Cities: Skylines (the Sim City we deserve)

[eran0004]

Working on a new asset, this one is a bank from 1877. On the StreetView photo you might recognize another one of my assets in the background



Edit: The model is taking shape. Here is a render where I've projected the blueprint onto the model as a bump map. Looks a like a plaster cast. The windows are just flat planes right now, there'll be some more depth to the model when they've actually been sunken into the walls.

 

[eran0004]

The main model is nearly finished. Will end up below 5000 tris when all is said and done, which is pretty good given the level of detail. Most of the details is actually the normal map, I figured out I could increase the texture resolution quite a lot without increasing the file size, since the building is symmetric. So instead of texturing the entire wall I'm just texturing half of it and then mirroring it.

 

[MatskiMonk]

I've been fiddling. The area within the loop made my the East/West and North/South railways has been developed into a recreational sports area.

Since the town is only at 1000 people so far, it's not that busy, but the trams are being used at least. So far, I'm aiming for trams for leisure and tourism, and buses for eductation and work.

The residential still looks like crap and I can't build much commercial yet because of worker issues.

 

[eran0004]

@MatskiMonk I usually build a very basic “social housing” project with high density residential early on to give the population count a boost, and then I can come back and add details later on.

The green cities low density buildings is also a good way to quickly add a lot of homes that doesn’t need a lot of decorations to look good.

 

[redhed17]

The residential still looks like crap and I can't build much commercial yet because of worker issues.

Pay them a decent wage!

 

[Touring Mars]

The residential still looks like crap and I can't build much commercial yet because of worker issues.

Too many Wetherspoons?

 

[Darla Starch]

Pay them a decent wage!

 

[MatskiMonk]

@MatskiMonk I usually build a very basic “social housing” project with high density residential early on to give the population count a boost, and then I can come back and add details later on.

The green cities low density buildings is also a good way to quickly add a lot of homes that doesn’t need a lot of decorations to look good.

I tend to always build from low density to high density, perhaps I should do it the other way around. I can't recall the Green Cities low density residential off the top of my head, I'm tending to use USA suburban assets from the workshop, but the lighting on many of them isn't great.

Pay them a decent wage!

... yes ...good idea ... so I can tax them more ... good, good ...

Too many Wetherspoons?

Funnily enough I do have several pub assets from the workshop that were made based on some pubs local to me...

.. but none of them are 'Spoonies... perhaps my population is just annoyed it can't get a pint of 'orrible brown beer for a quid with their luke warm dried up fried breakfast.

 

[redhed17]

I tend to always build from low density to high density, perhaps I should do it the other way around. I can't recall the Green Cities low density residential off the top of my head, I'm tending to use USA suburban assets from the workshop, but the lighting on many of them isn't great.



... yes ...good idea ... so I can tax them more ... good, good ...

Funnily enough I do have several pub assets from the workshop that were made based on some pubs local to me...

.. but none of them are 'Spoonies... perhaps my population is just annoyed it can't get a pint of 'orrible brown beer for a quid with their luke warm dried up fried breakfast.

If you get any Wetherspoons they will want to import workers from outside.

 

[eran0004]

This mod looks promising! Especially for commercial buildings placed along a main road, would be really good to move the cargo traffic to the back of the building.

 

[eran0004]

The new building is finished, sort of. I'm thinking about adding some grunge to the walls because it looks a bit too sterile at the moment when you get up close. I've uploaded it to the workshop though, I ended up using the Tax Office template because the asset editor insisted on giving me a 4x4 lot size when I tried to make it an office building and it just looked weird. Now it's a 4x2 lot.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2512870760

Here's its new location within the city of Saint Martin. I imagine it's a small museum, perhaps dedicated to the history of the city?

I also recorded the bus route between the airport and the city center. Ignore the cypress tree standing in the middle of the road

 

[sirjim73]

The new building is finished, sort of. I'm thinking about adding some grunge to the walls because it looks a bit too sterile at the moment when you get up close. I've uploaded it to the workshop though, I ended up using the Tax Office template because the asset editor insisted on giving me a 4x4 lot size when I tried to make it an office building and it just looked weird. Now it's a 4x2 lot.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2512870760

View attachment 1016601

Here's its new location within the city of Saint Martin. I imagine it's a small museum, perhaps dedicated to the history of the city?

View attachment 1016599

I also recorded the bus route between the airport and the city center. Ignore the cypress tree standing in the middle of the road

Fear strikes city attacked by killer cypress tree!

Does this facility to record the journey exist in the console version of the game? It's a neat feature, effectively placing you "in" the city by getting up close and personal.

I keep seeing all your great stuff and wondering what the key differences are, that I would be missing out on. Yes I know its "mods" but what do the mods actually do/enable? If the key parts of the experience are available on console, I see my winter 2021/22 mapped out ahead of me

 

[MatskiMonk]

This mod looks promising! Especially for commercial buildings placed along a main road, would be really good to move the cargo traffic to the back of the building.

This could be great if it works with cargo terminals!

... but what do the mods actually do/enable?

You know all that really cool stuff Eran shows... yeah... all of that!

 

[eran0004]

@sirjim73 I suppose you can record gameplay on console just like any other game, but you can’t get into first person view, since that’s done by a mod. In the vanilla game there is also a limit to how close you can get the camera to the ground. You can still follow a bus or any other vehicle with the camera, but it will be from bird’s eye perspective.

The tools for building roads and assets also aren’t as refined in vanilla. The MoveIt mod is great for adjusting the position of these things. To get an idea of what it’s like in vanilla I’d recommend the Verde Beach playlist:

 

[MatskiMonk]

Ignore the cypress tree standing in the middle of the road

Ignore them...

.. like the countless hit and run victims! Oh the humanity!

 

[eran0004]

Ignore them...

.. like the countless hit and run victims! Oh the humanity!

Yes, I’m afraid the traffic planners confused the concept of “vision zero” with “zero vision”. It’s unfortunate, but I think it’s an honest mistake and not at all related to the fact that they are also major shareholders in the local hospital.

 

[Samus]

I haven't played this (or really any other game) for about three months now, saw the new DLC items and decided to stick it back on. Started a new city to get back into the swing of things then I'll probably go back to the city I was working on.

@sirjim73 I suppose you can record gameplay on console just like any other game, but you can’t get into first person view, since that’s done by a mod. In the vanilla game there is also a limit to how close you can get the camera to the ground. You can still follow a bus or any other vehicle with the camera, but it will be from bird’s eye perspective.

On console you can actually go into first person view with people and cars, you just push I think R2 to adjust the camera. Only difference is obviously you've got to drive/move yourself, you can't follow an AI vehicle AFAIK.

 

[eran0004]

My next asset is going to be a shopping mall. I'm calling it Prime for now, because the pattern on the façade is based on prime numbers. If anyone have some ideas for a shopping mall name with only straight letters, please let me know, because the curves on the P and the R are pretty devastating for the tris count.

The building is designed to fit into this empty lot, so bonus points for any names that are related to wedges or triangles, or very pointy shoes.

 

[sirjim73]

Ignore them...

.. like the countless hit and run victims! Oh the humanity!

That video - it was a bit like the Jack Bauer kill counter from 24!

My next asset is going to be a shopping mall. I'm calling it Prime for now, because the pattern on the façade is based on prime numbers. If anyone have some ideas for a shopping mall name with only straight letters, please let me know, because the curves on the P and the R are pretty devastating for the tris count.

View attachment 1016993
The building is designed to fit into this empty lot, so bonus points for any names that are related to wedges or triangles, or very pointy shoes.

View attachment 1016994

LITL?

 

[eran0004]

The main model is finished, currently working on the LOD model. The logo tris count has improved considerably

 

[MatskiMonk]

Fantastic work @eran0004, I'm glad I'll be able to say I knew you before you were famous

 

[eran0004]

The mall is now on the workshop
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2517531381



Here's a short time-lapse to showcase the pedestrian access and the night lights. Unfortunately the random window illumination randomly decided to not turn on when I recorded this.

 

[sirjim73]

First, the good news.

I found the XBox Console edition on CDKeys for £6.79

Now the bad news.

I didn't get any sleep last night...

Any tips on the best DLC items - theres a long list available on the store?!

 

[MatskiMonk]

Any tips on the best DLC items - theres a long list available on the store?!

I'll just quote myself from before, I now run all the DLC and I don't think my opinion has changed much...

Some of it adds more than others, and it depends how you like to play the game. Personally for me, Industries DLC has basically become the cornerstone of my city layouts as getting those functioning, with the unique factories requires a sound infra structure. Stuff like Green Cities or even Campus add's a lot of visual differences, but doesn't really change how you layout the town. Mass Transit adds options if you enjoy the logisitcs of people moving, and Sunset Harbour and After Dark just add a bit of strength by filling in gaps.

... I'd add that Natural Disasters is one to avoid unless you really want to be dealing with city ruining disaster scenarios.

 

[eran0004]

I like all of the DLC, but if your budget is limited I’d say go for Industries first.

Second on my list is Green Cities, mainly because it adds a bunch of nice residential and commercial buildings.

Mass Transit adds some fun transportation options, but sadly trams are not included, you’ll need Snowfall to get those.

Sunset Harbor adds inland water treatment plants and a great looking large water tower. Also fishing industry, although it’s not as good as the Industries DLC.

 

[Samus]

Agreed, Industries definitely makes the biggest transformation to an otherwise vanilla city because you can get rid of 90% of your ugly, generic industry areas and instead create nice, unique areas and then all the unique factories. Although annoyingly many maps that come with the game and DLC don't always have the resources in a convenient place. Really makes things more realistic though, not having a city full of chimneys and such.

Disasters is the only one I haven't bought, and doubt I will. I like the idea of adding more challenge to the game but not with a mechanic that could destroy something you put hours into. Seems odd, for a city builder.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Seems odd, for a city builder.

I do occasionally flood sections just for the fun of rebuilding, especially when it's a crap bit. I'm nowhere near the level of most of you guys though so my cities are a bit grim.

 

[eran0004]

Saint Martin got its first ore industry running. It's a tiny one, but I like it.

If the forest looks a little denser than before, that's because I found a great pack of hazel trees by pdelmo on the workshop. These trees look great at a distance (and close up as well), so they're perfect for creating forests.

 

[MatskiMonk]

Quick vid covering where I'm up to with my latest map.



This is first small town on the map and serves just to get things rolling. It won't grow much more beyond the roads laid out now (though it needs local forestry), but there's a lot that needs filling in and detailing. I've started building a couple of other things, the docks are barely started and non-functional... and ... a Race track... still very much a work in progress.

Edit: So far, the race track is called Croxstone. Ultimately a mish-mash of Croft, Thruxton and Silverstone... three of the UK's airfield circuits, so I've used the aviation club as a centre piece... though it all needs a lot of finessing.

 

[Samus]

As I work on my new build something I really wish we had on console was wider single lane roads. In Europe and the UK in particular it's very common for collector roads to be like that as I'm sure most of you here know, still one lane of live traffic but plenty of space for parking at the sides, or so it can be two lanes at a junction, or a small turning lane etc.

As it is you either have to do dual carriageways or use the same width single lane roads as the neighborhoods/local roads, so then there is no visual distinction between the two.