Mods Vs No Mods for Beginner Player

[DigiDave]

Hi. As a beginner I do not wish to learn in sandbox mode. I look forward to the challenges and especially the achievements.

I recently read somewhere that playing with mods stops a player from receiving achievements. Is this true?

Some people say that some mods are OK, but how does one determine which mods stops a player from receiving achievements.

Perhaps once I have achieved everything - I will embrace the mods. I am actually saddened that achievements are cut out of the picture when using them ... but ALAS ... that's OK. I will just do my best to earn all the achievements and then let rip with that mods.

I must admit though ... it seems hard to find tutorial that does not include mods. I did manage to find the following one:

Cities: Skylines - New Player Guide // Updated for 2017 - NO MODS [EP1]

If anyone knows of likewise tutorials without mods - please do advise.

TY.
__________________________________

 

[metacritical]

just use the mod that allows you to get achievements while using mods.

 

[akeela84]

This game is a sandbox game and even in the sandbox mode you will get achievements'. All mods will disable any achievements' if you use assets that should not mess around with them. However there is a mod that enables achievements' even while using mods.
The game is best to get-to-know without any mods so you get used to the basics.

 

[DigiDave]

That's great news. Thanks for the link. I just subscribed to use later after I have learned the game without using mods. Forgive the confusion with my term sandbox mode. I just meant - I like to first play these games without enabling all the money and unlocks. I look forward to using many of the mods soon enough.

On a side note ... I am playing an i7 laptop with only 8 gigs of ram outputting to a 24ich 1920X1080 LED Display. Not using mods for now allows me to adjust the display settings for a smoother experience. I did not consider this until it was mentioned in the tutorial I linked.

This game is awesome! So much to learn but having fun along the way. I used to play the original simcity franchise about 20 years ago. I'll be turning 48 in a few weeks and never guessed I'd still be playing these game into my 50's. I have to admit though, it's taking me longer to learn new tricks.

Thanks for the replies and link to enabling mods whilst using mods. I never really cared for the disaster scenarios as it took me so long to build I hated seeing my city torn apart in a moments notice.

I don't suppose City Skylines will ever become a multiplayer game? I can't remember the name... but I did once purchase a likewise game that allowed for players to build within each other's boundaries. I don't believe that game was as detailed as skylines. One could at least chat and spectate as the other player builds.

Not to worry ... love this game as is.

Thanks again.

 

[vukica]

Let me just chip in here, as a beginner, you only need precision engineering. Then later on, you can also use fine road tool.

After that, you'll see yourself what else is missing. Just don't overload your game with mods.

 

[metacritical]

one tip to remember. this is not a simulator, do not expect your city (and more importantly road traffic) to work the same as it does in real life. if you've played city builders before as you have then it's pretty straightforward game to play. also don't forget that there are plenty of people who play the game and upload videos to YouTube. I recommend flabaliki, i watched his third series and it's a pretty good description of how to play the game and some of the errors people make

 

[muttonnoir]

Approaching 50? A mere child! I'm 56 next birthday and I'm addicted to Cities Skylines. Good idea to first play vanilla in order to get a handle on the game. Mods add so much more to the game- transforming the experience. The mods you chose will very much depend on your playing style and personal preference. Precision engineering and Loading Screen are essential! Check out the "most subscribed" tab on the workshop and make sure to read the reviews. There are some fantastic assets available too. Enjoy!

 

[Fox_NS_CAN]

I guess I am a young'un, at 45. Played Sim City on the C-64 though, so I go way back with this game type.

I played through Cities Skylines without mods, and got all the achievements. (Not counting the ND ones, I don't have ND as of yet, but got 100% before it came out.)
Now I play with a lot of assets and a few mods though. I use the infinite money thing now too. I still have a positive cash flow, but it lets me do stuff faster.

I think that is the way to go, but to each their own.

Workshop assets and mods are not to be missed!

On Youtube, I like Fluxtrance, Fresh Popcorn, and Strictoaster. Both their own things, and their collaboration "Arrowhead Junction". They use lots of mods and assets though, so not good for "vanilla training".

 

[DigiDave]

I hear ya Vukica. Once thing I struggle with is allowing enough space for walkways, trains and other modes of transportation. I find many of the tutorials are great for laying out basic road structures, but would love to see more guides that add information on allowing for pathways and other modes of transport that typically take up space. (during the initial set up phase)

I understand that one can upgrade roads without destroying “too many “buildings and in doing so one may be required to relocate service buildings and then put them back if that’s what one wants, however if not allowing enough space early on for walkways, rails etcetera … it sure can get confusing after making the space only to realise a 3rd of the population has been wiped out.

Perhaps over exaggerated … but something like that. No matter … I am still very green when it comes to this game. I did struggle a little with it in Sim City 4 which imo has not been equalled until this game came out.

THX Metacritical – Just created a New Playlist. : ) I don’t expect my cities to operate anything like in real life. I actually don’t like most cities. No offense intended for those living in them. I much prefer my own creation and not out for perfection – just to have fun with a game that I can handle is all.

Precision engineering and loading screen installed. I take it I will need to activate “achievements with mods mod” in order to still get achievements? Thanks for the steer with those muttonnoir. Is Vanilla a Map … when you say “Good idea to first play vanilla…” Nice breakdown on the use of mods. For now I will leave the assets as some really seem to tax my laptop. I’ll update to a newer version in the coming year or two.

{re graphics settings for laptop - I seem to of found good settings so I can play in 1920X1080 on notebook with only 8gb of ram with reasonably smooth viewing - at least while my city is only in the early development stage} I can share those setting later if anyone is interested?

Fox_NS_CAN - Nice to know I am not the only 50ish yold still playing these games! I had a commodore 64 as well … remember the Vic32? … : ) What is an ND mod? I’ll for sure end up using infinite money and whatnot once I know the game back to front. I think this kind of game is like painting once you know what you’re doing. I sat my grandson on my lap the other day and he loved watching whilst we went into first person view driving around the city. I think it gave him a new perspective from the toddler seat he normally sits in. He really seemed to love it. I just want to learn so I can create scenic drives without having to worry about the city runny astray. Kind of get it to a point of self-management where I can just go exploring. I’d love to see more things like gyms, movies, swimming pools and all those kind of things … perhaps in assets or mods … I don’t know yet … getting ahead of myself.

Thanks for dropping the extra names on YouTube. Vanilla Training? What’s that all about? For now I will stick with the guide I first linked above. (I am currently half way ep2) then I am going to sponge as much as I can and learn via “flabaliki” channel. (Is flabaliki ok for Vanilla training [??? Whatever that is]

Srry for the long post … just wanted to cover everyone as I appreciate the responses from all – and want to take as much as I can in.

 

[DigiDave]

Just to double check - I loaded the the following three mods:

1. Precision Engineering
2. Loading Screen
3. Enable Achievements

Hows that look for a beginner starting off?

Thanks again for all your help ... Ver much appreciated.


no reply goes to waste and I can use all the help I can get.

 

[Fox_NS_CAN]

"Vanilla" just means the bare bones game, with no mods or assets added. I guess mods more than anything, as many assets are little more than decorations as far as actual game play is concerned. So when I said those guys would not be good for "vanilla training", I just meant you'd constantly be wondering how they did stuff, and why don't I have that button?

What is an ND mod?

Sorry, "Natural Disasters". When I started the post I also used abbreviations "SC" and "CS" and changed them to avoid confusion. (Sim City, Cities Skylines).

We had a VIC-20, and my C-64 was actually a C-128, but that effectively had a C-64 built into it.

 

[DigiDave]

Thx for the clarification. Vic 20 sounds like it. I am not so good with numbers. Thems were the days.

 

[metacritical]

load screen mod becomes more important as you add more and more assets as it tells you what props are missing, if any, and if you turn on the setting in the options it also creates an html page that includes a link to where they can be found on the workshop (just note where the html page is located on your hard drive as it's a pain the find). it also, apparently, decreases load times. the reason why i recommend flabaliki is because he plays the game whereas many YouTubers design the game meaning that he plays, makes mistakes and learns as he goes along. a bit like us, others spend ten hours placing trees around a single building, which is less useful if you want to learn how others play the game and improve how you play it. he uses mods and he lists which ones, but you'll decide whether you want to install those mods in your games based on what they can do and how you play the game. just remember that his third series spans over a year of his life, so some mods that he uses no longer work with the the latest patch, and have been replaced by new mods.

for me fine road anarchy is essential, as it allows me to add roads when the unmodded 'vanilla' game tells me a road can't be built, which is useful if you want to build roads up or down steep hills etc. but i would suggest playing the game a bit first before installing that one as it's a very powerful mod, allowing you to do much more than this (like add bridges on flat ground or forcing the road to be along ground, which is useful when you want to increase the shoreline to stop flooding, but not useful if you forget to turn that setting off and want to build a bridge over a river, as it blocks off the river, i've done this more times than i care to admit to!). Network Extension is also essential as it adds many many many different types of road but again, play the game a bit first before adding this (but it will make your enjoyment of the game more once you do install it); just note the bus lanes that they add don't work unless you also use Traffic++V2 which i used to use but it massively increases your system resources once you reach a population of 100,000 and the slowdown of your game is really noticeable. same with Traffic Manager: President Edition. those are harder to recommend. fortunately you can turn off these roads in the Network Extension options.

 

[DigiDave]

Thx again Metacritical. Read you post last night then again this morning. I forgot just how addictive this game can be!

I'm doing well enough learning via "ImperialJedi" atm with no mods. Half way through EP 3 now. Everything you said resonates well with me. I need to know what does not work in order to understand the benefits of those mods and in order to do that I really should stick to playing unmodded.

I skipped ahead to check out ImperialJedi's videos for skimming purposes only and can see his playstyle is very thorough with his teaching technique. He is including all aspects of transportation, how to expand/upgrade, (which is my weak area) move and relocate services, rezone, with loads of focus on traffic optimization, connections and so on.

I once had a crack at this like 18 months ago and then gave up. (entirely my issue) Thankfully Jedi has updated his tutorials for 2017 and included more of them. Hopefully I will continue all the way with my current ... "lessons [lol]" where at the end of this No Mod series, I will then tinker with my own creation before embarking on "Flabaliki"'s series as you guys suggest. I should then be well placed to better understand the benefits of proposed mods and fine tune my understanding of this game. Sounds like a plan to me.

All I need to do now is include this new schooling into my current routine. ATM ... I'm struggling to do anything else but play. - I'll work out some kind of schedule ... I am sure.

PS - it can be tempting just to think I understand now and skip certain segments of the tutorial ... however ... by following everything to the T ... I can see just how much I would be missing if I was to go off on my own. I hear what your saying about many players just playing with trees. I can assure others reading on that ImperialJedi's No Mods Tutorial is anything but that. The trick is to actually follow everything from start to finish and keep asking oneself many questions as to why one does what they do. This is why I like how this presenter keeps going back over much of his previous work while slowly growing his city - Our City - MY CITY

I best get on with my days work, so I can later play!

PPS - I look forward to the very end; when I can REALLY start playing with the trees!!!

 

[cRAGGLE]

For a starter: no pillars, road anarchy and precision engineering will make your life much easier.

I'm hoping Colossal Order will include these into the base game one day I just can't live without them. I've tried to play vanilla but it's too frustrating without the above mods.

 

[DigiDave]

I'm up to episode four of ImpreialJedi's tutorial without the mods and have to say I am having a blast! None the less I am glad to of made this post as all the recommendations are making for an excellent read as I further investigate the mods.

What is Colossal Order? Is that the next expansion or name of a developer?

 

[Fox_NS_CAN]

What is Colossal Order? Is that the next expansion or name of a developer?

Colossal Order is the name of the developer that made Cities Skylines.

 

[DigiDave]

Thx Fox - then what may I ask is Paradox Interactive's Role? Overseer?

 

[akeela84]

Thx Fox - then what may I ask is Paradox Interactive's Role? Overseer?

Paradox Interactive is a Swedish video game publisher based in Stockholm, Sweden. Paradox Interactive publishes its own games, both developed by their division and those of other developers.
In this case Colossal Order is the creator of Cities: Skylines and Paradox is the publisher, being responsible for marketing/releasing/selling and so on.

 

[Fox_NS_CAN]

I knew I should have mentioned Paradox. I started to. One part of my brain was saying "mention Paradox too", the other part was saying "but nobody asked about Paradox, I'm tired, go to bed!" You can tell which part won out in the end!