Cities: Skylines News

Welcome back to the second Airport Dev Diary! Today we invite those of you looking to create large airports to the front of the line as we begin this Dev Diary concerning Airport Progression and Public Transport Links.

[h2]Next level airports[/h2]
A level 1 airport is comparable to the base game airport - it’s a basic connection to the outside world - but with a lot more flexibility in terms of layout. It consists of a terminal, at least one plane stand and a runway with connecting taxiways, and can accept small planes. Decorative buildings are available and needed for the airport to level up, unlocking larger planes, more buildings and additional connections to the city.

Airport Areas can be compact like the regular airport - but expanded when your city’s needs grow

To reach level 2 your airport needs to service 500 passengers and have an Attractiveness Score of 200, which is reached by placing decorative buildings in your airport. Decorative buildings have their own menu filter and can be hotels, hangars and parked planes. Once your airport reaches level 2 you unlock the medium plane stand and your airport can start receiving medium planes, which can carry more passengers. Furthermore, you unlock large terminals, more decorative buildings, and integrated metro in the form of Concourse Hubs and the Elevated Airport Metro Station.

Decorative buildings make your airport more attractive

Level 3 is the highest level your airport can reach and requires 5000 passengers and an Attractiveness Score of 1000, but in turn unlocks not only large planes, but also cargo planes, the Airport Train Station and the Airline Headquarters Building, which lets you found your very own airline - more on that in the next Dev Diary!

Once an airport reaches a level, it cannot be lost even if you make changes to the airport. However, any new area created in the city will always start out as level 1. And yes, that means you can have multiple Airport Areas in your city if you want!

A well-established airport

Link to the city
Among the new airport buildings are options for integrated bus, metro, and train so you can easily connect your new airport to the rest of your city - or create shortcuts within your airport if it spans a large area!

The Airport Bus Station is available from level 1 and can be placed anywhere along the concourse network. It has 11 available stops for buses making for a perfect opportunity to use the two new buses! The Articulated Airport Bus is able to carry 50 passengers, while the Doubledecker Airport Bus can transport up to 60 passengers, making them ideal for busy routes headed into the city!

New bus options connect your city to the airport

When your airport reaches level 2 you unlock metro connections in the form of Large Terminals, the Elevated Airport Metro Station and Concourse Hubs. Like the bus station, they connect directly to the concourse network, but do not need a road connection! Simply connect them to your metro network and set up a line carrying passengers between your airport and the city. Keeping with the theme we added an Airport Express Metro, which can be selected using the vehicle selector when viewing the line details.

Don’t miss your flight with the Airport Express Metro

At level 3 you are able to build the Airport Train Station. This modern ground station is placed along the concourse network and does not require a road connection either. You just connect the train tracks to your city and set up a train line. We also included an Airport Express Train, which can be selected from the Line Info Panel to add more variation to your train lines!

Integrated train station makes long distance travel in the city even easier

We’ve arrived at the end of this Dev Diary and hope you have enjoyed what we had for you today. Monday at 4 PM CET / 7 AM PST we take a closer look at the Airline Headquarters Building, which unlocks at level 3 and lets you set up your very own airline!

Last but not least check out the video tutorial by City Planner Plays and don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more!

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Greetings city-builders! I hope you’re ready for another round of Dev Diaries as we prepare for the release of Cities: Skylines - Airports, the expansion that was announced on the 10th of December 2021! If you haven’t already, check out the trailer here or watch it below.

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Cities: Skylines Airports is an expansion in which you design your own airport and grow it from a small local transit point to a massive international hub buzzing with life. It’s modular, using special concourse networks to connect each building, which allows for a lot of creative freedom and flexibility, meaning you can build an airport in many different shapes and sizes to fit your city!

Airports expansion lands in stores on the 25th of January and to ensure a smooth arrival we have prepared these Dev Diaries covering each new feature, so please sit back and enjoy!

Shape your airport to fit your city

[h2]Create your Airport[/h2]
Airports use the Area Tool which can be found in the Districts and Areas menu, and becomes available when your city reaches Milestone 4. It works very similar to Districts and other Area Tools with one exception: It flattens the ground and removes trees in preparation for your airport, adding a landscaping cost and affecting the amount of soil available to you. The 3 new maps added in Airports feature a lot of suitable, but more on those in a later Dev Diary.

The Airport Area tool prepares the terrain for your airport

Once you are satisfied with the area, it’s time to start actually building your airport! All the items you need are in the Public Transport menu under the new Airport Area tab. A functional airport needs a terminal building, a plane stand, and a runway, and taxiways connecting the plane stand to the runway. The Airport Area has a handy checklist alerting you to anything you’re missing to get your airport going!

Go through your checklist before takeoff

The first thing your new Airport Area needs is a terminal. Once placed it unlocks the additional buildings and the concourse, runway and taxiway networks needed to create your airport. Concourse networks serve as a connection between terminals and plane stands, which are placed along the concourse.

Next, the airport needs a runway for planes to land and take off. It works differently than most networks as it has both a minimum length and cannot be extended after placing it, so make it as long as you want it right away. Taxiways connect the runway and the plane stands in a one-way loop.

A modular airport in its simplest form

[h2]Choose your style[/h2]
There are 3 different styles you can choose from when building your airport: Classic, Modern and Ultra Modern. Each style has 3 different sizes of terminal buildings, a concourse network, a control tower and a concourse hub with built-in metro for those very large airports, and all 3 style options are available at level 1.

An airport can have multiple terminal buildings, which function as different entry and exit points for citizens. This lets you expand your airport as it grows, with different terminals able to handle different amounts of traffic. For a busy airport you might want to use the 2 story terminal option, which splits arrivals and departures and has a dedicated lane for buses and taxis to drop off or pick up passengers.

Pick your favorite style or mix all of them in one airport

[h2]Airport Info Panel[/h2]
Selecting the Airport Area name or using the Airport Area Info button after selecting a terminal brings up the Airport Info Panel, which shows all the relevant information for your airport: Level, passenger count, attractiveness score, income and expenses, and much more.

The Airport Area Info Panel gives a quick overview of your airport

Like most public transport you will find an airport to be a costly investment with little direct income. Instead, it brings in tourists to your city, who visit attractions and commercial buildings, adding to your income. And the attractiveness of the airport also increases the City Attractiveness, which helps bring in even more tourists!

The Policies tab lets you apply area-specific policies, like Hotel Discounts, which gives your airport a direct increase in attractiveness, Great Maintenance, which adds a Land Value bonus to the whole airport, and Car Rentals, which encourages tourists to use cars but may cause increased traffic.

With the basics of creating an Airport Area covered, we come to the end of this Dev Diary. We hope you enjoyed this first look at Cities: Skylines Airports, which arrives in stores on the 25th of January, and don’t forget to check in on Friday at 4 PM CET / 7 AM PST when we explore Airport Levels & Public Transport Links!

Last but not least check out the video tutorial by CityPlannerPlays and don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more!

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Vehicles of the World:
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Content Creator Pack: Vehicles of the World features 21 modes of transportation inspired by vehicles across the globe. Created by bsquiklehausen, you can fill the streets and rails of your cities with iconic service vehicles including 2 ambulances, 2 police cars, 4 buses, 2 fire engines, 2 garbage trucks, 2 hearses, 4 metros, and 3 trains!

Purchase on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1726381/
Also available on Xbox One and PlayStation 4! Go to your console store pages to purchase!
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Maps Pack:
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Content Creator Pack: Maps Pack features 8 new map terrains to build your cities created by Sanctum Gamer. Unleash your city-building creativity and enhance the area on these uniquely diverse landscapes.

Purchase on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1726382/
Also available on Xbox One and PlayStation 4! Go to your console store pages to purchase!