zoo 1, some from its DLC, and some new.

And really, it all comes back to those animals. Planet Zoo 2 - with its gently paced blend of creative tinkering, strategic experimentation, and stimulating problem-solving - is already a wonderfully chilled endeavour; the perfect tonic, frankly, after several weeks of Scottish trauma horror, extra-dimensional BDSM fiends, and French Revolutionary War bloodshed. But then something catches my eye. Perhaps it's an African Savannah elephant noodling at the water's edge, or a Toco toucan, cheerfully hopping away to adventures new. Maybe it's a Blacktip reefshark, or a Sumatran orangutan, or a North Sulawesi babirusa. Regardless, I'm compelled to stop and watch their delightfully realised antics unfold. And, hey, I suddenly think to myself, I finally got its name right. Education through adorable osmosis, and all that. Animals are cool!