Hello there, city-builders! It's time, once again, to delve into the mysterious world of developer diaries!

In the coming weeks we'll take a look at the newest expansion to Cities: Skylines called Campus. It was announced on the 9th of May and if you haven't done so yet, check out the trailer here.

Universities, colleges and the campus life are an integral part of any large city. They elevate the education to new heights, bring in exchange students, toga parties and also open up the possibilities to organize the school's own varsity sports team. With Campus you can create various types of campus areas of any shape and size using the Campus Area tool. After painting the campus area, you can choose the campus type - Trade School, Liberal Arts College and University - by placing the campus Administration Building. Campus areas will level up in reputation when specific requirements are fulfilled. Reaching new reputation levels unlocks a selection of buildings to further expand and customize your campus areas.

Campus areas educate young adults into highly educated citizens. Each campus type is unique and visually distinct from each other. Campus types also provide different types of city-wide bonuses through Unique Faculties.

Campus expansion also includes varsity sports and museums. After you have set up the beginnings of your campus, it is time to consider how the school will be represented in the world of varsity sports. Build a varsity sports arena inside your campus and customize your own team and help them to great success in home and away matches. Perhaps your team will be victorious and you'll be awarded with a trophy after the varsity season is over? Also, what is a city without a few museums? With Campus expansion you'll be able to build unique museums that work in conjunction with the different campuses and provide an additional boost to your city for it to flourish like never before. There will also be some nice free content coming alongside Campus expansion and you can read more about it and the different features of the Campus expansion in the upcoming Dev Diaries.

Campus expansion will be available in stores 21st of May. To help the wait, stay tuned in for more Dev Diaries where we take a closer look at the new features.

Best regards,
Your Colossal Order dev team

 

[Beer Fiend]

They've said they make DLCs basing on popular demand...it seems like Education themed was the most requested.

They've also said that another most requested theme was beach\vacation oriented, so we'll probably see that as the next DLC.

Even though that's what After Dark was for?

Crime DLC
Crime DLC
Crime DLC
Crime DLC

 

[lrbaumard]

What does this DLC do, that I can't achieve with the Hadron Collider?

 

[metacritical]

What does this DLC do, that I can't achieve with the Hadron Collider?

as the hadron collider pretty much cripples a city that it is built in i guess we'll find out if this expansion doesn't do that

 

[Avanya]

They've said they make DLCs basing on popular demand...it seems like Education themed was the most requested.

They've also said that another most requested theme was beach\vacation oriented, so we'll probably see that as the next DLC.

I've definitely seen education/university pop up a lot, so I'm not surprised they went with that. Beaches/vacation however I really doubt we'll see. I'm not seeing a whole lot of new mechanics that it could introduce and After Dark already brought us zones that do this. I don't really see what they could add that I can't already have with AD, Parklife and some custom buildings. But maybe I'm missing something.

 

[Mazisky]

Well Avanya, it can be made with another paint style specialization for the commercial zone, with clubs resorts, casinos, restaurants and you create your holiday village, i mean not growable but like you do with industries dlc

 

[TNT718]

It really does not get me excited as it seems limited in what can be achieved other than a well educated city with American Football that the vast majority of people on the plant do not care about. The concept of university is different in the US.

I agree with you that the DLC may be limited but why the 'sneak diss' on American Football? have u ever been to a game? Embrace diversity. The concept of university is the same in the US as it is all over the world. The difference is collegiate sports especially bball and football makes schools money

 

[Sir Leningrad]

I find it strange that it doesn't include a science-based campus.

Also, it would seem logical that an education based DLC would contain middle-grade technical schools and daycare, a bit more expanding on quality of life and job opportunities.
I also hope that we get some sports variety, I really don't care much about "varsity" or whatever that is.

 

[TNT718]

They've said they make DLCs basing on popular demand...it seems like Education themed was the most requested.

They've also said that another most requested theme was beach\vacation oriented, so we'll probably see that as the next DLC.

Did they really make this DLC based off of 'popular demand'? Ive seen many requests for a sports oriented DLC and also for crime for a while. But an entire college campus?? Besides people were already making, via the workshop, college buildings for your city. Not saying people didn't but I personally never saw a large amount of requests for a beach or vaca DLC. I thought we already had a few beach oriented props and buildings and besides I thought the Parklife DLC was based on vacation theme for your cims and tourist alike.

 

[TNT718]

Well, about sports they have done Match Day free update for us Europeans while americans don't care at all...now it's their turn i guess.

Whose says Americans didn't care about MatchDay?? We enjoyed it too.

 

[Nycky Ferro]

I'm not seeing a whole lot of new mechanics that it could introduce and After Dark already brought us zones that do this.

I thought the Parklife DLC was based on vacation theme for your cims and tourist alike.

I personally don't think "After Dark" brought enough functionallity about tourism, it has several and interesting elements like airport and taxis, but we don't have hotels that works as hotels. A hotel not always attracts tourists, and on the game, (After Dark and Snowfall has hotel Unique Buildings) it is "free to use", we don't get money from tourists by the hotel Unique Buildings.
For me Parklife is a ploppable version of the Leisure Specialization, with a little more management. Industries has ploppables versions of all the industries too. I believe that is needed functional Comercial Buildings (Shopping Malls, Hipermarkets, Big Stores, Hotels and resorts).

 

[GonzaRoh]

also hope that we get some sports variety, I really don't care much about "varsity" or whatever that is.

Varsity sports are those in which a team represent its University competing against other universities. It's not a sport per se, it's like a category, and it involves a lot of different sports.
In the store page of the DLC it's says "football, basketball, baseball, track & field, and swimming arenas" (football being American football) are the ones that come in the game.

 

[Avanya]

I personally don't think "After Dark" brought enough functionallity about tourism, it has several and interesting elements like airport and taxis, but we don't have hotels that works as hotels. A hotel not always attracts tourists, and on the game, (After Dark and Snowfall has hotel Unique Buildings) it is "free to use", we don't get money from tourists by the hotel Unique Buildings.
For me Parklife is a ploppable version of the Leisure Specialization, with a little more management. Industries has ploppables versions of all the industries too. I believe that is needed functional Comercial Buildings (Shopping Malls, Hipermarkets, Big Stores, Hotels and resorts).

After Dark had a lot of things a little all over the place, so it never really had a chance to really dig into a few things. I could see a DLC along the lines of Industries that covers more commercial types like you mention and maybe even offices too. It seems big enough to fill out a DLC and could offer new systems like semi-modular buildings and parking lots. I just think tourism on it's own doesn't add much depth or new mechanics to the game without recycling AD functions. But anyways, we're getting off topic and should probably move the future DLC speculations to another place and get back to Campus.

 

[TNT718]

A hotel not always attracts tourists, and on the game, (After Dark and Snowfall has hotel Unique Buildings) it is "free to use", we don't get money from tourists by the hotel Unique Buildings.
For me Parklife is a ploppable version of the Leisure Specialization, with a little more management. Industries has ploppables versions of all the industries too. I believe that is needed functional Comercial Buildings (Shopping Malls, Hipermarkets, Big Stores, Hotels and resorts).

I agree. It would be nice to get a revenue boost from hotels, casinos, arenas, malls, resorts etc, similar to the way the industries DLC boosts exports/imports. I also agree Park Life is a ploppable version for the Leisure Specialization. They probably should have added a few hotels and resorts to the unique and growables catagories when the Park Life DLC released. This and a few policies that cater specifically to the hospitality industry would have made sense for either the Park Life and/or Industries DLC.

 

[Giveaway412]

I've definitely seen education/university pop up a lot, so I'm not surprised they went with that. Beaches/vacation however I really doubt we'll see. I'm not seeing a whole lot of new mechanics that it could introduce and After Dark already brought us zones that do this. I don't really see what they could add that I can't already have with AD, Parklife and some custom buildings. But maybe I'm missing something.

I still think there's quite a lot that could be done with a beach/water-focused DLC. For starters, beach zoning and props in the same vein as the props from Parklife, as I feel like coastal areas in the base game are rather lacking. Waterfront property and condos could be added, both for additional revenue/land benefits and they'd look better next to the water. Harbor buildings could use some additional focus (as well as possibly provide a fishing/aquaculture industry type?) and would look good on quays and nearby cargo harbors. Docks, piers, and boardwalks could all be added, possibly using the network functionality like roads, and could be tied into marinas so we'd see sailboats and yachts in the waters without having to resort to reskinning ferries. We got new rocks and shrubbery with Parklife, in the same vein I'd like to see ploppable coral reefs and other ocean props to really spice up the underwater. Finally, I'm not sure if it's possible but if canal locks were to be added, this would be the time to add them.

Tie this in with some more tropical content (Tiki bars!) and some overhaul to the hotels added by After Dark, and I think you'd have a splendid DLC.

 

[fritzdougg]

this makes me wish for Cities Skylines: Cemiteries

 

[TNT718]

I feel like coastal areas in the base game are rather lacking. Waterfront property and condos could be added, both for additional revenue/land benefits and they'd look better next to the water. Harbor buildings could use some additional focus (as well as possibly provide a fishing/aquaculture industry type?) and would look good on quays and nearby cargo harbors. Docks, piers, and boardwalks could all be added, possibly using the network functionality like roads, and could be tied into marinas so we'd see sailboats and yachts in the waters without having to resort to reskinning ferries. We got new rocks and shrubbery with Parklife, in the same vein I'd like to see ploppable coral reefs and other ocean props to really spice up the underwater.

In the workshop, they're plenty of high and low level residential buildings that you could place on your waterfront. You can also find docks (both modular and pre made) that you can configure into your city with some fuctionalty. You can also find some coral reefs and dope underwater rock configurations that will make your shoreline amazing, on the workshop. I agree with you on the yachts in the water around the marina. That would be incredible.

 

[Giveaway412]

In the workshop, they're plenty of high and low level residential buildings that you could place on your waterfront. You can also find docks (both modular and pre made) that you can configure into your city with some fuctionalty. You can also find some coral reefs and dope underwater rock configurations that will make your shoreline amazing, on the workshop. I agree with you on the yachts in the water around the marina. That would be incredible.

I mean, it's true that I could go to the workshop and find assets for the waterfront. But before the Campus expansion, I could also find the materials needed to make a university campus.
That doesn't mean that the Campus expansion is irrelevant, though- it adds new college functionality at a seamless quality as the base game. While I do use mods and assets, I like to keep it at a minimum, and I get the feeling that there's a lot of casual players that don't use mods or assets at all. It's important to recognize the modding community, but I don't think the devs should ever go "we shouldn't add that, mods can do that for us!". In my opinion, the places where the land meets the water in the base game are lacking, and an expansion focused on those areas would go a long way in improving both visuals and gameplay depth.

 

[aubergine18]

Is there a feature that allows us to exploit students for profit? That way we can burden everyone with huge loans, and then ensure they end up flipping burgers and subject an entire generation to indentured servitude thus rapidly diminishing the number of people getting high education and achieving our goal of race to the bottom.

 

[TNT718]

I mean, it's true that I could go to the workshop and find assets for the waterfront. But before the Campus expansion, I could also find the materials needed to make a university campus.
That doesn't mean that the Campus expansion is irrelevant, though- it adds new college functionality at a seamless quality as the base game. While I do use mods and assets, I like to keep it at a minimum, and I get the feeling that there's a lot of casual players that don't use mods or assets at all. It's important to recognize the modding community, but I don't think the devs should ever go "we shouldn't add that, mods can do that for us!". In my opinion, the places where the land meets the water in the base game are lacking, and an expansion focused on those areas would go a long way in improving both visuals and gameplay depth.

This is a fact. Everything you said 100. But it's also one of the reasons why some people are luke warm to this new DLC. I mean a few new buildings and props is definitely dope. But how exactly will this campus dlc help affect my city? If cims go to trade school vs university does this mean they'll want to work in my industries dlc factories more? I'm curious to see what this DLC will do that the vanilla college (and institute) can't. The only thing I can see thus far that truly sets this DLC apart is the 'varsity sports' feature. And being from New York City were college sports take a back seat to everything pro, I'm really looking to see how this dlc will make a difference in my little metroplis

 

[Giveaway412]

This is a fact. Everything you said 100. But it's also one of the reasons why some people are luke warm to this new DLC. I mean a few new buildings and props is definitely dope. But how exactly will this campus dlc help affect my city? If cims go to trade school vs university does this mean they'll want to work in my industries dlc factories more? I'm curious to see what this DLC will do that the vanilla college (and institute) can't. The only thing I can see thus far that truly sets this DLC apart is the 'varsity sports' feature. And being from New York City were college sports take a back seat to everything pro, I'm really looking to see how this dlc will make a difference in my little metroplis

Oh yeah, I agree, but it does seem like they have plans to overhaul the current education system. I don't know if it'll be through trade schools specifically but we'll have to wait and see what they have planned. There's still more info to come.