Greetings, everyone! We’re thrilled to bring you another development diary as we near the release of patch 1.1.8, also known as the “Decorations Patch.” While it’s not as extensive as Detailer’s Patch #2, we believe you’ll still appreciate the enhancements. Since we aimed to address the homelessness issue promptly and the decorations menu was primed for release, we decided to bundle them together, along with several other bug fixes, naturally. Today, we’ll explore the new menu, the functionality of props, and the updates related to homelessness. So, let’s dive in!
We have been inspired by your creative utilization of the numerous props available in the game, and from the outset of crafting Detailer’s Patch, we knew we wanted to provide an official and supported method to access them. For those unaware, accessing and placing props has been possible through developer mode, however, it wasn’t designed for routine use and can cause issues. Hence, we are excited to introduce the new Decorations Menu within the Landscaping options, offering you access to a plethora of props to embellish your cities.
Add a personal touch to any empty area of your city using the props in the decorations menu
The Landscaping category now includes 8 new sections filled with props, ranging from stones in the Nature section to benches and fountains in the Park section and crates and silos in Industrial Props. We meticulously reviewed all existing props in the game, selecting those that are sensible and functional when placed. For instance, we omitted props that only make sense when placed on buildings, such as chimneys or air conditioning units, as building placement for props isn’t supported. Altogether, you’ll have access to 298 props to enhance any area of your city that needs a little extra charm.
Placing a prop from any of the new categories is akin to placing trees or buildings. They feature a collision area based on their size and shape. Similar to trees, they can be placed on surface areas to create stunning plazas or well-kept gardens. Once placed, they can be selected, relocated using the Relocate button in the Selected Info Panel, or removed using the Bulldozer. Best of all, props are free to place as they are purely decorative and don’t impact the city—aside from boosting its aesthetic appeal, of course!
Create plazas, parks, gardens, back alleys, or more using props and surfaces
Let’s turn our attention to homelessness within the game. When citizens lose their homes, whether due to affordability issues or destruction, they become homeless. If they can afford to, they will leave the city; if not, they will seek temporary shelter in parks or abandoned buildings. Previously, they often became stuck, unable to find new homes or exit the city. Patch 1.1.8 incorporates several fixes to ensure these homeless households have an opportunity to recover.
Previously, a random check determined whether homeless households would search for suitable homes within the city. This has been removed, so with patch 1.1.8, homeless individuals will always attempt to find a suitable home. However, this change alone isn’t sufficient; it requires available homes, and those homes need to be allocated to the homeless population rather than newly created households. To address this, homelessness now influences demand in two ways: it reduces the spawning of new households while increasing the demand for high-density residential housing.
Depending on the number of homeless households in your city, it might take some time for all of them to find stability or leave the city. You can expedite this process by meeting the demand for residential zoning and providing public transportation options out of the city, such as intercity buses or trains.
That wraps up this development diary. We hope this gives you an idea of what to anticipate in the forthcoming patch, and we will release the complete patch notes once patch 1.1.8f1 goes live. We’re eager to see your creations using the Decorations Menu, so feel free to share screenshots (and tag us on social media) showcasing your work!