Transportation I Feature Highlights #3 I Cities: Skylines II

Ah, transport. If you played Cities: Skylines, you might remember it as the dance of urban planning - sometimes a graceful waltz, and other times a dance akin to stepping on LEGOs in the dark. Who among us hasn't unleashed a chaotic snarl of buses, trains, and trams, creating a masterpiece that resembled spaghetti more than a transportation system? Ah, the memories, and the digital traffic jams.

But my fellow city-builders, Cities: Skylines II is here, and Colossal Order's new video, "Public & Cargo Transportation I Feature Highlights," has given us a sneak peek at what to expect. Buckle up, because we're about to take a wild ride!

Traffic AI I Feature Highlights #2 I Cities: Skylines II

Cities: Skylines II - Developer Insights

 Instead of listing the developer highlights individually, I thought I'd group them here and add each new at the end of the post as Colossal releases them.

Behind The Road Tools | Developer Insights #1 | June 22d, 2023

Managing Traffic | Developer Insights #2 | June 29th, 2023

Roads Tools I Feature Highlights #1 I Cities: Skylines II

Some interesting default features in the new Cities Skylines 2:

• All roads (except highways) will carry water, electricity and sewage lines
• Simplified roads upgrades
• Quick and easy city blocks creation
• Pre-made intersections
• Quickly add roundabouts 
• Sound barries, parking lots, and more!

Mastering the Art of Realistic Slopes: The Ultimate Cities Skylines Design Guide!

Strictcoaster's tutorial video provides a comprehensive guide to designing realistic slopes in Cities Skylines. 

He covers various techniques to help players create stunning city layouts, starting with examples of unrealistic slopes to avoid. The video then delves into specific slope design tips, including using slopes for tunnels, combining terraforming and bridges, creating smooth slopes for overpasses and bridges, building road switchbacks, and designing tall inclines for railroads. 

This tutorial is perfect for anyone looking to take their Cities Skylines design skills to the next level.

Transform Your Cities: Skylines City into a Realistic Metropolis with These 9 Must-Have Mods

As you may have realized by now, I think that Cities: Skylines is a fantastic game! It allows players to create and manage their own virtual city in all of its complexity and beauty. Well, kinda for the latter part since making your city look realistic can be a challenge without the right mods. Luckily, there are several mods available on the Steam Workshop that can help you achieve a more realistic look. 

In this article, and based on the very helpful video from Gaseous Stranger, I'll list some of the best mods for Cities: Skylines that will help you make your city look more realistic. You should also check out his full Visual Mod list in the Workshop.

The Top (and Best) Must Have "Cities: Skylines" Mods

(Screenshot via reddit)

Mods provide players with more customization options, allowing them to create a city that is truly unique and personalized. City builders can add new buildings, props, vehicles, and other assets to their city, making it more diverse and interesting, as well as add new functionality to the game, providing players with more tools and features to work with. For example, traffic management mods can help players control and optimize traffic flow in their city, while building and asset mods can provide more options for construction and decoration.

So here's my list of the Top 15 Best Mods to use while playing Cities: Skylines - I've linked each to their Steam Workshop.

Top 10 Tips & Tricks on starting a new city in Cities: Skylines!

(Image via BBC News article: "Video game Cities Skylines helps plan Stockholm development")

Starting a new city on a fresh map in Cities: Skylines can often times be a daunting experience. Hell, even after start fresh dozens of times I'm still sometimes overwhelmed by a blank map. Here my top 10 tips when starting on a new map and planning for building a successful city build.

1. Start small: Starting with a small city is the best way to gain experience and learn the game mechanics. You can gradually expand your city as you become more familiar with the game, and avoid becoming overwhelmed.
   

New "Cities: Skylines" post series!

(Screenshot of rollthelofr's Hanami Bay city, via reddit)

I am excited to announce the start of a new post series dedicated to Cities: Skylines, in which I've invested almost 500 hours in the last few years. In this series, I will be sharing video tutorials from some of the best players in the community.

For those who don't know, Cities: Skylines is a modern take on the classic city-building game genre, where players are tasked with creating and managing their own virtual cities. The game offers a wide range of features, including zoning, transportation, public services, and more. With its complex and in-depth gameplay, Cities: Skylines has quickly become a favorite among players, both new and experienced. It's been a sort of addictive - almost meditative - experience for me.

Cities Skylines Tutorials: Building a Subway or Metro System

City Planner Plays' Subway / Metro System Tutorial