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Introduction to maps and terrain props, tree noise reduction and new animals

Today's topic is one that we all must've been waiting for: New Maps.

We've designed 5 new maps to fit the theme of Parklife DLC which means the maps will have forests, uneven terrain, ruins and other terrain features that offer good opportunities for building interesting Parks and Cities. Now I am going to give you all a sneak peak into one of my favorite new maps: Pine Rivers which has a Boreal theme. Pine Rivers is ideal for nature paths through the forests, creating huge Park Areas and specializing in ore industry. It has multiple smaller rivers that I think forms an interesting base for a City. But you don't have to take my word for it. Check it out yourself!
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Plenty of room and directions to expand my City in Pine Rivers.

It is also worth to mention that new terrain props together with new trees and vegetation are included in free update so even without Parklife you are able to beautify your maps with park-like areas! And those who will own Parklife should remember that placing these terrain props inside your Park Area also increases the Park's total Entertainment value!

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Let's hope nobody's home!

Tree Noise Reduction Effect
As a part of the free update we have redone the logic for tree props, like in real life the tree will now reduce Noise Pollution!

To achieve this the system will calculate the density of tree in an area and create heat map based on that data. Places that have higher concentration of tree will have more pronounced effect.

Let's imagine this scenario from in-game. You've built a new fancy train station near the residential zone so your Cims can more easily access work from their homes, you'd imagine they would be super happy? And you would be correct, there is less traffic and everyone gets to work faster. But those ungrateful Cims now complain about the Noise pollution coming from the train station. So a decision was made to plant new trees facing the residential zones to reduce the Noise Pollution. Now your Cims can fully enjoy the convenience of nearby train station without having their ears bleed all day.

For further gameplay tips we would like to remind that a lonely tree won't do much. But a small forest between a highway and residential area will help keep your Cims ears in much better condition. And also the distance is a factor. The further away the trees are from the source of the Noise Pollution, the weaker the dampening effect is.

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Before and after the Mayors Trees Against Noise Pollution Initiative.

New animal models

Parklife DLC comes with a horde of new animal models that can be used on maps by placing down Exotic Wildlife Spawn Points in the Map Editor. These markers then spawn suitable animals for the map's theme and also work in water so now you can spot Dolphins, Manta Rays and Humpback Whales swimming around! In Asset Editor you can place Animal Markers of a specific animal type on your creations. You are able to choose for example from Antelopes, Chimpanzees, Flamingos, Giraffes, Gorillas, Lions, Reindeers, Swans and Rhinos. Note that Bison and Moose markers are included in free update! Creating your own animal parks has never been this easy.

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Sweet harmony.

Cheers,
Cities: Skylines dev team :)
 
Tree Noise Reduction Effect
As a part of the free update we have redone the logic for tree props, like in real life the tree will now reduce Noise Pollution!

To achieve this the system will calculate the density of tree in an area and create heat map based on that data. Places that have higher concentration of tree will have more pronounced effect.


View attachment 369241
Sweet harmony.

Cheers,
Cities: Skylines dev team :)


So, will trees also have an effect on land value? At least it should. I mean, in most cities, high value properties are either close to parks, recreational areas or on the outskirts of cities (close to forests, etc).
 
They don't.

Trees on streets which, up until now, were the only trees that reduced noise pollution, do indeed affect the value of the residences on them. Haven't you seen the 'smiling faces' when you upgraded a street to a tree-lined one? Reducing pollution always upgrades the area.
 
Trees on streets which, up until now, were the only trees that reduced noise pollution, do indeed affect the value of the residences on them. Haven't you seen the 'smiling faces' when you upgraded a street to a tree-lined one? Reducing pollution always upgrades the area.
Yeah, the ones on the streets do, but not the hand-placed ones.
 
Yeah, the ones on the streets do, but not the hand-placed ones.

That was my point. They finally allowed all trees to reduce noise pollution which means that now all trees, in sufficient number, will upgrade land value. It's really great that they listened to all the requests for this improvement and added it to the game.
 
That was my point. They finally allowed all trees to reduce noise pollution which means that now all trees, in sufficient number, will upgrade land value. It's really great that they listened to all the requests for this improvement and added it to the game.
I see that they'll reduce noise pollution, but nothing about them raising land value, unless the two effects are linked.
 
I think I remember that Green Cities changed noise pollution so that cars emitted noise pollution. Do trains also emit noise pollution? So even if I lay a forest of trees near the train station, will the trains themselves cause noise pollution as they travel along the tracks? Do I have to place a line of trees adjacent to all the train tracks now too?
 
Do trains also emit noise pollution? So even if I lay a forest of trees near the train station, will the trains themselves cause noise pollution as they travel along the tracks? Do I have to place a line of trees adjacent to all the train tracks now too?
Yes they do. However, you will only need a wall of trees if the adjacent rail is busy.
 
I think I remember that Green Cities changed noise pollution so that cars emitted noise pollution. Do trains also emit noise pollution? So even if I lay a forest of trees near the train station, will the trains themselves cause noise pollution as they travel along the tracks? Do I have to place a line of trees adjacent to all the train tracks now too?
Yes but its not a field of noise that follows vehicles around. Its more like they leave behind a decaying pool. It takes quite a bit of traffic for it to get above negligible. You'll be able to tell if your trains are creating too much noise through the noise overlay.
 
Tree Noise Reduction Effect
As a part of the free update we have redone the logic for tree props, like in real life the tree will now reduce Noise Pollution!

To achieve this the system will calculate the density of tree in an area and create heat map based on that data. Places that have higher concentration of tree will have more pronounced effect.
Hmm... would I be correct in assuming you're using Unity to assign the tree clusters to an array. If so, what would define any group of trees as an array and how many arrays would be manageable? Not only that, what would the frequency of parsing each and every array be? That sounds to me like a huge memory hog and may explain a lot of the 'array too long" error reports we've been getting over at the Steam forums.
Could you please confirm what is going on?