Cities Skylines DLC guide: All expansions at a glance

In our guide to the Cities Skylines DLCs we tell you:

  • Which DLCs are available
  • What each DLC contains
  • Tips & tricks for each expansion

Cities: Skylines () is a comprehensive building simulation that shines with its realism and is one of the 16 best building games of 2019. In order to support you in building cities, we have created a Tips & Tricks guide for Cities: Skylines, which is also valid for all DLCs. Besides the official DLCs, there are also mods that add new content and features to the game. Our overview of the best 13 Cities: Skylines mods on Steam will hopefully help you out.

  • Get 3 free Cities Skylines DLCs

    • After Dark: Introduction of the day-night cycle

    The first expansion, After Dark(Steam link to After Dark DLC), introduces a day-night cycle. Residents will behave according to the time of day, which means that there will be less traffic at night and demarcated areas will run at lower efficiency. In addition, recreational and tourist specializations are introduced, which are formed from commercial areas.

    The new specializations attract visitors to the city who are eager to party. As a result, visitors are very active at night, so you should build enough police stations and cab companies. Keep such specializations in check so that (drug) crime doesn't get too high.

    Also remember that solar panels do not work at night. So provide enough alternative energy sources to keep the party going.

    Snowfall: Cities Skylines DLCs with new weather system

    Snowfall(Steam link to Snowfall DLC) includes a new weather system that makes it rain or fog realistically. There are also new "winter" maps where your city is covered in snow and has to deal with the typical problems of winter. For this reason, there are new buildings such as the snowplow depot, expanded public transport options and new heating systems for your houses.

    The low temperatures will require you to develop new and more efficient ways of heating. One tip here is to build heat conveyors so people don't heat with electricity, which would be extremely taxing on your power supply. With modernized water pipes, water gets into homes. In addition, heat conveyors produce little noise and dirt, so they have little negative impact on the neighborhood.

    Note that the colder it gets, the more electricity and hot water are needed. The geothermal power plant, as a new building in Snowfall, remedies this.

    Natural Disasters: downloadable disasters

    With the DLC Natural Dis asters(Steam link to the Natural Disasters DLC) nature strikes back. Your cities are regularly hit by disasters: forest fires, earthquakes, thunderstorms, tsunamis, tornadoes, craters and meteors await you. To respond to such disasters in time, you'll use early warning systems, countermeasures and emergency routes.

    In case of disasters, a quick evacuation is vital for survival.

    The Natural Disasters DLC is not for aesthetes and pretty players. The disasters dismantle entire neighborhoods with ease, making the game more exciting, but also unpredictable and chaotic. Rebuilding buildings and structures is part of the game concept. If you can cope with this, Natural Disasters will provide you with disasters worth seeing, which will also present experienced players with new challenges.

    When building emergency routes and shelters, remember that rapid evacuation will only work if your infrastructure is properly developed. The best early warning systems won't do any good if roads are clogged and public transportation is overcrowded.

    Mass Transit: New air and water transportation

    The transportation DLC Mass Transit(Steam link to Mass Transit DLC) is bursting with new modes of transportation. Of all Cities Skylines DLCs, the expansion of public transport is the main focus here: whether on land, in the air or in the water. Larger stations, more varied railroad tracks and new trains give you more creative freedom. Ferries now travel between the islands of your city, and cable cars let your citizens become real summit climbers. Of special attraction are the zeppelins, which carry many passengers but move very slowly.

    Thanks to the new traffic manager, you can see exactly how many citizens are boarding, disembarking and transferring. This way, you can identify less lucrative stops or crowded routes.

    In Mass Transit, your citizens move from A to B in a more varied way than ever before.

    With the Mass Transit DLC, canals can finally be used in a meaningful way. Ferries use them on invisible waterways. This way you can relieve the streets in densely populated districts and support the city's tourism at the same time. However, the new transportation options also eat up a lot of construction and maintenance costs. We therefore recommend that you only build zeppelins, ferries and mono-trails when your budget is well-filled.

    Green Cities: Green cities of the future

    The Greta Thunberg of DLCs Green Cities(Steam link to the Green Cities DLC) stands for environmentally conscious, eco-friendly buildings and vehicles. With 350 new objects, Green Cities is one of the most extensive Cities Skylines DLCs. Among them are service buildings, parks, electric vehicles and specializations. In addition, you can make buildings more environmentally friendly or even completely emission-free.

    Green Cities gives your cities a new "coat of paint".

    The greener your city, the happier its inhabitants. So, if you want to implement some unpopular policies, you can balance this with popular green spaces or environmentally friendly specializations. On the whole, Green Cities is a more visually-oriented DLC that will make your cities look more realistic and close to nature.

    Parklife: amusement parks and zoos in Cities: Skylines

    Increase your city's tourism with the Parklife DLC(Steam link to Parklife DLC). The expansion introduces amusement parks, nature reserves, city parks and zoos. In addition, there are many new monuments and ornamental elements, such as campgrounds, fountains and flower beds. Props can be placed anywhere in parks and buildings can no longer be placed only on roads, but also on paths in park areas.

    Furthermore, you can create tourist tours and direct them to attractions to generate revenue. Amusement parks and zoos are most lucrative if you build them on roads and streets with high traffic. After a few weeks of in-game play, see if the park is turning a profit or just costing you money. Adjust the ticket prices and wait a few weeks again to see what has changed.

    Parks can be filled and designed any way you want.

    Avoid large theme parks and zoos outside the city. The freestanding attractions look pretty, but are rarely profitable. The most important thing for successful parks, of any kind, is pedestrian traffic. The more pedestrians transfer or disembark near the park, the better business will be.

    Industries: Anno 1800 charm in Cities Skylines

    With Industries(Steam link to the Industries DLC), Cities: Skylines establishes new content for industrial areas. This includes new production chains for four different types of raw materials and unique factories. There are also new city services for transportation and mail. A large cargo airport expands import and export possibilities.

    With Industries you'll follow the entire process from mining, to processing, to production and transportation.

    Thanks to Industries, you'll experience a bit of "Anno 1800" charm () in Cities Skylines. Each product must be carefully planned and the factories must be supplied with the necessary resources. Production chains only work if you mine and deliver the necessary resources. Any further processing is profitable and therefore recommended. With successful industrial zones you can level up sooner or later to increase the number of employees and the manufactured products.

    Campus: An attractive and smart expansion

    Building your individual university with associated campus grounds is the focus of this Cities Skylines DLC(Steam link to Campus DLC). Enhance the city's reputation by accepting students and exhibiting academic works. Three zoning options are available to you: School of Commerce, Humanities and University. With the help of university sports you'll create attractions and sell tickets.

    The Campus DLC offers your city the possibility of specific development. If you want to promote subjects such as clothing, video games or new technologies, you'll choose a business school. If you prefer to promote arts and culture, the College of Humanities is the right choice. At university, you'll primarily generate knowledge. This is used for research, which, with a bit of luck, unlocks new technologies.

    All the colleges, universities and faculties increase the attractiveness of the area. Accordingly, the new campus buildings are best located in residential neighborhoods, where the price of land depends in part on its attractiveness.

    Sunset Harbor - Learn the art of fishing

    Turn your attention to fishing and the associated fishing industry in Sunset Harbor(Steam link to Sunset Harbor DLC). In addition, there are enhancements for aviation and bus systems, five new maps with boreal, tropical and temperate areas, and general improvements for urban infrastructure.

    There are four types of fish to catch: Anchovies, Salmon, Tuna and Seafood. However, not every species may be located on your coast. Here a little trick helps: With the mod "Extra Landscpaing Tool" you can dig the seas deeper, which allows you to open up new fishing grounds(Here you can find the 13 best Cities Skylines mods). Alternatively, you can dig holes in land masses until you hit groundwater.

    With Sunset Harbor you'll cultivate commercial fishing.

    As a general tip, remember that anchovies live in calm waters, seafood prefers the open sea, and tuna live in deep waters.

    Routes for the fishing vessels can be created individually and can also be routed along outside the map boundaries. In order for your fisheries to work with the highest possible efficiency, you should not create routes too small and pay attention to sufficiently large fish deposits.

    Mini-DLCs for Cities Skylines

    Apart from large expansions, such as the Campus DLC, Cities Skylines also offers numerous small expansions, often designed by modders in the scene. These Cities Skylines DLCs mainly include new building packs or radio & music packs.

    Building Packs

    For realistic suburbs with a Central European look, we recommend the European Suburbia DLC.

    Radio & Music Packs

    • Relaxation Station : A new relaxation station with jazz, lounge and groove music by Tobias Gustavsson.
    • Rock City Radio : New rock radio station for Cities Skylines with 16 songs from classic rock to metal.
    • All that Jazz : New radio station "All that Jazz" with 16 songs from classic to chill-out jazz.
    • Country Road Radio : New radio station "Country Road Radio" with 16 original songs from Appalachian Folk to Unplugged Country.
    • Synthetic Dawn Radio : New radio station "Synthetic Dawn" with 16 original songs from Electro to Futuristic Synth.
    • Campus Radio: 16 unique tracks from DJ Claude Couture from rock, to pop, to punk.
    • Deep Focus Radio : 16 unique tracks for a cozy atmosphere presented by DJ "Deep Thought". Included is ambient and lo-fi music.
    • Downtown Radio: New radio station "Downtown Radio" for modern lounge music. 16 original tracks with casual relaxed beats.
    • Coast to Coast Radio: Music to get you in the mood for adventure. 16 new songs by DJ Toni G for a clear head and full concentration.

    Get 3 free DLCs for Cities Skylines

    • Match Day: Build a stadium, customize your team, and set new stadium-related policies.
    • Pearls from the East : Three original buildings of Chinese architecture.
    • Carols, Candles and Candy : Five reimagined songs for the holiday season, including jazz, country and indie songs.

    Build your own stadium and manage the team.

    The free DLC Match Day is only available for PC. The other two free expansions, however, are also available for Playstation 4 () and Xbox One ().

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