Cities: Skylines 2 - Wishlist

[Dalaar]

So assuming that there is a Cities: Skylines 2 in the works somewhere I thought it would be great to have community suggestions and input into what form that it takes. I've read somewhere that there is talk of introducing countries or something but that doesn't especially interest me. It would be great if Colossal / Paradox setup some sort of user voice forum where people could submit suggestions and vote on them to help shape the new game. If anyone knows of such a thing please let me know - I've not been able to find it.
Barring that I thought I might use the forums here to at least submit some of my thoughts. Now some of this might be included in mods available but this is what I would like to see added to the base (un-modded) game.

Roads/Network/Traffic

• Enable PROPER MERGING LANES like those you might find in real life, with various options for lane markings like you might find.
• Customisable road builder available in game, allow the creation of custom roads in game specifying number of lanes in each direction, with each lane being able to be of a different type sidewalk, car, bike, bus, tram and allow the addition of regular props along the way, trees, lights, signs, post boxes, seating. Allow these to be created as presets that you can save to use in your city.
• Improved Traffic AI that lets cars change lanes anywhere and not just on nodes but also makes better use of multi-lane roads instead of queueing up in one lane the whole way.
• Allow trams to return without needing a roundabout!!! In fact can you bring this into the current game also - this is ridiculous.
• Include some basic features from Traffic Manager mod such adding Give Way/Stop/Through, adding and removing stop lights and setting which lanes can turn or go straight (I know that you can add and remove stop lights and stop signs in game currently but the UI for that is awful).
• Include a net picker so piece of network on the map can be selected and then used to lay down more of that network. (Yes I know there is a mod for this - build it into the game! So handy.)
• Include a basic roundabout builder that can select the type of road to be used and size. Roundabouts are fundamental and building them should be part of the base game. Doesn't need all the bells and whistles of the mod as long as it can still be enhanced in a mod.

Infrastructure

• Allow power networks to be created underground similar to water pipes.
• Remove the power zone created around structures and introduce overhead street power lines instead that can then be replaced with underground power networks as a later unlock. More like real life city planning considerations.
• Add data networks to the game so that internet cabling and 3G, 4G 5G towers can be added potentially onto existing building structures. Make data networks improve happiness of people and efficiency of businesses.

Graphics

• Improve the graphics engine to allow even greater detail - Unreal Engine 5 anyone?
  
  The more the game looks like a real city the better!

Assets

• Allow assets to be stretchable to match (to a certain extent) the curve of the road. This might leave the building unchanged but stretch the garden/outdoor (Fencing/hedges) area to stretch bed around the road, creating less gaps between assets, or allow all or part of a structure to flex a certain amount to the curve. This would create more realistic blocks where there is no no-man's land like there is in the game now.
• Introduce the concept of seasons and allow Assets to have different appearances based on seasons, particularly trees & vegetation. Maybe the option to have snow or not on other assets.
• Allow some assets particularly train stations to be placed without being connected to a road or to connect onto an existing train line instead!!!
  Currently if I want a station to line up to a rail network I need to guess where the rail bit of the station will be and create a road in about the right place to put the station then hope that the rail lines up nicely.
• Ability to have more rounded assets and structures
• Find It mod built in.
• Ploppable RICO built in.

Terraforming

• Improve the UI to smooth terrain, perhaps be able to paint an area and then have it smooth it out to the edges or surrounding roads.
• Allow placement of Trees and vegetation on steep slopes
• Be able to paint an area or brush with a combination of vegetation, select a mix of tree, plant or rock assets adjust the % of each and have the game randomly place these assets in the area in the desired concentrations.
• Paintable pavement and other surfaces that can optionally be bordered by roads or structures (rather than plopping down odd shapes to try and fit). Have these surfaces be able to crop the vegetation underneath. (I hate seeing the grass come through an outdoor pool asset - very annoying.)
• More tools to make more natural looking terrain like water courses and cliffs would be nice - I'm not sure how what exactly here, I just know that I find this a challenge.

Audio

• Allow music to be pulled from playlists in Google Play Music or Spotify. Allow the option to insert the in game adds in between these tracks through.
  I grow tired of the ones in game and I find it somewhat objectionable to buy music packs that have a few more songs that I'm not that keen on either.
• MORE in game radio adverts! These are awesome but there needs to be more!
  Can this be modded or become assets that the community can add into the game also?

Other features:

• Asset and mod profiles - allow the game to be started up with different sets of mods and assets available as presets defined by the player to play the game in different styles. Or make these presets shareable also in the community so that people can start with recommended packs from community members.
• Challenge mode - I really enjoyed the community challenges that Biffa put out for biggest city in 30 mins and worst traffic, it would be great if these challenges could somehow be defined and then posted out to the community to attempt with all the appropriate restrictions in place.
• EDIT: Almost forgot 81 tiles in the base game, & perhaps with option to go larger if resources permit.

Anyhow I think there's a few other things that I've though about while playing the game that I've forgotten to include in here. Mostly I just want more/better of the same game - not too dramatically different from the present game, if significant new features are added that take the game in a whole new direction then they need to be done as options so that the people who have come to love this game for what it is can continue to do so.

Finally I would love to hear what others think of this list of mine and especially if you too would like to see a feature list / suggestions site that can take community votes on each feature like the Microsoft User Voice or other software companies use.
What other features would you like to see that I have not thought of or included here?

 

[Fox_NS_CAN]

I would like trees, benches, footpaths and other decorational props get a recreational/entertainment value and a raise in land value if you place them in a free area. This way you could build custom parks. Pre-built park areas are okay if placed on flat terrain and if they fit in your road network, but you often have areas between roads which are somewhat irregular. Right now you can manually build a super nice looking park using footpaths, trees, lanterns, playground props... a place where you'd like to spend hours of time in real life, but these custom made areas have no in-game value for your cims. Trees already have an effect on noise pollution, so I think it's not very difficult to make props and trees influence entertainment value.

In Parkilfe park areas, trees and decorations do add value (a very small amount). You need enough room to add gates though, which is okay sometimes, but not always desirable.

 

[Dushess]

This time it truly requirement to move current thread. CS2 section is created. Staff is here?

 

[cafemajor]

EVERYTHING everyone suggested for CS1 but couldn't make happen! Solves ALL the problems.

 

[cafemajor]

My ideas for CS1 now CS2.

Two words...military bases! That point on, I'm not sure what's included beyond people signing up as this is still a work in progress.

Wvent planning! Meaning, concert(s), play(s), sports event(s) (also another idea hockey rink arena's, American football Stadiums), car show(s)! Manly the car show could be done at another add on such as an event center!

New idea pertaining to the airport DLC that could be ability to create planes like we create ships. Further more to use them at the airport to export resources or use them as passenger planes.

The expansion on forestry industry. ONE being newspaper, the other being maple syrup. I think those are GOLD MINES in the sense that it would expand the game but also bring in A LOT of money to your city.

What if there were police stops for speeding, reckless driving, etc.!

 

[MrSimpletown]

I'd like to see an addition to disasters and crime. It only make sense really. A more complex city is going to have more complex crime as well as disasters. Like right now, CS has generalized crime and simple disasters. I hope CS2 is going to flesh these areas out more with real life issues we've all experienced with understandable countermeasures.

For instance, what about Pandemics?! No really, and the threat of terrorist attacks and mafia like crime syndicates bringing in contraband like weapons and addictive drugs. Also alcohol abuse may be something a player could wrestle with as well as small organized gangs. I like the idea of finding any of these threats popping up in the city, like purse snatching and luxury car theft. A news team/ media could then report these on Chirpy TV with the facts and witnesses that come forward, and this could lead to the player investigating to find the source of the problem and reacting accordingly. This would really take advantage of the ground level camera feature allowing the player to investigate crimes (perhaps inside buildings) and participate in a police response if they want to. Subsequently, each new threat/disaster should come with consequences to make the city problems more real and threatening. And for the passive player, maybe this could be an optional d/l or even simplified some what.

Perhaps the Universities could play a greater role and be involved in research of various technologies like cell phones, anti-gravity, free-energy and global security networks to help fight crime and also advance city and social development. Instead of having academic works they could have a technology tree that the player could choose from to fight the variety of current and potential threats and also advance the city/region into new horizons. Also, new buildings with a modern twist could be made that could only be unlocked through technology research.

For instance, a special, Hadron Collider building could be used to research free energy, and could be experimenting but then accidentally opens a wormhole to the past and lets in a horde of dinosaurs to wreak havoc on the city until a neighbouring well-armed military steps in to either kill the menace or capture it to PUT IT IN A JURASSIC ZOO... but just then Super Hero Captain Infinity comes to the rescue and... Oops, sorry...got carried away for a moment. You get the picture... you could then zoom in at ground level and witness the carnage close up - eh?

What I'm envisioning is an expansion of all of CS's current content. Schools could play a greater role in producing extra-ordinary experts in various fields directed by the player, Medical facilities could treat drug addiction, administer vaccines and perhaps control birth rates and even help produce Prodigies or the odd Genius in the struggle for regional objectives. All this would enable a grander player role that has to do with greater balance and add-on opportunities.

Let's face it, in CS we either create a excellent city with extra-ordinary detail but within the confines of the game's mechanics or go for bust in an enormous megalopolousus of a population until the game breaks. But then what? CS2 MUST give us more but hopefully not just the building and detailing. Maybe because of new game consequences we don't just build the biggest city ever, maybe we find that super large cities create heat domes with environmental challenges that provoke serious weather changes/ disasters and that smaller townships play a crucial role in balancing potential catastrophic threats and of course deliver all of the city supply needs. This will require larger play areas I'm sure, the size of which we can only surmise.

Well, so much for wishful thinking. Whatever Colossal cooks up, I'm sure it'll be much of what we are used to and not too radically different as they will no doubt include that content in additional d'ls (requested by us their customers o/c). Personally, I would just like to see more unexpected city incidents that increases player involvement concluding new and advanced responses available to the player. There are huge developmental possibilities in Cities: Skylines and I believe Colossal Order knows it's gaming community well enough to deliver something worth surpassing our dreams - realistically that is.

 

[zipim]

It would be great to be able to create a real countryside area with fields as far as the eye can see. This would not consume any material resources and would allow for the creation of huge maps. In addition, the agricultural areas would be more realistic as the fields in the real world are gigantic. In Cities Skylines 1, the fields are ridiculous compared to reality. Normally, 3/4 of a country is made up of forests, fields and mountain areas. Cities do not represent much.

It would also be great to create very sparsely populated residential areas, with houses very spaced apart. This would allow for very large maps without using significant material resources and to really create low-density areas far from the city center. It might be wise to create maps with a ratio of 10% dense cities and industries and 90% forests, fields, mountains, beaches, and sparsely populated businesses and homes. This way, boats, trains and highways would travel over very long distances.

 

[ParciwalGaming]

It would be great to be able to create a real countryside area with fields as far as the eye can see. This would not consume any material resources and would allow for the creation of huge maps. In addition, the agricultural areas would be more realistic as the fields in the real world are gigantic. In Cities Skylines 1, the fields are ridiculous compared to reality. Normally, 3/4 of a country is made up of forests, fields and mountain areas. Cities do not represent much.

It would also be great to create very sparsely populated residential areas, with houses very spaced apart. This would allow for very large maps without using significant material resources and to really create low-density areas far from the city center. It might be wise to create maps with a ratio of 10% dense cities and industries and 90% forests, fields, mountains, beaches, and sparsely populated businesses and homes. This way, boats, trains and highways would travel over very long distances.

But this ultra low density shouldn't be the thing you start with, because it's hella inefficient. At least medium density buildings should be available from the beginning. Like two story buildings with two apartments each would be enough. Midrises, 5-10 stories might be a bit high for the start but good for the second achievement or close to that.

 

[ExuberantTopHat]

Cul-de-sacs when? Hard to build an American suburb without them and CS2's roundabouts are not zone-able (from the footage I have seen) so those will not work as a substitute.

 

[Lucododosor]

With the release of Cities: Skylines II fastly approaching, I think this thread has served its purpose of collecting the community's whishes before the new game was even announced.

If you guys wanna continue the conversation about the new game, head over to the C:S II forum!

Thanks!