In a new blog post, the developers have revealed what a big role electricity and water play in the city-building sim.
Building a city in Cities: Skylines 2 is going to be a lot of fun. It’s just a shame that we can’t just look at houses at our leisure, but also have to look after the well-being of the population.
Imagine that: The people don’t want to freeze in winter! And it gets even better: They want clean water too! Blimey, we’re at a loss for words. But at least the developers of Cities: Skylines 2 think along with us and explain (in a new blog entry) down to the smallest detail how we can ensure a safe electricity and clean water supply.
We summarise the most important points for you. You can also watch a three-minute video on the topic at the top of the article.
Nothing happens without electricity
Before electricity can flow through the sockets into households, businesses and industry, it must first be generated. You have to make the most important decision right away: should the electricity be generated locally in your city or purchased externally? If you choose the former, you have several options to choose from:
- Fossil fuels: Generate electricity from coal, oil or gas. Produces a lot of electricity, but also produces a lot of pollution.
- Renewable sources: Environmentally friendly alternatives to electricity generation, but not as efficient as fossil alternatives. Sources include wind, water, solar and geothermal energy.
- Nuclear power plants: As in reality, a sensitive issue. Produces huge amounts of electricity with little environmental impact, but is very expensive to run and requires vast amounts of water for cooling.
Purchasing electricity externally relieves the burden on your infrastructure, but in the long run it also costs more than if you produce it yourself. If you don’t supply the amount of electricity you need, there will be a blackout and a whole host of other problems. That’s why you should also build electricity storage facilities early on, which keep a limited amount of energy in stock.
No matter how you proceed: The electricity must get to the consumers. When building most types of roads, underground low-voltage cables are laid automatically, but you can also place them manually. These cables are still not enough to carry the amount of electricity you need, so you must make sure to place enough power poles with high-voltage cables.
It was already announced in an earlier blog entry that many buildings can be upgraded. You can also upgrade the industrial buildings for power generation in several stages
Clean water is the trump card
Even if you provide enough electricity, problems can still occur. Namely, when residents have to deal with drinking water that is too scarce or polluted. Especially when nuclear power plants and other industrial buildings are built, the surrounding waters suffer.
New in Cities: Skylines 2 are underground water sources. They are great for buildings, but be careful: They fill up slowly. If you use too much, the source can dry up completely.
Water pumps, already known from the predecessor, can be efficiently built along rivers and transport the cool water into the city. Pipes have to be laid again for this. Similar to electricity, water can also be stored in large reservoirs for periods of drought.
When the water becomes polluted, it becomes uncomfortable. On the one hand for you, because you then have to see how you can clean up the mess. On the other hand, for your population, because they get sick and have to be treated. Sewage pipes should therefore be strategically placed so that none of the filth gets into the drinking water.
Whether electricity or water: A detailed info view is always available in Cities: Skylines 2. This gives you a visualisation of where bottlenecks exist, where the supply is good and which problems need to be solved.
Do you like everything you have read so far about Cities: Skylines 2? Are you already making big plans in your head to realise your dream metropolis? Or are there aspects of the game that still give you headaches or even bother you? If so, which ones? We are curious about your opinion, so feel free to write it in the comments!
