Gamers and city planners, hold onto your joysticks. Cities: Skylines II just pulled a serious power move with its newly announced Cinematic and Free Camera modes. And guess what? They’re a total game-changer. Strap in for a deep dive into these features that’ll make you want to capture every pixel-perfect moment of your urban sprawl.
The Snapshot Button: Your Gateway to Cinematic Glory
You’ve got your urban jungle laid out, and now you want to show it off. In Cities: Skylines II, just hit the Photo Mode button in the bottom-right corner of the main UI. This isn’t your grandpa’s screenshot tool; it’s a legit playground for photo and cinematography wizards. Here, you can transform your city’s chaos or architectural beauty into frame-worthy snapshots or even blockbuster-like trailers.
Say Cheese With Vision
Photo Mode is all about options, and lots of ’em. We’re talking five tabs chock-full of settings to mess around with. Let’s kick off with the Camera tab. From here, you can tweak the Camera Body, Camera Lens, and Aperture Shape. Each feature is split into sub-settings for you to adjust Camera Collision or Focal Length. It’s a photographer’s paradise, tucked right into your game.
Lens Tab: The Focus Wizard
Slide over to the Lens tab and you’re into the real pro tools. Depth of Field, Motion Blur, Bloom, Vignette, Film Grain, and Panini Projection settings are all at your fingertips. Adjust these to capture a fast-paced metro or a serene cityscape sunset.
Crank Up The Vibes With Color
The Color tab does exactly what you think—it gives you complete control over the screenshot’s color palette. Balance out Color Adjustments, White Balance, and Brightness to get those Instagram-worthy shots.
Control The Elements Like A Boss
Who needs to wait for the perfect weather? Dive into the Weather tab and toggle Distance Clouds, Volumetric Clouds, Fog, and Atmosphere. Plus, the Environment tab lets you control the Time of Day and simulation speed. Your city never looked so cinematic.
Lights, Camera, Cinematic Magic
Switch from Photo Mode to Cinematic Mode with a click and open a toolbox of cinematic options. Use graphs and timelines to tweak Camera Position Controls and Camera Properties. Set up playbacks, save ’em, reset ’em, and play ’em. With keys that control multiple settings, you can change the time of day or weather dynamically throughout your cinematic sequence.
Detailed Control, Because We Don’t Do Basic
If the word ‘basic’ ain’t in your vocab, then the Cinematic Camera tool’s detailed options are for you. Add keys to control settings, just like you would in any video editing software. From Camera Transform Controls to Photo Mode Panel, each setting can be added as a key, letting you create smooth transitions between different camera positions and properties.
Gamers, this is how Cities: Skylines II is upping the ante in in-game cinematography and photography. It’s not just about building a city; it’s about capturing its soul. Get ready to unleash your inner director or photographer, because these new features are your ticket to the Oscars of city design. Happy gaming!
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Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5
