Cities: Skylines II

Premium city building sim

Cities: Skylines II is a premium simulation game from Paradox Interactive. This city-building game is the much-awaited sequel to the 2015 title Cities: Skylines. You can create your dream city with a better engine and many more features. You will have a hand in all aspects of its development, from the infrastructure to the economy.

Like the original, Cities: Skylines II is an open-ending game aiming to build a thriving and livable city. Once you get past its steep learning curve, it’s a fun and addictive experience. It’s a definite improvement over Sim City 2000.

A newer engine for a more immersive experience

The first thing to note with Cities: Skylines II is its improved graphics. Built using Unreal Engine 5, it is a definite upgrade compared to its Unity-powered predecessor. Expect more realistic animation and higher-resolution textures, making it feel more like a breathing city. Of course, expect it to be more demanding regarding system resources, especially as your city grows.

To surpass its predecessor, this game aims to provide new gameplay features. These enhancements encompass improved road tools, an advanced economic system, sophisticated traffic mechanics, and dynamic climates that alter the appearance and functionality of your city with each passing season. Additionally, while the map size is smaller than in the original game, most tiles can be unlocked, resulting in a more expansive experience for every map.

Undoubtedly, the Cities franchise upholds its signature challenge. Mastering its learning curve requires dedication and patience, as the game's realism and diverse gameplay options are intricately intertwined with numerous variables. For example, although you can build whatever you want, an economic aspect covers budgets, loans, and taxes. It's important to note that this game is currently in the developmental stage.

Making city management realistic and complex

Cities: Skylines II boasts quality-of-life changes that will level up your city-building endeavors. Unlike its predecessor, you can’t upgrade city service buildings, so you’re forced to construct new ones in a neighborhood. Now—as most buildings are upgradeable—you can fully meet the demands of your citizens without sacrificing aesthetics. 

While city services, parks, and recreation directly increase Land Value in the previous game, this new iteration changes how the attribute in question works—requiring players to cater to their population’s needs to improve Land Value.

As this game tries to mirror real life, players can now build Server Farms and Telecom Towers to provide individuals and businesses with an internet connection, enhancing communication capabilities and increasing profit as well as Leisure and Well-being attributes.

Of course, your city is not a utopia. With criminals running amok in neighborhoods, constructing Police Stations and Police Headquarters is the way to go. In this way, police officers can arrest criminals, imprison them, and establish order in the city. However, addressing the root cause of criminal activity is a lot more complex than that. 

In Cities: Skylines II, citizens become criminals due to poor Well-being—which is attributed to a building’s criminal probability, poor water and sewage services, inadequate supply of electricity, and many more. 

Hence, being cognizant of an infrastructure’s inherent criminal probability and providing excellent services are ways to deter crime. These changes and features ensure fresh and dynamic gameplay while keeping the title grounded as close to reality as possible. 

Extra content for a limited time

To celebrate the upcoming release of Cities: Skylines 2, the developers have opened pre-order bonuses. For starters, those who have availed of the game before its official release are treated to nine unique buildings. These are all inspired by real-world landmarks and include the following structures:

• The National Diet building
• Notre Dame Cathedral
• National Gallery
• Botanical Garden
• Grand Hotel
• Näsinneula
• Xi’an Bell Tower
• Sungnye
• The London Eye

Players also receive a new map based in Tampere, Finland. This is where the developer of the game Colossal Order is headquartered.

Additionally, the game also comes with an expansion pass, available only with the Ultimate Edition of the game. This includes instant access to the San Francisco content pack and a unique radio station. It also guarantees access to future scheduled releases, including asset packs and other radio stations.

Next-gen city-building experience

Cities: Skylines II is the highly anticipated sequel to the acclaimed city-building game, offering a premium simulation experience. The game introduces new gameplay features, including advanced road tools, an intricate economic system, dynamic weather effects, and sophisticated traffic mechanics. While mastering the game's learning curve requires dedication, the rewards are a fun and addictive journey of building a thriving and livable city.