Franchise Mode Online Guide#
Franchise: This Game’s Long-Term Home Base#
Franchise mode is Planet Zoo 2’s online management mode for long-term players: you run your own zoo while connecting to Planet Hub — Frontier’s online platform — sharing one conservation economy with zoos around the world.
Of the four modes, Franchise is the “something to do every week” one: community challenges refresh weekly, the animal market flows globally, and research progress is shared online. If you plan to put hundreds of hours into this game, this is your home base.
What Planet Hub Shares#
| Shared Content | Description | What It Means for You |
|---|---|---|
| Conservation Credits | A globally circulating resource earned from releases and conservation results | Returns from reserve releases enter the global system |
| Animal trading | A global player-to-player animal market | A source of animals and an outlet for surplus individuals |
| Research progress | Species research shared online | Less duplicate research, faster path to Thriving |
| Community challenges | Global goals refreshed weekly | Milestone rewards and a weekly rhythm |
Franchise requires an internet connection — the core difference from Challenge mode (offline-capable, uses the in-game animal market). Players with unstable connections should choose Challenge mode directly; the management core is the same (comparison in Challenge and Sandbox Mode Guide).
Conservation Credits: The Backbone of the Online Economy#
Conservation Credits are Franchise mode’s special resource, with a closed loop of earning and spending:
Earning Side#
- Reserve releases: releasing qualifying animals into the wild is the core source of Conservation Credits (workflow in Wildlife Reserves and Release Guide).
- Conservation projects and community challenges: take on global conservation projects and join the global milestones of weekly challenge themes.
- Release quality: the better an individual’s welfare and thriving status, the higher its conservation value — the welfare system feeds the credits system directly.
Spending Side#
Conservation Credits are spent within the Planet Hub system on animal trading and similar uses; specific exchange rates and pricing values are subject to the game, and this page cites no unverified numbers.
What It Means for Management#
“Breed → raise to thriving → release → credits → acquire rare species” is Franchise mode’s core resource loop. Every link has its own page: Breeding and Genetics, Welfare and Thriving, Reserve Releases.
Animal Trading: Playing the Global Market#
Planet Hub’s animal market links the breeding output of every player into one economy:
| Scenario | How to Play |
|---|---|
| Fresh bloodlines | When local herds need new blood, buy from the market |
| Export surplus | List surplus bred individuals for sale for cash or credits |
| Rare species | Use accumulated credits and cash to win high-value species |
| Compliant disposal | Individuals that won’t sell and don’t fit exhibits go through reserve releases |
Market prices fluctuate with supply and demand; check comparable individuals before listing. Thriving, healthy individuals with good bloodlines are the most sought-after — the market’s pricing engine is ultimately the welfare system.
Shared Research Progress#
Franchise research progress is shared online, which means: you don’t need to research every species from zero — the global research network is your backup. Strategically:
- Concentrate local research resources on your main species lines to reach thriving fast.
- Leave research gaps in niche species to the global network.
- Research progress links with the Zoopedia knowledge system and is a shared prerequisite for welfare and releases (see Education, Conservation and Five-Star Reputation).
Community Challenges: The Weekly Global Ritual#
Community challenges are Franchise mode’s weekly metronome:
| Theme | Content | How to Take Part |
|---|---|---|
| ‘Grasslands’ releases | Global milestone focused on releasing grassland species | Set up grassland-species breeding and release lines early |
| ‘Bred ’n’ Water’ breeding | Global milestone focused on breeding aquatic species | Scale aquarium capacity and species research accordingly |
The two launch themes map exactly onto the game’s two big new systems (reserve releases and the aquarium). Participation essentials:
- Read the objective before planning output: challenges require global shared milestones; your contribution comes from output in the matching direction.
- Weekly refresh: add “check this week’s challenge theme” to your weekly routine (checklist in Getting Started).
- Rewards alongside normal output: challenge actions (releases, breeding) are already part of routine operations — don’t disrupt your park’s rhythm for the challenge.
Franchise Opening Rhythm#
- Pick your park’s focus (main species lines); keep the opening to 2–3 species.
- Get the welfare–reputation–income inner loop running (see Getting Started and Economy and Ticket Pricing Strategy).
- Unlock the reserve, complete the first release, and plug into the credits system.
- Start trading on the animal market and build a stable “breed–export” pipeline.
- Join the weekly community challenges and settle into the global system’s normal operation.
Common Problems Quick Reference#
| Symptom | Check First |
|---|---|
| Low Conservation Credit income | Release frequency, release quality, challenge participation |
| Can’t get a good market price | Individual thriving status, market supply and demand |
| Slow research progress | Local research too scattered, use of the shared network |
| Challenge contribution stuck | Theme direction mismatched with park output lines |