Summary
The city builder genre often forces players to watch their creation from a bird’s eye view. While this can be fun for a while, sometimes players want to get a different perspective, yet they often have to resort to mods to do so. These types of games seldom give players the ability to actually be within their city, so when one does it is pretty surprising. And it seems like Ubisoft understood thatwhen it craftedAnno 1800, which is whyCities: Skylines 2may want to take some notes.
Anno 1800andCities: Skylines 2are vastly different types of city builders, yet they can learn from each other. Specifically,Anno 1800’s unique first-person mode could shine in an urban city builder. Letting players actually walk around the city they spent countless hours constructing just sounds like a nice treat, especially if they can actually interact with its many citizens. While a feature like this should not come at the expense of other much-needed changes, including it could add a nice extra layer to the city simulator.
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Cities: Skylines 2 Should Give Players a New Perspective of Their City
The focus ofAnno 1800is on building a thriving country during the Industrial Revolution. It is up to the player to construct the cities, ensure they have everything they need, and upgrade them as the world evolves. It blends classic city-building mechanics with the strategy genre for a pretty interesting experience that players may want to check out. One of the best parts is that it gives players the ability to actually live within their creation.
If players get bored withthe bird’s eye view ofAnno 1800, they can actually view their city from a first-person perspective, as they can assume control of a random citizen. Then, they can walk through the streets as if they actually lived there. While there is not a lot to do in this mode, it is nice to view the city from this perspective. Plus, Ubisoft tossed in a few quests that players can complete to unlock even more fun things to do while they are there.
Letting players see theirAnno 1800city in first-person can be a lot of fun, which is why a game likeCities: Skylines 2should offer something similar. Even though the focus of the game is on constructing a city, actually being able to explore that city as a citizen can be a nice change of pace. That way players can see everything going on among the streets from much closer, and they can even feel like they are a part of the action. Along with that, if Colossal Order followed in the footsteps of Ubisoft, then it could even fill the city with fun events and quests to discover.
Right now, the only way to really get a first-person view of aCities: Skylinesenvironment is to download mods. If players can find a working mod, then they can get this experience. But it should be included as a base game feature instead. It could just be a fun little treat for players to mess around with whenever they want. And if the studio wanted to take it to an entirely different level, then it could even replicateMaxis’Streets of SimCityto let players actually race through the cities they have built.
Cities: Skylines 2delivers a pretty content-rich city simulator that will likely be expanded upon for years to come. And right now, some of the first updates should focus on fixing the game’s many performance issues. But after that, the studio should consider adding a fun little feature like this. Even if it simply lets players walk around their city, it could be a great addition to the formula.
Cities: Skylines 2
WHERE TO PLAY
If you’re able to dream it, you can build it. Raise a city from the ground up and transform it into the thriving metropolis only you can imagine. You’ve never experienced building on this scale. With deep simulation and a living economy, Cities: Skylines II delivers world-building without limits.Lay the foundations for your city to begin. Create the roads, infrastructure, and systems that make life possible day to day. It’s up to you – all of it.How your city grows is your call too, but plan strategically. Every decision has an impact. Can you energize local industries while also using trade to boost the economy? What will make residential districts flourish without killing the buzz downtown? How will you meet the needs and desires of citizens while balancing the city’s budget?Your city never rests. Like any living, breathing world, it changes over time. Some changes will be slow and gradual, while others will be sudden and unexpected. So while seasons turn and night follows day, be ready to act when life doesn’t go to plan.The most realistic and detailed city builder ever, Cities: Skylines II pushes your creativity and problem-solving to another level. With beautifully rendered high-resolution graphics, it also inspires you to build the city of your dreams.
